If you haven’t been reading Peter J. Tomasi’s Super Sons, you’ve been missing out on the most delightful team-up in DC’s post-Rebirth universe. The story of thirteen year-old Damian Wayne, aka Robin, and ten-year old Jonathan Kent, the current Superboy, has proven to be a goldmine of action and comedy. The ever-optimistic son of Superman is the perfect foil for the far-too-cynical spawn of Batman. Factor in that Jonathan is in the process of discovering his powers, whereas Damian is already an old hand at being a super-hero, and you’ve got all the ingredients for a classic coming-of-age story about a mismatched pair of buddies.

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Super Sons #10 moves the boys’ partnership to the next level, much to Jon’s contentment and Damian’s consternation. The pair is woken up in the middle of the night, and gifted an underwater headquarters by their fathers. The high-tech hideout in Morrison Bay is linked up to the Batcave’s mainframe and the Justice League’s lunar server. The setup also includes a pair of two-person pods—courtesy of Cyborg—that can reach either Metropolis or Gotham City in roughly 100 seconds. Jon boasts to Jonathan that he’s already done it in 45, but had to get wet in order to do so.

Their fathers also officially put the boys to work as superheroes, and inform them that henceforth the Justice League will be rerouting level 4 and below threats to their underwater HQ.

This is a major change in Damian and Jon’s status quo. They have repeatedly been disciplined for their shenanigans, and have had to dodge their parents and Alfred as they explored their burgeoning friendship, and fought various villains along the way.

Now, the the duo is legit -- at least in their parents’ eyes.

A lot of the story so far has explored Jonathan’s adjustment to his new life. As we’ve seen across the Super titles, the Kents have gone from being multiversal refugees living under assumed names in Hamilton County, to living openly in Metropolis. Ever since he freed his parents from the clutches of Mr. Mxyzptlk, by convincing their New 52 counterparts to merge with them (Action Comics #976), Jon has been growing as a boy, and as a hero.

As we see at the beginning of this issue, Jon has not only matured beyond really long leaps to full-fledged flying, but he is almost as fast as his father. Although this new development fills poppa Clark with pride, the jaded -- perhaps jealous -- Damien is unimpressed.

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In a private moment, he then asks Jon if he told his parents about their recent adventure with the Teen Titans that led them to another dimension. The truthful Jon admits having done so, and asked whether his friend did likewise. “I do everything on a need-to-know basis,” replies Damien, who seems less apt to trust his father, or to disclose his activities.

The boys then share a joyous moment on the roof of a vintage pickup truck, lying on their stomachs with their arms stretched forward so that Damian can also feel what it’s like to fly. Robin reminds his friend that for a brief time, after his father brought him back from Apokalips, he too could fly. This moment of connection reminds us that, as different as the two boys may be, they share a lot of common ground.

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However, the boys are very much opposites, and their respective parents take very different approaches to raising them.

As we saw back in the pages of Super Sons #6, Lois and Clark are helping Jonathan grow into his role as an emergent hero by expanding his boundaries. On a Friday night, he is allowed to stay out until ten, a reasonable curfew for a ten-year old. When he protests that Robin is allowed to stay out all night, Clark retorts that Damian’s father “dresses up like a bat and gets hit in the head 28 times a night.” Jonathan concedes the point to his dad, and heads out to do good with his friend.

As an aside -- for those of you who haven’t been reading the title -- Superman and Batman fight like an old married couple in Super Sons. Their banter, and the insults they hurl at each other, have provided some of the funniest moments thus far in Tomasi’s inaugural run.

In Super Sons #10, we see that Bruce’s parenting style is the exact opposite of the Kents’, and consists of imposing more boundaries on his son. As Jonathan coos about their underwater hideout, dubbing it the Fortress of Attitude, the distrustful Damian waits for his father to drop the other shoe.

Sure enough, on top of the high-tech headquarters, and a 3-D printer that makes magnesium alloy batarangs, Wayne’s plans also include an end to his son’s homeschooling. Damian is being sent to the same Metropolis private school that Jon will be attending.

“There is no way I’m going,” hisses Robin, “I could teach the neanderthals there.”

“And that attitude is exactly why you’re going,” replies Batman. “You’re too young be this angry.” He also points out that if Damian cuts classes, he’ll be fired as Robin.

The typically enthusiastic Jon is overjoyed by the news that his friend will be joining him at his new school, but Damian is suitably horrified at the prospect of being seen with a ten-year old. As we saw in the pages of the “Planet of the Capes” arc, the thirteen-year old Damien is somewhat obsessed about fitting in with—and impressing—older kids, like the ones who comprise the Teen Titans.

As soon as their dads are out of the way, a Level 4 crisis emerges as a giant monster attacks Metropolis. The Super Sons spring into action. Their friendship has survived their fathers’ meddling, but will it survive their own bickering? As they confront the strange creature above the rooftops of metropolis, Jonathan proclaims, “This is a job for SUPERBOY… and Robin.”

“I hate you,” replies a surly Damian.

But a graver danger lies ahead for the boys, a far greater threat than a level 4 or less. A two page “intermezzo” shows a Batman of the Future emerging in present day Gotham City. This is the Damian Wayne of Grant Morrison’s Batman #666, a version of Bruce Wayne’s son who sold his soul to the Devil to prevent the Apocalypse. It is the Damian who murdered the future Anti-Christ Batman, thus betraying a promise to his father not to kill.

We know that Damian will make his pact with Satan at the age of fourteen. Has his future self returned to the present to prevent this from happening? And will he doom the world by doing so?

“Super Sons of Tomorrow” promises to have an impact on the future of the DC Universe, but it also touches on a very personal struggle for Damian Wayne: his desire to be older. Tomasi already riffed on this in Super Sons #7.Eager to lead the Teen Titans, Robin took on the Time Commander with them, and in the course of the fight was transformed into an eighty-year old version of himself. He wasn’t very happy about his senescence.

In confronting the grown-up version of himself, Damian may help prevent a horrific future, and may even save his own soul. More importantly he may finally accept that it’s all right to be a kid. And perhaps he’ll stop trying to boss Jonathan around.