Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 19
  1. #1
    Incredible Member SuperCrab's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Posts
    935

    Default Non-Spoilers Questions (And Hopefully Answers) About Man of Steel (2018 Version)

    Alright, as one of our resident disgruntled New52 Superman fans who could never get into the Rebirth/Reborn Superman or Superman's son, I have a couple spoiler free or spoiler light questions about the first issue of the series and any leaks about the rest of it, to try to figure out whether the Bendis era is going to be something I'd like more than the Rebirth era and should try (I did enjoy Bendis' X-Men stuff, but money is tight and these are pretty high priced compared to the Marvel collections that combine recent issues of popular titles and wind up sold digitally on Amazon for prices that can turn out to be $1 an issue when you do the math. Even if you trade-wait DC Comics, it's still more than double the cost of where Amazon is pricing a lot of Marvel collections right now):

    1. Would you say that the tone, artwork, dialogue, etc. are significantly different from the Superman of Rebirth/Reborn? Would it be more likely to appeal to a New52 Superman fan? Or is it just Bendis sticking with the existing direction?

    2. How involved is Jon Kent? I heard rumors that he might be sort of sidelined in the main Superman books (Not killed off or anything, but just having a very low profile in this miniseries and the two main Superman titles, and mainly just be featured Super Sons and/or Teen Titans or something instead where those who like him can follow his adventures and those who don't won't really have to), but I've also heard stuff that says he won't be and is a big focus. You know how rumors are.
    Last edited by SuperCrab; 06-01-2018 at 04:57 AM.

  2. #2
    Incredible Member Lvenger's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Posts
    935

    Default

    1. Bendis is continuing in the current Rebirth direction so if you didn’t like that you won’t like this issue. Superman sounds much more like his Rebirth/classic personality than almost every depiction in the New 52. So since you’re a New 52 Superman, you won’t find much brashness, cockiness or whatever else New 52 Superman has that somehow appealed to you.

    2. Jon is only in the last 2 pages of this book in a flashback and will probably be kept in the backup until the final issue of MOS. Bendis is using Jon way less than the Rebirth team based on all interviews so far.

  3. #3
    Father Son Kamehameha < Kuwagaton's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    8,754

    Default

    It's a very traditional Superman, but as I take it since you're largely concerned about his role as a family man I don't think there's much at all to put you off. Unless you just don't even like the idea of him being married regardless of how it's depicted and the mention is enough to bug you.

    Bendis is continuing from the baton pass but his style so far is unlike what we've been getting. And if you like his X-Men it's even different from that, I personally think this is better. New 52 fans and people who generally didn't get Superman before 2011 should at least dip if not dive.

  4. #4
    Astonishing Member
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    2,220

    Default

    Well nothing's really happened yet, it's been fairly generic but of good quality. Just flexing his powers against small fry threats so far but in a cool way. Batman is on one of the covers for Man of Steel so we'll know soon enough what kind of Superman we're dealing with though.

    The kid isn't around in the first issue but it's modern decompressed writing so just because he's not around now doesn't mean anything. In a month or two he might be centric to the plot.
    Rules are for lesser men, Charlie - Grand Pa Joe ~ Willy Wonka & Chocolate Factory

  5. #5
    Obsessed & Compelled Bored at 3:00AM's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Posts
    8,635

    Default

    Too soon to tell. Bendis is definitely going to continue with the idea of Superman being a family man since that's the current status quo and it appeals greatly to Bendis, who is also a father.

    It is very much the traditional Superman, but taken from a new angle that feels very fresh. I would wait until the weekly series is finished and pick up the TPB if you like what you're hearing.

  6. #6
    Ultimate Member Sacred Knight's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    18,725

    Default

    Everyone already touched up on most everything. His personality is very much the mature, calm Superman in this issue. But with that said, this issue doesn't show any reason for him to really need to be otherwise. Outside of the beginning of the arson storyline, in terms of Superfeats, what he does here is all in a day's work pretty much. I like some brashness to my Superman like you, but its impossible to tell from issue #1 how he gets when push comes to shove. But for as much as I wasn't a fan of the Rebirth era, that Superman at least was not the push-over he had become pre-FP; he retained some New 52 aspects there, so I'd expect Bendis' Superman to continue those traits when challenged.
    Last edited by Sacred Knight; 06-01-2018 at 11:26 AM.
    "They can be a great people Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you. My only son." - Jor-El

  7. #7
    Ultimate Member Last Son of Krypton's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    17,517

    Default

    Judging by Bendis' first issue, it feels like reading Superman instead of SuperDAD, if you know what I mean.
    Clark is still a father but I don't get the feel that the storylines are going to focus on Jon as the center of the universe, fatherhood, family dinners and farm life like during the Rebith era.
    Last edited by Last Son of Krypton; 06-01-2018 at 01:14 PM.

  8. #8
    Took me a while, I'm back Netherman14's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Location
    Metropolis, the City of Tomorrow.
    Posts
    451

    Default

    So basically, it seems like something that would honestly also interest me as well. will have to pick it up once it arrives to my LCS.
    Pull-List:

    DC: Batman: Damned, The Green Lantern. Young Justice. Wonder Twins

    Boom!: Ronin Samurai.

  9. #9
    Astonishing Member Adekis's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    2,889

    Default

    When Grant Morrison described the changes he made to the post-Flashpoint Superman from the pre-Flashpoint version, he said this:

    Quote Originally Posted by Grant Morrison
    I think what remains is a Superman [who] is a bit more proactive and more masculine in the sense that he gets things done. He’s got a little bit of a sense of humor, and he’s tough again. You can knock him down, and he’ll get up. I think the best thing that it’s done ultimately is to get rid of that weird emo Superman that was around for a long time. He was constantly fighting against using his powers and was kind of angst-driven. There are so many great characters in comics that are angst-driven that we don’t need Superman to be one was well. If anything great has come out of this for the future of how Superman is done, I think it’s that the current Superman is proactive and Clark Kent’s a little more feisty.
    I'm in a similar boat to SuperCrab above. I definitely found things to like about Rebirth Superman. Among them were the fact that unlike pre-Flashpoint Superman, who was often "that weird emo Superman that was around for a long time", Rebirth Superman still had a bit of kick-ass to him, a bit of a backbone. If as Lvenger seems to imply, he's not like that anymore, I will be very put out, as to me, even though that trait was basically the last thing remaining from the New 52 Superman, it improved so massively over "that weird emo Superman" that its persistence lessens the blow of all other retcons.

    Get rid of the pseudo-Golden Age with the t-shirt and jeans from the backstory, get rid of the progressive social consciousness, get rid of the Clark with enough journalistic integrity to feel deeply uncomfortable emphasizing Superman in his news assignments, get rid of the Bronze Agey power levels, get rid of the Silver Age reference Fortress in Space! I'll be very upset, but it's okay! Ultimately it's all still okay, because he doesn't let angst keep him from using his powers anymore, because he still enjoys being Superman again, because he'll still get up again if you knock him down. Rebirth Superman wasn't perfect, but I definitely had a sense that he was better than pre-Flashpoint Superman in about a hundred ways, and it all came down to that. Even if the "Reborn" merge screwed over the post-Flashpoint Superman in every other way, that one trait is all it takes to make me basically okay with it.

    But based on what I saw in DC Nation # 0, Clark certainly didn't seem "feisty". He seemed downright milquetoast, plus he was drawn to look about sixty years old. But hey, I thought, we've all got bad days. Maybe he's just having a bad day, Rao knows there were issues or arcs here and there in the New 52 where a writer messed up and had Clark moping or brooding, but those didn't define the character overall. Clark's comportment probably makes sense in the light of the plot, and it only seems intrinsic to his portrayal because I don't know the plot yet. And we know Bendis is using different artists, I know Clark won't always look like "your grandpa's Superman", using the phrase despite the fact that my actual grandpa's Superman was the young, progressive and action-packed Golden Age Man of Tomorrow. And I've got to hope that Bendis will keep the last seven years of "Superman-has-a-backbone" characterization. I keep telling myself that he won't go back to that thing that bothers me so much.

    But I ultimately fear that in reality, Superman will just go back to being the milquetoast he could be at his worst pre-Flashpoint.

    NOTE: I actually like Batman v. Superman, I just think that it does a better job executing hated tropes than it has a right to, and obviously most people disagree about the execution. Also, pre-Flashpoint Superman wasn't always awful, he just could be. Grounded's a good example.
    "You know the deal, Metropolis. Treat people right or expect a visit from me."

  10. #10
    THE MARK OF MY DIGNITY Superlad93's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    10,105

    Default

    As someone who liked the New 52 (Morrison/Pak) and the Rebirth stuff, 10/10 would recommend.

    get rid of the progressive social consciousness, get rid of the Clark with enough journalistic integrity to feel deeply uncomfortable emphasizing Superman in his news assignments, get rid of the Bronze Agey power levels. I'll be very upset, but it's okay! Ultimately it's all still okay, because he doesn't let angst keep him from using his powers anymore, because he still enjoys being Superman again, because he'll still get up again if you knock him down.
    From the 2 previews, 1 full issue of a ongoing mini, and the solicitations for 4 issues his proper ongoing that we've gotten from Bendis, I feel pretty comfortable in saying that all of the above have made/will make an appearance.

    He's got a sense of humor/wit, and he refuses to stay down during a fight even if the opponent outclasses him. He's also very inquisitive and socially aware, and this seems to only grow as Bendis' run moves on based off the solicitation for issue 1 of Superman saying "has Clark Kent looking at the world through new eyes...with new ideas about what Superman could and should do for the city of Metropolis and the planet Earth."

    And based off both DC Nation #0 and the simple fact that Bendis is giving him a whole book, I'd say his Clark Kent's journalistic integrity will quite strong. In DC Nation #0 he's far more interested in the weapons smuggling than he is in the fact that Superman incidentally helped break it up.

    It also seems very apparent that Jon Kent will no longer be the driving force for stories going forward. That said, as SK brings up, it's very likely that Jon will remain part of at least one of the books, but may not be interacting with Superman/Clark's plot too often. So be ready for cutaways to whatever he's up to as a B or C plot. I also agree that Lois and Jon will likely be getting their own book soon.
    "Mark my words! This drill will open a hole in the universe. And that hole will become a path for those that follow after us. The dreams of those who have fallen. The hopes of those who will follow. Those two sets of dreams weave together into a double helix, drilling a path towards tomorrow. THAT's Tengen Toppa! THAT'S Gurren Lagann! MY DRILL IS THE DRILL THAT CREATES THE HEAVENS!" - The Digger

    We walk on the path to Secher Nbiw. Though hard fought, we walk the Golden Path.

  11. #11
    Ultimate Member Sacred Knight's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    18,725

    Default

    I prefer the clear distinguishing between Superman and the public Clark Kent. There was some appeal to a more George Reeves/post-Crisis/New 52 take, where he's also portrayed publicly as kinda cool in his own right, and actually personality-wise pretty much his true self. But to me, I like a little more secret in the secret identity, and Clark's true self being saved for the private Clark Kent moments. Or the moments where he lets his guard down in public. But overall I like seeing more examples other than the glasses as to why the secret identity works. I like some aloofness to the public Clark Kent, a little bit of Christopher Reeve, just not too out there. That seems to be what Bendis is going for and that's a little more up my alley. Of course, I'd be all for working in ways to make Clark himself "feisty" while at the same time retaining that nerdy demeanor. I can't really recall a successful mix of that, but I'd be for it.
    Last edited by Sacred Knight; 06-01-2018 at 05:01 PM.
    "They can be a great people Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you. My only son." - Jor-El

  12. #12
    Astonishing Member Adekis's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    2,889

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Superlad93 View Post
    As someone who liked the New 52 (Morrison/Pak) and the Rebirth stuff, 10/10 would recommend.
    That's definitely a good sign as far as I'm concerned. You've helped lessen some of my concerns. I guess you're right about the DC Nation thing, I didn't notice the positive aspects of it because I was too busy moaning and gnashing my teeth over the art and Clark's apparent moping about Lois' absence.

    I still can't form my own opinion though... I went in to the local shop to look for it and they'd sold old. Wound up getting a couple old Cosmic Boy issues and The Terrifics instead. Rats!
    "You know the deal, Metropolis. Treat people right or expect a visit from me."

  13. #13
    Father Son Kamehameha < Kuwagaton's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Posts
    8,754

    Default

    The funny thing is that while Swan and Garcia Lopez both seem to draw Clark in his late 30s, JLGL seems to draw Superman about 15 years younger than Swan does. But I wouldn't say Dexter Vines was ideal for inking that story. Seems like a random pairing. Reis has his long time inker even if he shares the same colorist, and it makes a world of difference. All six issues are going to be pretty worth the price of admission for the art at least.

  14. #14
    THE MARK OF MY DIGNITY Superlad93's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    10,105

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Adekis View Post
    I guess you're right about the DC Nation thing, I didn't notice the positive aspects of it because I was too busy moaning and gnashing my teeth over the art and Clark's apparent moping about Lois' absence.
    In regards to this: he is visibly melancholy about Lois and Jon's absence in the issue because, well, they're his family and that's to be expected, but it doesn't render him inert or unable to do either of his jobs. Bendis strikes a healthy balance between reasonably introspective/aloof and smiling guardian who's still got a job to do. I just don't want any misinformation to circle around especially when fan deck is so unreasonably stacked against a writer sort of waiting for them to fall.
    Last edited by Superlad93; 06-01-2018 at 10:11 PM.
    "Mark my words! This drill will open a hole in the universe. And that hole will become a path for those that follow after us. The dreams of those who have fallen. The hopes of those who will follow. Those two sets of dreams weave together into a double helix, drilling a path towards tomorrow. THAT's Tengen Toppa! THAT'S Gurren Lagann! MY DRILL IS THE DRILL THAT CREATES THE HEAVENS!" - The Digger

    We walk on the path to Secher Nbiw. Though hard fought, we walk the Golden Path.

  15. #15
    D*mned Prince of Gotham JasonTodd428's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    In the Shadows
    Posts
    6,190

    Default

    I'd actually take issue with that particular scene if Clark wasn't showing some sort of concern over his family to be honest and it felt like a natural reaction to being separated from them for an unspecified amount of time. It's not as if his melancholy is so overwhelming that he can't function and frankly I don't even feel like it shows weakness for him to be so either.
    Supporting LION FORGE COMICS and other independent publishers.

    Check out Lion Forge's Catalyst Prime Universe. Its the best damned superhero verse in comics. Diverse characters and interesting stories set in a universe where anyone can be a hero. And company that prides itself on representation both in the comics themselves and in the people behind them.

    Oh my goodness gracious! I've been bamboozled!

    When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change. AVATAR AANG

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •