Adventures of Superman #455 (June 1989)
Adventures of Superman #455 (June 1989)
Superman meets the Eradicator, an ancient relic from Krypton’s past! And he’s so excited that he forgets to close his mouth. (It looks like he’s about to drool all over his beard in that cover.)
Let’s put ourselves in Superman’s shoes (or sandals, technically) here: you’ve been feeling depressed about killing some criminals, you went out to space to be alone, became a farmer and then a gladiator, and almost got killed by a guy called Mongul (in Superman #32). At that point, you find yourself transported to a nearby asteroid where an old furry person called Cleric tells you he met your Kryptonian ancestors ages ago, and hands you a semi-magical floating egg called the Eradicator. Which, by the way, kinda looks like the spaceship your parents used to send you to Earth, but smaller.
Superman is understandably put off by the Eradicator at first (it doesn’t have the most trust-inspiring name), and as a result of his trepidation, the Eradicator transforms Superman’s clothes into those nun habits Kryptonians used to wear. With the help of Cleric, however, Superman opens his heart to the magic egg and the Eradicator redresses him again, this time with his classic S-costume.
Meanwhile, the citizens of Warworld are revolting – not because their ruler Mongul is a tyrant, but because he failed to kill Superman during their gladiator fight, and these people take gladiatoring extremely seriously (they’re like wrestling fans). The Overseeres, the wimpy aliens who actually built Warworld, decide to name a new ruler: Draaga, Mongul’s disgraced champion, and so Mongul and Draaga fight each with Superman’s old costume, for some reason:
“Honor is all, tyrant!” he said, clutching Superman’s pants. Good thing the Eradicator got him some new ones.
Anyway, Mongul is defeated when Draaga finds out his most embarrassing secret: if you pull out that square thingy Mongul has on his chest, Mongul turns into a pansy and escapes on a spaceship. The issue ends with the newly-clothed Superman learning of what’s going on in Warworld and deciding he should probably go there.
Character-Watch:
Behind Superman and the Eradicator on the cover we have the Cleric and Blurpy the Cellkeeper, who actually gets called “Blurpy one” by Mongul in this issue. I seriously thought “Blurpy” was a name I made up at some point, but I guess I subconsciously remembered it from this issue. Also, this is sadly the last appearance for Lentra the four-armed telepath (Blurpy’s friend who took care of Superman between his gladiator fights), because Mongul tortured and killed her.
Plotline-Watch:
On Earth, people no longer think Clark Kent is dead – now they just think he’s a moron. Matrix the shapeshifter (who was once Supergirl, but had a little accident that reduced her intellect to that of a 4-year old) has been impersonating Clark in Metropolis, but s/he’s more interested in looking at a water cooler than talking to Jimmy Olsen and Inspector Henderson.
Last issue, Morgan Edge asked his girlfriend Cat Grant to find out the identity of the mysterious mole that was giving Clark (the real one) information about Edge’s criminal organization, Intergang. In this issue Cat visits Lois Lane and confesses she was the mole all along, but now she’s afraid that Morgan will find out and kill her. However, Lois has other worries in her mind…
WTF-Watch:
Last time we saw Lois, she was crying over Clark when she thought he was dead. So what’s her reaction when she finds out he’s alive and gets to talk to him on the phone?
She puts him on hold. To be fair, she had probably ordered a pizza and didn’t want to keep the guy waiting.
See comments on Tumblr: https://superman86to99.tumblr.com/post/77412863370/adventures-of-superman-455-june-1989-superman#disqus_thread
Missed an issue? Looking for an old storyline? Check out our new chronological issue index!
This newsletter is free and always will be, but if you'd like to support us with $1 a month or more, you'll get access to extra articles about non-continuity '90s Superman stuff (shows, video games, Elseworlds, etc) and cool giveaways. Click here to become a paid supporter!