Jonathan and Martha Kent received a mysterious baby and they're going to teach him how to face life the best way they can despite that they don't know what their new son is capable of.
And here it is people, the moment that many people have been anticipating for both the best and worst reasons.
I don't think I need to tell you how infamous Frank Miller has become in recent years. From his many recent failed projects in terms of writing or even consistency (All-Star Batman & Robin will never be finished, that's a fact) to his terrible work in his latest film adaptations, it seems like the old days where Miller could pleasently surprise us with inspiring works like Daredevil or Batman: Year One are completely over. I personally has been morbidly curious about this new book due that I knew that it would at the very least bring a few unintentional laughs.
However, I must admit that I kinda like some of this.
The story opens with the typical overly-melodramatic third person narration that Miller is known for and this is something constant during the whole read. That being said, I think it works decently here due that it touches a few important moments like the destruction of Krypton and helps to give a bigger emphasis to the most relevant scenes. Don't get me wrong, Miller's narration and dialogue are far from natural and there are definitely a few lines that take you out of the story but the at the same time, some of them give the plot a bigger tone and scale. I suppose you could call it a mixed bag but I think it works better than other recent Miller projects.
About the plot, I get the feeling that this has more in common with John Byrne's Man of Steel origin than the others. Not only because both Miller and Byrne are old school writers but also because their characterization for both the Kents and Clark seem to follow a similar path. Clark acts like a common boy who wants to do good but seems a bit more proactive in his actions, not afraid of getting into fights and even showing off a few times (Him being a football star in Smallville reminds me a lot of Byrne's work). The Kents act a bit differently, particularly how both Jonathan and Martha disagree in how Clark should use their abilities and his father is a bit more realistic in what needs to be done to help others, is an interesting take and don't seem particularly wrong.
The way how Clark starts developing his powers is also fairly well-depicted including his fear to hurt other people because of his strength and how he can hear every being in the world which forces him to control his abilities even further. I think this part was well-done.
Not going to lie though, there's a really big issue here and one that most certainly will make this opening chapter divisive. There's a borderline rape scene here and I understand the point of this, to make the moment much more dangerous and justifying what's about to happen to the culprits but considering that Miller has a long history of scenes like this, it makes me wish that this wasn't included at all due that it makes it incredibly predictable from him and brings all the wrong attention. Not to mention that I don't want to see moments like this in a Superman book.
John Romita Jr. handles the art and he has a bit of a history with the character considering his role in the New 52 Superman book but here his work is much more polished, much more appropriate for the quiet life in Smallville and all of this is depicted with a lot of detail and charm.
Overall, I don't think this is bad. There are a few things that makes you rise your eyebrows (Particularly the already mentioned rape scene) but as a whole I think this first chapter makes you invested in what's about to happen with Clark. Was expecting worse quite frankly.
No hay comentarios.:
Publicar un comentario