The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1730: The Adventures of Superman #619, October 2003

A nicely semi-domestic issue about Lois and Clark today. I like to see a bit of the old competitive dynamic with these two, and in today's set-up issue they're tasked with finding out something about "The Candidate," a charismatic figure who claims to be running against Lex Luthor as President of the United States.

I have to say, reading a run of Superman comics featuring a career villain as President is something I wasn't sure I'd have the stomach for these days. The SuperVillain-in-Chief in the real world is just so appalling that I thought it might be too close to home. But here's the thing: Luthor is preferable. At least he's smart. Like, really smart. At least, in some miniscule way, Luthor thinks that what he's doing is for the benefit of all humankind. They're just too dumb to realize that. But with 45, there's so little evidence of intelligence, which is far more frightening. Though I suppose what's more frightening is someone who would see that lack of smarts and still vote for the man.

Oh, and there's also an alien assassin called "Assassin Lad" who makes planetfall at the end of the issue. Not sure who he's there for, but I'm excited to find out.

Note: I realized that, in reading this run, there's a few issues missing numerically. Those were guest issues not written by Casey. I tend to follow writers.

"That boy's a go-getter, isn't he...?"

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1727: The Adventures of Superman #612, March 2003

I'm actually glad I didn't re-read this issue before the others. It explains the Hollow Men far too much, and I preferred reading them a little more mysteriously.

Today's comic gives us yet another window into questioning the role of Superman, and of the superhero. Clark is faced, sort of, with a reflection of himself that he might not recognize, but that long-term fans will. It's the Superman who debuted in the pages of Action Comics in 1938, the crusader for social justice and equality. Though we see very little of this character (unlike the cover), his actions are unmistakable as those taken by the Siegel and Shuster version of the character in his earliest adventures. Unfortunately, the violent acrobatics and less-complicated morality of this older version of the Man of Steel doesn't sit well in 21st century America, and he is seen as a threat, rather than a hero. Superman, the current one, of course figures out what's going on, but perhaps misses out on a chance for some self-reflection. This comic is much more about the readers considering who and and what Superman should be, rather than he himself doing it.

That's what the next few issues are for (or rather, the last few that I read last week.) Timey-Wimey.

"You policeman are playing too rough! These folks are just concerned about the environment!".

(Just as a note - all of the older version of Superman's lines end with an exclamation point. It's a little thing, but really adds a nice nuance to the story.)

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1726: The Adventures of Superman #616, July 2003

Something I've found really interesting about this story is some of the self-reflection that Superman undertakes as he's facing the Hollow Men. In an earlier part of the story, he is caught in their energies, which start to siphon off not only his physical colour, but also "all hope. The very emotion that has fueled his entire life." For Superman, there is something strangely alluring to this idea, that the very thing that makes him who he is can be taken away. Clark becomes fascinated by the idea, and curious as to how well his conviction, his super-conviction, perhaps, could stand up to this draining. He even puts himself at their mercy, banking on the idea that his hope is stronger than their homogenizing.

I often hear people coming down on Superman because he's just so powerful. How can anything defeat him when he is pretty much a secular Saviour figure, unbeatable and immortal? My answer never changes. It's not about what he can do, but what he chooses to do. Or not to do. It's about getting inside the head of this powerful creature who is also very simple a good person, and about his struggles with what he should do to follow his creed, and what he shouldn't, in order to keep from becoming, in a very real sense, an incarnated god. In today's issue, he sees the power of the Hollow Men as a way of testing his convictions. Perhaps this is the greatest part of the Superman story. Not how hard he can hit, or how fast he can fly, but how strong his convictions are. And, even more interestingly, Clark's own questioning of those convictions.

Told you this was a great run of Superman comics.

"Even in death, he never felt such emptiness...He can't go on like this...not with so many lingering questions..."

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1725: The Adventures of Superman #615, June 2003

I ended yesterday's entry with a line from the comic that claimed that the Heroville experiment had grown its own superheroes. I'm not entirely sure that's how we would describe Heroville. The definition of a superhero has been a point of contention for those who define such things for decades now. Is it the costume? Is it the mission? Is it the powers, or the mask? One way that I personally define a superhero is that it's someone who, ultimately, will choose others over themself. This works for non-super heroes as well. Virtually all of the superhero comics I read feature a character like that, one who is willing to but themself in danger in order to keep others from having to. If this is the case, are the shut-away citizens of Heroville actually superheroes? Rather, they're simply powered people. It is the choice of what to do with those powers that makes them heroes. Or villains, I suppose. Indeed, the only citizen of the town that we see take on this role is Kid Scout, after having been rescued from the Hollow Men by Superman. He volunteers for a mission into the outside world, having only known Heroville his whole life. In response to protests from the adults, he says "I can find anyone...anywhere...it's what my Mom and Dad trained me for...I'm a superhero." Kid Scout makes the choice to take on the role. So perhaps we can look at Heroville as a town full of potential superheroes - it is simply the choice, and the moment, that shift them from potential to actual.

This comic actually had a wonderful description of what one needs to be a superhero:

"How to be a Superhero: First of all, you need a secret hideout. You need various crimefighting gadgets that reflect your superhero motif. You must be pure of heart...fair in decision...you must never stray from your sense of justice...Finally, you need to be brave. You will need that bravery...to survive."

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1725: The Adventures of Superman #614, May 2003

Of course, having just said that much of this run is standalone stories, here we are a the beginning of a three-part tale about fictions coming to life. There's more than a little of Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol shining through the seams of this virtually-seamless story, most especially his inaugural "Crawling from the Wreckage" story, and Casey himself has noted Morrison as an influence. That influence is on full, wonderful display here.

The story actually picks up from another tale from issue #612, which I somehow skipped, and which I'll fill in after I'm done this story. The basic set-up is the discovery of a tesseract filled with super-powered people living a 1950s lifestyle. Given yesterday's appearance by a Jack Kirby character, the comparison of Heroville to Supertown, from Kirby's Forever People must be made, though Heroville is definitely, if one can say this of a town full of superheroes, a little more down to Earth. There's also the comparison to be made with Alan Moore's Top Ten, though Heroville, for all its powers, is much less chaotic than Neopolis.

The other set-up for this story, stemming from issue #612, is a rash of superhero casualties, heroes discovered unresponsive and, literally, drained of all of their colour. Heroville seems a prime target...

"We grew our own superheroes here."

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1724: The Adventures of Superman #613, April 2003

Not sure how I managed it, but I grabbed this comic to read this morning and somehow skipped over the five issues prior. Which is not a big deal, as this is a standalone story that, really, could have happened anywhere in the run. Much of the end of the Casey/Aucoin run on this title is standalone, and I really think that's why it works so well. Casey and Aucoin are rarely held up amongst the great Superman writers, but I think this particular run is some of the best Superman I've read.

Though today's comic is much less a Superman comic and much more a Lois Lane one. (I really ought to pick up Greg Rucka's Lois Lane series.) While the Man of Steel is away doing Superman-y things, Lois investigates a store that is profiting from Superman merchandise without his consent. The proprietor, Funky Flashman, is an old Jack Kirby character that was modeled on Stan Lee's public face of Marvel in the 1970s. It's not a flattering portrait.

Lois ends up triumphing, of course. There really is an excellent case to be made that she's the most interesting non-superhero character in the whole DCU. As with Superman, when Lois is written well, she's stellar. And this story is right up there.

"No...wear the uniform. For old times' sake."

The 40 Years of Comics Project - Day 1504: Adventures of Superman #590, May 2001

Did I mention that this is the era of Superman in which Lex Luthor was President of the United States. Having a villain in that role is far less amusing or intriguing now than it might have been at the time. Though Lex is definitely a smarter president than the current Villain in Chief.

The question of what Superman will do when his drives and ideals mesh with Luthor's, as President, is a very interesting one. A part of the American, or perhaps the nationalist, psyche that I've never been able to wrap my head around is respect for an office that transfers to those who hold the office and may not be all that respectable. One of the questions raised by Luthor's ascendancy to the Presidency is whether or not one should be listening to someone who holds high office even if they don't agree with the holder. For those of us in the general populace, it's not really a pertinent question. I disagree with many things that our leaders do, but in my personal and public lives, I'm not beholden to these leaders, really. But someone like Superman, who's sworn to obey the laws of the land, and knows he has the ability to completely ignore them, has to make this choice. Does he listen to Luthor, and obey Luthor, given their history together?

The action of today's comic takes place alongside the conversation that Superman and Luthor have about this very topic. Superman does in the end do what Luthor asks him, but very much on his own terms. It's an interesting moment where we see two diametrically-opposed characters come to an agreement about a particular situation. As Squirrel Girl teaches us, there's always moments of commonality. We just have to be open to finding them.

(Of course, I write this as the UCP is set to take control of Albertan politics, and I don't think I've seen a campaign with quite so many racists and homophobes plainly on the ticket. *sigh*)

"I don't care which office you hold...I will never be your errand boy. Remember that."