Superboy Makes A Dramatic Return In Superman #7

For almost a year now, Superman fans have been asking “what’s going to happen to Superboy?!” And for good reason. The fan-favorite character’s fate has been ambiguous since the Superman relaunch was announced. Superman #7 begins to answer that question.

This issue comes to us from Brian Michael Bendis, with art by Ivan Reis & Oclair Albert, Jason Fabok, and Brandon Peterson, color art by Alex Sinclair, and letters by Josh Reed & Carlos Mangual. This issue kicks off a new storyline, The House of El.

Jon Kent has returned, a few years older (thanks to a black hole) and haunted by his time with his grandfather. The Kents reunite happily, if not awkwardly. He then recounts the beginning of his journey with Jor-El, which includes a brief conflict with Lobo and a fight with Khund, and delivers a shocker to his parents–Jor-El is unhinged and must be stopped.

Bendis’ script just shines here. His strength has always been in character interaction, and here he puts the Kent/El family interactions on full display. It runs from comedy (Lois’s greeting of her husband and- to her surprise- son), to pathos, to simple love, and it all feels so genuine and real. Even Superboy facing Lobo, though brief, was spot on.

Now with all that said, the sci-fi trope of an aged up child character here feels tacked on and unnecessary. There’s no reason given in the story for why Jon needed to be older for the plot. It’s not much more than reintroducing an old trope with a clever explanation. I hope that’s not the case in the long run, but it’s a glaring problem for the story.

Reis and Albert’s introductory pages are gorgeous. They nail the family reunion, from the heartfelt moment between father and son to the aforementioned reunion with Lois. They’re the top of their game here. Fabok only does a single page, which looks great, but is kind of slight in the rest of the issue.

Peterson’s work really shines here. Over the last few years he had started to favor a style that felt very CGI/uncanny valley, but this issue steps back from that to something that feels more fluid and natural. Combined with Sinclair’s incredible colors, it jumps off the page, and makes the alien worlds and environments feel real.

While not a perfect issue, this is a fun story and a welcome return for Jon Kent.

Superman #7 is available now from DC Comics.