Superman, given the serial nature of comic publishing and the length of the character's existence, has evolved as a character as his adventures have increased. Initially a crime fighter, the character was seen in early adventures stepping in to stop wife beaters and gangsters, with rather rough edges and a rather looser moral code than audiences may be used to today. Modern writers have softened the character, and instilled a sense of idealism and moral code of conduct.
Superman's secret identity Clark Kent, initially based somewhat on Harold Lloyd, has also been updated over the years. During the 1970s, the character left the Daily Planet for a time to work for television, whilst the 1980s revamp by John Byrne saw the character become somewhat more aggressive. This aggressiveness has since faded with subsequent creators restoring the mild mannerisms traditional to the character.
Superman's powers have developed, and his adventures have accumulated, far beyond the Fleischer cartoon's intonation of a character "faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound." Initially the character could not fly, but this ability and many more have added to the character's appeal. Superman's weakness to kryptonite, now well established, was introduced quite late in the character's history, first appearing in the radio series in 1943. Superman's large cast of supporting characters includes Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White, while many adventures have seen the character pitted against villains such as Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Doomsday.
Fictional biography
The details of Superman's origin, relationships, and abilities changed significantly during the course of the character's publication, from what is considered the Golden Age through the Modern Age of comics. The powers and villains were developed through the 1940s, including Superman's ability to fly, and costumed villains introduced in 1941. The character was shown as learning of the existence of Krypton in 1949. The concept itself had originally been established to the reader in 1939, in the Superman comic strip.
The 1960s saw the introduction of a second Superman, Kal-L. DC Comics had established a multiverse within the fictional universe its characters shared. This allowed characters published in the 1940s to exist alongside their updated counterparts published in the 1960s. This was explained to the reader through the notion that the two groups of characters inhabited parallel Earths. The second Superman was introduced to explain to the reader Superman's membership of both the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America and the 1960s superhero team the Justice League of America.Justice League of America #73 (August 1969)
The 1980s saw radical revisions of the character. DC Comics decided to remove the multiverse in a bid to simplify its comics line. This led to the rewriting of the back story of all DC characters, Superman included. John Byrne rewrote Superman, removing many established conventions and characters from continuity, including Superboy and Supergirl. Byrne also re-established Superman's adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent, as characters. In the previous continuity, the characters had been written as having died early in Superman's life (about the time of Clark Kent's graduation from high school).
The 1990s saw Superman apparently killed by the villain Doomsday, although the character was soon resurrected. Superman married Lois Lane in 1996. In the 2000s, Superman becomes a vegetarian, and his origin is again revisited in 2004. In 2006, Superman is stripped of his powers, although these are restored within a fictional year.
Personality and character
In the Golden Age stories, Superman's personality is rough and destructive. Although nowhere near as cold-blooded as the early Batman, the Superman featured in the comics of the 1930s and 1940s is unconcerned about tossing evildoers around in such a manner that fatalities would logically be almost inevitable (although seldom or never shown on the page). His actions were more socially conscious, such as declaring war on reckless drivers, fighting against the mistreatment of prisoners, or tearing down insufficient housing so that the government would be forced to build new homes.
His adoptive human parents, the Kents, imbued young Clark Kent with a strong sense of purpose, morality, and compassion. Superman was raised to believe that his abilities are gifts not to be abused. In many ways, he is the perfect hero, as he embodies all the best traits that people would believe to see in themselves. Unlike the Golden Age Superman, this Superman dislikes killing and vows to "never take a life", and to retire if he ever does. All the same, when General Zod taunts Superman in the 1982 miniseries The Phantom Zone for his resolve, Superman responds, "My code doesn't say a damned thing about not battering you to within an inch of yours!."
Recent writers have attempted to deepen Superman's persona and provide a rationale for his goodness. Superman is often depicted with a mix of idealism, restraint, fairness, and compassion. The Birthright limited series attributes Superman's compassion for living things to his ability to see their "auras". He also struggles with the differences between what is right and what is practical.
Survivor's guilt has also been cited as a basis for Superman's morality; as the (nearly) sole survivor of an extinct race eradicated by a natural disaster that his people, and more specifically his father, were powerless to prevent. Now possessing nearly unlimited power himself, he feels additional responsibility to behave in a compassionate and protective manner to others similarly threatened.
In Superman/Batman #3, Batman thinks, "It is a remarkable dichotomy. In many ways, Clark is the most human of us all. Then ... he shoots fire from the skies, and it is difficult not to think of him as a god. And how fortunate we all are that it does not occur to him." In the Modern Age of comics, the relationship between Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent has at times been strained by their differing ideologies, which results from their drastically different backgrounds and upbringing. However, they have come to recognize each other as not only the most trusted of allies, but great friends, with Batman being the one person Superman trusted with Lex Luthor's kryptonite ring in order for someone to be able to stop Superman should he ever go rogue.
Clark Kent Clark Kent is the secret identity of Superman. Clark, as opposed to Superman, is traditionally presented as behaving in a more introverted or mild manner compared to his super-heroic self. John Byrne's Man of Steel revamp drops many traditional aspects of Clark Kent in favor of giving him a more aggressive and extroverted personality, including making Kent a top football player in high school and a successful author. Subsequent revamps have restored the more mild-mannered Clark Kent that is traditionally associated with the character.
Clark is a reporter at the Metropolis newspaper the Daily Planet, which allows him to keep track of events in which he might be able to help. Fellow reporter Lois Lane is often the object of Clark's affection. Lois's affection for Superman and rejection of Clark is a recurring theme in Superman comics and media adaptations.
In the Modern Age comics Superman considers himself Clark Kent first and Superman second. Before the Crisis on Infinite Earths (i.e., DC comics published up to the early 1980s), the attitude was that Clark Kent was actually a "secret identity" for Superman. In an adventure published in the 1960s, when staff at the Daily Planet go on strike. He seriously considers it a chance to try out a new identity in case he has to "abandon [his] Clark Kent role permanently." His options included becoming a full-time policeman or a mere tramp "whom no one would ever suspect of being the Man of Steel."Illustration included in the Penguin Book of Comics by George Perry and Alan Aldridge, published in 1967.
Clark keeps his Superman identity a secret to protect his loved ones. Various methods for keeping his secret over the years include wearing eyeglasses and "super-hypnosis", subliminally preventing people from making the connection; or if they did, sometimes resorting to outright erasing their memories. He also compresses his spine as Clark Kent to become shorter, and studies the Meisner acting technique to switch seamlessly between personas.
Modern comic book stories show that to the average observer, Superman is the greatest hero in the world and a larger-than-life figure. The fact that he is without a mask in his Superman persona gives the impression to ordinary civilians that he is without a "secret identity", which prevents suspicion. When first confronted by evidence that Clark Kent is Superman, Lex Luthor dismisses it, saying, "No one with the power of Superman would be living as a normal man."Superman vol. 2, #2 (February 1987)
Progeny Superman's Kryptonian physiology has been a matter of serious and humorous discussion, such as in Larry Niven's essay Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex. An essay by Larry Niven The novelization of the comics storyline The Death of Superman, The Death and Life of Superman by Roger Stern, suggests that Superman's alien DNA has far too many and far too complex chromosomes. The 1998 crossover story DC One Million, reveals Superman as the progenitor of a dynasty of part-Kryptonian protectors of the Earth, reference is made in the series of him marrying a fifth-dimensional queen in the 67th century and adding extra powers to his bloodline. Superman is portrayed as a father for the first time in canonical continuity, when he and his wife Lois become the foster parents of a Kryptonian boy, whom they named Chris Kent.Action Comics #845 (January 2007) These versions of Superman and Lois Lane eventually have a biological son, Jonathan Samuel Kent, in the Convergence series.
Examples of Superman biologically fathering children in imaginary, alternate realities, or elseworlds stories includes, a daughter named Ariella Kent with Linda Danvers from an alternate timeline. A son named Jonathan Elliot with Lois Lane in Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?. A son named Jonathan Kent II with Wonder Woman in Kingdom Come and The Kingdom. A son named Jon Kent with Lois in the graphic novel Son of Superman and a daughter named Lola with Lois in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #117. A son named Larry with Lois in Superman's Girl Friend Lois Lane #39. Five children over the span of time covered in the Superman & Batman: Generations series. A daughter named Laura Kent with Lois in Superman Family #200; A daughter named Laney with Lois in Superman #215. A super-genius baby with Lois in Superman Family #224. A woman from an alternate future named Cir-El who claims to be Superman's daughter with Lois Lane (though Cir-El is later revealed to have been artificially engineered by Brainiac 13 using the DNA of her supposed natural parents); a future glimpse (via Mister Mxyzptlk) of a potential daughter named Lara in Adventures of Superman #638 and others.
Another possible future/alternate reality son is Clark Kent, Jr. who takes on the identity of Superman Jr. He was featured in the series, World's Finest Comics. Teamed with Batman Jr., the duo were known as the Super-Sons. The mothers of the Super-Sons were never revealed by name and their faces were always hidden.
In the 2006 film Superman Returns, Lois Lane has a son, Jason White, who was later revealed as Superman's son. In the film, Jason is shown to have superpowers, which he displays after he is put under stress to save his mother Lois.As seen in the movie Superman Returns.
Powers and abilities