I have one issue with James Gunn’s Superman, and after letting it stew for a bit, I understand why they made this decision to change a major fundamental aspect of his origin.
Growing up I always saw DC Comics as fun and Marvel Comics as serious.
DC characters seemed to have no problems back then while Marvel’s characters thrived on personal drama (The Parker Luck, for example).
While I love both equally now, when I was a kid I was very much a DC Comics fan, with stories both in comics and on TV where the heroes always won, villains went to jail, and everything was black and white.
James Gunn’s Superman captures that feeling, the feeling of the invincibility of heroes through and through, almost as if the pages of a comic have come to life on screen.
This movie felt more like a comic book than any comic book movie ever has. And it very much feels like the comics that I read when I was still in single digits, age-wise.
While some reviews call Mr. Terrific the MVP of the movie, my vote goes to Krypto, the goodest boy in the universe. He stole every scene he was in, and it made me smile every time.
The cast is phenomenal, every character is pretty much a modern version, yet felling very classic in execution.
The plot is so much comic booky that somewhere, Julius Schwartz and Mort Weisinger are smiling.
There was so much I loved about this movie, it’s possibly my favorite Superman film, as much as I love the original 1978 film and Man of Steel.
Today is the 80th anniversary of the release of Action Comics #1, which of course is the first ever appearance of Superman.
There are accolades galore around the web, saying more about him than I could, but I will say this:
Thank you, Superman, and all his creators, artists, writers, actors over the years, who have inspired me to be the best person that I can be, then, now, and always. I have always looked, up in the sky.
It’s a pilot episode, so I wasn’t expecting to get blown away by anything.
But hearing the iconic John Williams theme brought out the fanboy in me.
Funny thing is, the word ‘prequel’ usually gives me concern, due to the Star Wars prequels and Star Trek Enterprise/Discovery.
I’ve always been interested in the fictional history of Krypton. In the past I’ve answered odd trivia questions about the planet itself, like where a “highly developed black race” of Kryptonians existed (Vathlo Island, though I had to look it up now). I used to know where major cities and landmarks were on Krypton, from the location of Kandor to the Jewel Mountains.
It looks an feels like a futuristic sci-fi show with an interesting premise, aside from the Superman link.
Plus, it’s got Adam Strange.
He alone is the primary reason I’m tuning in, because he’s a space adventurer, in the same vein as Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers or even Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. He’s battled evil aliens and saved his adopted homeworld of Rann on a regular basis. I think he’s an honorary member of the Justice League, too.
In Krypton, he shows up in a hoodie and a baseball cap.
In short, my kinda hero.
The pilot served it’s purpose, introducing us to the characters, setting, and dynamics of the series. Here’s hoping this show goes on as long as it has an interesting story to tell. Which, sad to say, some of the other DC TV series have stopped doing.
Depending on this ‘strength of story’ I may do a weekly review of this series.
