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I don't post about comics a lot because I haven't seriously read/collected them in years, but I grew up on Superman comics / cartoons / movies in the 80's and I've got a real undying appreciation for the character. I also get frustrated at people saying Superman is boring or irrelevant, and I'll echo the sentiment here that most of the haters just didn't read the right stories. I'd suggest adding Kingdom Come to the OP. It's another alternate-universe take on the character, and it's not 100% a "Superman story," but to me it summed up everything that's great about him. It's about a clash between the old generation of superheroes and a more violent, reckless new breed, and the whole thing is a thinly-veiled metaphor for how comic books themselves had changed; how readers had lost interest in heroes that were truly heroic. Superman comes out of retirement to show those punks how the gently caress it's done, and it's great. A couple years ago I had a dream that I was wearing this awesome Superman sweatshirt, so I worked with a friend who was good at sewing to make it a reality. I did a lot of the detail work myself. I get a lot of compliments on this thing every time I wear it:  
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Sep 11, 2011 00:12
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He also left out George Reeve and most animated versions... and, to be fair, Lois & Clark was a pretty bad show.
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Sep 13, 2011 04:15
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Haha, why the gently caress would a guy who was found in the wreckage of an alien spacecraft be a Christian anyway? That is a weird thing to assume about him.
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Sep 15, 2011 05:48
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Yeah, but a spaceship landing in your corn field is likely to make you rethink your whole belief system. That was more my point.
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Sep 15, 2011 07:03
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If that dude ever cracked open a copy of Preacher he would probably burn his whole store down.
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Sep 16, 2011 05:13
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That's very well put. I've ranted about Superman as a profound symbol of human potential before. Yes he has nearly unlimited power, but more importantly he uses every ounce of that power to help regular people. He's not motivated by revenge or regret or anger; in fact, he's led something of a charmed life. He just sees the suffering of others and wants more than anything to stop it. His greatest challenge is always to figure out how. That's the real reason why it gets my goat when people say Superman is less interesting than whatever other superhero they like... I can't think of many other characters in popular fiction that have truly, honestly inspired me to be a better person. I wouldn't want to live in a world where Superman isn't relevant.
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Sep 16, 2011 09:43
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I do think it's odd that they felt the need to mess with Superman's look yet again. His outfit has never really been "cool" or fashionable. It's timeless because it's always been bizarre. It doesn't even look like something a person would wear. Maybe less impressive now that it's been imitated thousands of times, but whenever somebody decides to "update" it, it suddenly ends up looking dated. He's an invincible space man. He doesn't need armor, and he doesn't need to look hip. He needs to look iconic. Don't be surprised if he's back in red underoos within a year or two.
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Sep 23, 2011 04:50
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I don't really have a problem with the new design, since it's not even really that different. I know the look has changed over time. I'm just saying, the sleek armored look feels like kind of a trendy thing going off the recent Batman and Iron Man films, and seems as doomed to me as any trendy redesign of a classic superhero. I don't hate it, I just doubt it will last. I'm reminded of that fancy new Spider-Man costume in the 90's with the swoopy lines and the silver cuffs. It looked fine, but it didn't last long. Certain things you just can't gently caress with. Like the man says, don't tug on Superman's cape.
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Sep 23, 2011 09:07
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I finally got around to finishing up the whole series of Smallville, and overall I really dug it. There were always a couple of just absolutely lovely episodes per season, and a few bizarre plot elements that didn't quite work, but there was always enough cool stuff to keep me hooked. Taken as a whole, it was a pretty neat interpretation of the Superman story. I think my favorite part was how dead-on they got Clark Kent in terms of his personality, his motivations, his strengths and weaknesses as a person. Superman can definitely be a challenging character to write, but they consistently nailed it. Tom Welling did a respectable job in the role, too. Probably the best small-screen Clark Kent. I wasn't totally sold on their version of Lois Lane at first, but she really grew on me. I usually rolled my eyes at the various contrivances that put Clark's lady friends in peril, but it made more sense for Lois to be in trouble all the time because she was absolutely fearless to the point of being a little bit crazy. Lois has to be a little bit crazy for the story to work, and Superman stories don't always get that. The most powerful man in the world isn't going to fall for a boring, no-nonsense girl. She's got to keep him guessing. I think they kinda dropped the ball with Lex Luthor, though. The actor was good, but the writing usually wasn't... and when he left the show it kinda got more interesting. The idea that they used to be best friends probably worked better on paper, too. His dad was a way better character. I'm glad that Green Arrow ended up with such a major role. He was a really inspired choice for Superman's best superhero buddy. He's enough like Batman that you don't miss Batman, and a lot more likely to be friends with Clark. He was pretty much always awesome on the show. The simultaneously best and worst thing about Smallville was that by the end they had set up conditions for a truly great Superman show... but at the same time it was clearly over as soon as he put on the suit. He had already faced all the best villains, conquered all his own doubts, and won Lois Lane's heart. What's left? Still, if at some point Tom Welling gets bored and decides to play Superman again, I won't complain.
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Feb 11, 2012 10:29
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Yannick_B posted:Smallville is a pretty singular tv show. Never seen a show that could be so brilliant and so bad--sometimes in the same episode. Its nuts. That's a good way of putting it. It's kind of impossible to pin down the overall quality when it was so all over the map. I had no problem sticking with it because I'm a big Superman nerd, but I'd be hesitant to recommend it to somebody that isn't. It seems like kind of a love it or hate it show.
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Feb 11, 2012 21:54
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For weekly TV, the special effects were always pretty good. The production design was pretty cool a lot of the time too, in terms of the sets and costumes and stuff. You could tell they didn't have a huge budget but they got really creative with it. The show had a "look" that was pretty unique. The JSA cameo was definitely a high point of the series, in terms of the story and the production values. I watched a behind-the-scenes bit on the DVD about how they pulled it all off without breaking the bank, and speaking as a film student I was pretty impressed.
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Feb 14, 2012 08:52
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