Super League Part 4: Superman / Wonder Woman #28 Review

As Superman says goodbye to Wonder Woman, the two are called to ARGUS to speak to the captured Superman imposter who’s been going on a murderous rampage in Metropolis.

Super League Part 4: Superman / Wonder Woman #28

Story and Words: Peter J. Tomasi / Art: Ed Benes / Colors: Alex Sinclair / Letters: Rob Leigh / Cover: Paul Renaud

Peter J. Tomasi continues his emotional Man of Steel story arc with Superman / Wonder Woman #28. Tomasi isn’t one to get too mushy and he’s tuned right in with the “get a room” fans who don’t want to see the Man of Steel and the Goddess of Truth get too hot and heavy. The story moves along at a brisk pace and we get a good dose of action, as well as some great revelations.

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The fourth chapter in the “Final Days of Superman” story arc starts off with Superman having to say goodbye to Wonder Woman. I think out of all the characters, so far, who’ve had to bid farewell to the Man of Steel, Wonder Woman takes it the hardest. It’s a bit ironic, as she’s also one of the toughest heroes in the DC universe. Well, I guess that hard outer shell contains a really gooey center, because she’s not letting go of her boyfriend that easily.

Wonder Woman is in denial and actually thinks that this is a small setback for Superman. She believes that it’s something that the gods can fix — just another deus ex machina moment. Well, Superman brings her right back to reality and lets her know that this is as final as things get. The two then share a rather sappy moment where they passionately kiss — something that makes Kara so uncomfortable that she makes an excuse to fly away. This is where Tomasi pulls it back and immediately introduces the meat of this issue’s story. So kudos to Tomasi for giving us just the right amount of emotion and ending it before it got out of hand.

Superman and Wonder Woman are called to ARGUS where the crazed imposter who’s been passing himself off as Superman has been captured and imprisoned. Superman immediately identifies the man embodying his signature solar flare power. So where does the Man of Steel go from here? He heads right upstairs to talk to the guy that got front row tickets to his solar flare — Ulysses.

While speaking to Ulysses, the man downstairs absorbs enough energy around him to break through. Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor can’t hold him off, so Superman lends a hand. However, the man causes enough damage to ARGUS’s power system that Ulysses’s cell fails — which leads to him also breaking out. The ending has Ulysses detecting that Superman is already dying.

Tomasi creates the perfect blend of emotional goodbye, high-octane action, and mysterious revelation all in one issue. I was wondering when that imposter was going to come into play. That question has now been answered. It seems that when Superman deployed his solar flare last year, he may have affected a person nearby. Now, why that person isn’t dead, and why does he think he’s Superman are questions to be answered. And those might be coming in the next issue.

Ed Benes’s art works perfectly here. I’m not sure if this was done on purpose, but the lines and faces of each character do remind me a bit of Jim Lee’s style. And the colors are very Neal Adams-ish — with the bright blues and large, dynamic, colorful panels.

My favorite pages coming out of this issue are the ones where the imposter and Ulysses break out of their holding cells. Both of these consecutive two-page spreads give a sort of cinematic action sequence ambiance. The diagonal panels work well to elicit a feeling of motion and speed.

Next: Super League Part 3: Action Comics #51 Review

Overall, I’m really liking where Tomasi is taking this “Final Days of Superman” story arc. He’s really been hitting it out of the park since the start of Super League. The plot and story are cleanly written and move at a fast pace. Story development, twists, and exposition are all nicely layered on top of each other, so your getting a very tightly written narrative. Superman / Wonder Woman #4 is another great read from this series.

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