DC Has a Major Problem With Superman’s Children and Now Its an Issue

Superman is the most iconic superhero of all time. Everyone knows the story of an alien refugee who was flung to Earth to escape the destruction of his home planet, being raised by kindly farmers to become the greatest hero that the world will ever know. He constantly inspires others to stand up and do the right thing, showing everyone how best to fight for truth, justice, and a better tomorrow. Superman represents the best parts of ourselves, tackling themes like belonging, immigration, and being kind in a world that demands you be anything but. One of the biggest themes that defines who Superman is and how he acts is fatherhood.

Superman has always been defined by fatherhood. His birth father, Jor-El, was the man who created the rocket to save his life. His adopted father, Jonathan Kent, guided Clark’s character and taught him the nature of responsibility with his powers. Superman himself is the father of the superhero genre, acting as the caring hand that directs the heroic community. Everyone looks up to him and, frankly, the man was practically made to be a father. Yet, even though this seems like the most natural evolution of his character, it took seventy-seven years for Superman to permanently become a father. Before that, and even after Jon, DC has had no idea how to make Superman a dad, and it’s become a serious problem.

The Many Failed Children of Steel

DC has introduced many Super-children over the years. Superman’s Silver Age adventures featured countless imaginary stories where Superman had one or more children, such as Superman Jr. or Kal-El II and Jor-El II. These children were never meant to be permanent, instead showing fans what it would look like for the Man of Tomorrow to be a father while never imagining he would actually become one. The first canon child Superman had was Gregor Nagy, a shapeshifter Superman adopted after the death of his father. Gregor debuted and died in Action Comics #400. That set the precedent for all of Superman’s future children.

Other notable children include Ariella Kent, the daughter of Superman and Linda Danvers (not his cousin), Cir-El, a human woman from the future imprinted with Superman and Lois’s DNA, Jonathan Lane Kent, son of Superman and Lois from a potential future, Chris Kent, the son of General Zod that Superman and Lois adopted, and Thunderboy, a young man Superman adopted who would one day become Magog. Most recently, Superman and Lois adopted Osul and Otho-Ra, Phaelosian refugees from Warworld. Superman has had plenty of children over the years, with many of these notable characters meant to stick around for at least some time. However, ultimately, none of these characters left a mark except Jon Kent, and there’s a major reason for that.

DC Has Never Committed to Superman’s Future

Comic books are infamous for their status quo. They know what sells, and are very reluctant to change that. Of course, they also plan to tell stories with the same characters for the foreseeable future, so they want a standard understanding of the character that everyone can recognize and fall back on. However, while that keeps heroes recognizable, it kills any major shakeups to their character. DC is especially cautious with introducing major changes to Superman. He’s their face, the best-known hero in the entire world, so they are naturally very, very careful with him. Heck, it took Superman and Lois nearly sixty years to finally tie the knot. However, DC definitely wants their cake and to eat it, too. 

DC has wanted to tell the stories about Superman being a father without ever committing to him staying one. This has led to all kinds of children being introduced, only to either die, turn evil, or completely disappear from the comics. The most egregious victims of these changes are definitely Chris and the Super-Twins. Chris was unceremoniously aged up and then cut ties with his adopted parents for seemingly no reason, becoming a villain and his biological dad’s heir when the New 52 rebooted everything. The fact that Jon is Superman’s second son who was aged prematurely makes me even more livid than I was before, frankly.

And then there’s the Super-Twins, who only ever appear in Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s work with the Man of Steel. They were clearly meant to appease fans who still shouted for Jon to be de-aged, but while they are incredible characters with rich storytelling potential, literally every Superman comic that Johnson doesn’t write ignores them. You’d think they’re Elseworld characters with how little they appear outside their creator’s works. Ultimately, it all boils down to DC not wanting to take the risk of shaking up Superman’s status quo, but still wanting to tell stories with this premise.

Superman is a fantastic dad, but even with the son DC allowed him to keep, he lost out on most of his childhood years. Fatherhood, despite being so essential to Superman’s character, seems to be one plot that DC will stay reluctant to tread. Jon, at least, was introduced and stuck, emerging as the ultimate sign that the Superman he came attached to was older and more experienced than the New 52 version. He was living proof of Superman both returning to an older status quo and evolving in a meaningful, impactful way. Of course, as much as Jon stuck, DC let him languish for seven years, too, so even that is a challenge for them. 

At the end of the day, Superman is a great dad given terrible opportunities to show it, and DC needs to decide how they want him to proceed as a father. So many incredible characters have languished because DC couldn’t commit one way or the other. Now more than ever, with the Super-Twins likely being about to disappear from the Man of Steel’s comics for good at the end of Adventures of Superman: The Book of El, DC has to decide if Superman can be the father he’s always wanted to be or not.

Which of Superman’s disappeared kids do you hope makes a comeback? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!

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