Absolute Superman Wants to Save the World, but the World Won’t Let Him (Review)

When the world is in need of hope and just a touch of light, few beacons are as powerful as Superman, and that’s formed a unique relationship between Superman and his adopted home of Earth in the mainline universe. DC’s Absolute Universe, however, is a different story, and while this world needs someone like Kal-El even more desperately, it’s also doing its best to snuff out that hopeful flame, and Kal is having a difficult time coming to terms with that. It paints a vivid and immensely compelling picture of a world that needs a hero and has a willing one in the wings but can’t seem to get out of its own way.

Over the course of the first arc, Jason Aaron delved into Kal-El’s childhood and his years on Krypton, bringing a new importance to his time there and the effect his parents had on the man and hero we now see before us. That’s become even more important as Kal attempts to navigate a world that is asking something of him at every turn, and it’s difficult to block out the noise, let alone attempt to figure out who he can actually trust.

While Kal’s own internal conflicts and evolving views towards Earth are at the center of everything, the issue also builds the world that surrounds Kal quite a bit. Throughout the issue, Aaron pulls back the curtain on the Omega Men, especially in regards to Jimmy Olsen, but we also get more context for Ra’s Al Ghul, Lazarus, Lois Lane, and perhaps most importantly, Sol and the Father Box.

That last bit is really important, as we start to get a bigger understanding of just where Kal is at this present moment regarding his own feelings. Sol has been his lone sounding board and ally since what happened with the Kents, and he’s being pulled in so many different directions these days that even Sol’s often sterile and safety-focused advice is starting to feel like just another person trying to get what they need from him as opposed to taking his own feelings into account. Kal’s ability to see the good in others has been chipped away at a bit, and you can’t help but be endeared to someone who is still finding a way to push that aside and stand in front of the bullets for others.

Read Next

Absolute Superman’s Costume Has a Major (and Revealing) New Flaw

Speaking of saving others, the art team of Rafa Sandoval, Fico Ossio, Ulises Arreola, and Becca Carey are simply exceptional at maximizing the impact Superman has on everything and everyone around him. Whether he’s undertaking the brutal task of extracting his own bullet or taking out an entire base of Peacemakers in the blink of an eye, every action and decision has visible weight and impact. The coloring and lettering are out of this world, too, with swaths of purples, reds, yellows, and blues pulling you into the action as the lettering leaps off the page and makes the action feel three-dimensional. That said, the Father Box “Ping” might just be my favorite, but that crazy “Booom” is right there behind it.

There’s a genuine weight on Kal’s shoulders that comes through the page, and amid all the grey is someone who just wants to help people. It’s a compelling conflict that doesn’t have any easy answers, and as we see in this issue in particular, it’s incredibly easy to lose hope. At the center of it is a man who simply refuses to, and hopefully those who need him most will finally stop pushing him away. This is all part of what makes Absolute Superman one of the best in the comics, and Absolute Superman #9 is no exception.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Absolute Superman #9 is in comic stores now.

What did you think of Absolute Superman #9? Let us know in the comments, and you can talk all things DC and comics with me on Bluesky @knightofoa!