Superman 40 DISCUSSION/SPOILERS

[Sacred Knight]

Yeah I'm a little puzzled too as to the doubt here. It contradicts nothing, and if anything it being in a Secret Origins issue only compounds its canonicity, as opposed to calling it into question. I don't see any reason why anyone would assume Pak was confused here and did something he really wasn't supposed to.

almost impossible to hide. Kids rarely known their own limits and do things on impulse. Clark would get discovered really easy

His parents successfully hid his powers as a child then he himself juggled a dual identity in his teens in the classic tales. This is a non-issue. The fact of the matter remains that in this continuity he had at least enhanced strength as a baby, and was never caught. It shouldn't be that hard to suspend one's level of disbelief for that. And even if you can't, its official either way.

[Jon Clark]

Plus who knows how Kryptonians age. Humans have puberty once, maybe Kryptonians have multiple points in their lives where their bodies undergo changes- Clark at 25 could be as different from Clark at 24 as Batman at 25 is from Batman at 12.

A simple math progression to illustrate the idea (it's not meant to be literal so it won't match the comics):
Clark arrives on Earth and his abilities double every year until he turns twelve. Then from 12 to 15 his powers double every three months. From 16-22 they slow down and only double every six months. The right around his encounter with Brainiac he gets that second puberty Kryptonians have and his powers double every month for the next few years. Now we get the "flare" which might mark a new plateau for his powers or open up a period where they double even faster or .....

[Auguste Dupin]

Well if either of you can find some in comic citations that will contradict these pages, then I'd gladly take them and call this instance an error. But as it stands this contradicts nothing that I'm aware of. One must also remember that Secret Origins is supposed to be the definitive version of the origin after the new 52 had solidified or "cooled". As it stands I don't see how this isn't correct.

At the very least, it's consistent with Morrison's run, where 10 year old Clark can knock out and lift a bull with ease.

[Johnny Thunders!]

It was a fine issue, but I think youre missing the point if you believe that Superman's abilities distance him from humanity, or that the greatest Superman stress his humanity when he has no powers. I don't want to read GL stories about Hal without his ring, Barry without his speed, or Bats forgetting Kung fu. Kids put on a towel and pretend to fly for a reason. It's the rare kid that plays bespectacled reporter. The solar flare is tiresome, and I can't stand the idea that Superman is a container that holds a limited amount of power.

Superman appeals to me not because he shares my weaknesses. Superman appeals to me because he's like me, at my best, if I had unlimited skills and abilities. They seem to go the other way around. Instead of it being a story of a human who becomes super, I'm reading about a super hero becoming human.

[Superlad93]

His parents successfully hid his powers as a child then he himself juggled a dual identity in his teens in the classic tales. This is a non-issue. The fact of the matter remains that in this continuity he had at least enhanced strength as a baby, and was never caught. It shouldn't be that hard to suspend one's level of disbelief for that. And even if you can't, its official either way.

Also in that same issue of Secret Origins little Kal-el proves that he has much higher than normal brain functions than a child his age.



This strongly implies that not only would the Kents be able to teach him right from wrong and what it means to hide his powers at the age, but also that he is naturally a good nurtured little boy who doesn't want to hurt anyone in the first place. His empathy and naturally high level of brain function make the task of hiding his budding powers at that age less of an issue. I'm really not seeing where the discrepancy comes from other than some posters personal taste.

Edit: Funny enough this links up rather well with the idea that Morrison put forth in issue 3 where baby Kal-el is able to be left untended as he sits on the edge of a high drop. He implies that babies from Krypton are naturally much much smarter and capable than the ones here on Earth. Pak in Secret Origin follows up on this idea.

[Superlad93]

At the very least, it's consistent with Morrison's run, where 10 year old Clark can knock out and lift a bull with ease.

Yeah there are no in comic inconsistencies that I can spot. In one of the back ups for Action Comics during Morrison's run Clark was putting tractors on top of building when he was no more than 9 or 10. Then in Pak's run Clark was attempting to put out corn field fires while in grade school.

[Frontier]

Wow, I wasn't really expecting much from Romita Jr. penning a whole issue to himself but this turned out to be really fun and enjoyable overall. The art also seemed to have improved greatly compared to Johns' short run.

The best part was seeing the League all interacting with each other, and getting a better sense of the camaraderie, trust, and friendship they have with each other that they can joke around with and have fun amongst themselves. I think we've gotten some bits of that in the current run, but not to this extent. Especially seeing them all out-of-costume, minus Vic of course, and hanging out at a bar. That was pretty awesome. And I think Romita Jr. did a decent job in terms of characterization, even if his Batman seemed a little too jovial at times (though it's nice to see him jovial at all), which was nice.

Arthur trying to cover Diana's eyes, and her brushing it away, was hilarious .

Though Romita Jr.'s Barry looked weird outside of costume...then again, maybe it was the hat? Arthur and Bruce would make more sense to be wearing hats considering they're prominent public figures and Arthur has a public identity.

A little sad that Hal wasn't there though .

[tabo61]

I wonder how the Justice League team managed to keep Lex out of the loop about the Superman testing power excercises since he's also a member?

[Joe Acro]

I enjoyed the issue. I thought the dialogue was a tad clunky, and I thought Clark got drunk too fast, and I thought it was odd that his teammates would call him Clark when they're in public like that (particularly when he doesn't have his glasses on), but overall it was a pleasant, enjoyable issue. It's a shame that it appears we won't get much more of Clark adjusting to his new power, as Truth is right around the corner.

[adkal]

Also in that same issue of Secret Origins little Kal-el proves that he has much higher than normal brain functions than a child his age.



This strongly implies that not only would the Kents be able to teach him right from wrong and what it means to hide his powers at the age, but also that he is naturally a good nurtured little boy who doesn't want to hurt anyone in the first place. His empathy and naturally high level of brain function make the task of hiding his budding powers at that age less of an issue. I'm really not seeing where the discrepancy comes from other than some posters personal taste.

Edit: Funny enough this links up rather well with the idea that Morrison put forth in issue 3 where baby Kal-el is able to be left untended as he sits on the edge of a high drop. He implies that babies from Krypton are naturally much much smarter and capable than the ones here on Earth. Pak in Secret Origin follows up on this idea.

Surprised it took this long to mention the 'baby Kal-El at the edge of a balcony' scene.

Oh well.

[Ascended]

Surprised it took this long to mention the 'baby Kal-El at the edge of a balcony' scene.

Oh well.

Yeah, I was going to mention the same thing. Kryptonians aren't human. They don't age or think like we do, and their biology is vastly different. Therefore they act different. They are, on average, far superior in physical and (especially) mental attributes than humans thanks to who knows how many more eons of evolution. How could Clark keep his powers a secret as a toddler? Easily. Because he's already recognized that he's not like other people and learned that exerting his full ability scares and hurts them. If an infant can recognize that they hurt someone else (infants arent even aware of the concept of "other" to begin with) then I have no issue seeing a young Clark keeping his secrets.

That's what makes Superman so interesting. His body takes in a wildly different spread of data and information. His brain processes it differently than we would, and the radiation from our sun only enhances these things and widens the gap between us. But despite all that, he has American Midwest morals and values, which trigger very human emotional responses. Seeing how he finds the balance is half the fun. He respects privacy but can still see and hear everything, so how does he self-regulate? How does he reconcile his own actions against the values he believes in? No one else in comics does this the way Superman does. Most characters are regular people for most of their lives before gaining powers. Barry, Hal, Peter Parker, Bruce, they all started out as normal people until fate got in the way. Diana and J'onn both come from strange cultures with different values, and they try to acclimate to our world but they don't make much effort to truly "be" one of us. Clark isnt like any of them. He's not like us and never will be, never has been, but he's still "one of" us. It's a fun balance to walk.