You want to introduce someone to the wondrous world of Superman, but you can only choose 7 stories, arcs, books or trades to introduce to them. What do you choose?
You want to introduce someone to the wondrous world of Superman, but you can only choose 7 stories, arcs, books or trades to introduce to them. What do you choose?
Can we cheat and do runs?
Birthright by Waid
Brainiac by Johns
Secret Identity by Busiek
All-Star Superman by Morrison
Morrison’s New 52 Action Comics run
Red Son by Millar
Superman Rebirth by Tomasi
If I can’t do runs then replace Morrison Action and Tomasi Superman with What’s So Funny...? and For the Man Who Has Everything.
Last edited by Vordan; 08-14-2019 at 12:55 PM.
Birthright - My favorite Superman story and origin.
Man and Superman - Deserves to go down as a classic.
Red Son - Very good Elseworld.
Superman Earth One - Underrated but good take imo.
American Alien - Really kind of weird but good I think, worth a look.
Kingdom Come - Bit of a cheat since this has always felt more like a Justice League story to me rather than a straight up Superman tale, but I'm running short on stories here...
Birthright (favorite & best all around contemporary origin. Sets up Metropolis, Luthor, and Lois probably the best as they've ever been)
Secret Identity (Just the best Superman elseworld around)
American Alien (hope they don't know who Max Landis is, but works as a modern Superman)
World Against Superman/Action Comics #0 (The TPB is better than the issues, and it's a good character study for Superman, but kinda a weak introduction to everything else. Lois, Brainiac & Luthor especially get shortchanged)
All Star Superman
Superman #7 - Rebirth Run
Superman and the Legion of Superheroes - Johns arc.
I take it collections like Superman From the 30's to the 70's (80's) or The Greatest Superman Stories Ever Told aren't what you are looking for.
Action Comics #500
Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow
Superman takes a Wife
The Last Days of Superman (the original 1960's version)
The first trade of Morrison's New 52 Action run
Who took the Super out of Superman
The first Mongul story
Birthright
All Star Superman
What's So Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way?
Death of Superman
Adventures of Superman: Jose Garcia Lopez
The Golden Age Superman Omnibus Vol 1
Kingdom Come
Oh man. 7 stories to introduce someone to Superman. Hmmm.
1. Secret Origin. It's not my favorite origin story, but I think it's the most straight forward, easily digestible one while remaining modern. If the reader has never read Superman, then no better place to start than with an origin.
(the rest are in no particular order)
Secret Identity. Perhaps the story that understands Superman better than any other, and doesn't even star him.
Exile, to show that even Superman has human emotions and problems, and can work through them.
Superman: Brainiac gives you a look at Supergirl, as well as a cosmic story with a creepy Brainiac. The death of Pa is heartbreaking.
For the Man Who Has Everything, better in every way to WHTTMOT
Superman #45 by Tomasi & Gleason
Death / Return. It's important the new reader can see Superman in a "summer blockbuster / Michael Bay action movie" light. This saga goes to some dark places, has massive action setpieces, and is just a wonderful hold on to your seat thrillride. It was one of the first big events I read when I was getting into reading comics back in 1992/93, I had no idea why Lex had red hair or why Supergirl was made of playdoh but I didn't care. Figured it out along the way and it was wonderful.
Most people will jump straight to All Star, or Red Son, or Morrison's Action or What's So Funny...,but I think all of these would be detrimental to a brand new Superman reader. All-Star is wonderful, but also dense and requires at least some knowledge of the Silver Age. Morrison's Action run is Morrison at his Morrisonian best, and I want my new reader to not be frustrated with what they have read. Red Son, perhaps the best Elseworlds for Superman, also paints him as a bad guy until the final pages. There's many, many wonderful stories for a new reader to check out, but some of Superman's BEST stories might need to wait until they've got their gills wet first.
"Darkseid...always hated music..."
Every post I make, it should be assumed by the reader that the following statement is attached: "It's all subjective. What works for me doesn't necessarily work for you, and vice versa, and that's ok. You may have a different opinion on it, but this is mine. That's the wonderful thing about being a comics fan, it's all subjective."