Geoff Johns Writing "Doomsday Clock" Event Starring Superman

[stephtanner]

I'll definitely give this a try. Johns sounds very passionate about it. I like that Superman gets the center stage, there are no superfluous crossovers/mini-series/one-shots, and the theme involves challenging and reaffirming Rebirth.

I've also enjoyed Gary Frank's variant covers over the past months, so will look forward to more of his work depicting the Man of Steel.

[Atomic Man]

I still don't understand the Johns hate. Last Son was great despite the delays and the fact that, according to information from the time, DC screwed up the release/timing of Secret Origin, which was supposed to be out much earlier than when it was finally released. Last Son is faithful to the spirit of the iconic Superman and had a classic feel to it that the books had lacked in some time.

I personally loved everything else Johns did in his Action run. Brainiac suffered from meandering at times, but the reconciliation of the different Brainiacs was genius and the art was beautiful.

As for Secret Origins, it had the unenviable task of setting right the various origins Superman had at that point and had to do so later than it was supposed to. You can whine all day about the delays (same with LS), but putting that aside, the stories themselves are strong. I love that SO blends the Donner, post-COIE, Silver/Bronze Age, Smallville, and even a little S:TAS in a way that manages to be more than just checking items off a list. This is no small feat, and I doubt other writers could have done it so well.

As for the people who bash Frank's use of the Reeve likeness, he's said in interviews that the goal he and Johns had there was to create a Superman who would look instantly recognizable even to those who'd never picked up a comic book. Despite the fanboy retconning of recent years, S:TM and the other Reeve movies continue to resonate in the memories and consciousness of millions of people of varying ages. Cav-Ills Hobo of Steel will never even come close to this distinction, and Reeve's achievements (despite weak scripts and directors after Donner) will live on in perpetuity as the definitive on-screen adaptation of Superman.

Johns' take on Superman in Justice League was, admittedly, sorely lacking, but that's almost certainly for the same reason Perez didn't know what to do with the 5-year later timeline: Morrison didn't share his plans and there was no editorial leadership to create a consistent take on Superman in the New 52 era. Johns sidelined New 52 Superman because he clearly wasn't sure what the plan was with him and seemed to have added the WW relationship to distinguish this Superman from the previous iterations.

By the time Johns got to his short run on the main title, there still wasn't much direction for the New 52 Superman. Johns captured the spirit of the Iconic Superman in those few issues, especially the wonderful bit with the gunman.

We're now looking at a Superman who is new yet familiar and well-developed. Johns has lots more to work with now and I also believe the grim and gritty crap of the New 52 and the Snyderverse have also helped him appreciate the classic Superman more than he did before 2011. I have a good feeling about Doomsday Clock, which also interestingly hits 25 years to the month of The Death of Superman. DC is going to lead up to Action 1000 and the end of Rebirth and the beginning of the post-Rebirth DCU, and I think we're going to see a defeat of the incessant grime shat into the comic book medium since Watchmen and TDKR and an ultimate rebirth of what makes the DCU the greatest comic book universe in the medium and beyond.

And no, I'm not on DC's payroll. I just have a really good feeling about this one, even after the "removal" of Connor and the Kents.

[DragonPiece]

I still don't understand the Johns hate. Last Son was great despite the delays and the fact that, according to information from the time, DC screwed up the release/timing of Secret Origin, which was supposed to be out much earlier than when it was finally released. Last Son is faithful to the spirit of the iconic Superman and had a classic feel to it that the books had lacked in some time.

I personally loved everything else Johns did in his Action run. Brainiac suffered from meandering at times, but the reconciliation of the different Brainiacs was genius and the art was beautiful.

As for Secret Origins, it had the unenviable task of setting right the various origins Superman had at that point and had to do so later than it was supposed to. You can whine all day about the delays (same with LS), but putting that aside, the stories themselves are strong. I love that SO blends the Donner, post-COIE, Silver/Bronze Age, Smallville, and even a little S:TAS in a way that manages to be more than just checking items off a list. This is no small feat, and I doubt other writers could have done it so well.

As for the people who bash Frank's use of the Reeve likeness, he's said in interviews that the goal he and Johns had there was to create a Superman who would look instantly recognizable even to those who'd never picked up a comic book. Despite the fanboy retconning of recent years, S:TM and the other Reeve movies continue to resonate in the memories and consciousness of m

Wow, really great post and I agree completely, without the Snyder disses. Peope complain at Secret Origin for it's simplicity, but other writers would not have been able to accomplish that story as well.

[Atomic Man]

Wow, really great post and I agree completely, without the Snyder disses. Peope complain at Secret Origin for it's simplicity, but other writers would not have been able to accomplish that story as well.

Nice to see we agree on something, at least!

[Tra-EL]

No crossovers or any of that tie in; watered down BS?

Consider me in.

[seismic-2]

We know Manhattan has been messing with the DCU,and targetting Superman in particular...and there have been references to how important Lois and Clark are,and how the universe basically revolves around them.

But what we learned when the dying Superwoman/Lana asked the ghost Superwoman/Lois why everything in the universe always revolves around Lois and Clark, Lois explains that they aren't the important ones, it's their son who's the important one (OK, the son of the "other" Lois and Clark, which is when Lana has her epiphany that the two couples are halves of the same one). Also, since the story that Jon's birth was possible in Convergence because it happened in the bottled city where Clark was de-powered has now been replaced with the story that he was born in the Fortress, we are left without an explanation for how his conception was possible (unless they have retconned away the traditional "humans and Kryptonians can't mate" concept, but it seems that this is probably still in effect, since 10-year-old Jon is an only child). So when Dr. Manhattan expressed an intention to create new life forms, could Jon have been the life form he created? And that is in fact why the universe revolves around the Kents - the current DCU was created by Dr. Manhattan specifically as an environment for his new life form?

[Sacred Knight]

For it all to revolve on Jon would be so disappointing.

[MeloDet]

I wonder if this is where they'll start weaving the threads of Conner's return?

For it all to revolve on Jon would be so disappointing.

And yeah, couldn't agree more on that one.

[Ascended]

I still don't understand the Johns hate.

I dont hate Johns. I dont even hate his writing. In fact, most of the time I enjoy his work. But his Superman leaves me cold. Im glad you enjoy it, and I know Im in the minority, but as far as Im concerned he has no business handling the character. Johns works in big, wide, idiot-bright neon broad strokes and archetype. Superman, while an archetype, requires a nuanced, gentle hand that Johns simply does not have.

We'll see how the story goes. Im not going to judge it on a synopsis, but Johns' past work with the character is more than enough for me to have an idea of what kind of Superman he'll be writing, and 9 times out of 10 that's not a Superman I care to read about.

[Dolores - The Worst Poster Ever]

Johns is very good writer, he excels at character work. The obvious example is what he did with Flash's Rouges, making them some of the best villains in the DCU.

But every time he's delved into the themes of his stories, he's failed. His stories are fun, exciting, and even meticulous, but his writing isn't sophisticated. That's not a knock against all his stories, it's just noting what his strengths and weaknesses are.

Superman and the Legion of Superheroes is a modern classic, and one of the best Superman stories ever. But it doesn't actually deal with xenophobia and nationalism in any meaningful way. It's actually a over the top caricature.

The Emotional Spectrum is a fun concept, but it doesn't actually have anything meaningful to say about life. As a concept, it's extremely shallow.

His Superboy work was fun, but again, his approach to nature vs nurture was shallow and showed a complete lack of understanding of how genetics works.

His Legion of Three Worlds was a great Superboy-Prime story, but it was the polar opposite of what Legion stories should be. It was all about the past, in a series that's supposed to be about the future .

As long as he plays to his strengths, his stories usually turn out to be good at the very least. The more he tries to actually explore the themes present in the story, the more his stories suffer because his understanding of those themes tend to be simplistic.

Johns taking on Manhattan, examining extremism, hope, optimism, etc. Using them as a back drop is one thing, actually trying to say something about them is another.

He tells great blockbuster type stories such as Sinestro Corps War, or great character work such as Rogue's Revenge, but not when he tries to be philosophical.

[Frontier]

Johns is very good writer, he excels at character work. The obvious example is what he did with Flash's Rouges, making them some of the best villains in the DCU.

But every time he's delved into the themes of his stories, he's failed. His stories are fun, exciting, and even meticulous, but his writing isn't sophisticated. That's not a knock against all his stories, it's just noting what his strengths and weaknesses are.

Superman and the Legion of Superheroes is a modern classic, and one of the best Superman stories ever. But it doesn't actually deal with xenophobia and nationalism in any meaningful way. It's actually a over the top caricature.

The Emotional Spectrum is a fun concept, but it doesn't actually have anything meaningful to say about life. As a concept, it's extremely shallow.

His Superboy work was fun, but again, his approach to nature vs nurture was shallow and showed a complete lack of understanding of how genetics works.

His Legion of Three Worlds was a great Superboy-Prime story, but it was the polar opposite of what Legion stories should be. It was all about the past, in a series that's supposed to be about the future .

As long as he plays to his strengths, his stories usually turn out to be good at the very least. The more he tries to actually explore the themes present in the story, the more his stories suffer because his understanding of those themes tend to be simplistic.

Johns taking on Manhattan, examining extremism, hope, optimism, etc. Using them as a back drop is one thing, actually trying to say something about them is another.

He tells great blockbuster type stories such as Sinestro Corps War, or great character work such as Rogue's Revenge, but not when he tries to be philosophical.

I'm the complete opposite. I enjoy his character work and events but also enjoy the philosophical trappings that he layers them with and how they work in the story .

But different strokes and all that .

[Dolores - The Worst Poster Ever]

I'm the complete opposite. I enjoy his character work and events but also enjoy the philosophical trappings that he layers them with and how they work in the story .

But different strokes and all that .

I also enjoy them, but it depends on the approach he takes.

Superman and the Legion of Superheroes uses xenophobia and nationalism as a backdrop, and that's a great story.

"What Can One Icon Do?" examines race in the superhero genre head-on and it's a disaster.

When Johns uses philosophical trappings to layer his stories, he tends to do a good job. When he tries to actually say something about them, things don't turn out that great.

[Frontier]

I also enjoy them, but it depends on the approach he takes.

Superman and the Legion of Superheroes uses xenophobia and nationalism as a backdrop, and that's a great story.

"What Can One Icon Do?" examines race in the superhero genre head-on and it's a disaster.

When Johns uses philosophical trappings to layer his stories, he tends to do a good job. When he tries to actually say something about them, things don't turn out that great.

I can understand that, but with what he says in the interview and with what I expect to be the crux of the conflict between Superman and Dr. Manhattan, I think that's the kind of issue Johns can tackle head-on quite well.

[FishyZombie]

Johns is one of my favorite writers, but I've never read much of his Superman stuff. I read some his recent run but for reasons unrelated to the writing itself, I dropped it. Come to think of it he's the one who introduced Oz, maybe that's why it's taken so long for him to be revealed, he wants to do that himself! Anyway, I generally trust Johns, so based off what I know, I think he's the right man for this.

[FishyZombie]

But what we learned when the dying Superwoman/Lana asked the ghost Superwoman/Lois why everything in the universe always revolves around Lois and Clark, Lois explains that they aren't the important ones, it's their son who's the important one (OK, the son of the "other" Lois and Clark, which is when Lana has her epiphany that the two couples are halves of the same one). Also, since the story that Jon's birth was possible in Convergence because it happened in the bottled city where Clark was de-powered has now been replaced with the story that he was born in the Fortress, we are left without an explanation for how his conception was possible (unless they have retconned away the traditional "humans and Kryptonians can't mate" concept, but it seems that this is probably still in effect, since 10-year-old Jon is an only child). So when Dr. Manhattan expressed an intention to create new life forms, could Jon have been the life form he created? And that is in fact why the universe revolves around the Kents - the current DCU was created by Dr. Manhattan specifically as an environment for his new life form?

I think that they're just ditching the humans and kryptonians can't procreate thing. No crazy cosmic explanation. From the action comics issue, I got the sense that it wasn't an unplanned pregnancy. Supes didn't seem that surprised. Well he was, but more in the "whoa we did it, awesome!" variety and less "WHAT? HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?!?" variety.