#Synmar

[thevindicativevordan]

SInce you are a fan of the Bendis run, I had wanted to ask about your thoughts on Synmar.

Another "evil Superman" but this one is a bit more interesting.

Imagine you're one of the countless alien civilizations in the DCU, advanced enough that you are keeping tabs on other civilizations. You've identified another world, Krypton, as a potential competitor. When Krypton blows up and sends one of the few survivors to a world with a yellow sun, which grants Kryptonians incredible powers, the logical thing to do is to have a countermeasure in place should that Kryptonian grow up to conquer Earth and begin expanding into your own territory. Since you're an advanced civilization, transforming one of your own soldiers into said countermeasure is a relatively simple task, then it's just a matter of waiting.

Only the Kryptonian child grows up to be the protector of a weaker species instead of it's ruler. Protecting them against cosmic threats that pose an existential menace to even your advanced civilization no less. Once you've seen this "Superman" beat back Darkseid, Mongul, Brainiac, and other universal terrors, who wouldn't want their own "Superman" to keep them safe? Well you've already got a soldier who is meant to be your counter to Superman, why not push him into becoming your Superman? Which of course is where the whole thing goes to hell.

Synmar is the answer to the question of "what if there was a deliberate effort to make someone like Superman?" and that's a villain idea I like a lot! A character meant to stand for that can be used to examine how much of Superman is the result of Clark's upbringing with the Kents, how much of it is simply a product of Kal's nature, and how much is a result of Superman's own beliefs on what being a hero means. Synmar does have some qualities to him that serve as a contrast to Clark. He was not born different from his kind but instead elevated above the rest. Initially the true reason for said elevation was hidden from him, and he never actually got to fulfill his original purpose until he took matters into his own hands. And of course the big difference is he was a soldier, meant to kill his enemies which is a line Superman takes great pains not to cross. Bendis had a lot of good ideas stewing around in the character.

Execution wise however, Synmar feels undercooked. We needed more time with him, what made him decide that the Synmar Utopic's status quo wasn't enough, that they needed to become a galactic power? Do others within the Synmar Utopic feel the same way? We see Synmar has friends, what about family, romantic interests, does he have those, what's his relationship with them? He's shown to be initially humble, uncomfortable with the adulation he received, so what pushed him to go off the deep end and try to seize power? Why attack Superman instead of trying to join the United Planets? More time needed to be spent fleshing him and his culture out before his fall from grace. Bendis has a problem with introducing ideas and not bothering to justify them, characters act in whatever manner will result in the plot beats he wants. Unfortunately Synmar is one of those ideas, he's not a full fleshed out character so much as an interesting concept. I want to like him more than I do, and if someone else picks him up and "finishes" him for lack of a better term, then I think he could be a great Superman Rogue. If he never shows up again however, then I won't be too shocked.

[nfcomics]

JUSTICE LEAGUE no.66 • cover art • Alexander Lozano [Aug 2021]

The Hall of Justice has been invaded by the cosmic threat of the Synmar Utopica, and it will take the full force of the United Planets, led by Superman, to defeat it without destroying Earth in the process. Meanwhile, the secrets of Checkmate are being whispered among the Justice League, and that spells trouble for Green Arrow and Black Canary. All this, and guest star Deathstroke! Meanwhile in Gotham, Batman stands watch as the Eternal Knight continues her quest through the maze of Randir Singh’s mind. And she’s not the only one lost within it! But where is the Justice League Dark in all of this? Under the sea in the lost city of Atlantis! Merlin is ready to rule, and it’s up to Aquaman and this band of magical misfits to save the entire kingdom!

(W) Brian Michael Bendis, Ram V. (A) Phil Hester, Sumit Kumar (CA) Alexander Lozano

[staticdreads]

batman dont play

[why-i-love-comics]

Superman #27 - "Mythological III" (2020)

written by Brian Michael Bendis art by Ivan Reis, Danny Miki, & Alex Sinclair

[comicsplashpages]

Justice League (2018) #66

[dccomicsnews]

Review: Superman #28

Review: SUPERMAN #28   [Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers] Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Artists: Ivan Reis, Danny Miki Colours: Alex Sinclair Letters: Dave Sharpe   Reviewed By: Derek McNeil   Summary Superman #28: Superman comes face to face with an alien race that he desperately wants to help before it is too late. As the cosmically powered race known as the Synmar aim their…

[davidmann95]

Thoughts on Synmar? Thought he was actually an interesting idea as the alien take of "We Should Have Our Own Superman" and far better kicking off the ground running than Rogol Zaar, conceptually. That being said, I wish the name was better, given the sun motifs.

Sat on this for a few days so as to give time for everybody to read it themselves, and SYNMAR! THE GREATEST THREAT SINCE DOOMSDAY! THE ANTITHESIS OF ALL SUPERMAN STANDS FOR! THIS IS WHAT HE WAS SENT HERE TO SAVE US FROM!...is good, actually. This sucks, I hate it, it’s not even “could in theory have something on the ball” like Rogal Zaar before he was entirely botched, he’s actually good. An alien as the product of a world that wanted a Superman for themselves but didn’t really understand him and so made something brutal and ugly in the process, a well-meaning warrior without a place in the utopia he helped bring about, is a killer idea and I’m really eager to see how it plays out when he comes face-to-face with the real thing. Dammit, I was really looking forward to dunking on it, but I guess with this as Bendis’s farewell DC wanted to play the arc up as a big deal in a way that ended up completely misrepresenting it.

(He’s also as a friend pointed out major evidence for ‘Clark setting up his own Authority’ rumors, the council of Synmar roughly lines up with the membership, and Eisno Alkor himself is a light-powered being modeled after Superman who’s the product of a gay union.)

[smashpages]

Superman #25, which is scheduled for September, is an extra-sized anniversary issue that will introduce a new villain for the Man of Steel. 

[keycomicbooks]

#Superman #25 (2020) #IvanReis Cover & Pencils, #BrianMichaelBendis Story, #Synmar 1st Appearance New Villain Alert: Introducing Synmar! A colossal new threat to Superman, the planet Earth, and the DC Universe arrives on the scene in this special issue! The unique warrior called Synmar was created to represent an entire alien race. He’s trained his entire life—but for what purpose? As the antithesis of everything Superman stands for, Synmar launches his aggression toward Earth—to destroy the Man of Steel and every being on the planet! This is what Superman was born to protect us from! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08JJBV68H

[thirdeyecomics]

Here’s a #thirdeyemondaysneakpeek — this weeks #superman issue 25 kicks off a new story Arc from @brianmbendis & features the #firstappearance of a major new #supervillain: #synmar - this book is gonna be 🔥🔥🔥! Snag yours this #newcomicwednesday Want to reserve or preorder this or other items? Here’s how: 1. Email ✉️ steve@thirdeyecomics.com or DM us here. 2. ‼️ Make sure to include: the item, your name, your phone # or email address, and whether it’s for in store pick up (pls include the Third Eye location) or mail order! 3. We’ll get you paid up & it’s yours! #comics #comicbooks #comiccollector #comiccollectors #supermancomics #newcomicday #newcomicbookday #keyissue #keyissues #firstappearancecomic #buythirdeyeordie (at THIRD EYE COMICS) https://www.instagram.com/p/CE2DsSvhLMT/?igshid=brpdg8ey9s5f

[superpoweredfancast]

Justice League #67 Review

Justice League #67 Review

Justice League #67 DC Comics Written by Brian Michael Bendis and Ram V Art by Phil Hester and Sumit Kumar Inks by Eric Gapstur Colors by Hi-Fi and Romulo Fajardo Jr Letters by Josh Reed and Rob Leigh The Rundown: A member of the League must make a tough decision if they are going to end the threat of Synmar. With the Synmar Utopica on the rampage, the League finds themselves fighting…

[dispatchdcu]

Justice League #66 Preview

Justice League #66 Preview #DCEU #dccomics #comics #comicbooks #news #dcu #jonstewart #dcuuniverse #art #info #NCBD #amazon #comicbooknews #previews #reviews #JLA #justiceleague #JL #batman #hallofjustice #superman #flash #greenlantern #naomi #bendis

  Justice League #66 Synopsis:    The Hall of Justice has been invaded by the cosmic threat of the Synmar Utopica, and it will take the full force of the United Planets, led by Superman, to defeat it without destroying Earth in the process. Meanwhile, the secrets of Checkmate are being whispered among the Justice League, and that spells trouble for Green Arrow and Black Canary. All this, and…

[why-i-love-comics]

Superman #25 - "Mythological" (2020)

written by Brian Michael Bendis art by Ivan Reis, Julio Ferreira, Danny Miki, & Alex Sinclair

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1314

Monday. December 28, 2020

 I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. These few comic books are thanks to the generosity of fellow fan Doug.

 Batman/Catwoman #1 - Tom King (writer) Clay Mann (art) Tomeu Morey (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). Well surprise, surprise. I really liked this first issue. Someone doubted that I would because I wasn't a fan of Tom King's recent stories but this one I enjoyed immensely and not just because of how Clay draws Selina. My favourite storyline in the Batman run was the relationship between Selina Kyle/Catwoman and Bruce Wayne/ Batman and it still is. I really wanted them to get married. This story jumps back and forth in time and involves Catwoman's complicated relationships with the hero and the villains. I hope I get to finish this new Black Label series.

 Action Comics #1027 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) John Romita Jr. (pencils) Klaus Janson (inks) Brad Anderson (colours) Dave Sharpe (letters).  The House of Kent story concludes with the Superman Family winning the day and defeating the Red Cloud. Too bad the new owner of the Daily Planet and mastermind behind the Invisible Mafia, Marisol Leone, escapes justice. I hear Brian Michael Bendis is leaving this book and that some fans are happy with that news. As big a Bendis fan as I am I thought this story sucked. Not even better art would have saved it in my opinion. Even the shocking development on the last page was dumb. I hope the next creative team does a better job on this book.

 Iron Man #1 to #4 - Christopher Cantwell (writer) Cafu (art) Frank D'Armata (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). You can't keep a good Iron Man down. Here I thought Tony Stark was dead. He's back on the racks and teamed up with Patsy Walker/Hellcat in this latest reboot and the first 4 issues were oaky. I stopped reading Iron Man a while back so I don't know who the new A.I. is that he talks to but it goes by B.O.S.S. How he hooks up with Patsy is another mystery to me. Tony has reinvented himself after being resurrected from the dead and he fights a bunch of old foes. His biggest challenge is a new version of Korvac. Remember him? I don't. For straight super hero versus super villains fare, this is okay, middle of the road comics.

 Batman Black and White #1 - James Tynion IV, J. H. Williams III, G. Willow Wilson, Emma Rios and Paul Dini (writers) Tradd Moore, J. H. Williams III, Greg Smallwood, Emma Rios and Andy Kubert (art). I call books like this vanity projects. They're written and illustrated in an artsy fartsy way that is pretentious to me. When it comes to Batman I'm more of a blue collar kind of fan and these stories feel more like they should be in a snooty art gallery. The stories are accompanied by creator bios and I found the first two to be worth reading but I didn't read all of them, kind of like how I stop reading the little plaques at the art gallery that goes with the art on the wall after a few. $5.99 US for four short stories in black and white seems steep to me.

 Batman #103 - James Tynion IV (writer) Guillem March, Carlo Pagulayan  & Danny Miki (art) David Baron (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). The cover is a blatant bait and switch. It says "Ghost-Maker vs. Clownhunter" but it's really Ghost-Maker vs. Batman as Bruce tries to keep Ghost-Maker from killing Clownhunter. The best part of this issue was Harley Quinn's appearance.

 Batman #104 - James Tynion IV (writer) Guillem March, Bengal, Ryan Benjamin  & Danny Miki (art) David Baron (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). I like this Ghost-Maker guy. He wears a headband. I wonder if he still wears one under his helmet. So Ghost-Maker sedated Batman, Harley and Clownhunter last issue and now has them tied up in Arkham Asylum. He left Clownhunter unfettered with a sword handy to kill Harley with. Uh-oh.

 Batman #105 - James Tynion IV (writer) Alvaro Martinez  & Christian Duce, Carlo Pagulayan  & Danny Miki (art) David Baron (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). Does Clownhunter kill Harley? Does Ghost-Maker kill Batman? Read this conclusion to "Ghost Stories" to find out. Get ready to roll your eyes.

 Superman #27 & #28 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Ivan Reis (pencils) Danny Miki (inks) Alex Sinclair (colours) Dave Sharpe (letters). The last 2 parts of "Mythological" where Superman fights Synmar came to a grinding, groaning stop. This is the type of story that helps explain why some people get turned off super hero comics. It's just a bunch of big punch-'em-ups and then the good guy wins in the end. And can we get a consistent depiction of the Phantom Zone please? Is it a dimension where the bad guys are phantoms existing in null space or just another dimension where the bad guys live basically like they used to, like in this story? I hate when creators change things to suit their plots. I don't blame fans for grumbling about Bendis after reading this multi-parter.

 Detective Comics #1030 - Peter J. Tomasi (writer) Bilquis Evely (art) Mat Lopes (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Rob Leigh (letters). The grassroots movement to rid Gotham City of masked vigilantes doesn't make me care for the Bat Family more because it sure feels like a contrived plot device. The plotline that I'm much more interested in is Damian's poking around his dad's old case files. That's the kind of detective work I like.

 Detective Comics #1031 - Peter J. Tomasi (writer) Bilquis Evely (art) Mat Lopes (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Rob Leigh (letters). This issue is reflective of events that happened during the recent US presidential election. Anti-Bat and pro-Bat supporters clash and only in comic books can Batman defuse the volatile situation with a noble speech. Meanwhile, Damian quickly finds the person guilty of sweeping the cold cases of the attacks on Bruce Wayne in the past under the rug and brings them to justice. The perp's real identity offers a clue to the villain who shows up at the end of this issue.

 Detective Comics #1032 - Peter J. Tomasi (writer) Brad Walker (pencils) Andrew Hennessy (inks) Dave McCaig (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Father and son set aside their feud to save the rest of the Bat Family from the latest super villain that has them in his clutches. No mystery who the bad guy is with the cover for this issue being a ginormous spoiler. Yes, Hush is back and he's got a great new scheme to hurt Batman.

 Superman Special #1 - Andy Lanning & Ron Marz (writers) Phil Hester & Ande Parks (art) Hi-Fi (colours) Dave Sharpe (letters). Flashback sequence Marco Santucci (art) Arif Prianto (colours) A Larger World's Troy Peteri (letters). This is part 3 of "Endless Winter" which is DC's version of the finale of the Game of Thrones TV show. It's pretty straight forward. The heroes fight giant ice creatures. The end. I wouldn't spend money on this rack filler.

[dccomicsnews]

Review: Superman #25

Review: SUPERMAN #25

  [Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]

Writer: :Brian Michael Bendis

Artists: Ivan Reis, Julio Ferreira, Danny Miki

Colours: Alex Sinclair

Letters: Dave Sharpe

  Reviewed By: Derek McNeil

  Summary

Superman #25: New Villain Alert: Introducing Synmar! A colossal new threat to Superman, the planet Earth, and the DC Universe arrives on the scene in this special…

[davidmann95]

What are your theories/thoughts going into Superman #25 tomorrow?

Two days for me, but I hate to admit I’m now a bit interested in SYNMAR! THE GREATEST THREAT SINCE DOOMSDAY! The preview for #25 itself was solid (and the first pair of lines might be the funniest comics moment of 2020), but then there’s this interview excerpt:

“We thought wouldn't it be great to create a villain whose mindset its so different from anything that he has seen on Earth or anything that Superman relates to. This is a person that there's no part that the Superman can relate to so he has to like back up and come up with a different set of ways to deal with this. Not just that, well I'll punch it in the face and see how that goes. Let's take it a step back and see how we can handle an adversary of ignorance. We don't understand each other, let's figure it out and we have no way to communicate,not physically let's figure out a way to communicate. So I thought that would be an interesting way to celebrate Superman, what does he bring that no other superhero can bring, and if this villain brings that out it, you've created a new villain as well."

...and that actually sounds interesting, and it’s a shame they feel inclined to hype it up as a big dumb punch-up instead. Maybe they’re doing the whole THE ANTITHESIS OF ALL SUPERMAN STANDS FOR! THIS IS WHAT HE WAS SENT HERE TO SAVE US FROM! thing because it’s gonna be the last big story before 5G, same as how Joker War over in Batman is meant as a finale?