Review – Superman #45 (DC Comics)

Publisher: DC Comics
Writer(s): Patrick Gleason & Peter J Tomasi
Art: Patrick Gleason
Colours: Stephen Downer & Alejandro Sanchez
Inks: Patrick Gleason
Letters: Rob Leigh
Release Date: 18^th April 2018

The final issue of Gleason and Tomasi’s run is finally here and it really does feel like the end of an era.

The Kents are finally moving to Metropolis, leaving behind their home in Hamilton. Each family member has a special attachment to the small town, and we get to go on an emotional journey together with them. We also discover the fate of Boyzarro and Robzarro and, in tune with the rest of the story, it is appropriately heart-warming.

Gleason and Tomasi will be sorely missed on this book. They took a damaged property that many readers had abandoned and breathed new life into the characters, carefully balancing the old and the new giving us the best of both. Superman has been one of my favourite Rebirth books, and serves as a prime example of what Superman and his family can be when handled by a creative team who really understand what makes him such a great character.

However, even as this final chapter serves as a fitting wrap up to this excellent run, it still feels like an important issue in its own right. As Tomasi and Gleason reset the board they take us out on one last adventure, and the closing pages are as full of hope as they ever have been.

Gleason draws and inks a beautifully presented story with some of the most gorgeous art to date. Downer and Sanchez bring it all to life with vivid colours that really pop regardless of the medium you are viewing it on. For me, Gleason’s version of Clark, his chiselled jaw line and his superhero alter ego will be remembered as the definite version of this character and one I expect many will attempt to replicate in the future.

Honestly, in spite of the creators moving on, it’s difficult to get through this issue without smiling. Superman is an uplifting beacon of hope, or at least that is the message I have always gotten from the writing on this series. At times bigger issues have been explored and every now and then things would get a little dark, but the book has always carried with it a sense of boundless optimism that was both refreshing and welcome in these dark times.

This was a series that was always at the top of my reading pile, a book that restored Superman to his former glory and justified his position as a central figure of the DC Universe. And as exciting as it may be to have a new team with new ideas taking over, they’re definitely going to have some very large boots to fill.

This issue stands as a testament to the humanity of the single most powerful hero in the DCU and his infectious belief that things can always get better. It is a fitting end to a wonderful run that I would encourage everyone to pick up and read.

Rating: 5/5.

[PREVIEW ARTWORK]