Superman is Super Boring…
So now that I have your attention and many of you hate me…
Superman has always felt a bit overpowered to me, but simultaneously he is constantly holding back. He could easily beat 90% (maybe more) of the heroes/villains in the DC universe, yet any fight always seems underwhelming. More people wanted to read about Superman when he died than any other time they wanted to read Superman comics… that’s kind of interesting.
Now, I’m nothing if not reasonable and fair. I know just like you do that most of those extra copies were sold to people who were expecting to put their kids through college by reselling them 20 years down the road (when DC never brought Superman back to life? I’ll leave you to think about that one for a minute).
Anyways, I have also noticed a trend that people who love Superman tend to hate the “Man of Steel” movie, while people like myself who aren’t big on him, tend to like it. I could write a whole article about how Superman fought Zod way too early and that’s why he killed him instead of finding another way, but I won’t bore you with my DC movie critiques. I’m here to give you a really positive Superman announcement… eventually.
Just because I don’t personally love a character, it doesn’t mean I won’t recommend stories that people that do love that character constantly rave about. I’m the only person that has read All-Star Superman that didn’t care for it. That being said, I recommend it all day every day to people who want to read a great Superman story. I also recommend “Superman for All Seasons”, “Kingdom Come”, “Superman Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow” and “Superman Birthright”. Personally, my favorite Superman stories are “Superman American Alien” and “Superman Red Son” and of course anything out of continuity by Tom Taylor.
There is a new Superman #1 by Joshua Williamson and Jamal Campbell out in stores next week, and after reading the first issue I was blown away. Comic publishers always talk about a new book being accessible or a great “jumping on point” but this book really is exactly that. If you have never read Superman before, it doesn’t matter you can absolutely start here.
Superman keeps tabs on Lex and he constantly hears Lex telling him how he would do things if he were Superman. Imagine always having that voice in your head. Williamson makes this feel like old school comic book storytelling with gorgeous art by Jamal Campbell. We have a quick villain battle; we get a bit of the characters close to Superman and everyone loves and we get a nice set up for what’s sure to be some classic Lex/Superman shenanigans. I’m always impressed when a comic comes out of a character who isn’t a character I love and I want to read the book so bad because it’s well written/drawn!
I’m not saying I like it because it’s the version of Superman I want, I’m saying I like it because it’s exactly what Superman is supposed to be. It’s exactly what Superman fans want and love and it STILL COMPLETELY HOOKED ME (the guy who isn’t into Superman).
If you don’t grab Superman #1, you aren’t just missing out on a fantastic 1st issue of Superman, you are missing out on one of the most fun, old school feeling comic issues you have read in years!!!!!