Review- SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL VOL. 7

SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL VOL. 7 (DC, First Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Action Comics #596, 597, Adventures of Superman #436-438, and Superman #13-15 (cover dates January- March, 1988)

Writers: John Byrne and Jerry Ordway

Artists: Pencilers- John Byrne and Jerry Ordway; Inkers- Karl Kessel, John Beatty, Keith Williams, and Leonard Starr

John Byrne relaunched Superman in 1986, back when relaunching and rebooting was a bold concept. DC wanted to make an entry point for new readers instead of being saddled with 50 years of continuity. We all know what has happened since then and things are as messy as ever, but journey with me to a time when the status quo was the status quo.

John Byrne and Jerry Ordway handle all of the scripting and the penciling portion of the artwork. They keep the continuity tight as a drum in spite of the fact that these issues are part of the Millennium crossover, one of those crossovers that required you to buy 46 different comics to get the whole story. Those are what drove me out of buying monthly comics as the '80s wound down.

I really enjoyed seeing John Byrne draw the Spectre for the team up in Action Comics #596. Adventures of Superman #437 is one of those split screen stories that Byrne first did back in Fantastic Four #277. One story runs across the top half of the page for the entire issue and another story runs across the bottom, with the events being tied up over the last few pages of the issue. It was a novel idea at one time but I find it to be annoying today. Not all experiments work in retrospect.

Not only are these issues fun to read but there's a lot of great character development going on here. Superman #15 is especially great. Adventures of Superman #438 features a new Brainiac, or at least the consciousness of the old Brainiac beamed into the brain of someone else. I am a sucker for circus stories so you can see why I liked that one.

I fail to see why DC hasn't repackaged this run in a series of Omnibus books. It seems like a no-brainer. They did it with the George Perez Wonder Woman trades so it's not impossible.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This is the part where I go into tactile sensations and materials used in physical media. Those with heart conditions, high blood pressure, or women who are pregnant should exit my blog at their earliest convenience, as their safety cannot be guaranteed beyond this point.

Linework and Color restoration: It's DC, so while the color palette is faithfully maintained for the most part the blends are harsh and lazy and some of the linework is washed out.

Paper stock: Thin pulpish paper. Some folks like it, some don't. I prefer a heavier stock for collected editions.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.