What will a new reader make of one of the best Superman stories of all time?
I have nothing but respect for Superman, but my attempts to become a fan of the character have always failed. I think it might’ve just been bad luck, but when I was a teenager first getting into comics, the handful of Superman graphic novels I read just didn’t stick. Pretty quickly, I decided that Superman stories weren’t for me, and I didn’t touch another one for over a decade.
Pretty egregious for a self-proclaimed comic-book fan, right? For years, my taste and reading attention in comics were directly influenced by the release of superhero movies, though. Can you really blame me for not being excited about Superman comics given the mess DC made of his big-screen presence across the last ten years?
So, I won’t lie: James Gunn helming next year’s Superman movie is the reason I gave All-Star Superman a shot. Gunn has been consistently delivering top-quality superhero stories for both Marvel and DC, and so, for the first time ever, I’m intrigued by the idea of a Superman story. I want to be a Superman fan, and I want to be excited for James Gunn’s next project.
So, when DC released All-Star Superman as part of their low-cost Compact Comics line, it felt time to give the story a try.
Hey, Now
After being tricked by Lex Luthor into absorbing too much solar radiation, which fuels his powers, Superman is dying. Choosing to make the most out of his limited time left on Earth, he attempts to undergo ‘The Twelve Labours’, a series of Herculean trials that will have a lasting effect on the future of humanity.
I guess I’ll start by saying that, in retrospect, this probably wasn’t the best place to start reading Superman again. All-Star is considered by many to be one of the best Superman stories of all time, and I think I could’ve done with some build-up. It is, technically, a self-contained story. All-Star was written to be a timeless tale, free from DC Comics’ typical continuity.
That said, it wasn’t written to be an origin story, or an introduction to the character and his world. I imagine many of those familiar with their Superman lore consider these twelve issues to be the platonic ideal of Superman stories, but there were a few times where I felt I lacked enough context to fully appreciate what writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely were achieving.
Man o’ Steel
It’s not like the text was indecipherable without prior Superman knowledge—most moments that had me initially scratching my head were later explained at least enough for me to be able to follow the plot—but this is a new world for me, and I sometimes was playing catch-up in terms of who the supporting cast were, and what their specific relationship was to Clark Kent/Superman.
Putting all that aside, there is plenty to like here. Most issues/chapters tell complete stories that cover a wide swathe of far-out science fiction scenarios (and one particularly great issue in which Clark Kent gets to interview Lex Luthor). Some of these grabbed me more than others. Superman making a ‘super-serum’ for Lois Lane’s birthday? Cool. Jimmy Olsen turning himself into a monster after an incident with ‘Black Kryptonite’? Less cool, but definitely out there.
The personal stories were always the best ones. Clark/Superman’s relationship with Lois, with his parents, and especially with Lex Luthor, are consistently interesting. Morrison writes such a compelling Luthor. He has a scene-stealing personality, and a genuinely interesting take on why humanity would be better off without Superman. It’s easy to see why he’s thought of as one of the best supervillains of all time.
Niceman
I also adore how Clark Kent is depicted in this book. Non-comic fans frequently mock how nobody can tell that Clark is really Superman, but they clearly haven’t read All-Star. Quitely transforms Superman into a pudgy, bumbling wimp wearing ill-fitting clothes, and Morisson gives him a voice totally unlike his superhero alter-ego. Watching him use his ‘clumsiness’ and ‘panic’ to get people out of harm’s way without revealing his true identity is just so much fun.
The story is filled with small, touching moments, too. These, more than the big world-ending threats, have endeared me to the character of Superman in a way that other stories hadn’t. Revealing his identity to someone at the end of the first issue; a touching conversation with his dad; his love for his dog and for his friends.
He’s characterised in such a tender way throughout the story that it’s hard not to love him, and there’s something oddly reassuring about his unflinching attitude towards his impending death. The story wraps up in a really great way, too.
It was only when researching for this review that I discovered that James Gunn is apparently adapting elements of All-Star Superman for his upcoming movie. When I learned this, two things happened. First, a grin spread across my face, because if Gunn is able to capture the essence of Clark Kent/Kal-El on the big screen as he’s portrayed in All-Star, then this movie is going to be great.
Second, I realised that after reading All-Star, I've finally become a Superman fan.
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