Enter Bizarro - Dueling Pencils (and Plotlines)

Superboy #68 (October 1958)
"The Boy of Steel Versus the Thing of Steel"
Otto Binder-George Papp

The Man of Steel #5 (December 1986)

"The Mirror, Crack'd"

John Byrne-Byrne/Dick Giordano

Doug: Yup -- half a century old, am I. I know I'm joining a club populated by many of our Bronze Age Babies, and I trust you'll treat me kindly in this land of AARP. Now if I could only remember what issue I'm supposed to review today...

Funny that I'm joking about being forgetful; well, maybe it's not even forgetful. I think it was William many a'moon ago (when we solicited ideas for posts) who queried what we had collected on our shelves but had never read. I can attest to owning The Greatest Superman Stories Ever Told, but have not read all of the tales contained therein -- and quite honestly have not cracked the book in perhaps 20 years. Figuring it had been awhile since I reviewed a Superman yarn (I've been really heavy on the Bat-side of DC lately, but that's the lion's share of what I have from those folks), I thought I'd check the table of contents of the "Greatest" trade. Now I've remarked several times that I've always been a Superboy guy, never Superman (well, not never). So when I saw Superboy #68 sitting there, and it was the 1st appearance of Bizarro to boot, I knew I was going to review it. But after I read it, I was like "Hey, wait a minute..." So I dug up our BAB review of Man of Steel #5, and darned if Anonymous (one of the most common baby names of the mid-60s) didn't comment:

Anonymous said...

Two things:
(1) at the time of the miniseries, Byrne stated that the purpose of the Bizarro story was to show Superman's first encounter with a super powered foe;
(2) the blindness thing is a call back to the first Bizarro story - where something similar happened. Bizarro died - and when he blew up, he cured a blind person (though I don't think it was Lucy Lane).

So there you have it -- cart planted squarely in front of horse. But you know that's not fair, so howzabout we take a look at these two stories, told almost 30 years apart, and see how similar they are? For those keeping score at home, I am going to blend in thoughts about Man of Steel #5 from mine and Karen's original review of that  publication.

The Creations: In Superboy #68, our young Kryptonian has visited a Professor Dalton, who is about to conduct a very important experiment. Dalton thinks he has invented a "Duplicator Ray" that will be able to exactly reproduce any material. His first attempt is on radium -- because after all, the 1950s was all about radioactivity. The radium that's created is a dud -- no radiation whatsoever. Dalton then turns his ray on a jewel, but it proceeds to melt like ice. Frustrated, he declares himself a failure. Ever empathetic, all Superboy can utter is, "Too bad, Professor! Well, I'll be on my way!" (at this point, please do yourself a favor and head on over to superdickery.com for more bad manners (and etc.) from Superboy, Superman, and a host of other comics bores). You know, it would serve Superboy right if that ray got turned on him and made an indestructible duplicate of him. Yeah -- that would fix smart-mouthed Superboy! And so it happened. But the duplicate, who we are repeatedly assured is some form of non-life (nevermind that it feels, thinks, has emotions, et al.), is soon out of the lab and on the loose and heading straight for mischief.

Skip ahead approximately 30 years and...

Lex enters a large laboratory where a Dr. Teng, dissident Chinese scientist, labors over a large sarcophagus. We learn that Luthor had his offices layered with cameras and untold diagnostic equipment that captured every iota of information about Superman while he was on the premises. The doctor then used that data to program his technology to create an exact duplicate of the Man of Steel. One problem, however: The equipment was infallible for any sort of terran lifeform. It's at this moment that Lex deduces that Superman could very likely be an alien. The professor unveils his creation, cautioning Luthor that it has been a failure. The sarcophagus is opened and out steps an entranced doppelganger of Superman... who then immediately collapses on the floor, and begins to crystallize. Luthor, enraged, grabs his hired hand and offers that he truly hopes he has not wasted his $100 million investment.  But just as quickly, he orders the creature removed -- Luthor is going home to Metropolis.

Close Encounters of the Bizarro Kind: Bizarro, being duplicated from Superboy, is somewhat aware of Superboy's life and surroundings. As such, he shows up at the Kents', the Kents' neighbors' home, and in various places around Smallville. Overall, he scares people. He is one goofy-looking dude. But there's a real innocence about him, child-like. He wants to fit in, and most of all to be loved. But everyone seems afraid of him and often runs the other way. As Bizarro sits alone on the curb crying, he's approached by a pretty teenaged girl who asks him what's wrong. She tells him that he seems kindly enough, a gentle soul. Bizarro is about to bust, and he flies away to tell a farm family who had humored him earlier. And then we learn that the girl is blind.

In the John Byrne version...

In Metropolis, we get to see Lois Lane's apartment and meet her sister Lucy. We learn immediately that some sort of tragic accident has recently befallen Lucy and her sight has been lost. Lois tries to encourage her, but Lucy is obviously depressed. Byrne depicts the sullen Lucy seated alone, head in hand. Cut away to the streets, where an ambulance careens out of control. A blown tire brings the vehicle to an abrupt stop, but since it is carrying a patient the situation is even more dire. Suddenly a familiar pair of red boots lands and hoists the vehicle.  It is very soon spirited to the closest hospital. As the crew emerges to thank Superman, a look of surprised horror crosses their faces. We see the Man of Steel's foggy reflection in the ambulance window, but cannot make out what must have spooked the EMTs.

Back at Lois' highrise, Lucy has moved onto the balcony and is poised to leap. She asks to herself that Lois forgive her, and pushes away. She doesn't fall far before blue-clothed arms reach out and scoop her away from her desired death. Taken back to the balcony, she's gently set down. She asks if her benefactor is Superman, but he says nothing. She feels him fly away, and is puzzled as to why he wouldn't speak. Cut away then to the Daily Planet, where Lois has arrived to work. After some banter, Jimmy (still sportin' that bowtie) asks if anyone has heard about the break-in at a men's store next door. Seems the perp busted thousands of dollars of plate glass to swipe a $100 suit, and left alone a jewelry store right next door! Clark uses his telescopic vision to peer down into the lobby and notices an odd duck wearing a sport coat over what looks to be a red cape. In a really nifty panel, Byrne gives us the first Superman quick-change and the Man of Steel emerges in the lobby to question this weirdo. Trouble is, when the guy turns around, he's an ashen duplicate of -- Superman! 

Attempted Destruction: Wow - the 1950s must have been pretty reckless. Superboy tries to subdue Bizarro by flying into space in a leaden suit of armor to retrieve a Kryptonite asteroid which he uses in an attempt to murder Bizarro (unless you believe that the creature was inanimate, as is continually suggested). When that fails, actually afflicting Superboy due to a counter-attack by Bizarro, the Teen of Steel asks his army buddies to bring out the conventional weapons. Seriously -- tanks, mortar shells, flamethrowers, you name it. With no positive results, Superboy suggests he be allowed to drop an A-bomb on Bizarro. You read that right. Remember in Kingdom Come when Kansas was obliterated? Superboy drops an atomic bomb on his doppelganger, who catches it and hurls it to the moon.  I'm not making this up. With nowhere else to turn, Superboy engages Bizarro directly.

But in Metropolis...

(Continued from above) The new guy on the block doesn't talk much, but he does pack a wallop! Superman is sent reeling out of the building, landing in the middle of a city bus. He urges the passengers to stay put and heads back out to confront his assailant. We get a good look at the guy, who is fully garbed in a navy blue (not royal blue) Superman suit and what looks to be Clark Kent's wardrobe! Superman soon finds that this imposter possesses all of his powers, including his vast strength. When Lois comes on the scene, Superman decides it would be beneficial to rid his enemy of the civvies. As Superman takes a shot, Lois comes closer -- close enough that she draws the creature's attention. He grasps her wrist and flies her away.

Lois decides that she'll try to talk to the "guy". But when she does, he turns his full attention to her, and kisses her! In a nice piece of writing, Byrne has Lois think, "I don't believe it! Five years I've been dreaming of being kissed by Superman..." Anyway, the creature lands on the same balcony to which he'd deposited Lucy earlier in the story. She is still outside, and can see Lois and "Superman" approaching! Lucy approaches the doppelganger, but as she moves to touch his face, the real Superman arrives. He tries to move the ladies to safety, but is pummeled by his duplicate. They engage, and Superman is hurled straight down into the street. He notices that some sort of powder has rubbed off on his fist and sleeve. Looking at it with his telescopic vision, he notes that it is inorganic -- the creature isn't alive. "Our ugly friend is some kind of android -- an artificial being -- just one step ahead of a robot!"

 
Endgame: Spent for suggestions, Superboy heads back to Smallville to see if there isn't something he can think of that he can use to get rid of Bizarro. The creature follows him back to town, but as Bizarro arrives he falls from the sky -- as if under the influence of Kryptonite. But having exhausted that as an option, Superboy races to find the substance that has affected Bizarro. Flying by Professor Dalton's lab, he sees a custodian emptying the remnants of Dalton's Duplicator Ray machine and notices that the parts emit a glow... hazardous waste? Pfah! Grabbing a huge piece, Superboy threatens to end Bizarro's existence; although Bizarro retorts and uses the word "kill". Bizarro, in typical Bizarro fashion, flies directly at the Teen of Steel.

In the Post-Crisis Superman revamp...
 
Superman rockets upward as the creature turns toward him. Suddenly it launches downward and the two meteors strike head on. Superman emerges apparently no worse for the wear, but the creature is nowhere to be found.

Eyesight to the Blind: As Bizarro impacted Superboy's metal plate, he exploded into dust particles. A distance away, Melissa felt the impact and was awash in waves of the dust particles. Suddenly her eyesight returned!

 And finally, in 1986...

Bizarro exploded into a huge cloud of dust and crystal particles. And it's those particles that apparently cured Lucy's blindness. Superman is complimented for taking the action that cured Lucy; however, the Man of Steel muses that he really didn't know it would work out that way... but the creature must have.

I feel the need to offer some additional thoughts on Superboy #68, as this comparative post will serve as the review of the story. It was certainly one of those Silver Age books that, with the right mindset, could be enjoyable. I'm sad to say, however, that my mind might not have been exactly positioned in that manner. The basics of the story were fine -- plot, art, etc. But oh the dialogue... I was reminded early and often why as a kid I loathed Superman comics. Generally speaking, Superboy comics tended to avoid the following, but all are in full use here: telescopic vision, super-strength, super-breath, heat vision, super-wits, super-hearing, super-force, super-ventriloquism, super-blows, super-judo... as well as super-vibration, super-impact, and super-inspiration. Whew! Otto Binder actually used every one of those terms in a 24-page story. And it wore me out.

I enjoyed the art, but again through the lens of the Silver Age. I don't know how much George Papp art I've ever seen, but this was pleasing to the eye and appropriate to the subject matter. Papp's art fit in with the "aw, shucks!" sense I get from stories of this vintage.

If you made the jump above to our Man of Steel review, you saw Karen and I comment on John Byrne's attitude toward Bizarro and how it seemed to preface what he'd do to the Vision a few years hence in the pages of West Coast Avengers. I felt in Byrne's treatment, and especially in Binder's script, that Bizarro was too easily discarded as some form of non-life. You ask me, the dude was alive. Also, and in closing because I've taken enough time out of your day, I'd add that Binder's scientific explanations throughout the Superboy tale are at once charming and "say what?!", but most of all pretty dumb.

But I'd read that story again -- it was addictive in a "why am I eating this" sort of way.

Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? Action Comics 583

Action Comics #583 (September 1986)(cover by Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson)
"Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, part two"
Alan Moore-Curt Swan/Kurt Schaffenberger

Doug: Welcome back to the conclusion of the tale that ended the run of the original Superman. Two weeks ago we reviewed the first installment from Superman #423. Both of us remarked that the art was a bit off -- if you'll recall, that first story in the 2-parter was drawn by Curt Swan with inks by George Perez. While both men are among the greats of the industry (truly of any time throughout the history of the comic book), the combination just seemed odd to us. Today, however, we find Swan on the lead again but this time embellished by veteran Silver Age Superman artist Kurt Schaffenberger. We'll see how we like it. One thing's for sure, and I said this at the top last time: this ain't yer daddy's Superman story!

Karen: Some of our regular readers remarked in the first half of this review on how they felt Moore was perhaps not the best choice to write this final tale of the Silver Age Superman. I think for me, as someone who reveres Superman as the first super-hero but has no special feelings or fondness for the character, it's easier to read through this story, so serious and final, and accept it for what it is.

Doug: Perhaps it's Moore's distance from the character (he'd written Superman only a couple of times prior to this story, I believe) that allows us to stomach this story. Had it been commissioned to Elliott S! Maggin or some other Bronze Age Superman scribe, it most likely would not have turned out this way (for better or for worse). But I feel that those who eschew Moore's superhero work at DC have a point. We've not reviewed The Killing Joke yet, but the outcome of that story for Batgirl has certainly left more than a few Silver and Bronze Age fans with a bad taste in their mouths.

Doug: We open where we began the first part -- at the home of Lois Elliot (nee Lane). As Tim Crane continues the interview, Lois's husband, Jordan, enters. He's a big guy, sort of down-home looking with a speech pattern that matches. Crane remarks to Elliot that he hopes he doesn't mind the interview about Superman. Elliot comes off as a real jerk when he states that Superman wasn't anything special. Lois doesn't flinch, but it seemed really callous. As Elliot leaves the room, Lois picks up the story where she left off -- in the Fortress of Solitude right before the siege began. Superman used his heat vision to melt the giant key, effectively locking him and his friends inside. But outside, the death-dealers began to mass.

Karen: "Jordy" hardly seems like the kind of guy Lois would settle down with, right? I can already tell you, I'm more comfortable with the art in this issue than in the previous one. It doesn't seem like it's fighting itself, you know what I mean?

Doug: First to arrive to the Fortress were the new Brainiac-Luthor combination with the Kryptonite Man in tow. Brainiac walks Luthor's body boldly off the aircraft, when a time bubble suddenly appears. Disembarking are the Legion of Super-Villains: Cosmic King, Saturn Woman, and Lightning Lord. They have come to see the final fate of the Man of Steel at the hands of his greatest enemy. Of course Brainiac calculates that it must be him for all of his wrongdoing through the years. But the Villains tell Brainiac that Superman's friends will come to his aid; Brainiac heads into his ship to erect an impenetrable forcefield around the Fortress of Solitude. Even just a few pages into this, the ill feeling of death and destruction that had come over me while reading part one was again weighing on me. Alan Moore was crafting a story unlike we'd seen in DC Comics to this point (one could argue that Gerry Conway had done a story of similar magnitude in Amazing Spider-Man #s 121-122).

Karen: You wouldn't think the situation could feel so dire with such classic Silver Age art and characters like the Legion of Super-Villains hanging around. Yet I share your assessment. There's a definite feeling that all of this is very wrong, which of course is what they were going for.

Doug: I think the fact that the LoSV showed up to watch is its own kind of morbidity. So in a throwback to the days when the Great Refuge was encased in a field that kept Johnny from Crystal, we see the Fortress under a huge yellow dome. Using conventional weapons Brainiac had brought on his ship, the villains began to assault the Fortress. Superman fought back from afar with his heat vision and even ventured outside with Krypto to attempt a full engagement. The Kryptonite Man nixed that strategy. Outside the dome the Justice League assembled, but couldn't punch their way through. As evening turned to night, a stalemate was declared. Superman stopped by Perry White's room and sought his counsel. Perry remarked that he'd just been sitting around, thinking about the doom that was coming, and of divorcing his wife Alice. Superman said that he felt that he was going to die soon, and lamented that he'd strung both Lois and Lana along all these years with no intention of fulfilling either relationship. He commented that he'd been a coward.

Karen: Not to break the mood, but why were Batman and Robin just hitting the force field with what looked like sticks? Good grief! I think someone needed to put a little more thought into that one. But onto the meat of this segment: Superman's talk/confession to Perry. It's disturbing to have Superman state that he believes he's going to die. He just keeps clutching that statuette that the Legion gave him and staring at it. It's as if he's staring at his own tombstone, or monument, perhaps. The fact that he recognizes that he's wronged both Lois and Lana all these years throws a different light on the Superman of the Silver Age who seemed to fall for every woman with the initials "L.L." -Lana, Lois, Lori Lemaris, Lyla Lerrol, Luma Lynai! It always seemed so callous of him to let these women pine over him. Perhaps there was more to it?

Doug: It's funny that you mention that scene with Batman and Robin. I got a real Super Friends vibe from that -- very childlike in nature. In regard to Superman and his women, and his ignoring of their love for him, it's a whole new level of Superdickery.

Doug: In another part of the Fortress, Jimmy and Lana ran into each other while exploring. Both were looking for a way to help Superman, and both knew that Superman kept elements of their super-heroic pasts in the Fortress. Jimmy found the Elastic Lad serum, but I was a bit confused (showing my Superman-lore ignorance here) at Lana taking a dip in some sort of super-power enhancing bath. I had expected her to don the Insect Queen garb, but instead she came out dressed in a costume I did not know. Anyway, as part of Lana's powerset, she had all of the powers of Superman, including super-hearing. She was able to hear Supe's confession to Perry, that as a child he had loved Lana, but as an adult he loved Lois with all his heart. He said he'd never tell Lois he loved her, as that would hurt Lana -- and he'd never hurt Lana. So with that forbidden knowledge now her own, Lana led Jimmy outside to attempt to break through the barrier.

Karen: Moore did his homework obviously! I too only knew of Lana's Insect Queen identity, from reading so many Legion comics. Superman's statement about the two loves of his life really made sense, although it does seem cowardly when you come right down to it. He should have let Lana move on. It does however, help to explain what seemed to be a very cruel pattern of behavior by the Man of Steel for many years! Lana's determination to show everyone that "Nobody loved him better than us!" is just crushing.

Doug: Lana and Jimmy take it right to Brainiac and the Legion of Super-Villains. Lana engaged the Kryptonite Man first, but her attention was almost immediately drawn to Brainiac. He boasted of his impending victory, when suddenly Luthor managed to wrest control of his own mind for a brief moment, long enough to tell Lana to kill him. Taken aback, Lana nevertheless struck Luthor on the side of the neck, shattering his spinal column. Luthor's body crumpled to the ground as Jimmy was atop the Brainiac ship, working feverishly to destroy the generator. The Super-Villains had been observing, when Saturn Woman scanned Lana's mind to see who she was and where she'd come from. Quickly deducing that Lana had received her powers from a radioactive bath, Cosmic King used his powers to transmute some of her cells and remove her powers. Lightning Lord stepped forward to "help her up", but instead incinerated her. Lana Lang died a pile of ashes.

Karen: Things really start to get brutal again. Lana quickly and easily dispenses with both Kryptonite Man and Brainiac-Luthor. Luthor's brief plea for death was welcome, but I do sort of wish we'd seen more of Luthor in this story; somehow, it doesn't seem right that he was so marginalized in the "final" Superman story. Lana's incineration is horrific, even though it is not shown in detail.

Doug: You know, in a way I think Moore was giving Luthor the ultimate comeuppance. Let's face it, behind the Batman Luthor was the most arrogant character in the DC Unverse. Of course he would fancy himself "Superman's greatest enemy". Not so fast... And Moore takes him virtually out of the story.

Doug: Jimmy died right after Lana, as Brainiac used all of his resources to raise Luthor's body and fire a blast into Jimmy's back. This scene was pretty disgusting, as Brainiac struggled to keep Luthor's body upright -- Luthor's eyes were rolled back in his head. The Kryptonite Man noticed that the barrier was still intact, in spite of Jimmy's disruption of it. Ignoring that fact, Brainiac ordered a nuclear strike against the Fortress. Blowing a gaping hole in one side, it didn't destroy it. Inside, Perry quickly made amends with his wife. The Kryptonite Man was the first to enter the Fortress, and he did it loudly, ordering Superman to show himself. While he began to search the premises, he was attacked without warning by Krypto. The loyal pet went straight for his enemy's throat, tearing it open. But the close exposure to the radiation and the direct contact with the contaminated blood ended Krypto's life.

Karen: Oh boy. Call me a sap, but seeing Krytpo die really gave me a lump in my throat. Such a loyal companion, a source of much joy and comedy over the years, here becomes a fierce protector. His final death howl had me holding back a tear. And yes, I know Jimmy died too!

Doug: I loved the scene with Krypto. And Moore played that straight, choosing not to include the other Super-Pets. Kara's mention of Streaky in part one seemed enough. In another part of the Fortress, Superman flew with Lois, looking for refuge as well as for the others. They flew through a trophy room, where we saw destroyed images of Lori Lemaris and of Titano the Super-Ape (because everything's better with gorillas -- never forget that). The Legion of Super-Villains have entered the Fortress and gloat over Lana's death. Superman did not know that had happened, and goes berserk. His heat vision burns Lightning Lord's arm, and Saturn Woman warns that the Kryptonian intends to kill. They flee immediately, board their time bubble, and make tracks back to the 30th century. Superman (oddly still carrying the statuette given to him by Brainiac-5) and Lois fly outside to find Luthor. His body has fully quit on Brainiac, and with that their symbiosis is ended. Brainiac disengages from Luthor's skull, and despite his last threats also dies. Pete Ross, Lana Lang, Jimmy Olsen, Lex Luthor, the Kryptonite Man, Bizarro, Krypto, Metallo, Supergirl (in the Crisis), and now Brainiac... all dead. Lois remarked to Tim Crane that it was over. Except for the fact that they couldn't figure out why all this had happened in the first place, and why the force shield was still in place.

Karen: How times change. Whereas it is now common place to have Superman turn his heat vision on foes, this Superman would never do such a thing -until now. The shock and fear on Lightning Lord's face gets across the point that things have changed. Yet -Superman does not kill them.

Doug: Superman thought for several minutes, going back over the chain of events. He had an a-ha moment, and called aloud for Mr. Mxyzptlk to appear. And sure enough -- vwoomf! He appeared, floating in the air. He told Superman that he was bored, that as an immortal life needs to be changed up every couple of thousand years. After a do-nothing phase, followed by an altruistic phase, Mxyzptlk figured he'd try his hand at general orneriness. That had ended, and beginning with Superman's death, he was going to try evil for a while. In another of the Silver Age tropes blown apart by Moore's script, Mxyzptlk says as he shows his true form: "Did you honestly believe a fifth-dimensional sorcerer would resemble a funny little man in a derby hat?" Superman fled with Lois -- after all, Mxyzptlk's magic could not be defeated.

Karen: In retrospect, it might seem obvious -make one of Superman's goofiest villains into his most dangerous -but at the time, it was truly a "wow" moment. Given the imp's powers, he certainly could hold that position. I liked the way Mxyzptlk's true form was shown. More of an energy being than anything else. It's the whole 'Wizard of Oz' theme all over again.

Doug: In the crescendo of the story, Mxyzptlk pursued Superman and Lois throughout the Fortress, finally catching them. Superman told Lois to run, figuring that this was his end. But she looked in her hands at the statuette that she still held -- and in the clutches of the figure of Superman, a familiar device. She told him to look at it, and instantly he knew what had to be done. They flew again to another chamber, where Superman picked up the Phantom Zone projector. Pointing it at Mxyzptlk, he told him that it was indeed over. Turning on the projector, Mxyzptlk spoke his own name backwards in an effort to escape back to his fifth dimension; the going-two-places-at-the-same-time effect ripped him in half. Superman's greatest enemy didn't win the day; Superman did. Or did he?

Karen: Those clever 30th century kids! Giving Superman a tribute that was also a clue to how to defeat his greatest enemy! Of course, Lois is the one who figures it out, even though the Man of Steel has been staring at the darn thing for hours. About the Phantom Zone though: so Superman felt it was alright for him to pass judgment on his enemies and imprison them forever in this other dimension, but not to kill them? Some might consider imprisonment even worse than death. 

Doug: The Phantom Zone was sort of DC's version of Marvel's Limbo, wasn't it? I suppose since the Phantom Zone was not under the influence of any sun, the Kryptonians imprisoned would not be immortal. So that they didn't die, can we assume that there was no time in the Phantom Zone? Mon-el never aged... Talk about 20 years-to life!

Doug: Superman killed Mr. Mxyzptlk. But the Man of Tomorrow was crushed, emotionally void. No one, he said, had the right to kill another -- and especially not Superman. He began to walk away from Lois, she pursuing him frantically. He walked to a chamber marked "Gold Kryptonite" and "Keep Out!" Superman turned the handle and entered the chamber, a smile across his lips as he looked back at Lois. She told Tim Crane that she never saw him again, and it was assumed he'd walked out a secret passage in the back of the room only to die of exposure, powerless in the Arctic winds. Around the grounds of the Fortress of Solitude, the JLA picked up the pieces. It had been a blood bath.

Karen: This was Superman as we, children of the Bronze Age, knew him: a god with a conscience, the one person we could trust to always do what's right. Even if it means the end of Superman.

Karen: Just a side comment: who the heck was that guy shown cradling a body (is it Lana? The chest insignia looks like hers) wearing go-go boots, hot pants, and a vest? I think he was shown earlier attacking the force shield. How the heck  does he merit space and not Green Lantern or Aquaman, etc.?

Doug: Search me -- I didn't know that character, either.  I also don't know who the woman is in red and blue with the Superman shield on her cape. Call me dumb, but I'm just not up on the mythos in the era right before the Crisis. So with the interview over, Tim Crane got up to leave the Elliot household. As he packed up, Jordan reemerged with baby Jonathan. He spoke a pleasantry to Crane as the reporter headed down the sidewalk. The door closed, Lois said it was good to be free from the media again -- at least for another decade. Lois and Jordan small-talked, planned for their evening... while baby Jonathan sat on the floor, playing near a bin of coal. And then he set a diamond back into the bin. A diamond...?

Karen: Notice how 'Jordy's' speech pattern changed as soon as the reporter left? That was well done. And Jonathan has a nice spit-curl hanging down on his forehead. Jordan Elliot... Jor El... Jonathan -a name we know from Jonathan Kent. And that little wink by 'Jordy' at the end -it reminded me of the old Superman cartoons in the 60s. I enjoyed this ending, corny as it was.

Doug: So did you feel that Mr. Mxyzptlk was really "Superman's Greatest Foe"? As I finished and was writing the plot synopsis, I couldn't help but wonder if Moore didn't have something else in mind. I guess options for other "greatests" would be Superman himself, maybe even Clark Kent. I also wondered if Superman's moral code could have been considered his greatest adversary. Or was it Lois Lane? As long as she was around and loved Superman, could he ever be complete as a man? Did Superman have to die to fulfill Lois's love for him? In the end, that's where Moore ended up.

Karen: Perhaps Superman's greatest foe was the coming age of grim and gritty comics.How could such a morally upright character survive the times to come? Look at what they've done to him today, in this 'New 52' universe? No, the old Kal-El would be spinning in his Kryptonian tomb. 

Doug: Regardless of what you feel about John Byrne's re-imagining of the Man of Steel mythos, this Moore/Swan two-parter has to be among the best Superman stories of all time. As I've said several times, it's so atypical of a Superman story mood-wise. The body count is high, there's a level of distress unseen prior, and the conclusion is not all that sunny. Yet it's an honest homage to what had gone before over almost 50 years of Superman stories, at times playfully making fun of elements of the backstory, at others breaking our hearts with the relationships between characters that even as casual fans we'd known and maybe even loved. I'm glad to have read this for the first time all these years later, and regretful still that I did not read it when I bought it almost 30 years ago.

Karen: Although there are aspects of the story that seem to playfully poke some fun at the Silver Age past, I too felt that this was a respectful treatment of the classic Superman, a respectful farewell to him and to all of his supporting cast and accouterments. The Superman in this story is pretty much how I still think of him: all-powerful, yet also supremely good. Today most depictions of the Man of Steel seem to forget that second part.

Who's the Best... Female Character at DC Comics?

Who's the Best... Significant Other?

Doug:  Of all of the superhero romances and/or marriages you can think of, who is the partner to whom you'd give a gold medal or blue ribbon -- that is, who is that significant other who has been the most supportive and soldiered through the most adversity to stand by his/her man/woman?  By the way, this can be considered as an extension of a post Karen and I ran back on Valentine's Day.  Check it out, as it was one of your high-comment days!

Discuss: Members of the Fourth Estate

Doug:  Clicking on either image will get you a much larger image so that you can read the text.  Thanks!

Love -Who Needs It?

Karen: This being Valentine's Day, it seems appropriate to discuss super-heroes and their romantic lives -or lack thereof. With some characters, it seems that their love lives are integral to who they are; for example, I can't imagine any version of Superman, pre-, post- or mid-life Crisis that wouldn't have Lois Lane as a love interest! On the other hand, I've never thought Batman needed a steady love interest, nor have I ever felt convinced that any woman was 'the great love of his life.' He's too devoted to his crusade.

Karen: But what about other characters? There are some that seem to be more interesting when they are actively in a relationship, but you could argue about who their greatest love was. For Peter Parker, was it Gwen Stacy or Mary Jane Watson? Some might argue that Peter's marriage to Mary Jane sucked a lot of the excitement out of the Spider-Man titles, but was it really the marriage itself, or how it was handled?

Doug:  Which begs the question -- were you (read: any of us) more exciting as a single than as a spouse?  Does marriage not offer tribulations, or in this specific case plot points?  The answer should be that marriage just brings a different set of dynamics.  To me, the fault in the Parker situation was making MJ a supermodel.  Money had always been one of Pete's hang-ups -- it wasn't anymore and that took away a huge antagonistic force working against his personality.  Additionally, he'd always been monogamous anyway (from Betty Brant to Gwen to MJ), so I'm not sure what "making it official" really did that put such a creative wall up against the story makers.

Karen: Comic book marriages seem a lot like real-life ones: some work fine, while others...well, don't. Reed and Sue Richards have had rough patches but generally seem solid (why she puts up with him I have no idea). The Pyms started well, but didn't last. Once the Vision and the Scarlet Witch got married, the Vision in particular seemed to become a lot less interesting.

Doug:  I think in the Vision's case his latent humanistic qualities, struggling to free themselves from the inorganic aspects of his persona, must have evolutionally come to the fore... lest why would Wanda continue to be interested in him if she would no longer feel that his "humanity" could be redeemed?  I've always felt the Reed and Sue relationship was the most "real", and as was commented by a few of our readers last month was really tried during the Gerry Conway era.  While most of us would agree that we didn't care for the way the Pyms' marriage ended, creators along the way certainly could have played up the inter-generational aspect of their union -- but did not.  Recall that when Hank first set eyes on Janet, he remarked that she was just a child, yet looked so much like his lost Maria.  That could have been a great source for love triangle stories:  Hank-Janet-the age gap, Hank-Janet-a woman Hank's age or a man Janet's age as antagonist, etc.

Karen: I have to admit, I have only read a handful of the Pym stories in Tales to Astonish; most of my exposure to their relationship came through The Avengers.  I was aware though of the resemblance to his former wife, and the age difference. But you're right, it never seemed like anything was done with it. If anything, Stan Lee played up the Wasp's flirty side and had Hank get jealous a lot, but he usually kept it to a slow boil. When Roy Thomas took over, he seemed to de-emphasize that.

Karen: There are also those confirmed bachelors out there, guys like Tony Stark who I can't see ever really settling down. It's just not in their personalities.

Doug:  Thor by necessity must fall into this category, at least Earth-wise.  However, I'm not sure why he's been dragging his feet with fair Sif!  Johnny Storm on the other hand, should stay single because he's a doofus.  Although he can hook a Skrull...

Karen: The less said about that the better. The Ben Grimm -Alicia Masters relationship was one of the best, at least prior to all the unnecessary shenanigans with Skrulls. 

Doug:  I'm going to rely on our DC-loving friends to help us out with the machinations of the marriages of the Flash, the Atom, and the Elongated Man (and we can leave out the events of Identity Crisis and it will be OK by me).  In the case of the former two, I think they had pretty long courtships.  Why was it OK for Supergirl to fall for Brainiac-5, but Superboy never had a love interest among the Legion ladies?  Yeah, yeah -- I know Lana Lang was awaiting his return to Smallville, but were they ever serious?

Karen: I would presume they couldn't be, because it was preordained that he hook up with Lois! Just like the Adult Legion stories forced writers to pair up certain Legionnaires. Speaking of the younger set, there was Colossus and Kitty in the X-Men and their sort of on/off relationship. Although it seemed kind of dicey to me, as I was never sure exactly of the age difference. 

Karen: Let's hear it folks -there's a lot of ground to cover!

Building a Better Lois Lane: The Man of Steel #2

The Man of Steel #2 (October 1986)
"The Story of the Century!"
John Byrne-Byrne/Dick Giordano

Karen: Issue #2 of the 1986 Superman revamp is devoted to what I consider to be an essential element of any version of Superman: Lois Lane. Lois has been presented so many ways, but Byrne's version is all class.

Doug: From the teaser last issue, we can already tell that Lois has gotten as big a remake as Superman. I don't think we'll see this Lois running through Africa as the "Cheetah Queen" or any such nonsense.

Karen: Our story starts as Superman swoops down a Metropolis street, right in front of a restaurant where Lois and editor Perry White are eating. Lois races off to follow the mystery man but is stopped by Lex Luthor -or rather, by his chauffeur. Lois tells him to buzz off, that she's in a hurry. We only get a glimpse of Luthor's eyes, but he looks perturbed.

Doug: Again, with all of the goofy history of these characters, I can recall being taken aback at the Lex cameo. He did seem really mad, but in a very menacing, "you don't know what you're dealing with" sort of way. And that he had a chauffeur... something is different.

Karen: The delay from Luthor is all it takes for Lois to lose sight of Supes. But she calls in a favor, and is soon airborne herself, in a helicopter. Where is Superman anyway? Why, stopping a purse thief. He returns the bag to the young lady it was taken from, and also turns down the volume on her boom box (the 80s) but not before he hears a report of a liquor store robbery. In no time he arrives at the scene of the crime and asks the SWAT leader to pull his men back, to avoid any bullet ricochets. The policeman is dumbfounded, but before he can act Superman walks up to the first gunman and pinches the barrel of his automatic weapon closed. The rest of the robbers inside the store begin shooting at him, and Superman looks mighty annoyed. That was just spot-on! He uses his heat vision to heat the guns and the robbers quickly drop them. He knocks the two men out, and when he comes to the woman robber, she says "You wouldn't hit a lady, would you?" He approaches her and says, "A Lady? No, I'd never hit a lady," and then proceeds to plink her in the forehead and knock her out. He also removes the dynamite she had under her coat. Lois arrives just moments after he leaves. In a series of panels we see the same situation repeated over a number of days: Lois showing up just after Superman has left. You can feel her frustration in her body language.

Doug: Last week you referenced Superman: The Movie several times. In this series of vignettes, I thought Byrne played Superman as if he were Christopher Reeve. The personality that Reeve gave to his role as the Man of Steel really came through for me in these pages. What sort of a political statement do you suppose Byrne was making when his Captain Reagan, upon being rebuffed by the perp when asked to surrender, said, "Damn! I was kinda hoping my reputation would be enough to scare them outta there."?

Karen: Oh, I agree, this Supes definitely seems to have been heavily influenced by the films, but mostly in a good way. Can you believe the Reagan thing totally blew by me?

Doug: John Byrne draws a young-looking Superman, and as we noted last issue, he's only supposed to be around 25 years old. I loved the scene where he dealt with the gun moll. Just another sign that this was going to be a different sort of Superman.

Karen: It was funny, but I was still a bit surprised he would actually hit a woman. Changing times I guess. After all these near-misses, Lois is back at the Daily Planet, grumbling. We get our first glimpse of another venerable Superman character, Jimmy Olson. Jimmy is all "Golly" and "Jeepers!" about Lois' troubles. He muses that Lois would have to be somewhere right when the trouble starts in order to catch Superman. Of course that gets her gears spinning....

Doug: Superman's low profile seems a bit Batman-like to me. How weird, yet appropriate in a way, was it that Jimmy was stuck back in the 1950's as this story took place in the present of the mid-'80's? Was Jimmy the bone thrown to long-time readers who were upset with all the changes?
Karen: You're right, Jimmy does seem like a hold-over from the era of Krypto, a giant key to the Fortress, and multicolored kryptonite. The bow tie is the capper! Superman is flying over the Metropolis skyline, satisfied with the decrease in crime lately, when he spots Lois in a car that has plunged into the harbor. Superman flies down into the water and scoops up Lois and her car. He flies her to her apartment. "You know where I live?" "Of course, Miss Lane. I know where everyone lives." I thought that was funny, although I couldn't tell if he was supposed to be joking or not. Once he delivers her to her place, he's about to fly off when Lois quickly comes out of her star-struck stupor and demands that he stay and speak with her. She cleans up and the two sit down for a chat. Again, so much of this series reminds me of the 1978 Superman film. There's an obvious attraction between these two, even as Lois tries to pry info out of the Man of Steel. When she asks where he's from, he admits he doesn't really know, but "What matters is I think and feel as an American." So no disavowing that "American Way" mantra for this Superman. It seems pretty dead nowadays, unfortunately. When Superman eventually does leave, he asks if Lois always keeps an aqua lung in her car. She realizes then that she hadn't fooled him at all.

Doug: As Superman surveyed the outcome of his crime-fighting, it became a prophecy fulfilled. His mother, Lara, had asked Jor-el if one day their son would rule over the terran primitives. Just in this panel or two we can look ahead to Paul Dini's and Alex Ross's wonderful treasury-sized Peace on Earth, where Superman fought to rid the Earth of its ills. I'd argue that while the world might have been a big bite to chew, Metropolis itself certainly wasn't out of the question.

Karen: Although they're not Bronze Age, we might have to consider reviewing some of those Ross treasury-sized books. They were terrific!

Doug: Clark had remarked to his Ma and Pa in the first issue that he thought Lois was pretty neat. I do recall thinking way back when how much of a source the Superman film was for Byrne's dialogue -- plots in general. But there is, as I said above, a real Chris Reeve vibe in the scene in Lois's apartment. How forward was it of Lois to do the interview in a robe and towel?? There was certainly potential for a Sharon Stone moment there... His parting question was as priceless as Reeve's declaration that Margot Kidder was wearing pink panties.

Karen: What I thought was forward was how she sat right next to him on the couch rather than in the other chair! But Lois knows what she wants. One thing that's interesting here is that although she's obviously attracted to, maybe even smitten by, Superman, her story is her first priority. Lois is excited over her interview, and hurriedly writes up the story and heads into Perry White's office, only to discover that she's been scooped! Perry's hired a new writer by the name of Clark Kent!

Doug: Yeah, you know -- Clark Kent. The guy who is 6'4", around 240, solid, square jaw... that Clark Kent. I know everyone feels this way, but "Clark Kent" has to be the biggest suspension of disbelief in all of comics. And he also serves as the linchpin for the discussion on "who is the true man/woman -- the mask, or the secret ID?" No doubt in this case Superman is the real deal and Clark Kent is the disguise; Batman? Not so sure. But anyway, what a ploy by Kent to throw Lois off the Superman/Clark trail, and right away. Great angle by Byrne to get the love triangle rolling.

Karen: This issue was fun and breezy. We're still left wondering about Lex Luthor and his role in these new mythos. But Lois is portrayed really well and the relationship between her and Superman is off to a great start.