Personal Superman Head Canon

[superduperman]

Inspired by the one on the Wonder Woman thread. What is your personal Superman head canon?

[manwhohaseverything]

He doesn't fly.He doesn't develop gazillion other power.He stays the neighbourhood champion fighting for what he feels right and not to put up a face for the crowd to cheer.He doesn't talk much.Has a sense of humour.His citadel isn't some north pole ice palace.It's a junkyard scrap yard that can move because it has legs.Lex has flying fortress.Oh Yeah!! finds an ancient race of giant robot friend.on his debut he wears a circus getup that comes from a run down circus....Then transitions to a more casual look.

Nobody cares who his parents are.

[Stanlos]

Jor El and Lara did NOT have prior knowledge of earth, its star, nor the fortuitous effects of all that bountiful yelliw sun radiation. Instead, Krypton is the victim of a once in a lifetime solar eruption which destabilizes its core resultingin a chain reaction.

Lara and Jor had suffered fertility issues and had just recently achieved a successful pairing. But alas, their joy is threatened by the arrival of the planet's doom. So they load the precious embryo into the gestation chamber and just as their home is swallowed by planet's crumbling crust they launch the precious cargo into the stars, never knowing that their baby would not only find safety but would go on to inspire an unprecedented heroic age.

[Jon Clark]

Similar to Stanlos the rocket launch is a last minute thing. No destination other than "not on an exploding planet". No time for recorded messages or holograms. Kal-El escapes Krypton's doom and doesn't arrive on Earth with any clue about where the rocket came from.

He has powers from the moment he arrives on Earth (maybe earlier even but between Krypton and Earth he is "sleeping" so there is no way to tell). The powers might not be fully developed but he is definitely not an ordinary infant, toddler, child ,,,

The Kents teach him to try to blend in (don't lift more than the average kid, don't run faster, avoid things that should hurt you ...) which is why he grows up with the meek mild mannered Clark identity. It is him trying to avoid doing anything to stand out, invite attention, or risk physical (non)injury.

He becomes a Superboy at some point. Possibly operating in secret, possibly in costume but either way nowhere near the level of his Superman career. Also has his Legion adventures at this time.

His arrival in Metropolis coincides with Superman becoming a 24/7 hero with a public "homebase". Superboy (if public) showed up only intermittently usually for stuff he heard on the news that required his level of power to deal with. Superman was seen everyday either in Metropolis or at some major disaster, but also dealing with smaller stuff like bank robbery, muggers, etc.

[superduperman]

Earth 167 isn't the main Smallville Earth. Yes, I will die bitter about this.

Clark had powers from day one on the S&L Earth. The scene where he throws the rocket through the side of the house is just one example of him losing control. There were others before that. He kicked a hole in his crib as a baby like in Superman 3.

In the Ruby Spears universe, Jor-El left a recording in his rocket telling him about Krypton which he saw from a young age and the first Family Album segment where he openly used his powers in front of people is just something he told himself happened as a kid because that's what he wants to believe happened.

In the Superboy show universe, Superboy and Lex don't look anything like the actors actually playing them. This is why Lex looks the same in every universe Superboy travels to despite changing faces in the main universe. Think a small town theater troupe with only about a dozen actors playing the same characters in every play. One month they might play Hamlet, the next the same actor is playing Romeo. The audience knows they are just looking at actors and their imagination fills in the mental blanks that tells you it's the same actor. This is also why when you watch an episode of TOS of Star Trek you overlook the outdated technology.

Kingdom Come Superman has the same history as Earth 96 Superman but not necessarily the other way around.

[Zero Hunter]

He doesn't fly.He doesn't develop gazillion other power.He stays the neighbourhood champion fighting for what he feels right and not to put up a face for the crowd to cheer.He doesn't talk much.Has a sense of humour.His citadel isn't some north pole ice palace.It's a junkyard scrap yard that can move because it has legs.Lex has flying fortress.Oh Yeah!! finds an ancient race of giant robot friend.on his debut he wears a circus getup that comes from a run down circus....Then transitions to a more casual look.

Nobody cares who his parents are.

So basically you don't really like anything about Superman but the name.

[bat39]

Whether Superman starts out as a 'vigilante' Champion of the Oppressed, or a Boy Scout and law-abiding hero, depends on whether or not the Kents are alive when he puts on the suit the first time.

Golden Age Clark lost his adoptive parents before he put on the suit, so his Superman was an outlaw vigilante. Ditto with the New 52 Clark. Silver Age Clark however became Superboy under the supervision (pun intended!) of his parents, so he was always a Boy Scout. And Post-Crisis Clark's parents were alive well into his adulthood, so his Superman also started out as a lawful hero too.

Virtually every major adaptation has had one or both of the Kents alive when Clark first becomes Superman, which is why we've never really seen the 'Champion of the Oppressed' adapted on screen.

[magha_regulus]

Kryptonians have all the 1938 powers on Krypton so Krypton is actually the planet of the Supermen
Clark Kent is the secret identity and is his mask so to speak
Superman started his career as Superboy, had adventures with the Legion of Superheroes and because of his time as Superboy he is more experienced than all the other heroes of his era and he helps train them.
Batman relies on Superman for access to advanced alien tech. They are the best of friends.
Superman is one of the smartest people on the planet with the most advanced technology
Supergirl is a better scientist than Superman because she had the advantage of completing a Kryptonian education
Kryptonians all have innate Super-Intelligence
Superman is on track to becoming the god of heroes of the New Gods
The Kents are dead
Superman is the Champion of the Oppressed first and foremost
Nightwing is heavily influenced by Superman and that is why he's not as brooding as Batman. Nightwing also uses Kryptonian tech and loves the philosophy of the House of EL and is an honorary member of the house.
Superman and Wonder Woman are in love with each other
Superman isn't married to Lois, she's a rival to Clark Kent, knows he's Superman, has no proof of it, and is constantly trying to expose Superman's secrets to the world.
Superman is constantly discovering new powers and abilities
Jon Kent is an anomaly created by a multiversal version of Brainiac
Doomsday's bones are made of kryptonite
Luthor is eventually going to learn magic
Jimmy Olsen is dating Lois's sister Lucy, knows Clark is really Superman but keeps it secret, and helps protect Superman's secrets from Lois
Superman and Krypto can communicate through the Kryptonian tech and Krypto is as smart as an adult human being
Superman is a founder of the Justice League and it was partly his idea
Rokyn from the Earth 1 universe is still out there because it spent most of its time in another dimension
Superman has all of his Earth 1 memories and has cosmic awareness of his multiversal variations.
Superman really is winking at us and knows he's a comic book character in our universe and tries his best to inspire us.

[DABellWrites]

Superman isn't a simple farm boy from Kansas.

Clark crash landed in Cleveland Ohio.

While Superman may look human, he knew from a young age innately he's not from the Earth.

Clark isn't fully invulnerable, it just takes a lot to wound him.

Superman was quite the ladies man before settling down.

Whether Superman starts out as a 'vigilante' Champion of the Oppressed, or a Boy Scout and law-abiding hero, depends on whether or not the Kents are alive when he puts on the suit the first time.

Golden Age Clark lost his adoptive parents before he put on the suit, so his Superman was an outlaw vigilante. Ditto with the New 52 Clark. Silver Age Clark however became Superboy under the supervision (pun intended!) of his parents, so he was always a Boy Scout. And Post-Crisis Clark's parents were alive well into his adulthood, so his Superman also started out as a lawful hero too.

Virtually every major adaptation has had one or both of the Kents alive when Clark first becomes Superman, which is why we've never really seen the 'Champion of the Oppressed' adapted on screen.

This would be quite the story to tell.

[manwhohaseverything]

So basically you don't really like anything about Superman but the name.

Pretty much....It's not just superman.I don't care for superheroes much other than some characters here and there.i like the old action adventure pulp fiction characters like doc savage,zorro...etc.And yes this ain't your superman.It's mine.He is a bit old fashioned ruffian.He has this group of roughnecks.His very own fabulous five though nothing like the "superfamily",more like the Clark's authority.. It's gonna be more circus themed.I am thinking a clown(creeper),acrpbat(dick grayson),lion tamer(animal man),swamp thing(the freakshow),Zatanna(magician)..etc

[Stanlos]

So basically you don't really like anything about Superman but the name.

Is that a fair conclusion? It seems like the poster clicks with the core essence of Superman and wants to ignore genre baggage that has glommed onto the character over the decades. If I interpreted the post correctly, it seems he feels Siegel & Shuster's original idea of Superman as a Genius in Intelect, a Hercules in Strength, and a Nemesis to Wrongdoers is strong enough and pure enough that it doesn't need anything else. His post trades out the more extraneous fluff like the Donner ice crystal She-Ra fortress for a locale that enables elements of Superman's core traits to shine.

Why is this bad?

[manwhohaseverything]

I am not taking a dunk on silverage,post crisis or donner's men of steel or anyother version. I just want another type imaginary tale.

[James Cameron]

Pretty much....It's not just superman.I don't care for superheroes much other than some characters here and there.i like the old action adventure pulp fiction characters like doc savage,zorro...etc.And yes this ain't your superman.It's mine.He is a bit old fashioned ruffian.He has this group of roughnecks.His very own fabulous five though nothing like the "superfamily",more like the Clark's authority.. It's gonna be more circus themed.I am thinking a clown(creeper),acrpbat(dick grayson),lion tamer(animal man),swamp thing(the freakshow),Zatanna(magician)..etc

It's not really a headcanon though. That's just your alternate take on Superman.

[Zero Hunter]

My headcannon?

Superman is not some immortal being who will live forever. As he ages his cells will gradually lose their ability to store solar radiation and he will grow old and die. It might take a thousand years, but sooner or latter death comes for everyone.

Brainiac is an insane scientist from the planet Colu named Vril Dox who became obsessed with hoarding knowledge. Over the centuries of his life he has modified himself into a very advanced cyborg, but he is at his core and organic being not a rouge AI. He created his cloned son Vril Dox II which is what carried on the Dox line all the way to Brainiac 5 (Querl Dox). The Brainiac line goes Brainiac (Vril Dox) - Vril Dox II - Lyrl Dox - (unknown child of Lyrl) - Brainiac 5 (Querl Dox). So the original Brainiac is the Great-Great-Grandfather of Brainiac 5 and not some distant ancestor.

[Stanlos]

Hmmmmm!!! So does that mean a verse where Superman is active pretty much like his publishing history could be accepting to some fans?