Superman Unchained #2

Written by: Scott Snyder

Art by: Jim Lee

With the recent release of the blockbuster, Man of Steel, Superman seems to be on everyone’s mind lately.  To capitalize on his renewed popularity, I thought this week we would take a look at Scott Snyder and Jim Lee’s newest comic, Superman Unchained.  In this review I will be specifically talking about Superman Unchained Number 2, but wanted to give you a quick recap, just to ensure we are all on the same page.

In our first installment we see our titular hero save astronauts from a space station gone rogue (imagine HAL from 2001 A Space Odyssey).  We are introduced to a new global threat, Ascension; they are like Anonymous but can take control of a Space Station and don’t mind killing people to get their message across.  Superman also confronts an old foe, Lex Luthor, and a new and seemingly extremely powerful villain is teased.

Now on to Unchained Number 2…

Again like in issue one we are thrust into a harrowing situation for Superman.  The Dubai Tower is falling, threatening to kill thousands and an Ascension controlled Mech is closing in.  Superman has seconds (18 exactly) to stop the falling tower, put down the giant robot, and save thousands of people.  In spectacular fashion, he does.  Superman’s first priority is stopping the building from falling.  So in its final seconds, he creates a giant waterspout under the falling building and then uses his ice breath to freeze it.  The mountain of ice he creates supports the structure so it doesn’t crash to the ground.  Kal El then flies like a bat out of hell into the mechanized heart of the hacked robot and tears it apart from the inside out before it can wreak more havoc.

It is scenes like this that Snyder excels at.  He shows how Superman can use all his powers to quickly assess and eliminate the problem.  These sequences are well crafted, well thought out and action packed.  It’s awesome to see Superman break down each decision as the seconds pass.  Lee’s art really shines here as well.  He displays the epicness of what’s happening while also showcasing what’s important, Superman.

Moving on, our story only gets more interesting.  Snyder gives us a taste of Superman and Batman’s odd friendship.  Batman offers advice while testing out anti-Superman technology on him.  While Superman uses Bruce for his detective prowess. The remainder of the book is setting up for what’s to come and it looks promising.  Lee’s character designs are the star in the final pages as his villains take over the page and prepare us for battle.

Snyder and Lee work well together in this action packed story and I can’t wait to see what’s to come.  Snyder really knows how to use Superman and all his abilities and Lee can make it all seem possible.  This book is still a lot of set up like the first but I do like where Snyder is taking us.  The next issue is set up to be action packed and problematic for Superman.

Superman Unchained #2 has a great opening act.  Once again showing Snyder knows Superman and his powers but the rest of the book is more about set up and less about character.  Although in Snyder’s case I’m not too concerned.  He seems to know all the players but is looking to change the game.  Unchained #2 offers us another great Superman moment but is more about what’s next.  Pick it up if you’re a fan but I wouldn’t expect to see anything new or different about Snyder’s Kal El, at least not yet.

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