While Bizarro is more intimidating here than he's ever been, the real strength here is in Aaron's Superman characterization. There's an excellent scene involving how his super-hearing works early on. It's a strange story to begin with, but this arc has a ton of promise. Read Full Review

As a whole this issue is enjoyable, however, there are some elements that may leave readers a bit nervous. The scale in which the issue ends is a risky move that puts a lot of pressure to stick the landing. Bizarros personality can be an acquired taste and mileage may vary depending on the reader, however, there is still a story worth following that could prove Action Comics is in good hands. Read Full Review

Two, while Bizarro is the catalyst surely someone else is behind this using Bizarro as a patsy. His world disappears? He ends up on Zerox? He learns a powerful spell to attack Superman?? All too random and too convenient. Who is pulling the strings?? So this was a good read for an opening chapter. I am still very sad to see PKJ go. But if Aaron keeps this up, I'll be okay. Read Full Review

Action Comics #1061 kicks off the "Superman Superstars" initiative in style and gives Bizarro a major upgrade. Superman had a stellar run of comics last year, and 2024 looks like it will only add to that. Read Full Review

Action Comics #1061 marks Jason Aaron's first run at the title with a tried and true Superman adventure, albeit with a "been there, done that" plot. Aaron delivers an exciting, action-packed first issue, and Timms's art looks fantastic. I just wish the plot didn't feel so much like something that's been done before. Read Full Review

After the previous run, this feels like a downgrade, but in terms of being fun, it is a good, if forumlaic, start. Read Full Review

A strong start and a weak ending lead to a mixed bag that always looks great, but sometimes lacks the punch the early pages suggested. Read Full Review

I wanted to like this issue and it didn't disappoint. I haven't read a Superman story since Warworld. I find the entire extended "family" exhausting and contrived. Jason Aaron is a great writer. I appreciate the references he used to demonstrate his knowledge of the DCU. The artwork was excellent, and the colors were eye-popping. If he can keep it grounded around the core characters and the character that is Metropolis, it will be a memorable run.

A very strong start to the storyline. I'm excited to see how Aaron uses Bizarro in the next issues

Let me get this out of my system first (and so people know the context of which I am writing).
I think it was really dumb of DC to end PKJs run on Action Comics. It was clear he still had at least half a year of story left in him (maybe more but it felt like he had a good 6 issues at least). Instead they wanted to rush that and put out Jason Aaron to start the year.

Another concern I have is Jason is typically brought in to ruin characters. Look at what he did in Marvel. Besides him creating the Butcher, he normally WAS the butcher with runs like the Avengers and the Punisher. So I dont trust this guy one bit.

All that being said, this was a good first issue. A weird mix of great action, some sadness, some brutality and a weird creepy atmosphere overall. This feels like it might be like other Bizzaro stories, but maybe darker? Going to need a couple of issues more to get a good feel for it, but I like the start.

Art is lovely. more

I typically don't like Jason Aaron books and get bogged down reading Bizarro talk, but this was a great start and I'm really liking everything Aaron's bringing to the table in DC so far. Seems he's been reinvigorated writing for DC and looking forward to this and Batman Off World continuing.

I usually find Bizarro stories annoying to read, as the Bizarro speak is almost never consistent. It was here, as far as I could tell, so points up for that. It's about what I'd expect from Aaron, lots of entrenched lore references that don't really require any real knowledge, and a sort of epic feeling. That makes me sound like I disliked this, but I didn't.

after Jason Aaron's run on previous punisher and Avengers, I was pretty skeptical. I thought Jason Aaron was past his prime and washed up.

thankfully, this issues started off strong, and showed me why Jason Aaron was one of the best writers in the 2010s. I hope Jason Aaron keeps up the hot streak in DC Comics and has another good run on him. It will be hard to top off PKJ's run on Action Comics, but Jason Aaron can do it if he doesnt put out bland characters or stories.

Great start to a bizarro story.

I will admit I bought this comic with a lot of apprehension; as a comic reader who enjoys DC very strongly over Marvel, seeing more of Marvel's stable coming over doesn't sit well with me, as I feel the writers of Marvel don't always understand the characters in the DC Universe (see Tini Howard and Leah Williams).

Bizarro! It's actually the first time I've seen him in a modern comic since I started reading Superman. The use of magic in Superman comics as his usual foil is common but for the story to basically turn Metropolis into a new Bizarro world after his own has seemingly disappeared. If you're a long time reader of Superman comics, this story may be covering familiar ground but I enjoyed it nonetheless. John Timms is a terrific choice to put onto a Superman book, his work for Jon Kent during DC's Infinite Frontier was a beautiful comic--even if it failed to launch into a good comic down the road.

Recommended. more

Great kickoff with a superb combination of writing and art, minus mediocre backup stories thankfully! Aaron launches a fresh storyline that is careful not to intrude upon, nor contradict, the great work Williamson is doing on the primary title with is cast of characters, and take Bizarro’s story into fresh new territory.

At the end, this feels like a joker gas kind of story, but with Bizarro instead of Mister J, let's see how the next issues presents the situation

The "Superman Superstars" initiative kicks off with a bang, courtesy of writer Jason Aaron and artist John Timms’ debut story featuring Superman vs. Bizarro. Aaron’s take on Bizarro isn’t just a goofy, backwards version of Superman. This new version of Bizarro has powers fueled by a source of power that truly makes him the mirror opposite of Superman and presents a whole new threat level. Unfortuantely, it’s dealt with rather quickly in the story but the cliffhanger ending indicates there may be more than meets the eye. Timms's art is phenomenal. He brings Metropolis to life with vibrant detail and dynamic action sequences. His Bizarro is monstrous and expressive, while Superman retains his iconic look that’s both classic and modern. This was a great read that felt like a timeless Superman story even if it wasn’t groundbreaking. more