Who can save Superman now? KURT BUSIEK!

[Kurt Busiek]

Kurt, how do you feel about blue "Electric Superman"?

If they ever need to do a "Superman On Ice" show, that's the look.

As our savior of Superman for this thread, can you promise that you will never impose Bluperman Freakazoid upon us, should you ever get a chance to write him?

I would sooner put him in Zatanna's outfit.

kdb

[Captain Kal]

Was it just me, Mr. Busiek, or did you have greater respect for the Avengers than the JLA in JLA/Avengers.  It seemed to me the Avengers were portrayed as the generally better and more effective team, Superman beating Thor notwithstanding.

Also, would you please answer if you truly have a soft spot for Wanda?  She always seems to be portrayed -- too! -- well in relation to the other Avengers.  What is your take on the Scarlet Witch and her development from just a mutant to a genuine witch who occasionally seems to eclipse Odin and Thor?

[Kurt Busiek]

Was it just me, Mr. Busiek, or did you have greater respect for the Avengers than the JLA in JLA/Avengers.  It seemed to me the Avengers were portrayed as the generally better and more effective team, Superman beating Thor notwithstanding.

I hear from some Marvel fans that I was clearly biased toward DC, and must have been being paid under the table to make Marvel look bad.  I hear from some DC fans that I was clearly biased toward Marvel, and must not know o care enough about DC to write those characters "right."

As such, I figure I probably got it right...

Also, would you please answer if you truly have a soft spot for Wanda?  She always seems to be portrayed -- too! -- well in relation to the other Avengers.  What is your take on the Scarlet Witch and her development from just a mutant to a genuine witch who occasionally seems to eclipse Odin and Thor?

I like her quite a bit as a character.  I don't think she's ever eclipsed Odin or Thor.

kdb

[Uncle Mxy]

I hear from some Marvel fans that I was clearly biased toward DC, and must have been being paid under the table to make Marvel look bad.  I hear from some DC fans that I was clearly biased toward Marvel, and must not know o care enough about DC to write those characters "right."

As such, I figure I probably got it right...

While I've been trying to limit this thread to Superman-related questions, my "read" on the Avengers is that they have better "team" combat tactics and are more likely to actually practice together as a team.  By contrast, the JLA tends to be a little more individualistic overall, but usually had Martian Manhunter to telepathically keep the team in sync.  Though it might vary with particular lineups, I don't think either team does "team" combat quite like, say, the classic X-Men (who both train _and_ have Charles in charge) or the Teen Titans.

[Gary]

I hear from some Marvel fans that I was clearly biased toward DC, and must have been being paid under the table to make Marvel look bad.  I hear from some DC fans that I was clearly biased toward Marvel, and must not know o care enough about DC to write those characters "right."

As such, I figure I probably got it right...

For my money, you did get it right. JLA/AVENGERS showed obvious respect and regard for both teams.

If there's any bias in those issues, I would say it's in favor of the heroes (both groups) and against the baddies. Even though the latter were power-boosted (according to Metron), the heroes still managed to mow most of them down pretty quickly in book four. (Of course, I understand that this was done to suit the dramatic needs of the story, and you can always argue that mind-controlled people make poor fighters even when enhanced.)

All in all, IMO, JLA/AVENGERS was a great read. Thanks for writing it.

[Uncle Mxy]

As our savior of Superman for this thread, can you promise that you will never impose Bluperman Freakazoid upon us, should you ever get a chance to write him?

I would sooner put him in Zatanna's outfit.

Hey, her light blue / Dr. Strangey red cape / no fishnets look almost works.  

Almost.

Damnit, Kurt, you've replaced one bad image (Electric Superman) with another (Supes in fishnets)!  I will never forgive you!  Sometimes, people write about their nightmares to exorcise them, not add to them!  

 Seriously...

Kurt, was Superman marrying Lois Lane a mistake (in your opinion)?  
I just read some comments you made about Spider-Man and MJ:
http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=37112
Obviously, Superman isn't Spider-Man, but it got me to thinking...

[Kurt Busiek]

Kurt, was Superman marrying Lois Lane a mistake (in your opinion)?  
I just read some comments you made about Spider-Man and MJ:
http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=37112
Obviously, Superman isn't Spider-Man, but it got me to thinking...

Superman doesn't depend anywhere near as heavily on Clark being young, or on Clark being torn between responsibilities in heroic and private life as Spider-Man does with Peter, so it's not a mistake to that extent.

However, having Lois know the secret and marry Clark upsets the classic triangle and the underlying archetypes beneath the character (Clark is the unimpressive child, Superman the respected and powerful adult, and the two together a metaphor for adolescence and youthful wish-fulfilment) without really replacing it with anything that works as well.

So until and unless they find a way to make married-Clark as compelling on a symbolic level as weak-ass Clark, I think it was probably a mistake.  Just not as large a mistake as having a character dependent on being a hard-luck youngster trapped by a secret he dares not reveal married to an actress-model who can smooth over half his responsibilities when necessary.

kdb

[Captain Kal]

Kurt, if I may call you that, I think you have it half right, or at least your answer is incomplete.

The Byrning gave us a Clark Kent who is the real man with Superman being the disguise.  Byrned Clark Kent is exactly the same personality as Byrned Superman, or he's supposed to be so. (I'll leave off the issues of Superman's leadership qualities and Kent's lack of them for now.)  Byrned Superman/Clark Kent is a heroic, alpha-male man of action in or out of the costume.

The only way the classic triangle would work is if the dichotomy between Clark Kent and Superman existed again.

The triangle really didn't exist from the MOS miniseries onwards regardless of whether Lois knew the secret ID, married the man, or both.