Superman Smashes The Klan: Review

Title: Superman Smashes the Klan.

Writer: Gene Luen Yang.

Artist(s): Gurihiru.

Issues: 3.

Pages: 250 pages combined 3 issues.

What is it?: Superman Smashes the Klan is an epic comic book mini-series released in October 2019. It is loosely adapted from a famous and groundbreaking Superman radio show. Gene Luen Yang wrote the book and it was illustrated by the team known as Gurihiru.

Plo Summary: The year is 1946 and a young earnest Superman, still early in his storied career. He takes on the mission to protect and watch over the Lees, an Asian American family. Who has recently moved from Chinatown into the city of Metropolis. The family consists of an intelligent father, a kind-hearted mother, an emotionally strong daughter, and a thick-skinned son. The Lees are barely tolerated by their community, but they manage to get along well, flowing into their daily life by being humble and frankly good people. They move when the father Is promoted to a great job at the metropolis health department. The story takes off when the son (Tommy) gets a position on the local baseball team run by Jimmy Olsen. But Tommy's prodigious pitching leads to a confrontation between him and a boy on the team (Chuck Riggs) that leads to Chuck getting kicked off the team for racial remarks. It would lead to the reveal of an ignorant evil within Metropolis, a fictitious version of the Klu Klux klan known as the Klan of the fiery cross.

Thoughts: Gene Luen Yang and the team of Gurihiru manage to do something incredible with this story. The combination of Yang's passionate and heartfelt writing and Gurihirus highly expressive and kinetic artwork work in perfect sync to deliver a fantastically action-packed and heartfelt story that will leave you wanting more. Superman's presentation as a character is inspiring and optimistic, even when faced with tough questions and even tougher situations. It's the Superman I have recently come to fall in love with, but not only is Superman's characterization on point and well written; Yang also writes the family in an incredibly pleasant and thoughtful way. Each one of them feels like a fascinating and very relatable character that blends with Superman's values. The book is a Superman story where our lovable boy scout tackles some inner conflict. While also centering around the Lee family coping with the Klan's dangerous obsession with them. The Two frankly amazing main characters for this story are the brother-sister duo of Roberta and Tommy Lee. Both of the characters, to me, have this strong sense of genuine relatability. Tommy is a popular kid who everyone seems to like right off the bat; he's talented, sturdy, and has a level but thick head. Roberta is the opposite; she's very homesick initially, which causes her to be depressed a lot of the time and stay inside of her thoughts, which only isolates her from her family. The parents are two average people working their hardest to make a stable home for their children. Yang manages to bring a sense of realism to the family characters despite how colorful and children-oriented the comic is. Yang's depiction of the Klan of the fiery cross is well thought out and hilarious. He depicts this goofy and insane group covered up by a cloth of pure ignorance and hate; it is a group that represents everything Superman is not. This is a story full of robust kinetic action, exciting themes, and I would guarantee it would be able to make the coldest hearts smile. Another thing that makes it very special too me is Yang's articles at the end of each issue. It gives this personalized look into his real-life history and some of the social and racial issues in the United States. In short, I love this book. Hopefully, you will too.

Rating: 8/10 Fantastic book, but I do think there are pacing and small clarity issues, the graphic novel has a powerful message, please consider giving it a read.