War of the Supermen is a much better version of Amazons Attack and by that I mean it’s okay.

After a great issue 0 with vivid art and a “’bout to throwdown” Kal-El, the mini has been slowly losing steam. After the great cliffhanger from last issue, we get a resolution that comes about through a cliche character sacrifice. We’ve already seen at least two other characters run this play in major crossovers, one who did the exact same thing just last year.

That, this issue does somethings quite well. General Lane and Zod are easy enough to portray as militant, xenophobic despots but there are moments, however brief, that show them feel the pain of the losses their sides suffer and accepting the fact they are bad men doing bad things for good reasons. While the art didn’t blow me away like it did in the 0 issue, it certainly went a long way in capturing the emotions of the Kal, Zod, and Lane.

The second half of the book, like Amazons Attack before it, uses the Bruckheimian axiom that destruction of landmarks = plot. The New Krypton story has been at it’s best when it’s about the politics not the smashing. However, the final page, which holds the promise of most excellent smashing, has me excited to see how the final 25 of the 100 Minute War wraps.