Knight Terrors: Superman #1: Sink Or Swim

Knight Terrors: Superman #1 picks up with Insomnia placing everyone into a dream state, with Superman happening to be in mid-flight when he knocks out. This creates a different sense of drama from the rest of these tie-ins, as Superman must fight through his nightmare while his body is crash landing into the ocean and drowning. Joshua Williamson takes a similar approach to the Batman tie-in, with this issue simultaneously pushing forward the main plot and its own story. All of this works pretty well, but it may shock fans who are only reading select tie-ins and not keeping up with the main Knight Terrors book. 

Williamson uses this issue to introduce one of the Knight Terror monsters featured in the promotional art early on, the Man of Screams himself, Super-Reaper. Super-Reaper is a terrible name, but the character themselves serves as a fun foil to Superman, with even his bony body type visually contrasting the heavily muscle-filled Man of Steel. Ironically, the title of the “Man of Screams” is touted in the issue, making it super puzzling as to why Williamson and the editorial thought that Super-Reaper sounded better to put in the solicitations. Either way, this issue makes it seem like that character was a one-and-done, but the design is cool enough to say that you would probably win if you were betting that McFarland would make a toy for him.

The last page reveals that Aquaman, as well as much of his supporting cast and likely all of Atlantis, are unaffected by Insomnia’s machinations. This is a bit surprising, considering that Williamson has Deadman leading the charge on the Batman side of things. As for the greater DC Universe, this brings back the same questions fans have had since last week’s Knight Terrors: First Blood #1, where are the Titans? Based on the conclusion of Dark Crisis, and the initiative set out in the Dawn of DC, the Titans are supposed to be the premier team for the DC Universe. Still, at every turn, this event reveals more heroes and groups that will solve this problem. This is less of a gripe about this issue and more about Dawn of DC and this event overall, but since the Aquaman reveal is here, it’s worth mentioning. 

Tom Reilly’s art vibes similar to Superman The Animated Series while harkening back to early Superman tales. This fits in with Williamson and Jamal Campbell’s retconning to return these characters to a more familiar status quo in the main series. At the same time, Reilly also draws with an honesty that is in keeping with the horror tones, engineered by Superman’s ability to resist some of Insomnia’s machinations. The image of Perry White ripping his face off to reveal Insomnia is genuinely horrific, although it’s nothing compared to the ‘S’ carved into Superman’s chest, all the way down to the muscle and bone. All of these Knight Terrors tie-ins have been relatively unique, with Knight Terrors: Superman taking a similar approach to the Batman tie-in (probably because they are both written by the event’s architect, Joshua Williamson). This gives Reilly more flexibility than others, allowing him to let loose, with the art style shifting from casual office, body horror, and apocalypse to action. Reilly’s ability to make these shifts feel consistent throughout the issue helps tie everything together nicely and cohesively.

Nathan Fairbairn’s colors also help bridge the gap between settings throughout this issue. This brings consistency that is in keeping with Reilly’s style. Fairbairn also expels an incredible vibrancy into each character, making them pop off the page. This is most apparent with the last page reveal of Aquaman and company, whose bright oranges and greens explode off the page like nothing else. This is also apparent in the fight between Superman and Super-Reaper, as Fairbairn gives the splashing blood across the pages an almost life-like texture. This added to the horror context and helped create even more of a sense of dread.

Finally, Ariana Maher ties the whole issue with minimalistic lettering, which works flawlessly in this context. This event has a very bare-bones and easy-to-follow plot, making the designs and overall art the real meat and bones of the issues. Because of this, Williamson’s scripts seem to be very limited, with all of the fat cut out, just leaving enough on the pages to ensure a clear thread to follow and keep everything tidy. Maher manages to spread these bursts of dialogue out in a manner that still keeps everything concise. The best example is during the fight between Superman and Super-Reaper, where much of the conference is relegated to one page, allowing the rest of their battle to speak for itself. This spacing is a testament to how well an issue can be realized when the Writer and Letterer are in sync.