Superboy #2

Superboy #2 starts off right where #1 ends, with Superboy proving what a danger he is to himself and those around him. And of course, the secret organization “N.O.W.H.E.R.E.” wants to unleash him on “Red Robin and the others.” We have the classic standoff: scientist working directly with the project claims it's not ready, owner/financier of the project wants immediate results, preferably of the destructive, deadly kind.

This dynamic isn't wholly original, but it works well enough here, possibly because Rose Wilson shifts the chemistry just enough. Again, Rose here is a pleasant surprise, but Scott Lobdell hasn't really gotten into her character that much yet. As someone who's personality has shifted more than a few times in the DC Universe, I'm interested as to what role she'll play in this universe. 

In the last review, I was critical of the art. That doesn't change this issue. R.B. Silva shouldn't be employed by a major comic line. His work is subpar, heck, I know artists from my high-school who could draw circles around him. Hell, the cover artists are ten times his talent level and they aren't exactly David Finch either. 

Are those abs?

Sometimes I wonder how a better artist would affect this story. I'm not saying putting an A-list artist on this title makes it into comic of the year, but a change in pencillers has to make this one of the better titles in the "New 52," right? The writing for this is actually pretty good. I really like how Scott Lobdell writes Superboy, who genuinely seems to be experiencing a learning curve on what it means to be alive.

That said, his handling of the two female main characters (Superboy's personal scientist referred to as "Red" and the aforementioned Rose Wilson) are very solid. These are too strong women that sound like women, but not in a sexist way. Any remaining doubts about whether he's a misogynist and a sexist should be cast aside here. 

The big drawback of this issue is the lack of misdirection (the virtual-reality red-herring from issue #1) or subplots (what happened to that bio-physicist Umber and Lois Lane?). This issue only deals with the main plot of Superboy being programmed to defeat the team Red Robin is forming, and that takes away from the depth that the first issue showed.  This issue is a setback in that sense, right now Superboy and "Red" aren't quite enough to make this a great comic.

Superboy takes place in a 2D world apparently

What I liked:  Lobdell's take on Superboy is very cool, I just wish he had an original character to work on, instead of re-doing characters who are perfectly fine. Superboy, Tim Drake, Rose Wilson, Cassie Sandsmark, Jason Todd, Roy Harper, Starfire; all these are awesome characters that I hope Scott Lobdell stays true to. I haven't seen anything atrocious yet, but I'm a little skeptical. 

What I didn't: R.B. Silva. 'Nuff said.

Conclusion: This issue isn't as good as the first, but just good enough that I'm sticking with it. Many complain about Scott Lobdell writing three different titles, but right now I'm buying into all of them. 7.5/10 (C).