ClasikRok

June 19, 2013 3:13 pm With all of the Jesus allusions you'd think they'd remember that bit.

June 19, 2013 2:59 pm According to Snyder, "...the why of it was, for me, that if it’s truly an origin story, his aversion to killing is unexplained...if we can find a way of making it impossible for him–like Kobayashi Maru, totally no way out–I felt like that could also make you go, ‘Okay, this is the why of him not killing ever again, right?’ He’s basically obliterated his entire people and his culture and he is responsible for it and he’s just like, ‘How could I kill ever again?’” Or like any normal rational person he could think, "Killing is wrong, I don't think I should do that." Or am I wrong? Maybe this is the place where he decides, "Wow, I killed Zod, and now no more people have to die. I should have done this hours ago. Think of all the people that wouldn't have died. Next time I'll have to kill my enemies a bit faster. Saves time, saves lives, and now I can go make out with Lois some more."

June 19, 2013 1:35 pm Intersting article over at comicbook.com which has some quotes from Snyder and Goyer said on Empire Online's podcast: http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/06/17/man-of-steel-christopher-nolan-opposed-the-ending-dc-comics-advised-on-it/ In a nutshell, Snyder and Goyer were unsatisfied with the ending where Zod is sucked into the Phantom Zone with the rest of the Kryptonians. So they added the fight and put Superman in a situation where he "Had To" kill Zod. Snyder even mentions "Kobayashi Maru." Nolan was actually against it. According to Goyer, "Originally Chris didn’t even want to let us try to write it and Zack and I said, ‘We think we can figure out a way that you’ll buy it."." Sorry, I think they failed in that regard. They didn't sell it enough for me to believe he had no other choice.

June 19, 2013 12:47 pm A "World's Finest" of sales if you will! Most of mine were double-dips, but I also picked up the issues containing the "Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite" storyline by Ordway which I've never read before. So, definitely looking forward to reading that for the first time.

June 19, 2013 12:25 pm @ Conor Ok, I'll grant you that I have no actual experience that shows that Police in the Real World are taught to shoot to disarm. It is in fact what the movies have taught me that. But this IS the movies, so that is what I expect. I just prefer the idea of these authority figures only shooting when it's absolutely necessary, and they ultimate goal is to "bring them down" so they can be put through the Justice system. I know that they are trying to ground a Superman movie in reality here, but, let's be honest, You CAN'T ground a Superman movie in reality because the guys is an alien that flies and shoots lasers out of his eyes. The problem I had with the movie (beyond the Zod killing) is they tried too hard to make this "Superman Begins" and that just doesn't work for Superman in my opinion. What works for the Bat does not work for the Man of Tomorrow. @bub64882 "Clark, just hold on and fly! Look, humans out of danger" Yep, a simple and elegant solution. But no, Superman snaps his neck instead. It really ruined this movie for me.

June 19, 2013 10:37 am I went nuts and bought $35.00 worth of Supes books from the sale, Secret Identity among them. While I'd say Superman for All Seasons is definitely my favorite Superman story, this one definitely ranks up there. Anyone who hasn't read it should do themselves a favor and get it ASAP for $3.96 on Comixology (on Sale through 6/20). Get it while it's HOT! ;)

June 19, 2013 10:25 am The major problem I had with this movie is that the makers of the film decided that this is the way they wanted their movie to end… …with a Superman that kills. Again, this is only my opinion and my PREFERRED version of Superman would have found a way around it. To reiterate some of my previous comments, I am not saying that he 100% shouldn’t have killed him (though I really don’t like the idea of it). But if the filmmakers decided that’s the way they wanted to go, they should have SOLD it more, made it more clear that he had tried every other avenue before resorting to Murder. The reckless abandon Superman showed for regular people in danger up until that moment is unfathomable. And then for him to suddenly give a hoot just because Zod threatens a few more humans and says CHOOSE…I just don’t buy it. Why couldn’t he have covered Zod’s eyes with his hand? Why wasn’t there a way to beat Zod unconscious (he snapped his neck easily enough) and then work to find a way to keep him that way, whether using some kind of Kryptonian technology or ANYTHING ELSE? Also, Superman is NOT a Police Officer. A Police Officer is trained to “Protect and Serve” and yes, sometimes that means using a weapon against criminals. But Police are given the authority to make those decisions after YEARS of training, and are taught to “Shoot to Disarm” not “Shoot to Kill.” What right does Superman have to decide who lives and who dies?

June 19, 2013 9:20 am How many years later do you think. 2, 3, 10? It took NYC until recently to complete construction of the Freedom Tower in NYC, and that's just 1 building.

June 18, 2013 5:07 pm Ok, here are my actual thoughts and feelings about Man of Steel and it's portrayal of characters in the Superman Mythos. Let me start out by saying, that no, Superman is NOT my favorite Superhero. But, he does rank up there. While I don't pretend to know all there is about the character, I would still call myself a fan, in the general sense. I have my favorite Superman stories (Superman for All Seasons and Red Son among them), Supporting Characters (Jonathan Kent is easily my favorite), and Villains (though trite no one can top Lex Luthor in Supes’ Rogue’s Gallery). The first thing I said when I walked out of the theatre that day was, “I’m not sure who that was, but it sure wasn’t Superman….And that sure as hell wasn’t Jonathan Kent” at least not the version of Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El nor Jonathan Kent that exist in my head (I’ll get back to that in a minute). So, the things I liked: Krypton- This is something we haven’t really explored much in any of the other movies. It was a fun Sci-Fi romp, and I really enjoyed Russell Crowe’s performance as Jor-El. Almost enough to want to see more in the coming sequel (Again, I said ALMOST). Any scene with Kevin Costner- Each moment between Clark and Jonathan just tugged on your heartstrings. His performance in Man of Steel is easily my favorite in the entire film. I well up every time I hear him say, “You are my son.” Though I did not like the portrayal of Jonathan in the film (more on that later), it did not take away from Costner’s performance. The “interrogation” scene- I guess that’s what it was…The scene where Lois is questioning the Man of Steel. We saw a lot of it in the trailers (here, it’s an “S”), but I still think it is one of the better scenes in the movie. We get to actually see Lois and Clark TALK to one another. If anyone questioned the chemistry between the two, this is the best example of where it worked. The things I didn’t care for, but didn’t really bother me either: The kiss- Ok, it wasn’t that great, but it wasn’t terrible either. The “only human” line was definitely corny and not in a particularly good way. Lois knows- This is the part of the Superman mythos that made the most sense to change. Everyone jokes about, “how can the other characters not know Clark is Superman, just because he’s wearing glasses?” Her hunting down the Angel/Alien among us is definitely in character for Lois, so while I prefer the Love Triangle of Clark/Lois/Superman, I understand the decision to make the change. Zod- A perfectly fine performance from Michael Shannon. Certainly a different take on the character than Terrance Stamp. But it just doesn’t feel like Superman without the presence of a certain bald-headed rich dude, hell bent on ridding the world of Superman (though LexCorp did make a few cameos). And the answer to my Jeopardy question, “Why I Didn’t Like Man of Steel?” The literal Non-Stop Action- Hey, I like action as much of the next guy. But when it nearly a third of the movie is dedicated to it, without ANY BREAKS?? C’mon… Jonathan Kent’s indifference to loss of life- When Clark asks, “What should I have done, let them die?” the appropriate Jonathan Kent response is an immediate, “Of course not Clark! You know I’m not saying that. What I’m saying is, you need to be more careful.” Sure Jonathan doesn’t want the world to know what his son can do until it’s “ready” to accept Superman. But I can’t imagine Jonathan would want a bus full of children should die, just so Clark can continue to hide in plain sight. At least not my Jonathan Kent (John Schneider, where are you when I need you??) Superman’s indifference to loss of life- Why oh why would Superman not at least TRY to move the fight from Smallville’s Main Street to a cornfield? Why would he not at least TRY to help the people in Metropolis avoid being killed in Collateral Damage? I understand this film is akin to “Superman Begins,” but they have to show some kind of effort, even if it is ineffective, on Superman’s part to help people who are not Lois Lane. The MURDER of Zod- Yes, Superman kills in this movie. If you read Mark Waid’s review, I had a similar, though non-verbal, reaction. After action scene after action scene after action scene, and Zod’s forces are sent back to the Phantom Zone from whence they came, and it looks like everyone (who made it out alive) is safe, we see Zod is still there. “Oh no, not again!” I say, channeling John Hurt in Spaceballs. More and More Collateral Damage until Zod corners a family in a train station and Superman snaps his neck. Finally, Superman sees the faces of people who might die from this wanton destruction and NOW he cares?? To those that say, but Zod said, “Only one of us will make it out of this alive” or whatever, why couldn’t Superman PROVE HIM WRONG! It’s the opposite of what happens in Dark Knight when the Joker gives the people on the ships the chance to live if they trigger the bomb to kill the people in the other ship. Mark Waid said it best in his review, “As Superman’s having his final one-on-one battle with Zod, show me that he’s going out of his way to save people from getting caught in the middle. SHOW ME that trying to simultaneously protect humans and beat Zod is achingly, achingly costing Superman the fight. Build to that moment of the hard choice…show me, without doubt, that Superman has no other out and do a better job of convincing me that it’s a hard decision to make, and maybe I’ll give it to you. But even if I do? It’s not a victory. Not this sad, soul-darkening, utterly sans-catharsis “triumph” that doesn’t even feel like a win so much as a stop-loss.” If he really has no other choice, show me how he comes to that decision. Have him at least TRY and look for a way to end it without killing him. At the simplest, when Zod gives his only one of us is getting out of here alive, have Superman say “YOU’RE WRONG!” That would have at least been something. And we end the movie in what appears to be the very near future, not years and years later, and Metropolis is rebuilt and is no worse for wear. And Clark shows up and welcomes him to the Daily Planet. Everything’s hunk dory, eh? Sorry, not for me. That’s not my Superman.

June 18, 2013 3:50 pm For those curious that are not on, or use Twitter, iFanboy co-founder Ron Richards also agreed with Paul's review and pointed to the review by Mark Waid (who is probably the bigggest Super-Fan there is) as well: http://thrillbent.com/blog/man-of-steel-since-you-asked/ I can only assume iFanboy's own Ryan Haupt is writing something up as we speak? I can't believe we haven't heard hide nor hair of Ryan, so this is the only explanation I can think of. :)