Superman: son of Kal-El

[Superlad93]

I just gotta say the way you're able to turn everything you're given into something overly positive is something I strive to do & it's hard even with my weed you the blueprint my guy.

Aw, thanks man!

I try not to dwell on entertainment that doesn't make me happy. You'll usually never see me comment on stuff I don't like because I usually don't have as much energy to rip something apart as I would to discuss about how I liked it. Nearest I've gotten my embarrassing few weeks of being upset about Superman & Lois' Jon Kent take. It's still not it for me (but he's such a great kid though!), but that just translated to me watching the show, enjoying what I could, and going on about my day. Didn't even realize a new episode was coming on tonight.

In any case, I hope I can at least discuss Son of Kal-El in a civil manner with anyone reading it.

[Journey]

Aw, thanks man!

I try not to dwell on entertainment that doesn't make me happy. You'll usually never see me comment on stuff I don't like because I usually don't have as much energy to rip something apart as I would to discuss about how I liked it. Nearest I've gotten my embarrassing few weeks of being upset about Superman & Lois' Jon Kent take. It's still not it for me (but he's such a great kid though!), but that just translated to me watching the show, enjoying what I could, and going on about my day. Didn't even realize a new episode was coming on tonight.

In any case, I hope I can at least discuss Son of Kal-El in a civil manner with anyone reading it.

Oh I feel you 100% on CW Jon he's a wasted character, I wouldn't be shocked if they killed him off & just kept Jordan.

[Blue22]

Yeah, like I've said before, Superlad would be one hell of a salesman. I bet he could even make Heroes in Crisis sound good xD

Aw, thanks man!

I try not to dwell on entertainment that doesn't make me happy. You'll usually never see me comment on stuff I don't like because I usually don't have as much energy to rip something apart as I would to discuss about how I liked it. Nearest I've gotten my embarrassing few weeks of being upset about Superman & Lois' Jon Kent take. It's still not it for me (but he's such a great kid though!), but that just translated to me watching the show, enjoying what I could, and going on about my day. Didn't even realize a new episode was coming on tonight.

In any case, I hope I can at least discuss Son of Kal-El in a civil manner with anyone reading it.

Yeah I totally get that. I know I'm the opposite, mostly because I find venting about media I don't enjoy to be cathartic as hell. Especially when it's something I used to enjoy.

But I really do appreciate your take on this...era. Even if I do strongly disagree with a lot of it. You're one of the only people I've seen to be THIS positive about where Jon's going without being a dick to people who aren't on board with it.

[Superlad93]

Oh I feel you 100% on CW Jon he's a wasted character, I wouldn't be shocked if they killed him off & just kept Jordan.

I have my theories. And they've been evolving as I've seen more of the show, learned behind-the-scene rumors, and learned about what would've been the plan for Jon in 5G (which the show would've been developed alongside rather than this current era). They're just theories, but enough dots line up to where I can see the thinking behind it.

Yeah, like I've said before, Superlad would be one hell of a salesman. I bet he could even make Heroes in Crisis sound good xD

Whoa now, I don't know bout all that lol

Yeah I totally get that. I know I'm the opposite, mostly because I find venting about media I don't enjoy to be cathartic as hell. Especially when it's something I used to enjoy.

But I really do appreciate your take on this...era. Even if I do strongly disagree with a lot of it. You're one of the only people I've seen to be THIS positive about where Jon's going without being a dick to people who aren't on board with it.

I totally get that, and I'm certainly not above the need for a cathartic venting when it's something I was really looking forward to, so I'm far from saint-like. And I've honestly valued your contrasting view on the era. By contrasting off you, it's helped me get to the meat of what I liked about the Jon Kent character, and him as Superman.

[Blue22]

I have my theories. And they've been evolving as I've seen more of the show, learned behind-the-scene rumors, and learned about what would've been the plan for Jon in 5G (which the show would've been developed alongside rather than this current era). They're just theories, but enough dots line up to where I can see the thinking behind it.

Hmmm....maybe I need to keep watching Superman and Lois. I dropped off around episode 3 but I did genuinely like both Jon and Jordan in that show. Definitely a lot more than I like the comics Jon right now.

It's also one of my favorite takes on Lois. That "Bitch, I told you so!" look she was giving Clark when the boys found out he was Superman has stuck with me more than anything else in the CW-verse lol

Whoa now, I don't know bout all that lol

Well at least we both agree that that event sucked. I was starting to think the only thing we have in common is that we're both fans of Giorno Giovanna XD

[Superlad93]

Hmmm....maybe I need to keep watching Superman and Lois. I dropped off around episode 3 but I did genuinely like both Jon and Jordan in that show. Definitely a lot more than I like the comics Jon right now.

It's also one of my favorite takes on Lois. That "Bitch, I told you so!" look she was giving Clark when the boys found out he was Superman has stuck with me more than anything else in the CW-verse lol

It's a good show for sure. Not quite up to the level of a Disney+ Marvel show, but not as far off as you'd think. Certainly not your average CW joint. And Jon as a character is great. His personality and actions just make you want to root for him every time. It's just...and not too get too into it, the show keeps dumping on him while not really giving him much of a driving force in the story or screen time. That's changed somewhat with the latter half of the season, but it still remains a big bummer that he doesn't have powers.

Next season is likely to see some retooling, and given the overwhelmingly positive buzz I've seen for Jon online-- with a lot of fans wondering when he'll get his powers (the actor is even asked that in like every interview he has)-- coupled with DC's push for him as Superman we may get something on that end, but I'm not holding my breath. But the specific outlet they're giving him is...problematic, and they should really think HARD before pulling the trigger on it because of the optics.

[Yoda]

This issue functions as a thesis to the Jon Kent Superman, and it ends with a clear mission statement and the seeds to realize it. I realized it was actually a lot like the first issue of Superman back in the 30s in this way.

I don't know if you saw the interview, but this is exactly what Taylor was going for with this issue. Issue No. 2 was the original No. 1 apparently but they wanted something to really streamline Jon's birth and kind of set up him more generally.

All in all, I liked this issue a lot more than I expected too. It wasn't as meaty or as plot heavy as I expected, but really was a solid set up issue and I'm excited to see where Taylor is going to take this.

Another interview dropped from Taylor as well, and he talks about how Jon's not going to be inheriting a lot of Clark's supporting cast, but will be interacting with a few of his bigger villain's in the beginning. So maybe the Brainiac or Cyborg Superman theories about the Kent Farm are right. The Truth will apparently be akin to his "Daily Planet" though. He did mention one thing that is just speaking my language though:

Damian is definitely a big part of it, but so is Lois. Lois has not had the page presence that she’s deserved with Jon. So she’s going to be a really big part of his life, particularly with Clark leaving.

Lois' influence on Jon really hasn't been explored and Taylor really sounds like he's going to correct that.

https://aiptcomics.com/2021/07/27/to...-for-superman/

[oneveryfineday]

This was a good showcase of Jon’s character and background for anyone new to him. The heart of the issue was the forest fire scene. Taylor acknowledged before in an interview that Jon comes from trauma, which made the scene of him helping the metahuman through his super-powered anxiety attack work all the more beautifully. I love the idea that a lot of Jon’s empathy comes from his own personal grief, and I have a feeling we’ll see that metahuman come back again. Maybe he’s the close friend that Jon makes in issue 3?

The Super Sons had some humorous and heartfelt banter that I enjoyed, but my only quibble is that Damian had the closing lines and mission statement when it really should’ve been Jon. It’s his first solo Superman book after all, and his voice should bookend the start and end of his story. The addition of a villain cliffhanger would’ve been a great hook for the next issue as well, though Taylor seems determined to keep that a tight secret even at this stage.

Still, I enjoyed the story overall! I’m mostly looking forward to the second issue where it’ll dive into the meat of the plot: new secret identity, college, the Truth organization, Fortress. Maybe we’ll see that conversation Jon and Clark will have on the moon too? I wonder if Clark’s still around Earth at that point or if he’s talking to Jon from deep space via communication hologram, since the timelines aren’t clear yet.

Oddly enough, I can still only see Jon as Superboy, especially since no one actually calls him Superman in this issue. Maybe he has his big accepting-the-mantle moment in the October event, which would be in our future but the book’s past. Again confusing timelines, but I’d rather have this book now than later haha

[Vordan]

Someone retweeted the Injustice movie preview and that put me in a foul mood and caused me to put this off. Wasn’t really going to give this book a fair shake in my mental state at the time. Finally got around to reading it so my thoughts are as follows.

As a streamlining of Jon’s origin this does a pretty much perfect job. You get the basics of his background and it sets his core deal up pretty nicely. He has to replace his dad and he’s not sure he’s ready or how to even go about doing that. As an intro issue for newcomers it’s well done, even as we long term readers aren’t likely to get much from it. There’s enough action to keep it from just being talking heads, even though the focus is mostly on Jon’s character as opposed to plot. The art is a mixed bag, sometimes it looks really good, other times not so much, feel like they’re going to need someone other than Timms on art at some point to really attract attention.

Overall I’d say it’s on par with his first Nightwing issue which I also enjoyed, but I do think it would’ve been stronger with a plot hook of some kind for the next issue.

I’m sure all two dozen kid Jon fans are going to hate this comic no matter what

Seriously did he get swiped with his Earth 3 doppelgänger? Completely switched sides overnight lol, wonder what caused it? I’ve got a theory but I’d be curious to know.

[Superlad93]

Thought I'd just post the whole thing for ease of viewing.

AIPT: As someone whose written many alternate versions of these characters (Injustice, DCeased), how was the transition to writing their main continuity counterparts?

Tom Taylor: It’s always a little bit more daunting because with Injustice and DCeased you can break the toys. Your allowed to snap them in half, tear their heads off in brutal ways, punch their chests out or other horrific things. Whereas in this people are like, “Um, could you stop? They need to be alive for the next person and for that other book they appear in.” So that’s one of the setbacks. But having said that, on the cover of issue #4 you’ll see we destroy the Kent house and that’s very on brand for me. Goodbye Kent farm.

So yeah, it’s just about being reminded your playing in a shared universe and being a bit respectful of that, but also swinging as hard as you can in those confines and finding where you can push. I guess I’m a little lucky cause I’m not telling Clark’s story, I’m telling Jon’s story. In a large sense people don’t know who he is yet and he doesn’t know who he is yet, so I get to find that with him. I get to challenge him in ways that he’s never been challenged before.

AIPT: You’ve mentioned the ’70s Superman movie as a source of inspiration. What other sources are you drawing from?

TT: That’s a good question, which is another way of saying that’s a really difficult question. I’m a strange person, I sit down and I just write and I often don’t know where I’m drawing from. You know it’s usually from osmosis of everything I’ve read. If you’re talking about great Superman stories, then you know you’re looking at All-Star Superman, Superman for All Seasons, and everything that Joe Kelly touched during that era. Some of my favorite Superman stories go back to there and some fantastic Justice League.

I’m drawing from those stories but I’m also drawing from every other hero I’ve written. I think there’s something so very Superman about Nightwing that I love. There’s a reason they’re both kind of the heart of the DC Universe. And not to spoil anything, but there is a good chance that Nightwing and Jon will share some pages in the future. I come from all over the place when I’m looking for inspiration.

AIPT: How much will Son of Kal-El be playing into the other Superman titles?

TT: In early days it will, but I assume we all know that Clark is leaving. So once he’s gone and left the earth, Jon is the Superman of earth. There is no other Superman here and we’re not playing into that until the plans change. He will just be the Superman of Earth. So he’s not really interacting with anybody else, except in another way which I can’t reveal yet around issue #4-5.

AIPT: How much of Jon’s rogues gallery will be him inheriting Clark’s villains versus new ones?

TT: It will be a mixture of both. We will see him take on some big names especially in the next month or so.

AIPT: So at the end of issue #1 we see a shared moment between Jon and Damian. Will any more of Jon’s supporting characters (Beacon, Bizarro-Superboy) be coming back from other runs?

TT: It’s tricky. Part of sitting down to write Jon is realizing that a lot of his friendships are in the future, a lot of his friendships are in other realms. He doesn’t have many people, particularly his own age, in the here and now. So a large part of this book is about finding a new cast for Jon. People that he’s going to be friends with, people that he’s going to change things with. We talked about the Truth very early on in this issue, a sort of more modern version of the Daily Planet, and that is going to come into the book more as we go ahead. But for now it’s about creating that cast.

It’s about not forgetting Damian in particular because they’re one of the worlds finest friendships and I love what they have. They have a great friendship and we’ll definitely be keeping that. A lot of people are still concerned because of the age shift of Jon but they’re now back to the exact same age difference. So Damian’s 14 and Jon’s 17, where as they used to be 10 and 13, it’s the same but just flipped. Damian is definitely a big part of it, but so is Lois. Lois has not had the page presence that she’s deserved with Jon. So she’s going to be a really big part of his life, particularly with Clark leaving.

AIPT: How much will the glimpse we saw of Jon during Future State function as a direction for the title?

TT: Future State I see as a kind of an Elseworlds. Where we can get into it if we want and there’s always that in the back of our minds, but we’re not driven there. So for now, we have a really big character and world story to tell in our book and that’s what we’ll be focusing on.

* So the Kent farm really is going goodbye, but we're likely not getting rid of the Kents

* "I guess I’m a little lucky cause I’m not telling Clark’s story, I’m telling Jon’s story. In a large sense people don’t know who he is yet and he doesn’t know who he is yet, so I get to find that with him. I get to challenge him in ways that he’s never been challenged before." Bless. Along with the youth factor, this is a big draw for Jon as Superman (for both writers and readers).

* Not surprised we'll see Nightwing. If I remember, in another interview Taylor said that Batman would want to have a word with Jon regarding his intervening, but that it would sound a lot better coming from Nightwing than Bruce.

* Guessing issues 4-5 will be all about who attacked the Kent farm, and apparently whoever that is who Jon will be interacting with. Seems like someone major. Or at least unexpected.

* Can't wait to see the big name villains Jon takes on!

* "So a large part of this book is about finding a new cast for Jon. People that he’s going to be friends with, people that he’s going to change things with." So Taylor's not just going to be building Jon's supporting cast, but his full on crew.

* Very glad to hear Lois will play a larger role in Jon's life than before.

[Vordan]

Maybe he can kill one of the Kents at least ? I have a feeling even if they don’t die in issue 3, they still aren’t going to be long for this world. But I can see Taylor saving their deaths for down the line after we’ve seen more time with Jon and them together. Guess they’ll be moving to Metropolis with him?

And yeah the Lois-Jon interactions have been sorely lacking. One thing I’d be interested in, especially given this run being billed as the “anti-Injustice” is Lois and Jon talking about the no kill rule. Does she support that?

[Hizashi]

I won't be able to pick up the issue until tomorrow afternoon, I'm cautiously optimistic. I haven't been Taylor's biggest fan, although I like his Nightwing well enough. I just can't bring myself to read Injustice or any of the DCeased books, but I think I'll pick up the trade of Batman: The Detective, the guys at my LCS love that book; I read his X-Men: Red and was disappointed.

[Blue22]

It always feels weird hearing people not like X-Men Red when that was the book that made me a huge Taylor fan lol

Then again, I loved Geoff Johns' Teen Titans and a lot of people hated that too.

[witchboy]

I'm glad to hear Lois will play a more prominent role in Jon's life. I've been bummed that Lois would be separated from Clark for the immediate future, so at least that's something.

[Vordan]

It always feels weird hearing people not like X-Men Red when that was the book that made me a huge Taylor fan lol

Then again, I loved Geoff Johns' Teen Titans and a lot of people hated that too.

No matter how popular a work, someone will always hate it. Nothing is universally beloved. I don’t like Claremont X-Men, outside of GLMK and DoFP. Hell I don’t really like X-Men in general outside of Morrison, Whedon, and Hickman.