While I cannot hope to capture the hearts and minds of the iFanbase in the same way Messrs Romo did, I didn’t think I could contain my own thoughts to a single comment, and figured I’d spare the thread by just writing an entire column. I completely understand if this is ignored, for Mike’s words were poignant and wonderful, but I just couldn’t resist adding my 2 cents and I also secretly hope this outpouring of Superman affection is enough to elicit a screed from the ever-opinionated Jimski.
During our recording of the podcast we were running short enough on time that I tried to be succinct in my Superman comments. The question was from Phil and was asking how to deal with Superman-induced malaise brought upon by substandard comics. Mike Romo gave a great response, I said something in the middle, and Jimski bashed the very idea of Superman, ignoring the fact that arguably the superhero genre would not exist without him.
My response was to advocate the Conor principle of continuity by simply finding your own. Pull all your Superman books off your shelves, arrange them in chronological order, and decide which ones “count.” Pick your favorite origin, your favorite relationship with Lois, so forth and so on. The continuity need not be set in stone (or more appropriately steel) but it should be yours and you should own it as such. This applies to any character, and should of course be subject to constant reinterpretation, since new stories will constantly be told.
My next suggestion was to read a book called It’s Superman. I sent this book to Conor and he did an iFanboy Mini on it back in the day. My one line pitch for this book is “If John Steinbeck wrote Superman.” It’s a novelization of the Superman origin set in the Great Depression, right around the time Superman was first being published. The setting really sheds a different light on the mythos. Most reinventions of the Superman origin try to update and modernize the character, even making Ma Kent a UFO hunter. While I don’t disagree with these updated interpretations, remembering that Clark Kent was a farmboy from Kansas raised in the 1920’s really puts a different spin on our hero. He’s a boy with almost no education and arrives in Metropolis as naïve as Dorothy crash-landing into Oz. The whole book is just great and obviously I heartily recommend it to those looking for a little Kal-El reinvigoration.
Mike’s article dealt a lot with how pretending to be a Superman might make us feel, and how that yield a fondness for the character beyond what the stories themselves convey. I completely agree that in the adolescent mind this is significant, but as an adult I need more. I like to think of it with the same cup-to-faith metaphor used in the movie Dogma. To paraphrase: when you are young, your cup is small and easy to fill [with faith], but as you grow older the cup gets bigger and takes more to fill up all the way. I think this applies perfectly to Supes. As a child we can put on a blanket and fly around the neighborhood, and while Mike is still a child at heart not everyone can submit to pure emotion, some of us need to justify our adoration of Superman with intellectual rigor (which is not to say Mike isn’t intellectual, he’s just the hearted Tin Man to my brained Scarecrow).
"Go change the course of a might river or something..."
So how can anyone support Superman intellectually? Mike touched on it briefly but it all comes down to the immigrant’s dream. Many of the modern Superman-as-myth interpretations have focused on Kal-El as a Christ-like savior of mankind. This is especially prevalent in the death and rebirth cycles seen in the comics and most recent films. This interpretation has always bugged me for several reasons, but first and foremost being that there are other savior characters in the same source book and one in particular (Spoiler: Moses) fits the Superman mold much better.
It’s almost too easy when you break it down. Two Jewish boys, sons of immigrants both, create a character whose born into a world about to be destroyed, placed in a basket and sent down a path to be raised by another group. He grows up unaware of his heritage, but always feeling out of place, until he eventually rises up to bring his people into the promised land.
Granted Superman has yet to enact that final part of the Mosaic story, but ultimately the story of Superman as an immigrant is extremely compelling. Mark Waid put it best in an essay he wrote for The Philosophy of Superheroes when quoting an essay by Marianne Williamson:
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? … Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine … and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
What both Waid and Romo get is that Superman is trying to give back to humanity as much as he’s setting an example for us mere mortals to follow. It’s the symbiotic nature of Superman’s relationship with man that keeps it pure rather than exploitative, and that balance is nothing to shrug at.
And this goes beyond just the American immigrant dream. This story encompasses the ENTIRETY OF HUMAN HISTORY. Unless you are reading this piece from the fertile cresenct of Africa, at one point your ancestors, or maybe you yourself, said “Things aren’t as good here as they could be over there.” And based on the mere promise of improvement they moved, and it is that continual desire to do just a little better that has led us to become the dominant species on the planet in no time flat. There have been negative consequences to that progress, but regardless, every person who has struck out from their home to do better elsewhere is living part of the Superman mythos themselves.
Personally, the reason I connect with Superman is because I can empathize with a guy who feels like there’s a lot he can do, but there are only so many hours of the day and if he doesn’t spend some time at home just relaxing he’ll go nuts. How is that not relatable? We’re all out there every day trying out best to make the world a little bit better (at least I hope we are). And I know there’s a little part of me that laments needing to sleep 1/3 of each day just to continue to function. Superman has the ability to do much more about certain problems than most of us, but he’s still limited by his singularity and his desire to have some semblance of a life. But regardless of his limitations he maintains his dedication to give back to a society that has given him so much.
So that’s how I feel about Superman. I could probably write double this amount going into more nuance and particulars, but I think I’ve said my piece and hope this Super-lovefest has done it’s part to counteract the good-natured naysaying of my co-host. While you’ve probably already spilled your heart to Romo, I invite you to spill your brains here.
Ryan Haupt has black hair that in the best of moments will curl into an ‘S’ on his forehead. Hear him try to improve the world with science on his podcast Science… sort of.
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Applause, sir. Just when I thought Mike Romo had said it all, you say some more.
I would, in all seriousness, like to see a rebuttal from Jimski or another anti-Superman…ist.
It’s Superman is an amazing read. One of my all-time favorites, and a fascinating examination of Lois Lane, as well.
That book blew me away.
I read that book when I was 16 and I hated it. I read it again when I was 20 and it’s one of my favorite’s now.
If they ever reboot SMALLVILLE for television, they should just make it a period show and adapt this book. It would be crazy expensive, though.
They have this book on Audible and it’s narrated by Scott Brick… Done.
i endorse all these comments. It’s a really, really great book.
It seems a ton of people whose opinions I usually agree with think this is think this is an excellent book. I’ll hunt it down. Thanks for the recommendation, everyone.
You hit the nail on the head about why Superman is such an enduring character. I just don’t feel they’ve captured him properly with the New 52. Action started well, but has gone all over the place in recent issues.
Aside from ‘It’s Superman’ which i’ve just ordered, I would love some recommendations from which to build my own continuity. I’ve read All Star and Superman for Superman for all Seasons, but would love to delve further into the Man of Steel.
Red Son by Mark Millar, Any of Geoff Johns’s Action Comics, JLA by Grant Morrison, Infinite Crisis by Johns, (Final Crisis by Morrison is weird, but after several rereads, it is essentially a Superman story and a very powerful one.) and I would highly recommend cherry picking the animated series, including Justice League and JLU.
Geoff Johns’ Superman: Secret Origin was a great read. It should be noted that Red Son is an Elseworlds tale, but its a great read none the less.
Though some of the storytelling devices have aged (like thinking and speaking in plot synopsis), I still feel The Man of Steel by John Byrne is a take on Superman every fan should read. For all the talk about how “above it all” Superman is, I think this was the first successful attempt to humanize the character in modern times, though I just realized I referred to something almost 30 years old as modern (gah!).
Superman:Birthright is another great take on the origin by Mark Waid. It’s a Bird by Steven T. Seagle approaches Superman from an entirely different angle and is a fascinating breakdown of the character. Superman: Secret Identity by Kurt Busiek is another fascinating elseworlds take on Superboy(man) Prime. The “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow” trade/hardcover also includes “For the Man Who Has Everything” and “The Jungle Line” (crossover with Swamp Thing), which are all excellent stories by Alan Moore. You can pick up the first year of the Byrne/Wolfman run in Man of Steel vols 2-6 to continue the story from Byrne’s Man of Steel with a more grounded Superman. The Death/World Without/Return of Superman is a pretty epic read with major ramifications in the DCU. Greg Rucka’s run is available in 3 trades (Unconventional Warfare, That Healing Touch,Ruin Revealed) and tells a very personal story of betrayal. Superman/Batman by Jeph Loeb is an over the top romp. Luthor by Brian Azzarello looks at things from Lex Luthor’s perspective. The whole New Krypton saga spinning out of Geoff John’s run is a pretty solid read, albeit somewhat rushed at the end. And Kingdom Come is at its heart a Superman story.
Thanks for all those suggestions guys – got lots to be getting on with there!
Is Brainiac the lead-in to New Krypton?
@ henryj2112 : ‘Brainiac’ is a direct lead-in to the super-big (but good) New Krypton story.
The Johns/Frank run of Action was fantastic
I think one of the best takeaways from the recent Superman conversations is this: People care about the character and want to read good stories about him. Obviously there are readers who are not interested in Superman and that is perfectly fine, but I’ve also seen in the past few days that TONS of the iFanbase is waiting for another great Superman story and don’t think that he’s outdated.
true, and just look at the anecdotal evidence on this site..people are still buying Superman titles in large numbers, even if they are complaining about them. There is hope that it will be a great story. The audience is there and they are eager.
I’ve been putting off reading this title for quite a while. I need to take the plunge. I only hear great things about it….plus it has an amazing book jacket. =)
Wow I really want to read this book now. It sounds great. Also, it could work as a comic…..wait that’s missing the point!
This is how you determine if Superman is for you: Play the John Williams score. If you don’t get goosebumps or feel like you could fly yourself, then chances are Superman won’t do anything for you.
Regarding Superman and the New52, the entire point was to get new readers on the books so maybe next time don’t get the one writer who is essentially comics’ David Lynch writing a confusing Superman book while on the other title getting people who write like it’s still the 80’s/90’s. Nothing says “NEW DCU” better than writers over 40.
Meanwhile look over on Batman to see what new blood (Scott Synder) can bring to another 70 year old character.
Well done as always. I did try my level best to make it through It’s Superman, but I just couldn’t do it.
I will say that I’m not ignoring Superman’s responsibility for launching the genre. We wouldn’t have cars without Henry Ford, but that doesn’t mean I keep hanging on to my Model T.
But do you go around talking about how awful the Model T was? And how there’s no reason anyone should have liked the Model T in the first place?
I question your metaphor, Jimski.
Well Model T wasn’t a very well designed car. But that being said, you can say that about any other comic. The Lee/Ditko Spider-man isn’t worth anything more than it’s historical significance.
I’ve always been torn when it comes to Superman. I grew up as a devout Batman fan. I did all the running around with a cape in my youth, but I always had a cowl over my head and stuck to the shadows. Much more swinging and climbing than flying. I never harbored any ill feelings towards Big Blue, he just never interested me nearly as much as Batman.
As I got older and found more and more fellow comic fans, I realized that (sometimes, not always) the way you grew up seems to dictate which of the two you favor. In my experience, folks who grew up in urban areas, had less-than-perfect or “normal” childhoods, and describe themselves as pessimists, cynics, or realists lean a little more towards the Batman stories. On the flipside, people who maybe grew up in rural areas, were raised by the complete family unit, are optimistic in nature, and truly believe that the world is magical and everyone is essentially good tend to have a serious love for the Last Son. This is not a tested theory. I have no statistics to back this up. It’s just something I’ve noticed in my own experience. For example; Jimski would be the former, and Mike would be the latter. Despite the fact that very few of us know them personally, I think that’s something we could all agree on.
When I moved to New York, I started working at Midtown Comics. After I got to know the guys I worked with a little, I shot my mouth off and delivered a very Jimski style rant about how useless and uninteresting I thought Superman was. I was young. I was stupid. I did it for a laugh. But I’ll never forget the look on their faces. It was like I spewed venom all over their STAFF shirts. As if I had anounced my atheism on the lectern at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The guy I was closest to said very calmly “If you’re gonna talk that much shit on Superman, You’re in the wrong place.” It was a valuable lesson. After that, I devoured all the “must reads” in print, and came away with a very serious respect for the character.
I’ll always favor Batman. It’s in my blood. But since then I have jumped on and off various Superman titles depending on my interest, and more often than not it’s turned out to be a satisfying experience. Superman is important. He’s a symbol. He’s the first superhero, and deserves the respect that comes along with that. That being said, I would never want the challenge of writing a new Superman story. It’s just too hard a thing to capture. Too delicate a balance to strike between maintaing the magic and doing something different. I sympathize with DC right now. For whatever reason, they probably thought this would work, and it seems to have blown up in their face. Though I must say, I’ve really enjoyed Action Comics for the most part. But I realize I’m the minority. My only advice to those suffering Supes fans would be to hang in there. He’ll be back on top where he belongs in no time.
Good article as always Ryan.
I think it’s that fear that causes people not to write superman very well. Superman is this sweet classis muscle car. Doesn’t need a spoiler or a decal job, doesn’t really need much of a facelift. All it needs is to be dusted off and taken on the road at high speeds. I’m pretty much the opposite of most people when it comes to the “writing superman thing”. I’m more like, dude, i will write all of your lesser titles and get you coffee, only if you’ll let me write superman. If i do good i’ll be extremely happy, if i don’t, well, no one will look to me as the one who ruined superman. That dishonor belongs to those who shall not be named.
What i meant to say when using the car analogy is that people are afraid to take it out for an adventure and are content with meaningless design aesthetics.
I got it. Good analogy. I just think it might be harder than a lot of people seem to think it is.
I respectfully disagree, the moment you think you can’t do something, then it settles in that you really can’t. Kind of a self fufilling prophecy.
I think it’s really dicey to make broad generalizations like “rural people are optimistic and like Superman” and “urban people are cynics and like Batman.” Jim is from the midwest and hates Superman. Mike grew up in San Francisco and lives in LA and loves Superman. I grew up in Manhattan and love Superman almost as much as Batman. There are certainly no lack of Superman fans in cities as much as there are no lack of Batman fans in rural areas.
People are who they are and like what they like for a variety of reasons.
@Conor: I realize that it’s dicey. That’s why I made the disclaimer that it IS a generalization, and that I have no real stats to back it up. It’s just something I’ve come across and discussed with people in my personal collection of experiences with fellow fans that I’ve met from around the country. I just thought it was an interesting observation worth discussing. Food for thought. Didn’t mean to categorize anyone unfairly. I totally agree that people like what they like for a variety of reasons.
@Conor: Also, I shouldn’t have included Jim and Mike in my comment. Though, despite their geographical origins and the fact that I know next to nothing about their personal lives, I’m still not surprised that Mike is fond of Superman and Jim is not. That’s based purely on my perception of their writing over the last couple of years. I would still argue that there’s an interesting and somewhat valid point in there somewhere.
Superman has great appeal when you’re a child because his story is idealistic. Superman has the power to rule the world, but he chooses to help humanity. But as you get older, the more you understand the world around you, and the more you realize the fantasy of Superman. I think that’s why Batman seems to be more popular. The world as become so cynical and corrupt, so people gravitate towards a vigilante. There’s a reason why movies such as Death Wish and Dirty Harry were and still are so popular.
Then again, if Scott Snyder started to write a Superman book, everything I wrote may be dead wrong.
I respectfully disagree, Tony, with a few of the things you bring up. I think part of what you’re responding to is Superman being stuck in his Silver Age incarnation. Remember, he was born out of the depression, created by kids who knew all to well the bad sides of life. He was created as a daydream fighting back against cynicism and corruption. When we went into the post-WWII period, the character became something else, as did Batman. I think the big difference is that Batman evolved in the mid-80s into a character more reflecting his times while one writer after another kept pulling Supes back into the Silver Age.
Though I love Superman: The Motion Picture, I think it shares much of the blame for this. It presents us with the almost naive version of Superman that fit well with the post-Star Wars movie audience. No matter what Byrne tried to do in grounding the character, most people are still stuck on that version even in comics circles. The version of Batman that stuck with the audience at large, though, is the dark, brooding vigilante fighting crime in a corrupt city.
The world hasn’t become corrupt. It always has been. How we respond to it evolves over time. Batman is one way to look at it and Superman is another. Both characters are born out of optimism, though, not cynicism. Batman may stick to the shadows but he believes his city can be saved and is worth fighting for. I actually think the rebel Superman would resonate well with the public now, as he did in Morrison’s Action Comics before he derailed the story, but I don’t know if he’ll be allowed to break out of his Silver Age prison (as evidenced by the Superman title).
and thats the problem. too many people seem to want the “symbol”. the “icon”. instead of a well rounded character. someone with recognizable human characteristics. that thinking leads to such a rigid set of parameters, that the character can not deviate without someone calling foul! that is what makes the character hard to write. not his powers.
and you aren’t in the minority for liking ACTION COMICS. it’s one of DC’s top selling titles.
I don’t know if anyone mentioned this on the other thread, but I feel like this ties in with the comments about being able to write a good Superman story.
Aren’t Invincible and Irrideemable just other versions of a Superman story?
This kind of ties in with Jim’s comment about Superman being the Model T Ford. Writers use the Superman Concept, all the time. There are so many different versions of Superman- The Sentry, Hyperion, Supreme, Plutonian, etc. Every universe has their version. Usually, the power gets to them and they do horrendous things.
I think the best Superman Stories are the ones that show his true potential, and how terrifying it is, and yet he chooses to be the clean cut hero that he is. In the other article someone commented about how the real ‘Wish I could be’ factor that Superman inspires is the fact that we wish we could be as good a person as he is. He is that good even though he has power to basically destroy the planet.
Irredeemable is exactly not how to write Superman. Hell, it’s a specimen of bad writing, it should be showed in creative writing classes as examples of bad writing.
I love it!
Superman is tough to write (not a shocking statement). I think largely due to the fact that he has so much power, yet shows so much restraint (and feels that he has to show restraint). I love the character, and it is his humanity that is compelling. If you consider all the selfish things you would (or could) do with so much power it can be a truly humbling experience. I do not think of him as some boy scout- but someone who puts others first in most instances.
I agree that Johns run in Action was quite well done, and it is worth going back and reading the last superman story by Alan Moore if you have not read it.
I was never much of a Superman fan until I read Steven Seagle’s “It’s a Bird” at the urging of a coworker. His passion for Superman, and why he was afraid to write it had me tracking down runs by him, and some of my other favorite comic book writers at the time. I didn’t enjoy his Superman run very much, but “It’s A Bird” is still one of my favorite Vertigo trades.
Yes, this.
I was about to mention this in the whole Superman debate. Seagle’s “it’s a bird…” is not only one of my favorite graphic novels, it’s one that really helped me understand Superman much better.
But… I kind of fall into the middle of this whole debate. I love the myth of Superman, Supes as an icon, power fantasy and truly American symbol (as Ryan notes), but I’m hard pressed to find ADVENTURES of Superman that I actually enjoy. I find I tend to react better to stories that live in the shadow of Superman rather than actual tales of the Man of Steel himself.
@daccampo: “I love the myth of Superman, Supes as an icon, power fantasy and truly American symbol (as Ryan notes), but I’m hard pressed to find ADVENTURES of Superman that I actually enjoy. I find I tend to react better to stories that live in the shadow of Superman rather than actual tales of the Man of Steel himself.” That’s where I’m at, too.
this is as positive as positive can get. love this article.
Superman is like the Rolling Stones.
You either understand they are it, or you will someday.
Camelot Falls by Busiek is great recent Supes run.
I’ve always enjoyed Superman and have a quite a extended run of Action/Adventure/Supes/Man of Steel run from the 80s reboot to the Electric Superloo version. When one buys into Superman, one also must buy into the supporting non-powered characters like Lois, Jimmy, etc. Superman’s true weakeness is his heart caring for those he loves, which makes for better stories. Superman is a lesser character without that rich world where he resides.
When it comes to who Superman is, he’s Clark first.
I’ve avoided the character over the last decade with DC going back to Superman is Clark, which seemed to be the norm pre-Crisis. Eventually, it’ll swing back the other way. In the meantime, I still have a crapload of backissues to read.