IGN rips "Superman:Earth 1"...praises Smallville..

[ZIPBAGS]

DC is releasing a graphic novel called "Superman:Earth One". Here is the description...

J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5, joins forces with rising star artist Shane Davis (SUPERMAN/BATMAN: THE SEARCH FOR KRYPTONITE) to create this original graphic novel that gives new insight into Clark Kent’s transformation into Superman and his first year as The Man of Steel.

They make Clark mopey and brooding. So IGN reviewed the book. And here is the review.. (I highlighted the good stuff).

Superman: Earth One HC Review

JMS' Superman re-imagining crash lands.

October 20, 2010



by Dan Phillips

J. Michael Straczynksi's Superman: Earth One is riddled with creative decisions that'll leave you scratching your head in disbelief. Technically it's a re-imagining of the Superman mythos, yet JMS' efforts to re-imagine certain elements all run in the face of what we love about the Superman mythos. Even worse, his efforts to honor certain elements mostly fall flat compared to those of much greater Superman tales – Elseworld stories included. Like the Ultimate imprint in its glory days, this book was ostensibly designed to allow a talented creator the chance to take bold chances with a beloved mythology while still honoring its most endearing and iconic qualities. Considering the bold chances all miss their mark, and JMS fails to honor the Superman mythology's most endearing and iconic aspects, it's not difficult to consider this project a failure on nearly every level.

What's most disappointing about this graphic novel is that JMS somehow manages to strip all the humanity out of Superman in an attempt to make him more relatable and complex. In JMS' hands, Superman, a character long known for his unflappable moral fortitude no matter how conflicted a story might make him, becomes an angst-ridden cliché with a flimsy moral center and an eye towards vengeance. No, you did not read that last sentence wrong - - JMS for some reason thought it would be a good idea to inject a little Batman-style revenge into Superman's backstory.

Without spoiling the fine details of the story, much of this tale centers on the changes JMS makes regarding the destruction of Krypton. In short, JMS makes the death of Kal-El's home world the product of an outside force, and therein lay most of the book's problems. In Superman: Earth One, the circumstances surrounding the death of Krypton seem far less tragic – even superficial. It doesn't help that the changes seem designed mostly to create a new villain for the Man of Steel, and as it turns out, that villain ranks as one of the most forgettable and shallow Superman rogues in memory. This guy is so cartoonish, poorly defined and lacking in real pathos, he makes Doomsday look like Magneto.

Shane Davis' art is also a huge problem. Although Davis might share some of Jim Lee's base sensibilities in terms of character construction, he lacks the technical abilities that make Lee such a master of the form. From a visual standpoint, this story is told in a dull and often times ugly manner, and even the splash pages fail to truly catch your eye. It's difficult to think of one image that truly stuck me as memorable. All the unnecessary cross-hatching doesn't help, either.

I can't believe I'm writing this, but Superman: Earth One made me appreciate Smallville. Despite its considerable flaws, that show does a far better job updating the Superman mythos for a modern age while honoring its essence. Tom Welling's Kal-El is far more in line with what I love about the character than JMS' version, and the liberties the show takes with the mythos – as goofy as some of them might be – are all far more interesting than what JMS does here. Again, it's difficult to look at this book as anything but a failure. Here's hoping Geoff Johns and Gary Frank have better luck exploring Earth One.

 

[Ultimate_Superman]

You do understand Zip that its not a praise but more of an insult to an insult right? You do understand that the writer and IGN don't care for Smallville to much right?

 

[ZIPBAGS]

You do understand Zip that its not a praise but more of an insult to an insult right? You do understand that the writer and IGN don't care for Smallville to much right?

Oh..I know. But, it goes to show that even haters have to give Smallville its due. I also think a lot of the hate these people do is either because they hated how Smallville deviated from the mythos or they disliked how the show was too much drama and freak of the week. Maybe, we can get some of the people who stopped watching years ago to come back and see how much the show has changed.

 

[AnorexicBatman]

I like how they turned the very basic concept of Superman around.
The beacon of hope/the small light that illuminates an otherwise dark room
On the other hand Batman preys from that darkness

Epic Fail for both the comic and Smallville (Black Matrix Suit? What is this? The 90's?)

 

[Ultimate_Superman]

Oh..I know. But, it goes to show that even haters have to give Smallville its due. I also think a lot of the hate these people do is either because they hated how Smallville deviated from the mythos or they disliked how the show was too much drama and freak of the week. Maybe, we can get some of the people who stopped watching years ago to come back and see how much the show has changed.

No hate for the show came because how Clark always whined over Lana, how you always had a freak of the week, how you have Supergirl before Superman, how you had Doomsday before he should be there and how you had Doomsday as the Hulk, how you had every episode till recently be nothing more then an hour long soundtrack for that weeks hit teen pop star, how every time they took a step forward they take five steps back (till recently), or how Lois has pretty much been the JL doorknob. That's where the hate comes from. People can deal with change but there is a difference between change and the mistakes Smallville makes. It has nothing to do with change most of the time its just poor writing.

 

[vantheman77]

Superman Earth One should be an awesome book. It's like reading a blockbuster movie, whether live-action or animated. I hope Tom Welling reads it as well.

 

[SuperFerret]

Oh..I know. But, it goes to show that even haters have to give Smallville its due. I also think a lot of the hate these people do is either because they hated how Smallville deviated from the mythos or they disliked how the show was too much drama and freak of the week. Maybe, we can get some of the people who stopped watching years ago to come back and see how much the show has changed.

"It could be worse" isn't giving anything its due.

 

[darkzombiemutt]

I get hating the show for various reasons, but when the show nails moments, it really nails them. Something I didn't ever get from previous live action superman outings, minus the first movie and parts of the second film.

 

[Webhead2006]

I guess the ign writer just didn't like jms woek. I heard others say its should be good but who knows.

 

[TheShah]

So this book sucked so bad, it made SMALLVILLE look good.

Not much praise there.
But kind of disappointed, thought it would be a groundbreaking book.
Obviously will check it out myself before I judge.

 

[KalKai]

Did you really have to bring the comic book nerds in here ZIP?

This thread serves no purpose.

 

[SuperFerret]

Did you really have to bring the comic book nerds in here ZIP?

This thread serves no purpose.

 

[Prison Mike]

Did you really have to bring the comic book nerds in here ZIP?

This thread serves no purpose.

Last I checked Smallville is a show about a comic book character.

 

[Migu-EL]

did you really have to bring the comic book nerds in here zip?

This thread serves no purpose.

qft... Lmao

 

[Migu-EL]

No hate for the show came because how Clark always whined over Lana, how you always had a freak of the week, how you have Supergirl before Superman, how you had Doomsday before he should be there and how you had Doomsday as the Hulk, how you had every episode till recently be nothing more then an hour long soundtrack for that weeks hit teen pop star, how every time they took a step forward they take five steps back (till recently), or how Lois has pretty much been the JL doorknob. That's where the hate comes from. People can deal with change but there is a difference between change and the mistakes Smallville makes. It has nothing to do with change most of the time its just poor writing.

Most of what you said deals with re-imagining the Superman mythos... The core values that make up Superman are still there.. Who cares if Doomsday was introduced earlier in Clark's life than in the comics... on Smallville once he wears the cape and tights the show is over, so we would never get to see him.. Plus who care if Doomsday was more like the Hulk.. It gave more depth to a villian that was previously just a mindless monster in the comics.. Besides.. Doomsday ended up being the mindless monster seperate from Davis at the end of the season anyway.. My only gripe with how they handled Doomsday was the lack of a quality fight at the end of that season.... In the end I feel Smallville has done a great job re-imaging superman.. Even if others feel it strays too far from the comics... but who cares... even the comics stray far from the comics.. So it's really all a mute point.

 

[vantheman77]

It's great to see Superman: Earth One getting lots of mainstream coverage. Early this year, Wonder Woman also had it with her costume change.

 

[Johnny]

I think Superman: Earth One is gonna be good. As for ign - they've been giving solid reviews for S10 so far. So sarcastic or not in this article, judging by their reviews, they seem to like the show. They were never like SupermanHomepage where that idiot Neal Bailey knew nothing but to bash wtv he can think of. lol

 

[Webhead2006]

Well they probably have a bunch of different writers for ign. So maybe this guy just wasn't really a sv like the other ign writers.

 

[vantheman77]

Superman Homepage has idiotic reviewers and people who comment there are never happy.

 

[p4poetic]

I like how they turned the very basic concept of Superman around.
The beacon of hope/the small light that illuminates an otherwise dark room
On the other hand Batman preys from that darkness

Epic Fail for both the comic and Smallville (Black Matrix Suit? What is this? The 90's?)

I was thinking the 80s

http://www.supermantv.net/smallville/zod/phantom-zone.jpg

 

[AgentPat]

I was thinking the 80s

 

[Scarlet Spider]

I was thinking the 80s

http://www.supermantv.net/smallville/zod/phantom-zone.jpg

Clark's first Blur uniform was Matrix inspired though.

Smallville's costume designer who created the suit, cited the Matrix films as her inspiration for it's design:

Spoiler

If anything, I actually preferred it to his current Blur uniform. He looked more heroic in it...

 

[Johnny]

I want to see him in action in the new uniform before I say whether I like it or not. There's been a few eps now where he was not in it, while last season he barely took off the coat.

 

[Ultraman Nexus]

I guess it says something that in Smallville part of the arc theme is stepping out of the darkness and into the light.

Whereas comics still think darkness and quality are the same damn thing.

 

[Zack Snyder]

Let's compare it when there is a live action version. What a silly contrast.