Superman #14

Well done team, well done. Read Full Review

THAT is a cliffhanger.  So a couple of quibbles aside, this was another great chapter. We see the Brainiac plan actualized. We learn Luthor knows the secrets Brainiac is hiding. Supergirl and her mini-squad are out there continuing the fight. Read Full Review

House of Brainiac continues to race toward act three with a tense issue that shows off exactly how dangerous the villain isand brings the story back to one of the very first post-Rebirth events that Williamson was involved in. Read Full Review

Superman #14 is essential reading if you're following "House of Brainiac" with pulse-pounding action, good plot progression, and a nice mix of characters popping into the story. So far, this story has been so good, I'm surprised it wasn't their summer event. Read Full Review

The pacing of the story has been well timed between Superman and Supergirl's separate involvements, keeping the reader constantly engaged. The art is simply fantastic and moves the story effortlessly from page to page. Read Full Review

With deceptions abound, Superman finds himself in front of a new evil that he might not be able to stop. Williamson constructs an incredible read with action and answers filling the bill. The art team elevates the conflicts and challenges to new levels. A new threat to the DCU has arrived and fans might not be ready for whats next! Read Full Review

After this setup, it seems like Williamson has a real challenge coming up with a resolution that isn't overly simplistic. Hopefully, he can finish the story as it's been an entertaining Superman event that hasn't overstayed its welcome. Read Full Review

Superman #14 cranks up the action, the twists, and the wow moments to give readers a fast-paced superhero comic. Williamson keeps the story moving with meaningful developments, albeit with a frustrating misstep in the mystery behind Brainiac's motivations, and the art looks fantastic. Read Full Review

Superman #14 brings the third part of the House of Brainiac story and things are heating up. While Superman is facing off with Lobo who's turned traitor to no one's surprise, Brainiac finalizes his preparations for the creation of the Brainiac Queen. Naturally, the art, pacing, and dialogue are good for the most part, and the action is great, but it's Brainiac Queen that's worrying. Sadly, Joshua Williamson doesn't have the best track record recently with making new characters with staying power or distinction aside from Flatline, especially villains. But this story's been good so far, so here's hoping he delivers with Brainiac Queen in the next part. Read Full Review

Sandoval and Mendonca deliver some great art throughout the issue. The visuals are beautifully detailed and perfectly capture the tone of the story. Read Full Review

Gio

Aug 24, 2025

So many epic things happening here in one issues. Superman and Lobo have a short fight but has some great action panels between the two of them. General Chacal captures Superman with chains forged from Apokolips and delivers him to Brainiac. Supergirl and Lex are rescued by Brainiac son and his mother forming a team to stop Brainiac. And finally we learn what Brainiac has been doing, he has amassed and created some abomination of cybernetics and organic material he called his queen. Needing the power of the Superfamily to come to life and needing to eat the Czarnians for fuel she is a hideous monster. Her purpose and reason for creation by Brainiac is still unclear hopefully next issue we will find out why he did this. I'm not sure w hat the Queen has to do with the fact that Brainiac has close to every piece of knowledge imaginable except for a few holes that is driving him mad. more

Pamplemousse

May 22, 2024

House of Brainiac is shaping up nicely. New villain shows right off the bat that she is a badass. Hopefully they explain more the tech of what Brainiac did to make the Queen. Fun panels early too with Lobo v Superman. Lot of good stuff with Lex in here too, loving the way Williamson has written Lex.

daspidaboy

May 23, 2024

I think this may be my favorite Superman event so far. I love the action, the consistent art, the pacing is sharp, and Brainiac Queen is a straight up beast. This event rocks super hard.

ResearchReader

Jun 16, 2024

First I will say, this might be the first good event Williamson has ever done. He is usually terrible at these types of things and almost always drops the ball by the 2nd or 3rd issue. Instead here he has done a great job and we are getting to the fun bits. Lots of fighting this issue, some questions answered but more still remain. The reveal of the Queen was pretty epic. My only worry is about the power scaling. We see the queen just murder/eat individuals that were given the Super Family issues. As she powers up, how are they going to take her on? We know she plays a big part in Absolute Power so how will this be resolved? I do worry if Williamson can stick the landing but he is doing a better job than he ever has on an event before s o I have some hope this time. Art is great as always. more

derbycomics

May 21, 2024

The “House of Brainiac” event continues in what was probably my least favorite issue of the event so far. However, it was still an enjoyable read w/ some epic moments! One of the highlights is the artwork, which continues to impress. Sandoval & Mendonça’s illustrations are dynamic & engaging, w/ two awesome splash pages early on showcasing Superman & Lobo’s battle. The light/elemental effects throughout the book are also really cool design elements that add depth to the scenes. Alejandro Sánchez’s vibrant color palette makes each individual environment unique, particularly the dark tones of Brianiac’s ship. However, the issue’s pacing feels a bit disjointed, w/ too many plot threads competing for attention. Superman’ s capture & delivery to Brainiac, Supergirl & Lex’s meeting Vril Dox, Lena Luther’s brief reappearance, & Brainiac’s awakening his new creation all feel like chess pieces being moved into place for the next phase of the event. While this setup is necessary, it makes the issue feel a bit like a transitional moment rather than adding to the event. My bigger gripe is Lobo & the Czarnians becoming the typical caricatures, though they do become literal “filler” by the end. I would have loved to see more of that final scene. It had the potential to be epically brutal, but we only got a glimpse of it. Those two pages were awesome though! Overall, this was still a good installment in the “House of Brainiac” event. While it has its flaws, the artwork & some standout moments make it worth reading. I’m looking forward to seeing how the all unfolds further next in Action Comics #1066. more

Comics Code Authorities

Jun 14, 2024

A pretty exciting issue. If action like this were the main focus of more books and less about the starring character's sex life new comics sales today may not be so weak. Speaking of which, has anyone noticed or even cared that Jon has been totally missing from this story? ....Yeah. Me neither. That's how obsolete he's become.And if those twins don't survive this I really don't think anyone would care either. Just easy disposal of 2 completely pointless unnecessary characters. If I were Williamson I'd take full advantage of it. Anyhoo, The betrayal of Lobo should surprise NO ONE. The guy's always been a selfish jerk and always will be. He'd take advantage of any situation to get into a fight with Superman, no matter what's at stake. As for the Brainiac queen, I find her to be very unimpressive. A combination of Bay's Transformers and Aliens. THAT is Brainiac's masterpiece? Living proof he really has lost it. And another non-surprise is the betrayal and massacring of the Czarnians. A race that favors brawn over brain so heavily is easily manipulated and disposed of once they've served their usefulness. The queen's online and we have 2 chapters left. Odds are she'll turn on her maker, as most creations like that do, then we'll have a big anime style showdown in the conclusion (I've been reading comics a long time; I know how these stories usually turn out). I'm not looking forward to Absolute Power since I'm not getting it, forcing me to pass on the issues of this book that will tie in to it. But hopefully when it's over some sense of normality will return to DC (as if) and I can resume reading Superman. DC claims it has "big plans" for this Fall and history shows that's usually bad news. I CAN wait. more

Screaming Enigma

Jul 23, 2024

Still not the strongest issue of this storyline, but still pretty solid and enjoyable nonetheless. Brainiac Queen is interesting to me, but I don’t know that I see her lasting long.