Mon El, Superman’s current protagonist doesn’t appear prominently in this issue. His story has been getting very interesting, and he’s been holding my attention thus far, but when he’s only mentioned by name twice, once in passing, and seen only in the background, I have to wonder about the focus of this title.

For anyone following my reviews of Superman here at The Bin, you’ve probably noticed that at first I was pretty skeptical of the idea of Superman not appearing in Superman, but as the issues slipped by, I became appreciative of, and interested in Mon El’s story. Just when his story was starting to get good, he up and disappears from view. The only aspect of this issue that will keep me from being more disappointed with my favorite hero’s book than I have been in a long time is its focus on John Henry Irons/Steel.

I’ve been a fan of Steel since he first appeared way back in the early 1990’s as part of the “Reign of The Supermen” storyline. He’s a smart, interesting character who shares some similarities with one of my all time favorite Marvel heroes, Iron Man. Anytime Steel is involved as part of the action, he never fails to impress. His battle with Atlas in this issue is action packed, but too short. (Atlas is on a mission at the behest of General Lane to secure the use of Henry’s Ironworks complex for Lane’s diabolical use.)

The rest of the short stories in Superman #690 starring Sodam Yat, Zatara, Dr. Light, The Guardian, and the Metropolis Sci-Police are noting but fillers that set up other plot threads which will be picked up later in future issues of Superman, Superman: Secret Files 2009, Justice League of America, and Superman Annual #14. I’m guessing Robinson and co. needed a break between Mon El’s story installments and their obligations on Blackest Night?

The only other good thing about this issue, other than the focus on Steel (who many fans, including myself, would like to see much more of, I’m sure), is Perez’s art. He fills in well for Guedes, although I’ve become accustomed to Guedes’ pencils with their sweeping panoramic outdoor views and epic drawings of heroes in flight. Perez does an excellent job though covering a wide range of characters from Atlas to Steel to Sodam Yat.

Overall, I’m going to have to consider this issue a minor, and hopefully unrepeated, drop in coherence as Robinson and co. focus on other obligations before “Codename: Patriot”,” the next mini-event scheduled to take place under the overarching umbrella tale of World of New Krypton. We’ll see if Superman gets back on track next month.