Superboy #30 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written By: Aaron Kuder
Art By: Jorge Jimenez Moreno
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: April 9, 2014

Days Of Past Future

When we last left our deeply troubled Superboy, he had put together a band of human-meta hybrids, and planned on using them to keep the future free of metas.  They were meant to stay in the future to make sure that Harvest's plans were fulfilled in the past, and if they were not, to continue the fight in the future.  Yeah it's pretty strange.  But Superboy was apparently called back to the past, and the issue ended with him showing up in Times Square, at some undetermined time.  To confuse things up some more, Superboy's secret plan is to have Harvest cure him, then use his newly formed team in the future help him kill Harvest.  Yeah it's all pretty strange, and hard to understand, but hopefully this issue clears up the story, and moves us into a new direction for our wayward Superboy.

Explain It!:

The issue begins with a strange flashback to the day Jon Lane Kent killed the last of the superheroes.  But this is a weird memory for Superboy, because what he remembers starts to change.  This time instead of him killing the heroes and having no resistance, he is confronted by Kon, and the Superboy's throughout the multiverse.  Kon tells Jon, that even with all these Superboys, Jon's the only one that is destructive, and also part human.  He believes the two are linked, and before we get anything that comes close to an explanation, Jon emerges from the time vortex in Times Square.  Luckily for the people of NYC, his biology problem is getting pretty bad and he is seriously weakened.  We see how bad it's gotten when he tries to fly away, and crashes on top of a building.  Before Superboy blacks out, he is confronted by Star Labs's security force; Guardian, who figures that since Superboy needs help, he'll be the one to give it to him.  Oh poor naive Guardian.  

Superboy has another dream/flashback this time about his time as a child, and being trained by Harvest to hunt and kill metas.  In this particular memory Harvest wakes him, and tells him they need to leave because the meta's are almost here.  Superboy quickly packs, and when they walk outside they are confronted by Superman, Kon, and the legion of Superboys.  Again this changed memory ends and Superboy finds himself inside the New York Star Labs, and is shocked that after running their tests, and finding out he's not Kon, they still want to help him with his biology problem.

The issue ends with introductions to the people at Star Labs, and them showing Jon his room.  In the end we see that Jon is still being haunted by Kon, and it's starting to seem like there might be some sort of redemption for Jon Lane Kent.  It's a long shot, but Superboy didn't seem to be as despicable as he has been in past issues.  Also for his mind frame it doesn't hurt that everyone at Star Labs is human, and nothing was there to set the psychopath inside of him free.  So I guess we'll see if Superboy can find some sort of peace, and maybe a new future when the people of this time help him with his genetic disorder.

Bits and Pieces:

While there doesn't seem to be much in the ways of explaining what Superboy is up to in the present time, or where he might go from here, it was a pleasure to read nonetheless.  Kuder taking over the reigns of Superboy hopefully means we'll be given a character that we can actually stand, and bring some of the fans who have bailed on this title since Jon Lane Kent took over, back into the series.  I might just be optimistic, but it seems like there might be a light at the end of the tunnel for this psychotic character, and whether it turns out the way I hope, I'll be along for the ride, and so should you.  Go check it out, this could be a brave new world for Jon Lane Kent.

7.8/10