- Title: The Man of Steel #6 (of 6)
- Comic Vine: link
- Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
- Artist: Ivan Reis
The Man of Steel #6 wraps up the six-issue mini-series with one more confrontation between Superman and Rogol Zaar who battle from inside the Earth’s core all the way to outer space and back to Earth. With Supergirl making the smart play and stepping in to end the conflict by trapping the villain in the Phantom Zone, neither Zaar nor Superman actually wins the fight and several questions remain about the alien, his hatred of Kryptonians, and Krypton’s destruction.
Much of the comic deals with explaining the absence of both Lois and Jon (who apparently have gone off with Jor-El on some wild adventure). Their absence, and Supergirl’s choice to leave and learn more about Rogol Zaar, remove most of Superman’s support system (with the exception of the Justice League). While I still think Jor-El being alive is one of the stupider story elements DC has introduced in recent years (and, when you think about that, it’s say a lot), Bendis does make use of it here to isolate and reset Superman to where he wants the hero heading into his new series. I’m curious to see where things go from here. Worth a look.
[DC, $3.99]