The Last Days of Krypton

The origin of Superman has been re-written so many times that it's hard to pinpoint when he landed on earth, much less how the travel across the light years affect what earth-year Krypton was destroyed. I suppose the purist in me would say that we should leave DC history as it was before it got hit with a series of Crises changing up timelines. This version is written purposefully vague enough to apply to nearly any version. Supes made his first public appearance in 1938, so Krypton was originally destroyed prior to that. Let's say in the early 1900's. Which makes this post pretty late.

I picked up this book in the library when I had first moved to Colorado Springs and had nothing else to read. Superman isn't my favorite superhero and we'll get to Kevin J. in a second. The cover was nifty. Basically I knew it would be a quick and easy read while I waited for something better to come along.

K.J. Anderson is my most favorite least favorite writer. He has made most of his fame writing spin-off material from popular sci-fi brands. I first became aware of him when reading his Star Wars Jedi Academy series. The Star Wars novels and offical 'expanded universe' had recently been launched with the spectacular Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zahn, and Anderson's trilogy was a major follow-up with the landmark re-establishment of the Jedi Order after the events in Return of the Jedi.

And it sucked. Like most of Anderson's work, it's overly simple and seems to read like young adult fiction. Where Zahn took a childhood movie and breathed new life into it, Anderson seemed to relish in taking Zahn's complex and adult take on the Star Wars and dumbing it back down to a childhood level. He has done the same with every brand he's touched, and fans of Dune particularly loathe what he has done to the Atriedes family.

But I give Anderson his due: He is the ultimate fan fiction writer. Where relative unknown Alan Dean Foster made a living out of adaptations of screenplays (famously ghost writing the original Star Wars novelization), Kevin J. Anderson has trumped him by writing spin-offs of most major sci-fi sagas, finally making his way to the world of DC comics. And crapping on it, based on this novel and his other recent works.

There I go again getting negative. KJ loves his material, he really does. He is studious in his inclusion of continuity, minutia, and easter eggs for fans. And I think he writes it in a way that reflects his love; it's what we would all do. I just don't know why he continues to enjoy so much "success" for such mediocre material.

'Krypton' has some nice elements. The Kryptonian society is fleshed out in a way that neither confirms nor denies most versions written in the past. Zod is believable, if cliche'. I enjoyed the inclusion of Braniac. But overall the story is bland, unoriginal, drawn out and just didn't need to be told.

I'll read Anderson's work again, and you'll hear more from me about how I am always disappointed by his work, but you'll keep seeing the posts. Because I love the same fantasy worlds he does, and I respect the fact that he enjoys being a creator in those worlds, just as I would if people paid me for my lousy writing.