Review: ‘Superman: Son Of Kal-El’ #1 Explores The Icon As Hope

Superman has been a symbol for so many. In Superman: Son of Kal-El #1, we see that literally as the greatest inspiration that people can look up to… 

This issue is a simple story, but it has a much deeper message beneath it. It’s a powerful template for what’s to come. It comes from Tom Taylor, John Timms, Gabe Eltaeb, and Dave Sharpe.

Jon Kent has grown as a man, and that means confronting the world and its evils. But the young Superman has to confront what that really means, and whether he can truly be a force for good. Naturally, growing up is going to have some bumps along the way…

I’m going to say this first: the art here is great! Timms is coming up as one of DC’s better artists, and his ability to stand out and away from the pack is to the benefit of the book. This isn’t just a DC house style book, but one with its own visual style — one that matches the optimism of its protagonist. There are bumps along the way, such as his version of Robin feeling much too old, but it’s a good start here. Eltaeb’s colors are bright and make sure to draw the eye to where Timms depicts the action.

Now for the story. It’s an interesting one even if Taylor doesn’t completely nail the landing. Some of the narration and dialogue is a little overwrought, and his take on Damian Wayne feels closer to Tim Drake or Dick Grayson. Outside of that, though, this is what a Superman book should be.

There’s often discussions of character alignments; whether Spider-Man is chaotic good while Batman is lawful good, and so on. There’s a lot of wiggle room in those arguments. But there’s one case that’s impossible to argue: Superman he is always neutral good. He does the right thing, no matter the circumstance.

In the case of Jon Kent, this issue is about him figuring out exactly what that means. Should he be working with the law, even when they do something morally reprehensible? Should he always be the champion of the weak? This book faces those questions and begins to answer them. It might end up being cheesy and overwrought, but this is Superman. He needs to figure it out, but then inspire us to be our best selves.

The book has some room to grow, and it might have to go through some hard knocks just like its title character does. Nevertheless, this is the Superman comic we need right now: a refresh of the concept with a young legacy character who is finding his way. I’m very excited to see where it goes from here.

Superman: Son of Kal-El #1 is available now from DC Comics.