Comic book review
Written by Roger Stern, Karl Kesel, Louise Simonson, Jerry Ordway, Dan Jurgens
Art by Brett Breeding, Tom Grummett, Jon Bogdanove, Dan Jurgens
DC Comics/Titan Books
Release date Out now

The Man of Steel is killed in a brutal battle against the monstrous Doomsday. But after he is laid to rest, four strangers arrive in Metropolis, each claiming to be the resurrected Superman…

A mass media publicity scam or an obvious story to tell given the hero’s Christ-like origins and status? Truth be told, the epic storyline that leads up to Superman literally being beaten to death is a bit of both.

When DC announced the Death of Superman storyline back in the early 1990s, they released the information on a slow news day. The world reacted with surprise and interest. After all, Superman is perhaps the greatest comic book icon and the most recognisable American character after Mickey Mouse.

What the public didn’t realise was that this was the rebooted Superman, as defined by John Byrne’s classic Man of Steel mini-series in 1986 and not quite the same character that has been around since 1937. Nevertheless it was a huge, bestselling series (possibly the most financially successful of all time) that became much imitated by other titles – a similar storyline involving Batman having his back broken by a towering menace also grabbed headlines. This was the era of the comic book blockbuster.

This handsome volume offers the complete saga for evaluation an astonishing 15 years after the hype has died down. What it contains is a stunning, epic tale that is so big as to be unfilmable (Kevin Smith famously tried to write a screenplay based on the story which was ultimately discarded). It’s a story that features tragedy and clever, unpredictable plot twists along with a surprising amount of humour. The sense of scale is breathtaking. The battle against Doomsday really feels like a bone-crunching, bloody confrontation that indicates the brutality of the struggle. It would take a lot to fell the Man of Steel, and the comic goes to great lengths to show that he’s no pushover.

As the series gives way to the Funeral for a Friend saga, it takes on a melancholic feel with the infamous and hauntingly beautiful procession of superheroes laying Superman to rest. It’s another iconic sequence in a saga that presents a memorable image on every other page.

The impostors who turn up to fill the Man of Steel’s boots are a fascinating bunch of characters. The Eradicator is an ancient Kryptonion construct, who lacks the judgement and mercy of Superman. Superboy is a brattish clone whose arrogance leads him to take more interest in media relations than saving the citizens of Metropolis. Steel is an armour-clad arms designer who brandishes a hammer (he was the subject of a truly awful film starring Shaquille O'Neal) and Cyborg, a half-robot, half-something else clad in Superman’s costume. The narrative has enormous fun pushing the reader in different directions as to who is the genuine article. At one stage, Cyborg is endorsed by President Clinton, but there are many twists before we find out if he has made an error of judgement.

The Man of Steel isn’t the only casualty of the series; a cataclysmic struggle later on in the story sees the death count rocket and points the way towards a startling arc for another much loved hero, Green Lantern. It adds to the sense of epic adventure and provides the book with a gigantic pay-off that is followed by a delightful, low-key coda.

Maybe this collection is slightly let down by the lack of a guide as to who the characters are and where they are at the point the story starts (essential for a complex character like Lex Luthor, who at this stage is a clone pretending to be his own son!). But it’s a minor quibble when there are excellent extras such as a cover gallery and a fascinating set of concept sketches which add insight into the process behind plotting such a significant modern classic. Gavin Lovely

VERDICT: 9/10
An essential purchase for comic book fans.