Superman: Space Age Announced

[Yoda]

I got the impression the end point is Crisis on Infinite Earths with a Superman who debuts in the late 50's early 60's. With the variant cover showing Lois & Jon (presumably) I don't think this necessarily will get to the "present".

[bat39]

Have been a bit out of the loop on Superman stuff lately...can't believe I missed this! It almost feels like something I could have dreamed up!

I think this series has the potential to be a lot of things - a fun re-exploration of the Silver Age/Bronze Age Superman mythos, a Generations/Life Story-esq tale of Superman's life and his legacy across decades, and a ''what if Superman intervened in real-life events and had a real impact on the world'' thought experiment.

The artwork we've seen so far is intriguing. Seems like a mix of the Silver Age and Donner, with a bit of Post-Crisis thrown in (adult Clark with the Kents at the farmhouse). Really curious to know what's happening in the scene with the guy in the dark armor flying above those soldiers - some kind of WW2 scene or something else entirely?

I also wonder if the ''end of the world'' Clark fears here is COIE, some other specific event, or him generally seeing the world gradually inch towards destruction during the Cold War and wanting to make a difference. I suspect it'll start with the latter, but then eventually a real world-ending event shows up in the form of COIE.

Would be interested to see how much other heroes get involved and if we get to see the Silver Age JLA!

I got the impression the end point is Crisis on Infinite Earths with a Superman who debuts in the late 50's early 60's. With the variant cover showing Lois & Jon (presumably) I don't think this necessarily will get to the "present".

Yeah, this makes the most sense. I dunno how the passage of time will work, but considering this is a three issue mini and that there are roughly three decades between the mid-to-late 1950's (i.e. the dawn of the Space Age) and the events of COIE in 1986, it wouldn't surprise me if each issue covers a decade - Issue One covering 1956 to 1966, Issue Two covering 1966 to 1976 and Issue Three covering 1976 to 1986.

[Robanker]

Russell is hit or miss for me.

I love his Flintstones, Red Sonja and enjoyed Wonder Twins much more than I had any right to.

Most his other stuff I've read I've thought was alright-to-good, but I'm still a bit sore over having PG turn into a Max Lord fan for a minute.

Still, I'm giving this a look on the Allreds alone. They're long overdue in Metropolis.

[DABellWrites]

I've never read anything by Russell, but it sounds, okay? I guess knowing this is a story where Superman "fails" just doesn't excite me.

[Vordan]

MARK RUSSELL ON SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE, SELF, & HISTORY

FreakSugar: For folks reading this interview, what is the conceit of Superman: Space Age?

Mark Russell: It tells the story of Superman and his world in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, during what we casually refer to as “The Space Age”. Though, it should be noted, this is the story of the Superman in a different universe, so their history in those decades unfolds a little differently than ours. And the story of the characters we’re familiar with unfolds a little differently as well. Is that a spoiler? Maybe. But then, we identify this as being a particular universe on the very first panel of the very first page, so I’m not spoiling much.

[Hopeful Hero]

MARK RUSSELL ON SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE, SELF, & HISTORY

I gotta say my only minor gripe with this is the fact that Mark Russel had planned a little over 20 issues and now we're only getting 3 so..

[Robanker]

I gotta say my only minor gripe with this is the fact that Mark Russel had planned a little over 20 issues and now we're only getting 3 so..

Maybe if it sells enough we can get some more. Maybe the Allreds only agreed for 3.

[Frontier]

I gotta say my only minor gripe with this is the fact that Mark Russel had planned a little over 20 issues and now we're only getting 3 so..

I think Spider-Man Life Story was planned to have more issues or page count.

[bat39]

MARK RUSSELL ON SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE, SELF, & HISTORY

Great interview, and I'm even more pumped up for it than I was earlier!

A few things that I got from this interview, and the expanded synopsis of Issue One...Possible mild SPOILERS ahead

-It's going to be set in the 60's, 70's and 80's. Russell mentions his original plan was for a 20 issue series set between 1965 to 1985, so its possible that it still covers that period.

-We start with Clark as a frustrated teenager living with Jonathan and Martha Kent in 60's Smallville. So I guess he becomes Superman in the late 60's/early 70's and he's in his mid-thirties or so by the time COIE hits in 1985. Which actually works pretty well with the Bronze Age DCU chronology (such as it was).

-So COIE is apparently the disaster that Superman wants to save the world from. Which is interesting but very different from what I thought this series would be - Clark trying to save humanity from self-destruction involving pollution, nuclear proliferation, war, discrimination, economic crises etc. Wonder exactly what it is that the people of earth could do to stop COIE...

-He talks about this being set on ''a very particular earth''. Obviously its some variation of Earth One but I wonder if they'll get a bit more specific about that? Maybe explicitly set it on Earth One (or an Earth One anyway)?

-Since we're talking the Silver Age/Bronze Age (well, the latter mostly), wonder which other characters will show up. Russell mentioned wanting to start with the formation of the Justice League in his original pitch - is that still on the table? Will we be getting Supergirl? And if so given COIE is involved...well, you know.

-I love his philosophy of Superman being shaped by the people in his life - Jonathan and Marthá's kindness, Lois' courage...I wonder what he gets from Luthor though? Intelligence? Resourcefulness? Or just the fact that he needs to be diametrically opposite to Luthor?

[The Frog Bros]

As far as the initial story plan consisting of 20 issues, it seems to resemble DeConnick and WW Historia. Similarly planned out for many more issues than actually confirmed, but also perhaps tied to how well they sell.

In the case of Russell, I wonder if what we’re getting is an uber condensed/abridged version of his original concept, or just bits and pieces that could conceivably be continued in future issues if DC gives the green light.

[Zagre]

I think Spider-Man Life Story was planned to have more issues or page count.

Not exactly. It was originally a maxi, but that's because Chip wanted to tackle the history of the entire Marvel-verse. They told him to focus on something more manageable adn it thus became about Spider-Man.

In the case of Russell, I wonder if what we’re getting is an uber condensed/abridged version of his original concept, or just bits and pieces that could conceivably be continued in future issues if DC gives the green light.

Neither sounds ideal, unfortunately-

[Frontier]

Great interview, and I'm even more pumped up for it than I was earlier!

A few things that I got from this interview, and the expanded synopsis of Issue One...Possible mild SPOILERS ahead

-It's going to be set in the 60's, 70's and 80's. Russell mentions his original plan was for a 20 issue series set between 1965 to 1985, so its possible that it still covers that period.

-We start with Clark as a frustrated teenager living with Jonathan and Martha Kent in 60's Smallville. So I guess he becomes Superman in the late 60's/early 70's and he's in his mid-thirties or so by the time COIE hits in 1985. Which actually works pretty well with the Bronze Age DCU chronology (such as it was).

-So COIE is apparently the disaster that Superman wants to save the world from. Which is interesting but very different from what I thought this series would be - Clark trying to save humanity from self-destruction involving pollution, nuclear proliferation, war, discrimination, economic crises etc. Wonder exactly what it is that the people of earth could do to stop COIE...

-He talks about this being set on ''a very particular earth''. Obviously its some variation of Earth One but I wonder if they'll get a bit more specific about that? Maybe explicitly set it on Earth One (or an Earth One anyway)?

-Since we're talking the Silver Age/Bronze Age (well, the latter mostly), wonder which other characters will show up. Russell mentioned wanting to start with the formation of the Justice League in his original pitch - is that still on the table? Will we be getting Supergirl? And if so given COIE is involved...well, you know.

-I love his philosophy of Superman being shaped by the people in his life - Jonathan and Marthá's kindness, Lois' courage...I wonder what he gets from Luthor though? Intelligence? Resourcefulness? Or just the fact that he needs to be diametrically opposite to Luthor?

Maybe the Convergence crew will show up to help stop Crisis .

[Jim Kelly]

Ho, ho, with Mark Russell, it's sure to be a comic send up of U.S. politics. I can just hear that "Yankee Doodle" theme. But I thought he had retired and sold his schtick to Stephen Colbert.

[HsssH]

I gotta say my only minor gripe with this is the fact that Mark Russel had planned a little over 20 issues and now we're only getting 3 so..

Well first issue is 80 pages so it is big 3 issues...

[DABellWrites]

-I love his philosophy of Superman being shaped by the people in his life - Jonathan and Marthá's kindness, Lois' courage...I wonder what he gets from Luthor though? Intelligence? Resourcefulness? Or just the fact that he needs to be diametrically opposite to Luthor?

The only people Clark should take from is the Kents, to use his uniqueness to help others.