Synopsis: Superman will stop at nothing to see the universe’s most vicious madman brought to justice. But before he can get his hands on Brainiac, Superman will have to go through Metallo, a man with Kryptonite in his veins. “Get Brainiac” begins here, kicking off the march to a game-changing blockbuster issue #25!
The Story
Having sorted out King Shazam in the last issue, Superman’s attention now turns to tracking down Brainiac. The hunt takes him to Argentina, where he encounters a roadblock in the form of Metallo. Superman recognises Metallo as former Peacekeeper Christopher Smith.
Over the course of the book, Superman battles Metallo, whose blood is infused with Kryptonite. Every blow Superman receives is bone-splintering and feels like being hit by a bullet. But Superman must keep fighting while trying to remind Metallo that his real name is Christopher Smith.
Artwork
Juan Ferreyra takes on the art duties for this book and does a great job of illustrating the visceral violence that ensues. Each page shows us a substantially weakened Superman who continues to fight on regardless. Also particularly effective are the flashback sequences, where we see Smith’s first mission as a Peacekeeper and his subsequent transformation into Metallo at the hands of Brainiac.
Overall
Jason Aaron continues to challenge the Absolute version of Superman with different variations on his classic enemies. The fight with Metallo is as brutal as anything we have seen in this series thus far. I particularly loved the absolute menace that Aaron manages to conjure with his interpretation of Brainiac.
Another great moment comes when Brainiac expresses his utter disdain at the fact that Superman manages to get through to Smith, leaving him crying about the things he has done, but also grieving the loss of his mother. Overall, this is a strong beginning to the story, and I have to wonder if Metallo, aka Smith, will ultimately team up with Superman as he goes after Brainiac.
- Covers9.0
- Story9.5
- Artwork9.6
- Lettering9.4
- Colours9.6
