Superman

stavstavstav

Anyone here a fan? I like the way he flies, was just wondering what some fellow Comic enthusiasts thought about this one?

Fysh

I wouldn't say I'm a fan as such, in that I don't follow any of the ongoing comic series featuring Superman, but I do think there have been some decent stories with the character.

Alan Moore's "For the man who has everything" and "Whatever happened to the man of tomorrow?" were great, for example. Superman: Red Son, All-Star Superman, and It's A Bird... are all excellent but very different takes on Superman which I also enjoyed.

Are you a fan of Superman in the comics, stavstavstav, or are you more familiar with him from the films/tv shows? Do you have any favourite stories?

ztoical

"Are you a fan of superman?"

It's a little vague a question for a character with such a long history. I like certain takes on Superman but not every take. As a character he can be a little blah, esp the early golden age stuff, with the whole clean cut, all american boy thing going on as Clarke Kent and then as superman even more clean cut and gifted with amazing powers, where as the likes of Batman has flaws and his powers he has to create himself through machines, brians and hardwork. But there have been some good stories with Superman that delve a little more into the character and make him more 3D and some of the JLA stories where he interacts with the other DC characters has been very good, esp Batman's view of him, that he is alien and shouldn't be trusted with Earths protection. While I'm not always a fan of Jeff Loeb his run on Superman/Batman was really enjoyable for the interaction between the two main characters and Mark Verheiden run was enjoyable as well.

In other media he was never a character I was that into as again I thought he was a little blah. The live action films and animated series were all a bit too bright, : Lois & Clark a bit chessey but I liked him in JL and JLU [again interacting with the other characters] and I enjoy Smallville. I think the best non comic version of the character was the early Fleischer brother cartoons but that may be the animation nerd in me.

Grievous

Long time, passionate comic book reader + collector here.

Any questions, send me a pm or start a thread, no problem at all, I would be very happy to help where I can.

Superman is a great character, People prefer batman because he is human and works extremely hard to be so damn good at what he does. but what's great about superman is, he is more than the sum of his powers, In some instances, he is even more human than most humans, he was raised by good people, his ideals are good, his peers look up to him, including batman. he is such an inspiration that a team forms the 31st century called the legion of superheroes all because of superman.

I would highly recommend anybody to try read two graphic novels vol 1 and vol 2 of ALL STAR SUPERMAN by a scottish writer called Grant Morrison.

Such a great image.

[IMG][/img]http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/AllStarSuperman6-2.JPG

ztoical

Grievous wrote: »

but what's great about superman is, he is more than the sum of his powers, In some instances, he is even more human than most humans, he was raised by good people, his ideals are good, his peers look up to him, including batman.

I'm not sure being more human then most makes him a good or interesting character, in fact I find it makes him very flat and bland. Earlier golden age Superman didn't need to worry to much, he could just be the same all american boy scout each issue but since the 80's he has had to develop alot and there aren't to many writers out there that can write Superman in character but also make him interesting.

I wouldn't agree that Batman looks up to him. Batman respects Superman alright, to a degree, but its been brought up a couple of times that Batman doesn't trust Superman because he isn't human to the point that he has warned both Nightwing and Robin about interacting with him.

Grievous

Batman is weary of all meta-humans. This has been explored in many different stories, Even to the point where he crossed the line and created brother eye, or the time Ra's al ghul stole bruce's notes and files on the JLA.

I think ALL STAR SUPERMAN would be a great reading point for readers to see how interesting superman truely is.

He is not my favourite hero but over the years I tried more and more superman comics and kept saying to myself, why didn't I pick these up earlier! it's always the case:D

Still, Hal Jordan is my favourite hero in comics, probably all of fiction.

niall mc cann

ztoical wrote: »

It's a little vague a question for a character with such a long history. I like certain takes on Superman but not every take. As a character he can be a little blah, esp the early golden age stuff, with the whole clean cut, all american boy thing going on as Clarke Kent and then as superman even more clean cut and gifted with amazing powers

I've read plenty of Silver age stuff where Supes was clean cut all american, but wasn't the golden age version of supes one of the most radical, reformist iterations of the character there's ever been? That was the era of union-buster-buster, New Deal supporting, possibly even slightly socialist(!) Supes, wasn't it?

niall mc cann

Grievous wrote: »

I think ALL STAR SUPERMAN would be a great reading point for readers to see how interesting superman truely is.

My favourite superhero comic in a long time.

It's astounding how magnificent that book is.

The Mad Hatter

niall mc cann wrote: »

My favourite superhero comic in a long time.

It's astounding how magnificent that book is.

Is that Frank Miller? I've been a bit wary of him as a writer since I read DKR (which I consider to be quite good but wildly overrated) and saw Sin City (which I haven't actually read).

Fysh wrote: »

Alan Moore's "For the man who has everything" and "Whatever happened to the man of tomorrow?" were great, for example. Superman: Red Son, All-Star Superman, and It's A Bird... are all excellent but very different takes on Superman which I also enjoyed.

The Alan Moore comics are indeed excellent, and I enjoyed Red Son.

There's one other Superman comic that I've really liked, but it's not really a Superman comic. I can't remember the title, but it's about a boy whose parents name him Clark Kent (as a quirk of their sense of humour), and who - for a reason that's not really deeply explained in-comic - develops Superman's powers.

niall mc cann

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Is that Frank Miller? I've been a bit wary of him as a writer since I read DKR (which I consider to be quite good but wildly overrated) and saw Sin City (which I haven't actually read).

It's Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely, you might be mixing it up with its sister title All Star Batman and Robin, which is Miller with Jim Lee.

A-SB&R is awful, in my estimation. It represents all the worst excesses that I've come to associate with Miller. I take no pleasure in saying that, I actually loved (and still love) DKR.

A-SS (unfortunate acronym ) is pure quality, on the other hand. It's a brilliant modern take on the silver age whackiness that no-one can accomplish like Supes. I love it. It's the first truly great Superman story in two decades, easily. People tend to either love or hate Morrison, and i can often understand why he devides opinion like he does. I should also probably state for the record that I love the guy's work. Even when I have to admit what he's done doesn't really work, there's generally plenty i find interesting in it. Having said that, I don't see what anyone could have against A-SS. It's just plain, simple, good ol-fashioned storytelling. It's brilliant. Just really, really brilliant.

There's one other Superman comic that I've really liked, but it's not really a Superman comic. I can't remember the title, but it's about a boy whose parents name him Clark Kent (as a quirk of their sense of humour), and who - for a reason that's not really deeply explained in-comic - develops Superman's powers.

Secret Identity, which was Kurt Busiek, wasn't it? I can't remember offhand.

Fysh

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Is that Frank Miller? I've been a bit wary of him as a writer since I read DKR (which I consider to be quite good but wildly overrated) and saw Sin City (which I haven't actually read).

No, luckily All-Star Superman is Grant Morrison and Frank "ENORMOUS CHINS" Quitely and it's a really enjoyable read. There's a sense of wonder and inventiveness to the whole thing, and a sense of what the world would really be like if a being with powers more like a deity than an average human suddenly pitched up in big blue underpants and proclaimed himself to be a superhero.

All-Star Batman and Robin The Boy Wonder, on the other hand, is by Frank Miller and Jim Lee. That is the one which has a considerably more divided reaction amongst fans, because where some people see a tongue-in-cheek response to the "grim 'n' gritty" Batman that we've had since Year One/DKR, others see a preposterously over-the-top series that's uncomfortably close to Sin City with added superheroes. It's worth having a look to see whether it's to your taste or not, but definitely on a try-before-you-buy basis.

shenanigans1982

Fysh wrote: »

No, luckily All-Star Superman is Grant Morrison and Frank "ENORMOUS CHINS" Quitely and it's a really enjoyable read. There's a sense of wonder and inventiveness to the whole thing, and a sense of what the world would really be like if a being with powers more like a deity than an average human suddenly pitched up in big blue underpants and proclaimed himself to be a superhero.

All-Star Batman and Robin The Boy Wonder, on the other hand, is by Frank Miller and Jim Lee. That is the one which has a considerably more divided reaction amongst fans, because where some people see a tongue-in-cheek response to the "grim 'n' gritty" Batman that we've had since Year One/DKR, others see a preposterously over-the-top series that's uncomfortably close to Sin City with added superheroes. It's worth having a look to see whether it's to your taste or not, but definitely on a try-before-you-buy basis.

I always thought it was Frank " I can only draw one set of lips" Quitley.....although your's does sound a lot more catchy.

All Star Batman is a book that seems to divide people but if you just take it for what it is (blockbuster superhero's with little depth.) it's enjoyable. My main problem is the way it damages Green lantern who could possibly end up with a future series.

The Mad Hatter

I have a theory on Frank Miller, that the first of his comics you read will be your favourite. Much as I can see its flaws, I still love Batman: Year One, which I first read when I was about ten. I was deeply disappointed in my early twenties when I discovered Daredevil: Resurrection (or whatever it's called) and found that it was almost exactly the same.

GlennGeo

Anyone any good recomendations on graphic novels? I have the return of superman and escape from bizzaro land im looking to get a few good novels so any help would be great

ger vallely

I know it's not quite the same thing at all and comic enthusiasts may hate it But I've been trying for ages to get a copy of the first movie on DVD with no luck. Anyone got any ideas where to get a copy? Thanks.

ger vallely

By the way- GlennGeo have you read The Sandman by Neil Gaiman? Fantastic, amazing series.

niall mc cann

ger vallely wrote: »

I know it's not quite the same thing at all and comic enthusiasts may hate it But I've been trying for ages to get a copy of the first movie on DVD with no luck. Anyone got any ideas where to get a copy? Thanks.

If you're talking about the Donner/Reeve Superman it's on Amazon for under a fiver; can't imagine it'd be that hard to track down if you just ask in a DVD shop. There's a few excellent box sets that include more than the first film, which makes sense, as the second film is kind of the same story.

If you can lay hands on it, see if you can get a version of the Donner cut for Superman II, it's really interesting to see what he'd intended doing, as well as just being a great film to watch too.

Great stuff.

ger vallely wrote: »

By the way- GlennGeo have you read The Sandman by Neil Gaiman? Fantastic, amazing series.

There's kind of an interesting Superman connection with the Sandman, too, I think I read it in The Sandman Companion a few years back, a book that followed through the entire Sandman series with interviews with Neil Gaiman and other contributors.

In one of the Neil Gaiman interviews he was asked what gave him the initial idea for Sandman at all, and he answered that at the time he was coming up with it there was a lot of talk from John Byrne about how Superman was too powerful, and how you couldn't tell stories with a character who was that powerful, and to tell a proper story with the character you had to depower him. Gaiman felt that that was wrong-headed, so he started to tell a story about a guy that was basically omnipitent from the start and see where it went from there!

That was before the (kind of) Sandman story Endless Nights where it was revealed that Superman was basically a creature of the original Despair. Anyway, I liked the story.

ger vallely

Cheers Nial McCann! Actually tried loads of DVD shops, they had no clue at all. But yeah- Amazon. I never think of it as I don't do plastic, so kind of tricky that way, but will definitely work something out. Thanks also for the sandman info, great to get background on stories.

uprooted tradition

I was around 6 or 7 when I went to the cinema to see the first Superman movie and I was immediately hooked. I would watch it anytime it was on TV and when we got our first video player (remember those?) and recorded it off TV it was almost always on.

No other hero (or film) has ever had that same impact on me.

uprooted tradition

GlennGeo wrote: »

Anyone any good recomendations on graphic novels? I have the return of superman and escape from bizzaro land im looking to get a few good novels so any help would be great

Red Son is my absolute favourite, beyond that there are lots of great ones that you cant go wrong with.
All star superman, whatever happened to the man of tomorrow, and I also really liked Secret Identity.

Mr. K

I really like Superman as a character. The first two Reeve films are just great, hopefully Man of Steel will see the character's cinematic adventures return to popularity.

I really enjoyed Red Son and the Death and Return arc. I have yet to read All Star Superman...soon.

sarahcoles30

Not a Big Fan but ya like the Superman Comic Series.