Superman is the embodiment of hope in the DC Universe. He is the original superhero who set the standard for everyone who came after him. Superman first appeared as the Champion of the Oppressed and has always fought to protect the innocent and save everyone. He is the inspiration for the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century, who usher in an age of heroism like no other. Superman is the literal central point of DC, to the point where the entire multiverse is structured around the hope and heroism he exudes, and affecting his life affects the entire universe around him. Superman is the heart of DC, and that’s what makes the Absolute Universe so dangerous.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Instead of being structured around Superman’s goodness, the Absolute Universe is skewed towards Darkseid’s evil. This universe leaned towards Superman before Darkseid infected it, meaning that he is still the greatest threat to Darkseid’s master plan. He sent his agents directly after Superman and put him through so much agony that it nearly broke his spirit. However, Superman still refused to give in. Absolute Superman #14 brought Superman lower than ever, so he could fly even higher.
A Boy Without a Home or Name
Kal-El’s life has been hard since the very beginning. He grew up in the red dirt of Krypton, where the caste system kept him beaten down. He watched his planet die around him because the elites refused to help save anything more than themselves. He was the sole survivor and drifted through space for a year before arriving on Earth. He had a brief moment of peace with the Kents, only for that to be ripped away by the same type of corruption on Earth. He was on the run for years, watching humanity destroy itself, refusing to take any name.
Everything came to a head in the final battle against the Lazarus Corporation in Absolute Superman #14. After weeks of defending Smallville from the army of Peacemakers, Brainiac hacked Sol and turned their sanctuary into their death trap. To save everyone, Sol deleted himself. Superman was left truly alone, the last survivor of Krypton. He was bloodied and broken by Ra’s al Ghul’s Kryptonite sword, with the villain demanding that Superman either kill him or submit to being his son. Superman wanted to give in, to surrender himself and see his family again in the afterlife, but despite everything, he kept getting back up.
In the middle of the fight, a Peacemaker grabbed Superman, and Ra’s attacked him for laying a hand on his supposed son. He tried to kill the man, but Superman saved even his enemy’s life. After a long, brutal fight, Superman finally beat Ra’s. The villain demanded that Superman kill him to bring justice, and Superman found justice. He flew Ra’s to Pakistan, where his men had killed dozens of civilians, and left him to face their judgment. Even in the midst of the darkest part of his life, he found a way to save the day without bloodshed and restore hope by finding true justice.
Heroes Find Better Ways
Superman had every reason and incentive to kill Ra’s, or at least to let him kill his own men. And yet, despite everything, Superman went out of his way to save everyone’s lives. His refusal to kill only made Ra’s and Brainiac attack him harder, torture him more, but he still kept to his morals long after he stopped believing in them. Superman found a way to save the day without compromising or crossing the line. Even when he was consumed by more anger than most people can imagine, he remembered that stopping Ra’s wasn’t about punishing him; it was about setting right the wrongs he committed and keeping people safe.
Superman restored choice to people whom everyone looked down on or overlooked entirely, which is the true essence of being a hero. He accepted that every life, no matter how vile or small, was just as important as every other life. He saved even his greatest enemies’ lives. What greater test of goodness is there than doing the right thing when it hurts you? Even in the darkest timeline he’s ever been a part of, when he was raised in pain and lost everything he ever loved, Superman found a way to hold on to hope, and became a symbol of overcoming darkness. No matter how hard Darkseid pushes, Superman will always embody hope and will always be the Earth’s greatest hero.
Absolute Superman #14 is on sale now!
What do you think? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
Most Viewed
-
Image Courtesy of Crunchyroll -
Image courtesy of Valve -
Image Courtesy of Marvel Comics -
Image courtesy of Valve
