In some DC comics, Superman is dead. In other comics, he's enslaved on an alien world. But that won't stop him from celebrating the 1050th issue of the comic book series he calls home, Action Comics.

For the past year or so, Superman - the original one, CLark Kent/Kal-El - has been away from Earth - imprisoned, unbeknownst to his family and fellow heroes, on the militaristic dystopia known as Warworld. There he's found some new friends (the Authority), reunited with some old enemies (Mongul), and met some new enemies (Mongul's Unmade Champions). August 30's Superman: Warworld Apocalypse #1 will cap off the 'Warworld Saga' running through Action Comics, and reveal who's really in-charge of it all.

"Superman: Warworld Apocalypse is everything we’ve been building to with the Warworld Saga, with the final battle between Superman and Mongul, between the Authority and the Unmade, and the long-awaited reveal of the real mastermind in the shadows," says writer Phiillip Kennedy Johnson. "There are some frankly shocking moments in this issue, and some huge reveals that will have long-lasting repercussions in the DC Universe."

Check out the covers to Superman: Warworld Apocalypse #1 by Steve Beach, Mario "Fox" Foccillo, Mikel Janin. The over-sized issue will be drawn by Brandon Peterson and Will Conrad.

Superman: Warworld Apocalypse #1 will way for the prodigal sun-powered hero's return to Earth in a storyline, fittingly called, 'Kal-El Returns.' 'Kal-El Returns' is a six-part crossover - three issues of Action Comics, and three issues of Superman: Son of Kal-El - which will follow SUperman as he returns to Metropolis with a new goal - remaking Metropolis as a true City of Tomorrow. He has some help in that goal, namely Steel.

"Action Comics #1047: Kal-El Returns is nothing less than the beginning of a new era for Superman," adds Johnson. "After the events of the Warworld Saga, Superman has returned to Earth with new allies but Lex Luthor has his own plans for Metropolis after he sees a great opportunity in the fall of Warworld. Plans that involve the return of one of Superman’s most classic villains, Metallo."

Johnson says Metallo is his favorite Superman villain, and promises "a really scary, complex, interesting version" of the character with a revamped origin and powerset.

Check out the covers to Action Comics #1047 by Steve Beach, Nathan Szerdy, Lucio Parrillo, and Leirix (a Harley Quinn 30th anniversary variant). The artist for the issue has not been announced.

This is all counting down to a big round-number of an issue that publishers like DC and Marvel like to celebrate: 1050... Action Comics #1050 that is.

How does this fit with Dark Crisis and Superman's death in that storyline?

Although Superman and most of the Justice League were said by DC to have died in Justice League #75 in the story titled 'The Death of the Justice League,' how is he alive and well for this Action Comics/Superman: Son of Kal-El crossover? Well, as it happens sometimes in the interconnected world of big superhero universes, the storylines aren't synchronous.

The current 'Warworld Saga' in Action Comics, and even this upcoming 'Kal-El Returns' crossover with Superman: Son of Kal-El, appears to take place before the events of Dark Crisis and Justice League #75.

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