Marvel/DC: Spider-Man/Superman #1 by Brad Meltzer, et al.

Marvel/DC: Spider-Man/Superman #1 by Brad Meltzer, et al.-72 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐

THWIP, THWIP AND AWAY! Fifty years ago, DC's Man of Steel met Marvel's friendly neighborhood wall-crawler, and the world of comics has never been the same! In celebration of that historic milestone, thrill to ALL-NEW tales of Spider-Man and Superman and their friends and foes!

Brad Meltzer and Pepe Larraz pit Spider-Man and Superman against Lex Luthor and Norman Osborn as their greatest villains exploit some of their greatest weaknesses!
In the shadow-laden 1930s, Spider-Man Noir encounters the original Golden Age Superman as told by Slott/Martin!
A crisis ensues as Johns/Frank bring the Super- and Spider-families against each together at the summons of Mysterio... but is their true foe an ally out of control?!
Symbiote hordes invade Metropolis as a new War of the Realms ignites in Aaron/Dauterman's epic.
Co-creator of Steel Louise Simonson hammers out the tale of John Henry Irons' clash with the Hobgoblin, as drawn by Todd Nauck!
Kelly/Ramos take us on a campus crossover between Gwen Stacy and Lana Lang!
Miles Morales (Spider-Man) teams with Superman, as Bendis and Pichelli re-team!
All this, and more than a few super-surprises you'll be talking about for the next fifty years!

Thoughts: I enjoyed reading this collection of short stories/comics from Marvel and DC. There are more superheroes and supervillains than just Spider-Man and Superman. Supergirl, Wonder Woman, Ghost Spider, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Jane Foster Thor, and so many more make a brief appearance. 

Absolute Superman, Vol. 2: Son of the Demon by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman, Vol. 2: Son of the Demon by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman #7-14, 206 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Absolute Superman Vol. 2: Son of the Demon continues Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval’s bold reimagining of the Man of Steel in a world that fears his power—and may soon feel its wrath. Collecting issues #7–14 of the hit series, this volume plunges Superman into a brutal conflict with the Lazarus Corporation, led by the immortal Ra’s al Ghul. As Kal-El is hunted, manipulated, and pushed to the edge, the mysterious Omega Men arrive with a terrifying proposition: unleash your full power, or watch the world burn. With Smallville under siege and his past haunting him, Superman must decide what kind of god he will become.

Absolute Superman, Vol. 1: Last Dust of Krypton by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman, Vol. 1: Last Dust of Krypton by Jason Aaron

Absolute Superman (2024) #1-6, 176 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

In a different, darker world, Kal-El landed in a remote Kansas field, the last survivor from an alien planet...but even before that moment, nothing unfolded as you'd expect. As he tries to survive in a world seemingly determined to repeat the mistakes of the demolished Krypton, he'll come into conflict with the globe-straddling Lazarus Corporation and its agenda of exploitation...and go fist-to-fist with its brutal army of Peacemakers!

Supergirl Volume1: Last Daughter of Krypton (The New 52) by Michael Green and Mike Johnson and Illustrated by Mahmud Asrar

Supergirl Volume 1: Last Daughter of Krypton (The New 52) by Michael Green and Mike Johnson and Illustrated by Mahmud Asrar, 160 pages

After reading four Batgirl graphic novel, I switched to Supergirl to see what her story was.  What better place to start then the New 52, Volume 1. I must admit I did enjoy this graphic novel.  The book tells the story of the Last Daughter of Krypton who has a past similar to Superman.  It was kind of neat to read the story of how a teenager has powers similar to her male counterpart Superman and also calls Krypton her home.

Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (Post-Crisis Superman Chronology #10) by John Byrne

Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (Post-Crisis Superman Chronology #10) by John
Byrne-191 pages

I enjoyed reading this as part of superheroes month. I have seen most of the episodes of Smallville and enjoyed the show, so I figured that I would enjoy reading this, although this was written a few years before the show. It contains *a few* stories about Superman (aka Clark Kent) and Lois Lane and includes such villains as Titano and Brainiac. Overall, it was worth reading.

Superman: Red Son, by Mark Millar

  Superman: Red Son, by Mark Millar, 168 pages

This is a comic I first heard about through another JCLReads reviewer, and he was on point- this was an excellent comic- a unique and well-executed take on a classic.  If Superman crashed to Earth 12 hours later than he did, he would have landed in Communist Russia.  How would Superman, an iconic symbol of all things American, be different if he weren't American?  I can't even express how much I appreciated this adaptation of the Superman mythology- it was well-written, fully formed, and the art was excellent, too.  Definitely an easy one for someone unfamiliar with the Superman mythology to read as a stand-alone.

Batman: Hush, vol 1, by Jeph Loeb, 121 pages

Batman: Hush, vol 1, by Jeph Loeb, 121 pages

This has promise for being a good Batman arc.  Catwoman and Killer Croc both participated in a ransom- but are they the ones behind it?  Can Batman trust Catwoman- even work with her?  Can romance bloom between the two?  This is definitely just the beginning- someone is running a scheme in the background and neither Batman nor the reader yet know who it is.  There are good, strong female characters in this one, which is always nice to see in comics.

Superman: Red Son, by Mark Millar

Superman: Red Son, by Mark Millar  160 pages

Everybody and their grandmother knows Superman...well maybe not personally, but at least most are aware of the character and his origins, crash landing in the heartland of American, truth and justice etc...Superman...yeah.  Normally I don't care too much about Superman simply because he has an answer for everything and he is WAY overpowered, even for a super hero.  But when I heard about Red Son, I had to give it a shot.

Red Son takes the Superman story everyone knows, and delays it by 12 hours.  Now, I know I can hear everyone saying big deal, so he's late to Earth and waits all night for the Kents to find him, but no, the 12 hour delay lands Superman deep in a place more rural and backwater than heartland America, the Ukraine, circa 1940's.  That's right, Red Son is about Communist Superman, and it was awesome.  That should be enough, but other DC heroes show up, including Batmankoff, the Soviet Batman who leads a resistance movement against (*SPOILERS*), Soviet Premier Superman who takes over after Stalin's death.

So yeah, the story was good, even if you're not a fan of comics or Superman.  Oh, and if nothing else, Batmankoff wears a fuzzy Russian hat, which makes it worth reading anyway.