For the first two issues of this title, Superman has been dealing with some odd circumstances in Metropolis. First an alien fire creature appears and tries to burn the city. Next another alien appears that everyone can see… except for Superman! The only thing that ties them together is that they all speak a language that seems familiar to our hero and they all say the same word… Krypton. This issue begins as Metropolis’ media begin to think that Superman is causing more harm than good to the city since these alien threats, as well as some others, are all aimed at the Man of Steel.

This issue, a third alien creature appears. This time, it’s an ice-powered being that can’t just freeze things, but can turn them into solid ice. As Superman battles the creature in an attempt to save the city, as well as some friends who were caught at ground zero when the alien attacked, he begins to link these attack together himself. As Superman puts the pieces of the alien puzzle together, readers are given other hints and questions as to the real identity and threat of the alien invaders. When it finally comes down to the final panel, I can’t help but think that these aliens seem awfully familiar.

George Perez is very verbose. His take on this title contains a lot of dialog and a lot of background noise, especially with the media being such a focus. In the first issue, I was put off by all the chatter since much of it seemed pointless and detracted from what was going on visually. Issue #2 was a little better. Now, with the third issue, Perez has really hit his stride. While it’s still very thick to read, there is far less irrelevant talk going on. Everything seems to be a clue to something that’s going on behind the scenes. Of course, this may have been the case with the first two issues as well and I just missed it. So, maybe a reread is in order. Either way, this first arc is finally revealing some villains and more of Superman’s new history within the New 52 Universe. The first few pages recap the story so far, including some hints of what’s to come over in ‘Action Comics’. It’s actually pretty interesting, even if you read both titles and already know some of this stuff. Otherwise, it makes for a great jumping on issue for those who might have missed the first two issues.

Seeing as the art has breakdowns and layouts from Perez himself, the entire thing has a late 80s / early 90s vibe about it… and that’s not a bad thing. During that era leading up to his much-publicized death at the hands of Doomsday, Superman has some great fun stories. So for long time readers, the art gives the tale a very nostalgic, yet fresh, feel.

It’s not as nearly as wonderful as what Grant Morrison is doing with the younger Superman over in ‘Action’ but this title is shaping up to be more fun that the first issue foreshadowed, so…

Verdict: Buy

SUPERMAN #3
Written by GEORGE PEREZ
Breakdowns and Cover by GEORGE PEREZ
Art by NICOLA SCOTT and TREVOR SCOTT