MOS: Putting Superman in the real world

[Powerboy]

Fair points...although again one could argue that as far as Byrne Superman went at the time, even before the killing of ZOD in Superman #22, there was a vocal contingent of fans who weren't accepting Byrne Superman as the "real" Superman as it was a divorce from the direction of the previous 30 years...although that issue didn't help matters. The killing of Zod there (as it does now) gives those who disapprove of a new take on the character something to hang their hat on and say "that's not my Superman!! Superman never kills!!!! blasphemer!!!! John Byrne is a hack who ruined Superman with a hateful agenda to divorce the character from his rich history!!! The Superman reboot is a failure!!! Bring back Maggin, Swan and Bates NOW!!!"

History has a habit of repeating.

Someone posted on Facebook 5 things you'll never read in social media. One of them was, "I accept the reality that time moves on and the way the beloved characters of my childhood are presented nowadays is different from the way they were presented when I first encountered them- and I'm okay with that."

In this case, the statement was presented with an image of the early Marvel Thor with a drawing that I think was supposed to be the movie Thor and that was pretty mild compared to MoS.

I grant you that Byrne having Superman kill, especially the way it happened, was probably a final excuse to unleash a lot of anger over the presentation already being far removed from the Superman most people at the time were familiar with. It was one really big thing to latch onto rather than a bunch of seemingly lesser details.

[Powerboy]

I would add that there are people who say things like:

Superman 1938-1986 R.I.P.

Now, a lot of times, I do prefer early Thor, as silly as some of it seems now or Bronze Age Superman, which was pretty decent. I'm not angry about it. I realize time moves on. I often like what is currently being done with some characters though I might not enjoy it as much if there wasn't a plethora of old stories to read too.

But I also think some current stuff is better than others and what happens in the best comics is almost always better than movies. Another truism seems to be that, most of the time, animated movies will be better than live action movies though they will never sell as big. I liked a lot of MoS and I'm not even upset about the killing. I've never called it murder. I just didn't like how forced it seemed. I also thought the whole "hope" deal was a nice buildup but was sort of hoisted on it's own pitard, the movie's own "realism" making it unbelievable that people are going to accept him.

[byrd156]

Why would you even want "the real world" in comics?

[Powerboy]

Why would you even want "the real world" in comics?

It depends on what you mean by "the real world" and how far you want to take it. People getting married and even being interested in each other "like that" is something that perhaps once didn't exist in some stories and then "realism" crept in. In television shows, husbands and wives used to sleep in separate beds but then "the real world" invaded. Step by step characters developed more real feelings and motivations. So it just depends on how much is enough to give some feeling of depth and how much is too much and that's an individual thing.

[Kid A]

Why would you even want "the real world" in comics?

Persepolis is amazing.

[manofsteel1979]

I would add that there are people who say things like:

Superman 1938-1986 R.I.P.

Now, a lot of times, I do prefer early Thor, as silly as some of it seems now or Bronze Age Superman, which was pretty decent. I'm not angry about it. I realize time moves on. I often like what is currently being done with some characters though I might not enjoy it as much if there wasn't a plethora of old stories to read too.

But I also think some current stuff is better than others and what happens in the best comics is almost always better than movies. Another truism seems to be that, most of the time, animated movies will be better than live action movies though they will never sell as big. I liked a lot of MoS and I'm not even upset about the killing. I've never called it murder. I just didn't like how forced it seemed. I also thought the whole "hope" deal was a nice buildup but was sort of hoisted on it's own pitard, the movie's own "realism" making it unbelievable that people are going to accept him.

I agree with nearly all of this post...especially your analysis of MOS. MOS is a flawed yet enjoyable movie...and I will even go as far as say it is not nearly the movie that the Donner film was. I just get annoyed at the same arguments posted here relentlessly here over a year later as if certain people cannot let it go that the movie was liked by many and was successful. Its almost as if a certain contingent of fandom cant accept something they disliked exists and was successful and wont rest until everyone agrees with them...which is a futile goal.

[Qwathings]

I had a thought.

If I'm understanding this correctly, the argument against Clark using his powers during the tornado scene is that this will lead to his alien nature becoming widely known, which would then lead to the government and military learning of him and making his life difficult.

However, Clark flew away in an alien spaceship, while military personnel watched, a newspaper reporter wrote an article about it that was then published for anyone to read, and nothing happened.

I find that a little funny.

[Qwathings]

It depends on what you mean by "the real world" and how far you want to take it. People getting married and even being interested in each other "like that" is something that perhaps once didn't exist in some stories and then "realism" crept in. In television shows, husbands and wives used to sleep in separate beds but then "the real world" invaded. Step by step characters developed more real feelings and motivations. So it just depends on how much is enough to give some feeling of depth and how much is too much and that's an individual thing.

For some of the complaints against using the "real world," it's probably more accurate to use words like "mundane" or "cynical," rather than "real."

[LoneNecromancer]

Why would you even want "the real world" in comics?

It says more about you that you think comics are so immature a medium that they can't have the real world in it.

Many comics have incorporated the real world to a heavy extent, or even been autobiographical, and been fantastic pieces of artwork.

[Green Goblin of Sector 2814]

I can't wait to see how they plan on realistically handling the unrealistic disguise of Clark Kent.

Just put on some glasses, eh? Lol.

Nobody really got a good look at him except for Lois, who recognized him right away.

[Lax]

Nobody really got a good look at him except for Lois, who recognized him right away.

Lois figured it out before he became Superman, so that's a little different.

I'm thinking about the end of the movie where he starts at the Planet as Clark Kent and... what... are people just never going to see what Superman looks like? I don't see how they can realistically handle something so unrealistic.

[Qwathings]

Lois figured it out before he became Superman, so that's a little different.

I'm thinking about the end of the movie where he starts at the Planet as Clark Kent and... what... are people just never going to see what Superman looks like? I don't see how they can realistically handle something so unrealistic.

For the secret identity to work there needs to be some suspension of disbelief. Unfortunately, asking the audience to suspend their disbelief for a new element that's added in the last five minutes of the story isn't very effective. The audience needs these sorts of elements introduced earlier in the story.

As it is, Clark showed up at the Daily Planet with the same hair, voice, and mannerisms that he had in costume, and he's expecting a pair of glasses to hide him. Jenny and Perry saw him after Clark rescued Lois from the singularity she was heavy enough to fall away from. If I'm supposed to buy that they don't see through his disguise the secret identity should have been introduced back when they were establishing the rules of their fictional world (aliens exist, people fly, having powers sucks, etc).

The secret identity will be in place at the start of the next movie, but I don't know how effective it will be used there. So far, it doesn't seem to have been used effectively in MOS.