The following review is excerpted from Comic Book Revolution (click here to read the full review)

Writer: James Robinson
Pencils: Renato Guedes
Inks: Wilson Magalhaes

Art: 8/10
Story: 7/10
Overall: 7.5/10

The Good:

Robinson clearly did not want to rush the story at all and allows the arrival of the Kryptonians on Earth as well as the reaction that it has sparked across the globe to really sink into the reader’s mind. The controlled pace of the story makes the climactic ending all that much more intense. I believe that Robinson intended Superman #681 to be the quiet before the storm.

I like the collection of heroes that Robinson assembles to go confront Superman. If anyone is going to give a lecture to Superman and get away with it then it would be Alan Scott and Wonder Woman. I was also impressed that Robinson respected what is going on in Batman RIP and did not needlessly shoehorn Batman into this scene. Such an action would have been a very easy and tempting thing for a writer to do.

Superman’s response to the heroes’ concerns was perfect. Superman truly embodies hope and promise. Superman always looks at the positive side of everything to the point where he sometimes turns a blind eye to possibilities that do not mesh with his positive view of life.

Robinson does a fine job showing both sides of this issue concerning the people of Kandor. Robinson is able to treat both viewpoints fairly which succeeds in making it even tougher on the reader to decide if they should trust the people of Kandor or not. I appreciate it when a writer takes the time and effort to craft a moral dilemma that the reader struggles to resolve. Superman is very persuasive in his support of his fellow Kryptonians, but the other heroes make a compelling case for their distrust of an entire city full of Kryptonians.

I absolutely loved the scene with Krypto arriving at Ma Kent’s house. To me, this was the best scene in the entire issue. I am a dog lover so I am a total sucker for scenes like this. I felt bad for poor Martha all alone at the Kent Farm. Clark sending Krypto to be with his mother was a sweet touch. I continue to love how Robinson has handled Krypto during his run on this title.

And then Robinson drops a huge bomb on the reader with the dramatic appearance of one of the biggest and baddest Superman villains of all time…

The Bad:

Superman #681 is a slow issue that has absolutely no action at all. Not much really happens at all until the very end. We get very little in the way of plot development in this issue. And what we do get is a bit repetitious as we re-hash the dialogue from Superman: New Krypton Special #1 concerning the threat that an entire city of Kryptonians poses to Earth as well as Superman’s goal of teaching the Kryptonians about Earth and its customs and rules and in turn teaching Earth about Kryptonian culture.

The lack of action and the limited plot progression will likely turn off some readers. I have to admit that I was surprised to see Robinson taking such a slow burn approach with Superman #681 considering the sound foundation that was constructed by Superman: New Krypton Special #1. I thought that having a special one-shot issue to install the underpinnings for this New Krypton story would have allowed Robinson to come out of the gate a bit faster than what he did with Superman #681. It is clear that New Krypton is being written for trade format and not for a monthly format.

Overall:

Superman #681 was a solid read even if I was expecting more than what we got with this issue. Robinson does a good job setting the stage for what should be a dramatic showdown between the Kryptonians and Doomsday over in Action Comics. The New Krypton is in intriguing story that has numerous interesting plotlines and tons of potential. It is an exciting time for the Superman franchise and I think that this story will appeal to readers who have never been big Superman fans before.

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