Back to M. Casey, and his primary collaborator on this run, Duncan Rouleau, for part two of the "Return to Krypton." This is a cool story, one that's been told time and again, though not always with an actual return to Krypton. Superman must always deal with his status as a survivor. Lois notes it in yesterday's issue, that Kal suffers survivor's guilt, though I find it odd that she's somehow surprised by this. Of course he does. Thank goodness for Supergirl (who, though, may not have actually been Kryptonian at this point in DCU history).
What we get in this storyline is a look at the history of Krypton, especially the feud between the House of El and the House of Zod. I find this particular story, when it is touched upon, very interesting, in that the feud is all the excuse Zod ever needs to take on Superman. Rather than, you know, acknowledging the fact that they're two of the last Kryptonians in existence.
There was one scene, however, that totally eclipsed everything else in the issue. Clark takes exception to the "Smallville" nickname:
"This is Mother Bird to Jeweled Harvest on secured channel beta."
