What makes Superman Superman to you?

[Eric Q]

We all have our own opinions or have preferred interpretations of what Superman should be like , what are yours?


What I think.
Regardless of his power levels, he's always manages to do amazing things.

Has Christopher Reeve's charm and warmth.

Approachable, he could talk to anybody from bikers to models.

Charitable, he visits and comforts the unfortunate.

Aware of the reality of the world and his job like that he can't save everyone. But he doesn't let it stop him and is grateful for the brighter parts of life and the opportunities he has been given.

Neutral good and perseverant, he doesn't let much stop him from doing the right thing and doesn't stop until it's done.

Humble, doesn't think he's better than anyone else. He'll do any task big or small, if there is a cat in a tree, he'll help get it down.

Hopeful

Honorable, he stands for something better.

Respectful

Fights for everybody and everything that matters.

Man of two world, obviously Earth has an bigger influence on him but he doesn't forget about his family or Krypton.

Worldly

Leader


Some moments that show what makes him Superman.
Him helping the suicidal girl in All Star Superman.

He keeps letters from people he couldn't help or failed. From Joe Kelly's Action Comics run.

He's with two JLA teammates, they're all powerless and facing against millions of Starro controlled humans. They must save a child and the world from them with any hesitation, he leads the JLA straight into the situation. From Grant Morrison's JLA.

Rather than punching Major Disaster's face in, he offers him a second chance to redeem himself. Joe Kelly's Action Comics run.

Action Comics #775, he fights the Elite even though they more powerful and tougher than him.

Superman Adventures #11-12, he's terminal with some sort of sickness and still fights crime as best as he can.

Faced against an invading alien space fleet who has severely weakened him, he uses his list bit of strength to take all of them down in one move. From Superman vs. Muhammad Ali.

That even if Lois doesn't love him, he'll still love her and try his best to go on. From It's Superman.

[Simon DelMonte]

1. His utterly unshakeable moral compass. He never lies. He never kills. He does the right thing every time.

2. His restraint. Not merely that he doesn't kill, but that he doesn't use violence as a first option, prefers to let regular people solve their own problems without him if he can, prefers to be Clark Kent.

3. His down to Earth persona. He is occasionally cocky, but never arrogant, never detached. He is a god, but also one of us.

4. His larger than life aspects. For all that he tries not to be a god, he is a legend and a symbol, in a way that no one else is. And he uses this for good.

5. His compassion. This above all else defines him. He cares about everyone. Even the bad guys. He is here to help.

[ronaldj]

well said and i must agree....ol' big blue...honest, forthright ...and just plan complex country boy who fights for truth and justice and yea (i'm from there and old( the american way....

[Mr. Wrong]

1. His utterly unshakeable moral compass. He never lies. He never kills. He does the right thing every time. 2. His restraint. Not merely that he doesn't kill, but that he doesn't use violence as a first option, prefers to let regular people solve their own problems without him if he can, prefers to be Clark Kent. 3. His down to Earth persona. He is occasionally cocky, but never arrogant, never detached. He is a god, but also one of us. 4. His larger than life aspects. For all that he tries not to be a god, he is a legend and a symbol, in a way that no one else is. And he uses this for good. 5. His compassion. This above all else defines him. He cares about everyone. Even the bad guys. He is here to help.

Simon DelMonte

Ditto!

[Sentinel119]

The Spit Curl!

[jafabian]

This does:

[TJLamb0518]

When he puts more emphasis on the man than the super.

[Simon DelMonte]

Ditto!

Mr. Wrong

Funny that we seem to disagree about everything related to the New 52 but this. But then Supes was always good at being a peacemaker.

[Eric Q]

Hitman #34 - buy it.

[MattDiCarlo]

When he represents the very best of us as opposed to being a god sent down to save us.

[Justin]

I'm happy to see someone else using D&D terminology to describe super-heroes. I thought I was the only one.

Anyway, I think this quote by Frederick Douglass sums up Superman perfectly: "I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong."

[Justin]

When he represents the very best of us as opposed to being a god sent down to save us.

MattDiCarlo

I think that's something of a false choice. Superman isn't who he is just because he was raised by Midwestern farmers (modern biology has disproved the tabula rasa theory), but he also isn't someone who was created perfect or "sinless."

I think Superman represents humanity's ideals, more so than what we actually are. He's what we aspire to be, not what we are. That's why he's the Man of Tomorrow, not the Man of Today or the Man of the Past. He's the ideal we're still trying to capture as a species. I think that's what Siegel and Shuster were trying to capture--Superman is what we COULD become, who we have the potential of becoming. Not just in the sense of having powers, but in what we could become morally.

[JRM]

When he represents the very best of us as opposed to being a god sent down to save us.

MattDiCarlo

Matt,

You said it better than I could. He should be our inspiration - when written that way, the book works, when written, about Krypton - little more than a silly story about a guy in tights. Borrrrrrring.

Jim

[Justin]

You said it better than I could. He should be our inspiration - when written that way, the book works, when written, about Krypton - little more than a silly story about a guy in tights. Borrrrrrring.

JRM

Superman has never been written "about Krypton." Some people might feel uncomfortable because he's not human (and thus want to devalue his alien heritage so it's not a threat to their belief that humans are unique and special in the universe), but it doesn't make him any less of an inspiration to human beings. Personally, I don't think Superman has to be "one of us" to inspire us. He's not a simple tabula rasa (such beings don't exist) that was programmed by the Kents.

Inspirations are meant to allow us to achieve new heights, not to take us to where we've always been. Superman isn't who he is simply because he was raised by farmers (or by humans)--he's who he is because he sees the value in other sentient creatures and doesn't want them to suffer as they do.

[JRM]

Superman has never been written "about Krypton." Some people might feel uncomfortable because he's not human (and thus want to devalue his alien heritage so it's not a threat to their belief that humans are unique and special in the universe), but it doesn't make him any less of an inspiration to human beings. Personally, I don't think Superman has to be "one of us" to inspire us. He's not a simple tabula rasa (such beings don't exist) that was programmed by the Kents. Inspirations are meant to allow us to achieve new heights, not to take us to where we've always been. Superman isn't who he is simply because he was raised by farmers (or by humans)--he's who he is because he sees the value in other sentient creatures and doesn't want them to suffer as they do.

Justin

Not surprised that we disagree, we rarely see anything from even a remotely similar point of view. But in the end, reading fiction is about how the reader interprets the product - you see one thing, I see something else. In the end, no point doing anything but accept that, you enjoy one take, I enjoy an other & to each their own is the best call on that.

Jim

[Justin]

Not surprised that we disagree, we rarely see anything from even a remotely similar point of view. But in the end, reading fiction is about how the reader interprets the product - you see one thing, I see something else. In the end, no point doing anything but accept that, you enjoy one take, I enjoy an other & to each their own is the best call on that.

JRM

True, I suppose I just don't see why people see Superman's alien nature as something that needs to be downplayed to enjoy the stories. I, for one, think it's oddly enough the most American thing about him. Not in the sense that he loses his culture when he comes to America, but that he KEEPS it and still becomes an American. He doesn't have to sacrifice who he is to fit in--that's what I like.

I think the problem is that some find the idea that a non-human can achieve humanity's ideals better than a human to be uncomfortable and threatening. Thus, they have to take the alien side out of the equation and explain away Superman's goodness as coming solely from humans--to see Superman as a pure blank slate coming to Earth to be taught the right way to live and act. Of course, if one wants to get down to how morality in individuals actually develops, there's a large role genetics plays. Things like IQ, alcoholism, temperament, and such are strongly tied to inheritance, as is the way we view our environments and what effect said environments have on us (i.e. different people raised in the same environments will be affected differently). Likewise, identical twins raised apart will maintain many similarities and attitudes despite what their parents are like--recent studies even suggest that our peer groups might be as important, or even more important, than the lessons we learn from our parents (which I suppose is good reason to pay more attention to Pete and Lana).

Basically, I see Superman as surpassing all his teachers, whether human or otherwise. Their lessons matter, but in the end, it's Superman who utilizes and improves upon them. Almost a balancing force, I'd say. He's different from both his fathers in numerous ways, which is good.