Rating:  -
This is one of those books that I find myself looking forward to every page. The story is original and the art is fantastic (coloring supreme!). The ending seemed alittle overly heady but wasn't so much that it spoiled the book overall. I typically like "what If " stories becasue they don't have to follow the rules and fit the characters in a nice little box of comformity. This book does a good job of looking at the other side of the coin. I personally would give it a A-
Rating:  -
Warning, spoilers ahead.
This easily holds it's own among the great Elseworld books, such as Kingdom Come, Batman and Dracula, and The Dark Knight Returns. Reimagining the Man of Steel as a Soviet champion rather than an American one is a stroke of genius, yet it is so simple and obvious that you would never expect it. The story is not only Supermans story, but includes diverse reinventions of Batman, Wonder Woman, Luthor, Green Lantern, Brainiac, etc.
Part of the brilliance in this story is that it explores the more questionable aspects of a superhero, and how easily such a figure could become a fascist dictator while never fully grasping the ramifications of what they are doing. Another fine touch was that it contains many nods to many diverse aspects of the DC universe, and the characters take nods from all ages of the DC continuity. The Superman we see here is much in line with the amazingly powerful Golden Age version of Superman, as is the mad scientist rendition of Lex Luthor, who we see with and without hair, AND as President later in the story, a nod to his being elected in the regular continuity in 2000.
The Green Lantern is the Silver Age Hal Jordan, but with a militaristic look, reflecting his fighter pilot roots, while Batman is firmly in the mold of the Dark Knight Returns caped crusader.
Wonder Woman does not play as large a role as I wished, and her character does seem a bit thin at times, but that hardly detrtacts from the overall genius of this book. ^_^
Rating: -
Overall, I liked this graphic novel. In did seem odd to me, however, that, not just Superman, but none of America's superheroes came to being without Luthor's help. An earlier reader was correct in his assessment that the entire DC Universe in rewritten in this story. But it seems to fit this dark and moody story that seemingly without Superman, America's heroes ceased to come into being. I do, however, think the story accurately portrayed the dark feeling of the Cold War. I also like the depiction of Josef Stalin. Pick up this graphic novel for the complexity of the story, Stalin, the ingenious use of "grey areas", and the shocking secret revealed at the end!
Rating: -
Both one of the best concets DC has ever come up with for the Elseworlds concept of tales entirely removed from DCU continuity, and utterly flawless in its execution; an instant classic that's still going to be vital centuries from now.
As the title implies, "Superman: Red Son" takes on the 'what if' notion of the Man Of Steel's lifepod having come down in the late 30s in the Soviet Union instead of the Kansas. Fitting in with the time frame, Superman and most of the other characters (with the notable exception of Batman, who more resembles his current self) in the saga are much more in keeping with their decades-ago incarnations than their current post-Crisis selves, with Superman light years more powerful than in current continuity (back to the days when he was practically omnipotent) and Lex Luthor seeming to be about ten times smarter than Einstein and Hawking combined. I don't think these characterizations/attributes could ever fly (no pun intended) on a long-term basis in the modern, highly-detailed and plausibilty-concerned universes, but it has proved to work spectacularly in a self-contained Elseworlds tale such as this.
Random high points: there are so many open-to-interpretation/subtext points it would be impossible to mention them all here (besides it would give away pretty much the whole story) but it does provide invigorating fodder for conversation and wonder. There are a host of familiar DCU characters who turn up along the way, some in major roles and for others small cameos, and again it would be grossly unfair to give even a partial list of the surprise players here. And the art and the way it conveys what's going on inside the character's minds without a word in some panels - you'll see a prime example when you get to Pages 134-135 near the end of the book; if this was a movie the actors would deserve awards for conveying so much and with such force. And finally, only rarely does the tale go where one would expect it to; truly one of the more unpredictable epics out there.
Possibly THE indispensable Elseworlds.
Rating: -
I am not a fan of "Elseworlds" books, they usually fall flat. This one however...
...is GREAT! "Superman: Red Son" is compelling from beginning to end. Mark Millar had a tall order with this, re-imagining the Man of Steel as the poster-boy for socialism. The story heads in directions that you wouldn't expect, Millar adds several great twists. Johnson and Plunkett's concise, beautiful artwork serves the story well. They cleverly depict several alternate versions of DC heroes and villians. There is a great "sketchbook" in the back of this trade paperback, showing the evolution of some of these characters.
I couldn't disagree more with the "spotlight review" by Antonio Nunez. To discuss the plausability of any Superman book is ridiculous. His entire existence is implausible.
Order this book, you'll love it.
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