Superman Through the Ages! Forum

This should hardly come as a surprise. After all, didn't a box of inventions created by Superman's evil cousin, the black sheep of the El family, Kru-El, once reach earth and was discovered by Lois Lane?

There have been various occasions where Kryptonians have interacted with earth and thus could have left scientific objects behind, such as during "The War Between Krypton and Earth" in the distant past of the Legion stories, and further, Circe the Sorceress in Ancient Greece was Kryptonian and had access to their superior science, which she used to duplicate magic.

On one occasion (whose issue number I forget; does anyone have it?) Lex Luthor discovers a cache of Jor-El's inventions, including a "puzzle ray", which good old Lex wastes no time at all in using against Superman.

One very cryptic hint was present in the first appearance of the Cosmic Anti-Superman Gang in an issue of SUPERMAN'S PAL, JIMMY OLSEN, seen here:

http://img126.imageshack.us/my.php?image=jimmyolsen08705sm6zj.jpg

Superman, cravenly pleading for his own life, promises Luthor a variety of Kryptonian hidden Super-Weapons. At the end of the issue it turns out that Superman's craven behavior is in fact a charade, however, to tell Luthor that he would reveal to him where caches of Kryptonian super-weapons hidden on Earth are in exchange for a pardon...is a very bizarre bluff to make, to say the least.

Does this mean there are in fact, caches of hidden Kryptonian weapons on earth? Hopefully, it might be interesting for future writers to deliver on the promise that this story made.

I think if any Kryptonian Super-Weapons exist on Earth, they'll be in the Forteress of Solitude.

Very well put: instead of worrying about who may next get their hands on Kryptonian weapons, we should be more concerned with the largest stockpile and ask ourselves, "What right does Superman have to prevent others from finding and using these weapons?"

The reason that the Krypton superweapons would be better off in the hands of Superman is because he isn't likely to use them. They're kept as curio objects when they aren't thrown into the disintigration pit. Superman is the epitome of moral restraint; isn't the type to whip out the Kryptonian Power Gloves that create giant "hands" made of energy, or the cannisters of poison gas that turn men into women.

But I guess this goes into a matter of something like, for instance, the rights of ethnic and indiginous peoples to objects of their cultural heritage. It would be possible for Superman to make the case that as a Kryptonian, and one of the only ones, he has the right to get his hands on any object from Krypton because it's a part of his heritage.

A similar argument was made by the Israeli government when it was discovered that the Ark of the Covenant may be in a temple in Ethiopia.

Yes, and many Haida groups are working to have their totem poles returned from places like Scandinavian museums.  

I guess Superman might have to share if any PZ criminals get released by their parole board.

Not really. He'd probably just have to share with the Kandorians and Supergirl. It wouldn't be smart to give criminals such powerful weapons.

Yeah, I prefer to think that Supes keeps them in the Fortress as much for other people's protection as to show "ownership" of them...

Its not like he's running tourists through to look at them and unlike some museums that display tanks and guns, etc., these are fully operable and deadly...

What would paroled (ie, reformed) PZ criminals be if not Kandorans?

And it strikes me that Kimmy, Perry, Lois, Lana, et al are really tourists when they visit the Fortress, writing articles and such.

Not sure what you are referring to in point one...

I suppose it wouldn't be great if Perry wrote an article on the 10 deadliest weapons in the Fortress with details of how they work...I think what I was getting at is that the most deadly Kryptonian weapons (sheesh, I thought violence was almost gone there) are not so much a part of Kryptonian art or historical culture and more a product of the technology of a planet.

Sorry ME, I was responding to NotSuper with that first point.

The PZ parolee is by definition reformed and therefore no longer a criminal, I think, and therefore can claim ownership of their heritage.

True, but there are limitations for convicted criminals even in the most progressive societies and it is hard to imagine Krypton being different.

Sure, a Phantom Zoner may be reformed, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they should be given access to Blizzard Rays, just like in our own society paroled criminals cannot associate with known criminals, cannot own a firearm, and so forth.

Even though something is Kryptonian, it would not be unreasonable for Superman to say "okay, all this stuff that can potentially blow up the earth? Nobody is touching that."

True, I wouldn't expect them to violate their parole (I wonder how long Kryptonian parole lasts?).

I object to the characterization of Superman as a unilateral dictator in matters Kryptonian.  I know that every nation on Earth and the UN (excepting maybe that criminal country from teen Titans --Zandia?) has basically deputized him but does that mean he can dictate what happens to all Kryptonian artifacts and weapons?  I wonder what his legal standing vis a vis Kandor is?  Is he legally a citizen?  Does he have extra- or supra-legal powers?

Just because they are small, doesn't mean they aren't people.  Indeed, they deserve recognition by the UN as a separate nation.

I'm sure if he has the opportunity to think about it, Superman would see that not only are many of his actions illegal, but that he also should involve the people of Kandor (and, by extension all surviving Kryptonians) some of the same privleges he enjoys on Earth and elsewhere.

It is time for Superman to "share the wealth".

Exactly. In fact, I'd imagine that Kandor would have even stricter laws than Earth concerning this matter. You don't give former criminals (that is ones convicted of violent crimes)--even if they have truly reformed--access to deadly weapons.

On a related note, I have a feeling that many nations on Earth would be begging for Superman to give them access to Phantom Zone related technology.

Just looking into it, it looks like General Zod might be up for parole soon.  His original sentence was 40 years, and I'm not aware of any new trials being held after his many escapes from the Zone, trials that would have resulted in an increased sentence.  I wonder what the Kryptonian legality of this is?

Anyway, given that Superman is between 30-35, and Zod's imprisonment happened before his birth, isn't Zod about due to be sprung?

http://superman.nu/wiki/index.php/General_Zod

And on the subject of Superman's age, wouldn't it be great to read a collection of the stories chronicling his early, college and post-college adventures, beginning with his first appearance, various versions of his first job at the Planet, etc?  A chronicle of Superman in his 20s?

(I would prefer the Silver Age/Eearth-1 version of these events, not the 1930s-40s versions).