Review: Super Sons Vol. 3- Parent Trap
Quick Summary
Pros: Each of this volume’s stories manage to provide thrills and excitement while also providing solid, character-driven moments. The volume brings back unique, Silver Age concepts. The return of Talia and another key villain work out well. The volume’s artwork looks good and complements the storytelling.
Cons: Nothing significant.
Overall: The last volume in this version of the Super Sons series may also be the best. This book collects several seriously compelling stories that highlight the best of what this series has to offer. The entire volume reads well, is paired with good-looking artwork, and also features a few great developments for the team. Any fan of the Super Sons should read this book.
Story
Super Sons Vol. 3: Parent Trap, by Peter Tomasi, may be one of the most enjoyable entries in an already highly enjoyable series. This volume tells three, separate stories that all stand out as worthwhile moments in the lives of the Super Sons. Each story contains moments of action and suspense, where assassinations are threatened or powerful villains rise up, while also containing moments of unique storytelling and character development, where Silver Age concepts are brought back to life or the Super Sons learn more about each other. In the end, this volume delivers on everything one would want from the Super Sons series.
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Parent Trap opens with an annual chapter focused on the Super-Pets. This is a wonderfully unique and compelling story that merges the goofy nature of the Silver Age, when the Super Pets were at their peak, with the storytelling style of the modern era. This results in a highly enjoyable story that pairs well with the rest of this collection.
The next arc focuses on the return of Talia al Ghul, Damian’s mother. Her presence and the threat of assassination her presence brings, give the book a great dose of suspense and excitement. Her conversations with Damian do well in developing his character, by showing he still rejects his mother’s message, and in developing the Super Sons as a team, by having Jon start to learn the darkness that surrounds Damian’s past. Plus, the arc has several great moments between Jon and his mother, which add some humor to the mix. Ultimately, I found this to be one of the best arcs in an already great series.
Parent Trap then closes with the return of Kid Amazo. Like the arc before it, this arc highlights action and suspense, as the Super Sons battle for their lives and the lives of others. Amazo presents a serious threat and its connection to the Super Sons adds some emotional gravity to the mix. Amazo’s ultimate defeat also sets up a great moment between the Super Sons and their parents, showing that the duo is finally starting to get the recognition they deserve.
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Art
The artwork in Parent Trap looks good and upholds the level of quality present in earlier volumes of this series. Carlo Barberi’s pencils and Art Thibert’s inks provide the lighthearted and stylistic approach that the series is known for. It maintains the comic’s youthful appearance and works well in depicting the Super Sons. It is also laid out well, creating moments of impact on splash pages and generally assisting the flow of the storytelling. Though I didn’t care quite as much for the colors in the volume’s final two chapters, the majority of the book’s coloring looks nice and matches the rest of the visuals. All in all, this volume’s artwork is positive and makes for a better reading experience.
Continuity
Super Sons Vol. 3: Parent Trap continues the story from Super Sons of Tomorrow (Review) (Reading Order).
The Super Sons series ends with this volume. The story of the series continues again with the Adventures of the Super Sons series, starting with Adventures of the Super Sons Vol. 1: Action Detectives.
This volume also references stories from other comic books, detailed below:
- Problems within the world of assassins are mentioned. These problems are shown across The Silencer Vol. 1: Code of Honor.