*ahem* Why didn't anyone inform me about this thread previously?
Right, so, Superman. Oh boy. I'm going to
try not making this a tl;dr post.
First off, recommended stories:
1) Superman for all Seasons - by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (back when Loeb was a
good writer) Gorgeous art by Tim Sale and a really great story about Superman regarding how, for all his power, he can't save everyone. When you peel back that blue, red and yellow layer, you find an honest Kansas farmboy trying to come to grips with the public persona that he's been given.
2) Secret Identity - by Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen. Technically not in-continuity Superman, but it hits on every point about Superman. You've got this kid, Clark Kent, living in Kansas. The world is meant to be "our" world (the "real world"). But he discovers he actually HAS Superman's powers. The question becomes what he does with them. Does he go public, where he'll be scrutinized and hunted by the government? How do you hold onto that secret? Do you tell anyone? If you don't tell anyone, how does that isolation affect you? This is, without a shadow of a doubt, not only my favourite Superman story of all time, but it's quite possibly one of my favourite
comics of all time.
3) Death/Funeral/Return of Superman - by various writers and artists. This is where I got hooked on comics again. The dialogue hasn't aged well in parts, but the overall trilogy is fantastic. Everything wraps up in the end, making it a great self-contained story using a
lot of Superman mythos. I recommend getting the three separate trade paperbacks, rather than the hardcover of all three that was released a few years ago, since it's missing quite a bit.
4) All Star Superman - by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. Morrison basically boiled Superman down to the basics, used his own continuity which was kind of a merging of almost every aspect of the mythos and cut loose. Each issue is self-contained but all twelve tell an overall story. It uses a lot of the silly Silver Age stuff like different coloured Kryptonite, Krypto the superdog, etc. But the fact that it's all so over the top just adds to it because Superman is a lot like childhood fantasy: unbridled, pure, imagination and most importantly...FUN!!
5) Kingdom Come - by Mark Waid and Alex Ross. This covers the morals of Superman and the classic heroes in general. This was releasesed around the time when everyone wanted grim, gritty heroes that killed. This story proves why that's not always a good thing. Great stuff and gorgeous art by Alex Ross.
6) It's a Bird - by Steven S. Seagal and Teddy Kristiansen. This is a semi-biographical story about Seagal's time writing Superman and how he was very hard pressed to write stories about him. There's some amazing deconstruction of Superman. In trying to figure out how Superman works, Seagal deconstructs everything from Supes' power, the S symbol, right and wrong, secret identity, etc. Amazing stuff and possibly my second favourite Superman story.
As for Superman himself? Dave, the big thing with Superman isn't his power. Yes, he's this guy with a laundry list of superpowers. But it's more about the fact that he has all this power and yet is also this great power for good. He flies in the face of absolute power corrupting absolutely. Plus, he doesn't see himself as Superman. He first thinks of himself as Clark Kent, the farmboy who always felt different and an outsider. For a guy with all his power, he has huge confidence issues. But he always does the right thing, or at least tries. That's the big thing about his character. It's not about who he fights or what his powers are, but what he
does with them. His methods are different from Batman because he relies on earning trust, rather than striking fear. He doesn't hide behind a mask because he wants people to see him for who he is.
When he's Superman, he gets to use his powers to help those in need and use his power for good as best he can. When he's Clark Kent, he gets to be himself, most especially in Kansas. I actually think there's
three different personalties he carries: Superman, Metropolis Clark and Smallville Clark. Metropolis Clark is a quite, unassuming yet hardworking honest guy. The kinda guy who'll always help you with whatever you need but tends not to socialize a lot. Smallville Clark is where he gets to unwind from everything and
truly be himself. Really good example of this is the Justice League episode,
Comfort and Joy, where he's a total big kid at Christmas and his folks have wrapped all his presents in lead so he can't peak.
Gah, this turned into a tl;dr after all. Guess that shows how much I love the big guy and what he stands for.
Added at: 10:07
What's with that curl in Superman's hair? I've always wondered that.
Some don't do it as well as others, but it's meant to be curled in the shape of an "S".
