Some of us are sufficiently aged to remember comic book innovations like three-dimensional in 1954. If you were born a bit earlier, you may have read the initial Superman adventures, which debuted in 1938. However, Superman’s family history and story evolved over a number of years, ultimately settling on a few consistent elements. And they continue to change, reflecting the Zeitgeist of today.
Shortly before Krypton exploded, Kal-el was placed in a rocket ship by his scientist father and targeted to land on earth. Upon crash landing and a miraculous survival, the small child was taken by passing motorists, Jonathan (Pa) and Martha Kent (Ma), residents of Smallville, Kansas, to a local foundling home. Pa and Ma offered to adopt Kai-el to which the home readily agreed and Kal-el was named Clark, Ma’s maiden name.
Over time, Clark Kent becomes a reporter with close ties to Lois Lane, a colleague, and Jimmy Olsen, a gopher and cub reporter at the Daily Planet, an important newspaper in Metropolis. The trio interacted often with Perry White, the editor-in-chief. Clark’s sudden disappearances (into phone booths) drew clumsy explanations. The coincidental appearance of Superman only titillated close colleagues. Every citizen of Metropolis (and elsewhere) was aware of the awesome powers of the Man of Steel, his x-ray vision, and super-human strength.
Superman’s populist attributes were captured by a few words on the lips of children and even grown-ups:
Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings at a single bound – look, up there in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Superman!
Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings at a single bound – look, up there in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Superman!
Typically cynical questions from young readers were readily answered as time passed. For example, we learned that Ma Kent handmade the tight-fitting body suit for her adopted son from materials in which he was wrapped in the rocket ship. Superman’s encounters with Kryptonite caused him to be weak and the substance was employed by a number of adversaries. In this regard, the science evidence presented was as weak as the effects it had upon the Man of Steel. Nonetheless, these inconsistencies could be ignored as the imagination about and thrall of his adventures tended to overwhelm mere speculation.
DC Comics has enjoyed a long and profitable run with the Superman franchise. The tale was continued as a television series on ABC. There, in 2011, Clark and Lois married in Smallville. Subsequently, there followed a distinctly convoluted tale about the entrance of a baby, magically appearing in similar fashion to the entrance of Kal–el into the lives of Ma and Pa. In order to carry on the franchise’s story, DC Comics wove a new thread into the mythology by introducing the son, named Jon Kent, to assume the heroic role of Clark, who is getting on in age.
As old soldiers never die, some themes survive to remind fans and ensure the transmission of enduring values to successive generations. The son of Kal-el, a/k/a Clark Kent, reveals himself to be bisexual. But wait . . . the object of his affections is not only another male, he is a reporter by the name of Jay Nakamura. One of the editors of the renewed series and its protagonist offered perspective regarding the resurrection:
Everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroes and I’m very grateful DC and Warner Bros. share this idea. Superman’s symbol has always stood for hope, for truth and for justice. Today, that symbol represents something more. Today, more people bcan see themselves in the most powerful superhero in comics.
I’ve always said everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroes and I’m very grateful DC and Warner Bros. share this idea. Superman’s symbol has always stood for hope, for truth and for justice. Today, that symbol represents something more. Today, more people can see themselves in the most powerful superhero in comics.
Predictably, the image of a Superman with a nontraditional sexual identity was not well received by an Arizona Republican state politician who tweeted, Superman loves Louis Lane. Period. Hollywood is trying to make Superman gay and he is not. Just rename the new version Thooperman so we can all know the difference and avoid seeing it.
Whether the identification of the original Superman’s paramour as Louis was a slip of the finger remains to be clarified. On the other hand, calling a bisexual (not gay) Superman Thooperman denotes a more insidious meaning. That the Arizona critic mistakenly attributed the bisexual Superman to a Hollywood creation instead of DC Comics attests to other prejudices. But, then, hey, this is an Arizona politician entertained by Cyber Ninjas on serious matters. Oddly, conservative twittering ignored the fact that Clark Kent/Superman entered the country illegally and without documents. He may have even voted in Metropolis.
Whatever future befalls Jon Kent and his lover is best left to the imagination of his creators and fans, not circumscribed by memories of childhood or politicos seeking to be cleverly snarky. Be all you can be, Jon.
Categories: cartoon, CARTOON IMAGE, cultural icons, Issues, LGBTQ, National, political discourse, republicans
Proud to be a Superman fan – no matter where he comes from or who he loves.