Look, there! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s SUPERMAN!!
Since I am doing Hollywood icons, I have to make sure I get in one of the biggest icons of all; the man who is recognized everywhere by merely his logo, the man who needs no introduction.
Ah, what the heck, I’ll give him one anyway.
Superman is originally from the planet Krypton, but was sent to earth by his father. He grew up as Clark Kent on a farm in Kansas with his adopted parents. His special powers include: flying, superstrength, laser eyes, X-ray vision (he can see through everything but lead), and running at the speed of light, to name a few. He is also a Scorpio who enjoys pina coladas and long walks on the beach. Basically, he is perfect in every way, shape, and form.
Superman is awesome, don’t get me wrong. But the fact that you know he’s going to win every single fight makes it a little boring. Plane about to crash? No problem. A missile is about to hit the city? Piece of cake. Stupid kid falling into Niagara Falls? No job is too small for Superman! It’s like he doesn’t even struggle to do the right thing, he makes it look so easy. Even when he has to choose between stopping two missiles in the first Superman film, he stops one, then flies around the earth so fast he spins it backwards and goes back in time to stop the other (How does that work?).
I think of it this way: Superman is the best original superhero, and I'll always love him, but you graduate to more complex characters like Spiderman and Batman. Spidey (a nerdy young man) and the Dark Knight (orphaned billionaire playboy) don’t win every fight and make mistakes. But both of those heroes use their powers for good and overcome their inner demons, giving us hope that, we too, can overcome our troubles.
One thing that always bugged me about the Superman movies was the fact that his only disguise are those glasses. That is, apparently, the only reason that no one recognizes him. No wonder he always had to save Metropolis from some evil scheme. Residents who are too stupid to realize that a famous reporter at the Daily Planet looks exactly like Superman obviously can’t take care of themselves. I mean, the people who work with him at the paper haven’t figured it out yet? They look at pictures of Superman all day, and Clark’s right there…put two and two together, people! There’s even a point in the second Superman movie where Lois (co-worker and possibly more(wink,wink)) takes Clark’s glasses off at Niagara Falls to wipe them off, leaving him totally exposed! She knows both Clark and Superman, how can she not notice?
But all in all, the Superman franchise is just good fun. He’s a good guy who just wants to help all the people he can, and does just that. He is an excellent role model for children, and they love him (I have never gone one Halloween without seeing one kid as a Superman).
So, cue that epic John Williams theme music and roll the credits, but don’t worry, Superman will fly again tomorrow.
Superman is the greatest superhero! I guess I beleive this because that is what I grew up to know. My older sister was a big fan of superman. I never was a fan of batman & Robin, Spiderman, or the Hulk. I always thought that was kind of dumb that Lois did not realize that Clark and Superman were the same person. Obviously, she knew them both and she never saw both of them at the same time. You would think she would kind of question it.
ReplyDeleteJust like Kelsi said my older sibling made sure that my favorite superhero was Superman. He can pretty much accompish anything and who cares about that kyrptonite stuff he'll get past it someday. He reigns supreme and most likely will always be supreme!
ReplyDeleteOf all the superheroes that have made their way into comic books, Superman is my favorite. He's the one I know the most about. I've never been a comic book reader, but I grew up watching a show called Lois and Clark, which is about Superman's life as a secret superhero. One thing I never really noticed before reading your blog is that Superman does win every right. One of the cool things about Batman that isn't about Superman is that he doesn't even have any powers. He's still a hero anyway. I like Spiderman too.
ReplyDeleteNicely done Kayley. My personal opinion is that Superman is just too "super". He has one weakness in the universe and how is that fair? He can do anything, even turn back time. As you stated, the other superheroes, such as Spiderman (my favorite), allow the viewer relate more to them and are able to get a sense that they too can overcome their troubles. Your glasses comment cracked me up, because I thought the same exact thing. How could someone not notice? In all reality, you were right; the Superman franchise is all in good fun. The Spiderman franchise is still cooler though :).
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