Visit any comic book forum and you’re likely to find everyone gushing about Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason’s latest Superman arc, “Multiplicity.” Seeing the Supermen from different Earths and Multiverse all in one book has turned into many fans’ biggest wet dream. I mean, who wouldn’t geek out seeing the current Man of Steel team-up with Red Son Superman? With expectation at an all-time high and fans craving more, Superman #15 needed to leap even higher than its predecessor.
After being alerted of the capture of Earth 14’s Superman and the demise of the Justice League of Assassins, Clark and Justice Incarnate travel across the different Earths, trying to pull each ‘Super’ to safety. They meet resistance along the way – specifically from Earth 13’s Etrigan the Demon, who requires a little more ‘forceful’ persuasion. With all the remaining Supermen gathered in one place, Clark discusses his plan of using them as bait. Before the villainous Prophecy strikes, though, Clark teleports the Supermen away from danger, leaving him to face the threat alone. The two meet face-to-face, but the mystery still remains: why does Prophecy want the other Supermen but not Clark?
As if DC heard my prayers in my last review, Prophecy is revealed to be a newly created villain. While I enjoy Clark battling Lex Luthor, Brainiac, Doomsday and General Zod as much as the next guy, it’s good to see creators finding new threats for Big Blue to thump. Prophecy’s powers are still unclear, but he’s got all the makings of becoming another formidable adversary in Supe’s rogues’ gallery.
From a storyline perspective, the narrative has slowed down considerably. This isn’t such a bad thing when you see how action-packed this issue is. Relying more on the art team of Jorge Jimenez, Ryan Sook, Clay Mann and Ed Benes to carry the story, every page explodes with vivid colors and striking artwork. There are so many different characters from different worlds, and it’s a true smorgasbord of eye candy to gobble up. Everything feels huge, larger than life and out of this world – in other words, it’s everything Superman should be.
Despite Clark being the main attraction, the star of this issue is undoubtedly Etrigan and his witty rhymes. Tomasi and Gleason capture the essence of the Demon and provide their own wonderful version. The character’s experiencing a renaissance at the moment, having starred in a few episodes of Justice League Action, and he steals the show here as well. While his future in Rebirth is uncertain at the moment, his recent appearances have been more than welcome. More Etrigan, please.
“Multiplicity” part two builds on the good work of the previous installment and continues this wild ride. The writers have proven they’re masters of speeding up or slowing down when necessary, keeping us on the edge of our seats. Their epic Superman run has extended to 15 issues now, and the signs indicate it’s not set to end. Heck, when even the Internet trolls don’t have anything bad to say, you know it must be special.
