REVIEW: Truth & Justice #4

Truth & Justice #4 is the latest installment to the anthology series that focuses around the concepts that come so naturally to our favourite heroes. This is the first issue in the digital first series that has focused around Superman and I have to say it’s a great one!

Before we get into the issue itself, let’s take a look at the cover by Khary Randolph with colours by Emilio Lopez. This is such a bold and striking cover, it instantly draws you in, I adore it. This is a very bold and confident looking Superman, despite him being chained in Kryptonite. This feels like a homage to the iconic piece by Neal Adams (Superman #233) and that is a great touch. Lopez’s colours really add to the piece and brings your attention directly to the Man Of Steel.

Truth & Justice #4 follows the arrest, escape and assassination attempt of a falsely convicted black man named Bud Oakwood. This situation has shed light on a number of such cases as Clark Kent attempts to blow the story wide open to prevent further injustice. Instead, he get’s more than he bargained for as he investigates the false accusations and suspiciously staged escapes.

First of all, I need to congratulate writer Brandon Easton on this issue, it is fantastic and he does a spectacular job of combining such an iconic character with such a relevant and very real story line. Usually in Superman comics, we see Superman tackle the core problems, especially ones like this. But in this issue Clark Kent does most of the heavy lifting and that is so refreshing and so inspiring to see. The whole dynamic of how the two tackle the issue so differently is so unique and cleverly done.

Not only that but seeing both Clark Kent and Superman representing, supporting and fighting for the Black Lives Matter movement is just so incredible. This is exactly where these characters would take stance on the matter, so it’s great to see them fighting for such an important and very real cause. Like I said before, Easton has done an terrific job of allowing both sides of the character do their part in this story.

Easton’s Superman is confident and inspiring and his Clark Kent is a little more tenacious and bolder than in other interpretations we are used to. That is not a bad thing at all, in fact it’s quite refreshing. I also adored the real classic and corny Superman phrases that were included in this issue too. My personal favourite being “This is a job for Superman”, it just brought a huge wave of nostalgia to the issue, and I really appreciated that.

The artwork by Jahnoy Lindsay is fantastic in this issue. Lindsay’s artwork is so different and dynamic, it really is a breath of fresh air. I love the moments where there is action or speed involved, Lindsay portrays that perfectly with chopped sketching and line work and it just really works. It is so effective.

I also adore the use of ‘pop art’ dots used in the place of shading too. This provides a real nostalgic feel to it that really makes some of these pieces feel iconic. This spectacular artwork combined with Marissa Louise’s colours are a match made in heaven. There are some panels that are slightly reminiscent to ‘Into The Spider-Verse’ too, and it’s incredible.

Truth & Justice #4 is an incredible and very relevant issue, with unique yet fantastic artwork. Seeing my hero fight for such a real movement is so inspiring to see. I truly hope we get to see more of this creative team work on Superman, they are brilliant. I cannot wait to see where part two take us.

Haven’t read Truth & Justice #4 yet? You can read it online via Comixology here (UK), or here (US).