Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

It's a fun issue and I'm looking forward to meeting the Cosmeteers next issue.

[exile001]

This book was so much fun!

Towards the end, I was so hoping that The Ravers would show up. They could definitely do with a reboot, even if just for the fun of this arc.

[Vordan]

‘Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow’ writer Kenny Porter talks fresh starts and high adventure

AIPT: Having basically entered a strange new universe post-Dark Crisis, Conner feels alone. Why is that a compelling place to start?

Kenny Porter: Great question! It’s compelling to me because Conner has always been an outsider in the Superman family. He’s a clone, he’s half Clark Kent and half Lex Luthor, and now he has to deal with the fact that he was literally outside of the universe while it was rebooted and manipulated. Following Dark Crisis, Conner is really looking for what his role in this new DC Universe is going to be and how he can make his mark.

AIPT: You wrote the recent Flash miniseries, The Fastest Man Alive. Are there any overlaps or comparisons between Barry and Conner at all?

KP: I think there’s a big overlap with that version of Barry Allen and Conner Kent in the third issue of The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive. I won’t go into too much detail, but Conner has always been the showboating member of the Superman family. If we were to compare them to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, he’d definitely be the Raphael of the group. He loves his family, but he gets frustrated, is quick to jump into a fight, and loves to show off. We’re going to explore that a lot in this new series and how that can get Conner into trouble, similarly to how it did for Barry in the third issue of The Fastest Man Alive.

New interview with Porter! Yeah I agree that Conner is definitely the Raphael of the family. I think Kenan would be the Michelangelo, Kara would be the Leonardo, and Jon should be the Donatello.

[Kuwagaton]

I'd have actually thought John Henry was Donatello and Kon as Michelangelo. Raphael Kara got lost with rebirth lol

[Vordan]

I'd have actually thought John Henry was Donatello and Kon as Michelangelo. Raphael Kara got lost with rebirth lol

John Henry would definitely be Don if we included him, I was only thinking in terms of Clark’s direct legacies. Woman of Tomorrow moved Kara from the angry young girl of New 52 into the more adult take on the character that I think we’ll see in Action. Kon is still much more immature than Kara at this point so he makes a good Ralph.

[Kuwagaton]

I'd definitely call Steel a legacy character but then again, he's no blood relative at all.

Angry Kara was gone by the time they tried to create synergy with her show. Dunno yet if they brought it back to officially make her transition in the recent story. Kinda ironic because it was the same problem then with differentiating the characters as they had Kal, Kon, and Kara all as defiant Super young adults.

Jon, Kenan, and Kon now should be really easy to make distinct but I really haven't read anything of SoK to know how he's been since becoming his own hero. I really hope they lean into his maturation process as someone without a parental unit or a handler.

[DABellWrites]

It's was an okay story. I don't like the art at all, I hated how Cassie looked 11. In all honesty, Connor feeling useless because he can't help people isn't something I think fits the character. Superman? Yes. But, not Connor.

[Vordan]

I'd definitely call Steel a legacy character but then again, he's no blood relative at all.

Angry Kara was gone by the time they tried to create synergy with her show. Dunno yet if they brought it back to officially make her transition in the recent story. Kinda ironic because it was the same problem then with differentiating the characters as they had Kal, Kon, and Kara all as defiant Super young adults.

Jon, Kenan, and Kon now should be really easy to make distinct but I really haven't read anything of SoK to know how he's been since becoming his own hero. I really hope they lean into his maturation process as someone without a parental unit or a handler.

King’s Woman of Tomorrow doesn’t have her be as impulsive as the New 52 incarnation, but the anger and grief that the New 52 brought to the forefront are definitely key elements of the story. Her arc there is learning to come to grips with those traits and move forward.

Don’t even bother with SoKE honestly. Jon is a total nonentity under Taylor’s pen, other than not wanting to hurt anyone and gushing over Jay he has no real personality traits. He’s just the boring bisexual Superman now, and that’s probably all he’ll ever be frankly.

Kenan is very much his own entity currently I’d say. Yang did a great job in New Super-Man giving Kenan his own sandbox to play in. Lot of Chinese mythology, history, and even modern geopolitics differentiates him. I can see some overlap between him and Conner but the difference between the two is Kon’s bad traits come from his own immaturity, whereas Kenan’s bad traits come from how he’s not intrinsically a good guy. He’s selfish and ego driven in a different way from how Kon was even in his 90s era. And he doesn’t put the same value in liberty or democracy the way that the American Supers do.

I don’t know if Porter will give us quite the same level of character building for Kon as King did for Kara in WoT or worldbuild to the extent Yang did for Kenan in NSM, but maybe this can be the book that reestablishes Kon’s voice and starts building a place for him that is his own. He’s been more defined by what teams he’s been on since his original solo ended. I suppose the Johns/Lemire Superboy stuff right before the New 52 was an attempt at doing that, but it was built on a rotten foundation. Conner living with Clark’s parents, in Clark’s hometown, going to Clark’s school was never going to be the setup Kon needed to grow into his own. Here he’s on a team that isn’t a bunch of legacies, going up against foes he hasn’t faced a million times before. It’s a stronger starting point imo.

[exile001]

In all honesty, Connor feeling useless because he can't help people isn't something I think fits the character. Superman? Yes. But, not Connor.

It's more that he feels out of place entirely.

The world has moved on without him to the point that he's not even needed for basic heroing, the thing he was specifically cloned to do and has been doing consistently ever since, so it's being used as shorthand for a more all-encompassing ennui.

Focusing on needing to help someone, anyone, is a catchall for his needing to feel needed and/or wanted as a character who is aware he's been in limbo for years.

[DABellWrites]

It's more that he feels out of place entirely.

The world has moved on without him to the point that he's not even needed for basic heroing, the thing he was specifically cloned to do and has been doing consistently ever since, so it's being used as shorthand for a more all-encompassing ennui.

Focusing on needing to help someone, anyone, is a catchall for his needing to feel needed and/or wanted as a character who is aware he's been in limbo for years.

Yeah, I still don't care for it. When Connor lost his powers, he didn't feel the need to feel out-of-place or get upset about it. He got himself a big shield and kept on doing what he's doing, and there was probably a whole lot more superheroes back then now. All this makes himself feel like Superman-lite instead of being Connor. You know what would be more in-character? Him flirting with women and increasing his brash personality and rash actions, the other characters trying to get him to act like a superhero. Turns out, all that is a front for his insecurities for feeling left out. I can see that for him.

It would make for an interesting story if they used New52 Superman.

[Thor-Ul]

Yeah, I still don't care for it. When Connor lost his powers, he didn't feel the need to feel out-of-place or get upset about it. He got himself a big shield and kept on doing what he's doing, and there was probably a whole lot more superheroes back then now. All this makes himself feel like Superman-lite instead of being Connor. You know what would be more in-character? Him flirting with women and increasing his brash personality and rash actions, the other characters trying to get him to act like a superhero. Turns out, all that is a front for his insecurities for feeling left out. I can see that for him.

It would make for an interesting story if they used New52 Superman.

When he lost his powers, he was working for Cadmus.

[Vordan]

Since Porter himself wants this to be the Namek/Freeza Saga for Kon, there’s one thing Conner absolutely needs to unlock at the climax:



His own Super Saiyan power up! Alas Jon already has the Electric Blue form or I would suggest that for Conner.

[Kuwagaton]

King’s Woman of Tomorrow doesn’t have her be as impulsive as the New 52 incarnation, but the anger and grief that the New 52 brought to the forefront are definitely key elements of the story. Her arc there is learning to come to grips with those traits and move forward.

Don’t even bother with SoKE honestly. Jon is a total nonentity under Taylor’s pen, other than not wanting to hurt anyone and gushing over Jay he has no real personality traits. He’s just the boring bisexual Superman now, and that’s probably all he’ll ever be frankly.

Kenan is very much his own entity currently I’d say. Yang did a great job in New Super-Man giving Kenan his own sandbox to play in. Lot of Chinese mythology, history, and even modern geopolitics differentiates him. I can see some overlap between him and Conner but the difference between the two is Kon’s bad traits come from his own immaturity, whereas Kenan’s bad traits come from how he’s not intrinsically a good guy. He’s selfish and ego driven in a different way from how Kon was even in his 90s era. And he doesn’t put the same value in liberty or democracy the way that the American Supers do.

I don’t know if Porter will give us quite the same level of character building for Kon as King did for Kara in WoT or worldbuild to the extent Yang did for Kenan in NSM, but maybe this can be the book that reestablishes Kon’s voice and starts building a place for him that is his own. He’s been more defined by what teams he’s been on since his original solo ended. I suppose the Johns/Lemire Superboy stuff right before the New 52 was an attempt at doing that, but it was built on a rotten foundation. Conner living with Clark’s parents, in Clark’s hometown, going to Clark’s school was never going to be the setup Kon needed to grow into his own. Here he’s on a team that isn’t a bunch of legacies, going up against foes he hasn’t faced a million times before. It’s a stronger starting point imo.

Honestly, if Jon has fallen flat like that I take no joy. I would want to mull over the idea of someone de-aging him but that couldn't possibly be a good solution.

[Knightsilver]

Honestly, if Jon has fallen flat like that I take no joy. I would want to mull over the idea of someone de-aging him but that couldn't possibly be a good solution.

De-aging him is pretty much his only solution. It's that...or he's quietly ignored until he's killed off/erased in "Forever Crisis".

[Vordan]

Honestly, if Jon has fallen flat like that I take no joy. I would want to mull over the idea of someone de-aging him but that couldn't possibly be a good solution.

As someone who was pretty enthusiastic about Jon’s potential as Superman, and as a guy who mostly enjoyed Bendis, Taylor has utterly ruined the concept for me at this point. His Jon is such a bore, I wouldn’t even care if he got deaged or killed off.

What Porter is doing with Conner here is exactly the kind of thing I was hoping to see done with Jon: fold in some manga influences and mix them with superheroics. It’s crazy how much more exciting this book is. We’re only one issue in and I’m loathe to get ahead of myself, but Conner may end up being a more interesting candidate for co-Superman with Clark than the guy DC was grooming to take the cape away from Clark for good. Kenan was already a better candidate but it’s sad how badly DC editorial dropped the ball.

Oh well, Jon’s loss is Conner’s gain. Hope this book keeps up the quality level and sells well enough that maybe we might get more minis for Conner.