Originally Posted by
Myskin
Well, one of the greatest pros of standalone stories is not only that they can serve as an introduction to the characters (the plot of Hush simply doesn't make sense, but it has pretty pictures and Batman's entire rogues gallery), but also that in a lot of cases they allow a writer and an artist to introduce a very unique and recognizable version of the character in a very compact way. I think that this is one the reasons DC is heading towards DC Zoom, Kids, Black Label or whatever they want to call them.
Also: one of the many, many reasons of Batman's overwhelming success in comparison to Superman is that we have things like Dark Knight Returns, The Killing Joke, Arkham Asylum, The Long Halloween, and many, MANY others. That is, very recognizable, powerful stories, which are extremely well-written and drawn (you can't get more iconic than DKR) and can make an occasional reader understand how hugely diversified the potential of Batman can be. With Superman you are not so lucky - you get All-Star Superman (which is perfect, don't get me wrong, and you can read it 100 times in a row without getting tired - by the way, has anyone ever noticed how intriguing Frank Quitely's Metropolis is?), For All Seasons, and then.... The list is already pretty short and most of it consists of retellings of the origin and the Death of Superman story (with which I have several problems, too). I mean, you can include things like Last Son (which is basically a thinly masked adaptation of Superman II with elements from Superman Returns and Supergirl the movie) and Brainiac, but they are not nearly as powerful as some of the aforementioned minis or maxis.
It's not just a matter of comic books, though. Standalone stories are the very first thing producers and directors use as a basis for movies or videogame adaptations (and IMHO they are the very first thing they check to see IF a character is worth an adaptation). And adaptations are incredibly important, not only in terms of money. Adaptations are what helps a character survive and renew itself. In adaptations, the director has to "trim the fat" - understand what about that character works and what doesn't in a context which is not the printed page - and, if the director is good, he/she can also add a lot of elements which become iconic. Tim Burton basically created the gothic Gotham City we all know and read about in today's Batman comics, for example. Basically, adaptation is one of the most powerful means to allow writers and editors to think about a character's narrative universe and make them understand how to make it work and click in all of its components. In Batman's universe, almost everything clicks: we have things like Arkham, the Batcave, GCPD, the Manor, with many characters which can become protagonists in their own stories. But also single elements (Batman's detective skills, Batman's mission, his psychology, the Robins) are very powerful and strong.
Superman's world is not an equally well-oiled machine. We have a lot of fragmented components and almost every attempt at making them all work has resulted in a failure. One of the problems I have with Jon Kent is that IMHO there were many, MANY other things in Superman's universe they should have dealt with before introducing a character whom writers basically cannot avoid and whose presence affects every single Superman story. But Jon aside, the versions of Superman you can take inspiration from for an adaptation are embarassingly few. Something is wrong when - in New Krypton days - writers have to hark back to a 40-year-old movie to get inspiration for new stories and new movies (was there really a request for Marlon Brando Jor-El and Reeve Superman in the Superman comic series?). I mean, while they were at it they could have revamped the Fleischer cartoons, which are even older and they would have been infinitely more interesting (mechanical monsters and things like that). Yes, we had Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, but they used the wrong standalone story as a source of inspiration (Earth One) and better not talk about that.