The Official Superman Thread - Part 2

[antonydelfini]

I would actually prefer if he does not go back to the boy scout Superman. I love that version especially the All Star portrayal, but the Golden Age version seems more grounded and intereseting to me. The Alpha Male Superman is back. This is one guy Batman wont be able to bully around.

 

[RoughNTumble]

the golden age superman is exactly what we need

his stories have been pretty boring for a while now

 

[RoughNTumble]

the only thing though, is I really hope he keeps the golden age personality in 'modern continuity' and not just in action comics and justice league

 

[Drz]

Outrageous introduction. I see they didn't show the splash page where the credits will pop up and i guess the "activate the city" is regarding the government working with Lex Luthor to stop the Man of Steel, exciting.

 

[stillanerd]

Well having read the original 1938 Action Comics #1, the way Superman is characterized in the preview for the 2011 Action Comics #1 is virtually the same. This is a Superman who not only enjoys having these powers, but also enjoys using them to make the evil and corrupt--especially if they are well-connected and protected--soil themselves. Not to mention that this makes him into a very cocky social crusader. It's actually a refreshing take on the Man of Steel because, just like Denny O'Neil and Frank Miller did with Batman, it appears to take him back to and re-interpret his roots that readers have all but forgotten about. Certainly has got me interested in reading the rest.

 

[RoughNTumble]

Well having read the original 1938 Action Comics #1, the way Superman is characterized in the preview for the 2011 Action Comics #1 is virtually the same. This is a Superman who not only enjoys having these powers, but also enjoys using them to make the evil and corrupt--especially if they are well-connected and protected--soil themselves. Not to mention that this makes him into a very cocky social crusader. It's actually a refreshing take on the Man of Steel because, just like Denny O'Neil and Frank Miller did with Batman, it appears to take him back to and re-interpret his roots that readers have all but forgotten about. Certainly has got me interested in reading the rest.

hell yes! it gives me great hope for the superman stories in the coming years

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Hmm. I didn't expect Superman to be that much of a dick. Not really sure about it. I'll still try the first couple issues, though.

 

[stillanerd]

Hmm. I didn't expect Superman to be that much of a dick. Not really sure about it. I'll still try the first couple issues, though.

Well, it's not like he wasn't dickish before.

 

[Drz]

Grant Morrison talks Action Comics
Today's Superman:

Morrison thinks this new Superman's outside-the-government approach mirrors the mood of the world today.

"I think right now, we're all feeling that way," he said. "Nobody has much faith in their elected leaders in the same way that they did. We all have a lot more cynicism and a lot more doubt about the people who are running our lives than we did when Superman was a 'boy scout.'"

Nrama: It's interesting that you compare it to Gotham a bit, because there's been quite a reaction to this idea that Superman is willing the break the law. I think because Superman is so established as the good guy that it's strange to think of him being at odds with the authorities, but I assume he's got a motivation for what he's doing?

Morrison: Oh, always. Superman stands for justice, not necessarily for the law. And I think that's what makes this guy different. But as you know, I'm only taking that aspect of it from the original 1938 version, which was the original Superman. He was very much... you know, those stories were set in a pretty convincing real life world, and Superman was dealing with corruption and the law and the cops and then Congress, as much as he was dealing with just street crime and day-to-day violence.

So he always had that social justice, and we're just taking it back. I think right now, we're all feeling that way. Nobody has much faith in their elected leaders in the same way that they did. We all have a lot more cynicism and a lot more doubt about the people who are running our lives than we did when Superman was a 'Boy Scout.' So we're taking him back to the '30s, when people did have that doubt, and a lot of people were losing their jobs and losing their livelihood, and a lot of people were realizing there was corruption in high places.

Nrama: But you said Superman is still about justice, so is his attitude less cynical and anti-establishment than it is focused on changing that establishment for the better?

Morrison: It's not just the establishment. He's against everything he sees that's wrong. He's against crime. He's against wife-beaters. He's against people who kick dogs and cats, as much as he's against the evil Congressman or big business.

Regardomg Metropolis and it's people:

That was actually the most fun of it, to try to make it seem as if we'd never, ever read a superhero story before. It was really difficult, because obviously everyone's really familiar with this stuff. I guess my idea was to just to treat it more like a science fiction story, which I like to do to get to the roots of these things. And to say, 'here's what it would be like if this guy just appeared in this world.'

There are differences. Metropolis is the 'City of Tomorrow' but it clearly is not our world. It's not New York or Marvel or any of those things. It's very much Metropolis and Gotham, and the DC Universe. The idea was to take the DC Universe and treat it almost as a science fiction playground, and this was the first time this had happened. And to show how it works in Metropolis, a city that has always tried to be the City of Tomorrow, but now it's 2011, or 2005 I guess, since these stories are taking place in the past. But it's slightly run down, you know? The machines don't work. The robot trains are kind of useless. There's graffiti everywhere. And it's kind of like the way New York was in the 1970's, before they cleaned up the place. So the Metropolis we're doing is a lot scarier, it's a lot more urban than I think we've ever seen it before. It's maybe a bit more like Gotham city, but it's not as dark and gothic. But in terms of crime, it's kind of like '70s New York.

That's such a long answer, but I guess I was trying to take a few elements from different places to make Metropolis seem like a real city, more than maybe it's been before.

Then I tried to introduce Superman to that and play with what would happen if it wasn't the character we're familiar with.

And as you see, they don't know who he is. The cops don't know him. They can't trust him. He's willing to break the law. So obviously, people are scared as well, because he's using these incredible powers, and no one quite knows what that means.

Morrison talks Smallville:

Nrama: What was behind the decision to have him unable to fly at this point? Was that just to align him with how he was first introduced?

Morrison: A little bit of that. But mostly to kind of bring him down to our level finally. A lot of people had been complaining. Part of the loss of Superman's popularity in the comics has been because he's not been much like us.

Obviously, in the TV show Smallville, he's been a lot more like us. And that's actually been the most popular version of Superman probably for the last 15 years. So even though I haven't seen a single episode of Smallville, I know what it's about. And I wanted to do a Superman who could almost be traced to those roots. And a Superman who was a little younger, who wasn't as completely powered up as he is in the current continuity, and who can be hurt. His nose can be bloodied, he can have his ribs broken, and although they may heal very quickly, it takes a little bit of effort to do the feats that he does.

I wanted to see him sweat a little and to bleed a little, and to restore him to a kind of humanity that we could all understand before moving him on. So yeah, it's all about grounding him so he can be a bit more like us, 'cause I felt that was the best way of then re-introducing the powers, as he starts to get stronger. The longer he spends under Earth's sun, the more exponentially stronger and powerful he becomes, and we'll see that Superman in the current day.

On Lois & Jimmy:

Morrison: In Action, the first six issues, they barely know one another. Lois is sort of a girl about town, a rising reporter. And Clark Kent works for the rival newspaper. In my first six issues, he doesn't even work for The Daily Planet, but Lois and Jimmy do. And Clark works for The Daily Star. So they're kind of rivals. And she doesn't even have the thing about Superman yet. Superman's only just come on the scene. She gave him the name. And she's obviously fascinated by him. But there's a lot more to Lois than that.

So I'm just exploring the whole 'army-brat-becomes-a-crusading-journalist' arc, which is very strange, that she's General Lane's daughter and he's very deep in the military establishment, yet at the same time, she's an investigative journalist. So there's a lot of friction there.

It's just a whole new kind of set-up for Lois and Clark.

Nrama: Is Jimmy different in this world?

Morrison: Yeah, I mean, I like a capable Jimmy, from the start, rather than a buffoon. So there's a bit of that. Again, he's a young guy.

The way I'm playing it is that rather than him being 'Superman's friend,' which never seemed to make a lot of sense, he's Clark Kent's friend. And the two of them get on because they're a couple of really smart geeks. They're into everything from astronomy to zombies, and they love hanging out and talking.

So Jimmy becomes Superman's friend eventually because Jimmy started out as Clark's best friend. He was the first person he knew when he came to the big city. It's much more about the two friends on that level, which I think is a different, slightly warmer, more believable dynamic between the two characters.

As suspected, Clark Kent is just busting out corrupt officials thru journalism:

And you can see that in Clark as well. Clark is much more proactive. He's an investigative journalist, and he's very serious about it. He exposes all kinds of corruption that gets him into all kinds of trouble.

He kind of likes the idea that there's no way of getting to him and no one who can harm him. As Superman and as Clark, he's working as a superhero on both fronts.

So to a certain extent, he enjoys being on his own because no one can get hurt and it's all down to him. But at the same time, that means there's no limit on him as he loses his temper.

Fun Fact: Daily Star is where Clark did work, before it was changed to Daily Planet. Ya nods to old comics!

 

[RoughNTumble]

yeah the daily star thing is pretty neat

that's the kind of reimagining I want to see

 

[The Batman]

Count me as one of the people excited to see GA Supes return. He is absolutely necessary if Supes is stay popular. I dont wanna see him become Batman, and I dont think anyone does. Its just nice to see him with some edge again, its nice to see writers actually play with his character instead of revering him so much they dont wanna "Damage" him, which just made him boring.

 

[Lord]

Well, it's not like he wasn't dickish before.

That's exactly what came to my mind while reading the preview

 

[Lunar_Wolf]

I read the GM preview on **************. I liked when I read, and I dig the idea of him slowly becoming Superman we know and lovw, issue by issue.

 

[Wheels]

I'm so pumped for this! I really like the direction they seem to be going with Superman. Golden Age Superman in a modern context sounds very intriguing to me.

 

[X Knight]

Grant Morrison talks Action Comics
Today's Superman:
Regardomg Metropolis and it's people:
Morrison talks Smallville:
On Lois & Jimmy:
As suspected, Clark Kent is just busting out corrupt officials thru journalism:
Fun Fact: Daily Star is where Clark did work, before it was changed to Daily Planet. Ya nods to old comics!

interesting interview..........

I still have my doubts about how well I will like this "new" Superman......

but I'll give the book a chance.......

 

[Lord]

Why am i not surprised that Grant Morrinson is using the golden age as influence.
It can be cool but it's becoming too much, he's like
Look, i use concepts from the golden age/silver age (dependin on the story) and reinterpreting them in modern times, look how awesome it is

 

[hippie_hunter]

Morrison had nothing but praise for the Golden Age Superman in Supergods. He believes that Superman lost relevance due to how far the character has strayed from the roots that Siegel and Shuster developed.

 

[Wheels]

Well, if you don't like any Golden Age Superman stories, then you're probably not going to like this. I like the "Big Blue Boyscout" and "The Champion of the Oppressed" but there does seem to be a negative view of the former characterisation from a mainstream prospective.

 

[Anubis]

Yeah, by the sounds of it, that's gonna be him from now on. Like I said, I'm digging it.

 

[Lord]

wow, don't get me wrong, i like the golden age and silver age too (i have deep love for both dc and marvel's golden age stories, and i was recently obsessed by them) and i also like what Grant Morrinson does, but i'm just giving the fact that he doing this in all of his works now

 

[Franklin Richards]

First let me just say that I'm not a big Morrison fan. I thought his Final Crisis was doo doo ka ka poo poo. His JL run was the only thing I've really liked.


That said.


I'm PUMPED for Action. Golden Age Superman rules and I can't wait to read this.

 

[TwilightPro101]

Morrison's interview has me even more hyped for Action.

I've got no doubt, that I'm going to enjoy the ride ahead.

 

[Assassin]

Just reread Last Son by Geoff Johns and the Mon El arc that Robinson did in Superman

damn those were good stories.

 

[Cain]

Last Son sucked but Robinson's Mon-El arc was very underrated especially towards the beginning. As the New Krypton then started and things got more convoluted it affected the quality of Mon-El's journey IMO but it wasn't such a hindrance that I didn't enjoy it either.

 

[Cain]

wow, don't get me wrong, i like the golden age and silver age too (i have deep love for both dc and marvel's golden age stories, and i was recently obsessed by them) and i also like what Grant Morrinson does, but i'm just giving the fact that he doing this in all of his works now

Ok. So what?