Writer: Kurt Busiek
Artist: Carlos Pacheco
DC Comics
So many of the major creative teams announced for DC’s titles have performed below expectations that it’s refreshing to find a pairing that has exceeded them! In this tale the Busiek-Pacheco team deliver a story of Superman that deserves to be widely read, it portrays all the characters well and gives a thought-provoking story.
Busiek’s deceptively simple story covers a wealth of philosophy, morality and the ethics of consequentialism. Consequentialism is an off-shoot of utilitarianism, where if an act has the consequence of creating the most good then that act should be taken, regardless of its nature. This is the position Arion takes and it sets him in opposition to Superman; Arion seeks to prevent a future disaster by allowing things to fail now. Through this he hopes to prevent the larger cataclysm occurring, as it will be sapped of the energy it needs. Superman cannot, of course, permit this. A related issue, more low-profile, but every bit as important, is the question of how Superman’s presence impacts upon humanity’s freedom to act. Does he unwittingly stifle human creativity, that we don’t need to solve problems because Superman can do it for us?
The other adversary he has to contend with is an alien termed Subjekt-17. Captured and experimented on by humans, the alien nurses a grudge against all humans and intends to take vengeance upon them. His first encounter with Superman is a primal encounter cut short by Arion’s intervention. Later, Subjekt-17 has mastered language and demands Superman stand with him, alien to alien. He then sours the proposition by requiring Superman to allow him vengeance. Busiek adds the notion of binary oppositions, structures that demand opposition to perpetuate the situation, very much a with me or against me attitude. Support me and my enemy will use your support to whip support on their side; oppose me and I’ll do the same. Either way the state of conflict will keep going.
The keystone in this complex web of ideas is a refusal to opt for quick and easy solutions: Superman rejects Arion’s advocacy of letting millions die to save billions, just as he rejects Subjekt-17’s all-or-nothing demands. Busiek is smart enough to hold back from having Superman set out alternative solutions, instead Superman recognises the problems need another way, one that he and humanity need to find but is uncertain as to its exact nature. In less capable hands, a story that poses questions only would be unsatisfying, but Busiek crafts the central notions well enough that this pitfall is evaded.
A story cannot run by ideas alone though, nor does this one. From the outset Busiek enthrals us with an action-packed opener married with perfect characterisation: Lois, Clark, Superman, Perry – all are well portrayed. In the opener Busiek packs in a huge amount of activity, activity that Pacheco is up to drawing and how he does! The issue is full of wonderful imagery spanning all manner of moods and moments. In the second issue things move further: the main actors are brought into play but Busiek also adds in smaller, more personal arcs such as Lana Lang’s battle to save Lexcorp from bankruptcy. Then there’s the finale of Book I: A nightmarish future destruction of Earth due to a battle of superhumans – where Superman is hurled into the Earth with the force of an extinction-level meteor strike! Pacheco demonstrates why he is one of the best artists in comics with these images – from the destroyed Metropolis to the fall of Superman, it all evokes a sense of horror and mounting unease.
More importantly Pacheco manages to evoke a sense of the superhuman in his story-telling. The first issue that has Superman juggling activity as Clark and as himself, with the plot flitting back and forth, as he has to handle multiple assignments and threats is told with impressive clarity. But you really get a sense that this is possible, that someone like Superman could do all this. At the same time it ratchets up the inevitable threat by making it more ominous – if Superman is capable of so much, what can threaten him? Or kill him?
Yet Busiek neatly deals with this problem of how to handle the level of Superman’s abilities by effectively side-stepping the issue. He sets up a problem that even Superman’s intellect is unable to easily address without resorting to anything so crude as de-powering him. By setting a telekinetic enemy against him in the form of a Subjekt-17 and a magical adversary with Arion, he gives Superman opponents able to match him. Of the two Arion is the more dangerous as he adds guile and cunning to his magical abilities, which Superman has always been vulnerable to.
In this review I’ve only really concentrated on the grand aspects of Camelot Falls, its deft characterisation, surprising complexity and depth - the excellent vision that sees it demonstrate how a Superman story can be. Yet there is a veritable treasure trove of details in this story, delightful details of conversations and ideas, of personality, of action and dynamic decisions, even comedy. The joy lies in encountering them for the first time without knowing their precise nature.
While I would be happy to be wrong, I’m not sure we will see as well-suited a team on Superman as the Busiek-Pacheco one for quite some time, nor is the ambition of their story often seen. For that reason and a host of others already given, if you’re a Superman fan or a fan of well-told stories you owe it to yourself to check this out, especially as it’s now concluded. Take a look and you’ll find a story that shows just how super Superman is.
Ben Crofts is resident in Essex, works in London and has found comics and philosophy mix surprisingly well.