When I discuss comics, I don’t want to make a specialty out of talking about superhero books, but let me say a word about one of the most popular characters.
Superman was the first true superhero comic book character. The Man of Steel was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and was first published in 1938; he remains one of the best-known characters in comics.
I think part of what makes him so attractive is that he appeals to our better nature. He’s a force for good that’s all-powerful and yet uses those powers to selflessly save mankind from danger. You see a Darfur or Katrina or the Crandall Canyon mine disaster and a part of you wishes a super being would swoop in and save the day.
But if Superman is the embodiment of good (backed by might), is goodness dramatically interesting?
Here’s the key problem with Superman, straight from the mouth of author Greg Rucka, from an interview with Neal Bailey on the Superman Homepage:
G: …you know I used to think Wonder Woman was gonna be hard, the hardest writing job I’d ever had. And it’s not. Superman is head and shoulders above it. Diana was hard, Diana was very difficult for me to get a take on, figure out how I could write her for me that was respectful, and made her strong and capable, and treat her well. And I do believe I treat her well. I give her stories that I think are worthy of her.
But it’s much much harder to write Superman than Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman was a hundred times harder than writing Batman. And that’s not to insult any Batman fans out there, but he’s easier to get a grip on.
N: He’s got a very clear direction.
G: Everything about Batman is VERY clear. His powers, his orientation, his goals, his mission, and he’s really a fairly simple guy you can build a lot of complications on. Superman paradoxically, looks very simple, but he’s exceptionally complex. You look at Superman, and this is why you get people going, “Ehhhh, the Boy Scout” (with a sneer) da da da da da, they take him at face value, they think he’s so simple. But he’s not. He’s the perfect example of still water running exceptionally deep.
And that’s very hard to write. Then you add on the problem of the powers, which is he can do so very very much, how do you write a story that challenges him at all? There’s a reason why almost all of his villains wear power suits, because one punch usually ends the fight. And this is why – and I’m guilty of it – this is why I very very often have gone to great lengths to neutralize or take away his powers from him, like the Parasites, or Ruin using the Red Sun generator, things like that. Because if they’re not gone, there’s no fight.
For all practical purposes, Superman is a god. He comes from another planet, whose inhabitants are now all dead. He’s super-powerful and virtually invulnerable. This does not make for great storytelling. What kind of conflict can you create?
This is not to say that good stories haven’t been written over the years, but they are few and far between. Greg Rucka (quoted above) did a great run on Wonder Woman, because he had her deal with political issues, both here on Earth and on Mount Olympus. He had her deal with conflicts you can’t punch your way out of. His run with Superman was good, but nowhere near as interesting.
I recall a couple interesting stories with Superman that explored the limits of having unlimited power. One was DC Presents #29 (summarized here) , in which Superman is taught that he can’t do everything just because he can do anything. But how many stories like that can you tell?
My pal Dave chimes in to say:
Personally, I have no answer [to the question of Superman's appeal] because I’m NOT interested in Superman. I would absolutely pass by any title involving him, even, maybe, if I’d heard it was good.
Frank Miller had the best take on him in that Dark Knight reboot.
Excellent point. The character of Superman does work in conjunction with other superhero characters, particularly Batman and Wonder Woman (e.g. Grant Morrison’s run on JLA). Dave refers to Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns in which Superman is presented as a representative of authoritarianism and is allied with the government, with Batman (and Green Arrow) as rebel figures (This theme also occurs in Watchmen and Marvel’s Civil War series). If the government did try to control super-powered beings, it’s hard to imagine Superman not standing on the side of law-and-order.
Batman and Superman have been paired up many times over the years. It’s interesting that over the 68 years of his life, Batman’s character has become so relentless and devious. If you’re a casual fan, or only know the characters from the movies, you might think that Superman is the stronger of the pair. But many writers have made it clear that in a straight conflict between the two, Batman wins. His superpower is his mind.
However, with all of this trashing of Superman, I have not yet read Grant Morrison’s take. I love his stuff and he has a great way of taking old characters, remaining true to their past, and yet making them fresh.
You’ll notice I haven’t even touched on the movies. Yeesh. Don’t get me started. Another topic for another time.
2 Responses
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Neal Bailey Says:
Hey! Thanks for citing my interview.
I actually have an extraordinary empathy with the dilemma you write above. I’m kind of stuck in this weird position of absolutely loving Superman, but having to deal with stories over the years that, again and again, miss the point.
Most of the creators (Rucka was a rare exception) believe that the idea is how big of a smash you can make, and that’s what’s drummed at them constantly. “BIG FIGHT BIG FIGHT BIG FIGHT!”
With me, after about five novels and reading a goodly number of comics since 1992, I figured out the right formula, the one that almost always leads to a good Superman story. Compelling evil.
The problem is, they focus too much on how cool Superman is. And he is. He has all that power. But to make that tested, you need a villain that will literally kill Lois Lane unless Superman stops him, a guy with a rational motivation and strength of character, so Superman is conflicted over how to stop him.
I share many of Greg’s views on plot and structure, and he’s been a pretty damned rad mentor to me over the years. I’m glad as hell that interview’s still getting quoted.
Best!
Neal
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The Pop View Says:
And since I wrote the above, I did buy Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely’s All Star Superman, Volume 1 and thoroughly enjoyed it. I wouldn’t say it solves all the Superman problems, but I would like to read more of this series.