Superman Spoiler: New Parents’ Death Story

Warning, this article contains spoilers for Action Comics #17, which is due to be released in comic book stores on Wednesday, February 20, 2013. However, the spoilers come from preview pages released by DC Comics to IO9.com, so they are officially released spoilers that fans are likely to encounter anyway if they go online today.While the death story of Superman’s adoptive parents Jonathan and Martha Kent has changed in the past, Action #17 offers up a brand new spin that hasn’t been done before. Previous stories of Superman’s adpotive parents dying have involved death by heart attack, death by disease, and death by old age.In Action Comics #17, it will be a car wreck that kills the Kents. Martha Kent apparently dies instantly in the car crash, while Jonathan Kent initially survives and is taken to a hospital. In the hospital, Jonathan Kent tells his adoptive son Clark, “Martha’s dead, but I saw angels, Clark — and they gathered her up. I’m going to die, I know that. I want to die at home.”Clark honors his father’s wishes and carries Jonathan Kent home to die. As Jonathan lies on his death bed, he makes Clark promise to use his powers for good and to become a champion of the downtrodden. It will be interesting to see if this new version of Jonathan and Martha Kent’s death is carried over into the new Man of Steel movie.