Comic Book Review - Superman: Lost #1

Rob reviews Superman: Lost #1...



Superman: Lost offers an interesting idea for Lois and Clark. What happens if Superman finds himself separated from everything - and everyone - he has knows for decades? But what about if these years only lasted mere moments for those he left behind? How would Superman cope? And what would cause The Man of Steel to lose all this time? Well, that's what Christopher Preist, Carlo Pagulayan, and Jeromy Cox set to answer as they send Supes far into space. 

With the whole mini-series set to take place over ten issues, this opening provides the set-up. Not only does this issue serve to show how Superman ended up being lost in space, but it also shows the effect that the last twenty years have had on his mental health. What already makes this series a must-read is how Preist deals with this change. For Bruce Wayne and Lois, he physically looks no different, yet inside he's had a troubling time in getting home. 

Regardless of what happened during these twenty years of lost time, we do know that Superman makes it home. The question comes from what happened while he was out, and how does he manage to return moments after he initially left? It's this middle ground that gives Preist plenty of breathing room to take Superman on quite a figurative journey. 


Considering the length Superman has had away from Earth, it's going to put a strain on his relationship with Lois. While we're yet to see if this does change, Preist uses this issue to solidify the relationship that the two have. We get plenty of character building as we see both characters focused on their respective jobs. Lois is fixated on her journalism, which impacts Clark's free time when he's not saving the world. The other side of this is that when Clark manages to get Lois away from her laptop, he's called into action by the Justice League. At this point, the couple does feel like ships passing in the wind. 

However there's been plenty written about Lois and Clark in the past, so do we need oodles of exposition to rehash this relationship?

Away from the home dynamic, the rest of Lost gives time for the Justice League to enter the fray. While Bruce Wayne does seem to be the center of the current-day happenings, the JL is involved in a flashback that shows how Superman ended up stranded in the first place. While I'm not a massive fan of the Justice League, this flashback does a good job of showcasing each member's skills, while setting up the imminent danger, and why Superman was the only one who could tackle it. 


Pagulayan and Cox produce some solid artwork across the issue. Jason Paz inks Pagulayan's illustrations with nice bold lines that make everything pop from the page. Of course, this does come as no surprise as the team has previously worked together on Deathstroke. 

There's quite a lot of visual storytelling in Pagulayan's art too. The scene which involves Clark just staring off into the distance is a great indication of just how troubled he is on his return, which starts to get the reader asking some questions. Similarly, the scenes with the Justice League are well choreographed with plenty of variation in panel sizes that help keep the action flowing at a quick pace. 

While the whole issue has some stellar artwork, the standout page is the one that ends the issue. I won't go into too much as to the story implications of this piece, but the way Pagulayan uses perspective to draw the reader's attention is a real treat. It blends incredibly well with Cox's colors as we get the red and blue hue of Superman's costume, with the dull emptiness of space. 


Superman: Lost #1 sets its journey off to a strong start. While it's not perfect, its storytelling draws the reader into wanting to find out what happened over the last 20 years. With some superb visuals, and one heck of a premise, will Lost become one of Superman's definitive journeys? 

Rating: 8/10 

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Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter, Hive, Facebook, & TikTok @GeekCultureRev

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