Superman: The Man of Steel #12 (June 1992)
Superman: The Man of Steel #12 (June 1992)
Superman vs. Metropolis' tapeworm! No part of that cover is an exaggeration, by the way. The worm really is that big, and it really does burst through the street like that. All because of those pesky Warworlders: alien warriors who were left behind on Earth after Brainiac's failed cosmic invasion. The Warworlders hate Metropolis so much that they've been stealing technological equipment to build a bomb under the city. Naturally, this leads them to the shockingly unprotected laboratory of Professor Emil Hamilton. After being robbed by the aliens, Hamilton chases them and ends up falling into the sewers.
Luckily, Hamilton is found by his old prison cellmate, Grub, who now lives in these sewers with some mutants. Yes, life is hard for ex-cons in Metropolis.
Hamilton and his hideous new friends find the underground cave where the Warworlders are building that bomb. Among all the technological crap they've stolen, Hamilton finds his Superman-calling sonic device and uses it to, well, call Superman. However, the frequency also attracts something else: that big-ass worm from the cover (which, like the mutants, is a failed experiment that Cadmus flushed down the toilet). They call it "Cruiser", for some reason.
Hamilton cleverly gets Cruiser to eat the bomb, but the Warworlders turn this to their advantage by attracting the worm to the city's surface so it'll explode there (thus maximizing the damage). Superman attempts to fight off the big bug, but he eventually realizes there's only one way to get rid of this problem: the old "throw it into space and forget about it" technique.
Of course, in this case the technique actually worked, because Cruiser exploded in the next panel. THE END!
Plotline-Watch:
…or is it? We find out that the Warworlders survived, and having learned that Metropolis' sewers are home to a vibrant community of mutant abominations and disgruntled hobos, they begin plotting to turn them against Superman. (Also, Clawster is apparently still hiding behind the fat guy.)
The giant one above isn't the only nasty bug going around the city: Ham's girlfriend Mildred is looking unusually pale and keeps clutching her neck, and says there's something weird about her doctor. Fran from the Daily Planet says something similar. The ominious implication is clear: it's flu season in Metropolis. Yeah, I bet that's all there is to it.
Listen, I could give you the context for this panel, but I think it's better if I don't explain anything (you'll find out in the next Adventures, anyway):
Speaking of Fran, there's a page specifically devoted to showcasing her presence (as a black woman) in the Planet staff, along with a brand new Hispanic character introduced in this issue: Ricky, Mr. Ling's assistant! I'm sure he'll have many exciting adventures with the cast from now on. Don Sparrow says: "While I’ve always appreciated the diversity of Metropolis in Man of Steel, some of these introductions at the Planet seem a little clumsy. The fact that they add a dude named Ricky who looks distractingly like Desi Arnaz as Ricky Ricardo isn’t helping."
More from Don after the jump!
Art-Watch (by donsparrow):
A pretty eye-grabbing cover, promising a big fight between Superman and one of the sandworms from Beetlejuice. This image, as well as the design within it made me notice all at once the similarities between Jon Bogdanove and later super-artist Ed McGuinness–the giant worm-whale looks like it could have come from McGuinness’ pages as surely as these early 90s days, and there are other similarities, too, particularly both artists propensity for bulky, cartoony, squinty Supermen.
This issue isn’t short on action, as it opens (with a pretty nice dynamic perspective shot splash page 1) in the middle of a tussle with the Warworlders. I had been wondering if they’d pop up again after Superman’s encounter with them fighting the Swarm, when he didn’t have time to deal with them, so it’s nice to see that thread picked up.
If the art on this issue looks a little looser than we’re used to, it’s because this one features a unique team of Bogdanove on layouts, Hilary Barta (not to be confused with the gal who married Mister Miracle, among other things) on pencils, and the usual Dennis Janke on inks. Barta has a slick, loose, cartoony style on much of his work I could find, so he’s a good match with Bogdanove, even if this issue seems rushed in places. As usual, the super-team changes gears well, going from all-out space-man action on page 2-3, to everyday work woes (and some heartbreaking body language) with Sam Foswell getting fired by Perry shortly after he was fired by Mr. Ling an issue ago. In a deleted scene, Whit also fires him, just because.
PANEL OF THE WEEK: Page 8 has a moody, interesting look at Superman, his face entirely obscured by shadow, as he investigates Hamilton’s disappearance, and it’s a look we don’t often see, making it our Panel of the Week.
In previous entries, we’ve sometimes mentioned that Man of Steel is the most out of step of the super-titles (which is actually partially why it’s Max’s fave) and the drawings of Hamilton contribute to that–his hair is always much longer in these issues than in the other three, with this issue having his hair as long as we’ve ever seen it. [Max: I love long-haired Hamilton! While we're on the subject, as a kid I always thought Ham's cellmate Grub was a Cadmus mutant because of the six-inch blade comment, but now I think he's just a tough bastard.]
The scale of the whale-worm is pretty awing, and the art team shows that well. The shots of Superman carrying it by its tooth really sell that, even if the last two panels on page 21 make it look a little goofy. Too bad Superman didn’t have a little more time before the bomb blew–I’m sure he would have preferred to save the creature, even if it had been destructive. [Max: Well, he'll get another shot at the Cruiser (or "a" Cruiser) in a few months… or in 19 years, depending on how you're counting.]
STRAY OBSERVATIONS:
Bog draws a fetching (and fashionable) Lois, as usual, on page 4.
Very well drawn Metallo on page 10, reminiscent of a T-1000 from Terminator (the connection between Metallo and Terminator will be made more explicit in an upcoming issue). [Max: SPOOOOILEEEERS! Sparrow, you loose cannon! Actually, I could have just censored this bit, but I agree, that's a pretty cool Metallo. We'd be remiss not to post it.]
Hmm, how odd that Frankie, Fran’s son is sick after seeing a doctor. Well, I’m sure some all he needs is some rest, and plenty of sunlight. And possibly Holy water and garlic.
I’m glad Mr. Ling had some bucks for a new assistant, but judging from the floors, what they could really use is a good janitor. (page 14) But who could they get that’s worthy of a place so often frequented by super-heroes? [Max: Do not watch that linked video late at night, folks.]