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Here are Kurt Busiek's answers to questions fans put to him about "Action Comics #852" and other relevant topics:
Kurt's Answers
Ian Staley (CinemaGuy1) (cinemaguy1@gmail.com) asks:Hi Kurt. I appreciate your work and elaboration of Kryptonite Man in this issue. I actually enjoyed those parts the most and hoped something might come of it. Do you feel stories like this one are being pushed aside with a single punch in order to accommodate the progression of "Countdown" along with the exploration of New Earth and its past? I thought "Countdown" was a weekly tie-in to the monthy titles, but seeing the words "Countdown Tie-in" on this cover makes me sense I've had it backwards. Does your writing change with these added challenges of maintaining three arcs at once? More importantly, do you feel you have less pages per book to tell "your" story because of it?
Kurt: We're not done with the Kryptonite Man in this arc, Ian, so you can look forward to more with him. And I built this story the way I wanted it -- I was given an outline of what would be happening in Countdown, and built a story around that. It's not like I plotted out this story and they made me stick Countdown stuff in it -- all three bits are part of the same story, and you'll see more of how they come together next issue.
Rob Staeger (Email address withheld by request) asks:
Do you have any further plans for Meg Tempest? Or for that matter, rounding out the Daily Planet staff any further, either with faces from the past (like Ron Troupe) or new staffers?
Kurt: No specific plans with Meg -- I've mentioned her a couple of times, and will happily bring her on-panel if she's needed for a story. So it goes with all of them -- Ron Troupe had a cameo in Superman #664, we met another Planet staffer in #665 (not a reporter, though), and others have been mentioned here and there.
Jose Valentin (obirick@msn.com) asks:
Hi Kurt and thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Is there any chance that we'll see Superman become a FATHER by adopting Chris? First off, I'm a fan of Singer's film and loved the idea of making Supes a dad. Being a relatively new Father myself, I'd like to see Supes make the transition from dad to Father. To put that comment in context, I consider the term "DAD" to refer to the man who's genetically linked to a child. I consider the term "FATHER" to refer to the man who takes on the responsibility for that child. Seeing how writers, and I think fans in general, appreciate the "human" aspect of Supes, I can't imagine anything MORE human that being a loving FATHER and nuturing a child for the rest of their life. I mean, Fatherhood is a challenge Superman has never faced before. I think he has what it takes to be a GREAT FATHER, but I think the interesting thing is that in spite of all his great powers, being a parent will be just as challenging for him as it is for the rest of us. I should qualify my "fandom" by stating that I've been reading Superman for about 30 years. :)
Kurt: Regarding fatherhood, anything's possible! And Chris will be important to both the "Third Kryptonian" arc and the "Insect Queen" arc that follows it, both coming up in Superman.
Michael Bailey (Email address withheld by request) asks:
Hey, Kurt! I enjoyed ACTION #852, but at the same time I was a bit put off by the fact that it was so closely tied to Countdown. I realize that Jimmy is integral to that series, but don't you think that the time would be better spent getting the Superman books back on track with their own storylines that have been, for one reason or another, delayed instead of being connected to Countdown?
Kurt: There's only one story that's currently delayed in Action Comics -- "Last Son." Since that's going to wrap up in an Annual, not doing a Countdown tie-in in #852 wouldn't do anything to get it back on track. Heck, I'm not working on that story, and neither is Brad, so it's not as if we're holding it back from completion. Similarly, in Superman, there's only one story that's suffered delays (though some of those have been planned breaks, with the story built to work with gaps at those points), and it'll be wrapping up in #667-668. So the "3-2-1 Action" story isn't delaying anything, and doing something else in this issue wouldn't catch anything up. As for it being tied to Countdown, that was the point -- we wanted to do a story that built on what Countdown's doing with a Superman cast member -- Jimmy -- and reflected it in his home books. Glad you enjoyed it, in any case.
Short, sharp and to the point this time around, what with the quick turn around of Superman comics being written by you. Thanks again. See you with "Superman #665" questions shortly.
Kurt: I'll be the one who looks like me, but a little older!
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