Should Superboy be brought back?

[The Starchild]

I'm not getting how you would have two at the same time.

Daybreaker, I'm not clear what you're asking here, but I'm going to assume that it's in reference to my post above.  Perhaps you could clarify?

I was responding to Captain Kal, who seemed to be responding to an argument that there could be confusion if two different characters named "Superboy" were to exist in the same universe.  I responded that I didn't see a problem with Superman having been Superboy when he was a boy, and then a new kid came along after Superman switched over to his adult moniker and started using the old Superboy name, much like Batman and Robin.

So they're not really "at the same time" in the chronology of the stories themselves, but they are "at the same time" in that we would simultaneously be reading  stories about a young Clark Kent Superboy and also reading separate stories about a second Superboy (Kon?) that take place later when Superman is a man.

Anyway, the subject of this thread is, "Should Superboy be brought back?"

So where's the poll?

[Captain Kal]

I don't know where the poll is.

Let me suggest something of a compromise here regarding my last post.

Perhaps an ongoing Superboy series featuring Superman as a youth is a bad idea for continuity reasons.

But a limited miniseries like MOS, the Smallville years, Metropolis years, etc. but featuring Superboy would work.  That way, we get a young Superman as a boy back but his stories don't threaten to muck-up Superman's books and vice versa.  We could leave a loophole open for him to be a Legionnaire so that his future adventures wouldn't impinge on his adult history.  The only thing we'd know for certain is Superboy wouldn't die or be altered into unrecognizability in the LSH before he returns to our time to become Superman.

[Kuuga]

I think in many ways for the kind of stories you want to get out of this idea, Supergirl (as in Kara) would actually work better for it.  Even right down to having the occasional adventure with the LSH.

I mean you can get some fun stories with Superboy but if you make it part of Supermans actual story, it can kinda hurt things.  I think thats why as originally concieved the Superboy idea wasn't meant to be canon or continuity. It was just fun running with the idea that if Superman had his powers as a kid, what would that have been like?

..and even though I have at times enjoyed the character ideally I don't think Kon-El should exist. Conceptually its dumb on the level of what it would be like having Ben Reilly still running around as the Scarlet Spider.  Besides Superman doesn't really need a Captain Marvel Jr.  The "family" should be Superman, Supergirl, and Krypto.

I think if there is any character who should be in line for taking Supermans role, it should be Kara.

[Daybreaker]

Yeah, I actually like the idea of Superman getting a sidekick more than I like the idea of Superman having a clone that he rarely talks to.

And really, Superman should have more sidekicks.  In a way, most of the heroic population of the DCU are all his sidekicks, except for a few that are Batman's.

[DoctorZero]

I would go along with the Smallville type situation.  No costume, limited powers, operating undercover.  It's better than the previous situation.  Liked the Legion, but was never a big Superboy fan.

[The Starchild]

OK, how's this:  Clark uses his powers in secret with no costume when he's in Smallville; but when he goes into the future to be with the Legion, he operates openly with the Superboy costume.

[Just a fan]

Actually I think Kon-el is the best solution possible, we can have a superboy series without having to worry about the impact on the superman comics, and he could still be the inspriation for the legion and he could join them when he's not with the TT's, wearing the superboy outfit, just because it's the right thing to do.

[Daybreaker]

Actually I think Kon-el is the best solution possible ... he could still be the inspriation for the legion ...

I think my only problem with that idea is that Kon-El just doesn't seem that inspirational.