Superman: Dawnbreaker by Matt de la Peña–Chapters 8-12. I’ll try to keep spoilers to a minimum.

I’ve really been enjoying how Peña balances the action with slower moments. For instance, there is the part where Clark stops some thieves then he has a brief emotional moment with his father then he’s relaxing at a party with friends. There are very few, if any, boring moments. The moments that would normally be boring are also interesting because you see more of the mystery or more of Clark’s character.

Speaking of mystery, I enjoy how the investigation part of the mystery feels like a real investigation story. For a moment, it seemed almost like I had stopped reading a fantasy/superhero story and started reading a mystery/crime novel.

I did have to sigh and roll my eyes when Clark’s super-hearing gave out just as someone was going to say something important. But, I did like how it showed that he didn’t have full control over his powers and that they could give out on him–it added some suspense.

It was also nice to see the plot of the missing people start to take the spotlight. So far, it has just been hinted at or treated as a B Plot. I like how there seems to be a connection between someone buying up farmland and the missing persons, but it still makes you wonder if they really aren’t connected–maybe there are two villains in town.

So, what do you think? Why do you think people are missing? Why does it seem to be only immigrants? Is it all connected to Clark and that he’s an alien or is that just to throw us off and the real reason is a twist? My working theory is that someone knows an alien landed in Smallville so they are rounding up any strangers to try and find the alien. Tell me your theories in the comments.

Until the next wormhole…thanks for reading.

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