Reboot: Character Portrayal

[Isildur´s Heir]

What´s the future of Clark Kent?
Is there going to be more for him to do, or go on with just being a 2 dimensional character, no more than a mask to Superman?

So, why the title of the thread, "The Real Truth"?
Because to answer the above, you to answer, how many "personalities" does the Man of Steel has?
Hence the poll...

3...Kal-El, Superman and Clark Kent
2....Kal-El and Superman are one and the same, that leaves CK as the second
1....Kal-El, Superman and Clark are all bits of the same person

 

[Zigno]

521425 for sure. i allways think who 521425 is the best.
and... i didnt understand the pool.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

521425 for sure. i allways think who 521425 is the best.
and... i didnt understand the pool.

What´s not there to understand?
How many "personalities" does Superman has?

See, like some people that say that he is 3.
Kal-El is when he is in Smallville, when he can be himself, without wearing the costume and going around saving people.
Superman, well, that´s his heritage for the world to see.
And then there is CK, and that is no more than a mask created so he can be in society and live a normal life.

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Is this that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit thing?

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Is this that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit thing?

Whaaaa...?

 

[The Question]

Superman has one personality. He doesn't have any psychological disorders. He's simply multi faceted. The Clark you see at the Daily Planet isn't a lie, and neither is the Clark you see flying around Metropolis saving lives. Neither is an act, simply what's apropriate for the given situation. Everyone has different versions of themselves for different situations. Superman is strong, confident, and awe inspiring, because that's what Superman needs to be. Clark is a little more inconspicuous, keeps to himself, and more laid back, because that's what Clark needs to be when not saving lives to keep his sanity. He's alot like Aticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. Quiet, well mannered, inconspicuous, and a bit laid back most of the time because that's how he likes thing, but brave, cinfident, and kind of badass when he needs to be.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Superman has one personality. He doesn't have any psychological disorders. He's simply multi faceted. The Clark you see at the Daily Planet isn't a lie, and neither is the Clark you see flying around Metropolis saving lives. Neither is an act, simply what's apropriate for the given situation. Everyone has different versions of themselves for different situations. Superman is strong, confident, and awe inspiring, because that's what Superman needs to be. Clark is a little more inconspicuous, keeps to himself, and more laid back, because that's what Clark needs to be when not saving lives to keep his sanity. He's alot like Aticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. Quiet, well mannered, inconspicuous, and a bit laid back most of the time because that's how he likes thing, but brave, cinfident, and kind of badass when he needs to be.

Of course he doesn´t have any psychological disorders.
That title of the poll was a joke, but i understand how it can induce in error.

I also see him as having only one "personality", having CK, Kal-El and Superman being one and the same, but many don´t, hence the poll (like many see CK being how Bill describes him in Kill Bill).
But i see that all midly mannered bit a little on the outdate side, and, IMO, doesn´t make much sense.

 

[The Kid]

I always thought superman was just clark kent without Glasses.

 

[The Question]

Of course he doesn´t have any psychological disorders.
That title of the poll was a joke, but i understand how it can induce in error.

I also see him as having only one "personality", having CK, Kal-El and Superman being one and the same, but many don´t, hence the poll (like many see CK being how Bill describes him in Kill Bill).
But i see that all midly mannered bit a little on the outdate side, and, IMO, doesn´t make much sense.

Of course it makes sense. He's a nice, quiet, laid back guy who doesn't like to draw atention to himself. That's all mild mannered is.

 

[Steelsheen]

The real guy is Kal-El. he's the Kryptonian survivor raised by humans on a farm and tries his best to be nice and of service to everyone.

Reporter Clark Kent is a facet of Kal-El personailty but exaggerated. Superman is a facet and an ability of Kal-El that is very visible and popular with the crowd. both are part of Kal-El as a person, buth neither gives the complete picture of who the Kryptonian really is.

Kal-El is the real deal. unfortunately few gets to see this, only his parents, his wife and a few trusted fellow superheroes who are in the same situation as he is.

 

[The Question]

But he's not Kal El. At least, he doesn't see himself as Kal El. He didn;t know about Krypton until he was an adult. If you had come up to him as a kid or a teenager and mentioned Kal El, he would have had no idea what you were talking about.

 

[Steelsheen]

i'm speaking present tense not past dude.

besides Kal-El of Krypton aka Clark Kent of Earth learned of his alien herritage before he ever became a reporter at Metropolis or wore the blue tights and red cape. so i really dont see what you're trying to infer.

if you're talking about the name, if the rocket that crashed to earth had a name tag that says "this is our son Kal-El" then the Kents would've sure incorporated that to naming the kid. but they didnt, so they came up with a name for him until later he discovers his real name and embraces that part of him that has been dormant all those years.

 

[The Question]

Sorry, no. He lived with Clark kent his entire life. I think that's the name he would have for himself, not Kal-El. Also, most versions of the story don't have him learning about his alien heratige until a little bit after he becomes Superman and moves to Metropolis.

 

[DavidTyler]

Question ... we are so much in synch... do you have a Sister?

Just kidding... I am completely on the same page w/you on this.

I've never understood how anyone can think that he somehow becomes the Kryptonian overnight when he discovers his heritage. He was raised human... he thinks of himself as human .. and the only name he would ever consider his real name would be ... CLARK KENT. That's the name he was raised under.

Clark is the man he is, Superman is the things he does, and Kal-el is just his vague history. Does someone who's just discovered that he's adopted suddenly become a different person? It's exactly the same issue.

 

[Venom71]

Superman is who he is..Clark Kent is the disguise "And who Disguised as Clark Kent....A Reporter for a Great Metropolitan Newspaper....SUPERMAN!"

 

[C. Lee]

Multiple personality disorder refers to someone who unknowingly (or unwillingly) switches from one distinct personality to another because of mental and emotional problems.

Superman switches to different and distinct personalities in a willing and knowing attempt to confuse and mislead others to his true idenity, much as an undercover policeman or spy.

I see him as having one "personality" - Clark Kent (because that is how he was raised by the Kents since he was a baby)...and a seperate "persona" - Superman (because that's what he discovers his physical abilities can let him become.

Kal-El isn't a personality....it's a name and racial heritage connection to his ancestors.

 

[The Sage]

I voted two. I think Superman and Kal-El are one and the same, and that Kal-El and Clark on the farm are the same person. Clark Kent in Metropolis is the mask.

 

[matrix_ghost]

I think Bill said it best in Kill Bill 2 ( which btw is a crappy movie ) :

An essential characteristic of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero, and there's the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When he wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic that Superman stands alone. Superman did not become Superman, Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears, the glasses, the business suit, that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He's weak, he's unsure of himself... he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race.

There is really just Superman , personifing Kal-El , and Clark KEnt

 

[The Kid]

I somewhat agree that he exaggerates his weakness sometimes to appear unsuper, but thats just Clark. He's been doing that his entire life growing up so its not that big a stretch when he uses glasses to disguise himself at an adult age.

It's like Goku. He's born Kakarot, but was raised as Goku and is primarily always going to be Goku since he was never Kakarot until his brother came from space to fight him and he learned his real name at the age of about 18 or so... from then on though he understands his true heritage, he's still Goku.

Superman wasn't superman until he learned his true heritage and decided to use the costume and everything to become supes. In the old series, little emphasis was put on the Clark because superman's really assumed to just have been superman and decided to create reporter clark, but now we know better than that with recent tv incarnations focusing on Clark Kent more than superman to give him more humanity.

So it can be viewed all kinds of ways, but I think it's always going to true that he's some farmboy named Clark who one day decided to become a superhero called Superman. We see in the stas and smallville and lois and clark that Clark the real him, the son of two loving parents, the guy who goes to work and school everyday like normal people, but when there's a job for superman he suits up in his colorful costume and like Spidey saves the day.

 

[matrix_ghost]

You mentioned DBZ .

You're my new hero t:

 

[The Question]

I think Bill said it best in Kill Bill 2 ( which btw is a crappy movie ) :



There is really just Superman , personifing Kal-El , and Clark KEnt

I'm pretty sure that was meant to be a cynical veiw of Superman. Doesn;t really capture who he is at all.

 

[matrix_ghost]

That is a matter of interpretation now is it
I know what Bill said was something cynical and critical , but at the same time IMO i do feel he has a valid point.

Superman isn't Kal-El. Kal-El is the memory of his kryptonian ancestry.
Clark is you're everyday person , you're indentiy. Martha loves Supes for clark. She loves him as her child , she doesn't care if he has superpowers or not. To her , superman is clark the human.

But superman is the savior of earth. That is who he really is. Clark is the just the connection to humanity

 

[The Question]

But he was Clark before he was Superman. He was Clark before he put on his costume and decided to go help people.

 

[The Sage]

I somewhat agree that he exaggerates his weakness sometimes to appear unsuper, but thats just Clark. He's been doing that his entire life growing up so its not that big a stretch when he uses glasses to disguise himself at an adult age.

It's like Goku. He's born Kakarot, but was raised as Goku and is primarily always going to be Goku since he was never Kakarot until his brother came from space to fight him and he learned his real name at the age of about 18 or so... from then on though he understands his true heritage, he's still Goku.

Superman wasn't superman until he learned his true heritage and decided to use the costume and everything to become supes. In the old series, little emphasis was put on the Clark because superman's really assumed to just have been superman and decided to create reporter clark, but now we know better than that with recent tv incarnations focusing on Clark Kent more than superman to give him more humanity.

So it can be viewed all kinds of ways, but I think it's always going to true that he's some farmboy named Clark who one day decided to become a superhero called Superman. We see in the stas and smallville and lois and clark that Clark the real him, the son of two loving parents, the guy who goes to work and school everyday like normal people, but when there's a job for superman he suits up in his colorful costume and like Spidey saves the day.

Good comparison, but I don't think it's exactly the same.
Though Goku does acknowledge the name Kakarot when Vegeta addresses him by it, plus Goku rejected his heritage while Clark embraced it.

 

[The Question]

Well, he did and he didn't. He accepts and honors his heratige, but he still considers himself, primiairily, a human.