First of... Superman. Who does not know the Man of Steel? I mean, aside from children who are still too young to enjoy super heroes and would rather watch videos of Muppets with alphabets (which I still enjoy watching) or singing purple dinosaurs (which I did not really like as much for my kids). Who wouldn't recognize the stylized 'S' symbol? I mean, as symbols go and as characters are, Superman has got to be one of the most known characters in print, TV, or movie. 
Secondly... and this time, in the more focused world of Comic books - who has not heard of the name Geoff Johns? The man who gave such sterling runs to the titles he's handled... namely, JSA, Teen Titans, The Flash and Green Lantern. Granted there was that very brief stint at Marvel's Avengers which did not seem to impact too much - but I would argue that he did not stay in the title long enough to really stretch his imagination - and despite that, how he deceptively played with a lot of people taunting us with the clue of Dell Rusk? This man has spunk and style, I'll tell you that.
So we've one well known writer and an iconic character. Add to the mix a really great artistic team by way of Gary Frank and Jon Sibal and you get a formula for one really great limited series (or in my case, a deluxe hard covered graphic novel compiling said mini). Yup... Superman Secret Origins was definitely a great read - its almost a sin to consider why I did not pick this up until now.
I'm sure it was tauted... advertised and raved. SO how come I missed it? Back then I guess, I did not want to try it out... I mean, c'mon... it's about Superman - how novel can that get? Well apparently, novel enough because of Geoff's very humanistic manner of depicting Clark Kent. Yes, this is the secret origin of how Clark grew... how he faced his loneliness in being afraid to hurt friends like Pete, how he awkwardly had to put Lana at arms length - and yes... how alone and miserable he felt when he faced the truth of his being very different.
From there we see his happiness at discovering the Legion of Superheroes, and knowing he had friends very much like him. Oh yeah, Smallville fans - in case you're wondering, if was Geoff Johns who also wrote the episode that introduced the Legion into the TV series. So rest assured, if you liked how they were depicted - and how true to form they were portrayed... well that was Geoff's doing. Rest assured, his depiction of them here as well was sterling.
It doesn't stop there either... Lex, Perry, Jimmy, Lois and a whole lot more - even the villains like Metallo and the Parasite - all these people... did I say people? I meant characters... all of them felt naturally real. And their expressions... wow... Gary really compemented Geoff's plots. I mean, as I said earlier - I did not bother getting this because it was a Superman story, and I felt there was no need for yet another Superman origin again. I would have been happy to leave it with John Byrne's renditioning all those years ago - and yet, compared to this current work, that was comics... this, well... it's a Graphic Novel, what;s the difference? Simple... with due respect to Mr. Byrne, this was amazing work and it shows exactly how much care and respect was placed in this mini series. I only wish - just like in Byrne's mini, this one had a Batman cameo as well.
But if I had to compliment this work, I can only think that had Geoff decided to write this into a regular title... month in and month out, I'd opt to support it. Never mind that it seems like a retake on a character's origin... never mind that I've seen a lot of Superman movies, read a lot of issues that I feel I know the character like the back of my hand... Geoff's rendition really humanizes Clark - we have Clark first and the super man second. It was a nice direction... and despite the jumping on and off points in Clark's life, as the limited series space demanded happen, I find myself wishing this was extended to 12 issue... heck, maybe even more.
The Man of Steel, Man of Tomorrow, iconic hero responsible for Truth, Justice and the American way (though I'd argue that the virtues are global (or they should be) - I would have wanted to see more of how Clark the youth grew up with the wisdom of the Kents - a strength well played in the TV series with Tom Welling. I would have wanted to see more milestones shaping Clark into who he is... what hsi inner compass would be like.
This is how Superman Secret Origins affected me. I highly recommend getting a copy (be it buy or borrow) and read the story. You may be - like me, wondering what will be so special about a retelling - or why it even has to be done... but believe me, I enjoyed it, and you might too. Geoff is one of those writers known for brining heroes back to their roots... and it's nice to see Clark and his roots. This is why he is Superman - its not about the powers - okay, so it is... but its not what makes him unique. Clark has a strong moral compass, and Geoff captures it well.
Thank you Geoff... than you too, Frank, Jon... I'm sure I might have enjoyed this had it been a book, but I'm sure I might have missed a few nuances that your humanistic artistic style emphasized. This definitely goes into my list of great reads. No ratings here... I don't think its fair to the work.
Superman is naturally owned by DC and the image shown above was copied from Amazon.com. By the way, it is the exact (deluxe hardcover edition) version I bought.
Secondly... and this time, in the more focused world of Comic books - who has not heard of the name Geoff Johns? The man who gave such sterling runs to the titles he's handled... namely, JSA, Teen Titans, The Flash and Green Lantern. Granted there was that very brief stint at Marvel's Avengers which did not seem to impact too much - but I would argue that he did not stay in the title long enough to really stretch his imagination - and despite that, how he deceptively played with a lot of people taunting us with the clue of Dell Rusk? This man has spunk and style, I'll tell you that.
So we've one well known writer and an iconic character. Add to the mix a really great artistic team by way of Gary Frank and Jon Sibal and you get a formula for one really great limited series (or in my case, a deluxe hard covered graphic novel compiling said mini). Yup... Superman Secret Origins was definitely a great read - its almost a sin to consider why I did not pick this up until now.
I'm sure it was tauted... advertised and raved. SO how come I missed it? Back then I guess, I did not want to try it out... I mean, c'mon... it's about Superman - how novel can that get? Well apparently, novel enough because of Geoff's very humanistic manner of depicting Clark Kent. Yes, this is the secret origin of how Clark grew... how he faced his loneliness in being afraid to hurt friends like Pete, how he awkwardly had to put Lana at arms length - and yes... how alone and miserable he felt when he faced the truth of his being very different.
From there we see his happiness at discovering the Legion of Superheroes, and knowing he had friends very much like him. Oh yeah, Smallville fans - in case you're wondering, if was Geoff Johns who also wrote the episode that introduced the Legion into the TV series. So rest assured, if you liked how they were depicted - and how true to form they were portrayed... well that was Geoff's doing. Rest assured, his depiction of them here as well was sterling.
It doesn't stop there either... Lex, Perry, Jimmy, Lois and a whole lot more - even the villains like Metallo and the Parasite - all these people... did I say people? I meant characters... all of them felt naturally real. And their expressions... wow... Gary really compemented Geoff's plots. I mean, as I said earlier - I did not bother getting this because it was a Superman story, and I felt there was no need for yet another Superman origin again. I would have been happy to leave it with John Byrne's renditioning all those years ago - and yet, compared to this current work, that was comics... this, well... it's a Graphic Novel, what;s the difference? Simple... with due respect to Mr. Byrne, this was amazing work and it shows exactly how much care and respect was placed in this mini series. I only wish - just like in Byrne's mini, this one had a Batman cameo as well.
But if I had to compliment this work, I can only think that had Geoff decided to write this into a regular title... month in and month out, I'd opt to support it. Never mind that it seems like a retake on a character's origin... never mind that I've seen a lot of Superman movies, read a lot of issues that I feel I know the character like the back of my hand... Geoff's rendition really humanizes Clark - we have Clark first and the super man second. It was a nice direction... and despite the jumping on and off points in Clark's life, as the limited series space demanded happen, I find myself wishing this was extended to 12 issue... heck, maybe even more.
The Man of Steel, Man of Tomorrow, iconic hero responsible for Truth, Justice and the American way (though I'd argue that the virtues are global (or they should be) - I would have wanted to see more of how Clark the youth grew up with the wisdom of the Kents - a strength well played in the TV series with Tom Welling. I would have wanted to see more milestones shaping Clark into who he is... what hsi inner compass would be like.
This is how Superman Secret Origins affected me. I highly recommend getting a copy (be it buy or borrow) and read the story. You may be - like me, wondering what will be so special about a retelling - or why it even has to be done... but believe me, I enjoyed it, and you might too. Geoff is one of those writers known for brining heroes back to their roots... and it's nice to see Clark and his roots. This is why he is Superman - its not about the powers - okay, so it is... but its not what makes him unique. Clark has a strong moral compass, and Geoff captures it well.
Thank you Geoff... than you too, Frank, Jon... I'm sure I might have enjoyed this had it been a book, but I'm sure I might have missed a few nuances that your humanistic artistic style emphasized. This definitely goes into my list of great reads. No ratings here... I don't think its fair to the work.
Superman is naturally owned by DC and the image shown above was copied from Amazon.com. By the way, it is the exact (deluxe hardcover edition) version I bought.
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