Superman Comics Recs List #1 (1-10)
Several of my Twitter/LJ friends have asked me to give them a recs list of Superman comics, bonus if they have great Clark/Lois interactions. I started making this list and writing why I love them in particular, but then the list went on and on and I haven't even gotten to my Superman/Batman recs. So this will be a series of recs, bear with me.
I’m gonna try to put these in Era order, although I’m lumping all of the “origin” stories together in the order they were published. Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis refers to the time periods before and after Crisis on Infinite Earths respectively, when DC reset it’s continuity to make it more fluid and connected (and to kill a bunch of characters they didn’t like and get rid of some of those extra “Earths” they had floating around). Titles that read Superman v1 are from the Pre-Crisis Superman title that published from 1939-1986, from issue #1-423. Superman v2 refers to the Post-Crisis reboot of Superman’s origin and starts with Superman #1 in 1987. Adventures of Superman is the connection between Superman v1 and picks up on issue #424 and ends at #649. Superman v3 picks up on issue #650 and takes place after Infinite Crisis (the second Crisis…think World War II on a galactic scale).
1. Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow (Alan Moore, Action Comics 583, Superman v1 423) - This was written after Crisis on Infinite Earths and was intended as the end of the Silver Age/Pre-Crisis Superman. Also if you read Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and Absolute Power (and you absolutely should), then there is a reference that makes much more sense after you read this.
2. Man of Steel (John Byrne, Man of Steel 1-6) -This was the official reimagining of the Post-Crisis Superman’s origins. Even though Supes’ origins have been retold twice more since this (three if you count Superman For All Seasons), this retelling is notable for being the first time that Clark Kent was seen as the dominant personality. In the Golden and Silver Age, Clark was very much the disguise while Superman was treated as the “true” persona. John Byrne made Clark the real person, which in my opinion makes more sense since he was raised as Clark Kent. Also, Byrne’s Superman is notable for having Lois Lane not completely immune to Clark Kent’s charm. Rather Clark and Lois have a competitive relationship at first, which is the inspiration for Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and several aspects of Clark and Lois’ relationship on Smallville. Speaking of Smallville, there are a few scenes where it’s obvious that the Smallville writers were especially inspired. Besides which, it’s a really good read.
3. Birthright (Mark Waid, Birthright 1-12)-This is the origin that was considered the “official” origin for the Post-911 Superman. This is such a great book that I can’t even do it justice. Clark is once again the real persona, not even knowing that he’s an alien. But this book is also notable for using several Smallville elements (which itself uses Silver Age elements such as having Lex and Clark as friends in Smallville first) and Smallville itself has since used almost exact panels from this book in its later season episodes (i.e. the helicopter scene from Homecoming is practically identical to a panel from the comic).
4. Superman: Secret Origins (Geoff Johns, Superman: Secret Origins 1-6)-Even though I didn’t see the need for yet another Superman origin story, this book is still very good. Johns pulls together aspects of each of Superman’s origins from Golden Age all the way through Smallville itself. But the most notable part of the book is how kick ass Lois is. She has elements of all Ages of Lois and a bit of Smallville Lois as well. The only thing I’m not crazy about is the art and that’s because I think Gary Frank is overrated and I kind of want to gouge my eyes out in some frames where he’s drawn Clark and/or Lois. But fanboys love his art, so whatever.
5. Dark Knight Over Metropolis (Roger Stern, Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway, Superman v2 44, Adventures of Superman 467, Action Comics 654) -I was kicking myself the other day for having not read this sooner. It’s a simple tale, but it’s a great early Post-Crisis Supes/Bats team up book. Although I love the Pre-Crisis ease of their friendship, something about their somewhat wariness about each other makes their friendship somewhat mean more to me (especially by the time Jeph Loeb starts to turn it into a love affair). But this story has Batman needing to go to Metropolis (his town) when he finds an abandoned Kryptonite ring in Gotham. This arc is important to learn how and why Batman is the keeper of the Green K ring (at least up until Infinite Crisis) and to appreciate better the friendship between Supes and Bats when we get to the Superman/Batman title recs.
6. Death of Superman/World Without Superman/Reign of the Supermen (Various, Roger Stern) -While you could read the comics and be satisfied with the story, I first read this in the novelized version by Roger Stern. Ok, so this is the book that made me the hardcore Superman fan that I am today. This book made me cry, feel the characters pain, and root for the big guy when he returned (spoiler). Plus, and most importantly, this is the book that made me appreciate Superman and why he is the flagship character of the DC Universe. From the scenes around the world of people reacting to the news of his death, to Lois’ breaking down with Lana and Martha, to John Henry Irons taking up the mantle of Man of Steel because Superman inspired him to be a better man…all of that just got to me. Read the comic, but dammit it if you don’t read the novel first.
7. What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way? (Joe Kelly, Action Comics 775)-If you ever find yourself faced with an idiotic fanboy railing against Superman and why he’s “irrelevant” to today’s world, give him this book. If you’ve heard of The Authority (which I rather liked in the beginning) then you’ll understand even better the significance of The Elite in this book. This book is considered one of the best Superman stories by many a list, and after reading it I understood why. And in the end, you will love the way Supes gives The Elite a taste of their own medicine.
8. Lord of the Ring (Jeph Loeb, Superman v2 168, Detective Comics 756) - I can’t help it, I love this little story to pieces. I can’t NOT love something that teams up Superman, Batman, and Lois Lane. It’s my frickin OT3 for crying out loud. Anyway, this is after Lex has been elected President and Lois asks Bruce for help retrieving the Green K ring from the White House. But it doesn’t go according to plan when Superman shows up to stop them. The ending of this story is WIN and I love the idea of Lois and Bruce teaming up together to “save” Clark. Love it.
9. Up, Up, and Away (Kurt Busiek & Geoff Johns, Superman v3 650-653, Action Comics 837-840) - So here’s the thing: Even more than Superman stories, I love Clark Kent stories. Without Clark Kent, Superman is just a guy with superpowers. This book takes place “One Year Later” after the events of Infinite Crisis. Clark lost his powers in that Crisis and this story shows how he’s dealing with it and what happens when Lex takes advantage of Superman not being around.
10. Camelot Falls, Part 1 (Kurt Busiek, Superman v3 654) Although I think this entire arc should be read as it raises questions about whether Superman is helping or hurting humanity by being around and the decision that Superman comes to regarding that, this first issue in that arc is my favorite. The reason being that it’s a great post Up, Up, and Away story that shows how Clark has to readjust to the events of the end of that arc, and it’s also a really great view of Clark and Lois’ relationship and what she’s willing to do for him. Plus there’s a great running joke where Jimmy Olsen is trying to guess which anniversary Clark and Lois are celebrating that day (he’ll never guess).
I’m gonna try to put these in Era order, although I’m lumping all of the “origin” stories together in the order they were published. Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis refers to the time periods before and after Crisis on Infinite Earths respectively, when DC reset it’s continuity to make it more fluid and connected (and to kill a bunch of characters they didn’t like and get rid of some of those extra “Earths” they had floating around). Titles that read Superman v1 are from the Pre-Crisis Superman title that published from 1939-1986, from issue #1-423. Superman v2 refers to the Post-Crisis reboot of Superman’s origin and starts with Superman #1 in 1987. Adventures of Superman is the connection between Superman v1 and picks up on issue #424 and ends at #649. Superman v3 picks up on issue #650 and takes place after Infinite Crisis (the second Crisis…think World War II on a galactic scale).
1. Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow (Alan Moore, Action Comics 583, Superman v1 423) - This was written after Crisis on Infinite Earths and was intended as the end of the Silver Age/Pre-Crisis Superman. Also if you read Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and Absolute Power (and you absolutely should), then there is a reference that makes much more sense after you read this.
2. Man of Steel (John Byrne, Man of Steel 1-6) -This was the official reimagining of the Post-Crisis Superman’s origins. Even though Supes’ origins have been retold twice more since this (three if you count Superman For All Seasons), this retelling is notable for being the first time that Clark Kent was seen as the dominant personality. In the Golden and Silver Age, Clark was very much the disguise while Superman was treated as the “true” persona. John Byrne made Clark the real person, which in my opinion makes more sense since he was raised as Clark Kent. Also, Byrne’s Superman is notable for having Lois Lane not completely immune to Clark Kent’s charm. Rather Clark and Lois have a competitive relationship at first, which is the inspiration for Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and several aspects of Clark and Lois’ relationship on Smallville. Speaking of Smallville, there are a few scenes where it’s obvious that the Smallville writers were especially inspired. Besides which, it’s a really good read.
3. Birthright (Mark Waid, Birthright 1-12)-This is the origin that was considered the “official” origin for the Post-911 Superman. This is such a great book that I can’t even do it justice. Clark is once again the real persona, not even knowing that he’s an alien. But this book is also notable for using several Smallville elements (which itself uses Silver Age elements such as having Lex and Clark as friends in Smallville first) and Smallville itself has since used almost exact panels from this book in its later season episodes (i.e. the helicopter scene from Homecoming is practically identical to a panel from the comic).
4. Superman: Secret Origins (Geoff Johns, Superman: Secret Origins 1-6)-Even though I didn’t see the need for yet another Superman origin story, this book is still very good. Johns pulls together aspects of each of Superman’s origins from Golden Age all the way through Smallville itself. But the most notable part of the book is how kick ass Lois is. She has elements of all Ages of Lois and a bit of Smallville Lois as well. The only thing I’m not crazy about is the art and that’s because I think Gary Frank is overrated and I kind of want to gouge my eyes out in some frames where he’s drawn Clark and/or Lois. But fanboys love his art, so whatever.
5. Dark Knight Over Metropolis (Roger Stern, Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway, Superman v2 44, Adventures of Superman 467, Action Comics 654) -I was kicking myself the other day for having not read this sooner. It’s a simple tale, but it’s a great early Post-Crisis Supes/Bats team up book. Although I love the Pre-Crisis ease of their friendship, something about their somewhat wariness about each other makes their friendship somewhat mean more to me (especially by the time Jeph Loeb starts to turn it into a love affair). But this story has Batman needing to go to Metropolis (his town) when he finds an abandoned Kryptonite ring in Gotham. This arc is important to learn how and why Batman is the keeper of the Green K ring (at least up until Infinite Crisis) and to appreciate better the friendship between Supes and Bats when we get to the Superman/Batman title recs.
6. Death of Superman/World Without Superman/Reign of the Supermen (Various, Roger Stern) -While you could read the comics and be satisfied with the story, I first read this in the novelized version by Roger Stern. Ok, so this is the book that made me the hardcore Superman fan that I am today. This book made me cry, feel the characters pain, and root for the big guy when he returned (spoiler). Plus, and most importantly, this is the book that made me appreciate Superman and why he is the flagship character of the DC Universe. From the scenes around the world of people reacting to the news of his death, to Lois’ breaking down with Lana and Martha, to John Henry Irons taking up the mantle of Man of Steel because Superman inspired him to be a better man…all of that just got to me. Read the comic, but dammit it if you don’t read the novel first.
7. What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way? (Joe Kelly, Action Comics 775)-If you ever find yourself faced with an idiotic fanboy railing against Superman and why he’s “irrelevant” to today’s world, give him this book. If you’ve heard of The Authority (which I rather liked in the beginning) then you’ll understand even better the significance of The Elite in this book. This book is considered one of the best Superman stories by many a list, and after reading it I understood why. And in the end, you will love the way Supes gives The Elite a taste of their own medicine.
8. Lord of the Ring (Jeph Loeb, Superman v2 168, Detective Comics 756) - I can’t help it, I love this little story to pieces. I can’t NOT love something that teams up Superman, Batman, and Lois Lane. It’s my frickin OT3 for crying out loud. Anyway, this is after Lex has been elected President and Lois asks Bruce for help retrieving the Green K ring from the White House. But it doesn’t go according to plan when Superman shows up to stop them. The ending of this story is WIN and I love the idea of Lois and Bruce teaming up together to “save” Clark. Love it.
9. Up, Up, and Away (Kurt Busiek & Geoff Johns, Superman v3 650-653, Action Comics 837-840) - So here’s the thing: Even more than Superman stories, I love Clark Kent stories. Without Clark Kent, Superman is just a guy with superpowers. This book takes place “One Year Later” after the events of Infinite Crisis. Clark lost his powers in that Crisis and this story shows how he’s dealing with it and what happens when Lex takes advantage of Superman not being around.
10. Camelot Falls, Part 1 (Kurt Busiek, Superman v3 654) Although I think this entire arc should be read as it raises questions about whether Superman is helping or hurting humanity by being around and the decision that Superman comes to regarding that, this first issue in that arc is my favorite. The reason being that it’s a great post Up, Up, and Away story that shows how Clark has to readjust to the events of the end of that arc, and it’s also a really great view of Clark and Lois’ relationship and what she’s willing to do for him. Plus there’s a great running joke where Jimmy Olsen is trying to guess which anniversary Clark and Lois are celebrating that day (he’ll never guess).