Review: Brainiac Wages Total War In ‘Action Comics’ #1064

The DC Universe is always being invaded by one thing or another, and the planet can rely on its heroes to save the day. In Action Comics #1064, the House of Brainiac crossover begins, and the Metropolis’s heroes may not be enough.

Joshua Williamson, Rafa Sandoval, Alejandro Sanchez and Dave Sharpe begin Brainiac’s war.

It’s just another day in Metropolis, and it’s a special one for one reason- Lois Lane has taken the day off. The sunny way is about to change though, when a familiar ship appears in the atmosphere above Metropolis. Superman and family are about to face the toughest opponents they’ve ever fought, as Brainiac unleashes a Czarnian army on the city!

This might be Williamson’s best issue of Superman to date. While he does use a lot of what he’s set up in Superman throughout the issue, he does just enough to catch up any reader that isn’t up to date on Action’s sister series before diving in. Even better, he uses a lot of the dynamics and relationships from Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s stories to do it, making this feel like the most whole Superman family story we’ve gotten in a long time. Frankly, he took a concept I disliked- the preserved Czarnian city- and made it work.

Where the script gives us enough character dynamics to have emotional stakes, Sandoval’s art sets up the action stakes. Whether it’s Clark and Kara brawling through Czarnians and Brainiac drones, or Luthor using hard light armor to fight off a group invading Supercorp, all of it clicks and is a thrilling ride through the world of Metropolis. Sandoval also does some very cool landscapes that give the splashes and panels a sense of place that not a lot of artists are able to. Metropolis feels real here, and that adds so much to the story.

I complained a lot about Sandoval not having the right color artist on his Action Comics run previously, and DC has fixed that here with Sanchez. His colors click with the linework, using bright colors to infuse Metropolis and the Superman family with hope and optimism. It makes the invasion all the more horrifying.

Sharpe steps in and makes sure the script gets the space it needs without getting in the way. His letters are clear and adds to the story, never getting distracting.

Action Comics #1064 is available now from DC Comics.