Review: Superman - Speeding Bullets

Ah, the Elseworlds brand. Renowned for it's constant misses rather than a slew of hits, DC Comics' banner of off-shoot stories, featuring their most popular characters released of the constraints of regular continuity, gained it's height of popularity throughout the 1990's. The goal of the brand was to challenge contemporary ideas of such classics as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and The Justice League with alternate takes that varied from the subtle-yet-obvious to the drastically different. On a number of levels, it was an outlet for writers to go nuts with whatever crazy concept they had. What if Batman were a pirate? What if Superman were raised by Darkseid? What if Wonder Woman, an Amazon, was found roaming the Wild West? Those ideas and more were presented to the market, and for a time, fans ate it up. It was an idea filled with a combination of endless potential and plenty of margin for error. And often times, it was error that was presented. So by the time that the early 2000's hit, the idea of DC's Elseworlds was unsurprisingly all but a dead brand, with only a few being books released over a period of year until it was quietly abandoned.


However, one bright spot of the brand was whenever a creator managed to get it right, and through the prism of a simple concept that practically every comic book fan had secretly dreamed of seeing, there were a few standouts and memorable tales that have been considered just as classic as any of the mainstream stories. And though not every Elseworlds got to be a Superman: Red Son or a Kingdom Come, one story actually managed to utilize the brand to do something that would almost be considered blasphemous - merge the two biggest comic book icons into a single character, combining their mythologies, supporting cast, and rogue's gallery into a cohesive universe on it's own. That is where this particular entry into the brand comes in.

No, it's not this. Thank Christ.

Superman: Speeding Bullets asks a very simple question - what if, by chance, the rocket ship carrying an infant Kal-El had landed near Wayne Manor instead of Smallville, Kansas? Obviously, this negates the two characters' traditional existence right out of the gate. Thomas and Martha Wayne never conceive their biological son, and Jonathan and Martha Kent never adopt the child from another world. So how would Kal-El function, being brought up as the Wayne's adopted son Bruce? The answers are quite intriguing, if not outright startling in just how simple it translates. Superman and Batman are obviously very different characters - some would even say that they meet on the opposite sides of the spectrum. But at their core, they're fundamentally just as dedicated to justice as the other, and Speeding Bullets doesn't change that. It just manages to completely turn all of the building blocks up to that point on their heads.

Alfred don't care about no space children. He's just looking out for the money.

First of all, what's his origin now? Young Bruce Wayne is raised by Thomas and Martha, but he inherits all of the superhuman powers of his kryptonian heritage. So whenever a mugger fatefully corners his adopted parents and murders them in cold blood, young Bruce lashes out with his first blast of heat vision, brought about by the rage of losing his parents and managing to burn the face off of their killer, sending him fleeing into the night. Obviously, this chilling moment has an affect on young Bruce, who secludes himself in Wayne Manor for years, requiring none of the studies or training that the Bruce Wayne we all know needed in order to combat crime. And understandably son, given it's a little hard to justify that much dedication to something unnessecary when you can fold a car in half with your bare hands.

So Bruce now lives as a recluse, his loyal servant Alfred being his only daily interaction beyond the newspaper clippings he collects, detailing the violent Gotham City of the outside world. He expresses a hatred for crime, but does nothing to stop it, wishing nothing to do with a world that revels in the very same violence that took his parents. That all changes when a group of terrorists break into his home and demand his valuables, holding Alfred at gunpoint. Sparking the same rage that was born in Bruce the moment that he watched his parents die, he lashes out, bouncing bullets off of his chest and burning away the guns that his would-be captors hold. From this moment, Bruce begins to question what he really is. And after having that question answered by Alfred, who dutifully buried the rocket that brought Kal-El to the Wayne's home in a cavern beneath the estate, Bruce ascends into the darkness and flies alongside the cave's many bats, his calling fulfilled. With a number of amazing powers at his side in the place of gadgetry and detective cunning, The Batman is born.

"I'm Batm... er, I'm Superma... y'know what, nevermind."

Superman: Speeding Bullets makes for a fascinating series of discussions, not just within it's own perimeters, but within the ideas it presents for the DCU aswell. The story's version of The Joker is a combination of the Clown Price and Superman's archnemesis, Lex Luthor, prompting the question of how much more terrifying The Joker would be if he had the same billion dollar resources of his hated enemy. The Daily Planet's staff is relocated to the Gotham Gazette, owned by Wayne, prompting the question of how intrepid reporter Lois Lane would react to the considerably less inspirational Batman as her constant savior. Even the idea of why Bruce chooses to be a symbol of terror rather than a beacon of hope is theorized to an interesting degree, and leads to a very interesting reveal on the book's final page.

...I lied, IT DOES TURN INTO THIS!!!

It's not a perfect story by any means. Lois' dialogue and character arc can come across as somewhat heavy handed, and we never really get insight as to how Superman or Batman's other many friends and foes would turn out in this setting, but it's still a well done tale that deserves some recognition. If you've ever wondered what it'd be like if Superman had the darkness of Bruce Wayne's soul driving him or what it'd be like if Batman had the amazing abilities of Clark Kent to put to use in his neverending war on crime, this would be the book to answer your questions. Or at least, give you a good idea of what that might look like in another world.

Plus, let's face it. Batman flying is the coolest thing ever.

Rating:

4 out of 5

Reviewed by Alex Koch