Tales from the Trade! - Superman and the Authority

Well, it’s September, and I’m feeling… eh. The kids are back in school, so you know that “Down with the Sickness” is going to be played a lot in many homes. Lately, it’s been hitting us with Liz and Andy being a little down for the count. Even though I’m not around here as much anymore, I got to talk about some Superman comics. I might even throw in a certain show that’s recently made it to Max. Today’s pick is Superman and the Authority, a miniseries that was starting just as Andy was being born. In fact, I got the first issue the day I closed my pick list at the Great Escape in Nashville. If there was one thing that was gonna get me to come out and get the whole trade, it would be Grant Morrison.

Now, the story behind this mini is a weird one that involves a defunct idea called 5G… no, not that 5G on your phone or in the airwaves. I don’t know everything about it, but it was another reboot that Dan Didio wanted to do. The key word is “wanted” because that whole idea blew up in smoke and Didio was let go from DC afterwards. The ideas (That whole DC Future event after Dark Knights Death Metal) kind of made their way into the comics, but things remained the same. I did hear that one idea was to take an older Superman down an authoritative route, but Morrison said “I say thee nay” or something and instead wrote about a lower-powered Superman forming a team of lesser-knowns, villains and sometimes killers. Yeah, that also sounds weird, but this is Morrison we’re talking about.

Quick Thoughts #3 - "The Early Days of Superman!"

To quote some teenagers from the first episode of Young Justice, “Today’s the Day!” One major reason the blog’s been vacant for a minute is a simple one: I’m getting married today! It’s been a hectic few days, but before I get even more involved with the proceedings, I wanted to quickly go over a recent read and a recent viewing of some Superman-related stuff. I haven’t forgotten that this was Superman Month for me. Today’s picks are Superman: Man of Tomorrow and Superman: For All Seasons.

Superman: Man of Tomorrow

Superman: Man of Tomorrow was released in 2020. It was meant to be the first DC animated movie that would start off a new batch of movies since Justice League: Apokalips War was the end of that run of the DCAMU. By the way, I still haven’t seen Apokalips War, and from what I’ve seen, I kinda don’t want to. Man of Tomorrow is another origin story that shows Superman in his early days in Metropolis. As he’s trying to figure out to protect the world, an alien named Lobo shows up on the scene and wrecks some havoc. Through this, a STAR Labs employee, Rudy Jones, is transformed into the Parasite. Also, Superman’s being followed by a mysterious alien named J’onn J’onnz.

I thought that this was a pretty good watch. While it does take bits and pieces of origin stories like American Alien, Earth One, and Smallville, it is its own take on Superman. It was cool to see Superman interact with the Martian Manhunter, and somehow, this story makes me like Lobo for a little bit. I also liked what they did with the Parasite. He’s one of Superman’s cooler villains, so seeing him get the spotlight was good. Of course, everything involving the Daily Planet and Lex Luthor (voiced by Zachary Quinto?) was good. The voice acting overall was also pretty good.

The animation took a while to get used to though. It’s not bad, and the action does carry some weight, but it’s a little weird at points. I’ve noticed this with the other movies like Long Halloween and that JSA movie. Metropolis looked pretty cool and futuristic though. Also, Superman’s updated suit looked good. I wasn’t a big fan of Parasite’s final form. I guess it makes sense because his origin involved aliens, but dude was looking too much like a Xenomorph to me. It does drag a little bit in some places, but it’s not that bad. Overall, if you’re looking for another Superman origin, this one’s nice.

 

Superman for All Seasons

If you’re wondering, yes, this is a recent read. While I’ve perused the story over the years, I’ve never sat down to read it until now. This 4 issue mini, released in 1998, was written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by the late Tim Sale. It show’s Superman’s early years, which became a theme for this post.  It shows Clark’s life before he left Smallville and his early time as Superman in Metropolis. We get to see what made Clark don the suit and go save the world. Each issue is also narrated by the people most important to Clark.

This story was pretty dang good. While Loeb gets some hate for stuff these days, dude could write some good DC books. I also see yet another inspiration for the show, Smallville, here. The story does a good job of showing Clark grow into one of the greatest heroes. We also see that it’s not a smooth ride since Superman ends up going through some tough times later in the story. Loeb throws a lot of detail into Smallville with some of the better moments of the book coming from there. Each issue uses the seasons to get a point across and it works really well.

The artwork is awesome. Sale brought his A-game to the book.  He might not have been everyone’s choice to draw Superman, but he works. He draws Superman as a powerhouse, but a kind one. He’s a beefy boy, but that happens when you live on a farm. What action we get is handled pretty well. While Superman doing his thing is a treat here, the simple, quiet moments also shine here. The double page spreads are a treat. Overall, this is one of the best stories out there.

…………………………………….

“Well”, as I say in a pretty preachy manner like I’m gonna bring the gospel, I gotta go. These are two good stories that handle the character really well. Check them out if you haven’t. You can go to HBO Max (for now, that whole WB/Discovery fiasco is horrible) for Man of Tomorrow, and you can find For All Seasons just about anywhere. I’ve gotta get ready for the wedding. For now, Peace, God Bless, and be careful out there.

The Favorites - 13 Favorite Batman Movies

Well, it’s 2022, and we have yet another live-action Batman film. Yeah, we had Ben Affleck in the previous DCEU movies, but this is the first solo film in about a decade. Not only are we getting Rob Pattisson in the role, Michael Keaton (along with Affleck) is supposed to be returning to the role in the Flash movie. By the way, why is this movie constantly pushed back? Maybe that slo-mo from the Snyder Cut carried over onto that movie’s production.

This did get me thinking about what my favorite Batman films are. I mean, the Dark Knight has had a crapton of films released in over the years, live-action and animated. He’s been on his own, hanging with teams, fighting Joker, flirting with Wonder Woman, teaming up with reptiles, fighting Superman, fighting Joker, sleeping with Batgirl, fighting Joker, in Victorian era Gotham, and last but not least, FIGHTING THE JOKER. I think I sense a bit of a pattern. So, here are my favorite Batman movies. Even though he has a lot, I’m stopping at 13-ish. I’m mainly including primarily solo Batman films here, but I do have a couple of exceptions. First, here are some honorable mentions:

• The Dark Knight Rises – Yeah, this didn’t make it to the main list, so take that, Nolanites! Now, this isn’t a bad movie, but I can’t throw it on the list. While it was the ending of Nolan’s trilogy and had good things with it, I couldn’t vibe with it. Heck, it took me almost eight years to see it again! I’ve seen the other two many more times than that! It just felt phoned in at times. Whatever spark those first two movies had wasn’t here. I also wasn’t a fan of some plot points and other things (those dang hilarious voices). Overall, it’s not bad, but it’s not that good.
• Batman and Robin – This one goes without saying. It was the first Batman film I saw in theaters. While I can find a lotta joy in Batman Forever, I can’t with this one. While I do like a little camp with Batman, this one took things too far for me. It’s not one of the worst movies ever though. It has a couple of good things like the subplot with Alfred. Also, Alicia Silverstone looked nice in that costume… hey, it’s true! As for everything else, meh. I can accept it as a comedy, but nothing more.
• Batman (1966) – I wanted to at least mention the original 1966 Adam West movie. It’s one that I honestly haven’t seen a lot of. I do need to see it in its entirety one day, but even if I did,  it would probably still be in the mentions.

Random Thoughts On... Brian Michael Bendis's Run on the Superman Books Part 2

So, where was I? Oh yeah, I was about to talk about villains and controversy.

A Bit Mixed on the Villains

We get some returning villains and new villains here, but I’m mostly focusing on the newer villains. First up, it’s Rogol Zaar who I already said my piece on. He’s okay, and unfortunately, we don’t learn too much about him here. He’s still on his hate boner for all Kryptonians. We don’t even find out how he possibly destroyed Krypton. Next, there’s Symnar Utopica, an alien from a part of the galaxy that has an orange sun. His deal was that his people turned him into a weapon to possible combat Superman. He instead turns on them and tries to kill Superman too. He was a bit on the “meh” side. We do get a villain named that shows up during the Doctor Fate two-parter, but that villain was so forgettable.

Yes, Zod! Beat the lameness out of Zaar!

Random Thoughts On... Brian Michael Bendis' Run on the Superman Books Part 1

I called it. I seriously called this one. When I heard that Brian Michael Bendis was coming over to DC, I wrote here that I hope they didn’t throw him on Superman first. Whelp, I think something screwed up with in the atmosphere or something because BMB came and did some Superman. Was it everything I was hoping? Dreading? Both? Meh? You’ll find out below.

For those not in the know, Brian Michael Bendis made his career with Marvel for a majority of the 2000’s. For whatever reason (I’ve heard various rumors), he left his exclusive job at Marvel and came over to DC. I think everyone was shocked by this especially me. I’m a BMB fan, but even I’ll admit that he has his low moments. Remember Civil War 2? While he was on the Superman books, he also helmed his own event (Event: Leviathan), revamped the Legion of Superheroes,  and handled a line of teen superhero comics (Young Justice, Naomi, and others). Anyway, his time on Superman came after what some would call a good period for the Man of Steel. His history was back, his marriage was back, and he had a heroic kid in tow. So, how does Bendis screw all that up? Well, he didn’t… sorta.

Here’s how it all panned out:

• Action Comics #1000 – a small side story that set up a new villain and the return of Superman’s other ally… his trunks.
• Man of Steel (not to be confused with Byrne nor Zach Snyder) – This set up the status quo with the Daily Planet and  with the new villain, Rogol Zaar, an alien who has a hatred for Kryptonians. We also have Lois and Jon Kent leave the book to hang out with Jor-El Debarge… yeah, I’m sticking with that name for this version. I talked about this mini last year.
• Superman #1-28 – With this book, Bendis pretty much goes cosmic on us. If you want Superman in space kicking butt and taking names, this was the book that had him on those adventures. First, we get “The Unity Saga.” Here, we get a Phantom Zone story that deals with Rogol Zaar and more recognizable Superman villains. Next, we get what is one of the first controversial moments with Superboy Jon Kent. The saga then concludes with the fate of evil Jor-El as well as some space shenanigans. After all that fun, we get The Truth (I touched on that here), more Mongul, a team up with Dr. Fate, and some more space fun.
• Action Comics #1001-1028 – As for Action Comics, it was more grounded and city-based. We get a lot of the Daily Planet here as well as a plot involving a gang called the Invisible Mafia. We get to see more of the new faces that were introduced in Man of Steel. While Clark is trying to figure out who the Invisible Mafia is, we also have Clark and Lois (who returns) go through some relationship woes. Add in a major tie-in to Event: Leviathan, and the return of Rose/Thorn. Next, we get a major fight involving the Legion of Doom, Leviathan, and Red Cloud (a new villain) in Metropolis, the meeting of the two Superboys (Conner Kent and Jon Kent), and John Romita Jr. unfortunately returning to Superman.
• Superman: Heroes and Superman: Villains – These two one-shots were basically the reactions of the different heroes and villains to Superman outing his double life.
• Superman: Leviathan Rising – This one-shot was basically another prologue to Event: Leviathan and other Superman-related titles. 

Graphic Novels! - It's A Bird...

While I’ve done away with themed months here, I still gotta talk about some Superman during September. It just feels right even when the man in question doesn’t show up. Today’s pick is just one example of that. During my last peruse at McKay’s, I was trying to find something to get. This book caught my eye. Outside of a couple of books, I haven’t read much Vertigo, so seeing something involving Superman in that line piqued my interest.

It’s A Bird… was released by DC under their Vertigo line in 2004. It was written by Steven T. Seagle, and it’s not the Marked for Death guy, okay? Let’s get that clear. Seagle had actually written for Superman in the past, and he’s done other things for DC and Vertigo. He’s also known for being one of the creators of Ben 10. The artwork was done by Teddy Kristiansen. He actually won an Eisner award for this book and a couple of others.

It’s A Bird…

Writer: Steven T. Seagle

Artist: Teddy Kristiansen

Letters: Todd Kline

Movie Talk - Zack Snyder's Justice League

Man, we got hit with some comic book goodness a while back. The revamped Justice League as well as “Captain Falcon and The Mark Hammill-Look-Alike” hit right around the same time. I even got around to finishing WandaVision, aka “Grief Personified into Sitcoms” too. It’s goodness all around when you include Godzilla vs. Kong and Mortal Kombat! Yeah, I usually start these Snyder posts with a bit of a joke, but not this time. There’s not anything out in theatres for me to joke about, but I could probably make fun of something. Let me just get on with this one.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League was something I wasn’t clamoring for for a couple of reasons. I’ve got my fair share of Justice League-ness, and the fandom surrounding it is a lot. I didn’t say “toxic” because that gets thrown around a too much, and it’s not like any fandom has no toxicity in it. Some folk I do follow seem pretty chill. Heck, anti-Snyder fans are about as annoying as some pro-Snyder fans. Yes, I said it and I’m not even that big a fan of Snyder. Even though the original theater version wasn’t that satisfying, I still enjoyed it for what it was. Then, we heard what happened behind-the-scenes with the reshoots, and… eegh. That’s not even including what got cut out of Snyder’s original cut.

When the WB announced that it was coming, I was “whelmed, traught, and feeling the ‘aster…” whatever that means.  As more of the trailers came, I started to get a bit more excited. I ended up watching it all in bits and pieces the day it was released. I’ll save the pretty spoilerish bits for below, but I thought it was pretty good. The tone is pretty consistent throughout with some good bits of humor and pretty heartfelt moments. The League is all on top form here and even Stepphenwolf comes off better. It’s not perfect (a bit overlong in places and a couple of weird plot points), but this blew out the theatrical cut by a mile.

Tales from the 50 Cent Bin! - Superman: The Death of Clark Kent

Well, it took a few days to get to this, but I’m usually a late bloomer. September was pretty busy in general. It’s 2020, I’m dating again, there was a family emergency, and there’s still a lot of housework to do, so the blog and some comic reading needed a break. Sometimes, you need a break from certain things. Still, I wanted to get back and finish what I started.

The 90’s was a big time for Superman since He got married, he died, and he grew long hair (NOT A MULLET!). He also had a crapton of stories where stuff would go wrong. “The Death of Clark Kent” is definitely such a story. Before I get to that, I need to touch on a newer character that showed up after Zero Hour: Kenny Braverman, aka Conduit. Kenny was basically a rival to Clark back in high school and even beyond. He was imbued with Kryptonian radiation as a child (he was born the night Kal-El landed in Kansas) which left him sickly sometimes. As an adult, he got with the government and had a suit created to channel that energy. He also had a mad hatred for Clark Kent since he always felt inferior to him. When he found out that Clark Kent was also Superman, his hate went into overdrive.

“The Death of Clark Kent” spun through the four Superman books in 1995. 

• Superman #100-101
• Adventures of Superman #523-524
• Action Comics #710-711
• Superman: Man of Steel #46-46
  

While it ended with Man of Steel #46, it truly came to an end in Adventures of Superman #525. I covered that a couple of years ago as well as Conduit’s first issue in Man of Steel #0. I’ll list the creative teams below since it got to be quite a lot. We also had a few changes around this time. Dan Jurgens draws his last issue with Superman #100, and Gil Kane takes over afterwards. Stuart Immonen had already replaced Tom Grummett a few issues before this. So, what does happen when a jilted jock decides kill his rival’s family and friends?

Random Thoughts On... Superman's Identity Revealed Arc from the New 52

Well, it has come to this. When I started this month, this was the first thing on the docket. I thought I would’ve gotten it out of the way first, but reading 30-something issues from this era of comics is a bit much. Still, I had to finish this race here. Last time, I said that this story killed the New 52 Superman. Was I right to say that? Not sure because I don’t know what DC’s plans for this version of Superman were. Still, you never know. Also… I kinda liked bits of this. Yeah, it’s actually a shocker.

So, what am I talking about today? After the Convergence event, DC transitioned from New 52 to “DC You.” Basically, the idea was to just go off the wall with certain things. Tom King was doing Omega Men, Hal wasn’t Green Lantern… again,  someone finally decided to give Starfire some frakin’ clothes (yeah, I’m bitter about how they treated my girl), Martian Manhunter got his own book, and Batman turned into a robo-bunny. Geoff Johns started up “Darkseid War” as well. This was a weird era.

As for Superman, someone had the “interesting” idea to out Superman’s double life as Clark Kent to the world. From what I can tell, it was mostly done for shock value. A lot had been done to this version of Superman. His parents were dead, he lost his marriage with Lois, he was in jeans during his early days, he hooked up with Wonder Woman, he got turned into a Doomsday (I’ll touch on that some other time), and he got a “totally rad” power called the solar flare. So, they decide to have Lois Lane out him, and not only that, he loses his powers. That’s a lot for one character, man.

Favorites - 13 Favorite Alternate Versions of Superman

Before I get to my last two posts, a thought popped into my mind: “What are my favorite versions of Superman?” I actually began to ponder on that. I mean, there are plenty variations of the character out there. That doesn’t even included the myriad of versions in other media. Even though things may be different from story to story or era to era, Superman is still Superman. It doesn’t matter if he’s good, evil, black, straight, living in Amish country, looking like Geralt of Rivia, animated, drawn, or old. There’s almost a version of Superman out there for everyone.

So, here are my favorite versions of Superman from... everywhere. One caveat I did give myself is that I wouldn’t include main continuity versions of Superman. So, no Golden Age, no Post-Crisis, no Grant Morrison New 52 version, and no Rebirth. If I do say something from main continuity, it won’t be the main Superman.  I’m also not just looking at alternate stories from the comics either. There are a crapton of TV shows and movies that feature the character and his world. So, in saying all that, let’s get the dictators out of the way!

13. Red Son Superman – We’ve gotten a few “evil” versions of Superman over the years… heck,  they're mostly in this century. The best of the bunch in my opinion is the Red Son Superman, though I don’t think you could perceive him as straight-up evil. You definitely can say that about Overman (Nazi Superman) and Injustice Superman. Kal-L from Red Son had a completely different backstory in that he landed in Soviet Russia during the 1930s. After Stalin dies, he becomes the leader of the Soviet Union and does some messed up things. Even though he wasn’t too altruistic, you did see points where the regular Superman shined through. I still haven’t seen the animated movie, but I will soon.

12. Injustice Superman – Now, when it comes to the Superman from Injustice, he’s definitely evil. After suffering some tragic losses, Superman and most of the Earth’s heroes decide to take out villains permanently. Superman even takes it further though by basically becoming Earth’s dictator. It ends up taking other heroes led by that Earth’s Batman as well another heroic Superman to take that evil version down. While I’m not the biggest fan of what was done with this Superman, I gotta say that he is pretty good at being bad.

11. Superman from Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman – Yeah, Dean Cain has made it to the list. It’s quite an achievement. While he might actually be like the jackass he played in that episode of A Different World, his Superman was interesting. Actually, his Superman kinda sucked. He wasn’t bad in the role, but something felt lacking. The thing that made Cain stand out was his portrayal of Clark Kent. The show took quite a few cues from the original George Reeves show, and this was one of them. This show was the reason I like a more natural, down-to-earth version of Clark than the version who is just a klutz.

10. Earth-2 Superman (Val-Zod) – The new Earth-2 updated classic characters like Alan Scott and Jay Garrick to modern times. It also introduced some new variations of characters, and one of them was Val-Zod. Adopted by the El family and rocketed off to Earth with Kal-El and Kara, Val-Zod ended up being kept by the government for years. When Earth was in danger from the forces of Apokalips, Val-Zod decided to take on the mantle of Superman. Unlike most Supers, he really wasn’t keen on violence, but that doesn’t mean he’s a pushover. Him being black is even more icing on this cake.

9. Max Fleischer Superman – If you want to see the closest thing to a Golden Age Superman in action, then you can’t go wrong with the Max Fleischer Superman. It may have been short-lived, but it left an impression on a young boy. The cartoons are 8 to 10 minutes of fun action. You may not get Superman saying much, but actions speak louder than words. It also helps that the animation from that time looks beautiful.

8. Earth-23 President Superman – While it’s not the first time we’ve seen a President Superman, it definitely was the first we got of a black President Superman... I think. We haven't gotten much of him, but seeing him show up is always cool. Inspired by Barack Obama, this Superman (President Calvin Ellis) first showed up in Final Crisis. Even though the New 52 came, this Superman stuck around and even led the Multiverse’s Justice League Incarnate. If that’s not cool to you, I can’t help you.

7. DCEU Superman – What Superman Returns didn’t bring, Man of Steel brought. I was ready for a new take with Superman in live-action, and what we got was good. Henry Cavill felt right as Superman even though he’s more of the silent type. Hey, I like it since I’m a quiet dude myself, and as I said earlier, actions speak louder than words. Seeing him in a world that’s much more real and sometimes dour was interesting. It showed that even in the darkest times, he could still rise to the occasion and be the hero. Here’s hoping the Snyder Cut is decent and that we get more of Cavill’s Superman.

6. Superman: Secret Identity - Now, this was a fresh take on the character. One day, a young Clark Kent wakes up with the powers of Superman, who in this story is just a fictional character. Yeah, this Clark was never a Kryptonian immigrant, and his parents were apparently douches for naming him after Superman. We get to see Clark actually grow as a person through the miniseries. We see him rise, fall, get married, deal with the government, become a father, and grow old. Yeah, it doesn’t have the supervillains or the big theatrics, but it’s as valid as any Superman story.

5. All-Star Superman – I’m not the biggest fan of the Silver Age Superman, but All-Star Superman helped win me over if only a little. We have a character as close to a demigod in that story, and all he does is help people. Even when he’s klutzing it up as Clark Kent, he’s doing something to help folk. When he realizes that he’s about to die, he does all he can to help folk through his labors. Who does he think he is? Hercules? Anyway, it’s a good rendition. Grant Morrison can almost do no wrong. Just almost.

4. Donner Superman – Yeah, you know Christopher Reeve gotta be on here. He’s the first thing folk think of when someone says Superman. Reeve just sold the character. He was able to show all the best qualities of Superman. I’ve said this before, so I don’t need to say it again. Even though I’m not the biggest fan of his Clark Kent and some of the movies weren’t that good, Reeve was one of the reasons I became a fan.

3. Smallville Superman – Before anyone says that Tom Welling wasn’t Superman… shush! The dude had the role of Clark/Kal-El/Superman for ten years straight (over 200 episodes), wore some cool renditions of the suit, and did wear the suit in the end. He’s Superman in my book! Also, there’s Season 11 to consider if you want to get more technical. This was another thing that got me more invested in the character. We got to see Clark grow over 10 years. I liked that we got to see this Clark screw up and grow from those screw ups. This did what the Superboy comics did for folk back in the day. I also loved that the creators didn’t just stick to what was done before and did their own thing.

2. Kingdom Come Superman – Of all the alternate Supermen we’ve got over the years in comics, this is probably my favorite version. This Superman left the civilized world when humanity wanted a more brutal type of superhero. He only comes back when a tragedy strikes and he can’t take any more crap from vigilantes doing whatever they want. Kingdom Come takes this version as well as other heroes down a path where the right thing may not be the best thing, and even Kal-El (he abandoned his human name for a while) has to learn some tough lessons. There’s a reason why I think this is one of DC’s best. Also, that suit was the bomb!

1. DCAU Superman – Finally, we got what is, to me, the definitive Superman in other media. This beats all of the live-action series, movies, and other cartoons. While this version of Superman wasn’t the most powerful, he had everything that makes Superman work. He was earnest, bold, and had a nice solid uppercut. It also helped that Tim Daly and George Newburn did some dang good voice-acting over the various shows. It was always cool to see either of them return in other animated properties.

……………………………………………….

I know there are more versions out there, but I gotta stop somewhere. If any of your favorites didn’t make the list, let me know. Now, if you excuse me, I gotta put the finishing touches on this Truth storyline. Until then, Peace, God Bless, and be careful out there.

Random Smallville Episode - Infamous

Next up for the month is a return to Smallville. Since I got a bit of a motif this month with the whole “identity revealed” trope, I thought I would find one of those. Quite a few folk knew Clark’s identity on Smallville especially by the 8th season. At this point, the show had two hurdles they had to overcome: the departure of important actors (Michael Rosembaum and Kristen Kreuk) and the executive producers (Miles Millar and Alfred Gough). Still, I thought they were able to overcome them both. Season 8 is fine, but a bit rocky in places especially towards the end. Clark’s finally at the Daily Planet, he’s being more active in the superhero business, and he’s getting closer to Lois. Add the fact that Smallville starts to add more comic lore to the show, and you get a decent season.

Where we’re at during this point isn’t its best time though. At this point, we just got off a five-episode run where Kristen Kreuk returned to the role of Lana Lang. Also add the first appearance of Doomsday, the Legion of Superheroes, some J’onn Jones action, the death of Lex Luthor, and the horrible end of “Clana” in two of the worst episodes of the series (“Power” and “Requiem”). That run was a mixed bag and what we got would be a bit of a mix too. Tonight’s episode is “Infamous”, and it features the return of Erica Durance (was notably absent during the Lana episodes) and Tori Spelling as annoying gossiper Linda Lake.

Tales from the Trade - Man and Superman

Next up for the month is a look at an old but recent book. Back in 2006, DC was releasing a book called Superman Confidential. I don’t remember the purpose of the book, but I think it was supposed to show out-of-continuity stories as well as the early years of Superman. Think of it as Superman’s Legends of the Dark Knight. It had a rotating creative team.  I remember that Darwyn Cooke’s and Tim Sale’s “Kryptonite!” story started that off. That  reminds me, I need to read that one day. The series ultimately got cancelled after 14 issues.

One story that was supposed to make in was a story from Marv Wolfman. Man and Superman was the name the story was given. When I saw it 2019, I picked it off the stands since I have a liking for Wolfman. He helped mold the Post-Crisis Superman. My other guess on why this didn’t get released back then was because Geoff Johns was doing his own revamp of Superman’s first days with Secret Origin. The artwork was done by Claudio Castellini. Hi-Fi handled the colors while Tom Orzechowski did the letters. So, how much of a screw-up was Clark Kent during his first days as Superman, aka “Ski-Mask Man,” “Many Muscles Man”, and my favorite, “COVID-19 Man”?

Tales from the 50 Cent Bin! - DC Comics Presents #92

Next up for the month is another issue from the DC Comics Presents series. It was basically a Superman team-up book akin to Batman’s The Brave and the Bold book from the Bronze age. It started in 1977 and ended in 1986, sometime after Crisis on Infinite Earths. Even though the post-Crisis had started, there were some vestiges of the pre-Crisis Superman out there. I’ve read a couple here and there. As for this one, I found it in the 50 cent bin and finished it off on the DC app.

DC Comics Presents #92 was written by Paul Kupperburg. He had actually took over for Marv Wolfman for the book’s guest star, the Vigilante. I don’t remember much about this character other than the fact that he first appeared in New Teen Titans and that he had a cool costume. Reading this, I now realize that it’s someone else under that mask other than Adrian Chase, the original Vigilante. Curt Swan handled the pencils, Dave Hunt did the inks, Gene D’Angelo did the colors, and Helen Vesik did the letters. So, what gets Superman to team up with a potential murdering Vigilante? 

Tales from the $3.99 Bin! - Superman #18: "The Truth"

Next up is another big moment that Brian Michael Bendis pulled in his run on Superman: the revealing of Superman’s identity! I wasn’t a fan when I first heard this. I imagine most weren’t because this isn’t the first time in recent memory where DC’s revealed Clark’s double life to the world. That being said, I was curious on how it would be handled especially since the last time was… a bit much. I’ll get to that later this month. Luckily, Bendis did state that he would handle it differently, and when it came, I will admit that I was surprised. Superman #18 was written by Bendis, of course. Ivan Reis and Joe Prado, who have been regular artists on the book, handle the artwork.

Tales from the $3.99 Bin! - The Man of Steel (the Bendis Version)

Before I get to “The Truth”, I wanted to start at the beginning with Brian Michael Bendis’s run with Superman. I just found out yesterday that his run on Action and Superman will be ending. A lot is going on at DC these days, and this is just another one. I’ll have to read both Action Comics and Superman again, but his run is okay. I know it’s considered to be mixed with some folk, and I can’t blame them. It’s Bendis, after all.

BMB started his time with DC Comics with 2018’s The Man of Steel. Not only did he bring back the trunks (you can find my opinion here), he also brought in a new enemy to face the Man of Tomorrow. Bendis was joined with a variety of artists for these six issues. We had Ivan Reis, Jason Fabok, Doc Shaner, Steve Rude, Ryan Sook, Kevin Maguire, and Adam Hughes doing artwork. Ivan Reis also did all six awesome covers.

Tales from the 50 Cent Bin! - Superman #4: Bloodsport!

Yeah, I’m starting Superman Month a little late. At least I pretty much know what I’ll be talking about this time. First up, I’m heading back to the beginning of the Post-Crisis universe. This is more or less my era of Superman. Even though I started to get into comics in the mid-2000’s, I would peruse this era a bit. Today’s issue is Superman #4 from April 1987. We got John Byrne writing and on pencils, Karl Kesel on inks, John Costanza on letters, and Anthony Colin on the colors. One reason I picked this one out was because of the villain, Bloodsport, will be appearing in the next Suicide Squad movie. By the way, that took me for a surprise. So, what carnage did the first Bloodsport get up to?

Random Thoughts #55 - "2020, Are You Alright?" Part 2

2020: The year where things and stuff happened. To say that it’s been a weird year is an understatement. I remember that my last Random Thoughts post talked about how weird the year was already being. I wonder what Ryell from March would think now!  Not only is the Mamba (Kobe Bryant) gone, our King of Wakanda (Chadwick Boseman) is now gone. That was a shock to my system, and we’ve already been going through stuff. Anyway, strap in for some more Random Thoughts.

Random Thoughts On... Adventures of Superman (Black and White Era)

Well, I’m at the end of Superman Month. This month has been okay for the most part. It had its highs as well as some lows. At least I was able to get most of what I wanted to do done.  I would’ve ended off the month with my last post, but I didn’t get to finish watching the rest of this show’s second season until today. What is it, you may ask? Why it is … (finds announcer’s voice)… The Adventures of Superman!

So, I haven’t watched too many Superman related things before the 70’s. In fact, I don’t know where I first heard about this show. It could have been on the Superman documentary that was released around the time Superman Returns was being made. I’m not sure. All I know is that I hadn’t seen any of this show until about a couple of months ago. When the DC Universe app finally popped up, it was one of the first shows I added to my watch list. So far, I’ve only seen the first two seasons of the show which are the black-and-white seasons. So, I’m pretty much going to give my thoughts on these two for now.

Favorites - 10 Favorite Superman Movies

Well, I’m at the end of the month, and I gotta admit I’m kinda beat. There were a couple of other things I wanted to talk about, but most of those will have to wait. I’ve needed to get some house work done. Also, I’ve had some personal stuff draining me a bit. I’m fine, but I’ll get better and do better too.

Anyway, since I finally got caught up on the recent Superman animated movies, I wanted to do a different list. I wanted to list off my favorite Superman movies, and I’m not stopping at live-action either. While Superman doesn’t have as many movies as that Dark Knight guy, there are at least 10 out there I can throw on a list. They may also involve that Dark Knight guy, but considering the villains in those movies are mostly Superman villains, they apply. This isn’t going to be in any order, but I’ll list some major favorites off in the beginning. First, I might as well mention a couple that didn’t make it. Whether they’re honorable is a matter for debate:

• Superman Returns – Yeah, it’s up here and you pretty much know why. While the cast (except for Kate Bosworth) was nice and that plane sequence was awesome, this was a subpar entry. The story homaged Superman: the Movie way too much. Also, it made some changes to Superman that felt kinda weird. Even Superman’s reason for leaving Earth in it was weird. Add that fact that it felt like it didn’t know what it wanted to be. Tying it to the Donnerverse wasn’t the best move.
• Superman 4: The Quest for Peace – Speaking of the Donnerverse, we have its worst entry. Yeah, some could say that Superman 3 is just as bad, but I can at least find some good things in that movie. Not so here. Yes, Christopher Reeve and Gene Hackman are in good form here. Also, the concept of Superman facing nuclear proliferation was good. Unfortunately, this was a Cannon Films production. The effects were lazy, the story had problems, and quite a bit got cut out of the film.
• Superman: Doomsday – I had to add DC’s first official animated movie to the list. While the movie did house some nice visuals, had an okay story, and a fine cast, it was just okay. The fact that’s a really loose adaptation doesn’t help matters. Also, what they replaced with that story wasn’t really up to snuff. By the way, what was up with Superman’s face??? Those lines… why? At least we finally got a better adaptation of that story years later.

Tales from the 50 Cent Bin! - Superman: Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite

Next up for the month is a return to the 90’s. I could probably say that the early 90’s were good for the Man of Steel. I’d probably say that the post-Crisis in general was pretty good. Yeah, you’d get some bad stuff here and there, but you get that in every era. Superman was powerful but not too overpowered, he got on with Lois, and he had a nice supporting cast of characters.

I was looking for a small arc to do, and I stumbled upon this story. “Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite” was released during November of 1990. It crossed over into the three books at the time: Superman #49-50, Adventures of Superman #472, and Action Comics #659. It was especially a momentous occasion since something major happened in Superman #50. The writers were Jerry Ordway, Dan Jurgens, and Roger Stern. On pencils, you mainly had Ordway, Jurgens, and Bob McLeod (of the clan McLeod). On Superman #50, you had other pencillers enter the fray like Curt Swan, John Byrne, and Kerry Gammill. So, what happens when Superman loses his powers and gets engaged? Oh yeah… that happens here.