Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Favorites - Favorite Supporting Characters for Superman

Well, September has come to an end. I was able to get to all the supporting players I wanted to get to. Yeah, I left out a couple like Krypto, Emil Hamilton, and maybe Bibbo, but I had to end it somewhere. Besides, I already got a Krypto post from a few years ago that’ll satisfy most folk. As for other personal stuff, I’ll save that for a Random Thoughts post. I’m not done with the Man of Steel’s people yet. So, it’s time for the obligatory favorites list. This time, I’ll be listing down my 12 (sort of) favorite supporting characters from the franchise. The list isn’t really in order, but my favorites are at top.

I might as well start off with his first supporting character. Lois has been around as long as Superman has. She’s been the rival reporter, the love interest, and a cool character especially in modern times. While I’ll admit that she wasn’t always the best during her 80 years, Lois is still an essential part of Superman’s life. Without her (married or not), things feel off. You can’t keep those two separate for long.

Next, we got the Earth parents of Superman. In a lot of ways, they are the ones who made Clark into Superman. Yeah, the Els helped, but the Kents had to raise him. They taught him the values of humanity and how to live in the world. They even had things to share even when they got to live and see Clark become Superman. While they aren’t needed for every story, I think it’s cool to have them around at times. I don’t need them showing up in almost every other episode, Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.

Yeah, I got the Dark Knight on this list. What of it? Of all the superheroes Superman interacts or teams up with, Batman is right up there. It’s cool to see those two interact since they approach things differently. They both tend to learn things off of one another and they’re usually the closest of friends. Batman’s not essential to Superman’s story, but he adds variety to it from time to time.

While I do rag on Olsen at times, I think that has to do with how he’s sometimes written. When written well, Jimmy can be cool. When it comes down to it, Jimmy’s is more or less us. He’s just a regular guy in an extraordinary world. He has to pay the bills like everyone else. He just happens to be friends with one of the most powerful people in existence. At times, even he can get in on the action. He is the “Man of Action” after all.


I had to put these two together since they serve the same roles. While Smallville, the show, didn’t do Lana well at times, I still like the character in general. She’s the first love of Clark Kent. In some iterations, she even helps him become the man he’s supposed to be. She also works as a confidant, so she’s kind of a proto-Lois Lane. I can say the same about Chloe especially on Smallville. She was a friend, an inspiration, and a confidant. She also was pretty cute… yeah, I still have a bit of a crush on Allison Mack. Lucky me.

I know Cat Grant may not be on everyone’s list, but she is on mine. While she did once serve as a love interest for Clark, she’s much more than that. Like Jimmy, she too was a regular lady who dealt with real problems. I liked how she was handled in the comics during the post-Crisis era. It just sucks that most writers don’t get her at times especially in live-action. Supergirl may not be a great show, but it did Cat Grant well.

Next up is the boss of the book. While Perry White serves as the editor-in-chief of the Daily Planet, he does serve more than that. He has to lead the Planet with journalistic integrity and he even serves as a father figure to most of the folk like Lois, Jimmy, and sometimes Clark.

Next, there are the birth parents of Kal-El. They’re essential in getting the ball rolling. Superman’s got to get to Earth somehow, ya know. Jor-El did everything he could to help his son. He even made an A.I. of himself to help Clark cope with being on Earth. While they’re both really only around for a small part of the story, they are one of the most important parts.

If I had to throw one replacement on here, it’d have to be Conner Kent. I liked Superboy mostly because he wasn’t just like Clark. He had his own ways of doing things, but he still was a hero. I also liked the personality. Even though he's been different on shows like Young Justice, I still liked him.  I liked how those two eventually had a brother bond with one another. Luckily, we may be seeing him return in a major way. Thanks, BMB!

Next up, it’s the blonde cousin. While I’m not the biggest fan of Kara, I see why she’s important. She’s one of the only living connections Superman has to Krypton. Supergirl herself is a pretty cool character even when she isn’t Kara Zor-El. She’s someone who girls can look up to as well.

I gotta admit that I’m not a big fan of the LOSH. That may change now since I’m seeing more of their books show up on that DC Universe app. Even though I’m not big fan, I do like seeing them interact with Clark in any form. As I said in their post, they’re superhero fans with powers. That’s kinda cool.

Finally, I had to include Lex Luthor. He may be a villain, but seeing him in a supporting villain role is pretty cool. It’s also nice to see Clark and him interact on another level that isn’t the hero-vs.-villain trope. Smallville may have had its problems, but it handled the Clark/Lex friendship well.

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Well, that should finally wrap it up. Will I do another Superman Month? I think so. As long as this blog continues to put out stuff, Superman Month shall stay. Heck, I've got enough stuff to make a Superman blog... hmm... another blog. Maybe... well, I'll get back to that. For now, I think I'm going to concentrate on some spooky stuff for the month. Until then, Peace, God Bless, and be careful out there. 

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