Derec Aucoin does something interesting with the art in this issue: he leaves a white space around the entire border of every page and then, in most cases, even leaves a white border inside that border as well. Makes the whole issue stand out.
The story is basic: Superman stops a creature from eating the sun after trying to warn the Candidate about the assassination attempt. Lois attends an event where Assassin Lad shows up and tries to kill the Candidate. The Candidate seems determined to die while everyone else does their best to save him. Eventually, Superman returns and Assassin Lad reveals he set the sun-eater loose to distract Superman and then blows himself up.
The Candidate hired Assassin Lad himself, viewing assassination as the apex of his political career, where he would be transformed from just another guy on the stump into a legend.
Again, Superman is life here. He tries to warn the Candidate about the assassination attempt. He defeats the sun-eater and then heats up the earth because of loss of the sun's warmth while the sun-eater was feeding. And then he stops Assassin Lad, a killer. Every action he does in this issue is in the service of life.
I'll miss Assassin Lad. I loved that guy.
Phoenix #5 annotations
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