After having his secret identity exposed, Superman vowed to bring to justice anyone who hurt those close to him. But when a villain calls his bluff, how far will the Man of Steel go?

Writer Gene Luen Yang has been impressive with his take on Superman, which along with a few writers tackling the other series has been deconstructing the character in many ways. It’s been a fascinating take on the character and what it means to be Superman, Clark Kent, and a superhero.

Superman #45 continues that idea, focusing on the concept of myths and storytelling. Superman heads across the country and comes across a super powered fight club and the point of it all starts to come together towards the end of the issue. How it’ll all play out is a big questions, since is the start of the arc, but it is an interesting concept. Yang looks to explore the myth of Superman in this arc. But, I’m still a bit iffy about it all.

The concept is an interesting one, and it can become some pretty deep discussions if done right, but I’m not convinced it is. It is the beginning of the story, but still, it’s just… off some how. I’m not quite sure how, but it feels like a play in a play a little bit, and a bit of trying to be almost too smart in ways. What we’ve seen previously has had us explore duality and what it means to be a hero, and that was done in the middle of a pretty action packed story, this though seems like a weird side quest.

Howard Porter‘s art is solid as usual mixing in the quieter moments with the action. Porter has a talent of conveying the power, and lack there of, of Superman.

I know it’s the beginning of this bit, but the execution seems like a weird start to me. The issue feels like a distraction of the bigger story. An interesting concept, how it’s done doesn’t quite work for me.

Story: Gene Luen Yang Art: Howard Porter
Story: 6 Art: 7.5 Overall: 6.25Recommendation: Pass

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review