Kon El: Superboy Appreciation 2018

[Kon93]

Being older is a terrible idea for so many reasons,but the main reason is because DCs son of superman experiment was a great success.jon has been a perfect example of how you create a pre teen character who is a hero.qe dont see that like ever,and when he was liked as much as he was it is not bright to take that way.

This isnt exactly something I personally want either,SB is coming back and this blurs lines between the boys more than before.sure they might act and look different,and yeah their powers are different(Jon has kryptonian powers with no limits,and SB has post crisis Byrne teenage level kryptonian powers with TTK),but the comparisons will be thrown around,and its not good for either of them.

I hope this is a very very short lived storyline thing,that will be gone soon,and we get back the younger and more original Jon back soon

[Kon93]

Hey atleast SB is gonna be a hit come next year,with Reign of the supermen and young justice coming out,and having him show up(maybe)in the last episode of Titans this season.hopefully bendis writes him well in YJ,but even if he doesnt,he will survive on our TV screens.

[manwhohaseverything]

Hey atleast SB is gonna be a hit come next year,with Reign of the supermen and young justice coming out,and having him show up(maybe)in the last episode of Titans this season.hopefully bendis writes him well in YJ,but even if he doesnt,he will survive on our TV screens.

You don't need to worry about Conner. He is already established as a superman mainstay. Even if he is pulled off the books he will always return. Jon on the other hand might not. He was not a teen character. He was a kid character for people who wanted to read about goofy adventures. I feel like, if they pit Jon and Kon, it will end up like what happened in new52 with Jon Lane Kent- a disaster .

[Kon93]

You don't need to worry about Conner. He is already established as a superman mainstay. Even if he is pulled off the books he will always return. Jon on the other hand might not. He was not a teen character. He was a kid character for people who wanted to read about goofy adventures. I feel like, if they pit Jon and Kon, it will end up like what happened in new52 with Jon Lane Kent- a disaster .

And that would be a shame,cause Jon was territory the Super line doesn't go(besides lor for like a second,and not well).I feel bad for Jon fans,I hope this is short term.

SB has both young justice tv,Reign of the supermen movie,Titans show,but also injustice weekly series,and convergence versions they can use if not the new YJ series that's coming out to,so he is covered and will NEVER completely go away,and have very cool versions to pull from in the future

[Vordan]

Thoughts on Kon taking over the Superman mantle like how Dick briefly took over being Batman? I love DickBats and I’d love to see how Kon would approach being the main Superman.

[Superlad93]

Thoughts on Kon taking over the Superman mantle like how Dick briefly took over being Batman? I love DickBats and I’d love to see how Kon would approach being the main Superman.

Never been of fan of the idea myself. At least not in the way that I think Dick as Batman is emotionally resonate. The way his emotional arc has been since the 90s always gave me the feeling that he'll stay the slight black sheep of the family. I think that even more now since Jon Kent is a thing and basically fulfilling the Superman Secundus role.

But ultimately, I don't think a second Superman in quite the same way that Dick's Batman functioned is for Superman. Kenan functions as a Superman in an intentional "Superman Incorporated" way similar to like The Knight or Man of Bats. And if they ever wanted to have Jon work as a Superman too then I think it'd be important that he not just be called "Superman." That's why Superman Secundus or Superman Jr. get my vote. They can easily be shorted to just "Secundus" or "Junior."

[Kon93]

SB was created to be superman,which is exactly why I love that he is always going against being like superman.different personality and attitude,different fashion sense both the 90s punk and tshirt and jeans look.he should be striving to be great his way,he is not a follow in the footsteps type of character,which Jon is very much that type of character.there is room for all of these characters and where they want to be or where they are headed.

Jon has no limits in his kryptonian side powerwise and SBs kryptonian side has always been presented as somehow limited(multiple different ways of course),but that by itself makes them different,then when you add SBs TTK there powers should not overlap at all.

Jon should either always want to be like his dad or more like its inevitable that he will turn out like him,while SB has come to terms with his not being superman and more than happy finding his own way.i always liked the fact that SB dressed very casual,like a normal human than other heroes(both jacket and shades and tshirt and jeans),when his creation was anything but normal.

[Vordan]

Never been of fan of the idea myself. At least not in the way that I think Dick as Batman is emotionally resonate. The way his emotional arc has been since the 90s always gave me the feeling that he'll stay the slight black sheep of the family. I think that even more now since Jon Kent is a thing and basically fulfilling the Superman Secundus role.

But ultimately, I don't think a second Superman in quite the same way that Dick's Batman functioned is for Superman. Kenan functions as a Superman in an intentional "Superman Incorporated" way similar to like The Knight or Man of Bats. And if they ever wanted to have Jon work as a Superman too then I think it'd be important that he not just be called "Superman." That's why Superman Secundus or Superman Jr. get my vote. They can easily be shorted to just "Secundus" or "Junior."

Don’t really agree with that. Never felt like Kon was that much a black sheep, heck Kara and Kal are more often the ones at odds. Also I don’t buy that no one besides Clark can be “Superman” seems rather antithetical to what the character is about.

[Superlad93]

Don’t really agree with that. Never felt like Kon was that much a black sheep, heck Kara and Kal are more often the ones at odds. Also I don’t buy that no one besides Clark can be “Superman” seems rather antithetical to what the character is about.

Well, conceptually it doesn't get much more "black sheep" than either being created by evil Cadmus guy, being half Lex Luthor, or being created by Nowhere to. No, he's not a black sheep in the Jason Todd sense where he's cold or even antagonistic towards the other Superman family members (unless it's the New 52), but the circumstances of his creation have always made him question the idea of himself in the family at one point or another to some degree (some more than others obviously). Ultimately I think Conner, being someone created and told to be Superman someday, would decide not to if he can help it. Not because he doesn't respect the title or the man, but because him growing into Conner Kent and Kon-El, the person, are the titles and names he had to work for.

And I'm not saying or even implying that Clark wouldn't be fine with more people being Superman. I mean, he's just fine with Kenan, right? But I doubt other heroes--having such a clear reverence for the name--would ever want to take it on, especially while he's still around. Clark himself laments on the pressure of living up to the god everyone, even the heroes, have built him up to be, so I doubt most other heroes would want to step into that same ring while Clark is still around doing the impossible every Wednesday. But like Kenan, I think there are specific expectations that make sense in terms of characters and story that lets a character or characters run around being called Superman in some form. Super-Chief and Thundermind being directly called "the Superman" of their respective area seems right to me. A more direct case I think would be Jon taking on the name Superman Secundus (the actual title of Superman's blood heir in DC One Million (relevant now given Snyder's Justice League run and Orlando's Electric Warriors)) or Superman Jr. (a play on Captain Marvel Jr now that it's not in use) even while Clark is alive and in full activity.

But I'm 100% for someone taking up the title when Clark semi retires or whatever have you. Again, Superman Secundus/Superman Jr. That's a name very easily used while he's around and while he's gone. And that's about the long and short on what I feel on the matter.

[Kon93]

Don’t really agree with that. Never felt like Kon was that much a black sheep, heck Kara and Kal are more often the ones at odds. Also I don’t buy that no one besides Clark can be “Superman” seems rather antithetical to what the character is about.

SB is not the black sheep of the SUPER family,we dont really have a definitive black sheep because they dont last long,DC either gets rid of them or changes them.

Well superman to me is Clark kent,but DC has had Jon look like he will be superman someday,and SB has been shown to be on the "path" since almost the beginning,but it never leads anywhere.

I'm glad we are getting a 90s cool hopefully TTK SB in the Reign movie,and a older and wider SB with his smallvileesqe/golden age powerset on YJ.sure bendis is going for young punk SB in his new series,but hopefully his growth doesn't stop there.

[Kon93]

Well, conceptually it doesn't get much more "black sheep" than either being created by evil Cadmus guy, being half Lex Luthor, or being created by Nowhere to. No, he's not a black sheep in the Jason Todd sense where he's cold or even antagonistic towards the other Superman family members (unless it's the New 52), but the circumstances of his creation have always made him question the idea of himself in the family at one point or another to some degree (some more than others obviously). Ultimately I think Conner, being someone created and told to be Superman someday, would decide not to if he can help it. Not because he doesn't respect the title or the man, but because him growing into Conner Kent and Kon-El, the person, are the titles and names he had to work for.

And I'm not saying or even implying that Clark wouldn't be fine with more people being Superman. I mean, he's just fine with Kenan, right? But I doubt other heroes--having such a clear reverence for the name--would ever want to take it on, especially while he's still around. Clark himself laments on the pressure of living up to the god everyone, even the heroes, have built him up to be, so I doubt most other heroes would want to step into that same ring while Clark is still around doing the impossible every Wednesday. But like Kenan, I think there are specific expectations that make sense in terms of characters and story that lets a character or characters run around being called Superman in some form. Super-Chief and Thundermind being directly called "the Superman" of their respective area seems right to me. A more direct case I think would be Jon taking on the name Superman Secundus (the actual title of Superman's blood heir in DC One Million (relevant now given Snyder's Justice League run and Orlando's Electric Warriors)) or Superman Jr. (a play on Captain Marvel Jr now that it's not in use) even while Clark is alive and in full activity.

But I'm 100% for someone taking up the title when Clark semi retires or whatever have you. Again, Superman Secundus/Superman Jr. That's a name very easily used while he's around and while he's gone. And that's about the long and short on what I feel on the matter.

I can agree with all that,and I think SB is more than the sum of his parts or his origin

[Naruto1996]

Thoughts on Kon taking over the Superman mantle like how Dick briefly took over being Batman? I love DickBats and I’d love to see how Kon would approach being the main Superman.

personally I always liked this scene a possible future of Kon as Superman and Damian as Batman

[Kon93]

Not a big fan myself. 1- should be Tim,not damian,and he looks to traditional for my taste for SB

[Superlad93]

That guy doesn't even sound/read like any Conner I've read. And like Kon93 pointed out, Damian as the counterpart Batman to Conner's Superman is off. It's even more off now give the fact that Jon is Damian's contemporary.

That short story was made during a time when Johns was really interested in grooming Conner as a sort of son/heir for Superman. This is no longer the case for the character since Jon is a thing. If this story were written now, it would 100% be Jon and Damian having this conversation, and it would be built on the back on not just their biology and the sons of Batman and Superman, but also their history together and friends. As it stands, the scene above seems slightly hollow with Conner playing opposite to Damian in it.

[Miles To Go]

What really annoys me are all the references to Terry. Sometimes I just wish Batman Beyond belonged exclusively to the DCAU instead of being forced into the future narrative of the mainline DC world. Jurgens even wanted to use Jon in the Beyond universe.