I think that's part of why the best Superman stories (and this is coming from someone who's not really a big Superman fan), focus on highlighting Clark as much as they do the feats her performs as Superman.
Like one of the shows said, "Superman is what I can do. Clark is who I am." At the end of the day, Clark Kent is a good person. He's a genuinely decent, empathetic human being, who cares about people. He also happens to have incredible power, but because of that core humanity and good will, he uses those powers to protect and serve, even when it can cost him dearly personally.
If it wasn't for him being raised by a family that loved him and taught him as best they could to be a decent human being, he'd be a tyrant. He's not a perfect person, no one is, but he's just strong enough to reign in the darker aspects of humanity that reside in all of us.
Peter Parker and Steve Rogers are similar. Genuinely good human beings, gifted extraordinary abilities, but manage to maintain that humanity in spite of those powers. It's why we love them so much. Like I said, I'm not a huge Superman fan these days, but I absolutely love and respect what he stands for, especially when he's in the hands of talented writers who manage to highlight the best parts of him without being pretentious or preachy about it. I can't imagine how hard it is to write a story around a character like that, and maintain that balance. And we've definitely seen what happens when a writer gets it so very, very wrong (I'm looking at you Zack Snyder). It's amazing to me that Lois and Clark is one of the few live action adaptions not starring Christopher Reeve, that managed to really show us a very human Clark Kent, while also maintaining his good nature. No nihilistic and edgy re-imagining of the character. Like, rewatching that show, I never felt the need to punch Clark in the face for being a high and mighty jackass. I've also been rewatching Smallville, and I can't tell you how many times I just wanted to shake the shit out of Clark, because of how frustrating he is. Smallville is still a guilty pleasure of mine, but man, Clark makes me so mad sometimes.
EDIT: But on topic, yes, Homelander is terrifying. lol I'm only 2 episodes into Season 2 of The Boys, and man, Anthony Starr is so good at being bad. It's a little disturbing...
Like one of the shows said, "Superman is what I can do. Clark is who I am." At the end of the day, Clark Kent is a good person. He's a genuinely decent, empathetic human being, who cares about people. He also happens to have incredible power, but because of that core humanity and good will, he uses those powers to protect and serve, even when it can cost him dearly personally.
If it wasn't for him being raised by a family that loved him and taught him as best they could to be a decent human being, he'd be a tyrant. He's not a perfect person, no one is, but he's just strong enough to reign in the darker aspects of humanity that reside in all of us.
Peter Parker and Steve Rogers are similar. Genuinely good human beings, gifted extraordinary abilities, but manage to maintain that humanity in spite of those powers. It's why we love them so much. Like I said, I'm not a huge Superman fan these days, but I absolutely love and respect what he stands for, especially when he's in the hands of talented writers who manage to highlight the best parts of him without being pretentious or preachy about it. I can't imagine how hard it is to write a story around a character like that, and maintain that balance. And we've definitely seen what happens when a writer gets it so very, very wrong (I'm looking at you Zack Snyder). It's amazing to me that Lois and Clark is one of the few live action adaptions not starring Christopher Reeve, that managed to really show us a very human Clark Kent, while also maintaining his good nature. No nihilistic and edgy re-imagining of the character. Like, rewatching that show, I never felt the need to punch Clark in the face for being a high and mighty jackass. I've also been rewatching Smallville, and I can't tell you how many times I just wanted to shake the shit out of Clark, because of how frustrating he is. Smallville is still a guilty pleasure of mine, but man, Clark makes me so mad sometimes.
EDIT: But on topic, yes, Homelander is terrifying. lol I'm only 2 episodes into Season 2 of The Boys, and man, Anthony Starr is so good at being bad. It's a little disturbing...
Last edited:
