Books : The Death of Superman

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Rating:

- I liked this story
Death of Superman was a great comic series. I was glad the day I found all the comics combined in one book. It sure did save me a lot of money. It was split into like 6 different comics.

Death of Superman puts Superman up against a killing machine called Doomsday. Not much is known about the killer except for his love of destruction. He is destroying everything in his way and he's heading towards Metropolis.

The Justice League of America goes into action to stop Doomsday. They fail in the process. He beats the mess out of most them. Some hold there own better than others, but Superman comes to the rescue of some of them.

Once Superman starts fighting Doomsday it really picks up. It's some great drawing. Most of the shots are done in bigger squares and sometimes full pages of the comic. Mad props to all the artists and drawers who worked on this project.

The final showdown in Metropolis is great. I love it when there punching each other so hard the shock is shattering all the windows. It's sad to see the big guy go down when he finally takes Doomsday out, but it was kind of nice to see him get beat. However, his death is short lived which is a great thing because Superman is the best ever.

This book is definetly a must for all Superman fans.

Rating:

- It delivers what it promises
The death of superman is exactly what it sounds like...the death of superman. In this story, Superman fights an unknown creature called Doomsday (who is for one reason or other hell-bent on destruction) and falls in battle. The story is fast paced and has pages filled with superman and Doomsday swapping hits and all-in-all racking up a huge amount of collateral damage. In the end, Big Blue dies. This story came out when I was in junior high and at that time I felt it was the best book I had ever read but now, it is hard not to look at the numerous plot holes and loose threads in the story. But comics has matured and has come a long way but this story is still worth picking up for the buzz it generated. It's fun to read but don't expect anything Alan Moore-esque or Jeph Loeb type writing.

Rating:

- I prefer LOBO
Death of Superman was ok. It basically has Doomsday, this weopon of mass destruction, slaughtering any hero that gets in his way. Doomsday doesn't speak, doesn't think he just kills. He is kind of like Massacre except without the thought control. Doomsday has all of these spikes made out of bones on his body including back,shoulders,knees,knuckles,forearms and head, which makes it almost impossible to get a direct hit. He is the deadliest but cheapest S-Villain out there. He doesn't even have a motivation for killing superman. In the Hunter/Prey Superman vs. Doomsday two-pack, Supes gets this armor suit from the Gennisis device called Motherbox and he beats Dooms day in a matter of minutes.
FYI. Genesis is whare the New Gods reside. They are at war with Apokalyps and it's ruler Darkseid. Even he(Darkseid) sustains some damage in his fight with Superman. I prefer Lobo as an S-Villain. He is a bounty hunter,he has a space Harly he rides on and he has some great one liners. Plus he at least has an attitude.

Rating:

- Emotional Value Albeit With "Tech" Bloopers
For someone who grew up being a Superman fan, following his adventures thru the 70's (the glory days) and the 80's, Superman's death obviously had a great impact on me. The writers truly brought out the core of what the Man of Steel has stood for all these years -- protecting the innocent and fighting evil at all costs. Yes, even at the cost of his own life.

However, I just did not think that "technically" Doomsday had the stuff to do it. I mean Supe has faced a bunch of other *really* strong super villians, but most of those storylines didn't make it past the second or the third episode. Remember Solomon Grundy? I mean that guy was shown to be stronger than Superman, and virtually unbeatable. But Superman outwitted him and pretty much settled him in one episode. What about Mongul? That guy was at least as strong, if not stronger than Doomsday. But the MOS had no problem putting him away in a couple of issues. And then there was Lobo. The list continues. My point is, Supes has handled some really tough characters in the past without too much of a hassle.

Which brings me to Doomsday. I remember when in the first panel that he takes his best punch at Superman, the MOS does not even budge! His expression is unchanged as he says something to the effect, "Oh, is this the guy you call Doomsday?" And the MOS NEVER managed to take a punch from any of the aforementioned supervillians and brush it off the way he did against Doomsday. And yet, while all the others are put away fairly easily, this guy manages to KILL Superman.

Agreed that the storyline keeps stressing the fact that Doomsday keeps getting stronger as he continues fighting. AND the MOS gets exhausted and hence weaker as the fight wears on. How so is he able to make an impact on Doomsday towards the end of the fight while not being able to do anything at his peak (during the initial stages of the fight)? The editors might say there was a last-ditch effort from Superman from sheer desparation, but still...

Finally, thru the years, we all know how the MOS has used brains over brawn to beat his enemy, usually taking advantage of one their tiny weaknesses. So how come this time he didn't take advantage of Doomsday's huge weakness of lack of flying power? I don't think this aspect got enough play in the series. Also, how come he never thinks of striking at those bony protrusions that hurt Doomsday so much towards the end of the series?

All this MAY have been plausible if somewhere along the line the writers had said that Supes was sidetracked with some issue, or that he was sick (Kryptonian "birthday"), or that he was simply not at his peak. But that wasn't the case either.

All in all, the adventure was entertaining, with a great deal of emotional impact for most fans. But in the end, I'll say that Doomsday wasn't the kind of villain who was worthy of giving Superman (at his prime) as hard a time as he managed to give him (he killed him!).

Well, that was my point of view anyway. However, if you are reading this review in order to know whether you should pick the TPB up or not, I can easily tell you to buy it. It's definitely worth it despite the issues outlined above. Historically, it's a very significant series (even it was a ploy to raise sagging sales), and if you are like me, you'll keep going back to it again and again...

Rating:

- I hate Superman, and I hate this.....
First off, I didn't think the writing in this book was very good. It has a very simple, shallow story line and the whole thing is basically the JLA and Superman getting their collective ass kicked. Basically, there is some new creature named Doomsday that doesn't feel fear of death. He's basically a big bulldozer type villain hellbent on nothing but killing and destruction. Hmmm, not very compelling motivation if you ask me. Very stupid, actually. Given the title of the book, I suppose it wouldn't be a spoiler to say that Superman *gasp* DIES at the end! Newsflash, he comes back very soon after this book. This book was very obviously a marketing scheme to get sales up. I mean, did anyone actually expect Superman to stay dead? I think not.

I always like to say something positive no matter how horrific something I review is, so I will say this. I greatly enjoyed the art, especially in the last part of the book, where Supes and Doomsday go at it. It's very climatic, detailed, and you know that was going to be the final battle as you read it. Too bad the writing couldn't be as good as th art or the layout.....

So, take some good advice, and don't pick up this book. It's not worth anybody's time.

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