In this review of Adventures of Superman: The Book of El #3, Superman, Ronan, and Old Jimmy take on Brainiac and the Summer Men. Who comes out on top?
ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: BOOK OF EL #3
Written by PHILLIP KENNEDY JOHNSON
Art and Main Cover: SCOTT GODLEWSKI
Variant Covers: RICCARDO FEDERICI, BJÖRN BARENDS, NATACHA BUSTOS
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: 11/5/25
This review contains spoilers
As Adventures of Superman: The Book of El #3 begins, the fight within the Fortress carries on. Brainiac is taking on Superman, while the Summer Men go after Ronan. There’s all-out destruction throughout the Fortress. During the course of the battle, the Summer Men attack the ancient librarian of the Fortress, Jimmy Olsen. Rather than destroy him, the Summer Men find themselves face to face with a giant Turtle Boy!
As Ronan and Jimmy continue to fight to dispatch the Summer Men inside the Fortress, Brainiac takes things outside, carrying Superman to the Capital Fief. There, he shows the Man of Steel all the people milling about the city who he will use as test subjects once Superman is destroyed. At that moment, Ronan flies in at super speed, blindsiding Brainiac. This provides Clark with a chance to recover and deliver a finishing blow.
With the threat defeated, Superman and Ronan return to the Fortress. Superman shares his plan of returning to the past via the Temporal Glider in an effort to fix everything. Jimmy, now back in his old-man form, tells Clark that it won’t work because the super-twins, Otho and Osul, aren’t in the past. They disappeared at the same time he did.
Right on cue, Kryl-Ux shows up to tell Superman that he has the twins. He needs the last three God-Aspects of Olgrun in order for his children to live again. These aspects are held by descendants of the House of El and Superman is instructed to bring them to Kryl-Ux’s Fortress of Desolation if he wants to see the twins again.
Analysis
Even a quarter of the way through this 12-issue run, Phillip Kennedy Johnson (PKJ) keeps a lot of revelations hidden, offering just the tip of the iceberg of action and intrigue. The quick defeat of Brainiac was disappointing for such a powerful villain, though he may return. Before his apparent death, Brainiac did drop a potential clue, informing Ronan that every House of El in the multiverse ends with him—an interesting point to follow. Finally, Jimmy Olsen turning into a giant Turtle Boy to fight the Summer Men was an unexpected but fun callback to the character’s past.
As for the artwork in this issue, artist Scott Godlewski and colorists Alex Guimaraes and Matt Herms continue to do a solid job. There’s more background detail, especially in the Fortress fight. Godlewski keeps the panels filled, making the most of the space he has to work with. A full range of colors are on display in these pages with plenty of contrast between cool, icy tones and warm, fiery ones. My favorite page is the almost full-splash page reveal of Turtle Boy. The illustration jumps out at you. Another favorite is the final-page reveal with Kryl-Ux and the Fortress of Desolation floating in space. It’s a cool final shot to close out the issue.
Final Thoughts
Adventures of Superman: The Book of El #3 ups the stakes in a major way for Superman with the revelation that Kryl-Ux has the super-twins. PKJ continues to write a compelling story that shows what the Man of Steel will do to protect his family. Have fun, comic lovers!
