Superman is the original superhero and the gold standard for every one that came after him. He is the perfect embodiment of heroism in every regard, and thus, there have been some pretty amazing stories written about him over the years. I’d say that Superman stars in some of the greatest comics of all time, and he is something more than just another superhero. Superman is an inspiration, something we should all aspire to be. However, despite all of this, I didn’t always love the Man of Steel. At one point I used to hate him. Before I really got into comic books I fell for the classic lie that Superman is boring.
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For years I avoided every Superman comic because I had no interest in him. How could the man who can never lose be interesting? My initial distaste for Superman was only confounded by the first ever comic series that I read all the way through.
A Bad First Impression of Superman: Injustice: Gods Among Us (Years 1-5)
The Injustice comics were my first foray into the comic book world, and more than a passing glance at Superman. Unfortunately, while these books cover every corner of the DC Universe and act as a great way to get introduced to the many characters that live in it, they are a horrible way to learn about Superman. Based on the video game whose entire premise is Superman turns evil, the books offer a broken, cynical look at Superman as he transitions from a hero to a true supervillain. These books solidified my dislike of his character, and I fully blame this game and comic for popularizing the idea that Superman is always one step from turning evil, or that he is a better character when evil. While a good crash course in names and powersets, a good introduction to superheroes this book is not. My dislike of Superman continued for a good while, until I tried another of his comics on a whim.
My Proper Introduction to the Hero: Superman: The Final Days of Superman
This book details the death of the New 52’s Prime Earth version of Superman, and how the pre-New 52 New Earth version existed in the shadows and took up the mantle. I had followed the New 52 books through other heroes like Batman and the Flash, but this book brought my focus to Superman for the first time. This is a heartbreaking story of a man who finds out he is dying, and tries to do as much good as he can before he goes. It calls on a lot of the emotional beats of All-Star Superman, though I didn’t know it at the time. It made me interested to learn more about Superman, and why the news of his death had such a major impact on everyone around him. I wanted to know why he was important. This story created the perfect jumping on point to follow the Rebirth line of Superman comics, which I did, but not at first. While I waited for those comics to come out, I turned my attention to the past, to Superman’s origin.
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Who Superman Really Is: Superman: Secret Origin
In my quest to understand the Man of Steel I found this comic, which some consider to be his definitive origin story. Secret Origin tackles the beginning of Superman’s hero career, detailing how he unlocked more and more of his powers as a kid, to meeting the Legion of Super-Heroes, to his first appearance in Metropolis. While the teasing of Superman’s deep lore and the fantastic art were strong points that helped sell it, the real part of this story that hooked me was the emotional core of it. It showed Superman as a good man in a cold and cynical world, and it wasn’t used for laughs or to make him change. Instead, he changed the world around him for the better. He made people believe in him, and made me believe in him too. I go back and reread this and every other story below this one a lot, because they taught me exactly who Superman is.
A Hero at the Heart of DC: Doomsday Clock
This sequel to the classic Watchmen graphic novel is notorious for its downright criminal release schedule, taking over two years to publish twelve issues. Despite that, I was glued to each new issue, and by the end I realized that not only was this story a sequel to Watchmen and the culmination of the Rebirth relaunch that brought back old and beloved continuity, it was also a love letter to Superman. The plot of the story revolves around the eventual confrontation between Superman and Doctor Manhattan, with Manhattan assuming either Superman will kill him or he will kill everything. When they met, Manhattan revealed he manipulated the entire timestream by changing Superman’s life, how he made his life darker and removed his mentors and killed his friends, all to drive him to this moment. And how did Superman respond? He saved Doctor Manhattan from a villain who was going to sneak attack him. Superman saved his worst enemy, and in turn, Manhattan saved everyone else because Superman inspired him. Superman made Doctor Manhattan feel human again, and Manhattan narrates how Superman is the beating heart of the DC Universe, how the entire thing revolves around his spirit, his heroism. It made me realize what he meant to the world.
A Shining Example: Superman: Up in the Sky
This is maybe my favorite Superman comic of all time, and one of my favorite books of all time in general. This comic follows Superman’s quest across the entire universe, facing impossible challenges and overcoming endless trials, all to save a little girl who was kidnapped. This story shows exactly what Superman’s driving force is; his endless love and compassion. The comic asks how far Superman is willing to go to save one life, and Superman replies that he’s already on his way because that person needs him. Distance doesn’t matter. Impossibility doesn’t matter. Superman will always find a way to help someone who needs his help. Superheroes can’t save everyone, but Superman makes the case that at the very least you have to try to, and try and succeed he does. This story said that yes, Superman will always win, but the interesting part about Superman isn’t the fighting or the action, it’s how he saves everyone.
The Ultimate Superman Story: Superman: The Warworld Saga
By this point I was already hopelessly in love with Superman’s character, but this story really is something special. It didn’t just show me how Superman’s moral struggle is the heart of his character, but how to show an engaging Superman story on all fronts. I believe it is the perfect encapsulation of a great Superman comic. The saga follows Superman invading Mongul’s gladiatorial Warworld in an effort to save the people he has enslaved, however the Man of Steel is captured and forced to fight in the arena too. Importantly, Superman’s allies have ways of escaping and shutting off the red sun generators that are sapping his powers, but Superman refuses because that would mean killing the trapped people. As he sat in the overcrowded cell, beaten and bloody and powerless, Midnighter asked Superman why the enslaved gladiator’s lives mattered more to him than his own team. Superman replied that they didn’t matter more, but they didn’t matter any less either. Those words have always stuck with me, and they explain everything about Superman. This comic demonstrates that Superman’s ideals aren’t childish, rather it shows exactly how he works to bring about a better world for everyone. His fight is important.
Diving into Superman’s character and learning about him taught me so much. About superheroes, and about being a good person in general. It showed me that the popular idea of subverting Superman as an evil monster, like with Homelander and Injustice Superman, is missing the entire point of his character. Superman is a good man trying to help people whenever he can, and inspire us to be better too. He wants the best for everyone. He’s not boring, instead his struggle to save people that often do not want it as he fights against forces impossible and incomprehensible is the farthest thing from boring. He is exactly as strong as he needs to be, and that’s amazing. If you have any doubts about liking Superman, trust me, these stories will convince you to love him as much as I do. And if you want more, there are a thousand other incredible Superman stories out there too. Believe me, you’ll definitely be wanting more.
What stories made you love Superman? Let us know in the comments!
