REVIEW: ‘Absolute Superman’ Issue 4

Absolute Superman Issue 4 is published through DC Comics, written by Jason Aaron, art by Rafa Sandoval, colors by Ulises Arreola, and letters by Becca Carey.

Lois Lane hunts for Superman, but the man is a ghost and impossible to find. The rest of the US government wants him but with more militaristic means.

Absolute Superman #4 returns to Earth after the backstory of the last issue and begins a manhunt. The legend of Superman begins to precede him, showing how well-traveled and principled he is. The chapter still fits into Superman’s desire to free those oppressed by predatory corporations. So, those victims will not cooperate with Lois and the army.

In Absolute Superman Issue 4, there is a brilliant montage of those who have encountered and been rescued by Superman, executed through nine-panel grids. This very quickly reveals how global he is. What becomes clear is that this Robin Hood-type figure has been traveling the globe and fighting the extreme capitalism that has been bearing down on this series the whole time.

The oppressive systems in place are at the core of Absolute Superman Issue 4. Lois is trying to find Superman, but the forcefulness and bullheadedness of the Peacemakers and armies she works with are getting in the way. It’s a great example of how dictatorships that are so controlling damage everything beneath them. Even the soldiers who fight for them suffer from the lack of support and constant misinformation. As Lois goes off to investigate, she finds a group labeled terrorists by her employees and family.

The Omega Men have only really been mentioned, but they begin to be revealed in Absolute Superman Issue 4. It’s not so simple as them being good or bad guys, but they are just as chaotic as everything else in the Absolute Universe. For most of the book, the pacing is slow and calm as the characters gather information or lick their wounds, but the action suddenly accelerates.

Superman isn’t present for much of the book, but when he does, the action intensifies. It isn’t solely his fault, but the reaction to him from soldiers leads to violence and struggles, with any form of peaceful conversation dashed against the rocks. And the fight scene complicates every part of this class war.

Lois Lane is the star of Absoute Superman Issue 4, searching for a man with footprints everywhere but no trail to follow. The change in occupation has altered Lois’s personality immeasurably. She’s a soldier, not a journalist. Her analytical mind has remained, but so has a fearsome demeanor that frightens others, sometimes unwillingly. She will become violent far quicker than her counterpart on the main Earth. The difficulty Lois has being soft is explained through her father. Their conversations are political, not familial, with orders barked instead of pleasantries.

But Lois is trying to soften. Agent Lane attempts to be gentle and trustworthy when talking to those saved by Superman. She witnesses her bosses’ damage to people and places and wants to find Superman to help. The issue is that she works for people who are incapable of empathy.

Peacemaker is another example of how the world shapes its characters. He has been conditioned by the systems in place, and they are breaking him. After seeing what happened to Krypton, the similarities on Earth are even more stark. The poor people are on the ground, squabbling and being worked to death, while the rich rulers remain unseen.

The art simultaneously tries to be grounded and fantastical in Absolute Superman Issue 4. The book has many sci-fi elements, from the soldiers to Superman. The Peacemakers wear bulky uniforms, and their technology is ominous and oppressive. However, the locations are dystopian and broken, with remnants of battles or poverty everywhere. That is where Superman can be found, fighting for those struggling to survive.

Even Lois’ design is a consequence of her surroundings. She’s got a short soldier’s haircut, a ferocious expression, and a military uniform. This makes the communities she enters naturally distrust her. The Omega Men are startling and dazzling (and not all men either). Their facial expressions are entirely obscured with masks on, making them menacing.

Everything is accelerated and accentuated in Absolute Superman Issue 4 when Superman enters the picture. The red dust that comes with him creates an aura. It moves from him like a cloud, able to knock enemies away and swirl around like a dragon’s fire. And on his chest is the untouched Superman symbol, cutting through the dust and the oppression.

The colors are exceptional. The world is dark and dingy, but Superman brings color with him. The Omega Men bring sci-fi tones, intense blues, and green to suggest neon lights. Superman’s red dust radiates like blood in the water, the rich scarlet traveling over the page in splatters or plumes. It’s vibrant, often blocking the rest of the panel to draw attention to Superman. And with it comes a feeling of hope and escape. The lettering is bold, easy to read, and straightforward among the chaos.

Lois is beginning to see the problems with authoritarianism, and Peacemaker’s mind has been snapped by it. The world-building is brilliantly paced, with Aaron using the people to tell a story about a broken society. Absolute Superman Issue 4 has an authentic dystopian feel, yet things aren’t so far removed from reality as to seem absurd. The sci-fi parts are exciting, and the action devolves into explosive, hardcore, engrossing chaos.

Absolute Superman Issue 4 shows a system breaking the people it controls. As Lois deepens her investigation, she discovers this frayed world. No one is happy or content. Everyone is struggling against something, fighting to survive in a world that doesn’t care about them as individuals. They are a workforce with quotes and missions; nothing else matters.

Absolute Superman Issue 4 is available now wherever comics are sold.