Warning! Spoilers for Superman: Son of Kal-El #6 by DC Comics
DC Comics has teased that Superman’s boyfriend Jay Nakamura is superpowered himself, but now his origin and how he got those powers in the first place has been revealed. In Superman: Son of Kal-El #6, Jay tells Superman how the villainous Henry Bendix experimented on him and reveals his tragic past. Later in the issue, he also shows off a new superhero costume alongside Jon Kent.
Henry Bendix, who originally appeared in the WildStorm Universe in 1993, has become DC’s new Superman’s version of Lex Luthor, as the bald billionaire has made multiple efforts to take down the young hero. Bendix is the president of Gamorra Island, which used to be a paradise, but has turned into an authoritarian regime under his rule. Jay Nakamura, who runs the underground journalism site, The Truth, and is currently the new Superman’s trusted partner, has revealed his ties to Gamorra Island and how Bendix quite literally took everything from him as he took over the country.
In Superman: Son of Kal-El #6 by Tom Taylor, John Timms, Hi-Fi, and Dave Sharpe, Superman returns to Jay Nakamura, where the pair have a heart-to-heart while eating pizza on top of the Daily Planet. Nakamura reveals that his mother Sara Nakamura was president of Gamorra before Henry Bendix, who used fake promises to win the last election held in the country. His mother was violently taken away by Bendix, with Jay not knowing if she’s still alive. Nakamura tells Superman that Bendix stripped people of their rights and turned Gamorra into a factory to create superhumans. Jay says he gained his phasing abilities after being experimented and, taken apart and put back together over and over. He used his powers to escape Gamorra.
Superman agrees to help Jay stop Bendix as the pair go undercover in Metropolis. They encounter Damian Wayne and Lois Lane on the mission, who are both doing their own surveillance on Bendix. Nakamura sports a new costume in the issue, but it’s unclear whether it’s just a temporary disguise or it’s something he intends on making his permanent superhero suit.
The issue reveals nobody has more at stake than Jay Nakamura in taking down Bendix, as his superhero origin was a direct result of his actions. The villain kidnapped (and possibly killed) his mother, horrifically experimented on him, and turned his home into an authoritarian-ruled country. So it’s easy to see why Nakamura became a journalist to expose the greatest injustices in the world. Thankfully, with Superman by his side, his chances of stopping Bendis have never been better. Superman: Son of Kal-El #6 is in stores now.
