Action Comics #1050 discussion WITH SPOILERS

[Filbert]

In 1998, Grant Morrison, Mark Waid, Mark Millar, and Tom Peyer submitted a proposal for Superman 2000. The Superman of the 21st century, if you will. The idea was to work up from the Post-Crisis framework to the gigantic scale of the classic Silver Age. I kept thinking back to it while reading this.
One of the things they wanted to do was undo Lois and Clark's marriage. A Brainiac-Luthor team-up would cause Lois's memory of Superman's identity to kill her, and he would convince Mr. Mxyzptlk to save her, but he does so by undoing the marriage. (This was later used in Spider Man) Presumably, this is being referenced when Luthor says Superman's lucky the former spared his marriage.
Superman explaining his new power set also comes from that, as their kick-off was to have been that one day, after absorbing yellow sunlight for 29 years, Superman wakes up with full Silver Age power-levels.
I absolutely hated the way Luthor is written here. All the reason he needs is "Superman is now a threat to every living thing." Try living with that, you muscle-bound ogre! Spewing nonsense like 'a lovesick tween' is out of character and, in my opinion, doesn't belong in any villain. I hate when they write the Joker like that, too.
Didn't care much for the art. Superman looks really weird in some panels, and Lex looks ridiculous.
How come every other superhero already knew about it, that they could protect themselves and the Kents?
What I want to know is: Do the writers believe in the 'classical' approach to characters, against recent changes, or are they mocking fans like that, like what Superboy Prime became used for.

[manwhohaseverything]

What i didn't like about is the manchester black part..really?All the credit of manchesters actions is given to clark "the savior" kent who gave "salvation" to the fallen man.What a buncha hoovey..On top of killing the guy off.

[Jon Clark]

So what exactly is the deal with Jon Kent? He was born about a decade ago but is now close to two decades old.

Just what do people who now don't know about him being kryptonian think? Is there some mind block that makes it impossible to notice the discrepancy between his birthdate and his age?

Do people like Jimmy just remember him being 10 years old one day and 17 the next without any memories of him being 12-16? Do they have false memories of the "missing years"?

Will any of this actually be touched on or will it just be an unanswered question they gloss over to tell the stories they want with Jon as a "regular" person of his current age?

[adamishere1]

I am all for him having a secret identity, but it feels very like what they did with Spider-man with One More Day, except the fact that if people remember Superman and Clark Kent are one and the same, they die!!! Otherwise, happy to see it.

Re: young mr. Jon Kent, I am curious too how they have gotten around the whole him being 10 one day and then gone for a few weeks and now a 17 year old. Unless the return of the secret identity has given everyone who knew him false memories... or maybe there's going to be a reversal of Jon's age back to 10 and it will be like he was just gone on a long trip or something

[JBatmanFan05]

I am all for him having a secret identity, but it feels very like what they did with Spider-man with One More Day, except the fact that if people remember Superman and Clark Kent are one and the same, they die!!!

I too am super all for the secret identity return, it's essential fundamental stuff to me, and I hate the "if they know/remember, they die" thing, but I'm fine with that radical ridiculous aspect right now because I strongly figure/predict that that aspect will end somewhere in this run (just leaving the old ideal status quo of secret identity and no one dies if they find out).

[adamishere1]

I too am super all for the secret identity return, it's essential fundamental stuff to me, and I hate the "if they remember, they die" thing, but I'm fine with that radical ridiculous aspect right now because I strongly figure/predict that that aspect will end somewhere in this run (just leaving the old ideal status quo of secret identity and no one dies if they find out).

Yep more than likely at some point within the coming year, I reckon someone will find out and not die and that will be it. But yeah agreed, him being Clark Kent has always been a fundamental part of the Superman mythos. I am just hoping that they don't make the Clark Kent very dorky and unlikeable... when he's with people who don't know the truth.

[SuperX]

I too am super all for the secret identity return, it's essential fundamental stuff to me, and I hate the "if they remember, they die" thing, but I'm fine with that radical ridiculous aspect right now because I strongly figure/predict that that aspect will end somewhere in this run (just leaving the old ideal status quo of secret identity and no one dies if they find out).

In 20 years are the same.ppl gonna die if they think it? What about kids born after the blackout,are they screwed too or OK?

[Digifiend]

Anyone not born yet shouldn't be affected (which means Booster Gold and the Legion should still remember). Anyone off world (either in space or in an AU) won't have been affected either, for example, Naomi (who's back in her home dimension), and the Green Lantern Corps.

[Digifiend]

Yep more than likely at some point within the coming year, I reckon someone will find out and not die and that will be it. But yeah agreed, him being Clark Kent has always been a fundamental part of the Superman mythos. I am just hoping that they don't make the Clark Kent very dorky and unlikeable... when he's with people who don't know the truth.

Probably Jimmy Olsen.

[SuperX]

Anyone not born yet shouldn't be affected (which means Booster Gold and the Legion should still remember). Anyone off world (either in space or in an AU) won't have been affected either, for example, Naomi (who's back in her home dimension), and the Green Lantern Corps.

Maybe a booster just coming to present time,but if he wasn't a JL reservist than his older self thst has been here for awhile should still get blackout.

I agree about the Legion,GLC and any other off worlders

[Celgress]

I too am super all for the secret identity return, it's essential fundamental stuff to me, and I hate the "if they know/remember, they die" thing, but I'm fine with that radical ridiculous aspect right now because I strongly figure/predict that that aspect will end somewhere in this run (just leaving the old ideal status quo of secret identity and no one dies if they find out).

Co-signed, the major reason I lost interest in Superman Comics in recent years was Clark being outed as Superman. Clark Kent the civilian identity is pointless if everyone knows Clark is Superman. Clark can no longer interact on an equal social footing with civilians he is now a true god among mortals and will be treated accordingly with either reverence or fear. The superhero secret identity dichotomy is essential to a character like Superman without it he loses any semblance of a compelling nature.

[Alpha]

Probably Jimmy Olsen.

I'm sure Martian Manhunter could perform a psyhic surgery to remove this in anybody he wanted to, like Jimmy Olsen.

The set up is just that it would take a lifetime to do that for everybody in the world.

[HsssH]

Manchester probably sent his brain to some other body or whatever so he'll be back when next writer wants to use him, but it is a shame that this underwhelming anniversary issue ends his story for now.

I get that people in charge and people with influence want secret identity back and you have to do what you have to do, but to me entire thing was about as stupid as you can get. Grayson series ended in a similar way, but fill-in writers (writing for an era that was brushed under the carpet) managed to make it a decent story. So you know, creative team was put in a bad place here, but I feel like they really could have tried to make it better.

I'm not a biggest fan of Lex being main enemy of Superman because at the end of the day he is just a bald guy so I probably "don't really get him", but to me entire thing regressed him for me. Like, this is new levels of pathetic.

Entire thing about Superman getting mad that Lex killed Manchester feels hollow to me, Lex has probably killed thousands of people and now Superman gets mad? Like, have you never met Lex before? What did you expect?

This probably ain't happening, but I hope that the next collection that collects PJK's run will skip this issue. Since it is so "important" it can get its own hardcover version or whatever.

[Digifiend]

I think Clark was angry because he'd just recently turned one of his rogues into an ally, and now he's dead at the hands of another villain.

As for Lex, he pointed out Clark was lucky he didn't remove the marriage - does he read Spider-Man?

[manofsteel1979]

Bendis and the other creators literally did nothing with the whole "Clark outed" Status quo the last couple of years , so we all knew it was just a matter of time before there was a reversal back to the usual status quo.

The Luthor involvement with it and Superman's power boost definitely does bring to mind the Waid/Morrison/Millar SUPERMAN 2000/NOW proposal from over 20 years ago.


As far as anniversary issues go, this one was "meh" , BUT I am looking forward to seeing what's next. This issue just felt like the mandatory reset from the direction Bendis and the aborted 5G initiative put the Superman books in .

I'm just glad Clark is back and firmly the main Superman again.i do wish SUPERMAN was given its classic numbering back, but perhaps when the next anniversary hits they'll do it.