New Super-Man #3

Written by: Gene Luen Yang

Art by: Viktor Bogdanovic

Coloured by: Hi-Fi

Lettered by: Dave Sharpe

In the previous issue, having been given the powers of Superman by the Ministry of Self Reliance, Kong Kenan is inducted into the new Justice League of China. Being unable to fully control his powers and unwilling to operate in a team style environment, Kenan is tricked into putting on a compliance device to keep him in line. The League is sent out to stop a super villain from attacking and killing a woman in her home, Kenan being left in the Bat-Mobile due to his powers having disappeared when he sees the woman being threatened in front of her child. Flashing back to his past where his own mother died, Kenan jumps into action, despite the pain from the compliance device at having disobeyed the order to stay in the car, and is hit by the villain’s weapon; a beam of concentrated sun light. His powers return, they dispatch the villain, and Kenan turns to the now-assembled media and tears off his compliance device, declaring himself Kong Kenan, the Super-Man of China.

This issue picks up directly after this, with the broadcast being seen by several important characters such as Lex Luthor and Batman, not to mention Kenan's father. The other League members quickly shove Kenan into the car before he can reveal their identities as well, and return to home base. Kenan is reprimanded by their leader, Omen, going so far as to shoot him with a laser claiming it to be another compliance device. Kenan goes outside and is joined by Wonder-Woman and Bat-Man, both out of costume, and they discuss the oddity of a random person's emergency signal going directly to the League. They decide to covertly investigate, Kenan fighting his natural tendencies to insult people in an effort to make friends. Seeing a pattern in the victims of these attacks, the League flies off to prevent another attack and, after a quick fight with a sea monster, are introduced to the villains calling themselves The Freedom Fighters of China. Overall I enjoyed the story in this issue a lot. The highlight was the moment where the group were able to just sit around and talk, no costumes or showmanship, with Kenan truely making an effort to be a better person to his teammates.

The artwork continues to be vibrant and colourful. Some panels flow a little oddly, such as Omen suddenly having a gun and goggles in one panel where she didn't in the previous panel, but it's a minor irritation. We finally get to see the other members of the League in their civilian clothes as well, both having distinctive appearances that carry over from their costumes. Beyond that, no major changes from the previous issues, the artwork remains good.

Ultimately, this may have been one of my favourite issues so far and the main reason for that is the extra time that was devoted to the League members while outside of their League persona. This scene was sorely needed and gave us a better look at the other League members personalities, also giving Kenan a chance to grow as well. While I'm fairly sure I already know who The Freedom Fighters of China will turn out to be, I continue to be interested in the series and would recommend it to anyone looking for something both a little different and a little familiar at the same time.