Action Comics #994

Booster has to try to clean up the mess Clark made of the timeline.

SPOILERS AHEAD

To Recap Clark is trying to figure if and how his father Jor-El survived the explosion of their planet by time travelling via the cosmic treadmill. Booster investigated which led to Flash (Barry) being an ass to him until Skeets knocked him out. Superman apparently altered time and Booster has to fix it. Since their on Krypton Superman has no powers and armed forces are after them.

Booster tries to get Superman to flee, which gives us this gem, "I don't run." Said as Superman runs away but this kind of irritated me. I know Clark is going through an identity crisis, it's just frustrating that he's being so difficult. He can't fight the forces as well as he did and the alternative would led to Booster/Skeets to protect him endangering them.

Clark being more than a little dim in time travel stories isn't new though. Jurgens has written Superman stubbornly refusing to follow the rules even if that means he destroys all of creation by changing the past. We get confirmation that Booster still is using his fame as a cover for being a Time Master. Which is good as I wasn't looking forward to a possible regression. The set up for his tagline does make it look like he wants to be famous which is odd.

The guys run into more trouble which leads to Clark questioning why things are different and Booster stating the obvious because Clark is still being thick. Skeets, refuses to call it a fact despite time actually being altered. I don't know if Clark is getting annoyed by Booster or still slow on the uptake but "I don't need saving"? Really?! Once again Booster reminds Clark that he has no powers. Instead of verbally agreeing Clark informs him that he needs to increase his power setting. Mmm hmm, don't think I didn't notice that you didn't want to admit Booster was right.

While Booster's stunned he takes his glove/gauntlet to use it himself. A good solution to his problem with being helpless. Booster and Skeets remind Clark (rather the audience) of his powers and that they were stolen. Clark ignores them to get back to the topic of the past being messed up. He wants to stay to find answers which Booster points out would be pointless in the alternate past. Skeets has discovered their in a shard of time that exists on its own. It was created when Jor-El was saved. The bottom line is that it will change all of time if they don't leave. Zod wants to capture them, Clark is still dense and is apparently willing to risk his son never being born on the slim chance on answers in an altered past.

Why does he never listen to the actually experienced time travelers?

Anyway Lois tries to find information about her dad and tell Jon about him. For some reason she doesn't want him to know about their rift. I was under the impression Jon already heard about it though. She understands what a general tells her while Jon misses it completely.

Likewise Superman completely misses the fact changing history will destroy his present. They arrive in Booster's time in Gotham.



Overall: I liked this a lot although I have to mention a few things.

I thought it was a little confusing when Skeets starts to make it sound like an alternate world yet it would change their timeline  if they stayed longer. Regardless if Manhattan created it their the ones that chose to go there and would be responsible if they stayed.

I'd prefer it if Boosters' narrative boxes explained his powers since it feels a little forced when they say it in front of Clark. The man of steel doesn't even acknowledge it and probably still already knows it anyway.

I wish Jurgens would tone down Booster's ego cover. I half thought Superman would lose it because Booster was bragging about saving him.

I'm kind of annoyed with Clark and the way he's acting. I get why he's behaving like this, even without the Oz baggage he's previously been like this under Jurgens around Booster and when time travel is involved. But he's being increasingly grating. Booster has pointed out that Clark screwed up and is there to help. Yet Clark gets defensive about fleeing and being saved? He blames Booster for ruining everything when he's the one messing with things he doesn't fully understand?

I wrote up to this point and checked a forum on a whim. And to be fair I only saw one person saying this but they seem to think this is more Booster's fault than Superman 's. Which I don't see as this is clearly Clark acting out on his emotions while Booster is trying to fix things.

Look, I know Manhattan started all this although he's not named here. But this current scenario (time traveling to Krypton which would lead to changing history) is Superman 's fault since it's clear he's not thinking straight. There no plan in mind when he goes to the past. He's the guy that's powerless under the red sun yet he never realized he'd be powerless on Krypton. He doesn't even know how to defend himself until he sees Booster blasting and takes a gauntlet for himself. How would he ever get these supposed answers in an altered past? Booster tells him it's not possible yet he's insistent for no real reason. How could he find those answers when the Jor-El we see never survived the explosion like Oz did?

Superman is simply controlled by his emotions to the point he can't see the bigger picture. Not once do we see it ever occur to him that his actions might lead to his son never being born or Earth being destroyed. I'm certain he cares deeply about both but his mind is so focused on one thing that he's not realizing anything beyond it. That's why he needs Booster in this arc. In the last arc he talked to Bruce and Hal. Bruce could only relate to him on a "we met our dead dads recently and it's weird" level. Hal couldn't provide him with the answers he needed. Clark didn't even bother to ask Barry to use the treadmill.

Going to Booster's home and bringing an Eradicator with them happened because Clark kept on delaying their departure whenever Booster insisted they leave. They didn't go until Booster forced them into the time sphere before it was too late and it was damaged in the process.

Time travel is Booster's job, one he understands and accepts in a way Clark never will. Jurgens has shown this in past stories, Clark won't accept the fact that he can't save people and wouldn't follow the rules. Booster can keep him in line and potentially help him get those answers he wants. The point of Clark's arc is how he feels compelled to find answers to the point he's acting irrationally and needs help. It doesn't make him weak it's character growth. Something similar happened with Booster in the the Johns/Katz run. In the end Ted had to take the choice out of his hands just like Booster did with Clark.

And the other question raised by the poster was "why isn't Booster fixing what Manhattan did?" Jurgens suggested in a recent interview that Booster has been busy time traveling lately so maybe he has been trying to undo all of this. Personally I've been annoyed that the Time Masters aren't a bigger factor in this or even seen as important. Then again Booster seemed to be split into two beings like Lois and Clark were in the Convergence two parter.





Say What?: Skeets can just change the setting himself? That doesn't sound ideal if he ever gets hacked again.

It was never, to my knowledge, confirmed that Booster has been retconned into Canadian like it was mentioned during NEW 52 talks. But his home being Gotham is confirmed as canon again so it's moot.



Did you Notice ?: Does Superman Still have some of his powers? He looks like he's floating in some of the art.