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Red Son is a graphic novel masterpiece by Mark Millar. The premise is that Superman’s spaceship when he was a baby landed in the Ukraine instead of in the United States of America. The end result is that Superman was raised with Communist ideology in his veins. I read this graphic novel a couple years after a friend mentioned it to me in one of my International Relations classes. The important thing to know about Red Son, is that it isn’t just a “Parallel Universe” adventure, that we have come to know in modern media. Red Son is a fully conceived moral dilemma that focuses on very strong themes including: Freedom vs. Protection and Order, Control vs. Free Will, and the human will to resist oppression. A great thing about Red Son, is that you don’t have to be a total Superman expert to thoroughly enjoy the Graphic Novel. The story, art, themes, dialogue, characters and action provide such an entertaining and thought provoking experience that Red Son keeps popping in my mind even though I read it two years ago.
In Red Son, Superman works for Joseph Stalin and is his right hand man. Over time Superman decides that he wants to help people so much that if he was in charge he could solve the world’s problems. Over the years Superman becomes more loved by his people and becomes more powerful and eventually becomes the Supreme Communist Leader for the Warsaw Pact nations.
Meanwhile in the United States of America there are constant problem and civil war. At one point in the book there is even starvation in the USA. Lex Luthor is a good guy and he is constantly trying to figure out a way to beat Superman.
There are many appearances of other DC Superheroes in Red Son. There is a Russian terrorist who fights against Superman in order to save his people from oppression named…Batmankoff. This character is so cool and when you see him you will fall in love with the book. There are other super impressive characters like an entire Military Unit of American soldiers that are powered by the Green Lantern Technology. Bizzaro is in the book and he fights for the USA. The list goes on. But the great thing about the characters in the book is that they aren’t cameos. They are all characters with motivations and goals and are depicted with amazing skill by the artists.
My overall favorite part of Red Son would have to be the excellent execution of the themes and moral questions. There is a recurring symbol of the chessboard throughout the book. The chessboard symbolizes control and competition, as well as anticipating the moves of one’s opponent.
There is a climactic realization for Superman where he knows that the USA will never consensually surrender and join the Warsaw Pact. And at that moment he gleans that it doesn’t matter how powerful he is. One cannot use force to actually shape the mind of another man. People change themselves.
Superman in Red Son is an enthralling character to watch because he is both idealistic and powerful and he takes himself very seriously. On one hand the reader sympathizes for Superman and wants him to be successful bringing order and peace to the world, yet on the other hand the reader is rooting for Lex Luthor to defeat Superman and encourage freedom of choice. There is a lot of decision making in the graphic novel and so I was glued to every page. I read the entire graphic novel in one sitting, like I usually do with books of this type because they are so fun to read. I can’t put them down.
Another cool thing about Red Son is that it spans across a long timeline. So you get to see Lex Luthor develop as a character and become more powerful. There are several US Presidents mentioned in Red Son and it helps root the story in its reality.
Red Son has the basic conflict of Superman vs. his adversaries. But deep inside the graphic novel is a much more intriguing conflict of Superman vs. his own ideologies. He is a man torn by what he thinks is right, what he’s been taught, and what the world is truly asking him to do. Do we really want a society free of problems? Or is there more to existence than having one’s needs met? These issues and many more are delved into through action, dialogue and subtlety.
The current Amazon prices for Red Son ranges from $13 plus tax and shipping for the softcover to just under $20 plus tax and shipping. You can check for the most current prices for Red Son on Amazon.com by clicking HERE. This is the kind of graphic novel that you will probably re-read in your lifetime and will share with your friends. I think it is well worth it.
-Tyler