If you want to see me discuss POLITICS in comics - check out this video right here! ua-cam.com/video/L1v2t4pBoDA/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Mint-HunterComics
The best representation of Superman outside the comics is still easily Superman The Animated Series, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. Superman is interesting there! Superman is so great because he is so down to earth despite his powers. Episodes like For The Man Who Had Everything show this so well! He is a nice humble guy from Kansas. Sadly, I think the perception of the character has been really hurt by Zack Snyder's films.
I love this. And frankly, fuck collecting. I Consume comics. I don’t collect them. I would rant forever on the harm the “collectors edition!” Era did and I can talk about the good stuff too
I have friends in the community who really hate Superman for the reason you said. They just think he's boring. Personally, he's one of my favorite characters. He's a god living among humans, and we constantly see times where he could easily become a villain and take over the world, but he's been raised on Earth by human parents who taught him right and wrong, and he never forgets those lessons, and he never loses faith in humankind. That's what makes Superman such a great hero. I grew up with the guy, and I still love reading his books. It's sad that nobody else sees it but way.
Caleb Leland: you just read my mind. I could not say it better. I AGREE 100%. I began to watch Super at 10 y/o. I am ( don't laugh ) 74 y/o and he still brings a fresh breeze to my mind when I feel stressed, tired, bored, fatigued, etc. We need once in a while to escape reality for many different factors and it is better this way than using drugs, alcohol, and many other things that can get us in trouble. Only fault I find is that now and then ( too many Supermen ) I see a book that it is too silly. Way toooo silly. Besides of too many, old Superman has been around for way toooo long. Sadly, nobody is perfect.
Superman is my all-time favorite superhero, and you succinctly described what I love about him so much. There are very few of his stories, unfortunately, that make it into the ranks of my favorite comics.
Superman has been around since around the 1940s , same as captain America, you can only do so much with a character. We need characters that we can enjoy inspired by what came before, time to let go of the past
From the Byrne relaunch to the Death were the best mainstream superhero comics being published. At one point, they even had Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway and George Perez all as writer/artists on Superman titles at one time, which is probably some kind of record, but they rarely reach that consistent level anymore. Occasionally, like with the Jurgens/Tomasi era, maybe. But the real problem is they haven't healed from the damage done by Bendis.
Jurgens was setting up some great things when Dido replaced him and Tomasi with Bendis. It's like they actively sabotage runs that are working to something good, and flush the goodwill they'd built in the process. For the record, I have absolutely no problem with Jon being bi in the least, but I do hate the fact that he's not still 10. So much amazing story potential, thrown away because some comics writers are too lazy to write kids.
I grew up om the Byrne era, I agree it was one of the best era's of Superman, and imo comic writing in general. Which isn't to say tbere weren't some issues. A lot of the stories had Superman showcase his brains over brawn, and unfortunately ended up kind of nonsensical as a result. For example, an alien race trapped in a robot body wants to collectively body jack Superman, so he banked on them arguing and shorting out the robot. Or in another example Dreadnaut and Psi Phon "steal" powers, so Superman feeds them powers to overload them. In both example there is no way at all Superman can know Psi Phon or Dreadnauts upper limits, or whether the alien body snatchers couldn't come to a deal or all body snatch him at once, or just destroy him or whatever... He looks less smart, more lucky. I don't really blame the wrirers for these problems though, there was clearly a company wide mandate against Supeeman punching his way to victory in that era, and it isn't easy writing "clever", especially on a deadline (Even Constantines famous example of selling his soul to three demon lords so they cure his cancer and leave him alone tp avoid a demon war has an obvious flaw where the demons could have chosen to curse him, make him immortal but horribly deformed or in pain)
@@docsavage4921 In the final year of Byrne on Superman, he was clearly stretched too thin. After Marv Wolfman left Adventures, he was writing all three books for a while and drawing two of them. Supposedly Byrne left Superman because he was offended by the 50th Anniversary TV special, which ignored his work, but I suspect he was getting burned out after over two years of writing and/or drawing 2-4 Superman stories ever single month. That's when he started stretching out some stories that were a bit thin or underdeveloped, but after he left, Roger Stern and Kerry Gammill came in and did some of their best work right off the bat, and we got the Exile storyline, which pretty quickly righted the ship after Byrne's abrupt departure.
I legit loved from 1986 up through Electric Blue (I loved the soap opera-ness of it all with the focus on the supporting cast especially in the late '90s) however once there was Superman Red/Blue the storyline took a nose dive and I dipped before 2000. With all the constant Crisis events since then I don't regret it.
I strongly agree! I'm okay with it though. I can go to a shop and buy up silver age issues for $5-$10 each to fill out my collection. I'm really into that era, and it doesn't really bother me that people aren't chasing after it
Go Read _Superman 708_ Its A Silver-age mechanism filled modern story. Ridiculous _Eddy Barrows_ art, Written by _J.M. Straczynski_ (who also wrote 12 phenomenal Brave & Bold comics). His whole very whimsical Superman run is recommended in general _"Grounded" // Superman 700+_ but ishs 708, 704 (I wanna say) & 712 are particularly noteworthy, w/ 708 especially being A TOP 10 BEST Superman comic.
Hes not boring, the writers are just boring and lame lately. SUPERMAN will always be the best and relevant... and needed. Your right, its definitely a perception issue.
Superman and Action Comics are titles I've only ever picked up on a sporadic basis. I don't think the character is boring - I just think he's been around for so long that the lacklustre stories outweigh the interesting or compelling ones. I absolutely love the late pre-Crisis Marv Wolfman/ Gil Kane run that featured Satanis and a newly revamped Lex Luthor and Brainiac that are incredibly underrated. The John Byrne era is also a highlight too. I jumped in and out of collecting the character when he's been written by interesting writers like Geoff Johns or Grant Morrison too. But I think Superman's main problem is he's just been around for so long he's just taken for granted and/ or perceived as your Grandpa's hero. I think he's also a victim of not being able to be "edgy" like Batman - he's not a prick. He doesn't mistreat people. I don't think he's boring. It's just hard to create drama around a character that is inherently decent.
Part of the issue is the insistence of modern readers that stories revolve around the character and that protagonists who don’t “grow and change” are dull. Superman is a classic character who stuff happens AROUND, not TO. And that’s fine! He doesn’t need personal drama, and trying to make every story personal is why it doesn’t work.
Supes is the Hardest character to write A stand-out story for. A brief #TOP10 Best single #SupermanComics in no particular order = __________________ > _Superman 708_ > _Superman Annual 11_ > _Superman 247_ > _Action Comics 775_ > _Action Comics 0 "The Boy who stole Superman's cape"_ > _Action Comics Annual 10_ The genius mini Superman encyclopedia. > _Superman Batman 75_ > _Adventures of Superman 14 (vol.2) "Supes VS. The Joker"_ > _All-Star Superman 3_ & I have to cheat w/ one 2pt. Story > _Action Comics 583_ & > _Superman 423 "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow"_ (A send off just pre-Crisis to the Org Silver/ Bronze age, Earth 423 Superman).
I'm always happy to read Silver and Bronze Age Superman issues, I find them to be fun and they are often done-in-one stories. Today I prefer my Superman as part of a team, with the right writer the character really works in this setting; Mark Waid's current "World's Finest" is a good example of this.
I’ve been collecting Superman books to memorabilia since the mid 90s and have always been fascinated by the rich history of the most iconic superhero of them all..
I haven’t read a Superman comic in over 25 years. I consider myself lucky to grow up with Christopher Reeve playing Superman in movies and a creative team of people writing comics including John Byrne, and Jerry Ordway and many others. Superman was never boring. His costume was always been ripped to shreds and he faced enemies who could really hurt him and make him bleed and even kill him. The 1980s and 1990s were the best years for Superman in any media.
I dont collect Superman post new 52, i have just a few stuff from it, I got more of Batman and GL but still, all post new 52 things are flavorless to me,
The only Superman that I would go after would be the golden age comics. It seems that after they won the lawsuit they made him into a cheap formalaic copycat version of Captain Marvel with no substance. For example Curt Swan's art is clean and simple with a nonobtrusive background which is what CC Beck gave at Fawcett, which made it easy for Kurt Schaffenberger's art to blend in seamlessly at DC Comics. You pick up a Superman comic from the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's the artwork doesn't budge from that same formula.
A very good video. To the Point. I started reading Superman in 1966. I'm now 62 years old. To me the best issues were the Silver Age stories. Neal Adams art and covers were truly great.
If ya like the Silver Age Superman stories & I'll assume Love His _'Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow'_ 2 comic pt. send off. GO READ _Straczynski's "Grounded" (Superman 700+)_ & Especially _Superman 708_ A TOP 10 All-Time Fun, very Silver-agey Superman comic!
@@Cyril-1973 Wait till you get to _Superman 708 & 712._ There so Much Fun! LET ME KNOW WHAT _Straczynski & Roberson_ ISSUE was your fav when your done.. Thanks,
That was what I liked about the Superman run during the Rebirth reboot and Jon was a child. It showed a new side of Superman with new stories to tell. He's teaching someone that has immense powers that just because you have these powers, that doesn't mean you always have to use them. He's passing on the knowledge of humanity that he learned from his parents to his son. I hated them aging up Jon. It was such a missed opportunity.
I feel like Superman has faded within our culture's zeitgeist. The idea of a "Hero", or just anyone in a position of power having a pure heart, has suffered greatly over the years. That said, I did just read a call book called "Benchley" by Preston where one of the central character was obsessed with Superman. His reason was pretty cool and more than a little heartbreaking.
I think you are 100% correct. I cannot understand why Superman has been changed into a morally questionable guy in the movies. He used to smile, now he sneers. I can't trust an omnipotent character who thinks I'm beneath him.
I am a Superman fan AND collector. My preferred period, for reading purposes, is the Copper Age (post-Crisis and pre-Death) and my preferred investment period is the Silver Age. However, there are several great story arcs and/or limited series’ in the Bronze Age and Modern Age.
What is considered affordable to you? Where I am and eBay, it’s pretty expensive. I can’t even get a 50s superman title without paying through the nose for 1.0s.
@@austinlohman3896 Those Buy it nows are a bitch. I hate to think of how much mullah I’ve waisted because I knee jerk buy because I MUST HAVE IT NOW lol
Tomasi and Jurgens runs on Superman in the Rebirth Era made Superman my favorite superhero. I am now on a mission to collect every mainline issue from the 60s or 70s onward, readable copies i dont care about quality of the books. And im gonna get every issue in collected editions prior to the singles I have. Digging through dollar bins for 90s superman books is so much fun, there are like 4 series to lookout for and its just fun to look for me. I didnt start reading comics till 2015 so my love of superman is strictly from modern comics and now I am reaching backwards. I cant wait to read the era where the order to read the books are in the triangles.
#Rebirth flagship Superman by _Tomasi & Gleason_ is A Top 5 Historic "Run" for The Man of Tomorrow! & Without question, Supes is the Hardest character to write (the complete opposite of Batsy). And as Great as the _Tomasi Rebirth Superman_ is, I just did A TOP 10 "Best Single Superman Comics" list (Right here in the comments section) & Not one comic from _Tomasi's_ Epic run made the list. That says something about Supes legacy (If ya want me to re-post said Best list below, just let me know).
2 reasons I think people don't want to collect Superman. 1. There is too much to collect and you can't collect the full runs of the character because of the value especially the older books. 2. Actually look at the covers of the books, there is so many non-cool covers. Superman does the Krypton shuffle- ya ya ya....hard pass.
I really love the old '60s silver age Superman/Action Comics. The covers had a lot of "super baby" situations. Where Lois and Supes had kids that were always clad in a costume. I also love the old Lois Lane covers from the '60s. Most of the covers had Lois scheming to get Superman to marry her - the penultimate goal of hers, from this era. Incredibly funny.
Superman is one of my favorite heroes so my view maybe I have limited perception myself but to answer your question: Lack of Creative Talent that understands Superman: Movies; Cavil is perfect for the role in my books. Many fans love him too. All WB needs to do is give us a true sequel with Brainiac as the villain. This isn't rocket science. I think many viewers would rather see an evil alien interface with cosmic level intelligence instead of a bald human challenge the Man of Steel. Comics: This one is more tricky. Writers make excuses that he's too boring or too powerful. If I was the editor and heard this, I"d assign the writer to Captain Carrot. Look at All Star Superman. He had silver age power levels, no cosmic threat, but it was the best Superman Story of all time in my books. Personally, I think many fans would be interested in a story much like Thor's God Butcher and God Bomb Saga. I'd have a villain in the shadows killing powerful phantom zone residents, Superman is pushed to his limits and go from there. Powerful or not, fans want something epic. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY....MAKE HIM INSPIRATIONAL. The guy you look up to when things are bad. Never ever write Superman as a whiner or lacks confidence. Make him smart, not a dunce. If Superman is written with those flaws, I drop that comic so fast until another author takes over Cartoons; This is the only category where they get it right. Public Enemies, Reign of the Superman (I loved that Eradicator)
Yeah I agree with your assessment on why Supes ain't as popular. I started reading comics with Superman, bit once I got introduced to Spidey it was a wrap. Spidey was a smart ass, got beat up, struggled in his non hero life, always learning lessons, losing friends, etc. Just made for a more relatable and interesting read for me personally.
I'm with you. As a young kid I would buy both marvel and DC comics but once I got around 12 it was Marvel and Spider-Man all the way. A little later the X men and it was a WRAP.
I grew up in the 60s and collected the whole line of DC superheroes. Of course that included Superman. Mainly because he was "the MAN" and because I loved the art of Curt Swan. You used the term "boring." I would say a more accurate definition would be "corny." He was sort of the Mr. Rogers of superheroes. Even though everyone collected his books, you wouldn't find much discussion about him in the fanzines. He's hardly recognizable today to a fan from the 60s but I'm happy that he has evolved and survived.
I grew up in the same era and probably read a lot of the comics you did. I love those old stories from the '60s, and the reprinted '50s stories in the old 80-Page Giants. I didn't see him as boring because he was so powerful and indestructible. He was always powerless or on the verge of dying because of kryptonite or virus X or something from space or the future. And he wasn't such a caricature boy scout. He was a good citizen and a good example. Except... when he was playing "jokes" on Batman or his friends he could be downright sadistic. Especially when he was trying to teach Lois a "lesson".
I'm a New Yorker and use to visit the old comic book shops owned by old nebbish Jewish men. They had all the most valuable shit locked away, I was only interested in EC Comics and they had the choicest editions
Good stuff, James. I also feel the same way about Superman. I wish he was more respected nowadays. That being said, I will admit that I mainly like him when he’s interacting with Batman or the rest of the justice league. I think a good follow up video would be some Superman recommendations for people who know the character and people who are new and wanna dive into his stories.
Hi guy, this is me again I just wanted to bring up a point I have the whole collection of Superman, except for the keys like number one but superman will never die. Also, I think that he’s gonna come back big and everyone’s gonna be surprised and I like the idea that you talked about superman because other comic fans never talk about it they always dismiss him every time they go to comic shows or comic shops, Mark, my words Superman is going to be big within five years especially if the green Landon gets a shot to play the movie scene which I’ve been hearing about even though they’ve been delaying it, but other than that, I have faith in superman in the future
I think they just need more "random rogues™" like toyman or silver banshee so that people don't think his gallery is exclusively composed of lex luthor, aliens, or evil versions of himself.
Superman is a baby face, (saint like character) and baby faces will always be deemed uncool. Very nice virtuous people in real life tend to be viewed as square and lame. It's just how the world operates.... I also think there's people like me who think that Supermans history is so daunting that theres no point in even starting to collect superman.
Superman and The Flash have been my favourite superheroes ever since I was a kid, but it's mainly the nostalgia. I think a lot of the reasons people don't collection much superman and DC in general, is because the big keys are from the golden age too, so maybe out of reach for the majority of collectors (especially completionist collectors)
HAD A OLDER COUSIN in the 80's that gave me over 100 late 1950's Superman Comics. Most in Mint condition. I read them and didn't want them. I gave them away around 20 years ago to my nephew which I think eventually threw them away.
While I love Superman and collect some whenever I find good pickups, I think it's a show of times and what newer generations are into. Superman just wasn't as prevalent in the new generations lives since they had so much more access to other heroes/media. But that isn't to say a Superman wave wont come back and we're here for it when it comes :D
As an influential member of the comic UA-cam council, you can endeavor to change people's perception of the character. Maybe a quick review of all time great story arcs, reasons why you like him, a list of all his weaknesses etc. ectc. If I asked your opinion as a fan, what books would you recommend as a good onboarding point ? 👍
My personal opinion is DC is doing the same thing with Batman, with making too many titles, too much product out there. It seems to me that if you look at DC's website every week there is at least 3 Batman titles being released. DC should change its name to BC Batman Comics.
Just as copyrights eventually expire, so does the interest in many fictional characters. Who currently has an interest in Katzenjammer Kids, Skippy, Oswald the Rabbit, The Yellow Kid, and dozens of other early 20th century cartoon characters that are simply just not relevant anymore? Superman was bound to peak at some point and may continue to fade in popularity.
Thanks for an thought-provoking video! You make three suggestions for why Superman is no longer collected so much. Two of those I think can be rejected by using these same arguments on Batman. Which leaves the third one, and I will explore that one a bit more. Suggestions 1 and 2 are: 1.) There are so many comics to collect, and they are all so heavily printed, people are just tired of it/ there is no challenge in collecting such heavily-printed books; 2.) Superman has been around for so, so long, people are just done with him as a character. But both suggestions could also be used for Batman: Batman has been around for about as long as Superman, and many of his comics must have been as heavily printed as Superman's. But Batman is the flagship of DC and readers and collectors can never get enough of him. (It would probably also be interesting to compare the popularity among collectors of Wonder Woman and Superman, as she has also been around for so long, but I will leave that aside for now). So your third suggestion seems strongest: there is something off with Superman as a character. There may be something to that. I would speculate that Superman has been missing something over the past thirty years that Batman has had: genre-redefining stories that breathe new, exciting life into the character. I am no Batman-expert, but over the past few decades we have had: Batman Year One, The Dark Knight Returns, The Long Halloween, Knightfall. In the movies we have had Christopher Nolan's trilogy, which was also genre-defining. I think that, for some reason, Superman has been missing out on such storylines. There has been Death of Superman, All-Star Superman and several intriguing Elseworlds-stories, but nothing that hit as much as say The Dark Knight Returns. Maybe Superman as a character suffered from an inertia? That he is so defined as this Kansas boy, with Lois Lane, the journalist, the jaw and the morality that writers either did not get the freedom or did not dare to take the freedom to take the character into exciting new directions?? There is a second aspect about Superman's character; the relative lack of star-supporting characters, environments and the like. Yes, Superman has Supergirl, Brainiac, Metropolis, Smallville, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, his parents, Krypton, his fortress, Superboy, Lex Luthor. And they are wonderful characters and backgrounds. But they just pale compared to the popularity of Batman's supporting characters and environments: Joker, Catwoman, Nightwing, Damian, Arkham Asylum, Gotham City, Alfred, Barbara, Cassandra (a personal favorite), the cave, the mansion, Bane ... I would say Batman thrives at least partially because the Bat-universe thrives, with constant renewal, new experiments. Maybe Superman and the Superman-universe is too stuck. Maybe he needs his Frank Miller, Christopher Nolan, Heath Ledger and so on to get it unstuck? PS Finally, a suggestion for a video: only 11 years from now, Superman becomes public domain: January 1st, 2034. Batman in the same year. Joker and Catwoman a year later or so. Wonder Woman also around that time. Marvel's characters are decades younger, and will (under current US law) not become public domain until the 2050s or so. What could this mean for DC and for these characters, if they indeed become public domain?
Remember the whole death of Superman series where Doomsday kills Superman?? DC Comics created the Death of Superman issues because of the drop in sales of Superman comics. This was DC Comics way of saying that the fans don't appreciate Superman anymore so we are going to kill him off. This was also a marketing ploy by DC Comics to increase sales.
My dad had Action Comics #1, which he bought in 1938 when he was 13. He let it rot in an outdoor storage shed in Grandfather's back yard.I found it when I was 9 and it was so decayed I could barely recognize it.
I started collecting in 1993 and started with Superman. I still love the 90s stuff. I always go back to it for a good read and take me back to the times I started the hobby.
If Superman was boring, then how did Alan Moore manage to write some of the best comics of the 80s and 90s featuring Superman or Supreme? How was Action Comics by Grant Morrison EASLIY the best comic of DC's New52 reboot? Simple. Bad writers.
The DC Animated Universe is what got me to take notice of DC heroes. The writing was top notch on Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond and Justice league. I also enjoyed the Teen Titans cartoon when I was a teen.
Collecting Superman comics personally is a chore unless you somehow get lucky and find stuff from the pre mid-70 when it was really wacky. I prefer reading them in trade formats.
I think it's all the things you say and also, he's just a bright character, optimistic, sometimes to a fault in my opinion. Maybe people are more drawn to darker, less optimism (like Batman) in general. That said, I still love Superman and have more of his comics than any other character. That's what got me into comics, and I love the late 80's Superman runs in particular.
DC has kept abusing Superman since it fired its creators in 1947. We know Superman can be awesome, because Donner, Puzo, and Mankiewicz proved that in 1978. The character should go to public domain, so that worthy creators could maybe do justice to the original superhero.
I actually collect superman I think he's an overhated and underrated hero's because he is the superhero with story's like all star superman death of superman and many more but sadly everyone just throws him up to that guy with loads of power's
Thank you for this video. I was wondering the same thing. Superman is my all time favorite character and I have more of his comics than Batman Spider-Man X-men and others. I still pick up certain Superman books to fill in my collection depending on the artist and story. I think he needs another foe that can really challenge him more than what doomsday did. Maybe that will get people more interested but who knows. I don't collect any of his current run besides books with cool covers.
I've looked at many, many, Superman stories from every era, and trust me, Superman is not the flawless Gary Stu that people make him out to be, he never was. Even when he's got many powers there's always something intresting about the story.
He hasn’t had the hottest artists. There are decades of Curt Swan. Even popular draftsmen like Jurgens and Gleason aren’t at the stature of the Batman artists. Also, he hasn’t had a hit movie since 1981. The 1989 Batman movie lifted the back issues especially Joker. It’s been that way pretty much ever since. But Detective almost always trails Batman proper. Great stories don’t matter to collectors looking for financial reasons.
The earliest superhero comic I got new was, I think, Superman 281 (the one with Vartox, uncannily similar to the Sean Connery character in the movie Zardoz - from the same year, 1974). I still have it - it's beat to hell and has writing on it, and even if it were a 9.8 what would it be worth? About what it would cost to grade it I suppose. But I still have it and cherish it. I think I always liked DC and Marvel pretty equally - the main title I collected for a while was Thor, starting in the mid-70s, but I loved Green Lantern, Batman, the Legion, etc, also. No real bias here. Superman though - I guess for me it was the all-powerful nature that kept me from really wanting to buy Superman titles regularly. Sure Thor and the Hulk and some other characters from both Marvel and DC were also mega-powerful but they had more interesting personalities and weren't goody-goody. But give this to Superman - he had the first big-budget movie of any character and - I know I'm in the minority on this - still the best of all of them. No actor has ever given a better lead performance in a superhero movie than Christopher Reeve, no score is better than John Williams' music for that film, and even though it's got plenty of flaws, the music, the man, and the general production all still make it magical for me, 44 years after I first saw it. So Superman's got something. And maybe I should look more into those silver age comics myself. Fun and hokey might be the things I'm missing in life right now. Thanks for another solid video man.
The Tomasi and Jurgens Rebirth era was the most interesting he had been in a very long time. It took this perceived boring overpowered character and gave him a fresh new status quo as a family man teaching his son how to adjust to his powers. Then all of that was sabotaged by Bendis. Every time a book taking place in that era gets announced I get so excited. They had lightning in a bottle and they dropped it.
I collected (and still do) all the minor DC characters. I always loved The Challengers of the Unknown and The Metal Men. 😂 Batman is about the only major DC character of interest to me. But even then My biggest interest is in Neal Adams and Jack Kirby artwork.
When I sold a lot of my silver age collection I kept the Actiob, Superman and Jimmy Olsen runs... Been thinking about the Superman run filling gaps after 1980s...got 100 copies 0f Man of Steel run to trade...:-)
I think it's worth keeping in mind that you're talking about a fairly specific demographic, and their opinion of him doesn't necessarily reflect his overall popularity. And while Superman may have started out as comic book character, his cultural cachet has long since transcended his origins. There are probably more Superman fans in the world than there are active comic readers/collectors. That said, they could probably stand to give him another cartoon or something sometime soon to give him a fresh introduction to today's kids.
It's true that Superman is very popular. He is the godfather of superheroes and has cultural cache that indeed has far surpassed his origins. However, this specific demographic (the comic book readers/collectors) maybe small but their view of the character is actually quite popular with the general population as well. Superman is classic but he has struggled the most in connecting with modern audiences. In contrast, the likes of Batman, Wonder Woman, Captain America and Spider-Man remain incredibly relevant, relatable and resonant to modern audiences.
@@HeartbeatCN Not really. It "actually" has nothing to do with modern audiences. That view of the character is not a new one. It's one of the thing that has long made Superman kind of a divisive character. There's a reason his fans like him, and others are left cold. "Boring." "Hard to relate to." (Which is hilarious, because the people who find the ultimate good guy who tries to always be responsible and do the right thing "hard to relate to" do not make similar comments about the billionaire orphan whose parents' murder motivates him to fight crime with the sort of focus that very few people are capable of AND ALSO HAS THE EXACT SOME CODE OF ETHICS even though his stories come at it from different angles. But whatever.) Anyway. I stand by what I said. You might recall that there were some movies made over the past decade that attempted a "grittier" take on Superman, and whether you liked them or not, whether you think they were "good" or not, you have to admit they were incredibly contentious. One of the main reasons they were so divisive is that so many people didn't like their take on DC's flagship character (or any of the characters, arguably, but definitely not Superman.) Because the people who like him, like him the way he is. The people who don't, don't. And swinging back around to my point, the demographic this video talks about is more heavily composed of the sort of people who are inclined to not like him as much. Which is fine, but not really indicative of anything worth drawing sweeping conclusions from.
Superman should meet Tarzan for a meeting and find out why they lost their popularity. Two kings of superheroes who have been dethroned by modern times. Batman and Wolverine just dropped a mic on them. Ha ha lol.
Speaking as a huge Superman fan, I think it's been the opposite of oversaturation; I'm 42, and Superman has *never*, for as long as I've seen the inside of a comic shop, been a "popular character" inside those walls. The closest he ever came would be during the "Reign" storyline in 1993. Other than that, I was the only person I knew who was going into that shop to buy Superman. From what I understand, he sold much better at the newsstand - aka not the typical comics crowd. Superman is to comic books as Elvis Presley is to the Rolling Stone Magazine publishers: given lip service as a historical footnote, but little else. He'll never be the cool kid - that will always go to Batman, Marvel, etc. It tends to be a much more "counter culture" vibe as a whole, and Superman isn't built for that - at least not in that way. Part of this decline falls squarely on the shoulders of DC/WB, who've spent decades pimping Batman (because it takes less work, and I say that as someone who loves Batman as a character) and frankly don't know how to market Superman beyond a trademark. The writers have struck gold with the character, but that's led to pockets of Superman success in *spite* of DC/WB mishandling. And decades of this have taken their toll. Superman has popularity still - "Superman & Lois" seems to have been very well-received - but until he's marketed in such a fashion consistently, this trend will continue. Superman's fanbase, I've always felt, is more in the "everyperson," and especially in the very young and those who enjoy something that's more in an emotionally mature vibe. (that's not to say I don't enjoy characters that aren't that way, just saying it's a difference that not everybody has a taste for)
I think one of the problems with the way Superman is marketed outside of the comic books is that WB/DC is afraid to push him as a bright, vibrant, generally non-conflicted character, because they want him to be seen as cool and *serious,* and not as corny or cheesy. This dates back even to Superman Returns where the color palette for his costume was darkened quite a bit and carried through to Man of Steel where we see probably one of the grimmest mainstream interpretations of the character yet. But there's absolutely no reason to darken Superman, neither visually nor thematically... because in that respect, even a slightly darker, more *realistic* and conflicted Superman will never really appeal to people looking for this type of character because he can't compare to characters who are genuinely and naturally this way (Batman, Punisher, Wolverine, etc)? It's like choosing decaf over regular coffee, or diet coke versus coke. Or more-so, it's like Pat Boone releasing a metal album. DC/WB really needs to learn to LEAN IN to Superman as a flying boy scout. The only way to make Superman cool again is to recognize how "uncool" he is. Zero edginess. All wholesome. All good. It's why the first two (well, one and-a-half) Richard Donner flicks worked so well. Sam Raimi leaned fully into the Spiderman character instead of trying to make him "cool," and people love the shit out of those movies. A character doesn't have to be "cool" for the movied themselves to be cool (Spiderman and Captain America, best examples).
Unfortunately the character has gotten cold but I think interest can be renewed with the right movie to re-introduce what's great about him to a younger audience. Many of the same arguments were made about Captain America (too good and perfect) but the MCU reinvigorated interest in that character significantly. I've always preferred collecting street-level heroes like Spidey, DD and Batman but interestingly, I've found that my interest in collecting Superman has grown as I've gotten older. Maybe I'm getting nostalgic for the legend that started it all :)
I liked the slightly less powerful but more human reboot of Supes in 1970. The whole story arc where an accident destroyed all green kryptonite but created a sand thing replica of him who followed him and could sap his powers. It was the first time he was ever really interesting.
That is what happened to me a few years ago. It just dawned on me how iconic Superman really is and I set out to get all the Neal Adams covers and issues with villains I like seeing him go up against like The Parasite, Toyman, Solomon Grundy etc. I also have a thing for Krypto. So I try to get all the Krypto covers I can.
@@Boxingbear Krypto is awesome :) I like the idea of collecting issues with specific villains, that's a fun way to approach a massive run like Action or Adventures. It helps that Superman back issues are so much more affordable than Spidey or Batman ... well at least until you get into the silver and golden age stuff haha
@@sonnycoelho1752 A good number of the Krypto covers are books like Adventure Comics, and Superboy. I cannot afford his 1st appearance but I have his 2nd appearance and only paid about 60 bucks for it I believe. Believe it or not that Superpets movie actually made some of their 1st appearances go up in price. Perhaps temporarily, but I did notice it.
I’m a big Superman, it bums me out that he’s not as popular as other superheroes. Especially since he is the OG. Most people do like Superman causally. Maybe if they put him in more like in movies,shows and even video games his popularly will go higher.
I still collect Superman, now that I need just 9 to complete Vol 1 #110 to the present day, and 31 Actions from #224 to the present day, I don't want them to be expensive, £100-£150 a pop is quite enough. They are dearer in the UK, as they didn't come over here until 1959, so now the States almost exclusively have the ones I want. The only one that scares me in the respect that I will probably never own is Action #242.
I've been collection Superman comics for 45 years! That being said, I'm on the verge of stopping all new release collecting and focus more on the bronze/silver/golden age goodness. What DC and Marvel are putting out now, and for the last few years, is really not good. I'll keep it at that.
I've always looked at it as "When you're a little kid you want to be the best there is. The best superhero of all time. And 100 times out of 100 you will pick Superman. Why? Because he's the best of the best. There isn't much that can beat him, and you're going to be him every single time. Then when you get older, you start understanding more about the superheroes we all read about, you start to realize how little you share with the struggles of Superman. You want a character you can relate to, one that you can understand their problems and their downfalls. The ones that don't always have the greatest of answers to everything every time every day. So then you start looking into other ones like Spider-Man. He's a kid, more or less, and he struggles to pay rent, he struggles with work, he struggles with his love life, he struggles, struggles, struggles. You always look back on Superman and remember how he was the 'best of the best' so you don't realize how he can even PRETEND to struggle, let alone make it real and relatable. He's literally a god amongst men and still keeps a good head and heart on everything. He very seldomly slips (from what you remember, and how he's portrayed in TV and movies) so you know that he will always solve the problem he faces. Which is boring. If he always wins or doesn't have a struggle, then what is the purpose of reading his story? If he always wins, why would you want to waste time reading it, when you already know the outcome? What losses has he faced (besides his home planet that, let's be honest, he never really remembered in the first place) that makes it so that it becomes a struggle from time to time for him to see something specific, or hear something specific, or even relate to the people he lives amongst? He doesn't. So...why read about someone who can't relate and we can't relate to?" That's not to say there aren't some good stories, but for the most part it's DC's fault for carving him out to be so important in everything that is going on that he's a requirement to be that Ace in the hole. Even the Justice League movie did it when they brought him back to life because they needed HIM to fix the problems that were going on. The rest of the Justice League were so helpless that they're entire plan revolved around "Let's bring him back to life, and then we can help him once we tell him our plan to get this all together!" Even in the most recent movies he's set up to be "okay. Press the Superman Panic Button and solve the problem!" That's not really a character that people want to read and the media (and medium) aren't portraying him as someone that 'they can understand what he's going through'. (shrug) That's my thoughts.
Well, saturation means it's great for readers. I picked up the first 30 issues of Byrne's Superman, Action 584-600, and 20 issues of Ordway's Adventures of Superman for 40 bucks! Couldn't believe it! Happy reading for a few weeks ...
FOR 40 BUCKS! Where do you live? Where i live the standard price for any comic book is about 4 dollars and that also means all action comics from about 500 up. I would love to get that good of a price on some action comics, i am currently trying to collect from 500-600 and it is killing my wallet.
@@_vixen_4504 Yeah it was a marketplace lot, so very untypical prices. Plus all the issues had been well read - I prefer beaters to NM coz I am a reader first, and they are cheaper!
@@penmanovicxxxxxx2694 almost the same here, however, i only buy issues if they are above a 5 - 6.0. I am also a reader and I like to read the comics that i buy so they do not have to be perfect as long as they are not in a horrible condition.
Superman comics have no stakes. Hes Superman. He cant be killed, hurt or stopped. He only gets increasingly stronger and has no competition. He punched a hole in a god and several universes. What else is there to write about? He's gonna foil a bank robbery next?
I think it has to do with the fact that Superman is seen as "good-goody". He doesn't have a dark side/hard edge/cool factor that many of the more modern heroes have. Personally I have read a few Superman books over the years, but mostly prefer it when he pops into another title that I am reading.
Superman has ALWAYS been my favorite! I can still remember the first issues I bought. The first was #282. The next was #302, and from that issue, I began to collect the title. I began to collect back issues, and I had most of them back to 1968. Every time an issue would come out, I was obsessed with getting it. Unfortunately, I stopped collecting around 1995, and shortly after that, I lost my entire 6,000 comic book collection in a storage unit. Today I would imagine that collection could possibly be worth $1 million. I never saw a penny.
I was just going to start reading John Byrne's run of Superman, to me Byrne is the best artist to draw Supes. I wish Superman had as many iconic stories as Batman but he only has a few IMO. All Star Superman, Superman - Braniac(From Action Comics 866-870), The Savage Dawn, Last Son of Krypton and Origin are some great reads.
I just recently got back to collecting Superman. 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's even current I'm collecting whatever I can get my hands on. I love the character of Superman. And the super family.
I just bought a Mego Superman myself for the first time in 50 years. Now available at Walmart but probably sold out by now. If the steep discount is right and the comics are 9.6/9.8 Bronze/Silvers/golds i am definitely game. It will reset when the politics leaves DC. It is that simple.
This is not surprising as DC comic characters in general have for the most part been less desirable and Superman in particular. Its one of the reasons that Marvel was able to take the majority of the market share back in the early 70's from DC and have never relinquished to this day. In my humble opinion it had much to do with the multi-layered aspects of Marvel characters vs the one dimensional aspect of DC characters and Superman was the most egregious case. Outside of Golden age comics I have never heard of anyone actually caring about Superman keys. I remember when I was collecting during the comic boom of the 90's where no one cared about Superman until they killed him. I agree with you and have felt the same way since I was a kid that Superman is just to one dimensional and there are almost always no stakes with him so it makes him very uninteresting. Ironically I will always line up for a Superman live action film.
Expensive vintage Superman from the late 30's to 70's (Neal Adams stuff of course) sell solidly in auctions all the time. Can't speak to 80's to 90's that much though, so I'm sure you're right there.
On ebay in Australia early 1980s Supermans sell well. They get good prices. Early Modern Age is starting to catch on. Just give it some time. The 90s as a serious commodity is only tepid at this stage. Give it time though and the collectors are starting to take an interest. The collectors look at things gradually and get to them in time. It takes time.
I do enjoy the city of tomorrow storyline. It crossed from all 4 titles. Some special and one shots. I finished the storyline with the Batman and Superman Loeb books. I’m okay with those books not going for much. I don’t mind paying cents for good stories.
I think everyone owes it to themselves to read Doomsday Clock for a perspective on the comic industry at large and most specifically a look at Superman and what he really means to the world. Also, if anyone out there DOESN’T want their Superman’leftovers’. I’ll take ‘em ALL!
The bigest problem is not the character of Superman, him being good natured, peace loving ect, and not his powers on thier own, it's the ridiculousness of the levels his powers, of how much they are effective on thier own. DC should revaluate Superman's powers, make them less effective and make him shine trough his the other sides, like his combat skills, tactical skills, maybe to have him train like Goku from Dargon Ball to show that he he's worthy of his title, or maybe him finally using his brains more and have him doing journalist work and not relying on his super-sense all the time? Say what you want, but superhero comics/cartoons/movies, but they are mostly about action, and for action to be good you need for a hero to go trough both physical, and mental, challenges, with hero's vicory feeling eraned because of his skills and because of his will power, but it's kinda hard to do that when you don't feel main character vulnerability, that he is in great danger despite his ablities, that's what makes characters like Spider-Man and Batman to be interesting despite thier advantages, they still can be overwhelmed by crowds, they still susceptible to natural elements, there's unpredictability that can go in many directions, not so much with Superman who's weaknesses are too specfic and limits the type of encounters he can have and villians he can actually fight, that's why nowadays he mostly fights simmilar Superman like characters, no Toyman, no Livewire or Bloodsport, which sucks because Superman has intresting non-superman like villians but they get sidelineded by Doomsdays and Monguls. Plus him being too powerful makes half of his suporting cast usless or redaundant. Jimmy Olsen still can't find his footing in modern media with him being relegated to cameos, Superboy, Power Girl, Steel, most of them never interacted with each other for years or not at all, because writers don't know what to do with them because of power disbalance, so instead of Super-family we mostly got Superman, Lois, some other super kid of the year and Supergirl somewhere, what a shame.
I started collecting Superman when John Bryne remade the character in the late 80s. And collected him until he got married to Lois. It was time to move on then.
Only old guys like me collect superman😀😀it's because I grew up with the Christopher Reeve movies and the first two of those were amazing in their time. All the younger collectors only buy Marvel because they grew up watching the marvel cinematic universe. That being said the DC animated series were amazing and on par if not better than the awesome 90s spiderman and X men animated shows
If you want to see me discuss POLITICS in comics - check out this video right here!
ua-cam.com/video/L1v2t4pBoDA/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Mint-HunterComics
The best representation of Superman outside the comics is still easily Superman The Animated Series, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. Superman is interesting there!
Superman is so great because he is so down to earth despite his powers. Episodes like For The Man Who Had Everything show this so well! He is a nice humble guy from Kansas.
Sadly, I think the perception of the character has been really hurt by Zack Snyder's films.
What about the older ¢10 ..¢15... and ¢20.. superman comic's
I'll take it as a win that Superman is still published monthly. He might not be flavor of the month but he's always there when you need him.
That's a good way of looking at him
Indeed
I love this. And frankly, fuck collecting. I Consume comics. I don’t collect them. I would rant forever on the harm the “collectors edition!” Era did and I can talk about the good stuff too
Literally and fictionally.
They still make fruitcake, so what's your point?
I have friends in the community who really hate Superman for the reason you said. They just think he's boring. Personally, he's one of my favorite characters. He's a god living among humans, and we constantly see times where he could easily become a villain and take over the world, but he's been raised on Earth by human parents who taught him right and wrong, and he never forgets those lessons, and he never loses faith in humankind. That's what makes Superman such a great hero. I grew up with the guy, and I still love reading his books. It's sad that nobody else sees it but way.
Caleb Leland: you just read my mind. I could not say it better. I AGREE 100%.
I began to watch Super at 10 y/o. I am ( don't laugh ) 74 y/o and he still brings a fresh breeze to my mind when I feel stressed, tired, bored, fatigued, etc.
We need once in a while to escape reality for many different factors and it is better this way than using drugs, alcohol, and many other things that can get us in trouble.
Only fault I find is that now and then ( too many Supermen ) I see a book that it is too silly. Way toooo silly. Besides of too many, old Superman has been around for way toooo long.
Sadly, nobody is perfect.
Because they only watch the movies or read what the writers see him as.
Superman is my all-time favorite superhero, and you succinctly described what I love about him so much.
There are very few of his stories, unfortunately, that make it into the ranks of my favorite comics.
Yes, I also think Superman has more humanity in him than most people of Earth. He doesn't realize this, but his friends know.
Yeah He's Boring
There hasn't been a true Key in a Superman comic in the last 40 years...and he has too many titles. They have diluted the character and product.
100% disagree about the character and product, 100% agree with key part.
What about Doomsday in Man of Steel? Is that not a true key?
Superman has been around since around the 1940s , same as captain America, you can only do so much with a character.
We need characters that we can enjoy inspired by what came before, time to let go of the past
Death Of Superman? All-Star? Birthright? Legion Of Superhero’s? Red Son?
@@matthewschwartz6607 I thinking key in this case is something with high value.
Not really a Superman problem, but a DC/Warner Bros. problem.
From the Byrne relaunch to the Death were the best mainstream superhero comics being published. At one point, they even had Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway and George Perez all as writer/artists on Superman titles at one time, which is probably some kind of record, but they rarely reach that consistent level anymore. Occasionally, like with the Jurgens/Tomasi era, maybe. But the real problem is they haven't healed from the damage done by Bendis.
Well Bendis and then Tom Taylor turning Jon Kent into Supertwink
Jurgens was setting up some great things when Dido replaced him and Tomasi with Bendis. It's like they actively sabotage runs that are working to something good, and flush the goodwill they'd built in the process. For the record, I have absolutely no problem with Jon being bi in the least, but I do hate the fact that he's not still 10. So much amazing story potential, thrown away because some comics writers are too lazy to write kids.
I grew up om the Byrne era, I agree it was one of the best era's of Superman, and imo comic writing in general.
Which isn't to say tbere weren't some issues. A lot of the stories had Superman showcase his brains over brawn, and unfortunately ended up kind of nonsensical as a result. For example, an alien race trapped in a robot body wants to collectively body jack Superman, so he banked on them arguing and shorting out the robot. Or in another example Dreadnaut and Psi Phon "steal" powers, so Superman feeds them powers to overload them. In both example there is no way at all Superman can know Psi Phon or Dreadnauts upper limits, or whether the alien body snatchers couldn't come to a deal or all body snatch him at once, or just destroy him or whatever... He looks less smart, more lucky.
I don't really blame the wrirers for these problems though, there was clearly a company wide mandate against Supeeman punching his way to victory in that era, and it isn't easy writing "clever", especially on a deadline (Even Constantines famous example of selling his soul to three demon lords so they cure his cancer and leave him alone tp avoid a demon war has an obvious flaw where the demons could have chosen to curse him, make him immortal but horribly deformed or in pain)
@@docsavage4921 In the final year of Byrne on Superman, he was clearly stretched too thin. After Marv Wolfman left Adventures, he was writing all three books for a while and drawing two of them. Supposedly Byrne left Superman because he was offended by the 50th Anniversary TV special, which ignored his work, but I suspect he was getting burned out after over two years of writing and/or drawing 2-4 Superman stories ever single month. That's when he started stretching out some stories that were a bit thin or underdeveloped, but after he left, Roger Stern and Kerry Gammill came in and did some of their best work right off the bat, and we got the Exile storyline, which pretty quickly righted the ship after Byrne's abrupt departure.
I legit loved from 1986 up through Electric Blue (I loved the soap opera-ness of it all with the focus on the supporting cast especially in the late '90s) however once there was Superman Red/Blue the storyline took a nose dive and I dipped before 2000. With all the constant Crisis events since then I don't regret it.
I strongly agree! I'm okay with it though. I can go to a shop and buy up silver age issues for $5-$10 each to fill out my collection. I'm really into that era, and it doesn't really bother me that people aren't chasing after it
I’d love to find those prices 😢
Where?
@@Clay3613 Boulder colorado. You can't get picky with condition and specific issue numbers at that price, but I got more than a few
Go Read _Superman 708_ Its A Silver-age mechanism filled modern story. Ridiculous _Eddy Barrows_ art, Written by _J.M. Straczynski_ (who also wrote 12 phenomenal Brave & Bold comics). His whole very whimsical Superman run is recommended in general _"Grounded" // Superman 700+_ but ishs 708, 704 (I wanna say) & 712 are particularly noteworthy, w/ 708 especially being A TOP 10 BEST Superman comic.
You can say that again
Hes not boring, the writers are just boring and lame lately. SUPERMAN will always be the best and relevant... and needed.
Your right, its definitely a perception issue.
It's sad this happens. The last Superman run I collected was Superman Rebirth #1-45. That was a really good run on Superman.
Superman and Action Comics are titles I've only ever picked up on a sporadic basis. I don't think the character is boring - I just think he's been around for so long that the lacklustre stories outweigh the interesting or compelling ones. I absolutely love the late pre-Crisis Marv Wolfman/ Gil Kane run that featured Satanis and a newly revamped Lex Luthor and Brainiac that are incredibly underrated. The John Byrne era is also a highlight too. I jumped in and out of collecting the character when he's been written by interesting writers like Geoff Johns or Grant Morrison too.
But I think Superman's main problem is he's just been around for so long he's just taken for granted and/ or perceived as your Grandpa's hero. I think he's also a victim of not being able to be "edgy" like Batman - he's not a prick. He doesn't mistreat people. I don't think he's boring. It's just hard to create drama around a character that is inherently decent.
Part of the issue is the insistence of modern readers that stories revolve around the character and that protagonists who don’t “grow and change” are dull. Superman is a classic character who stuff happens AROUND, not TO. And that’s fine! He doesn’t need personal drama, and trying to make every story personal is why it doesn’t work.
Supes is the Hardest character to write A stand-out story for. A brief #TOP10 Best single #SupermanComics in no particular order =
__________________
> _Superman 708_
> _Superman Annual 11_
> _Superman 247_
> _Action Comics 775_
> _Action Comics 0 "The Boy who stole Superman's cape"_
> _Action Comics Annual 10_ The genius mini Superman encyclopedia.
> _Superman Batman 75_
> _Adventures of Superman 14 (vol.2) "Supes VS. The Joker"_
> _All-Star Superman 3_
&
I have to cheat w/ one 2pt. Story
> _Action Comics 583_ &
> _Superman 423 "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow"_ (A send off just pre-Crisis to the Org Silver/ Bronze age, Earth 423 Superman).
I'm always happy to read Silver and Bronze Age Superman issues, I find them to be fun and they are often done-in-one stories. Today I prefer my Superman as part of a team, with the right writer the character really works in this setting; Mark Waid's current "World's Finest" is a good example of this.
I’ve been collecting Superman books to memorabilia since the mid 90s and have always been fascinated by the rich history of the most iconic superhero of them all..
SUPERMAN is not hot now, cheap books equal good opportunity to get books cheap.
I haven’t read a Superman comic in over 25 years. I consider myself lucky to grow up with Christopher Reeve playing Superman in movies and a creative team of people writing comics including John Byrne, and Jerry Ordway and many others. Superman was never boring. His costume was always been ripped to shreds and he faced enemies who could really hurt him and make him bleed and even kill him. The 1980s and 1990s were the best years for Superman in any media.
How would you know? You have t read a Superman comic in over 20 years
OP- Superman comics were best in the 1980’s & 90’s. Also I have only read Superman comics of the 80’s & 90’s. 🥴
Facts
@@bumface1810 😂😂😂
I dont collect Superman post new 52, i have just a few stuff from it, I got more of Batman and GL but still, all post new 52 things are flavorless to me,
The only Superman that I would go after would be the golden age comics. It seems that after they won the lawsuit they made him into a cheap formalaic copycat version of Captain Marvel with no substance. For example Curt Swan's art is clean and simple with a nonobtrusive background which is what CC Beck gave at Fawcett, which made it easy for Kurt Schaffenberger's art to blend in seamlessly at DC Comics. You pick up a Superman comic from the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's the artwork doesn't budge from that same formula.
You are right dude, superman is super underrated. Love me some silverage superman.
A very good video. To the Point. I started reading Superman in 1966. I'm now 62 years old. To me the best issues were the Silver Age stories. Neal Adams art and covers were truly great.
If ya like the Silver Age Superman stories & I'll assume Love His _'Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow'_ 2 comic pt. send off. GO READ _Straczynski's "Grounded" (Superman 700+)_ & Especially _Superman 708_ A TOP 10 All-Time Fun, very Silver-agey Superman comic!
@@floorboss You just prompted me to read it. I finished Superman #701. Fun alright. Thanks for the advice.
@@Cyril-1973 Wait till you get to _Superman 708 & 712._ There so Much Fun! LET ME KNOW WHAT _Straczynski & Roberson_ ISSUE was your fav when your done..
Thanks,
That was what I liked about the Superman run during the Rebirth reboot and Jon was a child. It showed a new side of Superman with new stories to tell. He's teaching someone that has immense powers that just because you have these powers, that doesn't mean you always have to use them. He's passing on the knowledge of humanity that he learned from his parents to his son. I hated them aging up Jon. It was such a missed opportunity.
I feel like Superman has faded within our culture's zeitgeist. The idea of a "Hero", or just anyone in a position of power having a pure heart, has suffered greatly over the years. That said, I did just read a call book called "Benchley" by Preston where one of the central character was obsessed with Superman. His reason was pretty cool and more than a little heartbreaking.
I think you are 100% correct. I cannot understand why Superman has been changed into a morally questionable guy in the movies. He used to smile, now he sneers. I can't trust an omnipotent character who thinks I'm beneath him.
I am a Superman fan AND collector. My preferred period, for reading purposes, is the Copper Age (post-Crisis and pre-Death) and my preferred investment period is the Silver Age. However, there are several great story arcs and/or limited series’ in the Bronze Age and Modern Age.
Really without Batman we will find DC Comic books in any Era are not selling good. Batman is keeping DC Comic books a float.
Currently working on a full run of the Silver Age Superman title, and am constantly surprised by how affordable late 50s, early 60s 10 centers are.
What is considered affordable to you? Where I am and eBay, it’s pretty expensive. I can’t even get a 50s superman title without paying through the nose for 1.0s.
@@robertt9342 Reprints are affordable.
I always see 50s and 60s Superman books in Dollar or 2 Dollar bins.
I think the most I've paid was $30 for about a 2.0-2.5 from 1956. It just takes patience with auctions and avoiding Buy It Now's.
@@austinlohman3896 Those Buy it nows are a bitch. I hate to think of how much mullah I’ve waisted because I knee jerk buy because I MUST HAVE IT NOW lol
Tomasi and Jurgens runs on Superman in the Rebirth Era made Superman my favorite superhero. I am now on a mission to collect every mainline issue from the 60s or 70s onward, readable copies i dont care about quality of the books. And im gonna get every issue in collected editions prior to the singles I have. Digging through dollar bins for 90s superman books is so much fun, there are like 4 series to lookout for and its just fun to look for me. I didnt start reading comics till 2015 so my love of superman is strictly from modern comics and now I am reaching backwards. I cant wait to read the era where the order to read the books are in the triangles.
#Rebirth flagship Superman by _Tomasi & Gleason_ is A Top 5 Historic "Run" for The Man of Tomorrow! & Without question, Supes is the Hardest character to write (the complete opposite of Batsy). And as Great as the _Tomasi Rebirth Superman_ is, I just did A TOP 10 "Best Single Superman Comics" list (Right here in the comments section) & Not one comic from _Tomasi's_ Epic run made the list. That says something about Supes legacy (If ya want me to re-post said Best list below, just let me know).
2 reasons I think people don't want to collect Superman. 1. There is too much to collect and you can't collect the full runs of the character because of the value especially the older books. 2. Actually look at the covers of the books, there is so many non-cool covers. Superman does the Krypton shuffle- ya ya ya....hard pass.
Fatigue does NOT explain it; Batman has appeared in more stories than any fictional character in history.
Because Batman is a flawed character.
Superman is perfect. It makes for a boring story.
I really love the old '60s silver age Superman/Action Comics. The covers had a lot of "super baby" situations. Where Lois and Supes had kids that were always clad in a costume. I also love the old Lois Lane covers from the '60s. Most of the covers had Lois scheming to get Superman to marry her - the penultimate goal of hers, from this era. Incredibly funny.
I strong agree, I love the campy stuff.
I like the Batman II and Superman II kids from the 70's
Superman is one of my favorite heroes so my view maybe I have limited perception myself but to answer your question: Lack of Creative Talent that understands Superman:
Movies; Cavil is perfect for the role in my books. Many fans love him too. All WB needs to do is give us a true sequel with Brainiac as the villain. This isn't rocket science. I think many viewers would rather see an evil alien interface with cosmic level intelligence instead of a bald human challenge the Man of Steel.
Comics: This one is more tricky. Writers make excuses that he's too boring or too powerful. If I was the editor and heard this, I"d assign the writer to Captain Carrot. Look at All Star Superman. He had silver age power levels, no cosmic threat, but it was the best Superman Story of all time in my books. Personally, I think many fans would be interested in a story much like Thor's God Butcher and God Bomb Saga. I'd have a villain in the shadows killing powerful phantom zone residents, Superman is pushed to his limits and go from there. Powerful or not, fans want something epic. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY....MAKE HIM INSPIRATIONAL. The guy you look up to when things are bad. Never ever write Superman as a whiner or lacks confidence. Make him smart, not a dunce. If Superman is written with those flaws, I drop that comic so fast until another author takes over
Cartoons; This is the only category where they get it right. Public Enemies, Reign of the Superman (I loved that Eradicator)
Yeah I agree with your assessment on why Supes ain't as popular. I started reading comics with Superman, bit once I got introduced to Spidey it was a wrap. Spidey was a smart ass, got beat up, struggled in his non hero life, always learning lessons, losing friends, etc. Just made for a more relatable and interesting read for me personally.
I also started comics with Superman! Haven't really bought any since the 90's.
I love Spidey too that’s why I hate how dirty they’re him in the most recent stories
I'm with you. As a young kid I would buy both marvel and DC comics but once I got around 12 it was Marvel and Spider-Man all the way. A little later the X men and it was a WRAP.
Totally Agree.
@@averyj8924 DC rebounded in the '80s with more realistic, adult storytelling and actually put out better product than Marvel from about '86 - 2000.
I'm with you man and I'm 69yrs.old. RR
I grew up in the 60s and collected the whole line of DC superheroes. Of course that included Superman. Mainly because he was "the MAN" and because I loved the art of Curt Swan. You used the term "boring." I would say a more accurate definition would be "corny." He was sort of the Mr. Rogers of superheroes. Even though everyone collected his books, you wouldn't find much discussion about him in the fanzines. He's hardly recognizable today to a fan from the 60s but I'm happy that he has evolved and survived.
I grew up in the same era and probably read a lot of the comics you did. I love those old stories from the '60s, and the reprinted '50s stories in the old 80-Page Giants. I didn't see him as boring because he was so powerful and indestructible. He was always powerless or on the verge of dying because of kryptonite or virus X or something from space or the future. And he wasn't such a caricature boy scout. He was a good citizen and a good example.
Except... when he was playing "jokes" on Batman or his friends he could be downright sadistic. Especially when he was trying to teach Lois a "lesson".
Curt Swan was great as was Wayne Boring
I'm a New Yorker and use to visit the old comic book shops owned by old nebbish Jewish men. They had all the most valuable shit locked away, I was only interested in EC Comics and they had the choicest editions
Good stuff, James. I also feel the same way about Superman. I wish he was more respected nowadays. That being said, I will admit that I mainly like him when he’s interacting with Batman or the rest of the justice league. I think a good follow up video would be some Superman recommendations for people who know the character and people who are new and wanna dive into his stories.
Hi guy, this is me again I just wanted to bring up a point I have the whole collection of Superman, except for the keys like number one but superman will never die. Also, I think that he’s gonna come back big and everyone’s gonna be surprised and I like the idea that you talked about superman because other comic fans never talk about it they always dismiss him every time they go to comic shows or comic shops, Mark, my words Superman is going to be big within five years especially if the green Landon gets a shot to play the movie scene which I’ve been hearing about even though they’ve been delaying it, but other than that, I have faith in superman in the future
I think they just need more "random rogues™" like toyman or silver banshee so that people don't think his gallery is exclusively composed of lex luthor, aliens, or evil versions of himself.
Superman is a baby face, (saint like character) and baby faces will always be deemed uncool. Very nice virtuous people in real life tend to be viewed as square and lame. It's just how the world operates....
I also think there's people like me who think that Supermans history is so daunting that theres no point in even starting to collect superman.
Superman and The Flash have been my favourite superheroes ever since I was a kid, but it's mainly the nostalgia. I think a lot of the reasons people don't collection much superman and DC in general, is because the big keys are from the golden age too, so maybe out of reach for the majority of collectors (especially completionist collectors)
HAD A OLDER COUSIN in the 80's that gave me over 100 late 1950's Superman Comics. Most in Mint condition. I read them and didn't want them. I gave them away around 20 years ago to my nephew which I think eventually threw them away.
now thats sad
While I love Superman and collect some whenever I find good pickups, I think it's a show of times and what newer generations are into. Superman just wasn't as prevalent in the new generations lives since they had so much more access to other heroes/media. But that isn't to say a Superman wave wont come back and we're here for it when it comes :D
As an influential member of the comic UA-cam council, you can endeavor to change people's perception of the character. Maybe a quick review of all time great story arcs, reasons why you like him, a list of all his weaknesses etc. ectc. If I asked your opinion as a fan, what books would you recommend as a good onboarding point ? 👍
Great points!
My personal opinion is DC is doing the same thing with Batman, with making too many titles, too much product out there. It seems to me that if you look at DC's website every week there is at least 3 Batman titles being released. DC should change its name to BC Batman Comics.
I'm a big fan of Superman. I feel like he should get as much attention from DC as Batman does.
I agree. People get so.blinded my movies and TV, but his comics.are great
Right people mention over saturation with Superman, meanwhile for every Superman related title, there are 4 Batman related titles.
Just as copyrights eventually expire, so does the interest in many fictional characters. Who currently has an interest in Katzenjammer Kids, Skippy, Oswald the Rabbit, The Yellow Kid, and dozens of other early 20th century cartoon characters that are simply just not relevant anymore? Superman was bound to peak at some point and may continue to fade in popularity.
Thanks for an thought-provoking video! You make three suggestions for why Superman is no longer collected so much. Two of those I think can be rejected by using these same arguments on Batman. Which leaves the third one, and I will explore that one a bit more.
Suggestions 1 and 2 are: 1.) There are so many comics to collect, and they are all so heavily printed, people are just tired of it/ there is no challenge in collecting such heavily-printed books; 2.) Superman has been around for so, so long, people are just done with him as a character.
But both suggestions could also be used for Batman: Batman has been around for about as long as Superman, and many of his comics must have been as heavily printed as Superman's. But Batman is the flagship of DC and readers and collectors can never get enough of him.
(It would probably also be interesting to compare the popularity among collectors of Wonder Woman and Superman, as she has also been around for so long, but I will leave that aside for now).
So your third suggestion seems strongest: there is something off with Superman as a character. There may be something to that. I would speculate that Superman has been missing something over the past thirty years that Batman has had: genre-redefining stories that breathe new, exciting life into the character.
I am no Batman-expert, but over the past few decades we have had: Batman Year One, The Dark Knight Returns, The Long Halloween, Knightfall. In the movies we have had Christopher Nolan's trilogy, which was also genre-defining. I think that, for some reason, Superman has been missing out on such storylines. There has been Death of Superman, All-Star Superman and several intriguing Elseworlds-stories, but nothing that hit as much as say The Dark Knight Returns.
Maybe Superman as a character suffered from an inertia? That he is so defined as this Kansas boy, with Lois Lane, the journalist, the jaw and the morality that writers either did not get the freedom or did not dare to take the freedom to take the character into exciting new directions??
There is a second aspect about Superman's character; the relative lack of star-supporting characters, environments and the like. Yes, Superman has Supergirl, Brainiac, Metropolis, Smallville, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, his parents, Krypton, his fortress, Superboy, Lex Luthor. And they are wonderful characters and backgrounds.
But they just pale compared to the popularity of Batman's supporting characters and environments: Joker, Catwoman, Nightwing, Damian, Arkham Asylum, Gotham City, Alfred, Barbara, Cassandra (a personal favorite), the cave, the mansion, Bane ...
I would say Batman thrives at least partially because the Bat-universe thrives, with constant renewal, new experiments.
Maybe Superman and the Superman-universe is too stuck. Maybe he needs his Frank Miller, Christopher Nolan, Heath Ledger and so on to get it unstuck?
PS Finally, a suggestion for a video: only 11 years from now, Superman becomes public domain: January 1st, 2034. Batman in the same year. Joker and Catwoman a year later or so. Wonder Woman also around that time. Marvel's characters are decades younger, and will (under current US law) not become public domain until the 2050s or so. What could this mean for DC and for these characters, if they indeed become public domain?
Great well thought out answer
Superman and Batman will never go to public domain.
Remember the whole death of Superman series where Doomsday kills Superman?? DC Comics created the Death of Superman issues because of the drop in sales of Superman comics. This was DC Comics way of saying that the fans don't appreciate Superman anymore so we are going to kill him off. This was also a marketing ploy by DC Comics to increase sales.
My dad had Action Comics #1, which he bought in 1938 when he was 13. He let it rot in an outdoor storage shed in Grandfather's back yard.I found it when I was 9 and it was so decayed I could barely recognize it.
😭😭😭😭😭
ughhhh
Maybe it's that Superman is a bigger symbol of pop culture that he's greater than his stories and comics. He's more legend now.
I started collecting in 1993 and started with Superman. I still love the 90s stuff. I always go back to it for a good read and take me back to the times I started the hobby.
If Superman was boring, then how did Alan Moore manage to write some of the best comics of the 80s and 90s featuring Superman or Supreme? How was Action Comics by Grant Morrison EASLIY the best comic of DC's New52 reboot?
Simple. Bad writers.
Very true. Currently collecting Superman Adventures. Love that animated series.
Nice!
The DC Animated Universe is what got me to take notice of DC heroes. The writing was top notch on Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond and Justice league. I also enjoyed the Teen Titans cartoon when I was a teen.
Collecting Superman comics personally is a chore unless you somehow get lucky and find stuff from the pre mid-70 when it was really wacky. I prefer reading them in trade formats.
I think it's all the things you say and also, he's just a bright character, optimistic, sometimes to a fault in my opinion. Maybe people are more drawn to darker, less optimism (like Batman) in general. That said, I still love Superman and have more of his comics than any other character. That's what got me into comics, and I love the late 80's Superman runs in particular.
DC has kept abusing Superman since it fired its creators in 1947. We know Superman can be awesome, because Donner, Puzo, and Mankiewicz proved that in 1978. The character should go to public domain, so that worthy creators could maybe do justice to the original superhero.
I actually collect superman I think he's an overhated and underrated hero's because he is the superhero with story's like all star superman death of superman and many more but sadly everyone just throws him up to that guy with loads of power's
Nicely put, I agree
The Hulk had issues, 🦸♂️ Superman should have been named Perfect Man, because he's too perfect.
Thank you for this video. I was wondering the same thing. Superman is my all time favorite character and I have more of his comics than Batman Spider-Man X-men and others. I still pick up certain Superman books to fill in my collection depending on the artist and story. I think he needs another foe that can really challenge him more than what doomsday did. Maybe that will get people more interested but who knows. I don't collect any of his current run besides books with cool covers.
I use "Limited Edtion" foil cover to fry eggs on the sidewalk.
I've looked at many, many, Superman stories from every era, and trust me, Superman is not the flawless Gary Stu that people make him out to be, he never was. Even when he's got many powers there's always something intresting about the story.
He hasn’t had the hottest artists. There are decades of Curt Swan. Even popular draftsmen like Jurgens and Gleason aren’t at the stature of the Batman artists. Also, he hasn’t had a hit movie since 1981. The 1989 Batman movie lifted the back issues especially Joker. It’s been that way pretty much ever since. But Detective almost always trails Batman proper. Great stories don’t matter to collectors looking for financial reasons.
The earliest superhero comic I got new was, I think, Superman 281 (the one with Vartox, uncannily similar to the Sean Connery character in the movie Zardoz - from the same year, 1974). I still have it - it's beat to hell and has writing on it, and even if it were a 9.8 what would it be worth? About what it would cost to grade it I suppose. But I still have it and cherish it. I think I always liked DC and Marvel pretty equally - the main title I collected for a while was Thor, starting in the mid-70s, but I loved Green Lantern, Batman, the Legion, etc, also. No real bias here. Superman though - I guess for me it was the all-powerful nature that kept me from really wanting to buy Superman titles regularly. Sure Thor and the Hulk and some other characters from both Marvel and DC were also mega-powerful but they had more interesting personalities and weren't goody-goody.
But give this to Superman - he had the first big-budget movie of any character and - I know I'm in the minority on this - still the best of all of them. No actor has ever given a better lead performance in a superhero movie than Christopher Reeve, no score is better than John Williams' music for that film, and even though it's got plenty of flaws, the music, the man, and the general production all still make it magical for me, 44 years after I first saw it. So Superman's got something. And maybe I should look more into those silver age comics myself. Fun and hokey might be the things I'm missing in life right now.
Thanks for another solid video man.
The Tomasi and Jurgens Rebirth era was the most interesting he had been in a very long time. It took this perceived boring overpowered character and gave him a fresh new status quo as a family man teaching his son how to adjust to his powers. Then all of that was sabotaged by Bendis. Every time a book taking place in that era gets announced I get so excited. They had lightning in a bottle and they dropped it.
I collected (and still do) all the minor DC characters. I always loved The Challengers of the Unknown and The Metal Men. 😂 Batman is about the only major DC character of interest to me. But even then My biggest interest is in Neal Adams and Jack Kirby artwork.
When I sold a lot of my silver age collection I kept the Actiob, Superman and Jimmy Olsen runs... Been thinking about the Superman run filling gaps after 1980s...got 100 copies 0f Man of Steel run to trade...:-)
I think it's worth keeping in mind that you're talking about a fairly specific demographic, and their opinion of him doesn't necessarily reflect his overall popularity. And while Superman may have started out as comic book character, his cultural cachet has long since transcended his origins. There are probably more Superman fans in the world than there are active comic readers/collectors. That said, they could probably stand to give him another cartoon or something sometime soon to give him a fresh introduction to today's kids.
It's true that Superman is very popular. He is the godfather of superheroes and has cultural cache that indeed has far surpassed his origins. However, this specific demographic (the comic book readers/collectors) maybe small but their view of the character is actually quite popular with the general population as well. Superman is classic but he has struggled the most in connecting with modern audiences. In contrast, the likes of Batman, Wonder Woman, Captain America and Spider-Man remain incredibly relevant, relatable and resonant to modern audiences.
That's a really good point tbh
@@HeartbeatCN Not really. It "actually" has nothing to do with modern audiences. That view of the character is not a new one. It's one of the thing that has long made Superman kind of a divisive character. There's a reason his fans like him, and others are left cold. "Boring." "Hard to relate to." (Which is hilarious, because the people who find the ultimate good guy who tries to always be responsible and do the right thing "hard to relate to" do not make similar comments about the billionaire orphan whose parents' murder motivates him to fight crime with the sort of focus that very few people are capable of AND ALSO HAS THE EXACT SOME CODE OF ETHICS even though his stories come at it from different angles. But whatever.) Anyway. I stand by what I said. You might recall that there were some movies made over the past decade that attempted a "grittier" take on Superman, and whether you liked them or not, whether you think they were "good" or not, you have to admit they were incredibly contentious. One of the main reasons they were so divisive is that so many people didn't like their take on DC's flagship character (or any of the characters, arguably, but definitely not Superman.) Because the people who like him, like him the way he is. The people who don't, don't. And swinging back around to my point, the demographic this video talks about is more heavily composed of the sort of people who are inclined to not like him as much. Which is fine, but not really indicative of anything worth drawing sweeping conclusions from.
David Carradine sums up Superman in the end of Kill Bill 2. The only true bad ass superhero. Check it out sometime James.
Superman should meet Tarzan for a meeting and find out why they lost their popularity. Two kings of superheroes who have been dethroned by modern times. Batman and Wolverine just dropped a mic on them. Ha ha lol.
Well i would not call tarzan a superhero in the same lenght as superman.
Have you ever read the Supreme run that Alan Moore wrote? That’s basically a road map of how Superman should be written.
Speaking as a huge Superman fan, I think it's been the opposite of oversaturation; I'm 42, and Superman has *never*, for as long as I've seen the inside of a comic shop, been a "popular character" inside those walls. The closest he ever came would be during the "Reign" storyline in 1993. Other than that, I was the only person I knew who was going into that shop to buy Superman. From what I understand, he sold much better at the newsstand - aka not the typical comics crowd. Superman is to comic books as Elvis Presley is to the Rolling Stone Magazine publishers: given lip service as a historical footnote, but little else. He'll never be the cool kid - that will always go to Batman, Marvel, etc. It tends to be a much more "counter culture" vibe as a whole, and Superman isn't built for that - at least not in that way. Part of this decline falls squarely on the shoulders of DC/WB, who've spent decades pimping Batman (because it takes less work, and I say that as someone who loves Batman as a character) and frankly don't know how to market Superman beyond a trademark. The writers have struck gold with the character, but that's led to pockets of Superman success in *spite* of DC/WB mishandling. And decades of this have taken their toll. Superman has popularity still - "Superman & Lois" seems to have been very well-received - but until he's marketed in such a fashion consistently, this trend will continue. Superman's fanbase, I've always felt, is more in the "everyperson," and especially in the very young and those who enjoy something that's more in an emotionally mature vibe. (that's not to say I don't enjoy characters that aren't that way, just saying it's a difference that not everybody has a taste for)
I think one of the problems with the way Superman is marketed outside of the comic books is that WB/DC is afraid to push him as a bright, vibrant, generally non-conflicted character, because they want him to be seen as cool and *serious,* and not as corny or cheesy. This dates back even to Superman Returns where the color palette for his costume was darkened quite a bit and carried through to Man of Steel where we see probably one of the grimmest mainstream interpretations of the character yet. But there's absolutely no reason to darken Superman, neither visually nor thematically... because in that respect, even a slightly darker, more *realistic* and conflicted Superman will never really appeal to people looking for this type of character because he can't compare to characters who are genuinely and naturally this way (Batman, Punisher, Wolverine, etc)? It's like choosing decaf over regular coffee, or diet coke versus coke. Or more-so, it's like Pat Boone releasing a metal album.
DC/WB really needs to learn to LEAN IN to Superman as a flying boy scout. The only way to make Superman cool again is to recognize how "uncool" he is. Zero edginess. All wholesome. All good. It's why the first two (well, one and-a-half) Richard Donner flicks worked so well. Sam Raimi leaned fully into the Spiderman character instead of trying to make him "cool," and people love the shit out of those movies. A character doesn't have to be "cool" for the movied themselves to be cool (Spiderman and Captain America, best examples).
@@verybadreviews511ngl spiderman is a bad example because people do consider him genuinely cool
I totally agree. I work at ComicsPriceGuide and we see the exact same thing for most of the Superman Titles.
Superman's G-Son ruined it for everybody.☹
I've been collecting Superman since I was 5 years old and I'm now 48.
Unfortunately the character has gotten cold but I think interest can be renewed with the right movie to re-introduce what's great about him to a younger audience. Many of the same arguments were made about Captain America (too good and perfect) but the MCU reinvigorated interest in that character significantly. I've always preferred collecting street-level heroes like Spidey, DD and Batman but interestingly, I've found that my interest in collecting Superman has grown as I've gotten older. Maybe I'm getting nostalgic for the legend that started it all :)
I liked the slightly less powerful but more human reboot of Supes in 1970. The whole story arc where an accident destroyed all green kryptonite but created a sand thing replica of him who followed him and could sap his powers. It was the first time he was ever really interesting.
@@scottmcneely1927 I've never read that arc but I'll have to check it out, sounds interesting!
That is what happened to me a few years ago. It just dawned on me how iconic Superman really is and I set out to get all the Neal Adams covers and issues with villains I like seeing him go up against like The Parasite, Toyman, Solomon Grundy etc. I also have a thing for Krypto. So I try to get all the Krypto covers I can.
@@Boxingbear Krypto is awesome :) I like the idea of collecting issues with specific villains, that's a fun way to approach a massive run like Action or Adventures. It helps that Superman back issues are so much more affordable than Spidey or Batman ... well at least until you get into the silver and golden age stuff haha
@@sonnycoelho1752 A good number of the Krypto covers are books like Adventure Comics, and Superboy. I cannot afford his 1st appearance but I have his 2nd appearance and only paid about 60 bucks for it I believe. Believe it or not that Superpets movie actually made some of their 1st appearances go up in price. Perhaps temporarily, but I did notice it.
I’m a big Superman, it bums me out that he’s not as popular as other superheroes. Especially since he is the OG. Most people do like Superman causally. Maybe if they put him in more like in movies,shows and even video games his popularly will go higher.
I still collect Superman, now that I need just 9 to complete Vol 1 #110 to the present day, and 31 Actions from #224 to the present day, I don't want them to be expensive, £100-£150 a pop is quite enough. They are dearer in the UK, as they didn't come over here until 1959, so now the States almost exclusively have the ones I want. The only one that scares me in the respect that I will probably never own is Action #242.
I've been collection Superman comics for 45 years! That being said, I'm on the verge of stopping all new release collecting and focus more on the bronze/silver/golden age goodness. What DC and Marvel are putting out now, and for the last few years, is really not good. I'll keep it at that.
I've always looked at it as "When you're a little kid you want to be the best there is. The best superhero of all time. And 100 times out of 100 you will pick Superman. Why? Because he's the best of the best. There isn't much that can beat him, and you're going to be him every single time. Then when you get older, you start understanding more about the superheroes we all read about, you start to realize how little you share with the struggles of Superman. You want a character you can relate to, one that you can understand their problems and their downfalls. The ones that don't always have the greatest of answers to everything every time every day. So then you start looking into other ones like Spider-Man. He's a kid, more or less, and he struggles to pay rent, he struggles with work, he struggles with his love life, he struggles, struggles, struggles. You always look back on Superman and remember how he was the 'best of the best' so you don't realize how he can even PRETEND to struggle, let alone make it real and relatable. He's literally a god amongst men and still keeps a good head and heart on everything. He very seldomly slips (from what you remember, and how he's portrayed in TV and movies) so you know that he will always solve the problem he faces. Which is boring. If he always wins or doesn't have a struggle, then what is the purpose of reading his story? If he always wins, why would you want to waste time reading it, when you already know the outcome? What losses has he faced (besides his home planet that, let's be honest, he never really remembered in the first place) that makes it so that it becomes a struggle from time to time for him to see something specific, or hear something specific, or even relate to the people he lives amongst? He doesn't. So...why read about someone who can't relate and we can't relate to?"
That's not to say there aren't some good stories, but for the most part it's DC's fault for carving him out to be so important in everything that is going on that he's a requirement to be that Ace in the hole. Even the Justice League movie did it when they brought him back to life because they needed HIM to fix the problems that were going on. The rest of the Justice League were so helpless that they're entire plan revolved around "Let's bring him back to life, and then we can help him once we tell him our plan to get this all together!" Even in the most recent movies he's set up to be "okay. Press the Superman Panic Button and solve the problem!" That's not really a character that people want to read and the media (and medium) aren't portraying him as someone that 'they can understand what he's going through'.
(shrug) That's my thoughts.
Couldnt agree more. Just picked up action 242 cgc 4.5. It amazes me how undervalued that book is considering the scarcity and significance!
Well, saturation means it's great for readers. I picked up the first 30 issues of Byrne's Superman, Action 584-600, and 20 issues of Ordway's Adventures of Superman for 40 bucks! Couldn't believe it! Happy reading for a few weeks ...
FOR 40 BUCKS! Where do you live? Where i live the standard price for any comic book is about 4 dollars and that also means all action comics from about 500 up. I would love to get that good of a price on some action comics, i am currently trying to collect from 500-600 and it is killing my wallet.
@@_vixen_4504 Yeah it was a marketplace lot, so very untypical prices. Plus all the issues had been well read - I prefer beaters to NM coz I am a reader first, and they are cheaper!
@@penmanovicxxxxxx2694 almost the same here, however, i only buy issues if they are above a 5 - 6.0. I am also a reader and I like to read the comics that i buy so they do not have to be perfect as long as they are not in a horrible condition.
Superman comics have no stakes.
Hes Superman. He cant be killed, hurt or stopped. He only gets increasingly stronger and has no competition.
He punched a hole in a god and several universes. What else is there to write about? He's gonna foil a bank robbery next?
I think it has to do with the fact that Superman is seen as "good-goody". He doesn't have a dark side/hard edge/cool factor that many of the more modern heroes have. Personally I have read a few Superman books over the years, but mostly prefer it when he pops into another title that I am reading.
Isn't wholesomeness out of fashion in these times?
Superman has ALWAYS been my favorite! I can still remember the first issues I bought. The first was #282. The next was #302, and from that issue, I began to collect the title. I began to collect back issues, and I had most of them back to 1968. Every time an issue would come out, I was obsessed with getting it. Unfortunately, I stopped collecting around 1995, and shortly after that, I lost my entire 6,000 comic book collection in a storage unit. Today I would imagine that collection could possibly be worth $1 million. I never saw a penny.
I was just going to start reading John Byrne's run of Superman, to me Byrne is the best artist to draw Supes. I wish Superman had as many iconic stories as Batman but he only has a few IMO. All Star Superman, Superman - Braniac(From Action Comics 866-870), The Savage Dawn, Last Son of Krypton and Origin are some great reads.
I just recently got back to collecting Superman. 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's even current I'm collecting whatever I can get my hands on. I love the character of Superman. And the super family.
I have some nice Superman books. And I think if CGC hosts Henry Cavill for a private signing then it will be absolutely huge for book sales.
I just bought a Mego Superman myself for the first time in 50 years. Now available at Walmart but probably sold out by now. If the steep discount is right and the comics are 9.6/9.8 Bronze/Silvers/golds i am definitely game. It will reset when the politics leaves DC. It is that simple.
Because Superman sucks
This is not surprising as DC comic characters in general have for the most part been less desirable and Superman in particular. Its one of the reasons that Marvel was able to take the majority of the market share back in the early 70's from DC and have never relinquished to this day. In my humble opinion it had much to do with the multi-layered aspects of Marvel characters vs the one dimensional aspect of DC characters and Superman was the most egregious case. Outside of Golden age comics I have never heard of anyone actually caring about Superman keys. I remember when I was collecting during the comic boom of the 90's where no one cared about Superman until they killed him. I agree with you and have felt the same way since I was a kid that Superman is just to one dimensional and there are almost always no stakes with him so it makes him very uninteresting. Ironically I will always line up for a Superman live action film.
Expensive vintage Superman from the late 30's to 70's (Neal Adams stuff of course) sell solidly in auctions all the time. Can't speak to 80's to 90's that much though, so I'm sure you're right there.
I have every issue of Superman all the way back to below #100 from the original series .. a mainstay title in my collection just like Batman.
On ebay in Australia early 1980s Supermans sell well. They get good prices. Early Modern Age is starting to catch on. Just give it some time. The 90s as a serious commodity is only tepid at this stage. Give it time though and the collectors are starting to take an interest. The collectors look at things gradually and get to them in time. It takes time.
I just picked up the 'Superman: Up in the Sky' story. First Superman I've bought in a long time. Great run!
I think Superman is a better character then half of marvels characters.
Dude honestly me too. That's why I find this so surprising
Growing up Superman was boring. Then the 90’s hit and he was just everywhere. He’s never been on my pull list.
I do enjoy the city of tomorrow storyline. It crossed from all 4 titles. Some special and one shots. I finished the storyline with the Batman and Superman Loeb books. I’m okay with those books not going for much. I don’t mind paying cents for good stories.
I don’t know about anyone else but I still collect Superman my all time favorite
I think everyone owes it to themselves to read Doomsday Clock for a perspective on the comic industry at large and most specifically a look at Superman and what he really means to the world.
Also, if anyone out there DOESN’T want their Superman’leftovers’. I’ll take ‘em ALL!
The bigest problem is not the character of Superman, him being good natured, peace loving ect, and not his powers on thier own, it's the ridiculousness of the levels his powers, of how much they are effective on thier own.
DC should revaluate Superman's powers, make them less effective and make him shine trough his the other sides, like his combat skills, tactical skills, maybe to have him train like Goku from Dargon Ball to show that he he's worthy of his title, or maybe him finally using his brains more and have him doing journalist work and not relying on his super-sense all the time?
Say what you want, but superhero comics/cartoons/movies, but they are mostly about action, and for action to be good you need for a hero to go trough both physical, and mental, challenges, with hero's vicory feeling eraned because of his skills and because of his will power, but it's kinda hard to do that when you don't feel main character vulnerability, that he is in great danger despite his ablities, that's what makes characters like Spider-Man and Batman to be interesting despite thier advantages, they still can be overwhelmed by crowds, they still susceptible to natural elements, there's unpredictability that can go in many directions, not so much with Superman who's weaknesses are too specfic and limits the type of encounters he can have and villians he can actually fight, that's why nowadays he mostly fights simmilar Superman like characters, no Toyman, no Livewire or Bloodsport, which sucks because Superman has intresting non-superman like villians but they get sidelineded by Doomsdays and Monguls.
Plus him being too powerful makes half of his suporting cast usless or redaundant. Jimmy Olsen still can't find his footing in modern media with him being relegated to cameos, Superboy, Power Girl, Steel, most of them never interacted with each other for years or not at all, because writers don't know what to do with them because of power disbalance, so instead of Super-family we mostly got Superman, Lois, some other super kid of the year and Supergirl somewhere, what a shame.
Supes is no longer DC’s flagship character. Batman is right ght now,but due to overpublishing of said titles,Bats could go the way of Supes.
I started collecting Superman when John Bryne remade the character in the late 80s. And collected him until he got married to Lois. It was time to move on then.
Only old guys like me collect superman😀😀it's because I grew up with the Christopher Reeve movies and the first two of those were amazing in their time. All the younger collectors only buy Marvel because they grew up watching the marvel cinematic universe. That being said the DC animated series were amazing and on par if not better than the awesome 90s spiderman and X men animated shows
Thanks for the video!