Superman WAS the best hero ever created.

[acedrake]

But in the past 30 or so years he has become a joke, a joke with way too many weaknesses. At this point any hero or even non hero can defeat Superman. All they need is a pinch of Kryptonite, some magic, some red sun in a bottle or even what ever a writer decides to write. I love Superman. He is my second fav hero next to Nightwing but is very frustrating to be a Superman fan now days. He stopped being the premiere hero in DC or any other company, but man. I think Superman's fall began with DKR and its crappy writing and art. What do you think?

 

[gerrym51]

you are overreacting. without using any of those items Superman could never be really used unless he's fighting Doomsday every issue.

Those items were created because writers WANTED to use him.

Now if your complaint is every writer is using them they make more sense than him fighting Darkseid one day then being bamboozled by the 'toyman' the next.

 

[Gu3ree]

I know how you feel. I've never been able to feel completely confident in Snyder. But we'll see about Justice League.

Batman stole everything Superman stood for, but still does, it's just now Batman takes the credit. For 30 years, or maybe since The Dark Knight, for new generations, this "no killing" rule--where do think think that came from? Superman! Not Batman!

Everything that was essentially great about Batman came from Superman. All superheroes. Superman is the one that leads the Justice League. I know they've made Batman the leader now in the comics.

I get the feeling they'll either make Batman the leader in the movie, or the'll just make it indecisive as to who is the actual team leader.

People are more inspired by Batman these days then they are with Superman, and shockingly think Batman is morally a better hero than Superman.

 

[The Guard]

But in the past 30 or so years he has become a joke, a joke with way too many weaknesses. At this point any hero or even non hero can defeat Superman. All they need is a pinch of Kryptonite, some magic, some red sun in a bottle or even what ever a writer decides to write. I love Superman. He is my second fav hero next to Nightwing but is very frustrating to be a Superman fan now days. He stopped being the premiere hero in DC or any other company, but man. I think Superman's fall began with DKR and its crappy writing and art. What do you think?

For the past 30 years?

You think Kryptonite is used a lot now? Try reading a comic from the Golden Age. Sometimes it seemed like every common criminal had Kryptonite, or Kryptonite dust, or a Kryptonite gun.

Superman having weaknesses isn't a new concept, or all that recent.

 

[MaceB]

Superman is one of those characters that means different things to different people. It's impossible to work with Superman without upsetting fans, IMO. He's too strong, not strong enough. Too invincible. Too many weaknesses. Too good. etc.

 

[Rocanrol]

Superman escalation in power level was the reason why he became uninteresting, somewhat cartoony, a "joke" as you call him.

Because of the soap opera-esque nature of comic books, writers have to come up with constantly progressing stories, increasingly difficult and challenging the hero, make him struggle.

So Superman, being an effigy of strenght and power, gets challenged in those aspects, by enemies increasingly overpowerfull, struggling against strenght-based problems, so by the end of the day all his problems are solved by punching harder. Punch the goon, punch the villain, punch the planet and even reality itself.

He is indestructible, but they also made him invulnerable; and that made him unrelatable. There should be some down-to-earth aspect, a human emotion that this godly being is struggling with. And then, by overcoming this he becomes the symbol of hope and example to follow.

I sincerely think that (for the exceptions of a few examples) long-runs are not the right medium for Superman. Batman normally gets away with it because of his noir stories, taking down low-level criminals, gang bosses and mostly-human rogue gallery alike. Superman can't take enemies weekly, he is too big for those narratives. You lose perspective of the character itself and what represents.

 

[The Guard]

Yeah...no.

By and large, the writers of Superman comics over the last few decades have clearly understood that his power set is not the most interesting thing about the character. Many, if not most, stories, deal with his emotional vulnerabilities. If anything, modern writers understand this more than writers did earlier in the character's history. And Superman has also been portrayed as quite vulnerable to various foes, despite normally being an invulnerable fellow.

And again, the soap opera, superpowered villains thing is not a new phenomenon. Hasn't been since...again, like, the Golden and Silver Ages, when he also fought superbeings, aliens, magical foes, etc.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

But in the past 30 or so years he has become a joke, a joke with way too many weaknesses. At this point any hero or even non hero can defeat Superman. All they need is a pinch of Kryptonite, some magic, some red sun in a bottle or even what ever a writer decides to write. I love Superman. He is my second fav hero next to Nightwing but is very frustrating to be a Superman fan now days. He stopped being the premiere hero in DC or any other company, but man. I think Superman's fall began with DKR and its crappy writing and art. What do you think?

His limitations push him back, they don't defeat him instantly. These changes were a plan to update the character to attract new readers to the character.

 

[_Superman_]

The only thing I find that hurts Superman as a Superman fan is bad writing and him always being Batman’s punching bag in the public eye. The other stuff I think is just mindless complaining because people always say he’s too good then when he does have a dark moment or gets upset you see all these not my Superman or that’s not how Superman’s supposed to be. I just think if you’re going to do something like Injustice or The Dark Knight saga that is so publicized then do something on that same level showcasing all the good things about Superman on that same level. I thought Man of Steel and Superman v Batman: Dawn of Justice did that but I guess I’m in the minority on that one.

 

[Rocanrol]

Yeah...no.

By and large, the writers of Superman comics over the last few decades have clearly understood that his power set is not the most interesting thing about the character. Many, if not most, stories, deal with his emotional vulnerabilities. If anything, modern writers understand this more than writers did earlier in the character's history. And Superman has also been portrayed as quite vulnerable to various foes, despite normally being an invulnerable fellow.

I agree to a degree, I was particulary refering to the fallout of Silver Age Superman and what did to him as a character.

And I also mentioned my take on constantly revising this god vulnerabities and weaknesses in a monthly basis and the strenghts of epic storytelling in a medium such as short-runs and graphic novels.

And again, the soap opera, superpowered villains thing is not a new phenomenon. Hasn't been since...again, like, the Golden and Silver Ages, when he also fought superbeings, aliens, magical foes, etc.

I agree with this. This "soapiness" have been stuck in the comic book medium mostly since the Silver Age but from the Golden Age too in a degree.

 

[vantheman77]

But in the past 30 or so years he has become a joke, a joke with way too many weaknesses. At this point any hero or even non hero can defeat Superman. All they need is a pinch of Kryptonite, some magic, some red sun in a bottle or even what ever a writer decides to write. I love Superman. He is my second fav hero next to Nightwing but is very frustrating to be a Superman fan now days. He stopped being the premiere hero in DC or any other company, but man. I think Superman's fall began with DKR and its crappy writing and art. What do you think?

I felt the same way that DKR revitalized Batman, but destroyed Superman in the process.

 

[batfreakforever]

Batman is and always will be ths single most greatest superhero ever created. Just because he was first doesnt mean Superman is the greatest.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

Batman is and always will be ths single most greatest superhero ever created. Just because he was first doesnt mean Superman is the greatest.

Superman saved people from committing suicide, stopped a war by being a diplomat, scared a gun monger from manufacturing and selling his illegal merchandise, stopped unjust execution, convinced a young man fresh into adulthood into continuing his pursuit of education instead of quitting....
And Batman was mostly tossing fists and cracking jaws.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

The single ‘most greatest’ huh

Yeah that sure sounds about right.