Who can save Superman now? KURT BUSIEK!

[Captain Kal]

Key on my opening sentence: I'm can't make you do anything.  I'm not even trying in that post.

The part about calling your Superman project is a non sequitur and is irrelevant to making you do anything.  I'm just pleased I read the signs, as it were, and guessed right.  That's all.

At no point was I insisting that Kurt Busiek must do my bidding.

I hope that misunderstanding has been straightened out.

And, yes, if I find out how to contact Mr. Johns I will correspond with him directly.  Again, I can't make you do that for me.

Peace.

[BMK!]

And, yes, if I find out how to contact Mr. Johns I will correspond with him directly.  Again, I can't make you do that for me.

Here, I'll make it easy for you...

www.comicbloc.com

[dto]

But that leads me to an actual Superman question for Kurt (or at least, the simulacra that Kurt hires to write Conan and post on this board):  What are your favorite Elseworlds / alternate Superman renditions?

Well, the Superboy of Earth-Prime is way up there.

I also tend to think of the "Mr. & Mrs. Superman" series as an "alternate" Superman (yeah, he's actually the original, but by the time that series happened, he was an alternative to the main one), and I just loved it.

Oh, and the Super-Sons.

I can't say I was ever a big Elseworlds guy, and that imprint was very Batman-heavy anyway, but of the official "Elseworlds," I liked SUPERMAN: THE DARK SIDE a lot, and I liked SUPERMAN/TARZAN: SONS OF THE JUNGLE more than a lot of people seemed to (but then, I like Carlos Meglia art).

What else?  I liked the early episodes of "Superman 2020," but it didn't go anywhere, did it?

I liked the world of SUPERMAN FAMILY #200, even if the story itself didn't do anything for me.

I guess I'm a sucker for stories with relatively positive views of what Superman's future could be like, especially if it's got dynastic aspects, or at least kids, and roles for the rest of the Superman family...

kdb

"Superman #200"?  I always wondered how the 2000 elections would have fared if Linda Danvers WAS governor of Florida.  I suspect we'd never see any problems with "butterfly ballots", and Luthor would DEFINITELY not been elected.   :wink:

I also thought it odd that SUPERGIRL would attend Clark and Lois' anniversary, as seen in the group photo.  Most of Clark's aquaintances knew Linda Danvers was a "cousin", though a background check through Midville adoption records might raise questions -- wasn't she supposed to be an orphan?  But why would Supergirl be there?  She was never depicted as a close friend of Clark, though she did appear in some old "Lois Lane" comic books.

And let's not forget Bruce Wayne and Kara's supposed new live-in boyfriend, Richard Grayson.  They are also family guests, though the other party attendees should be wondering how a Metropolis newsman would be so chummy with a Gotham City millionaire.

But I liked Laura Kent, whose superpowers were just beginning to emerge.  And then there was Lois' new baby, a future Superboy?  Too many tantalizing plot threads...

I suppose the mark of a great "Imaginary Story" or Elseworld is whether readers still want to the tale continued EVEN THOUGH they know full well it will likely NEVER be part of mainstream continuity.  And for me, "Superman Family #200" is one of those very few instances where I'd like to revisit events that "never REALLY happened".  Good to know that issue has other fans.  

[RedSunOfKrypton]

If you have any influence with Johns while working with him -- a must IMHO if you're working together -- would you mind passing two suggestions to him?

One, please, please, please suggest he put some more fun in his stories and stop his dismal trend for more gore and darkness. At the very least, try to have your combined work on Superman be of a less dismal nature, if you can't influence his general comics work.

I took this as just a friendly suggestion (as is stated in the first sentence) that exemplifies what a lot of us think. There's a reason they're called superHEROES.

Two, please have you or someone else do the comics science and powers instead of him. He doesn't do very well in that area -- If you've seen my criticism posts on that you know what I mean. Heck, you're a bright guy obviously much more qualified than I am so I'm sure you've noted the same things.

I agree with this as many of us find accurate attempts at science important. Especially since a large genre that comics, Superman especially, dip into is Sci-Fi. If you're gonna use bad science you may as well call it magic, and I've never been much of a fan of Deus Ex Machina.

I've been refraining from responding until now, but I have a confession to make.

It's all MY fault. Blame me.

Geoff Johns and I grew up in the same neck of the woods -- Clarkston, Michigan. We went to the same high school and probably shared a few of the same science teachers. An "idealized" rendition is Clarkston, MI is documented in THE THING: FREAKSHOW (the Kree/Skrull invasion part is pretty accurate, but the bit about cows in Clarkston is bogus... he was probably referring to nearby Ortonville). Geoff was a waiter at a place I would go to every once in awhile with my girlfriend at the time, before she became a psycho hose beast ex-girlfriend.

I should have recognized the spark of comic book greatness that was within him! Instead of tipping him with dollar bills, I should have left him little notes like: "Know and love superstring theory, for it will help you to put Superman's powers in a rational framework." In hindsight, it's clear I should have intercepted him before he did the excreable thing of going to the church of Richard Donner and learning <shudder> storytelling! But NOOOoooo... instead I simply tipped him 15-20% and never bothered to nip his bad pseudoscience in the bud, and now poor victims like Captain Kal have to suffer for it.

I beseech forgiveness!!!

Was that necessary?

I don't think it's our place to tell him what he should or should not write.

Call me crazy, but aren't writer's salaries paid for at least in majority (not counting advertising revenue) by us buying comics? And if writers don't write in ways that appeal to a fanbase, they tend not to stay writers very long. This comment has no bearing on Kurt (as I've said I'm a fan, and he obviously does a good job to be writing what he does) but it is accurate nontheless.

[Uncle Mxy]

I've been refraining from responding until now, but I have a confession to make.

It's all MY fault. Blame me.

Geoff Johns and I grew up in the same neck of the woods
...
I beseech forgiveness!!!

Was that necessary?

Posting in general on BBSes is rarely _necessary_.  But whenever I see Geoff Johns' name, I think "darn it, I should've known this guy".  There just weren't that many comic book fans right where we grew up, and he was my waiter.  Oh well....

But in the interest of steering things in a Superman direction...  Kurt, from which supporting character's perspective(s) would you think would make for a good Superman story?   I always figured a Superman story told from Steve Lombard's perspective would be amusing.

[Superman Forever]

Kurt,

Super-heroes as modern myhtology: recently, we have books like Who needs a superhero: finding virtue, vice and what's holy in the comics and Mark Waid's chapter in Superheroes and Philosophy, talking about how the comic book stories help people overcome problems and guide their lives like religious metaphors.

What is your aproach on the matter, as a writer, both in Superman and in other comics like Vengers and Astro City? Do you think abou the impact the super-hero story will have in the person life when writing?? Do you think Superman should have a formative purpose for the youger readers? Wold you write some character whose philosophy you don't agree with?

Thank you.

[Kurt Busiek]

But in the interest of steering things in a Superman direction...  Kurt, from which supporting character's perspective(s) would you think would make for a good Superman story?   I always figured a Superman story told from Steve Lombard's perspective would be amusing.

I think it's possible to tell good Superman stories from any supporting character's POV -- and yeah, Lombard's could be fun.

But if I had o pick just one, and it couldn't be one of the usual suspects -- I'd tell a story from Sam Lane's POV.  I have no idea what it would be, but I'm pretty sure he'd have an interesting perspective.

kdb

[Kurt Busiek]

Kurt,

Super-heroes as modern myhtology: recently, we have books like Who needs a superhero: finding virtue, vice and what's holy in the comics and Mark Waid's chapter in Superheroes and Philosophy, talking about how the comic book stories help people overcome problems and guide their lives like religious metaphors.

What is your aproach on the matter, as a writer, both in Superman and in other comics like Vengers and Astro City?

To tell good stories.  The "modern mythology" part of it will take care of itself, just like ancient myths were the result of many stories being told and the ones that resonated best surviving.  I don't think you can set out to write myth.

Do you think abou the impact the super-hero story will have in the person life when writing??

Not really, no.  Tell an honest story about a good person, and it'll pick up whatever value it has on the way.

Do you think Superman should have a formative purpose for the youger readers?

Sure, but I don't think you get to that point by consciously preaching or moralizing in the stories.

Wold you write some character whose philosophy you don't agree with?

I do it all the time.  I disagree with Conan, I've written the Punisher, the cast of the Power Company (who had a range of philosophies) and more.  And of course, I write the villains in any story I write that has villains in it.

kdb