Same Limited Problems, Still Overall Good
Aha! Okay! I've figured out the patten of covers and which story gets 10 pages/first slot. The cover for this issue wasn't revealed until soon before it came out, but now I see. The first issue throws this pattern off on the story side, but at the same time, the pattern didn't exist yet because Superman Beyond wasn't there yet. But the covers still began the pattern. It goes, Justice League Beyond, Batman Beyond, Superman Beyond. Look at the covers and you'll see I speak the truth. The cover solicits for the next 3 issues doubly confirm it.
So this time we've got another not-as-great Howard Porter cover, but this one does have a lot of nice things about it. I think Superman's pose could've been better, but the way Lucinda and Lex stack up above him create a nice lack of simplicity here.
SUPERMAN BEYOND #4
Oh snap! What IS Luthor here? I guess he's NOT just a recording.... is he an A.I. modled after Luthor? DId Luthor download his consciousness into a machine? Lucinda reaffirms that he is dead, but for the first time, we can see she's been carrying out conversations with him as opposed to just saying things in response to prerecorded messages as I had assumed she was doing. What is he now?
I love the atmosphere the art creates, an equally perfect sense of 'the future' as Dustin Nguyen; but with a unique style more suited to Superman. I definitely think a lot of credit deserves to go to Randy Mayor's colors. They're the biggest pull of the sci-fi theme, while Howard Porter's pencils help the 'Superman' tone. But unfortunately, in this issue, the fight scenes aren't always dynamic.
The pieces of the Luthors' plan are already coming together; and it is amazing. This is already shaping up to be an epic opening arc. Between smart Solomon Grundy, nanomachine enhanced gangsters, and a major change to the world; Superman's in a pretty desperate situation. Philosophical musings about the state of humanity and Superman's role in it are still strong, and even though they're not stated at the end, they work perfectly with the shocking aid that comes to Superman's side.
In Conclusion: 4.5/5
The fight scenes really could have been better, but the overall story was just so epic, it was hard to really feel disappointed.
JUSTICE LEAGUE BEYOND #5
DUSTIN NGUYEN IS THE ARTIST AS USUAL. Perfect for the Beyond Universe.
HOLY CRAP! Superman Beyond had some epic moments, but Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridolphs are just GENIUSES at weaving a pliable universe. They can make such changes to the status quo, and by god they do in brilliant ways. Not just flaunting that they can do whatever, but being uninhibited when they want to annihilate New Genesis and make Darkseid blind.
In Conclusion: 4/5
This issue was pretty much just set up for the big battle to come with Kobra, but it still had so many moments that were just mind blowing. It's all about how they present this comprehensive universe, and all the changes that have happened since both the present day, and the animated series. It's so much bigger than Batman Beyond, and Nguyen/Fridolfs have such a perfect grasp on how to handle that. The dialogue is all phenomenal, whether it's revealing massive events, or comedic moments between Terry and Bruce. I just wish we could get more each month from this. The story did all it needed to in the space it had, a nice short chapter, but I really wanted more.
BATMAN BEYOND #6
Was Bruce about to tell Terry he doesn't have 10 lasers? Laaaaaame, Bruce KNOWS the value of a tactical bluff, that seems REALLY out of character for him.
Norm Breyfogle's art is better than most issues thus far, thought not as fitting as it was in the previous issue. I just really don't think he's the right fit for this.
This issue is just... short. I really does feel like it's only half an issue. It was the first skirmish that set up the story arc, and then some character stuff... and then the end. There weren't any surprises or much story progression, it was just the beginning of the beginning.
In Conclusion: 3.5/5
Short. Art's so-so. Out of character moment for Bruce. Not much else to say.
FINAL SCORE: 4/5
It was another pretty solid issue, but this one's suffering a LOT from the core problem with this title, it's just stretching itself too thin. We need 20 pages of each story a month, so this needs to be split into two series.