Thoughts on Superman

BreakABone · 02-20-2009, 12:50 PM

Like most threads these days, this comes from a discussion with TheSlyMoogle where he just bashes all that I hold dear because he is an evil evil otter.

Anyhow, I'm curious what's the general opinion of Superman around these parts? Do people still find him to be a too powerful character to be interesting? Is there any way to redeem that?

Professor S · 02-20-2009, 12:55 PM

I don't think the affects of such power on the psyche has ever been properly explored when Superman is considered, unlike with Dr. Manhattan in Watchmen. How has Superman almost never injured someone by accident as Clark Kent considering his power? When you can lift a million pounds, how do you know how to much you need to let up not to kill someone with a "gentle" touch?

Superman isn't too powerful in the books. He is written to be too perfect and we canot relate to that in an imperfect world.

Hell, even Christ made a few mistakes...

KillerGremlin · 02-22-2009, 03:42 AM

Good thing we have comic nerds like Kevin Smith to tackle questions like 'Superman having sex.'

Quote:

Brodie: It's impossible. Lois could never have Superman's baby. Do you think her fallopian tubes could handle the sperm? I guarantee you he blows a load like a shotgun right through her back. What about her womb? Do you think it's strong enough to carry his child?
T.S.: Sure, why not?
Brodie: He's an alien, for Christ's sake. His Kryptonian biological makeup is enhanced by Earth's yellow sun. If Lois gets a tan the kid could kick right through her stomach. Only someone like Wonder Woman has a strong enough uterus to carry his kid. The only way he could bang regular chicks is with a kryptonite condom. But that would kill him.

KillerGremlin · 02-22-2009, 03:53 AM

There's one more...can't find right now.

Seriously though, Superman is so lame. He has ONE weakness, ONE. And he obviously is Clark Kent...the people of Metropolis are incredibly stupid. He is pretty boring.

Teuthida · 02-22-2009, 05:53 AM

He's the first superhero and the template for all superheroes after him so you gotta cut him some slack.

Zen · 02-22-2009, 11:51 AM

Not only is he the first ever, you have to admire a guy who despite having so many powers, lets face it, he could be an unstoppable force morals aside. Decides to be selfless, decides to fight out of love for the people of earth, he has no childhood trauma, no vengeance plot thickening inside of him, the guy simply does what he does because he can. Sure he might not be the greatest character, batman for example is more interesting (though i hate frank miller's batman :P) , but he is DEFINITELLY the greatest superhero.

Swan · 02-22-2009, 03:46 PM

Breaking out the nerd right here KG, he is also weak to magic

BreakABone · 02-22-2009, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swan

Breaking out the nerd right here KG, he is also weak to magic

Yeah came to point that out as well.

And technically he is also weak during a solar eclipse and on foreign planets that don't have the yellow sun.

Granted, those are extraordinary situations, but it does exist.

And I agree with Zen, but sometimes its hard to remember this when he is on his own, put him around a character like Batman or Wonder Woman and its an interesting dynamic.

Part of the reason I made this thread was because I read the most recent Superman/Batman comic which was just ludicrous, but it shows that Superman for all his strengths believes the best of mankind and it is the reason he does not solve all their problems or isn't everywhere at all the time.

TheSlyMoogle · 02-23-2009, 02:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BreakABone

Part of the reason I made this thread was because I read the most recent Superman/Batman comic which was just ludicrous, but it shows that Superman for all his strengths believes the best of mankind and it is the reason he does not solve all their problems or isn't everywhere at all the time.

Yeah and that's a really lame reason.

Technically superman could fix everything, and he doesn't. What a wonderful person!

More so... Well more so it would make for a terrible story. That's the real reason superman in all his glory never fixes all the worlds problems. If he did there would be no reason to continue writing superman comics.

And for the record... Marvel > DC any day. Hell the X Men alone stomps all things DC. Even Jubilee is cooler than superman.

BreakABone · 02-23-2009, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheSlyMoogle

Yeah and that's a really lame reason.

Technically superman could fix everything, and he doesn't. What a wonderful person!

More so... Well more so it would make for a terrible story. That's the real reason superman in all his glory never fixes all the worlds problems. If he did there would be no reason to continue writing superman comics.

And for the record... Marvel > DC any day. Hell the X Men alone stomps all things DC. Even Jubilee is cooler than superman.

You're bitter DC rage shows its face again.

I'm not saying that Superman can fix anything, and on a power level it is almost impossible to relate with him.

My point was simply that for all his powers and abilities, Superman sees the best in mankind which is why he has never enslaved us or ruled with an iron fist. He is damn near impossible to stop but has a down home, basic human nature to him.

Zen · 02-24-2009, 12:12 AM

once superman tried stopping world hunger just to fail miserably, i cant quite remember the story but it was illustrated by alex ross. so its not like he hasnt tried going that extra mile and then some.

Thespis721 · 03-09-2009, 08:06 PM

Okay. I'm jumping in. And I'll admit. I have a bias. A bias against crappy super heros. I don't care if he's the first superhero. Or that he's a template. That's fantastic... if I lived in the 1940s.

We live in the 2000s now and there are so many better heroes out there. He's unstoppable except for an exceptionally rare material, and an exceptionally rare talent, he's died numerous times only to be brought back by reasons that don't quite make a whole lot of sense, he's completely unrelatable as a person since he's not even human and he shoulders responsibilities that no one could fathom. Superman is good for one thing. Creating stories about two people beating the living crap out of each other and destroying public property and causing explosions. (And even then, the Hulk does it better) But any other area of superhero mythos, another character does it better.

Angrist · 03-10-2009, 12:14 PM

For me he's just the guy with his underwear over his pants.

Zen · 03-10-2009, 12:43 PM

every other superhero has the same underwear problem so i fail to see the case here.

Professor S · 03-10-2009, 01:21 PM

Thepsis has brought up something that I find frustrating about DC in general: The is no meaning in death.

Marvel has brought back it's fair share of deceased characters, but never to the same level as DC, who actually created an rediculous theme of multi-verses to explain their irresponsible cashing in on the death and resurrection of their iconic characters.

Batman is the latest example, where they killed Batman but didn't really kill him. All their press and even the name of the storyline (R.I.P.) talked about Batman's death, while the actual story faked Batman's death not once, BUT TWICE IN TWO BOOKS.

The classic example is the death of Superman, possibly the most overhyped crapfest I've ever read with the introduction of a worthless villain. Luthor should have killed Superman, and it should have been brilliantly conceived and Luthor should have been severely conflicted over finally achieving his goal and then relieved when Superman returned. THAT'S A STORY. Ripping off the incredible Hulk to serve as a death device is NOT.

In the end, I've been left with no reason to read DC because I never believe that any of their plots have any meaning because the mortal threat each hero is under has no meaning. They killed him? Wait a month, he's fine.

Marvel on the other hand, has recently taken a harder stance on death, especially with Captain America, and its a change that has won critical acclaim and financial success.