Superman gets a bad rep because of Batman...

[CTTT]

for the record I love both characters and read both titles, but when it comes to Superman/Clark's popularity, I feel like his popularity takes a hit because of his other media. The comics portray Clark as a complex character and he's had a lot of great arcs and fun stuff from Golden to present. The tv series and movies from the 70s and 80s is where he takes a hit because they decide to paint him as a human or alien AMERICAN FLAG!! TRUTH JUSTICE AND THE AMERICAN WAY!, so they decided to turn on the cheese to Mach 25 levels. Clark in the movies is painted as this bumbling dork and his entire motivation for saving humanity is Lois. That's it. And he's so much more than that. So because of that perception, no wonder people find him a boring character who flies and has powers and is un relatable. Meanwhile, Batman and his family rise in popularity because a) he's human and b) he kicks ass with his fighting skills and has a kick ass costume. And now with the recent films, Superman can't even get a sequel by himself, he has to paired with Batman.

[dietrich]

Don't see how they decide to paint him as a human or alien AMERICAN FLAG!! TRUTH JUSTICE AND THE AMERICAN WAY!, so they decided to turn on the cheese to Mach 25 levels. Clark in the movies is painted as this bumbling dork and his entire motivation for saving humanity is Lois. is anything to do with Batman. more to do with how creators depict him in outside media. Their failure to bring the real essence of the character to outside media.

[Ascended]

Yeah, it's not Batman's fault, it's DC's fault.

[SiegePerilous02]

Their overboard reverence towards Batman, which started as his star began to rise just as Superman's was falling*, hasn't helped the situation but that's not all Batman's fault. It's completely DC's.

* the deadly combo of TDKR, Batman's cinematic success vs. Superman's previous two films being bad and the changes implemented by the Byrne reboot really did a number on Clark compared to Bruce. Bruce was made cooler at the same time the Naive Farm Boy take started to take hold, when ideally they should BOTH be at their best.

[The World]

The single worst thing to happen to Superman was probably that scene in Superman II where he agrees to become human to be with Lois. It painted him as such a flaky, unfocused, and undedicated moron.

Batman and most successful modern Superheroes are successful because they understand that people are here to see them be heroic and do incredible things and Superman was the character that all that originated from so how does Superman keep getting pitted with writers that don't understand that?

[Kuwagaton]

Um... the same people who write one typically write the other...

I think whatever blame is just a matter of taste. People are going to like Batman more no matter what D.C. wants. If they sell with Batman what they sell with Superman and vice versa, they make the same money. Batman is more toyetic and his narrative plays more into basic fantasy: revenge, wanting to be rich, gaining every skill possible through "hard work," having a servant, etc.

His dramatic uptick in the late 80s and early 90s isn't opposite to Superman, despite how some feel about DKR. Far less significant of course, but Superman did receive a boost in popularity. I think it's forgotten that Superman inevitably outsells "flavor of the day" superheroes and mainstays like Flash and the FF, and manages to do it with several titles at once. Where he falls is in pretty much everything outside of comics, which will affect comics as they are in constant need of fresh blood.

As far as being patriotic goes, I don't think he's more or less than ever. Fondness of the country, servicemen, and other things just gets confused with our crummy politics. But Superman has never been about that.

[Minerboh]

There are occasions that they made Batman look cool on Superman's expanse.
TheDark Knight Returns and Injustice are the most notorious examples.

[kingaliencracker]

...to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

https://www.newsarama.com/45714-batm...k-of-fame.html

[The Ozman]

The single worst thing to happen to Superman was probably that scene in Superman II where he agrees to become human to be with Lois. It painted him as such a flaky, unfocused, and undedicated moron.

There are a lot of things I like about Superman II, but that sure as hell isn't one of them. In-story, it seemed like such an arbitrary dick move by Lara to force him to make that choice, and was completely out of character for Supes to go along with it anyway. What were they gonna do if he didn't?

I know it was there to set up a way of defeating Zod, Non and Ursa (as well as the truck stop gag), but even that didn't make sense. When Supes went through it there was a whole effect where you could see his internal structure, and he reacted in pain as it was happening, but when he reversed it against Zod and the others, they didn't even notice anything had happened until they tried to use their powers.

[DochaDocha]

There are occasions that they made Batman look cool on Superman's expanse.
TheDark Knight Returns and Injustice are the most notorious examples.

A lot of DC heroes got victimized this way, but "Batman's so awesome he beats Superman" has taken on a life of its own.

[Stick Figure]

Nostalgia kind of kills Superman. It always seems like someone wants a classic take on Superman. In 2019, he should not be a guy wearing glasses and working for a NEWSPAPER. That alone isn’t relatable. When we actually get something that’s fresh while staying true to the source material like Man of Steel, it’s divisive. That’s literally the only time I’ve connected with the character. Love that movie! Yet I’ll see posts praising the old 70’s movies which to me are atrocious! Superman doesn’t need to be a saint or a symbol. Captain America in the films never comes off as much of a Boy Scout as Superman in the old films. Someone needs to think of what a person with all those powers would be like in 2019 and not stick to ideas that were done before.

[LifeIsILL]

Nostalgia kind of kills Superman. It always seems like someone wants a classic take on Superman. In 2019, he should not be a guy wearing glasses and working for a NEWSPAPER. That alone isn’t relatable.

He's one of the few Superheroes left who even has a day job. Everyone else is either a billionaire scientist or they do nothing.

[Ascended]

Nostalgia kind of kills Superman. It always seems like someone wants a classic take on Superman.

Nostalgia is certainly a part of it, but I think one of the biggest problems Clark has is that his legend has outgrown his character.

Think about it, everyone on the planet earth knows who Superman is. He's the second most recognized fictional character in the world, more well known than Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes, Darth Vader, Batman, Iron Man.....anyone (except Mickey Mouse, the #1 most well known fictional character). We're basically born knowing who Superman is. And everyone has an idea and opinion on what Superman "should" be. He represents something that goes well beyond the character itself, and what he represents is pretty important to people. People who have never picked up a comic book in their lives are dead-set determined that they know what is and isnt appropriate for Superman. These people have no idea who the character really is, and they'd be disgusted and angry if they knew that Clark has never actually reached (or even tried to reach) these lofty ideals people put on his emblem. But those opinions are still there, and if a movie like Man of Steel (which I also adore! fist bump!) gives them a Superman that isn't what they expected, it won't matter how closely that adaptation follows the source material.

Hell, you see that even here. There was nothing in MoS that went against precedent; everything there had been done in comics many times. But it didn't match the idea people have in their heads. It doesn't matter if what is in their heads is actually represented in the source material, for them it might as well be written in stone.

[Kuwagaton]

Poor Man of Steel just fell victim to the feedback cycle. Things that are praised and popular lead people in with a ton of optimism, and bad feedback prompts people to come out of the woodwork to bash it.

I think it was miles ahead of the old stuff, although it came a good 35 years after Reeve did his thing.

Specific expectations seem like a fan thing. Giving up his powers the way he did, for example, will have people disappointed not because of how well it works for Superman, but because it's lame. What if Batman just retired halfway through the Dark Knight, you know? Or Cap let himself get old during the Winter Soldier? Superman Returns was obsessed with making people nostalgic, but that wasn't nearly as bad as the plotholes it also posessed. To change or not change seems like such a low priority compared to workshopping the entertainment and charisma.

[Steven Caldwell]

Superman gets a bad rap because of Bendis!