I’d give this book a higher rating, but I think that’s because of how badly I want it to be good. Lemire is all about emotions and small town livin’, perfect for a book about a teen hero that lives in Smallville. Also, I’ve got an affinity for younger characters and I love a good “I’m figuring my stuff out” story.

I think Superboy is great in this context and everyone loves a flawed, human character in the Superman family. In general, everything about this book is great conceptually and hearing Lemire talk about his plans for Superboy gets you just as excited as he is for the ride. Unfortunately, this book was very okay. It was by no means a bad story, but it didn’t wow me in any way that I thought it would. All of Connor’s inner dialogue is interesting, but anything outside of that just felt really “blah”. Besides Ma Kent and Connor, I simply don’t care about the rest of Smallville’s inhabitants. All in all, I think I have this reaction because I was expecting to be excited. Parts of the book were fun and all, but it was just good. No more, no less and that’s what I’m most dissapointed about.

All of that being said, I will definitely keep reading because hey- it’s the first issue. I know we’ve gotta give the book some room to plant its roots. I’ll be the first to buy issue #2 because I’ve got faith in Lemire and how much he wants to make a compelling Superboy story.

… And thank God Lemire is writing this. I’m purely buying this for the story. Gallo’s art is ugly. Simply put, it’s just ugly. For a super “boy” Connor looks like a bizzare, pouty 30 year old and there isn’t a steady line in sight. The whole thing looks like it was inked on drive over a bumpy road and it all just looks sort of flat and awkward… It’s a shame the book has such a beautiful cover.