Superman Day: The Comicon Team’s Favorite Superman Moments

The Man of Steel means a lot to many people. So as DC Comics’ new Kryptonian themed holiday- celebrating the debut of Action Comics #1 in 1938- draws to a close, the Comicon team looked at some of the Superman moments that we love.

So going to publication order-

BURN

‘For the Man Who Has Everything’ by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons is rightfully considered one of the greatest Superman stories ever. The fight between Superman and Mongul after Batman saved the Man of Steel from the Black Mercy is probably one of the top three Superman brawls ever, and Kal-El’s furious “BURN” remains one of the greatest Superman lines ever.

A Hero Falls

The Death of Superman wasn’t just an event or a pop culture milestone. It was a genuinely affecting story full of human emotion. And this final page of Superman #75 by Dan Jurgens and Brett Breeding captures that emotion perfectly.

A Hero Returns

And the same with the opening splash page of Adventures of Superman #505 from Karl Kesel, Tom Grummett and Doug Hazelwood. The nightmare is over. Superman is back. And Lois Lane is back in his arms faster that a speeding bullet.

He’s wrestling an angel…

Grant Morrison had to deal with a LOT of editorial back and forth during their JLA run. Yet they took it in stride and still turned in some amazingly iconic moments. Few if any match this page from JLA #7 by Morrison, Howard Porter and John Dell, in which the League is attempting to stop a group of fallen angels from destroying the planet, and the electric Superman, well…

Unexpected edge

By the early 2000’s, fans started to say Superman was too old-fashioned. A little dated. No edge to him. This was in contrast to stories like The Authority which featured brutal Superman-level anti-heroes willing to kill. Action Comics #775 by Joe Kelly and Doug Mahnke stood in stark contrast to that showing that Superman could match that kind of energy against a new group of antiheroes called the Elite. He just didn’t need to.

You’re much stronger than you think you are

All-Star Superman by Morrison and Frank Quitely is another story that is rightfully considered one of the greatest Superman stories of all time. In my mind, if it handled Clark Kent better, it would be the best. This page has been circulated so much that it’s almost a meme. But it still has the same emotional impact every time. Out of context, it’s stunning. But when you add the context that a few pages before, Superman saw Regan’s therapist on a train derailment that he stopped, suddenly this shifts from a potential chance moment to a short story about Superman seeking out a young woman in crisis and taking the time to tell her that she’s strong, valuable and loved. And if that isn’t Superman in a single page, I don’t know what is.

Superman and son

The best thing that ever happened to Superman was becoming a father to Jon Kent. And in DCeased by Tom Taylor and Travis Harsine, we hear Clark himself say why.

Seriously, the perfect dad

And that goes even further in Taylor and Ruari Coleman’s work in Superman: Son of Kal-El, in which Clark tells his son that he’ll always love him, no matter who he loves.

Even for the least of these

In Superman: Up In The Sky by Tom King and Andy Kubert, Kal-El traveled across the universe to save a kidnapped child. So much of this story is simply about Clark connecting with this young girl as he takes her home, showing the best thing about Superman isn’t his incredible power, but his humanity.

I love you

And even more of Clark Kent’s humanity, in Superman: Red & Blue writer/artist Daniel Warren Johnson showed how Jonathan Kent’s kind words and peaceful demeanor shaped his adopted son. It shows why, upon realizing he has such great power, he chose to use it in the pursuit of Truth, Justice and a Better Tomorrow…

(Thanks to Tony Thornley, Austin Gorton, Scott Redmond and Anton Kromoff who all contributed to this article!)