By various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-4012-1940-6
Superman is the comicbook crusader who started the whole genre and in the decades since his debut in 1938 has probably undertaken every kind of adventure imaginable. With this in mind it’s tempting and very rewarding to gather up whole swathes of his inventory and periodically re-present them in specific themed collections, such as this calculated confection of cosmic clashes with alien arch-foe Brainiac, originally a mere marauding alien but continually refitted over the decades until he now stands as the ultimate artificial nemesis, a thing of cogs, clockwork and computer code.
This superb collection represents appearances both landmark and rare from the many brilliant writers and artists who have contributed to the Kryptonian canon over the years and naturally this terrific tome opens with the extremely impressive introduction ‘The Super-Duel in Space’ by Otto Binder and Al Plastino, from Action Comics #242 (July, 1958) wherein an evil alien scientist attempts to add Metropolis to his collection of miniaturised cities in bottles.
As well as a titanic tussle in its own right, this tale completely changed the mythology of the Man of Steel, by introducing Kandor, a city full of Kryptonians who had escaped the planet’s destruction when Brainiac captured them. Although Superman rescued his fellow survivors, the villain escaped to strike again, and it would be years before the hero could restore the Kandorians to their true size.
Next is a lovely and clever yarn from Superman’s Girl Friend, Lois Lane #17 (May 1960), by Jerry Siegel, illustrated by the exceptional fine art team of Curt Swan and George Klein. ‘Lana Lang, Superwoman’ saw the Man of Tomorrow temporarily imbue both Lana and Lois with superpowers to foil a blackmail/murder plot by the viridian villain, whilst the novel-length saga ‘The Team of Luthor and Brainiac’ by Edmund Hamilton, Swan & Klein (from Superman #167, February 1964) not only teamed the hero’s greatest foes in an uneasy alliance but also revealed that the alien antagonist was actually a malevolent mechanism in humanoid form, designed by the computer-tyrants of the planet Colu to infiltrate and destroy organic civilisations and cultures.
There’s a big jump to the end of the 1970s for the next story, an epic three-part clash that first appeared in Action Comics #489-491 (November 1978-January 1979) scripted by the hugely undervalued Cary Bates and illustrated by Swan & Frank Chiaramonte.
‘Krypton Dies Again’ sees Superman once more battling Brainiac when the light from the decades gone explosion of his homeworld finally reaches Earth. The resultant flash supercharges his Kryptonian cells leaving the Man of Steel helpless. ‘No Tomorrow for Superman!’ finds an increasingly berserk hero unable to cope until joined by Hawkman to finally resolve ‘A Matter of Light and Death!’
In Action Comics #544 (June 1983) both Luthor and Brainiac were given radical makeovers to make them more apposite menaces for the World’s Greatest Superhero. Marv Wolfman and Gil Kane amped up the computer conqueror’s threat-level with ‘Rebirth!’ as cosmic forces reshaped the humanoid horror into a mechanistic angel of death.
When DC Comics decided to rationalise and reconstruct their continuity with Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985 they used the event to regenerate their key properties at the same time. The biggest gun they had was Superman and it’s hard to argue that the change was not before time. The new, back-to-basics Man of Steel was a sensation and members of his decades-old rogue’s gallery were suitably retooled to match the new, grittier sensibility.
In this continuity ‘The Amazing Brainiac’ was Vril Dox, a monolithic disembodied intellect from the planet Colu who inhabited and transformed the body of showbiz mentalist Milton Moses Fine, (Adventures of Superman #438, March 1988, written by John Byrne& Jerry Ordway, illustrated by Ordway & John Beatty), until it grew beyond physical limits in ‘Man and Machine’ (Action Comics #649, January 1990, by Roger Stern, George Pérez, Kerry Gammill & Brett Breeding) to eventually become a time-travelling ball of malignant computer code, constructing or co-opting ever-more formidable physical forms in its self-appointed mission to eradicate Superman.
By the time of ‘Sacrifice for Tomorrow’ from Action Comics #763 (March 2000), by Joe Kelly, German Garcia, Kano & Mario Alquiza, the fiend had transformed into its 13th iteration and converted Metropolis into an automated City of the Future. It had also learned how to possess human infants – including Lana Lang’s newborn son and Luthor’s daughter Lena… – a chilling thriller to end on, but only a taste of the monstrous horror Brainiac is capable of.
With a pin-up page of Brainiac 13 by Scott Beatty, Steve Kim & Tommy Yune (from Superman: Metropolis Secret Files #1, March 2000) this comprehensive collection is a compelling introduction and overview of the undying enemy alien and a superb treat for fans of every vintage.
© 1958, 1960, 1964, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2008 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.