Who's Who in the Superman Comics
Metropolis
Home of Superman and known as the City of Tomorrow by its residents; truthfully, that's actually not too far from the literal truth. Located near New York City and Gotham City on the United States' east coast, Metropolis is divided into six boroughs, and occupies three islands and areas along the coasts of the Hob's and West Rivers. On islands are the boroughs of New Troy, St. Martin's Island, and Hell's Gate. On the riverbank is Queensland Park along the West River to the south, and on Hob's River to the north are Park Ridge and Bakerline. New Troy, on the center island, is a center of business, like New York's Manhattan. It is home to the University of Metropolis and Centennial Park on the west side; and the Daily Planet, the LexCorp Tower, the Newstime building, and Galaxy Communications in the eastern business district. New Troy also has a less prosperous neighborhood called Hob's Bay, commonly known as Suicide Slum. Metropolis' nickname is the 'Big Apricot'.
On New Years Eve 1999, at the stroke of midnight, at the dawning of a new millennium, Metropolis was changed forever (Superman Y2K). Brainiac 2.5 had a master plan to ruin Luthor by taking control over every computer in the world that LexCorp sold their Y2KOMPLIANCE program to. Unknown to Brainiac 2.5, a futuristic version of himself, Brainiac 13, from millennia in the future, decided that this time in Earth's past was the time to take control over the world and defeat Superman once and for all. Through his effort to contain his essence, Metropolis was upgraded to a literal city of tomorrow. Every piece of technology the B13 Virus encountered upgraded to a futuristic version of itself; everything forming a link to Brainiac 13 like a supercomputer. Through the grudging cooperation of Superman, Luthor, and B2.5 (inhabiting Lena Luthor's body), B13 was defeated and cities around the world began to revert back to normal. In the final moments of B13's defeat, Luthor was given a choice, the key to keeping Metropolis upgraded and the key to the technology it held in return for B2.5 and the body he inhabited, Lena. Luthor agreed and the three, along with the Kryptonian Battle Suit B13 was trapped inside, vanished to parts unknown.
With Brainiac 13's return (after the defeat of Imperiex in the "Our Worlds at War" saga in SUP #173), Metropolis (and specifically the LexCorp Towers) are used as weapons by B13 to attack Apokolips and tear apart the already fragile alliance between Darkseid and Earth. Having usurped Imperiex's energy, Brainiac 13 plans to take over the universe, and has been using a grown-up Lena Luthor to play her father for a pawn. But B13 is thwarted by Superman and friends, and sent to the beginning of time and the original Big Bang through a special Boom Tube (ACT #782).
Some time later a time storm raged in the skies over Metropolis. When the havoc of the time storm passed, Metropolis - the true, modern Metropolis - reemerged. Purged of the Brainiac 13 technology, the Big Apricot now resembles a pseudo art deco-style mega center. Gone are the cybernetic skyscrapers, the hovering cars, and hard matter light windows and displays. Now, 21st Century state-of-the-art materials make up the composition of the city's structures; as it should be. Even the holographic globe atop The Daily Planet Building is gone; replaced by the classic, solid matter dome which stood as a symbol for the media enterprise for so long.
Despite the physical changes of the city, Metropolis still stands as one of the world's greatest urban centers, right alongside Gotham City, New York City, Toronto, and San Francisco.
Who's Who in the Superman Comics
Introduction
This is a listing of many of the notable characters and a few places that have appeared in the Superman comics from the 1986 revamp up until around 2008.
NOTE: A new, and more current version of the Who's Who is currently being worked on and can be accessed by clicking here.
Although Superman often appears in other DC Comics, this text's information is limited mainly to what has occurred in the regular Superman comics.
Many thanks to Scotty V, Derrick Lyle Coleman, Dean Vanek, Genevieve Clemens and Benjamin Grose who all helped out at one time or another with writing and updating these Who's Who descriptions.
The listings are displayed as follows: - Surname, Firstname - Text describing the character, place, object, etc...
Relevant issues of the Superman comics are listed as such:
- SUP = Superman
- MOS = Man of Steel
- AOS = Adventures of Superman
- ACT = Action Comics
- MOT = Man of Tomorrow
The Issue Number for each of these titles is written in this manner: “#000”. (e.g. SUP #123)
“First Appearance” refers to the issue since 1986 unless otherwise noted.
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