With Man of Steel coming out this month, it seemed appropriate to re-visit the graphic novel Superior by the inimitable Mark Millar.
This is a nice send up of Superman, more specifically how superheroes and Superman in particular have shaped American culture and identity. Superior, like Superman represents the idealized American: he stops crime, he saves people, he fixes all of the world’s problems, and he does it without killing people. This is particularly poignant given the 21st Century backdrop–would Americans be satisfied with Al Queda being captured by a superhero and sent to maximum security prisons? While Superman and (presumably) Superior are Americans, they’re adopted Eathlings, they represent the best of humanity (at least from a Western perspective).
This begs the question: what are we to expect from the Christopher Nolan/Zack Snyder Man of Steel? They’re clearly trying to re-invent Superman for a modern audience while trying to stay true to his core principles: Truth, Justice, the American Way.
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