Review: Superboy Vol. 4- Blood and Steel

Quick Summary

Pros: Watching Superboy attend a normal school is entertaining. There are moments where the storyline is exciting.

Cons: A number of the storylines are unappealing. Many of the cliffhangers are left completely unresolved. The transition between story arcs is jarring. The second half of the book is poorly collected and is even presented out of order.

Overall: This volume starts out a little better than some previous volumes but ultimately ends up being the same unappealing mess that most of the series has been. This is mostly because of the chaotic and inconsistent narrative that ties this book together. It jumps from story arc to story arc without care and does little to explain what happens in missing chapters. This might be a book for those who want to see Superboy in high school but, overall, isn’t really a collection many will enjoy.

Story

Superboy Vol. 4: Blood and Steel, by Justin Jordan, starts out with a decent story but soon turns into a confusing mess. The volume is fraught with unresolved conclusion, out of order narratives, and a few chapters that make little sense without information from other books. Plus, a whole host of logical inconsistencies arise from Superboy’s actions throughout the book. Overall, this is a confusing mess that proves to be little fun to read.

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The opening few chapters of Blood and Steel are entertaining and actually end up being some of the best individual chapters in the series so far. They show off Superboy’s humanity and demonstrate how this humanity is in constant conflict with his status as a product of genetic engineering. Here, readers get to see him have humorous interactions with minor characters and struggle with some of the things real people struggle with. In addition, there are a few moments where suspense and action make this story very exciting.

However, these opening chapters conclude on a cliffhanger that is left completely unresolved. One moment Superboy is trapped and at the mercy of the Psycho Pirate, the next he is out on a completely different mission. The lack of resolution takes away from the Psycho Pirate story and, in general, makes the reading experience more jarring.

This trend then continues as the rest of the volume ends up being one of the most frustrating and confusing comic collections I’ve reviewed. It gathers together two pieces of the Krypton Returns (Review) event but neglects to give enough context behind the pieces that are not included here. Then it collects a chapter from Teen Titans that actually takes place before the Krypton Returns story and makes very little sense without additional context. All of this makes for an incredibly confusing reading experience, even for those familiar with Kon’s backstory.

It also doesn’t help that most of these stories are lackluster anyway. The Teen Titans chapter is a dive into the future that has the potential to be interesting but ends before the story has a chance to get there. Meanwhile, the H’el on Earth story is only interesting in that it allows readers to take a peek at Kryptonian society before it ended. The only meaningful moment here is Superboy’s death, where he finally rejects his status as a “living weapon” and decides to do something good for the entire universe. However, even this moment is mixed, since later stories go on to minimize the importance of this sacrifice.

In addition to all of this, the entire volume is fraught with logical inconsistencies within Superboy’s actions. His arguments in school make little sense within the context of his mission and his calm demeanor at the beginning of Krypton Returns makes little sense considering his actions immediately prior. Even his characterization is inconsistent, as he appears to be reserved and logical in some stories and hotheaded and impulsive in others. These problems pervade the entire volume and make an already troubled story even worse.

(spoilers end here)

Art

Unfortunately, the artwork throughout Blood and Steel ends up being just as jarring and inconsistent as the story. A host of different pencilers and inkers work on this book, meaning each chapter is drawn in a different style than the one before. Though some of these artists end up doing decent work, the sheer number of artists present make the visuals appear as if they are constantly changing. This leads to a book where Superboy looks like a child on some pages and a young adult on others. This intense level of variation enhances the inconsistencies in the story and contributes to the overall unpolished feeling that encompasses this collection.

Continuity

Superboy Vol. 4: Blood and Steel continues the story from Superboy Vol. 3: Lost (Review). A portion of this book is also a pseudo-sequel to the Superman: H’el on Earth (Review) event.

The story here somewhat continues in Superboy Vol. 5: Paradox (Review).

This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:

• Psycho Pirate mentions some specifics about H.I.V.E. and also brings up his battle with Superman. More detail about this can be found in Superman Vol. 4: Psi-War (Review).
• Psycho Pirate also mentions that that Doctor Psycho is doing work for another organization. The result of this work is shown in Justice League of America #7, which is collected in either Trinity War (Review) or Justice League of America Vol. 1: World’s Most Dangerous (Review).
• The end of this book contains a few chapters from the Krypton Returns (Review) event.
  • During these chapters, Supergirl’s origins are mentioned a few times. These origins are detailed in Supergirl Vol. 1: Last Daughter of Krypton (Review).
  • This storyline is also heavily references the events of Superman: H’el on Earth (Review) (Reading Order).
• The Teen Titans chapter of this volume takes place after the events of Forever Evil (Review) and Teen Titans #24, which is collected in Teen Titans Vol. 5: The Trial of Kid Flash (Review).
  • Despite its location within this volume, the Teen Titans chapter actually takes place prior to the Krypton Returns (Review) chapters.