Where to start on Superman

th3 s1aught3r

I have been reading Batman lately, Year One, Long Halloween, Dark Knight Returns and found them brilliant
I am looking to start on Superman but have no idea where to begin?
Also, is Superman as deep a character as Batman is in the above comics would you think ?

niall mc cann

All Star Superman is a must read.

Alan Moore's Superman stuff is great (possibly including his run on Supreme, if you're any way interested).

I've always liked Birthright, too. It's certainly worth a look, anyhoo.

Turtyturd

th3 s1aught3r wrote: »

I have been reading Batman lately, Year One, Long Halloween, Dark Knight Returns and found them brilliant
I am looking to start on Superman but have no idea where to begin?
Also, is Superman as deep a character as Batman is in the above comics would you think ?

I dunno if Superman could be considered as deep as Batman as you put it because I find that it is hard to relate to the character and it's hard to feel that he is any kind of danger because you know he is invulnerable.

A few Superman recommendations I would gave are:

Red Son ( An Elseworld's tale of Superman crash landing in Russia)
The Man of Steel (John Byrnes 80,s reboot of the character)
The Death of Superman Trilogy (check out the 90's hair)
Superman for all seasons ( Not as good as their Batman work but I like the team of Loeb and Sale)

I also recommend the storyline featuring Manchester Black but dunno if it has been collected or not and to google it will no doubt spoil the conclusion.

th3 s1aught3r

Turtyturd wrote: »

I dunno if Superman could be considered as deep as Batman as you put it because I find that it is hard to relate to the character and it's hard to feel that he is any kind of danger because you know he is invulnerable.

.

Are there any other comic/graphic novels that would be like Batman in the sense of its grittiness and darker themes ?

Fysh

th3 s1aught3r wrote: »

Are there any other comic/graphic novels that would be like Batman in the sense of its grittiness and darker themes ?

I don't think there are many - it seems to be common for writers working on Superman to treat him as a sort of Avatar of Hope. You could try Superman: Red Son if it's a darker version of Superman you want, it's pretty good in that regard.

I'm not sure I can get behind the recommendation of the Death & return Of Superman story though, it's aged pretty badly and has some seriously cheesy parts, not to mention it's far longer than it needed to be.

th3 s1aught3r

Fysh wrote: »

I don't think there are many - it seems to be common for writers working on Superman to treat him as a sort of Avatar of Hope. You could try Superman: Red Son if it's a darker version of Superman you want, it's pretty good in that regard.

.

Thanks
Besides Superman, are there other superhero comic/graphic novels that would be like Batman in terms of debt and darker themes ?

Turtyturd

Fysh wrote: »

I don't think there are many - it seems to be common for writers working on Superman to treat him as a sort of Avatar of Hope. You could try Superman: Red Son if it's a darker version of Superman you want, it's pretty good in that regard.

I'm not sure I can get behind the recommendation of the Death & return Of Superman story though, it's aged pretty badly and has some seriously cheesy parts, not to mention it's far longer than it needed to be.

To be honest it does stink of 90's and is very cheesy (same goes for the costume change storyline) but I have a soft spot for a lot of that stuff. I think it is a major Superman storyline though, especially the introduction of Doomsday.

To be honest it's a said state of affair when it's a struggle to rattle off a couple of decent storylines for DC's main character.

th3 s1aught3r wrote: »

Thanks
Besides Superman, are there other superhero comic/graphic novels that would be like Batman in terms of debt and darker themes ?

I guess what you are going for is the gritty style superheroes/ stories.

A few suggestions I would make are:

Judge Dredd: Similar character style and features a lot of dark storylines, although the 5-6 page format can be a bit annoying.
Watchmen
Some Wolverine Stories: After all who doesn't like Wolverine *sigh*
The Authority
The Ultimates
Check out Ed Brubakers Winter Solider stuff/ I have not read Criminal but it gets good mentions on here.
Days of Future Past
Sin City
Check out some Daredevil stuff ( The Born Again storyline)
Punisher Max

Sorry the suggestions are a bit all over the place, some are characters, some are writers and some are certain storylines. But research some of them and see what appeals to you. I will also recommend the Holy Grail around these parts....100 Bullets...It doesn't feature superheroes but it is ahrd to think of a darker and grittier storyline, but be prepared that if you buy this you will become engrossed and unable to put it down.

Fysh

Turtyturd wrote: »

To be honest it does stink of 90's and is very cheesy (same goes for the costume change storyline) but I have a soft spot for a lot of that stuff. I think it is a major Superman storyline though, especially the introduction of Doomsday.

To be honest it's a said state of affair when it's a struggle to rattle off a couple of decent storylines for DC's main character.

In a way it is, but as a character Superman's not really built for long-form stories, because as a reader you know almost everything you need to know about him before you open the comic. You're not going to see any significant character development or evolution, because more than anything Superman is now a 7-decade-old brand.

AngelofCrog

Red Son is very good. Godfall & Last Son are both pretty decent too. There's not really anywhere to start after them. Your best bet is to just pick an arc and start reading.

uprooted tradition

Red son is my favourite graphic novel, but it kind of depends on how much you know about the overall Superman story as to how much you would enjoy it. The more you know about Superman beforehand the more you get out of it to my mind.

All star superman is a brilliant read and as far as this thread goes the real good thing about this is that it is a total stand alone story.

The death of superman is still a very good read but just dont go into the doomsday storyline that followed it. It makes a bit of a mockery of the rest of the story.

uprooted tradition

th3 s1aught3r wrote: »

Are there any other comic/graphic novels that would be like Batman in the sense of its grittiness and darker themes ?

Lex Luthor man of steel is a very good read and dark in tone.

If you are looking for something different to sink your teeth into the civil war comics are excellent and do get quite dark.

thesaifeye

wanna read it from the starting asap