Guest Star Month

In between multi-part story lines, a different hero guest stars in each book this month while the writers set up stories that will become much bigger in the coming year.  All of these story lines will have to go on hold, however, for a reality-altering crossover the next two months.

Superman #159

Superman and Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner, go on a patrol of space where they find the planet Pluto is missing.  While there, they run into Maxima and Massacre leading the surviving refugees of Maxima's homeworld, Almerac.  Their skirmish is interrupted by the arrival of Darkseid's newly-introduced youngest son, Grayven, who takes the refugees to safety through a Boom tube.  Maxima warns Superman that when Imperiex comes for his world next, he'll see alliances he never imagined, too.

Lois and Clark are back to being romantic again, for the first time in months (actually, the first time this century).  Lois visits Lex Luthor again that night to let him know she retains the Parasite's memories of his nightly visit to Lex while disguised as her.

Adventures of Superman #581

Though this is the only book this month that doesn't list a guest star on the cover, it brings back Rose Forrest, aka Thorn, who hasn't been seen in the Superman comics in over 5 years.

In the biggest bombshell this month, Lex Luthor announces his candidacy for president of the United States.  Before he finishes the press conference, however, he's abducted by the Adversary, who's just trying to pick a fight with Superman.  Superman finally lets him have his rematch and lets him think he wins, but immediately after the fight the Adversary unexpectedly vanishes mid-sentence.

After his escape last month, the Prankster sits in his hideout and recollects his childhood, when he's suddenly greeted by a satanic visitor in the shadows.  Thorn resurfaces to resume her fight against the mafia, but when her alter ego Rose wakes up the next morning, the Prankster is waiting in her bathroom.  In this issue we also meet Lois and Clark's handicapped neighbor boy, Cary, who will play a part in this story later on.

Superman: The Man of Steel #103

The cover shows Supergirl as a guest star, but Aquaman also appears in this issue.  A once-in-a-century hurricane comes to Metropolis, but Aquaman warns Superman that trying to save buildings and property may not be the best ecological strategy.  Supergirl wants to help Superman, and although they rescue individuals trapped in the storm and prevent a meltdown at a nuclear power plant, she's upset by how Superman lets the building on the barrier islands be devastated.  He explains to her that the buildings interfered with the barrier islands natural defense against the storms and more damage would occur in the long term if the islands can no longer protect the mainland.  Writer Mark Schultz was known for his radical environmentalist themes on his creator-owned series, Xenozoic Tales, but this choice was controversial and seemed extreme for a Superman story.

Action Comics #768

The Marvel Family needs the Man of Steel's help after the Egyptian frog goddess Heqt has had enough of frogs being dissected by mankind, so she literally dissects Captain Marvel!  Superman is magically transformed into a stand-in for Captain Marvel's body, who uses Solomon's wisdom to reason with the angry god and save the world from another plague of frogs.  This plot may seem a little crazy, but it will actually seem normal after next month.

Meanwhile, Lois starts to investigate the mystery of who tried to poison Superman.  At first, she's angry that her husband is watching over her shoulder to protect her, but later she's mad at him again when he didn't come to her rescue, even though she got through it by herself.