Superman #39 Review

Written by: Geoff Johns
Art by: John Romita Jr.
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: March 18, 2015

A Day in the Life

So much has happened to Superman recently that you'd hope the guy could just get a day to be himself.  Actually, if you're Superman, being yourself is not too relaxing...saving everyone all the time and all.  Well, Geoff Johns uses this issue to show Superman not being himself for a day and it's a nice diversion from the norm and also plants the seed for the book's future direction. It's a nice issue that ends Johns' run on the book and while I would have expected something a little more epic,  it does remind the reader what makes our favorite character so Super.

I was not a huge fan of Superman's new power, the Solar Flare.  It came off as an upgrade at best and just didn't feel as iconic as the rest of his arsenal.  However, I love what Geoff Johns has done in it's aftermath.  Until he recharges, Superman is less Super and all Man.  He gets to spend the day as a normal guy with his best friend, Jimmy Olsen.

Of all the recent changes, I really like Clark telling Jimmy his secret the most.  It gives him someone to talk to and also provides some pretty good laughs.  Jimmy is good like that.  The laughs this issue are watching Jimmy hem-and-haw on whether to believe that Clark is indeed Superman.  Geoff Johns gets all clever by not giving Clark any way to prove his claim and Jimmy flips and flops throughout the issue.

It's easy to see where this issue is going after a few pages.  Even though Superman has no powers, he's going to show us all that he's still a hero.  When the call goes out that there is a hostage situation downtown, it's game on.  It may have been easy to figure out, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable.  Johns proves once again that Superman is a hell of a guy and a hero no matter what the situation...powers or not.

The best part of the whole issue (for me at least) was when Jimmy and Superman just sit and talk and have a hot dog together.  These are the moments that I was hoping for when Superman spilled the beans.  I hope that future writers don't forget little bits like this.

The issue is bookended by a mysterious man having a blank notebook delivered to Clark Kent. What's so crazy about that?  It has the crest of the House of El on it.  What? What??

I enjoyed this issue as a fun little diversion that did a great job reminding the reader how great a guy Superman really is.  I also loved the interaction between Superman and Jimmy and hope that continues for a long time.  Yes, I still wish that Geoff Johns's last issue was a bit more epic, but in the end, this was a nice way for him to end his run.  I hope that all this isn't swept under the rug come June.

I have been on the fence when it comes to John Romita Jr's art in this book and unfortunately, I'm falling off to the "don't like" side after this issue.  I just don't think his style meshes well with Superman...the character and the book in general.

Bits and Pieces:

This was a nice little issue that shows everyone that even without powers, Superman is still a hero. Sure, it's not earth shattering or even that original, but it was a nice diversion.  Unfortunately, that kind of spells out what Geoff Johns' run on this book was as well.  Instead of epic, we got nice.

7.0/10