View Poll Results: Why is Superman your favorite superhero?

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  • His amazing powers!

    3 10.71%
  • His humanity and inner qualities.

    17 60.71%
  • His stories.

    5 17.86%
  • His supporting characters.

    3 10.71%
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  1. #16
    Incredible Member Mantis Dad's Avatar
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    SM is not my overall favorite character, but he is certainly my #1 DC character. This is a big change from how I used to think. I was a Bat Fan due to the re-runs of the 60's TV show, and really loved the DK and Year 1, etc.

    Something has happened in the last few years though. My eldest daughter adored Superboy. Her love may have started with the Smallville TV show, but as she collected the older SB comics, I felt compelled to read them as well. Then I read the older SM comics, and graduated to the newer stuff with 70's, 80's, and present, etc. There is just something about SM that I cannot quite put my finger on. I think the main reason he is my favorite DC hero now is because I finally realized; if I was a super hero like SM, I would be just like him.

    So that small part of myself that I see in Clark, is why I like this character so much.

    There are a lot (and I mean A LOT) of people that would be horrible humans if they had SM's powers. I like to think, and believe, that I would be exactly like Clark.
    Years before Kal-El ever landed from Space; tales were told of the ultimate warrior/hero; Conan the Barbarian!

  2. #17
    Boisterously Confused
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    I won't claim Superman's my favorite, but he's on the list.

    Superman's entire justification for surviving Krypton is defined by John and Martha Kent, who taught him to be one of us, and to show us how to be our best selves.

  3. #18
    Legendary Member daBronzeBomma's Avatar
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    I chose A, but really it's A+ B.

    All that power, and this is how he choses to use it: to help others instead of himself.

    All that power, and he still goes to work and has a boss and a wife and a son.

    Done right, Superman is the perfect blend of the completely otherworldly and the completely mudane.

  4. #19
    Father Son Kamehameha < Kuwagaton's Avatar
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    Superman is muh fav'rit

    At this point there have been like five times in my life where Superman had hit a new tier of appreciation for me. 2013 was just so memorable, from the finale of Morrison, to the start of three new series, getting trades and key back issues, and then the movies. A lot of comfort and entertainment at a point in my life where I had to start things over, and for one thing didn't have a car when I really needed one (let me tell you about dating dealbreakers). Convergence and the launch of Lois & Clark are collectively very optimistic points that were more recent, but there's no way I could find a year more enjoyable with a fictional character than the 75th.

    Quote Originally Posted by Adekis View Post
    So yeah, it's all the things. I voted for the powers though, because I think there's a brute sense of fun that you absolutely need the powers for. I think people like to be highbrow and say it's the morals, and honestly, yeah, their importance can't be understated! But I also think that, you know, just a story about Clark Kent without powers or a secret identity wouldn't necessarily be that engaging, or at least not engaging in the same way as a Superman story is. It's because he's Superman, with the powers and the costume, that we sit up and pay attention.
    That's definitely something to consider no matter which option you pick. I like that being the poster boy for those powers means he was just that successful, and the combination itself is fascinating for story versatility. But in particular, how would you highlight the powers choice in the context of so many having them and given writers going on about ___ being better at ____ than Superman?

  5. #20
    Ultimate Member Robotman's Avatar
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    The concept of Superman is still the most pure and powerful of all the superheroes. Helping others because you have the power to help. Superman isn’t motivated by revenge, anger, guilt, or some religious obligation. He helps because it’s the right thing to do. He doesn’t use his powers for easy fame and fortune. He’s dedicated his life to journalism, a profession that requires him to use deduction and thought. He doesn’t use his strength and celebrity status to date models. He’s in love with Lois because she’s the toughest/smartest woman he’s ever met and she challenges him everyday.
    Superman is the most empathetic person around. He’s the symbol of hope for a better tomorrow.

  6. #21
    Black Belt in Bad Ideas Robanker's Avatar
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    Someone cobbled an answer to this question on Reddit from a couple Morrison quotes and it always rang rather true:

    Quote Originally Posted by Grant Morrison

    In the end, I saw Superman not as a superhero or even a science fiction character, but as a story of Everyman. We’re all Superman in our own adventures. We have our own Fortresses of Solitude we retreat to, with our own special collections of valued stuff, our own super–pets, our own “Bottle Cities” that we feel guilty for neglecting. We have our own peers and rivals and bizarre emotional or moral tangles to deal with.

    I felt I’d really grasped the concept when I saw him as Everyman, or rather as the dreamself of Everyman. That “S” is the radiant emblem of divinity we reveal when we rip off our stuffy shirts, our social masks, our neuroses, our constructed selves, and become who we truly are. Batman is obviously much cooler, but that’s because he’s a very energetic and adolescent fantasy character: a handsome billionaire playboy in black leather with a butler at this beck and call, better cars and gadgetry than James Bond, a horde of fetish femme fatales baying around his heels and no boss. That guy’s Superman day and night.

    Superman grew up baling hay on a farm. He goes to work, for a boss, in an office. He pines after a hard–working gal. Only when he tears off his shirt does that heroic, ideal inner self come to life. That’s actually a much more adult fantasy than the one Batman’s peddling but it also makes Superman a little harder to sell. He’s much more of a working class superhero.

    American writers often say they find it difficult to write Superman. They say he’s too powerful; you can’t give him problems. But Superman is a metaphor. For me, Superman has the same problems we do, but on a Paul Bunyan scale. If Superman walks the dog, he walks it around the asteroid belt because it can fly in space. When Superman’s relatives visit, they come from the 31st century and bring some hellish monster conqueror from the future. But it’s still a story about your relatives visiting.
    And credit where it's due: https://www.reddit.com/r/comicbooks/...love_superman/

  7. #22
    The Superior One Celgress's Avatar
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    He always does the right thing no matter how hard it might be to do so. He puts everything on the line to protect the world without hesitation. Superman represents what we all should strive to be. He is the originator of the modern superhero archetype.
    "So you've come to the end now alive but dead inside."

  8. #23
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    There's some kind of dark irony in the fact that the humanity is in the lead but in the thread about how to fix Man of Steel there was this sentiment that Superman is never more in touch with his humanity than when he adopts a selfish self serving attitude. Like manipulating reality to give himself the best possible outcome and then never offering that possibility to anyone else. Or shirking his responsibilities as Superman to live a more carefree life.
    Rules are for lesser men, Charlie - Grand Pa Joe ~ Willy Wonka & Chocolate Factory

  9. #24
    Astonishing Member stargazer01's Avatar
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    Like I mentioned before, I really enjoyed all your answers. Very cool.

    I think for me, I can't remember a time when Superman wasn't present in my life. I think what attracted me the most about him at first was his kind face. He was just a good man who wanted to help and use his powers for good. I have always believed in goodness. I don't need my heroes to be so tragic or tormented in order for me to find them interesting and relatable. Even in real life I prefer people who are more optimistic and who want to do the right thing because that's the best way to live.

    Also, I can't ignore the fact that Superman is very handsome and I find him suit really awesome (especially the cape) as well as his powers. I think Superman is the coolest superhero ever and I don't want to hear otherwise haha. He can even fly in space like a god, but he's humble and kind enough to rescue your cat from some tree. Clark Kent has the most amazing story ever and I really like his supporting cast, especially Lois Lane, Lex Luthor and both his Earth and Kryptonian parents. I think the Fortress of Solitude is a fantastic concept, as well as the sun as the source of his power. But it's the values he learned from the Kents what make him a real hero.

    I like other superheros quite a bit, but Superman is the only one I truly love. He is like the most amazing fantasy and his stories can be so imaginative, versatile and inspiring. Long live Superman.
    Last edited by stargazer01; 08-20-2018 at 12:44 PM.

  10. #25
    Fantastic Member Colt Cape's Avatar
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    I like Superman because, despite being nearly-perfect, he's one of the most human characters in comics.
    He simply wants to do the right thing, and will do so until the bitter end, no matter what the odds are.
    DC, please give Jonah Hex a new solo.

  11. #26
    Last Son of Shaolin GreatKungLao's Avatar
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    This scene followed by this scene literally embodies everything that I love about Superman.

  12. #27
    Astonishing Member stargazer01's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GreatKungLao View Post
    This scene followed by this scene literally embodies everything that I love about Superman.
    I still consider this whole scene the highlight of Cavill's Superman. Nothing in this universe has topped it for me.

  13. #28
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    His qualities.
    Plus he, along other sources, inspired me to write my own fictional character.

  14. #29
    Ultimate Member marhawkman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Colt Cape View Post
    I like Superman because, despite being nearly-perfect, he's one of the most human characters in comics.
    He simply wants to do the right thing, and will do so until the bitter end, no matter what the odds are.
    Yeah, he isn't perfect. He tries as hard as he can to BE perfect though. And in doing so to make those around him better than they were.

  15. #30
    Master Hero Vladimir
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    Quote Originally Posted by Colt Cape View Post
    I like Superman because, despite being nearly-perfect, he's one of the most human characters in comics.
    He simply wants to do the right thing, and will do so until the bitter end, no matter what the odds are.
    Superman's humanity is his biggest strength, more than his powers. A lot of people think Batman is better because he has no superpowers and still goes out to save the day. Let's set aside that debate and focus on what matters. With his powers, Superman could rule the world but he chooses not to because the right thing to do is to help others. Even without his powers, Superman would still be a benevolent, courageous, fair and loving person.

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