The news that Superman’s son Jon Kent would be coming out as bisexual in an upcoming issue of his comic book “Superman: Son of Kal-El” saw a variety of different reactions across the internet.
Writer Tom Taylor was interviewed by John Berman on CNN, with Taylor preferring to focus on the positives.
Great to chat to @JohnBerman on @CNN‘s @NewDay about Jon Kent, #Superman, coming out as bisexual.@DCComics @thedcnation pic.twitter.com/VEFChEJLM2
— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylorMade) October 12, 2021
“Action Comics” writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson took to Twitter with his own response to the nonsense of people like the above mentioned Senator…
“Thanks so much for reading, Wendy! Don’t worry, Louis and Clark’s marriage is as secure as ever, as you’ll continue to see in the pages of Action Comics, the Superman (Clark Kent) title. Superman: Son of Kal-El follows Jon Kent, their son.”
“To clarify: both father and son are using the title of ‘Superman’ currently, much like two characters go by ‘Spider-Man’ at Marvel. Like his dad, Jon is a beautiful character with a lot to say about how people should treat one another, and clearly has a lot to teach us.”
“Here’s a scene with Superman Classic in all his hetero glory, as depicted in the most recent issue of Action Comics. That’s Lois he’s… holding.”
“*Adding* Jonathan Kent to the DC Universe in 2015 did not *subtract* Clark Kent. There is NO REPLACING Clark Kent. Both can exist. Giving more people an A-list superhero that they can see themselves in does not mean that yours–the one you see yourself in–no longer exists. I can’t take credit for Jon’s creation or the recent development, but I’m proud that he’s there.”
“A heartfelt ‘welcome’ to everyone who saw today as GREAT news, and especially those who now have a Superman that they can more easily identify with as a result. To those who were NOT happy with the news, please remember that the character of Superman represents the very best of us, and is there to show us the way. Anyone who imagines Clark would respond to this news from Jon with anything but deepest compassion and understanding, might reexamine their understanding of who Superman is.”
“When I was a kid, Clark was the hero I desperately needed. There are readers out there now who STILL need Clark, and Clark is STILL THERE for them. He ALWAYS WILL BE. There is NO REPLACING Clark Kent.”
“But there are OTHER readers who need Jon.”
As a life-long Superman fan, it has been extremely disappointing to see some of the comments from so-called “Superman fans” both on this website and on our social media platforms. Messages of homophobia or bigotry will NOT be allowed. If you claim to be a Superman fan, who is an absolute model for human behavior, you are expected to hold yourself to a higher standard.
Did my comment get deleted?
It did. I did it. It asserted that this change was to follow an “agenda,” which is a thinly veiled comment close enough to homophobia that I deleted it. It also stated that they should create a new character, which is exactly what Jon is, in the scheme of comics. I can’t speak to your intentions, only to how it came off. I am going to err on the side of delete first, ask questions later for this, with very, very good reason. We are deleting comments proactively, because there has been a LOT of bigotry associated with this news.… Read more »
Hey Neal,
I was wondering, if you could write and direct a Superman movie, what would it be about and who would you cast as Superman?
Thanks,
Superman2878
I doubt I’ll ever be in that position, and honestly, to me the casting wouldn’t matter (there are a ton of people who can fill those boots, and actors can act). But for the story, I’d probably do a variation of Smallville in Metropolis. Clark and Lex have been friends for four years, country mouse and city mouse, with both genuinely earnest human beings who did good for others. Lex would feel a false meritocratic sense of entitlement, as people in America do when they’re rich, and to him it would seem he was saving Smallville over and over, when… Read more »
I’d totally see that film.
Very kind of you to say, thanks.
Look about my comments, I don’t regret anything that I wrote earlier. These days people can’t write or express what they feel about the current situation specially in your country. I can understand that my comments may have being taken out of context but I can promise you that I have nothing against natural and normal human beings. It is what it is, sorry if you think that everything that its going on currently it’s organic. It’s suppose to be, but from my point of view it isn’t. When you see a shift of changes in the industry, not only… Read more »
Totally cool. Like I said, I am erring on the side of caution, it’s not about you or your opinion, so much as watching for a whiff or hint of bigotry. I deleted about 12 more with yours, in a large swath, so yours probably got swept up in that, and if I was wrong, I apologize. And if you think the story is inorganic, or poorly told, perfectly cool to comment, don’t be afraid. A poorly turned phrase won’t get you banned, at worst, it’ll get a comment inadvertently deleted out of caution. And we can tell the difference,… Read more »
So, let me get this straight: you actively violated a constitutional and human right because of YOUR PERCEPTION (that is, not a fact) of what the other person said (you preferred to “err on the side of caution”, because of what YOU PERCEIVED was a “comment close enough to homophobia”, “a whiff”, which actually means that it wasn’t homophobia, even though the poster was respectful of the issue – you even said later it was “totally cool”). That “higher standard” Steve mentions in an article then would be a hypocritical comment, because you’re not letting people have their freedom of… Read more »
Yes. That’s exactly it. I am deleting ANYTHING that even remotely sounds like homophobia, at my discretion. And I will continue to do so, at my perception. You do not have a constitutional and human right to free speech on our site. That’s not how the freedom of speech works. Do some reading. On private sites, we control what is said and done, just as you control what is said and done in your private home. We ALLOW you to say what we want to allow you to say. And we do not ALLOW homophobia, or anything that has the… Read more »
Of course it is your site and anyone who chooses to make comments here must be subject to the site’s rules, and that freedom of speech is allowed as long as said speech doesn’t offend anyone else (I know exactly how it works, thank you). Thing is, that this poster didn’t offend anyone, but you still chose to delete his post. So if tomorrow you perceive anything not even remotely homophobic as homophobic, what then? Where does it end? Yes, you as “admin” make the rules, but they should be fair to everyone (including you), so everyone -respectfully, of course-… Read more »
Here’s what you’re missing, critically. You don’t get to decide who the post offends or doesn’t. I do. The staff does. It’s not your call. At all. You don’t get to tell me where to leave it, or not leave it. I tell you where to leave it or not leave it. We are in charge here. You are, very clearly, expressing yourself, and I haven’t banned you, or threatened to ban you, at all. You are whining about oppression and being silenced while being allowed to speak. Every single person’s perception is subjective. Yours is. Mine is. And yes.… Read more »
I’m still salty that poor Jon’s had more years skipped than he’s been around because writers are too lazy to write children. That’s a lot of character growth that we all, as readers, were frankly screwed out of – not to mention that 10-year old Jon was a great way to have something for much younger readers to get into comics and, oh I don’t know, build an audience for comics again. But this? Speaking as a 41-year old married straight man, I have less than zero problems with Jon being bi. It doesn’t change Clark, Lois, or the fully… Read more »
That’s what I really liked about Conner/Superboy (pre-New 52); as a character, he had an organic transition from stereotypical 90s KEWL teenager (I was a teenager in the 90s, and never used that spelling) to a fairly rich character. But it took roughly a decade of stories to get there (created in 1993, arguably peaked with the 2003 Teen Titans series). As for Jon Kent; I like more representation of our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters in pop culture, and as a relatively new character, it makes more sense than say suddenly changing a character who was ostensibly straight for decades… Read more »
Yeah – I was really looking forward to seeing Jon mature slowly over time (like Kon/Conner), so when that didn’t happen, I was pissed. There are so few child characters in DC that are central, and I also thought it added a unique dimension to Clark’s more fatherly demeanor among his superhero colleagues. But yeah, Jon was the perfect choice for coming out (much as his father “coming out” as Superman/Clark Kent was a great allegory that still remained true to who the character is), and I hope DC has a better grasp on how to treat him than they… Read more »
[…] Fuente: Superman Homepage […]
I made an account just to say “thank you” to the administrators for how they handled this situation. It gives me hope (which is something the Superman website should do).
Much obliged, and welcome. I’ll be frank, a crackdown should have come a long time ago, but like the adage about planting a tree, the best time is ten years ago, the second best time is right now. We’re very committed to freedom of speech, which is why it went on so long, but it became very clear with this particular news story that it isn’t about people trying to express an opinion that were misunderstood, but rather a group of folks trying to disguise hate as civil discourse, and we’re now cracking down. We got fooled, which is human,… Read more »
As a gay man and a fan. I think this is stupid and lazy just like DC comics has been for a good while now. They do not have good writes their anymore neither does Marvel. They think this is new and refreshing i guess but it not. It just following what mainstream wants
Honestly I don’t care that Jonathan Kent is bisexual. I care that they make his sexuality the sales focus.
Why? I’d counter with; didn’t they make Lois and Clark’s wedding the focus once upon a time? How is this any different?