Superman Through the Ages! Forum

Weeks ago I have bought the Millennium Editions of SUPERBOY #1 (1949) and JIMMY OLSEN #1 (1954). At last, yesterday I have read them.

I love Superman and the Superman and the Superman Family, so it's very hard that a Super comic book disappoints me. Rarely I have read bad Superman stories... And I have a big collection, now.
I like the newest stories, too, and now the Super titles are my favorite.
But...
Sometimes, when I close the latest issues and put them into the library, it's fantastic readin' some old story. They're often considered stupid,  but they aren't. These old comics taught to children decent worths and they were educative. These polite characters were friends for the readers.

There is something beutiful in these old Superman comics. As I have said, I love the modern Superman, too, but I know that he is a great character because the stories released since the Golden Age.
Can I say this? Readin' these two comics has been more moving than readin' certain new stories where death, desperation and ruin rule.
I mean, the story featuring Superboy's rival Mighty Boy, for me is better than "Sins past", "Avengers disassembled" or other bad stories released recently.
During the Silver Age, the Superman Faimly sold millions of copies. Maybe, there was a cause. Am I right or not?

Agreed, Genis!  Those old books wanted to ENTERTAIN us!  

I dunno what the books TODAY wanna do, but it sure doesn't seem like entertaining us is their foremost job!

I belive their job is to take your money.

Then the're not doing a very good job of that either for me!

When my father was a kid, in the 50s, he and his friends were readers of the Italian edition of Superman. At those days there weren't collectors and true fan, so growing they dropped the superheroes comic books.
Now, after almost 50 years, he and his coworkers at work still remember those comics. Not the stories, of course, but every important element. Kandor, Jimmy Olsen and his signal watch, the Lois/Lana rivalry, Luthor's hate for Superboy, Krypto... Those simpler stories worked very well, if now who has read them can still remember what made them classics.

Months ago, after I bought AMAZING #511 (and I already knew the plot of the next issue), said: "What if Lana Lang had 2 sons with Lex Luthor and they, grown up, had attacked Superman when you were a reader?". And my father: "When I read Superman, none cared of these things in comics. Why, has it happened to Superman?". "Nope, luckily".

I admit to envy him a bit!

For this, I hope to see ALL-STAR SUPERMAN soon. I'm sure that Morrison and Quitely will give us solid stories with everything we want to see in a Superman comic.

I just came back from the latesst Big Apple with a stack of silver age DCs and mostly the Superman family.  

Much happiness.
Can you say AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH? :D  :s:

I think Genis Vell was insightful in his opening post about the lessons of the early comics.  Super-hero comics were for most of their existence not just light-hearted escapism.  They were morality plays that taught kids -- and adults -- what true values are and should be.

Sadly, the likes of Wolverine, Punisher, Lobo, Spawn, etc. -- *blech* -- have lost that morality angle.

Actually, I don't think those four ever HAD a morality angle!

Correct. Those comics were both entertaining and educative. Maybe I'm wtong, but I think that Morton Weisinger and his co-workers were experts in pedagogy... They knew very well what children want to see in a comic book.



Wolverine is a bit different. Chris Claremont made him a very complex character, and I loved him. The problems arrived with other authors... "Snikt!", "I'm the best in whatever I do", "I'll slice you, bub!": that is a pin up, not a character, in my opinion.