Adventures of Superman (Volume 1) with a cover date of October, 1988.
Synopsis for "Headhunter"
Following the events of The Supergirl Saga, Superman feels guilt and anger for his having executed the three Phantom Zone criminals so that they would no longer present a threat to anyone in any reality and tries to deal with it. Meanwhile, Daily Planet editor Perry White calls reporter Catherine Grant to task about her drinking problem starting to affect her work. Brainiac, still in possession of Milton Fine's body, is now looking for a way for his host body to remain stable, which requires looking for humans to extract certain chemicals from. Superman returns to Metropolis when Brainiac kidnaps Cat Grant and tries to do the same thing to her, and in the struggle Brainiac is left paralyzed as he enters into Superman's mind and sees all the anger and rage he's been trying to dam up. As the medics arrive to tend to Brainiac after he was left paralyzed, one of them tells Superman that he should have killed him.
Appearing in "Headhunter"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Adama Grant (Mentioned only)
- Bill Henderson
- Cat Grant
- Jerry White
- Jimmy Olsen
- Jonathan Kent
- Martha Kent (Behind the scenes)
- Jose Delgado
- Maggie Sawyer, S.C.U.
- Perry White
- Dr. Howard
Antagonists:
- Brainiac
- Lex Luthor
- Combattor (Mentioned only)
- Morgan Edge (Mentioned only)
Other Characters:
- Alice
- Pete Shoemaker (Dies)
- Whit (Cameo)
- Tehra (Mentioned only)
- Janet Jones (Mentioned only)
Locations:
- Metropolis
- Bakerline
- Suicide Slum
- Jose Delgado's apartment
- LexCorp
- Metropolis Police Department
- Daily Planet
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- This issue is reprinted in Superman: The Exile & Other Stories Omnibus.
- This is the first Superman story where Superman starts to deal with the guilt of executing the three Pocket Universe Phantom Zone criminals in Superman (Volume 2) #22, eventually leading to his exile in space and his run-in with Mongul and his Warworld.