DC’s Superman Superstars initiative in Action Comics is well underway, with Jason Aaron & John Timms‘s Bizarro-centric arc recently wrapped and Joshua Williamson & Rafa Sandoval‘s epic “House of Brainiac” launched earlier this month. Now DC has announced who will take the reins on the series once “House of Brainiac” concludes. Writer Gail Simone and artist Eddy Barrows will take over Action Comics for a three-issue storyline beginning in July. The story, “Superman and the Challenge from the Stars,” will take place in the early days of the Man of Steel’s career. Inker Danny Miki, colorist Rex Lokus, and letterer Dave Sharpe round out the creative team for the storyline.
Here’s how DC describes the upcoming story arc:
The first of Simone and Barrows’s three issues kicks off when a massively powerful alien race makes Earth their arena. Superman, DC’s Man of Steel, must stand alone against impossible challenges that threaten locations all around the world and the lives of those he loves. Action Comics #1067 begins a not-to-be missed epic tale of Superman’s strength, wit, and resourcefulness in an early stage of his public career!
“Superman and the Challenge from the Stars” marks a return to Action Comics for Gail Simone, who wrote the series for eight issues in 2005-06. In a statement announcing the story, Simone described the allure of writing the adventures of the Metropolis Marvel:
“I love the classic Superman cast, and this story is deliberately meant to echo my all-time favorite Superman time period,” said Simone. “We didn’t want to tell a quiet story of Superman in a diner; we wanted to have a massive threat, a war taking place all over the world, and only Superman could possibly protect his adopted planet. It is unapologetically huge in scope and fun as hell, with one of the best art teams I’ve ever worked with…Eddy Barrows, Danny Miki, and Rex Lokus on colors!”
For Barrows, the opportunity to work on the Man of Steel’s flagship title bears a great personal significance:
“For me talking about Action Comics is something that goes beyond the title itself,” shared Barrows. “I remember when I was 7 years old, I was playing on the sidewalk, and suddenly I was run over by a truck, right there. I spent 3 days fighting for my life, and during that whole year that followed I remained in bed, doing lots of physiotherapy, lots of meds and exams. Going to the doctors was a very regular thing. And it was during that time that Superman came to my life, reading Action Comics. Kal-El became a good friend of mine, making my days better. His adventures and his behavior were things that stuck with me! Reading his stories were the highlight of my days, for a 7-year-old recovering from an accident like I was. Back then I wouldn’t have imagined that one day I would be helping to build his legacy: illustrating his stories. The stories of my all-time favorite superhero… SUPERMAN!”
We’ve seen Superman take on all number of alien invaders, but setting the action at the beginning of his superheroing days is an interesting twist. If anyone can put a fresh spin on an oft-seen scenario it’s Simone, and with Barrows and crew on visuals the story’s sure to look great.
Action Comics #1067 will sport a main cover by Barrows, Miki, and Tomeu Morey, as well as variant covers by Wes Craig (open-to-order), Pablo Villalobos (open-to-order), Ben Oliver (1:25 incentive), and a foil, black-and-white version of the main cover. Check out Craig and Oliver’s variants below, and look for the issue to arrive in stores and digitally on Wednesday, July 10th.
