Strong stories evoke strong emotions, and stay with you for good. They don't age, they always manage to immerse you and make you feel like an integral part of their worlds, no matter your age. I have no doubts Superman Smashes the Klan is exactly that kind of story. Adapted from 80 year old radio material, it manages to be as relevant as during the war time, and on top of that, uses decades worth of comic book writing evolution to delve deeper into the main characters psyche, flesh them out and give each of them unique personality and purpose in the plot. And it also, aside from closing the Klan arc, serves as a brilliant retelling of Superman's origin tale, omething that Frank Miller miserably failed to narrate jut a year ago, with his Year One trainwreck of limited series. Everything's here - iconic trunks, Lana, even Flying Graysons. I swear, every page I've ben reading this issue, I've been grinning out of excitement I couldn't hold any longer. It's pure heartwarming fun and beautifully illutrated comic with an important lesson, which in contrast to really heavy handed themes in many other modern comics (Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass or Female Furies come to my mind), sometimes leading them to regressive, instead of progressive territories, is competently laid down. That's my golden age Superman - a hero, not a demigod.

So, why did I give it only 9.5/10, you may ask? Reason is, the story jumps here and there, which is not suprising taking to conideration how much plot was squeezed to fit in this book. Nonetheless, there are moments when action all of a sudden skips, which doensn't ruin the experience by any means, but definitely doesn't help. That's a minor nitpick, though, in otherwise near perfect limited series.

One question remains - will there be a sequel? I would love to see one with Supergirl trying to fit in as an alien, understand earthlings, maybe shine some light on Golden Age Krypton?