There's no question that over the past 15 years at least there's been a directional shift with Superman to make him a much more brooding and somber character. It seems TPTB have latched onto the "isolated alien" concept and it's pretty much been the mainstay in most incarnations of the character we've seen recently.
My question is, when did this start exactly? It didn't seem to be a drastic or immediate shift, but something that happened more gradually until it became who the character is. I think "For Tomorrow" was one of the first major storylines that pushed the brooding stuff but I also feel that Smallville may have had some impact on it too (to a lesser degree). I know even the first Superman film had some very minor portions of Superman feeling isolated but generally I believe that portrayal was very optimistic. Yet Superman Returns, which was a "loose sequel" to that film certainly portrayed a brooding Superman.
What are all your thoughts or opinions?