[Edit: Originally published January 14, 2017]
This is the first actual Superman comic I’ve ever read. My media consumption up until this point has mainly been, “Smallville” the TV show, “Man of Steel” and “Batman vs Superman.” It was interesting to see how Superman’s origins in Birthright compared to Smallville and MoS.
I really love that it (like Smallville) had Lex and Clark in Smallville together, however, in Birthright they’re the same age and in school together. Every time it flashed back to their friendship I wanted to cry. It was pretty clear to me that Lex was abused and Lex has a shitty dad in both Smallville and BvS, but I think the abuse Lex went through in Birthright, is probably more along the lines of the “daddy’s fists” in BvS than Lionel’s manipulations in Smallville.
I would say that this is a definite must read for fans who are into the Lex/Clark relationship, because, along with Lex being the villain of the comic, we get a lot of really great flashbacks to Clark and Lex in Smallville too.
Seeing Clark emerge as Superman and form his identity as “mild mannered reporter Clark Kent” was interesting too. It’s also interesting to note, that it’s because of Lex that Clark finds out about his Kryptonian heritage.
I would also die for Lois Lane. Like, wow, what a woman. She is fabulously written. Fans of Lois will not be disappointed by how she’s portrayed here. She’s the intrepid reporter we all know and love.
Birthright is all around I think an excellent introduction to Superman comics. I’ve always struggled with entry points when reading something as nebulous as comics and from what I’ve been told, DC tends to get more confusing that Marvel. I wouldn’t really know, I found Marvel just as confusing to find an entry point for. As far as Superman is concerned I would highly recommend Birthright as a place to start.
You can find it here.
Related Reviews: Smallville: City
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