Broken Frontier

While some people may find it cute or amusing being named after a famous person or a fictional character, for some, it’s a curse that they would gladly do without. In Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen’s recently-acclaimed mini-series Superman: Secret Identity, we are introduced to Clark Kent of Picketsville, Kansas.

All his life, Clark has paid the price for being named after the world’s most recognizable comic book hero. His relatives constantly present him with Superman-related gifts during birthdays, his schoolmates harass him and challenge him to prove that he can live up to his name and a good number of people assume that he is a font of comic book knowledge. Life has not been good to Clark and he has his name to attribute all that to.

But all that changes when he wakes up one evening and discovers that he has mysteriously gained the powers of his namesake – flight, strength, x-ray vision, invulnerability and most powers attributed to the Man of Steel. Thus starts the real journey of Clark Kent .

Even as Clark decides to use his powers for good, it is quickly shown that not everyone may be appreciative of such a move. The government wastes no time in tracking him down and trying to contain him as there may be some sinister secrets behind his powers. This is where Busiek’s story starts to shine.

How Clark eventually deals with the government’s constant pursuit and its efforts to capture him is quite unique and a stroke of good writing by Busiek. He correctly assumes that fear of a super-powered being would be the overwhelming reaction to such a situation and presents it in such a way that it makes sense using real-life sensibilities.

A cornerstone of Busiek’s story is the relationship between Clark and his eventual wife, Lois Chaudhari. It is not all that impossible nor is it improbable for a superhuman being to fall in love, take a spouse and eventually fall in love. Throughout the series, the ramifications of such a move continuously haunts Clark and pushes him to adopt extraordinary measures to ensure that nothing happens to his family. Again, Busiek’s rendition of Clark as a family man and the constant turmoil he undergoes to protect that family is simply brilliant.

The relationship between Clark and his government “handler” Malloy is also a vital part of this story. While Clark strikes a deal with the government to help it when called, the cat-and-mouse game between these two characters never seem to stop. Malloy constantly tries to track down Clark with all kinds of surveillance devices while the latter outwits him every time. However, as strained as their relationship may be, the final conversation between the two of them in the fourth book turns out to be one of the most poignant moments in the series.

As enthralling as Busiek’s story is, this book wouldn’t be half as good without the breathtaking artwork of Stuart Immonen. For those who have followed his work, especially during his tenure on some of the Superman books, it is evident that Immonen has vastly improved his style. What stands out most is his ability to express emotions in the individual faces of the characters and the details he renders into them. Though some may disagree, there are flashes of Norman Rockwell in the style he used for Secret Identity. Immonen also takes on the chore of coloring his own artwork and in doing so; fully controls the look of each page thereby ensuring that his vision for the book is fulfilled. This combination produces what may be deemed as one of his best works ever.

The Lowdown: While the mini-series starts out a bit slowly, it gains momentum with every book and the story starts to make more and more sense. Considering the subject matter of Secret Identity, Busiek writes a multi-faceted story with outstanding characterizations grounded in reality, which really works. The plot is quite plausible and the dialogue very crisp. Add to that Immonen’s amazing all-around artwork, Superman: Secret Identity could quite possibly be one of the best Superman stories in recent time. If you missed it the first time around, don’t let the opportunity to read this fantastic book pass by when the trade comes out.

- Jose Clemente