Comic Review- Action Comics #1001

[bedsitter23]

Action Comics (2016-) #1001 by Brian Michael Bendis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


DC's Year of the Bendis continues as he takes over Action Comics in earnest.

For those, who were expecting Bendis to do Bendis, this is probably the most realized issue. Credit to Bendis who has been handed two concurrent Superman issues and trying to make some measurable difference between them. While the Superman title strives for Big DC ideas, Action Comics strives for the Action side, or at least, a more human Supes.

So, if you like Bendis, this has all of his trademarks - snappy dialogue, memorable scenes (as opposed to stories), exciting pacing, and memorable panels. If you don't like Bendis, then all of that stuff is there, too. A plot that takes a backseat to the scenes, forgettable secondary characters (When has Bendis made memorable enemies? I would say Purple Man, but that's not his invention), and a page spent on trying to make a memorable panel.

For me, I am a Bendis fan so I take the good with less regard for the bad. I think the overall plot will probably let me down, but as long as I enjoy the ride there, I am happy. Indeed, the weakest part of the book is the final pages where he tries to set up a cliffhanger.

I like Gleason's art here quite a bit. It's a pretty clean style that matches well with Bendis.

There are a few plot details that may drive people nuts (Why didn't Lois...) but you know those weigh lower on my scale than it does for others.

In short, why this doesn't quite feel like Powers, it very much is in line with what you might expect from the writer. I ultimately don't want it to be Christian Walker rewritten with a red cape, but I do think when he leverages those ideas, he can succeed.



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