Superman: son of Kal-El

[garazza]

Well we just have to support it, nothing is definite in comics but I’d like to at least try to support something new and see where it goes. Maybe Jon being a young Superman and Clark as an older experienced Superman will be an amazing thing, we just have to wait and see.

I don't know man. The last time DC tried something new that people resoundingly got behind, they ruined their breakout star that had decades of stories ahead of him by stripping him of all his qualities that made his unique, new, and different.

[Yoda]

Unless you started reading comics like last Thursday, if you actually are expecting Jon to permanently replace Clark I don't know what to tell you. Like, best case scenario Clark's space adventure lasts 2 years or so before he comes back. There's a pretty solid likelihood that Jon's Superman book would either be folded back into the Superman book with Clark or spun out at that point. I mean, even when 5G was actually going to happen it wasn't supposed to last more than like 5 years.

I think the longer term repercussions of this is that we are already seeing it cementing this evolution of Clark into the character - the reveal to Lois, marriage, kid(s), identity reveal, etc. This is his arc now. It'll restart eventually I'm sure.

I think they've positioned this as best as they can for longer term success though. Taylor is a creator on a very solid upswing in popularity and they are keeping Clark in the picture with no intention to retire him permanently. I think it's possible DC may have actually learned from some past mistakes or those past mistakes all had a single origin that no longer is with the company.

[sifighter]

I can’t just accept that everything will always stay the same. I’m not saying things naturally progress as you see in real life but things can progress especially if the company doesn’t just pull a reboot again.

[Superboy-Prime]

Unless you started reading comics like last Thursday, if you actually are expecting Jon to permanently replace Clark I don't know what to tell you. Like, best case scenario Clark's space adventure lasts 2 years or so before he comes back. There's a pretty solid likelihood that Jon's Superman book would either be folded back into the Superman book with Clark or spun out at that point. I mean, even when 5G was actually going to happen it wasn't supposed to last more than like 5 years.

I think the longer term repercussions of this is that we are already seeing it cementing this evolution of Clark into the character - the reveal to Lois, marriage, kid(s), identity reveal, etc. This is his arc now. It'll restart eventually I'm sure.

I think they've positioned this as best as they can for longer term success though. Taylor is a creator on a very solid upswing in popularity and they are keeping Clark in the picture with no intention to retire him permanently. I think it's possible DC may have actually learned from some past mistakes or those past mistakes all had a single origin that no longer is with the company.

I don't see anyone being replaced in the first place.

[Ascended]

Dare I say...it's Taylor-made for Jon

Dads all over the world suddenly felt a disturbance in the Force.

Outside of my issues with Taylor as a creator, Timms was my one big point of worry. I just felt like potentially wouldn't bring the gravity required for this monumental shift...then I saw that image of the Earth reflected in his eyes as he sits quietly-- almost childlike-- on a beautifully rendered moon and I wondered to myself how I could've been so damn wrong.

Didn't read Rebirth Harley, huh? Yeah, Timms is becoming one of my favorite artists at DC. He does big and bombastic, but he's got a growing knack for those smaller, emotional beats that doesn't get the recognition it deserves.

While you're right that Jon is the perfect reflection of inherited power, there's still nothing about a Golden Age return that can't be done with Clark. The only real argument against it is that the fans wouldn't get down with it, same as they didn't get down with it during the New52. But that was a decade ago (we've been posting here too long man!), long before George and summer protests, and we need that Golden Age social crusader more than ever. Jon might be able to fill that role, but he's never gonna fill those shoes.

[Superboy-Prime]

Jon might be able to fill that role, but he's never gonna fill those shoes.

Clark can't even fill his own shoes.

[Vordan]

Does anyone else feel like this is literally the one status quo from Infinite Frontier that won't last?

Wally being the Flash is a question mark for me. How long will they stick with that given everything else is still focused on Barry? But this does feel like the most experimental status quo shakeup.

I can’t just accept that everything will always stay the same. I’m not saying things naturally progress as you see in real life but things can progress especially if the company doesn’t just pull a reboot again.

It varies. Bruce Wayne will always be Batman and nobody will ever permanently replace him. But a decade ago Hal Jordan was unquestionably the most popular GL and the face of the franchise, but he’s slipped pretty badly since Johns. None of the others have really completely unseated him though, so that area is in flux with John being the one who gets the latest shot. Wally was the Flash for a generation but zoomers are going to see Barry as their guy. So some stuff can change but others are not going to change. With Big 2 superheroes there are all sorts of “ending” books if you want that, DKR for Batman, ASS for Superman, but you are never going to get that in the mainline books. You’re just supposed to age out of it and move onto other stuff still

Unless you started reading comics like last Thursday, if you actually are expecting Jon to permanently replace Clark I don't know what to tell you. Like, best case scenario Clark's space adventure lasts 2 years or so before he comes back. There's a pretty solid likelihood that Jon's Superman book would either be folded back into the Superman book with Clark or spun out at that point. I mean, even when 5G was actually going to happen it wasn't supposed to last more than like 5 years.

I think the longer term repercussions of this is that we are already seeing it cementing this evolution of Clark into the character - the reveal to Lois, marriage, kid(s), identity reveal, etc. This is his arc now. It'll restart eventually I'm sure.

I think they've positioned this as best as they can for longer term success though. Taylor is a creator on a very solid upswing in popularity and they are keeping Clark in the picture with no intention to retire him permanently. I think it's possible DC may have actually learned from some past mistakes or those past mistakes all had a single origin that no longer is with the company.

If it’s a major success I wonder how long they’d stick with it? Even something like Al Ewing’s massive success revamping Hulk as a horror book seems poised to give way back to a more “classic” Hulk book. And then what becomes of Jon given he’s been basically rebooted to operate as Superman, where does he go? He’d be like Wally, not able to go forward or fall back into the kid sidekick role.

[Superboy-Prime]

Wally being the Flash is a question mark for me. How long will they stick with that given everything else is still focused on Barry? But this does feel like the most experimental status quo shakeup.

It varies. Bruce Wayne will always be Batman and nobody will ever permanently replace him. But a decade ago Hal Jordan was unquestionably the most popular GL and the face of the franchise, but he’s slipped pretty badly since Johns. None of the others have really completely unseated him though, so that area is in flux with John being the one who gets the latest shot. Wally was the Flash for a generation but zoomers are going to see Barry as their guy. So some stuff can change but others are not going to change. With Big 2 superheroes there are all sorts of “ending” books if you want that, DKR for Batman, ASS for Superman, but you are never going to get that in the mainline books. You’re just supposed to age out of it and move onto other stuff still

If it’s a major success I wonder how long they’d stick with it? Even something like Al Ewing’s massive success revamping Hulk as a horror book seems poised to give way back to a more “classic” Hulk book. And then what becomes of Jon given he’s been basically rebooted to operate as Superman, where does he go? He’d be like Wally, not able to go forward or fall back into the kid sidekick role.

Well, Wally has been The Flash in current continuity since 2016. And why are we talking about characters being replaced? No one has gotten replaced in neither Future State nor Infinite Frontier.

[DragonPiece]

Yara Flor, the Next Batman, Titans Academy (I dunno about this one).



You mean like Nintendo Wii?

I don't wanna get off topic, but I think out of all 3 big shakeups..Yara Flor is the only one likely to be a mainstay. She isn't mean to replace Diana and she was a instant fan favorite.

[Yoda]

I don't see anyone being replaced in the first place.

I don't either.

I can’t just accept that everything will always stay the same. I’m not saying things naturally progress as you see in real life but things can progress especially if the company doesn’t just pull a reboot again.

I don't think things will always stay static at all. I think they have fell into a pretty solid mega arc for Superman's character that they will tweak and reuse for years in various ways. I think a reboot is inevitable at some point though or at leas a backslide to one of the earlier status quos.

Wally being the Flash is a question mark for me. How long will they stick with that given everything else is still focused on Barry? But this does feel like the most experimental status quo shakeup.

It varies. Bruce Wayne will always be Batman and nobody will ever permanently replace him. But a decade ago Hal Jordan was unquestionably the most popular GL and the face of the franchise, but he’s slipped pretty badly since Johns. None of the others have really completely unseated him though, so that area is in flux with John being the one who gets the latest shot. Wally was the Flash for a generation but zoomers are going to see Barry as their guy. So some stuff can change but others are not going to change. With Big 2 superheroes there are all sorts of “ending” books if you want that, DKR for Batman, ASS for Superman, but you are never going to get that in the mainline books. You’re just supposed to age out of it and move onto other stuff still

If it’s a major success I wonder how long they’d stick with it? Even something like Al Ewing’s massive success revamping Hulk as a horror book seems poised to give way back to a more “classic” Hulk book. And then what becomes of Jon given he’s been basically rebooted to operate as Superman, where does he go? He’d be like Wally, not able to go forward or fall back into the kid sidekick role.

I think with Jon they actually already have the escape hatch of his age up to at least walk things back to a point far enough back that they can effectively reset things without major disruption. They aren't killing Clark like Barry and I don't think Hal Jordan as Green Lantern ever has had the narrative gravity that Clark Kent as Superman has even on his worst day.

I think if it's a major success, they eventually just bring Clark back and keep things trucking along with both of them. I actually think Clark's status quo here will be the harder one to maintain because of external forces and internal need. How many summer events do they go through without Superman involved in some way?

[Superboy-Prime]

I don't wanna get off topic, but I think out of all 3 big shakeups..Yara Flor is the only one likely to be a mainstay. She isn't mean to replace Diana and she was a instant fan favorite.

None of them are meant to replace any of the Trinity, they just share their names. Not sure about their sales, but I find it hard to believe Yara is anywhere close to the other two.

[Superlad93]

Dads all over the world suddenly felt a disturbance in the Force.

This was but a taste of my power.

While you're right that Jon is the perfect reflection of inherited power, there's still nothing about a Golden Age return that can't be done with Clark.

I think that's the misunderstanding here. It's not a return, it's a very timely and relevant update that goes beyond the cosmetic. Jon's is a story about inherited power, privilege, status, and agency that is unique in the Superman Family with even Clark included. This particular telling couldn't be Clark's because Clark has to establish it. Clark is the originator of the "old money" or the "system".

This isn't the story of what is basically a cowboy in a cape come to right wrongs no matter how big or small. This is the story of a child of means and power deciding how best to direct that overwhelming agency even if it means going against the system his father helped perpetuate.

[Ascended]

I think that's the misunderstanding here. It's not a return, it's a very timely and relevant update that goes beyond the cosmetic. Jon's is a story about inherited power, privilege, status, and agency that is unique in the Superman Family with even Clark included. This particular telling couldn't be Clark's because Clark has to establish it. Clark is the originator of the "old money" or the "system".

This isn't the story of what is basically a cowboy in a cape come to right wrongs no matter how big or small. This is the story of a child of means and power deciding how best to direct that overwhelming agency even if it means going against the system his father helped perpetuate.

No, I get what you're saying. It's a damn smart idea and very topical (as usual from you, you glorious genius). I just don't think it's as divergent from the old stories as you seem to. Jon's "old money" now, and that does add a really nice layer to the Golden Age social crusader cake, but I don't think it's such a wild reconstruction as to be all that unique. Like, you describe Jon as a "child of means and power deciding how best to direct that overwhelming agency" and that applies to OG Clark just as much as it does Jon, the kid just has the "going against his father's system" tacked onto it.

And I'm down for that. Not thrilled that it's replacing one of Clark's titles but Jon as essentially a Silver Age Superboy doing Golden Age things, with the added flex of being a king's son? Sure, you know that's right up my alley (other than my not wanting Jon to exist at all ). Lots of cool stuff to play with there, but end of the day? It's a step forward in the overall El family narrative journey, but it's not reinventing the wheel yknow?

That said, I feel like Superman & the Authority is also going to be playing with a lot of Golden Age themes and topics filtered through a higher concept lens, much like Son of El might be, and I dont think SuperAuthority is gonna be reinventing the Golden Age wheel either, but both books are taking that foundation and moving in new directions with it.

[Superboy-Prime]

Not thrilled that it's replacing one of Clark's titles but Jon as essentially a Silver Age Superboy doing Golden Age things, with the added flex of being a king's son? Sure, you know that's right up my alley (other than my not wanting Jon to exist at all ).

Yeah, I wish Jon didn't exist. Conner too. It should go back to how it was in the Silver Age, just Clark and Kara.

[Blue22]

Yeah...uh....I'll just take Jon going back to how he was and Conner being back with Tim, Bart, and Cassie. No need to go all the way back to the silver age xD