At today’s Metropolis All-Stars panel at New York Comic Con 2023, DC Comics revealed a different future for the Man of Steel than many fans might have expected. Writer Jason Aaron, just off of a five-year stint on Avengers and a blockbuster Thor run for Marvel, will take on the first superhero of them all for the first time, when he takes the reins of Superman’s flagship title.
Phillip Kennedy Johnson, who’s penned Action Comics since 2021, will wrap up his work in time for Aaron’s Action Comics #1061 in January.
“I’ve been writing comics for almost 20 years,” Aaron said in DC’s news release, “and I’ve certainly enjoyed my share of special moments and exciting projects along the way, but getting to write Superman for the very first time, in the pages of Action Comics no less, the one that started it all, goes down as one of the absolute most significant honors of my career.”
Image: John Timms/DC Comics
Aaron will team with artist John Timms for a story about Bizarro, Superman’s lovable clone for whom it is always, always opposite day. “We’re doing our very best to give readers a Superman tale full of action and surprises,” said Aaron, “the most Bizarro of all Bizarro stories, in what Bizarro himself would call the worst Bizarro story ever told’!”
But they’ll be done with the story in only three issues, because DC’s real plan for Action Comics in 2024 is to switch it up. Aaron’s issues are only the first “phase” of what the publisher is calling “Superman Superstars.” The project will “pair celebrated writers and artists for can’t-miss Superman stories in one of DC’s flagship titles” throughout 2024.
For the second installment of Superman Superstars, Superman scribe and DC Comics heavyweight Joshua Williamson, with artist Rafa Sandoval, is working on an Action Comics/Superman crossover covering the return of one of the Man of Steel’s biggest baddies: Braniac. And as a bonus, Lobo the last Czarnian is there too.
Image: Rafa Sandoval/DC Comics
“This crossover will have massive ramifications, not just for Superman but across all of the DC Universe. Plus, it’s a fun roller coaster ride with Superman, Lex Luthor, Lobo, Supergirl, and the Super-Family up against Brainiac and a Czarnian army.”
Aaron and Timms’ “I, Bizarro,” kicks off on Jan. 9; while Williamson and Sandoval’s “House of Braniac” will debut in April in Action Comics #1064.
You can check out the rest of Polygon’s coverage of all of New York Comic Con 2023’s news, trailers, and highlights right here, and check out several covers from Superman Superstars below!
Image: Jöelle Jones/DC Comics
Image: Reilly/DC Comics
Image: Rivera/DC Comics
This one’s subtle, but when you see it…
