A poll for SUPERMAN fans

[Lumpy]

1. How many characters in the DC Universe should know that Clark Kent is Superman? (Ignoring mystical and presumably omniscient characters like the Phantom Stranger)
   (b-c) Immediate family, plus Batman figured it out.

2. What should Superman’s relationship with Lois be?
   (b) Unmarried but dating pretty much exclusively, and she knows his secret. Actually, what I would like to see is that Superman is the one who wants to make the commitment, and Lois is the one balking: she does NOT want to be eclipsed by the uber-Alpha male of them all.

3. One Sunday afternoon, every living Kryptonian decides to go slumming and travel by normal human means. An appropriate vehicle for this excursion is…
   © a tandem bicycle; Supergirl is Kal’s cousin. No Krypto unless he’s an Earth dog somehow given powers. It would point up how special Supergirl was if she were the ONLY other Kryptonian in existence. Although I would wonder then how the authors would handle the squicky possibility of their refounding the Kryptonian race together.

ETA: I’m not up on the current continuity so I don’t know what’s happening with Kandor. What would have been an idea would be that Superman recovers the bottled city of Kandor from the ultra-advanced machine intelligence Braniac and discovers that it’s essentially a “digitized” Kandor, a Kandor reduced to data. He keeps it in the hope of someday being able to resurrect the original Kandor from it.

4. What should Superman’s relationship with the Justice League be?
   (e) Other. He’s a member, but the JLA’s dirty secret is that it was founded to co-opt and if necessary counter Superman.

5. How many other characters should be on Superman’s power level?
   (a) A few of villains, but no regularly occurring hero. Though some heroes match or beat him in one specific aspect (Wondy’s almost as strong, Flash is a hair faster, Lantern & Manhunter are both more versatile) no other hero brings everything to the plate that he does.

6. What should Superman’s memories of Krypton be?
   (b) A few, but only of his mother and father. He was about 3 years old when the planet exploded, and occasionally snippets of recollection resurface. The biggest one is of them putting him in the rocket and sending him off, and though he understands why intellectually, the little kid in him still feels like Hansel without Gretel.

7. What should Superman’s stance on killing be?
   (a-b). He has killed but only as the absolute last resort, and he’s become very, very good at finding alternatives. He’s faced several tests where villains like Darkseid tried to corrupt him by tricking him into killing. He’s killed (or deliberately allowed someone to die) about the same number of times that Kwai Chang Caine did.

8. How much kryptonite is there on Earth, and where is it?
   (a) About one pound’s worth. It used to be in Metallo’s chest, but then Lex Luthor took it, and eventually Supes took most of that from Lex. He split it into chunks and gave half to Batman in case of mind-control.

9. Speaking of Lex, what’s the deal between the two of them?
   (b) Mutual, pure, visceral hate, but only on Lex’s side. As a teenager Lex was the pimply science geek who never got a date while the girls threw themselves at the captain of the football squad. Lex sees it as the contest of Brains vs. Brawn (which constantly leads him to underestimate Superman). He also dismisses Superman’s morality as hackneyed and naive.

Since most of these questions revolve around what version of Superman people prefer, I’ll propose one: How super is Superman? (a) Juggles neutron stars to keep in shape (b) Can survive being nuked but it isn’t fun. © Tougher than Spiderman, not as tough as the Hulk. (d)Other.

[TBG]

1. C plus any of the JLA founders. Not every JLAer ever, but I think Barry and Hal (for instance) should know as much as Bruce and Di. I’d even be okay with long timer non originals (like Wally) knowing, but there’s no need for “writer of the moment’s latest addition to the group” to know.

2. Ehh, A is fine by me, so long as they aren’t arguing all the time, which too many writers seem to think they have to have them doing. I don’t feel too strongly against B either, but C seems wrong. D would be okay without the intimacy issues slam. E is just wrong. Putting Supes and Wondy together comes across as fanficy.

3. A. I really like the post Crisis era where they did have characters like Supergirl, but they had different origins than “hey another survivor”.

4. C with some D. A founder, and a mainstay as time permits, but not the leader and not hogging the glory.

5. Not many. Captain Marvel, and maybe a Daxamite or two. He’s not Superman because he’s got the strongest powers, he’s Superman because he’s got the strongest powers and he uses them resposibly.

6. A, but the ship was loaded with information so he still knows as much about Krypton as anyone who never lived there possibly could. Fluent in the languages, aware of the customs, master of the technologies, but all tempered by the humanity instilled in him by the Kents.

7. A. Part of the responsibility of his powers is that he has to always find another way.

8. A. And it gives humans cancer after long term exposure. It does not turn humans into mutants, freaks, or other assorted problems of the week.

9. D. Lex was the big cheese in Metropolis until Superman (“the alien”) showed up, and he’ll never be able to coexist with him. Superman has no intrinsic problem with Lex, other than Lex does bad things and needs to be stopped, just like any other villain.

Unnumbered: (“Since most of these questions revolve around what version of Superman people prefer, I’ll propose one: How super is Superman?”)

Around B. Maybe a little higher, but definitely not close to A. A nuke wouldn’t be hard for him to take, but he’s not juggling stars or pushing planets out of orbit or anything.

[Chronos]

Expanded questions:
7. A) There’s a place in the comic pages for heroes who do kill, but Superman isn’t it.
8. D) The total mass of Kryptonite on Earth is about the same as the mass of the ship Superman arrived in (the only reason there’s any on Earth at all is that it came through the same spacewarp as the ship), but it’s not all accounted for. Batman and Luther both have the resources to have gotten ahold of some, neither of them with any help from Superman. But some’s still out there in the middle of the wilderness, or even in the hands of two-bit common muggers who think they’re hot stuff all of a sudden.
9. D) Same explanation as TBG. Lex hates Superman because he’s super, but from Clark’s point of view, stopping Lex is just a matter of business.

[foolsguinea]

1. How many characters in the DC Universe should know that Clark Kent is Superman? (Ignoring mystical and presumably omniscient characters like the Phantom Stranger)
© Immediate family, Batman, & Wonder Woman
(d) Immediate family, Bats & Wondy, and any active Justice Leaguer
** (ch) Somewhere between these two**

2. What should Superman’s relationship with Lois be?
(a) Married, as per the current status quo
(and Lois is going to smack Diana if she keeps showing up & “borrowing” “Kal.”)

3. One Sunday afternoon, every living Kryptonian decides to go slumming and travel by normal human means. An appropriate vehicle for this excursion is…
© a tandem bicycle; Supergirl is Kal’s cousin, and Krypto can run alongside.
That’s good. Also, the Kandorians are in a bottle, & live as normal humans there. (Except for that one crabby guy from the “Godfall” arc, who can get his own bike.)

4. What should Superman’s relationship with the Justice League be?
(a) He knows them socially but isn’t really a member–more an ally. He’s Earth’s mightiest hero by a good long shot, and frankly doesn’t need help from mortals all that often. When the government is faced with a crisis, the question is “Do we ask for Superman OR the League?”
(b) He’s a reserve member and is faintly resented by many of the others, as whenever he shows up with them in public, the media reports it as “Superman and the Justice League.”
© He’s a frequent member and is liked by the others, but in no way central either in their eyes or the public’s.
Any of these, leaning toward c.

5. How many other characters should be on Superman’s power level?
(a) A few of villains, but no regularly occurring hero. Though some heroes match or beat him in one specific aspect (Wondy’s almost as strong, Flash is a hair faster, Lantern & Manhunter are both more versatile) no ohter hero brings everything to the plate that he does.
(b) Quite a few heroes. He’s not Superman because of his powers; it’s his spirit and personality.
If I have to pick one of these, b. But maybe
** (æ) A few superheroes, the stronger Amazons, some non-terrestrial beings.**

6. What should Superman’s memories of Krypton be?
(a) What memories? He was born on Earth, as the spaceship that brought him here was carrying his incubation chamber.
Oh, yeah, I’m totally with Byrne here I MEAN HE WAS TOTALLY BORN ON EARTH PREGNANT LARA WAS IN THE CRAFT & DIED IN CHILDBIRTH LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOU

[foolsguinea]

@Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension

Yup. Strap Kandor to the bike rack. Upright, please.

I was trying to figure out how to do this. I was going to put Kal, Kara, the dog, & the bottle all in a car…

(However, if Luthor can’t beat Supey, why should Gotham’s poster child for sleep-deprivation be able to?)

[foolsguinea]

@Skald

Of course, I don’t see him having very many friends anyway. Diana, Lois, and Lana are about it.

Whoa, there. Those three, and Jimmy, & arguably Pete Ross, & maybe Bats to some degree. Those aren’t necessarily super-close friends now, but I doubt Lana is either anymore. Also John Henry Irons, I guess.

7. What should Superman’s stance on killing be?
(b) He refuses to kill muggers and such, because, hey, he would have no legal recourse if he did. But he’s not an idiot; if he has to choose between killing a rogue Daxamite and seeing an innocent get toasted, out comes the lead.
With the proviso that Superman can nearly always find another way. I will point out that historically it’s corporeal humans & humanoid life he reflexively defends. Not that he’d kill a Horta for no reason, but if he didn’t know what it was & it was threatening people, he’d probably be less careful of its life. And if you’re nothing but an imprint on a recording device looking for a new body, he’ll exterminate you & your entire species merrily.

8. How much kryptonite is there on Earth, and where is it?
** (c) They sometimes sell kryptonite jewelry at the Smallville state fair.
Really, who knows? If it’s needed for the plot, it comes out. Less than the amount of pure gold on the Earth’s crust, I’d say. Maybe only a couple tons total.**

9. Speaking of Lex, what’s the deal between the two of them?
(c) Detached adversity. Lex doesn’t hate Superman as a person; he sees superheroes in general and Kal in particular as an obstacle to the evolution of the human race. But he’s not going to be behind any plans that would endanger the Earth, because, well, that’s where Lex keeps his stuff, after all.
(d) Other.
Lex is not from Smallville, they didn’t meet until Supes was Superman & an adult. Lex is essentially driven by ego. He wants to be the superman, the genius savior of the world that everyone looks up to & that little kids want to be. Superman was someone to test himself against, but the rivalry’s gotten out of hand. Also, Supes uncovered some corruption in Lex’s company, embarrassing Lex & possibly hurting his business, so the Big Pretty Alien is turning into Lex’s great white whale.

@Lumpy

.4. What should Superman’s relationship with the Justice League be?
(e) Other. He’s a member, but the JLA’s dirty secret is that it was founded to co-opt and if necessary counter Superman.

Oooh, interesting.

10. How super is Superman?
(a) Juggles neutron stars to keep in shape
(b) Can survive being nuked but it isn’t fun.
(c) Tougher than Spiderman, not as tough as the Hulk.
(d)Other.
Eh, around/between b & c. A nuke might actually kill him. Hulk-like.

[C_K_Dexter_Haven]

I’m going to refrain from answering specifically, because I think it depends on the story.

Example: Bryan says:

The whole “Lois can’t figure it out” bit was exhausted decades ago.

Well, yes, but there were some wonderful stories from those days. And there’s no reason that someone couldn’t write such a story now (although they’d have to set in in the past, to be “consistent” with current whatchacallit. In the same way, there were great stories with super-cat and super-monkey and the dozens of Kryptonians. There are some great stories where only Clark knows his secret, and there are some great stories where friends know his secret. So, far as I’m concerned, it’s all a question of the story that’s being told.

Don’t get me wrong, there were lots of crappy stories, too. When you’re churning out that many stories, you’re bound to have some (OK, many) that are ridiculous and uninteresting.

[Love_Rhombus]

1. How many characters in the DC Universe should know that Clark Kent is Superman? (Ignoring mystical and presumably omniscient characters like the Phantom Stranger)
   © Immediate family, Batman, & Wonder Woman. Batman figured it out and he just trusts Wonder Woman. The lasso of truth might have told her, too. Anyone else finds out, it’s a big deal.

2. What should Superman’s relationship with Lois be?
   (a) Married, as per the current status quo
   (b) Unmarried but dating pretty much exclusively, and she knows his secret
   (f) Other: I’m torn between a & b. If they were serious he’d tell her-truth, you know. Him being married doesn’t feel critical to his identity, but I don’t hate it.

3. One Sunday afternoon, every living Kryptonian decides to go slumming and travel by normal human means. An appropriate vehicle for this excursion is…
   © a tandem bicycle; Supergirl is Kal’s cousin
   As a dog person I like Krypto, but he’s silly. Keep Supergirl so he has someone to pour out his Kryptonian angst to at times.

4. What should Superman’s relationship with the Justice League be?
   (b) He’s a reserve member and is faintly resented by many of the others, as whenever he shows up with them in public, the media reports it as “Superman and the Justice League.”

5. How many other characters should be on Superman’s power level?
   It’s a short list: Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, maybe Wonder Woman, and the pseudo-Krypts like Mon-El and Ultra Boy for the good guys. Others are a close second or bring other things to the table: Flash is faster, for example.

6. What should Superman’s memories of Krypton be?
   (b) A few, but only of his mother and father. He was about 3 years old when the planet exploded, and occasionally snippets of recollection resurface. The biggest one is of them putting him in the rocket and sending him off, and though he understands why intellectually, the little kid in him still feels like Hansel without Gretel.

7. What should Superman’s stance on killing be?
   (b) He refuses to kill muggers and such, because, hey, he would have no legal recourse if he did. But he’s not an idiot; if he has to choose between killing a rogue Daxamite and seeing an innocent get toasted, out comes the lead. Or if it’s a robot. He’ll kill robots like Brainiac no problem (which must make teaming with Red Tornado odd)

8. How much kryptonite is there on Earth, and where is it?

(b) Same as A, except he gave half to Wonder Woman, because, really, who trusts Batman? Batman who won’t kill the Joker but Superman expects him to put him down if things get ugly?

9. Speaking of Lex, what’s the deal between the two of them?
   © Detached adversity. Lex doesn’t hate Superman as a person; he sees superheroes in general and Kal in particular as an obstacle to the evolution of the human race. But he’s not going to be behind any plans that would endanger the Earth, because, well, that’s where Lex keeps his stuff, after all. That what Lex tells himself. But he’d still go out of his way to destroy Superman first.