[SPOILER] Confirmed As Dead and Gone For Good In Superman: Rebirth

SPOILERS ahead for Superman: Rebirth #1, out today.

Today's Superman: Rebirth #1 is a slow-burn character piece, in which Superman meets the post-Flashpoint version of his childhood friend and sometime paramour Lana Lang.

Along the way, he tells her of his death at the hands of Doomsday in 1992's Superman #75 and his resurrection as a result of a confluence of events and individuals on the pre-Flashpoint Earth.

And, to their mutual sorrow, he comes to realize that the New 52 Superman -- who gave his life in last week's Superman #52 at the end of the "Finaly Days of Superman" storyline -- is now truly gone.

The post-Flashpoint Superman was far more "dead" than Superman was when he died against Doomsday to start with: seemingly disintegrated into a pile of sand, it was those remains that were eventually buried in Smallville alongside Jon and Martha Kent in today's issue.

Why sand? Well, I've got a theory on that, actually, but it's largely beside the point for the purpose of today's piece. You can check it out below if you're interested.

The big upshot of this issue is that the pre-Flashpoint Superman is going to be Superman. That's unfortunately something that was inevitably spoiled by solicitations, so you lose a little of the narrative punch of the issue. That said, it's an exciting move, and they managed to do it this week via a trip down memory lane that my fellow '90s Superman fans will love.

But, at least for now, the New 52 Superman is very much dead and not coming back.

...Of course, The Eradicator was one of the key parts of reviving Superman after the Doomsday fight...and he's coming up in Superman #2...!