He was the greatest hero of his world. She was the world’s greatest reporter. They had a wonderful life together. Their world died, yet somehow they survived, finding themselves on another Earth where there was another Lois Lane and another Superman. They contented themselves to stay in the shadows, helping and reporting where they could, taking joy in each other and having a son, Jonathan.
Now, Superman and Lois Lane are dead. Their counterparts from the older Earth have stepped into the space left behind—the former because the world still needs a Superman, the later because she couldn’t bear to see the other Lois Lane’s loved ones—her loved ones—suffer at her absence. Yet one mystery still remains, who is Clark Kent? For some reason, the death of the New Earth’s Superman coincided with the reappearance of Clark Kent. A perfectly ordinary human Clark Kent who claims he went into hiding at the urging of Superman. But also a Clark Kent who is oddly obsessed with Lois Lane and has begun stalking her, saying they are meant to be together.
Now, the biggest mystery in the lives of the Kent Family will be unraveled, but will the fabric of their lives and reality itself remain intact as Superman is reborn?
Superman: Reborn completes the process which the DC Rebirth initiative set in motion. It is difficult, if not impossible, to discuss this story without giving away the mystery. Suffice it to say that title gives away the ending—Superman and Lois Lane are reborn and reality is rewritten to start a new status quo, which is explained and explored in later volumes of the Action Comics and Superman series. This makes it difficult to consider Superman: Reborn on its own merits, since it can’t exist as a single entity by its very nature. The first three DC Rebirth volumes of the Action Comics and Superman series fed into this story and are required reading going into it. Fans of those comics will find Superman: Reborn to be an enjoyable read, and Peter Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, and Dan Jurgens resolve all the associated mysteries with style, clearing the field for one unified Superman reality with one Superman, one Lois Lane and no confusion. For now, at least.
The artwork for this volume is impressive, assembled as it is by an all-star team made up of the many artists who currently work on the Action Comics and Superman series. They are all skilled at their work and the action of the story is well presented, with no sour notes at all. The only problem, as in past collections of both Superman and Action Comics, is that the differing art styles between chapters can occasionally be distracting. Doug Mahnke’s gritty, realistic style and Patrick Gleason’s more exaggerated manga-influenced style are as night and day, but both look fantastic despite their differing aesthetics.
This volume is rated 12+ for teenage audiences and that is a fair rating. This is as wholesome as an All-American comic can be, with no sex, little cursing and a fair bit of superheroic action. (Well, what do you expect? This story was partly published in Action Comics!) There’s nothing that should present teen audiences with any trouble, save for a bit of existential dread.
Superman Reborn
by Peter Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, and Dan Jurgens
Art by Doug Mahnke, Patrick Gleason, and Stephen Segovia
ISBN: 9781401273583
DC Comics, 2017
Publisher Age Rating: `12+
