Kingdom Come’s Magog has made his New 52 debut in the pages of writer Peter J. Tomasi and artist Doug Mahnke’s Superman/Wonder Woman, but with a considerably different backstory than past iterations of the character. Last month’s issue revealed that this new version of the horned antihero was created by Wonder Woman villain Circe, who gave a young, angry boy incredible power after his life was ruined by the Justice League in their first fight against Darkseid five years ago. Circe wants to use Magog to take down her Amazonian nemesis, and she joins the fight with her army of ani-men in this week’s issue.
That last sentence is a good indicator of the type of story Tomasi and Mahnke are telling in this title, one that leans heavily into the fantastic elements of the superhero genre. The relationship between the lead characters grounds the story a bit, but it’s all right to embrace the spectacular when you have two high-flying powerhouses like Superman and Wonder Woman—and that’s exactly what this creative team has done.
Featuring three pages by guest artist Ed Benes, this preview of Superman/Wonder Woman #16 digs deeper into the past trauma suffered by Magog before jumping to the superhero leads in the present, where they’ve been ambushed by Circe and her hybrid soldiers. The two-page title spread highlights the meticulous detail and striking character designs that Mahnke has brought to the visuals, and while his pencils require multiple inkers to finish, that hasn’t detracted from the overall quality of the art on this book.