What's next for Superman?

With 52 new #1 issues from DC set to hit comic book stores in the fall, Grant Morrison, the acclaimed writer of “All-Star Superman,” now wrapping up a years-long Batman story arc, seems to be an obvious choice to reboot Superman in “Action Comics” #1.

According to Morrison, Superman – who started out as a champion of the oppressed in his earliest stories, and had no problem breaking the law in the process – is going back to his roots.

“One of the first things I did was to take away the costume,” he said. “He’s the Bruce Springsteen Superman as I call him. Right now, he’s wearing a t-shirt and jeans. So it’s all about making him relatable again. We want to bring him back to more of a global symbol, but at least acknowledge Americana. He’s more a folk superhero, a Paul Bunyan for the 21st century.”

Morrison’s Clark Kent is different as well: ”He’s a young, crusading journalist, who actually does as much for the cause of social justice as Superman. He’s a journalist rooting out corruption wherever he finds it. So both Clark and Superman are now working to the same ends.”

At the same time, Morrison has a new book out, “Supergods,” that delves even deeper into the superhero mythos. “It’s a history of the superhero concept from ‘Action Comics’ #1 in 1938 to now with films and video games,” he said. “It’s also a philosophical story as to how this geek culture, this outsider culture has suddenly become absolutely mainstream.”

Morrison attributes the return of superhero popularity to the current climate. “The space program has ended so ‘Star Trek’s’ not going to happen. So we’ve kind of run out of the positive energy of futurity. So superheroes have kind of risen up. I kind of started to develop that idea, the superhero as a living notion. Particularly now with medical technology, in 25 years we will have real superhumans with longer lives, faster people and smarter people.”

For Morrison, it’s coming full circle. “The book starts with ‘Action Comics’ #1, and we end with the writer of ‘Supergods’ writing the adventures of Superman in ‘Action Comics’ #1.”

comment:

movie directors make attempts to change the style that gave us Superman in the first place and I think that`s bad.