Bullet Points:  Raging Bullets online DC Comics reviews 
 

Superman in the Eighties TPB 
 

by 
 

Matthew G. Guy 
 

November 30, 2006 
 

I purchased this trade in the hopes of expanding my knowledge of my favorite hero, Superman mainly for the Pre-Crisis adventures that I missed out as a kid and remember some familiar adventures in the Post-Crisis continuity from John Byrne.  Jerry Ordway was a writer and artist on Superman books for that decade writes the book’s introduction and the trade’s cover artist is John Byrne.  In this review, I will spotlight three stories from this volume from the Superman in the decades collection. Hope you enjoy the review. 
 

Where No Superman Has Gone Before (Pre-Crisis) 
 

Superman seeks to find Supergirl, Kara his cousin.  Superman recaps the events leading up to the disappearance of Kara.  Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane & other character that I never heard before are trapped inside a cube prison by Mongul (a Green Lantern villain).  Mongul wants an exchange the key that Martian Manhunter is guarding for their friends.  Superman battles the Manhunter but Mongul steals the key from Superman and releases & returns his friends to earth.  Superman enlists Kara’s help to help defeat Mongul’s doomsday device called the War-World.  Supergirl uses all her super speed to rip past the defenses while Superman destroys the main computer controlling the War-World soon after that the War-World explodes but Kara is gone.  Superman suspects she is knocked unconscious drafting in space. Superman calculates where she might be and is off to save her.  Superman goes faster & faster braking the space & time barrier even the bonds of infinity itself to find her.  He then sees Kara drifting in space unconscious has he predicted earlier.  Just as he is about to get Kara he is stopped by the Spectre and Superman is knocked off course on a moon.  When Superman comes to realize it was Spectre that stopped him from rescuing Kara.  The two become argue over Supergirl’s safety but the Spectre tells Superman you can go no further into space as this his domain.  Superman tries his best to leave the surface but the Spectre prevents him from doing so. 
 

Superman challenges the Spectre of tests of super speed & super strength but in both test Superman fails against the Spectre.  Spectre tells Superman that there are lessons he has not learned from his battle with Mongul.  Spectre takes Superman on a journey of Revelation.  First stop on the journey is Krypton, Superman sees his doomed home world again & his birth father Jor-El only to see it explode again before him.  Spectre tells Superman that are limits to what you can do in time travel and Superman agrees that he has failed too many times when it comes to time travel.  The next stop on the journey, Superman sees Jonathan Kent, his adaptive father.  But soon it is accompanied by the Grim Ripper.  The Ripper takes Jonathan Kent’s life again before Superman’s very eyes.  Superman pleads no but to no avail and the two disappear.  Then the final stop on the journey is a fight with the dark side of himself.  Superman battles the dark side (the evil Superman), the Spectre offers advice to him to think with his head and not with his heart.  As soon as Superman realizes that the dark side of Superman disappears.  Superman apologizes to the Spectre for being such a fool. Superman asks for help in finding Kara and immediately out of space, the Spectre gives Kara over to Superman.  Spectre says all you had to do was ask.  Superman’s actions of trying to save Kara were putting worlds and civilizations at risk by breaking the time and space barrier.  Then Supergirl wakes up as if the events of the issue are a dream to her as the Spectre disappears and the two travels back home to earth.   
 

Here Is How The Bullet Fired (For Me on this issue) 
 

Art: 9.5 out of 10 Raging Bullets   
 

Story: 10 out of 10 Raging Bullets (a great lesson we all can learn from to think with our head and not our heart when doing something) 
 

The Bottom Line:  We can learn that our actions have consciences towards others and it is better to make our emotions are not getting the better of us when making decisions. 
 

The Ghost of Superman (Post-Crisis) 
 

We find Silver Banshee walking across a construction site while workers are giving her catcalls.  She then stops a worker and kills him on the spot right then and there.  She walks away into town into a store killing another person and leaves.  Captain Maggie Sawyer is on the case to track town the Silver Banshee and she takes members of the Metropolis SCU into town to stop the Banshee’s rampage on the city.  One member of the unit tells her to stop; she doesn’t comply with the request and kills him.  Maggie fires shots in to the Banshee but they have no effect on her at all.  Then she moves onto another member who is in headgear but when she touches him he doesn’t die and it is in fact the Man of Steel.  As he removes the disguise and fights with the Silver Banshee face to face but is soon overpowered by the Banshee and dies from hearing her scream.  Superman’s lifeless body is on the ground as she walks on by over his body.   
 

Maggie calls Lois to tell her the heartbreaking news that Superman is dead.  She tells Perry and the news is broadcasted.  Batman, Black Canary (I think so anyway) & Martian Manhunter and the group come up with a plan.  Lex is a rage at LexCorp, as he wanted to be the person to kill the Man of Steel himself.  The funeral takes place with Lois Lane, Perry White & Capt. Maggie Sawyer in attendance.  But the spirit of Superman rises about his glass coffin.  The trio is shocked and amazed.  We find Jimmy Olsen on the trail of Silver Banshee at a bookstore but is soon discovered by the creature but Superman’s spirit arrives in time to save Jimmy.  The spirits battle it out for control.  Banshee is surprised he is not still dead and is surprised he can go right through her.  She lets out a wail of a scream as Jimmy covers his ears.  Superman tells her to give up but she refuses to do so.  Banshee keeps trying to kill Superman but with no luck. Soon Silver Banshee lets out a sonic blast and she explodes.  The real Superman is there to pick Jimmy up from the debris, but Jimmy sees two Supermen but he “spirit” was none other than the Manhunter. Back at the Daily Planet, Jimmy tells the gang (Manhunter, Lois, Perry, & Superman) that she was looking for a book that was from Ireland and was shipped to the local book fair.  Manhunter tells how he used his abilities to fool the Banshee by using his shape shifting abilities in the form of Superman and Superman tell the group that he was in a deep coma until Manhunter restarted his body after the attack.  Perry tells Lois to write up the story and the story itself is over.    
 

Here Is How The Bullet Fired (For Me on this issue) 
 

Art: 9.0 out of 10 Raging Bullets   
 

Story: 8.0 out of 10 Raging Bullets (We don’t learn were was Clark was during this time, was he on vacation or sick other than that a great story)  
 

The Bottom Line:  Superman is not dead and I mean really dead until their four people claiming to be the Man of Steel.  I would suggest reading the Death & the Return of Superman for what a “real death of Superman” is really all about.  This is one of Byrne’s better stories with Superman.   
 

Lois Lane in the Action Comics 600 Superman & Wonder Woman Romance (Post-Crisis) 
 

This is a eight page insert of a larger annual from Action Comics 600 as this section deals with the romance between Superman and Wonder Woman.  Lois is in a tight spot when her cover is blown with two crooks try to get her and silencer her for good.  Lois flips on crook over onto the body of other criminal.  Then out of the shadows the ringleader appears with a gun, but Lois kicks the gun away from him & ties the trio up.  Calls the cops & then to the Daily Planet to rely the story and Lois goes into the office buzzing with news over a article.  The Boston Globe Ledger reports on its front page that Superman & Wonder Woman are in love.  The news shocks Lois completely and is in a daze as she enters Clark’s office.  Clark tries to dispel the story to Lois as not true between Superman & Wonder Woman.  Then her story she just phoned in will be bumped for the love story.  Lois goes home but can’t think straight as her mind is overrun with thoughts of not being enough of a woman for the Man of Steel.  And how Wonder Woman & Superman would be a great couple, but she remembers that Clark had doubts about the story also.  She soon takes a long walk into the city bypassing the Planet building and winds up in the park.  She takes a cab home.  
 

She then starts thinking about Kent and how Kent & Superman were raised as stepbrothers on the Kent farm (a little white lie).  In her rage she writes a expose on Superman but decides to get rid of the story out of concern for Kent’s parents safety when she came to her senses.  There is a knock at her apt. door and it is Clark.  He tells her he was concerned about her after the news broke about the two heroes’ romance.  He also tells her   that he understand why she is still mad at him & Superman about Kent not telling about Kent & Superman being stepbrothers in Kansas.  She welcomes him and tells Clark that she needs to change clothes and take a shower.  Kent says he will wait for her, but as luck would have it Jimmy’s signal watch goes off and Clark must go to investigate the emergency as Superman hoping that he can get back before Lois notices.  But Lois returns talks about wanting a pizza but notices once in the living room Clark is gone and she is irked at Clark yet again for standing her up for a super emergency. 
 

Here Is How The Bullet Fired (For Me on this issue) 
 

Art: 9.0 out of 10 Raging Bullets   
 

Story: 10.0 out of 10 Raging Bullets (Keeping a love life as a Superhero and as Clark Kent is a hard thing to balance) 
 

The Bottom Line:  Superman will continue to have the same problems with Lois until he reveals his secret identity to her about Superman and Clark Kent are indeed the same person.  This special issue is a 80 page giant with John Byrne writing, penciller & cover art tasks with George Perez doing the inks for this special issue.  
 

Extras:  10.0 out of 10 Raging Bullets with cover art of the issues and little inserts made this volume a must have for any superman fan. 
 

Next on Bullet Points:  There will be two Batman trade reviews for December. 
 

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