Superman: Shadows Linger #1

Superman has to save Lana Lang from the Insect Queen. Later Paragon escapes from prison to stir up some trouble.  

Kurt Busiek has been creating some very interesting, compelling and thought-provoking Superman stories. I've quickly become a fan of his writing based off this series alone. Superman can be a difficult character to write for some writers. There is a bit of a challenge not everyone can rise to. I like the way Kurt Busiek writers Superman. He may be an alien but he's a down to earth, humble and confident individual whose morals won't be shattered. He's playing superhero, protector and father all at once which is fun to see.

This trade is basically comprised of two different stories. The first involved the Insect Queen and was my least favorite of the two. I liked the way the story began, how Superman was interacting with the public by doing a little charity work to help out a good cause. Once the Insect Queen came and kidnapped Lana Lang, I admit I wasn't that immersed in the story. The Insect Queen does little to provoke any excitement out of me and the story felt as if it dragged on far to long. It's satisfactory at best.

The next story is when things really heat up. A lot of stuff happens during this story such as Superman continuing his research for a cure to Mon-El's lead-poisoning, Paradon escaping from prison and a group of priests arriving on Earth demanding Superman turn over Mon-El to them. Again, I really enjoyed how Superman is written. His unwilling determination to save everyone in spite of their past actions and current intentions is overwhelming. He is the epitome of true hero and what everyone should inspire to be more like. It's unfortunate not everyone wants to read a comic with a character like this. 

The art is by Peter Vale and Renato Guedes. Whose art is better? Renato Guedes by a landslide. His style is so elegant and classy. I absolutely love the way he draws Superman. I love how he adds background scenery to his panels. It looks far more incredible than your average artist. The soft, luxurious colours are so nice on the eyes. Peter Vale's artwork isn't horrible by any means, but in comparison to Renato Guedes, his is definitely inferior. 

This was another solid installment of one of the longest running series prior to DC's new 52 relaunch. You can see Kurt Busiek is slowly building to something huge that I'm sure will shake things up unlike anything before. He's been doing a great job so far and I'd recommend reading his run on Superman if you have the chance.