Tag: Superman

Smash Pages Playlist | Happy Superman Day

Faster than a speeding ballad, here comes a bunch of songs about the Man of Steel.

Action Comics #1 debuted on April 18 in 1938, and would go on to become the most expensive comic on the planet. More importantly, though, it also introduced a new superhero to the world, Superman.

Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Superman set the stage for superhero comics as we know them today, serving as the archetype for the whole genre. He’s starred in his own titles, in radio serials, in movies, on TV and Broadway, action figures, on T-shirts and cereal boxes, … and in songs!

Which brings me to today’s Smash Pages Playlist. The word “Superman” appears in a lot of different songs, both in reference to the character but also in many instances as a concept — a.k.a. someone who is strong, stands up for others or (in love songs) knows how to treat their partner right. I’ve tried to include songs here that at least make reference to the comic character and his traits, but some are more Superman-y than others. I’ve also mixed in theme songs from various Superman films and TV shows (I’d totally forgotten Remy Zero did the Smallville theme). Anyway, enjoy, and feel free to suggest some of your favorite Man of Steel songs I missed (because there are plenty more!)

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DC resurrects a classic format this July with ‘Superman Treasury 2025: Hero for All’

The Summer of Superman adds a treasury-sized story by Dan Jurgens, Bruno Redondo and Adriano Lucas.

As a part of their big “Summer of Superman” plans, DC is bringing back their classic “treasury-sized edition” formatting for a “larger than life” story by Dan Jurgens, Bruno Redondo and Adriano Lucas.

Superman Treasury 2025: Hero for All will come in at 10 1/8” x 13 5/16” — the format used for several “Vs.” titles starting in the 1970s, like Superman Vs. Muhammad Ali and the Marvel/DC crossover Superman Vs. Spider-Man.

“Since Superman is the cornerstone on which our entire industry is built, the term ‘Treasury Sized Edition’ seems to be the perfect vehicle for him,” said Jurgens. “As a kid, the term ‘Treasury Edition’ meant that it was sure to be a special project and one that I just had to have. From the very start, most of those projects focused on Superman.”

Jurgens actually worked on the last treasury edition DC published, Superman vs. the Fantastic Four — which seems appropriate to mention, given it brought together characters who will be battling it out at the box office this summer.

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‘Don’t blame me, I voted for Lex’: A quick history of a billionaire’s brief presidency

At the turn of the millennium, the DC Universe faced unprecedented times when Lex Luthor became the 43rd president of the United States.

Some 25 years ago, the United States of America went through a gut-twisting presidential election, when Vice-President Al Gore faced off against Texas Governor George W. Bush. As that fateful November evening drew to a close, no one was quite sure what would happen …

… and then Lex Luthor won.

This is the story of the DC Universe’s 43rd President of the United States, Alexander Joseph “Lex” Luthor.

Now, keep in mind this is not quite the original Lex Luthor, introduced in April 1940’s Action Comics #23 by Superman’s creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. For decades, that character was a criminal scientist who (in a later incarnation) had resented Superman ever since their shared adolescence in Smallville. No, this was Luthor the once-and-future Metropolis tycoon, as rebooted by John Byrne, Marv Wolfman, Andy Helfer and company starting in the summer of 1986, who could not stand having to share the spotlight with some strange visitor from another planet.

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Dan Slott + Rafael Albuquerque team for ‘Superman Unlimited’ this May

The new title signals the ‘Summer of Superman’ is coming.

Longtime Marvel/Spider-scribe Dan Slott is “all in” at DC this summer, as he and artist Rafael Albuquerque will launch a new Superman ongoing series, Superman Unlimited, in May.

DC will share a preview of the new series in DC All In 2025 FCBD Special Edition #1, as part of their Free Comic Book Day offering. They haven’t officially announced their FCBD plans yet, so it’s possible they could have other books as well.

Superman Unlimited is part of a bigger publishing initiative for the Superman family this summer, which they’re appropriately calling the “Summer of Superman.” Which of course lines up nicely with the big Superman movie by James Gunn that’s coming in July.

This isn’t Slott’s first time writing the character, as he wrote some issues of Superman Adventures early in his career. But writing an ongoing Superman title is something he’s been waiting to do ever since. His story already sounds like he’s taking a “Big Time” approach, as “Green K” begins transforming the world, the Daily Planet expands its reach and footprint under Lois Lane, and they even get a new IT pro from Gorilla City.

“He’s the first and the greatest superhero of all-time, and I’ve been waiting my whole life to tell stories about him,” said Slott, “Not just because of all the amazing powers he has, but because of who he is inside. Rafael Albuquerque and I are going to take him—and you—to places you’ll want to escape to every month. Millions of surprising ideas for Superman, Lois, the supporting cast, classic rogues, and all-new friends and foes too. If you’ve never read a Superman book, a DC book, or any comic book before—or if you’ve been a Superman fan your entire life—you couldn’t ask for a better place to take the leap and go all in than Superman Unlimited #1.”

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Jon Kent, Dreamer, Catman + more return in ‘Secret Six’ next year

Nicole Maines and Stephen Segovia will bring a new team together find a missing Amanda Waller.

DC’s found (but dysfunctional) family title is getting an All In reboot next year, as writer Nicole Maines and artist Stephen Segovia resurrect Secret Six. The six-issue miniseries will continue the story of Jon Kent, his boyfriend Jay Nakamura and their ally Dreamer, as they search for a missing Amanda Waller.

Fans of the original Secret Six will note that the trio will recruit some additional allies in their search, namely Catman, Deadshot and Black Alice.

“Getting to be part of DC All In and to tell a new story involving Jon Kent, Jay Nakamura, and Dreamer means the world to me,” Maines said. “They’re all at a crossroads right now, at the start of their potential villain origin stories, so having them team up with these Secret Six veterans, all former villains, feels like a mirror into their futures.” 

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DC reveals more details on their ‘All In’ line-ups

The publisher has shared creative teams and cover art for three Absolute Universe titles, along with plans for several DCU series in the post-‘Absolute Power’ era.

If you missed the YouTube video yesterday, DC has revealed their next publishing initiative, All In, which will see several creative team changes and the birth of a whole new universe. Headed up by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson, the Absolute Universe will come into being thanks to Darkseid in October’s All In one-shot.

And today DC revealed some of the creative teams you can expect to see on some of the Absolute titles and the regular DC titles.

Starting first with the DC Absolute Universe — which is what they’re calling it in the press release, so we can assume that’s the official name — the line will launch with Absolute Batman by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta, as revealed yesterday. The first issue will come out Oct. 9. It’ll be followed by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman’s reinvention of Wonder Woman “from the ground up” in Absolute Wonder Woman #1, due out Oct. 23. Then you have Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval launching Absolute Superman #1 on Nov. 6.

“The creation of the AbsoluteUniverse is how I always imagined coming back to DC, and DC All In will be a great jumping-on point for new readers as well as lapsed fans to discover new stories to love and the chance to explore the new directions in store for DC’s core series lineup,” Snyder said in the press release.

Here’s more details and cover art for those titles, along with several DCU titles (which they refer to as the “Core Line” in the press release):

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | ‘White Boat’ sets sail from Scott Snyder + Francesco Francavilla

Check out comics and graphic novels arriving in shops this week by Stephanie Phillips, Chris Campana, Joe Casey, Paul Fry, Tom Taylor, Bruce Redondo, Vera Brosgol, Kyle Starks, Jed MacKay, Pepe Larraz and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | The ‘Blood Hunt’ is on

A huge week of new releases brings new comics and graphic novels by Jed MacKay, Pepe Larraz, David Pepose, Jonathan Lau, Chip Zdarsky, Kris Anka, Garth Ennis, Jacen Burrows, Brian Azzarello, Eduardo Risso, Stephanie Cooke, Derek Charm, Erica Henderson, Joe Kelly, Adam Kubert, Josh Hicks and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

This is a huge week for comics, as the summer comics season kicks off and Free Comic Book Day follows on Saturday. Marvel’s big crossover event, Blood Hunt, begins with two versions of its first issues (not to mention a FCBD issue in Saturday), while we also have a new Space Ghost title, a House of Brainiac special, several DC annuals, new stuff from Garth Ennis and Brian Azzarello, a Cat in the Hat graphic novel and much more.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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‘Absolute Power’ corrupts absolutely in DC’s July titles

Amanda Waller and friends have big plans for DC’s heroes and villains.

DC has revealed more details about their upcoming Absolute Power crossover series, including a companion series titled Absolute Power: Task Force VII and Absolute Power: Origins, which will tell the “definitive history” of Amanda Waller.

These follow the Free Comic Book Day issue in May and the prelude issue that comes out in June that we learned about earlier this year.

The press release also gives some information on Amanda Waller and the Trinity of Evil‘s plans — using Failsafe, Brainiac Queen and Amazo to capture the super powers of every superhero and villain on Earth. As a squad of Amazo robots captures the powers of DC’s mightiest heroes, leaving them powerless, a “league” of resistors led by Batman starts to form. Each issue of Absolute Power: Task Force VII will be by a different creative team and will be focused on a different Amazo who has stolen someone’s powers, including Last Son (Superman), Depth Charge (Aquaman) and Jadestone (Green Lantern).

You can find more details on Absolute Power and the tie-ins below.

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Gail Simone + Eddy Barrows promise a ‘huge in scope and fun as hell’ Superman story this summer

The duo revisit Superman’s early years as he battles an alien threat starting in ‘Action Comics’ #1067.

After making room for the House of Brainiac crossover, Action Comics will return to its Superman Superstars initiative and a cast of rotating creative teams in July. Action Comics #1067 will kick off a new story by Gail Simone and Eddy Barrows set at the beginning of Superman’s career titled “Superman and the Challenge from the Stars.”

The storyline will run for three issues, and features a massively powerful alien race making Earth their arena. Danny Miki, Rex Lokus and Dave Sharpe round out the creative team.

“I love the classic Superman cast, and this story is deliberately meant to echo my all-time favorite Superman time period,” Simone said. “We didn’t want to tell a quiet story of Superman in a diner; we wanted to have a massive threat, a war taking place all over the world, and only Superman could possibly protect his adopted planet. It is unapologetically huge in scope and fun as hell, with one of the best art teams I’ve ever worked with…Eddy Barrows, Danny Miki, and Rex Lokus on colors!”

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | The Roxxon Age of Comics begins

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving this week by Al Ewing, Greg Land, Tom Taylor, Zac Thompson, Nicola Izzo, Joshua Williamson, Rafa Sandoval, Scott Snyder, Jamal Igle, Stefano Cardoselli, Tini Howard, Freddt Carrasco, Box Brown, Peter and Maria Hoey, and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

This week a new publisher, Roxxon, joins the comics fray and introduces their own version of Thor, which I’m sure will have us all saying “This is fine.” Meanwhile, Nightwing hits a big milestone, Dudley Datson comes to print, Marvel’s Micronauts gets collected and BOOM! promises to Blow (us) Away.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Wednesday | The Roxxon Age of Comics begins”

‘My Adventures with Superman’ flies from the TV screen to comics this summer

Josie Campbell and Pablo M. Collar bring the hit Adult Swim series to the printed page in June.

Adult Swim’s wonderful My Adventures with Superman animated series is coming to comics, thanks to the show’s producer Josie Campbell and artist Pablo M. Collar. The miniseries will serve as a bridge between the first and second seasons.

“Being the producer of My Adventures with Superman and bringing Clark Kent to TV screens around the world has been nothing but a dream come true for me,” said Campbell. “So I’m absolutely thrilled that Pablo and I get to bring fans even more adventures with Superman, this time in comic book form!”

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