You need this. The world needs this. WE ALL NEED THIS.

American Alien is hands down the best comic series to debut this year. Really, what would it be like for Clark Kent to grow up as an alien living in a human world? We see so much of him as an adult and we even got to see a bit of teen Clark in Smallville but we haven't seen Clark this raw and real until now.

Each story is a self-contained moment in Clark's life. There are familiar characters and canon events but this is very much an out of continuity story. That's actually what makes it great...Landis gets Superman at his heart, which is arguably human in nature vs. nurture.

My mini-recaps and thoughts on each of the stories:

1. Primary School Clark - Really, imagine being a kid and discovering you have powers. Your parents know SOMETHING is different about you but no one really knows what all you'll develop. You're accidentally flying, accidentally eavesdropping, accidentally blowing stuff up. Do your parents risk taking you to a scientist and turning you over to Area 51? Plus you're watching scifi films and seeing how the human race might treat aliens. How terrifying it would be for young Clark! 5/5 stars.

2. Teenage Clark - Clark might be a boy scout goodie-goodie but let's be real, teenagers are teenagers. Here we see the depth of Clark's friendship with Pete. Of course he's peaking through people's clothes with his x-ray vision. Of course he's confused about if he really wants to spend his time helping others with powers he never asked for. He's confused that people think he's a monster and how best to use his powers, if at all. He's a teenager and his brain and personal morals are still developing. 4/5

3. College Clark - Following a plane crash, Clark ends up on a yacht where a party is in full swing and people mistake him for (mysterious) birthday boy, Bruce Wayne. Rather than try to fight it, the Kansas grown boy owns being a millionaire for a day and parties it up. The party is short lived when Deathstroke shows up and poisons who he thinks is Wayne. The poison essentially produces a drunken Clark for a bit before he boots Deathstroke off into space. 5/5 (this is a must read!)

4. Intern Clark - This is my personal favorite story within the series. Clark is sent to interview Lex Luthor. Along the way, he runs into young Dick Grayson in the LexCorp Kidz-Zone. We see baby Grayson use his skills of analysis to figure out Clark is more than what he seems. This leads Batman to show up and ask a few questions, launching Landis' version of Batman vs Superman. 5/5

5. ?-Man Clark - Just how did Superman get his name? This story explores just that. Superman is literally just starting to make a name for himself as a hero (and with Lois!). It also shows us where Lex and Clark started down their dark path. 3/5

6. New Adult Clark - The old gang comes to visit city-boy Clark. His new identity is not well received by his high school besties, who call him out for being a hipster tool and later for not fully understanding what it means to be a superhero. In a fit of anger, Clark flies out of the atmosphere and into Green Lantern territory. He returns to make amends with his friends and all is right again. 4/5

7. Superman - I was initially disappointed in this issue but have reflected on it and now understand why Landis chose to end the series this way. We see Clark fully embody Superman and fight to save the human race. There are some really great fight scenes in this issue! We are left with Lois and Clark asking the quintessential question...What now? 4/5

Overall a solid mini-series and I hope Landis will continue to give us stories we didn't know we wanted, but we need.