Cover Art from Action Comics #1094 - Written by Mark Waid with Art by Patricio Delpeche. Cover Art by Ryan Sook.
“I wasn’t ready to be a solider.”
Back in Action Comics #1092, Superboy made a deal with General Sam Lane to help the Army when the need arises in exchange for the Army keeping out of his private life. That bill comes due in Action Comics #1094, and Mark Waid gives us a look at the first time in the life of the Man of Steel when he needed to use his abilities in an active warzone during a military conflict. Issue #1094 also includes some important story beats in Smallville that will undoubtedly have repercussions in the future of this run and beyond.
There is something jarring about seeing Clark wearing an official military uniform. I will admit I was a bit wary going into this issue because of that imagery — but Waid manages to make the time Clark spends in the uniform an integral moment in his young life that teaches him lessons he will take with him as his journey to become Superman continues. This issue also features a new artist on the series, Patricio Delpeche. Let us get into it. Spoiler Warning for Action Comics #1094 now in effect.
A Regular Day in Smallville?
We see this issue unfold over three distinctive parts: the time Clark Kent spends with Lana Lang, the time Clark spends fighting overseas, and the time Clark spends with his best friend, Pete Ross. Out of the three main parts of this issue, the time spent with Lana Lang is the quickest — but it features some intriguing plot points that will no doubt be explored in the upcoming issue of Action Comics. The time overseas of Clark dominates most of the issue, while his camping trip with Pete Ross provides a glimpse at how their relationship is going to change over the next little while in Smallville.
Prior to his study date with Lana, Superboy helps the aging librarian at the Smallville Library before he jets off to see his best friend and current crush. Now, while this scene with Clark and the librarian is only about a page, scenes like these are why Mark Waid is such a perfect writer for this run and, ultimately, for whenever he gets the chance to write Superman. Even as Superboy, we see Clark take his time to help an older member of his community with something as simple as putting books on shelves. There is no task that is below him, and the world owes Jonathan and Martha Kent for instilling these values of kindness within Clark at a very young age. As Clark says on the first page, “I could not say no to a good cause,” and he abides by that creed for the rest of his life as Superman. A short scene? Yes — but impactful nonetheless.
When Clark makes his way to the house of the Langs after volunteering at the Smallville Library, he finds out that he is not the only one in Smallville keeping secrets. Lana hides the fact that she is more cultured and has all these fancy designer clothes in her closet because she just wanted to fit in with the rest of the student population. The father of Lana, Mr. Lewis Lang, takes notes whenever Clark comes over to their house — seemingly about him — and gives him side-eye glances whenever he gets the chance. It is revealed at the end of the section at the home of the Langs that Mr. Lang has a secret that will “destroy Lana’s life in a few weeks,” alluding to the fact that something major is going to happen to her because of a secret within the next few issues.
While on the surface level we see Clark studying with Lana and a possibly overprotective father, underneath the surface, we can see that everyone has secrets. Even if a family is rich, has a big house, and has a seemingly great life on the surface, everyone could be hiding something. Just like Clark, it appears even some of the most "well-regarded" families of Smallville have secrets that they want to keep.
General Lane Comes Calling
After the time Clark spends at the Lang household, he receives the signal watch call to see General Lane and learns he must save a group of soldiers who are trapped after a special operation was botched overseas. He is also given a new suit — one that I am not a huge fan of — but he needs to wear it for his mission. The mission for Superboy is to rescue a captive scientist named Doctor Silas Stone, whom long-time comic readers will recognize as the father of Victor Stone, also known as Cyborg. Superboy flies to the country of Modora, helps save the soldiers who are trapped behind enemy lines, and makes his move to save Doctor Stone from the enemy soldiers who are holding him captive. Before we move on to the rescue attempt by Superboy, there is a critical moment during his time in Modora that sticks with him well into his days as Superman years later.
The critical moment I want to focus on is when Superboy discovers a dead body for the first time. As he says in the book, "[he] was not a complete stranger to death… but that was the first time [he] had ever seen a fresh human corpse." Seeing a fresh human body in any place would disturb any of us, and for all his power, Superboy is still just a teenager. Despite his strength, he is not immune to the horrors of war. As much as he probably wants to stay and mourn this soldier whom he was not quick enough to save, he realizes that he cannot just stand around and feel sad. There is an entire squad of soldiers relying on him to help them and an entire country counting on him to complete his mission — he cannot afford to be shell-shocked from one death. In this moment, he knows he still must do his job. As he keeps growing, getting older, and adjusting to his role as Superman, this is a moment that will stick with him: death will inevitably happen, and he needs to push through these dark moments to complete his mission. Once again, small scenes like these prove that Mark Waid understands this character on a level that other writers do not.
After getting the rest of the soldiers to safety, Superboy locates Doctor Stone and discovers the Modorans have created a sonic weapon that can even hurt him. This is the first time he has encountered a weapon so carefully designed to nullify him and his abilities, but he ultimately pushes through and uses his powerful voice to sonically destroy the weapon of the Modorans and save Doctor Stone.
We get another great character moment for Superboy after the fighting has concluded. He goes to a building where he stashed the body of the deceased soldier. He does not leave the body in Modora and allow him to be forgotten; instead, he drapes his cape over the body of the soldier and makes sure to bring him home so he can be properly buried and so his loved ones can say goodbye. It is just such a quintessential Superman-type moment — and it is another moment that proves that Mark Waid just gets it.
Emotional Moments in Smallville
“Keeping a big secret as a teenager can be incredibly isolating”
When Clark returns to Smallville, we see him really struggling with the aftermath of his time in Modora. This journey overseas to help the army made him realize that he was not ready for war or to be a soldier, and he wants to figure out a different way to honor his agreement with the General and the military. He notes that becoming Superboy and beginning to embrace his destiny has made his world smaller because he does not really have anyone he can talk to about his life besides his parents. He feels that it is very isolating when he cannot truly be himself around any of his friends — even with all his power, he is still just a teenager trying to find his way in the world — and it is a powerful moment in the issue when he comes to all these realizations.
Our issue comes to its conclusion when Clark and Pete Ross go on a small camping trip. After Pete falls asleep, Clark is forced to come to the aid of some hikers who are being attacked by bears. He suits up and rescues the hikers without any issue, but the cliffhanger comes when we see that Pete was faking being asleep when Clark returned and saw him as Superboy. The relationship between Clark and his best friend is about to change — whether he likes it or not.
Art Review and Final Thoughts
Before we get to my final thoughts, I wanted to shout out the new artist featured in this issue, Patricio Delpeche. His style is perhaps a little more cartoony than some of the other artists have been on this book, but I think it works really well. His coloring choices all work very well as a great complement to his penciling. He also introduces a new suit in the collection of Superman — a military riot gear type suit with a glowing "S" on one of the pockets.
Now, I am not necessarily a fan of Superboy or Superman wearing army-type gear, but within the context of this story, it works. It is not every issue that a new suit gets introduced, and it is interesting how certain artists choose to leave their stamp on the character. While it obviously will not be his main suit going forward, I thought the design was good for the purpose it served.
Patricio Delpeche nails the emotional moments of the book as well; he is particularly effective when Superboy brings the body of the dead soldier home, when Clark is dealing with his emotional state in Smallville after the war, and on the last page when Pete Ross discovers the secret of Clark. I love his use of shadowing throughout the book, as it gives a great emotional depth to many of the scenes. I would actually love to see what Delpeche could do with a lighter-hearted story, and I hope to see him back on Action Comics again in the future.
I am very intrigued to see where the plot threads of this book are going to go. From the big dark secret of the father of Lana, to Clark having to figure out a different way to help General Lane, and finally Pete discovering the secret of his best friend — Action Comics has many threads that are going to be interesting to follow as the book continues. This was yet another solid issue in the run of Mark Waid. With the landmark issue #1,100 on the horizon, it will be very fun to see where all these stories are going to go.