The Official Superman: Earth One thread

[The Squirrel]

No, it's a new continuity all together unrelated to the mainstream. Which, also is what All Star was, it wasn't a reboot, either

Interesting.

 

[Tron Bonne]

So it's a 2nd Ultimate universe for DC?

Why?

Well, yes and no. Earth-One is actually a connected universe between Earth-One Superman and Batman, where as All Star was self-contained without any connection between the two.

Also, where as the Ultimate line's concept is to 'modernize' heroes in another shared universe (or whatever), the All Star line was meant more as a sandbox for creators to play with. They are kind of similar in the sense that they both kind of played with continuity-free versions of characters, but they were trying to accomplish different things.

I hope that's clear and not too convoluted...

 

[The Squirrel]

Well, yes and no. Earth-One is actually a connected universe between Earth-One Superman and Batman, where as All Star was self-contained without any connection between the two.

Also, where as the Ultimate line's concept is to 'modernize' heroes in another shared universe (or whatever), the All Star line was meant more as a sandbox for creators to play with. They are kind of similar in the sense that they both kind of played with continuity-free versions of characters, but they were trying to accomplish different things.

I hope that's clear and not too convoluted...

It's kinda clear. I've enjoyed what I've read of Marvel's Ultimate line. I didn't like All Star Batman, and I haven't got a chance to read AS Superman. So if this is another, but separate, fresh start, I'm willing to give it a go if I get a chance.

 

[Tron Bonne]

It's kinda clear. I've enjoyed what I've read of Marvel's Ultimate line. I didn't like All Star Batman, and I haven't got a chance to read AS Superman. So if this is another, but separate, fresh start, I'm willing to give it a go if I get a chance.

Yep, it's totally separate from the All Star Superman/Batman series.

 

[NightBeetle]

DC's Superman: Earth One will be a $20, 128-page hardcover

The announcement last week of DC Comics' new line of original graphic novels left at least two significant questions unanswered: How many pages will the Earth One titles be, and how much will they cost?
Thanks to Amazon.com, and Collected Editions, we now have an idea. The online retail giant lists Superman: Earth One as a 128-page hardcover priced at $19.99. That's the same price and page count as Joker, the 2008 original graphic novel by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo.


Collected Editions does some quick math, and concludes that while the equivalent number of pages in monthly comics would cost you just $16.45, with discounts -- "everyone and their uncle gets some kind of discount on comic books, at least 30%" -- Superman: Earth One is actually kind of a deal.


Superman: Earth One, by J. Michael Straczynski and Shane Davis, is set for release on Sept. 7, 2010. Batman: Earth One, by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, presumably will debut sometime later.

 

[CConn]

Um, you get discounts with TPBs and Hardcovers too. When it's all said and done, I'm sure I'll end up paying $13.49 for the HC on Amazon, and $10.49 for the trade...whenever that comes out.

At 30% is pretty much the highest discount you can get, not the lowest.

 

[Kurosawa]

Do we really need more than one thread for Earth-1?

The answer is no, no we don't.
I never knew Kurosawa nor Moe to whine so much.

It's Shemp, actually.

I don't expect anyone to agree with my comics views, which I readily admit are radically conservative and traditionalist.

 

[Hush]

Yeah I mean Kurosawa I actually get why you would not like this approach it totally kind of steps on what you like.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Nope, neither All Star Superman or All Star Batman were assigned to the 52 Earths (And I'm pretty sure that there's no officially assigned 52 Earth to the whole Millerverse if you want to assume the latter in that paper thin canon).

Good question, I don't really know, but everything I've read of it seems to indicate that its a somewhat modified version of the original Earth-1. Which, maybe that's what this is, I don't know, doesn't really seem like it to me. Though, like I said, it doesn't really matter all that much to me, but I am kind of curious to know the official word on it. Either way, it just looks like an attempt to make a 'Ultimate' DC either way

DC has designated Miller's Batman universe to be Earth-31. But that was Countdown and asides from a few major things like Captain Atom being Monarch and the death of the Trickster that have to be dealt with, it seems like DC is trying to ignore as much of Countdown as possible.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Why bother with a supposed alternative take when it's really the same thing? I wish some of these people would study the damn character and see what Siegel intended him to be, not Byrne.

Personally I prefer Clark being the true persona. Superman was only born on Krypton and at most spent only a few months there. He wasn't raised on Krypton, he was raised on Earth. He has no real memories of Krypton, all of his memories are his upbringing on Earth. He wasn't raised by Jor-El and Lara, he was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent.

He may be biologically Kryptonian, but he's human at heart. He should definitely have curiosity and some form attachment to Krypton, her people, and Kryptonian culture because they are his people and it's the source of his origins. But overall he shouldn't have many ties towards it. Kal-El is just a name that his biological parents gave him. Clark Kent is who he really is. He isn't the bumbling, clumsy fool that he portrays himself to be, but he's still the Clark Kent that Jonathan and Martha Kent raised. Not the Kal-El that Jor-El and Lara could have potentially raised.

It would be like if I were born in the United Kingdom and my birth parents gave me the name Samuel Washington. But for some reason I ended up in the United States and my new parents the one's who raised me gave me the name Jesse White. When I find out all about this, I would still see myself as Jesse White of the United States, not Samuel Jackson of the United Kingdom. I would see the people who raised me as my parents, not the ones who gave birth to me. And hippie_hunter, that is just my superhero name

Horrible HORRIBLE title though. The Earth-One Superman is Kal-El and he is the greatest hero in the universe. He is not Batman's *****, Clutterearth Clarkie "Smallville" Kent.

JMS is a massive Superman fan. I doubt he will make Superman Batman's *****. Especially since Geoff Johns is handling the Earth-1 interpretation of Batman, he's more of a Superman guy and this is him doing Batman for Gary Frank who's more of a Batman guy.

Also this is the new Earth-1. The old Earth-1 was absorbed into the post-COIE DC Universe which has been reformed into New Earth.

 

[Sawyer]

Hopefully JMS gets to do here the kind of reboot he was hoping to do with Star Trek. I'm definitely interested to see what comes of this.

 

[Young Superman]

Like I said in another thread, he should be Krypton's Lone Survivor in this universe. If you want Zod, Kara and the other Kryptonians we have mainstream continuity. Just my opinion.

 

[hippie_hunter]

I have no problem with a few Kryptonians like Zod, Supergirl, etc. But I do think that there is no need to go overboard with Kandor, Krypto, Power Girl of Krypton-2, etc. We already have that in the mainstream DC Universe.

 

[hippie_hunter]

I have no problem with a few Kryptonians like Zod, Supergirl, etc. But I do think that there is no need to go overboard with Kandor, Krypto, Power Girl of Krypton-2, etc. We already have that in the mainstream DC Universe.

 

[Sawyer]

I think one of the things I look forward to most from this is how JMS is going to envision Krypton.

 

[Kurosawa]

Yeah I mean Kurosawa I actually get why you would not like this approach it totally kind of steps on what you like.

I'm always for a fresh approach if it is well thought out. This is just another creatively bankrupt idea along the lines of the Halloween remakes. I'd love to see the first few years of Superman stories re-imagined in the modern day, but maintaining the core elements of what Siegel and Shuster did in those stories. Imagine a young, cocky Superman with a strong social conscience who didn't hesitate to bend or break the law if he felt is was right. I'd like to see a series where those earliest stories were adapted, leading up to the unpublished K-Metal story in 1941 that would have changed Superman and superhero comics forever. But this series is just a simplified version of what they have done over the last 20 years or so. It's nothing different or new.

Personally I prefer Clark being the true persona. Superman was only born on Krypton and at most spent only a few months there. He wasn't raised on Krypton, he was raised on Earth. He has no real memories of Krypton, all of his memories are his upbringing on Earth. He wasn't raised by Jor-El and Lara, he was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent.

He may be biologically Kryptonian, but he's human at heart. He should definitely have curiosity and some form attachment to Krypton, her people, and Kryptonian culture because they are his people and it's the source of his origins. But overall he shouldn't have many ties towards it. Kal-El is just a name that his biological parents gave him. Clark Kent is who he really is. He isn't the bumbling, clumsy fool that he portrays himself to be, but he's still the Clark Kent that Jonathan and Martha Kent raised. Not the Kal-El that Jor-El and Lara could have potentially raised.

It would be like if I were born in the United Kingdom and my birth parents gave me the name Samuel Washington. But for some reason I ended up in the United States and my new parents the one's who raised me gave me the name Jesse White. When I find out all about this, I would still see myself as Jesse White of the United States, not Samuel Jackson of the United Kingdom. I would see the people who raised me as my parents, not the ones who gave birth to me. And hippie_hunter, that is just my superhero name


JMS is a massive Superman fan. I doubt he will make Superman Batman's *****. Especially since Geoff Johns is handling the Earth-1 interpretation of Batman, he's more of a Superman guy and this is him doing Batman for Gary Frank who's more of a Batman guy.

Also this is the new Earth-1. The old Earth-1 was absorbed into the post-COIE DC Universe which has been reformed into New Earth.

That's all well and good, but the changes they made in 86 are still ruling this series, and therefore it's nothing new, not really. And it's also not Superman, as they continue to ignore what Siegel established the character as being. It would be like revamping Spider-Man and making Peter Parker into a rich kid and an athlete who sneered at science and went through more girls than Tiger Woods. With Clark as the reality it takes Siegel's creation and turns it completely around. Post-Crisis Superman has as much in common with the real thing as Captain Marvel or the Sentry. He's just another Superman derivative, except he gets to put on the costume and call himself Superman. For 11 years Krypton was rarely mentioned in Superman comics, but it was still the fact that Superman was the reality and Clark the disguise. That had nothing to do with Jor-El (or Jor-L) and everything to do with Superman as a wishfullfillment character.

Straight from the horse's mouth:

Clark Kent grew not only out of my private life, but also out of Joe Shuster's. As a high school student, I thought that someday I might become a reporter, and I had crushes on several attractive girls who either didn't know I existed or didn't care I existed. So it occured to me: What if I was really terrific? What if I had something special going for me, like jumping over buildings or throwing cars around or something like that?

One night, when all the thoughts were coming to me, the concept came to me that Superman could have a dual identity, and that in one of his identities he could be meek and mild, as I was, and wear glasses, the way I do. The heroine, who I figured would be some kind of girl reporter, would think he was some kind of worm; yet she would be crazy about this Superman character who could do all sorts of fabulous things. In fact, she was real wild about him, and a big inside joke was that the fellow she was crazy about was also the fellow whom she loathed.

That isn't me or Maggin, that is Siegel's quote and it's his character. Well, his wife and daughter's and DC's until the next lawsuit, but you get my point.

And it doesn't matter who writes the series, if DC decrees for Batman to show up Superman when they meet, it will happen. I don't trust any modern writers except maybe for Grant Morrison with Superman, and even he didn't have the brilliant understanding of Supes that Maggin has. All-Star Superman was a miracle, though.

I know this is a new Earth-1, I just think calling it this is needlessly confusing and a bad idea.

 

[hippie_hunter]

I think that JMS and Geoff Johns have too much love for Superman to make him Batman's ***** though. If they do team-up, it will be a meeting of equals, not an insult to Superman. And trust me, I really do hate it when they make Batman Superman's ***** as well.

 

[Kurosawa]

Batman is (was) my favorite DC character and I still always hated that junk.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Personally while I find Batman to be more badass, I will always prefer Superman over Batman.

Aquaman is #1 though

 

[hippie_hunter]

Personally while I find Batman to be more badass, I will always prefer Superman over Batman.

Aquaman is #1 though

 

[Kurosawa]

I'm pretty much Supes/Bats, then Hawkman, Wildcat and GL (Alan Scott), but I like practically all the old school guys.

 

[hippie_hunter]

1. Aquaman
2. Deadpool
3. Superman
4. Batman
5. Hank Pym

 

[Kurosawa]

1. Thor
2. Superman
3. Batman
4. Cap
5. Cyclops

 

[NightBeetle]

1.Hank Pym
2.Superman
3.Atom(Ray Palmer)
4.Thor
5.Blue Beetle(Ted Kord)


In other news,J. Michael Straczynski spoke with CBR about Superman: Earth One and his ''dream gig'' in comics.

CBR News: First off, knowing what a huge Superman fan you are, this project must be a dream come true for you. Does the assignment come with any fears or nervousness because you've been waiting so long for this, or are you just pumped up and ready to go?

JMS: There was a moment of that to be sure, sort of the deep breath before the plunge, but I was excited to get into it. From as far back as I can remember, my creative bucket list has consisted of four things: creating my own SF series ["Babylon 5"], reviving "Forbidden Planet," adapting "Lensman," and writing Superman. Now all four of those things have either happened or are in process. For a kid out of the streets of New Jersey, that's just remarkable – and vastly unlikely.

Your collection of Superman memorabilia is the stuff of legend. As far as you are concerned, who is the quintessential actor who has played the Man of Steel on film or TV? And conversely, what do you believe to be the definitive comic book run with the character?


I grew up with George Reeves in the TV series, and Curt Swan drawing the character in the books, so for me, those two will always be Superman. There was something profoundly human about both renderings, despite the powers they contained. I was also a big fan of the Max Fleischer Superman cartoons. My very earliest memory as a kid is of watching one of those cartoons.

Was this Superman project in the works from when you first started working with DC, or did the idea grow organically once you arrived?


It was there from the get-go, I just wasn't allowed to talk about it. It was kind of crazy making when people would say, "Why is JMS doing 'Brave and the Bold' instead of writing a book for one of the Big Three characters?," when I was, it was just classified. But it was a nice balance. In "The Brave and The Bold," I've been able to do pretty much whatever I wanted, and it is right in the middle sales wise, so there's no pressure on it. The rest of the time, I get to write for Superman – though I've told DC that by the end of 2010, "The Brave and The Bold" will be somewhere in the top 20 or 30 books. They look at me like I'm nuts, but I have a plan. It'll be slow and gradual, but we'll get there. Marvel had the same reaction when I said I'd get "Thor" into the Top 10, so we'll see.

Can you share any details about the story you're going to tell? Any major changes or re-imaginings from the current, in-continuity, Superman mythos?

Yeah, in terms of the Daily Planet, I want it to feel more like a real newspaper. As a former journalist, I've always been able to tell that those who wrote about the Planet and its staff had never actually been reporters. So I want that environment to feel real since it's a supporting character for the Superman mythos, but it so often gets shunted over into something he has to escape. As for Jim Olsen, as a photojournalist, he's always willing to put himself in harm's way for the right picture. That's how they roll. So that will be a big change for his character - he'll be tougher and smarter than we've seen traditionally.

The Superman part of the equation is, as noted in the other stories, really the story of Clark's coming out as Superman, and his decision to essentially enter a life of service when he could have been anyone, could have been rich as an athlete, researcher, any number of things. I'm also taking time to really think through elements of the mythos that we've accepted without maybe really sitting back and saying,

"Why?"



For instance, there's a flashback scene to when Martha Kent finishes his uniform and gives it to him as a gift, hoping he'll go that way. He looks at it and says, in essence, "Shouldn't there be a mask?" She says no, that "when people see how powerful you are, all the things you can do, they're going to be terrified... unless they can see your face, and see there that you mean them no harm. The mask... is what you're going to have to wear the rest of the time."

 

[NightBeetle]

Double post......