Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Artists: Will Conrad & Brent Peeples
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Cover Artist: Lucio Parrillo
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: StoryBabbler
Warworld is at war from within as Superman himself stages a revolution all across the planet to liberate its people from the rule of Mongul. However, it’s a far easier said than done as Mongul and his forces don’t make it easy and are converging on them every day. Now, the revolution of Warworld faces its next in Action Comics #1045 as Mongul retaliates against Superman!
Review:
Picking up where the last issue left off, Superman and his revolution gained a new ally in the alien entity called “Orphan” and rescued the Enchantress from one of Mongul’s more macabre champions. But in doing so, Mongul found a use for the fallen witch to help resurrect the deceased female Lightray as the evil Black Razor. A little too close to the Black Racer, but it’ll do for now. With his new servant, Mongul launches a counterattack against Superman and his allies that forces them back underground.
From there is where the rest of the story kicks into action as Superman and his allies convene to decide what their next step is going to be. What really works here is how Phillip Kennedy Johnson manages to give the main characters’ room for their perspectives to be explored without feeling cluttered. Most of all, he display’s Superman’s ability to formulate a plan by pooling everyone’s strengths together and being a center for them to rally around when they need it. From there the comic actually shows the different parts of their plan in action and sets up the confrontations and fights that will take place in the next issue.
Readers following the series will get to seem some immediate setup for just who Superman and his allies will have to fight in the next few issues. While it may seem hopeless at first, the comic shows that Supes still has a couple of aces up his sleeve and musters his forces to execute their plans. There is some character progression several characters and we get see development with Superman and the Phaelosians, particularly the kids he’s been bonding with in the last few issues, it’s a little wholesome moment before the big fights that are to come in the next issue.
The art by Will Conrad isn’t bad by any stretch, but it is a step down from Riccardo Federici’s artwork from previous issues. Conrad does good work with most of the locations, character designs, and action while Lee Loughridge provides excellent colors to show the war-torn areas and landscapes of Warworld, especially the more action-oriented shots of characters. However, when it comes to the close-up facial expressions of the main characters it’s hit or miss, since some look fine and others look either weird or too clean like Superman’s face which has been depicted with more detail in past issues.
Then there’s the backup story for the characters back on Earth, it picks up more speed and is more exciting this time around than in the last issue. We get to see how the Earth team directly aid in the events on Warworld that take place in this same issue. However, their plans take a backseat when a villain called Conduit shows up to take the Genesis fragment that the U.S. wants from Superman and Steel engages him in combat.
Honestly, Conduit seems like a Metallo rip-off and his look feels ripped from the 1990s, which is not me trashing it but I know for certain it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. However, the backup ends with a cliffhanger that could be cool if done well in the next issue.
Final Thoughts:
Action Comics #1045 provides the next chapter of the Warworld Saga as Mongul’s retaliation brings new dangers for Superman to face. The writing was solid as Superman continues to be a strong element that keeps the revolution alive as we see them execute the next step of their plan while facing Mongul’s forces. Even without Riccardo Federici’s art, the comic still looks good thanks to Will Conrad and Brent Peeples’ art and Lee Loughridge’s colors.