The late Philip K. Dick, in a speculative move that was odd even for him, once hypothesized that living, intelligent beings are only packets of information, with any reality they, which is to say we, might experience merely being an epiphenomenon, a kind of illusion arising from information layering together, as one might imagine a somewhat dim-witted machine muttering to itself in ever more baroque binary strings. Gene Yang, as Gene Luen Yang now signs himself, doesn't go that far inSuperman 42. Still, it is clear that he sees the modern world, at least the modern human world, as a sea of information. We poor mortals are hopelessly immersed in this flood of data, buoyed by its density, buffeted by its currents, carried by its tides, drowned in its depths, and preyed upon by the monsters of the cryptographic deep. Secrets are illusions in this world, and even the power of knowledge is contingent and elusive. Read Full Review

Anyway, this series trundles on with great art from John Romita, Jr., and Klaus Janson - but the story by new writer Gene Yang is still on shaky ground. Read Full Review

It's sad to see Yang and Co squander a good start, but this issue of Superman pales compared to the previous issue, or the Action issues which have been incredibly strong. As of now, Superman is the weak link in the “Truth” arc, and I hope the next issue will rise above this one to be worthy of the title Superman. Read Full Review

This issue kind of works and kind of doesn't. The story is lacking in parts, and specifically in that Lois' character is so off in terms of her characterization over the years. So too is there is a bit of a problem with Hordr. If Superman's identity is to become public knowledge, it would be more impressive with a big story, not just a group of high-tech hackers. More so, Hordr is a bit of a miss, just as police brutality was treated in a superficial way in the last Action Comics, so too are modern questions about the likes of Snowden and Anonymous treated superficially here. That being said though, the story is better here than it has been elsewhere in this odd new angle for Superman, but it seems like those making the decisions about this new direction for the character need a lot more coherence in their decisions. Read Full Review

Superman #41 suggested there was good reason for the series to linger behind the rest of DC's Superman books. Now that's looking less likely. Yang and Romita are clearly well-suited to Superman's world, but the bland villain and general predictability are harming their first collaboration. Read Full Review

Superman #42 may not be quite as impressive as recent entries in Truth, but that doesn't mean that it's terrible. Having some intriguing concepts, and an intense set of developments, this latest issue leaves us a lot to ponder, even if some aspects of this tale don't quite feel right. Read Full Review

Despite a few mixed complaints that this reviewer had with Superman #42 it was still a pretty solid book that continues the “Truth” event and it will be interesting to see what Yang has in store going forward. Read Full Review

Superman #42 was an average read. Since this issue offers little in the way of new plot development readers can easily skip this issue and not miss much. The super hero comic market is a tough and brutal market. There are so many great options before the reader these days. Issues like Superman #42 that offer a middle of the road read are easy to passover. With an expensive $4.00 cover price, Superman #42 has to deliver more of an interesting and creative story in order to justify such a price tag. Unfortunately, it does not. Read Full Review

"Truth" isn't working. That might have more to do with the past editorial sins of DC Comics than Yang & John Romita (who turns in reliably solid artwork). But the facts of this current Superman paradigm remain: the Man of Steel's heart belongs to another, and he saves his emotional bonding for the likes of Jimmy Olsen and Batman more than anyone else. Lois Lane has sat in the background for so long, it's almost a joke that we're supposed to feel anything, let alone surprise and awe, about her discovery. What should be treated as a "shocking development" is next to impossible to do when narratively, it's already happened and it doesn't matter anyway. Read Full Review

While we're finally starting to get to the TRUTH of the matter, this issue is just all over the place with it's nonsense.  We have a huge development in the beginning of the issue, which felt like one of the biggest parts of this book, quickly looked over so the story could feature a techno Hogwarts, that just came off as ridiculous.  Hopefully this prequel to the TRUTH begins to become interesting because as of right now this is the worst title in the crossover story. Read Full Review

The end result of this story is something great for the franchise and creates a new world to play in. The stories that have grown from it are entertaining, but -- two chapters -- in Yang's tale of how the franchise gets there is proving to be troublesome. He writes Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane well and the smaller moments are fun,, but he is still having trouble finding a balance with the larger scale action. The villain that looks like he will force Lois' hand to reveal Clark's identity is laughable and, though this book will be remembered as the moment Lois found out in the New 52, it's beginning to feel like readers would be better served to check out Clark's other adventures until "Superman" catches up to the present and gives readers a chance to see the creative team tell a story with the character that involves the new status quo. Read Full Review

Some good Lois. I thought for the most part Lois' reaction to finally learning that Clark was Superman was real. And her taking out Root was a nice character moment. Sick of flare. The Superman I know liked to punch up. Liked to use his powers judiciously. He didn't want to willing destroy things or hurt people. He wanted people to be safe. Superman using the flare primarily and over and over ... destroying robots and leveling buildings ... doesn't read right. It feels overused or lazy. I am sick of it. Read Full Review

There are a lot of books featuring Superman on the stands right now and you'd probably be better served to pick up any of them than waste time with this formulaic snoozefest. Superman is a great character that is very flexible in terms of interpretation and execution of concept but Yang doesn't try anything we haven't seen before. Even Romita's work seems jilted by the switch from Geoff John's scripts to these. Other writers have used this new status quo as an opportunity to explore what makes Superman the hero that he has been for years. Yang doesn't get that chance, because his story exists before the status quo shift. He gets a raw deal because of the publishing schedule, but you'd have squint to find anything interesting here anyway. Read Full Review

This went downhill fast. So many flaws.