ACTION COMICS #33: Chapter 1 Superdoom. Lana Lang and Steel prepare to head into space and find a way to help Superman. In space, Superman’s cousin, the Red Lantern Kara, sends him to Akron 23 where the people are being attacked by a being called Harak. Making sure the last Chars get to evacuate, Superman attacks Harak, who leaves the fight to save members of the Char's fleet who would be killed by planetary debris. Lana and Steel, finally making it to space, try to get help in the form of Lois Lane, who seems unconcerned about the spreading epidemic on Earth. That is when they see the Cyborg Superman making his way towards them.
Greg Pak and Aaron Kuder continue to make this book have the biggest quality turnabout
Of all the NEW 52 titles. The writing is smart and exciting, the art is crisp, and the story is a lot of fun. I am looking forward to the DOOMED storyline to end and to see where Pak and Kuder is going from here. Certainly, it’s a far cry from the early issues where Superman was in a T-shirt and cape.
SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #10: Chapter 2 of Superdoom. Lana Lang and Steel get attacked by the Cyborg Superman and his army. They contact Superman to tell him about the Brainiac situation regarding Lois. Controlled by the Doomsday virus, he attacks the unmanned ships that are attacking Lana and Steel's ship. Steel space walks and tells Superman that this is only a small part of a larger fleet headed for Earth and they believe the signal calling the aliens is coming from Smallville and Metropolis. Back in Metropolis, the entire city has fallen into a coma except for Lois, who transforms into Brainiac before attacking Wonder Woman. In the process, she uploads John Corben’s memory back into Metallo so he can attack Wonder Woman. Diana destroys the machine, but Lois grabs John's head and flies off. Off in space, Cyborg Superman explains that Brainiac and the Phantom King are responsible for the Doomsday experience. Superman plans to let the virus loose so he can deal with the situation.
Charles Soule turns in the newest chapter of the Doomsday Saga and we now get to see that Brainiac and the Phantom King are involved with this whole Doomsday mess. With art by Paulo Siqueira and Pascal Alixe, the issue looks okay. It’s not Tony Daniel, but it will do. The story does a nice job of giving us revelations and action and I’m GREAT with that, as we don’t have to deal with the messy Superman/Wonder Woman relationship thing.
SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN ANNUAL #1: Chapter 3 Superdoom. As the Brainiac invasion fleet nears the Earth, Superman battles it out with the Cyborg Superman. But this whole battle is merely a ruse to keep Superman from stopping the invasion. Meanwhile, the Justice League assesses the situation as Steel and Lana Lang warns them of the invasion. The ships have been set up in a pattern designed to boost the signal that shut down Smallville and Metropolis. It is decided that they need to shut down 36% of the nodes to decrease the signal. They also know that Superman’s returning to an Earth surrounded by a Kryptonite cloud will just cause the Doomsday virus to control him and result in the death of everyone. Wonder Woman tells Batman he needs to find a way to get rid of that cloud and then heads to Romania, where she battles with a Doomsday infected Superman. Batman manages to clear the cloud and Clark is able to gain control of his body and mind once again. Meanwhile, Steel is battling Cyborg Superman and is losing. Lana uses their weapons to assist, but he severely damages the life support systems. Steel returns to the ship to rescue her, allowing Cyborg Superman to continue on his journey to Earth. The battle is far from over for Earth.
Charles Soule continues his tale, with art from a host of artists including Ed Benes, Tony Daniel, Pascal Alixe, Cliff Richards and Jack Hebert. Now that the beast within is being held back, maybe the Big blue Boy Scout can put his energies into stopping the invasion and saving Lois Lane. While this was fun, it was one of the weaker chapters just because we get to see the Justice League hunkering down in their disaster bunker. Really? The Justice League needs a place to hunker down in case the world ends? Okay. Somehow, after all that transpired with the Crime Syndicate, you would think they had this thing figured out by now.
ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #3: Chapter 4 Superdoom. (This story runs concurrently with the events in SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN ANNUAL #1). Lois Lane has had her mind taken over by Brainiac and is desperately trying to find a way to break out of her mental prison. Meanwhile, Batman has made his way to Superman’s Fortress of Solitude and is now working with Lex Luthor, Harrow, Ghost Solder, and Dr. Veritas to find a way to defeat Brainiac if Wonder Woman cannot. Batman is aware that the only person who could get rid of the Kryptonite is Xa-Du, who was the first prisoner of the Phantom Zone. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter struggle with Superman, warning him that he must leave before his condition gets worse. Ghost Soldier arrives with Baka, who transforms into a monster and fights alongside the transformed Superman to fight off Brainiac's ships. They return to Metropolis where Superman, momentarily cleansed of Doomsday, confronts a possessed Lois Lane. He destroys all of the nanobots that have been keeping her under Brainiac's control. Despite it, she retained her telepathic abilities, sending Clark a message of support as she turned her attention to a deeply wounded John Corben. At the Fortress, Harrow gets Xa-Du to open portals to get rid of the Kryptonite. But that also means Xa-Du can now free himself. Superman, back in control of his body, reunites with Wonder Woman and Krypto. But Lois warns something bigger is on its’ way.
Greg Pak writes a chapter that, although referred to as Chapter Four, actually runs concurrently with Chapter Three, going as far as to have both books end on the same final two page spread. Art is provided by Ken Lashley, Aaron Kuder, Jack Hebert, Cliff Richards, Julius Gomez, Will Conrad and Pascal Alixe. This chapter fills in a ton of gaps that the previously chapter did not. We now know how the Kryptonite cloud was eliminated by Xa-Du and that Xa-Du is probably going to be a major problem in the next arc of this tale. And what of Lois, who is now free of Brianiac’s control, but still has the telepathic ability and knows that Clark is Superman? How will all this play out? Tune in next month for the next installments.
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