Superman #2
Superman (Vol. 3) #2 is the second chapter of the New 52's flagship Superman title, arriving as DC's post-Flashpoint relaunch was still establishing its new status quo for the Man of Steel. The issue deepens the series' central mystery by introducing a second invisible alien creature that whispers 'Krypton' before vanishing — a recurring thread designed to tie Superman's Kryptonian past to an unknown cosmic threat that would define Pérez's brief arc. Narratively, it also offers one of the New 52's clearest early portraits of Lois Lane as a resourceful, decisive professional, with Lois improvising a citywide camera network to let Superman track an enemy he literally cannot see on his own — a creative beat that reframes her as an active partner rather than a bystander.
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The issue was written by George Pérez, who provided both the script and layout breakdowns, with pencil finishes split between Jesús Merino and Nicola Scott — an unusual arrangement that reflected the tight production schedule of the New 52 launch month. Pérez later described his tenure on the series as deeply frustrating: DC editorial could not give him firm answers about the new Superman's status quo (such as whether the Kents were alive), and he only learned after the fact that Grant Morrison's concurrent Action Comics run was set five years earlier, substantially restricting what Pérez could do with the present-day Superman. These structural tensions contributed to Pérez's exit after issue #6, making this second issue part of a historically troubled, and historically revealing, chapter in New 52 editorial management.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover-dated December 2011; published October 26, 2011 — the second issue of Superman (Volume 3), DC's post-Flashpoint relaunch of the main Superman title.
- Written by George Pérez (script and breakdowns), with interior art by Jesús Merino and Nicola Scott.
- Continues the 'Krypton creature' mystery begun in issue #1: a second invisible alien attacker appears and whispers the word 'Krypton' before disappearing, with General Sam Lane unable to identify it from Earth's alien-activity records.
- Features a standout Lois Lane sequence in which she commands Jimmy Olsen to broadcast the invisible creature's location across every video screen in Metropolis, effectively serving as Superman's eyes and turning the public into unwitting combat sensors.
- Part of the first story arc later collected in Superman Vol. 1: What Price Tomorrow? (New 52), which was a New York Times Best Seller in its trade-paperback edition.
- Pérez's run — of which this is the second installment — ended at issue #6; his public account of editorial conflicts during this period became a widely-discussed critique of the New 52's cross-title coordination problems.
- The series was then handed to Keith Giffen and Dan Jurgens for issues #7–12, making this issue part of the first of three distinct writing teams to cycle through the title in its debut year.
- Superman #1–6 of the 2011 run (including this issue) were later reprinted in the Adventures of Superman by George Pérez hardcover collection alongside Pérez's earlier 1980s Superman work.
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