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October 18, 2013: NYCC Panels: DEEP DIVE

Report by T.A. Ewart (aka liheibao)

DC COMICS - SUPERMAN
DCE Panelist(s): Eddie Berganza
Moderator(s): John Cunningham
Talent: Tony Daniel, Aaron Kuder, Greg Pak, Scott Lobdell, Scott Snyder, Charles Soule

While waiting on line, I struck up conversations with fellow reporters and fans about Superman. No matter where the discussion started, all roads led to Man of Steel. There was a smattering of talk about New 52, and favorite storylines and all, but the inevitable question was all ways, "What did you think of the film?" That was the energy of the crowd before entering the panel room for Superman. No one knew what to expect from the creators, but I had a good idea of what to expect in terms of audience questions and what fans wanted to hear.

SUPERMAN: UNCHAINED: Scott Synder was first up to bat, and while he was ready to swing for the fence, technical difficulties hampered his delivery. The slide-show which was to accompany his preview wasn't working, but he soldiered on. So we get the obligatory question about the difference between Batman and Superman (Superman is open, Bruce isn't) for the umpteenth time, before diving into upcoming issues of Superman Unchained (#4-7).

Since we didn't have the slides, Synder's preview was confusing, what with the description of origami and heroes being folded, but it turns out that Lex Luthor has Jimmy Olsen (remember him?) under wraps to get at Superman and is explaining how the various heroes would die i.e. Superman. Batman is easy, he fights crime and crime is going to get him, with Gotham on fire behind him. Wonder Woman? Too easy, she dies in battle. Superman, however, is no mean trick. Why? Obviously because Luthor wants to do it. All of this while Luthor is about to do something untoward to his new "pal".

General Lane had his Hyde Park moment, now it's Wraith's turn. He asks Superman to imagine walking into the Daily Planet 10 years, then 30 years, then 50 years into the future, to explain why Superman's secret ID is pointless and why he should join up with Wraith and General Lane. Then Wraith attacks him!

The last bit of spoiler we get in the form of learning that every military on Earth is gunning for Superman. Superman, while still on Wraith's good-side, is shot with a red solar radiation bullet. Yes, I know. Wraith goes on to explain that every military on the planet is developing weapons to take him down. Superman's time is "limited" and the only option Superman has is to join up with Wraith and company, because they will "protect" him.

I wanted to jump up and yell: "What about that Kryptonian battle armor? Doesn't it offer any protection at all? Isn't Superman still faster than a speeding bullet?", but it was time to move onto Soule.

SUPERMAN/WONDER WOMAN: Soule explains Superman/Wonder Woman is a "giant scaled" superhero story, involving bad guys, challenges, and paces for Superman, which we hope won't just be Doomsday. We'll assume the challenges are of the shared variety, and we don't hear anything about any Wonder Woman specific villains. Did you know that Superman and Wonder Woman are in a relationship? No, really. Well, don't worry about it. The relationship, the reason two of them are sharing a title at all, may give the book "depth" and allow for certain "beats" not akin to a regular comic book, but it's not a make-out book, lads. You'll have to look elsewhere to sate those naughty thoughts. Soule explains, quite elegantly, the ideas that came to be the first page of issue 1: it's a quiet moment for Wonder Woman and Superman, above the fray and in the light. If it weren't for all of those dark clouds, I would have gotten it. He then goes on to say that when Wonder Woman and Superman can find "peace together, is when they can be together." That doesn't sound promising as "issues 1-6 are a 'race' to a really big end". Superman and Wonder Woman's relationship is complicated by Wonder Woman, her extended family of the Greek Pantheon, and, of course, Superman. Soule lets us know that there will be "legitimate" reasons for Superman to get into a donnybrook with Wonder Woman's dysfunctional family, which of course we'll have to see, but I'm betting that those reasons are in line with all of the illegitimate reasons that these guys fight anyway: they've to do something before the last page. Soule is like Synder, in that he has this exuberance for what he's doing. You can hear the excitement in his voice, even if you're not certain about everything else. Tony Daniel was still learning the art of speaking into the microphone.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: Time is wasted recapping the last three issues of Batman/Superman, before Pak is given the go. He then goes on to break no new ground, other than to remind us of the New 52 allowing him to write iconic characters from the bottom up (which have all ready been written from the bottom up two years ago). Pak goes on to retell Batman/Superman #1-3, to an audience that has all ready read it. The spoiler that we get for the upcoming issue is that the last three pages are to be looked for, as they're pretty wild. That's it. Not sure why Pak game, as he spoke like he needed to get back to his car before the meter expired, and aside of platitudes about Batman and Superman, offered very little incentive to bring new readers on to the title. Perhaps he wanted to keep his cards close to the vest. Perhaps he knew what Scott Lobdell was going to do next.

SUPERMAN: I've defended Lobdell on occasion, and slated him on others. I've enjoyed his Superman run and was really looking forward to what he would have to say. I've never met Hypoxic, but I could feel his Internet presence reaching out to me:

"Now you will know why you fear the night."

Lobdell gave some light information about the Krypton Returns: Superman meets his mom, and she kicks his ass. Kara works with the clone. Superboy makes the ultimate sacrifice. Jon Lane� Wait, hold on, back up, what was that? Lobdell repeats himself just as laconically as he did the first time, with the coda that Conner will be replaced by Jon Lane Kent, the son of Lois Lane and Superman, from a future that may or may not exist. Some of the audience applauded, the rest of us wore a face that said:

"Is he screwing around?!" Which was quickly followed by: "Bloody hell, he's straight on! They're killing Conner. Again!"

Those were the faces on the panel as well. It wasn't that they didn't know, but the surprise and outright shock on their faces, clued us in that Lobdell was really on his own with this announcement. Supergirl will be leaving the Superman Family forever, is the next bit of news that Lobdell shares. He invited Soule to jump in and spoil away, but Soule declined with a polite, "now is not the time". Lobdell went on to talk about Lois Lane being drained of her Brainiac energy by the Parasite, and writing Superman making the "less bad decision" as opposed to the right decision, but the room was still on the crest of what had been said less than a minute ago. Question time!

QUESTIONS: Derenick reminds me of Keith Pollard, and who doesn't like Pollard? Solid, strong figures, with great splashes hear and there. He gets Kalibak's mocking grimace just right every time.

THE TAKEAWAY: Panels are supposed to give us an overview and a preview of the comics we read, and a reason, perhaps, to try a book or a related title. What was learned from the speakers is that Superman exists in pieces and parts, but there is no whole character in any of his monthly titles. Superman and Action Comics are about Krypton Returns, while Superman/Wonder Woman exists in its own world, which is separate of both Superman and Wonder Woman. The same for Batman/Superman, while Superman Unchained is practically an Elseworlds. There is no cohesion between the books at this time, even though the panel stated that they meet regularly (to make certain that nothing connects, it seems). Superboy is going die and Supergirl is leaving. Are these encouraging reasons to start reading Superman books? Perhaps seeing Superman cause someone's death accidentally or chose the lesser of two evils? Each writer is rendering their own version of Superman, which strangely enough sounds like Adventures of Superman (no representation at the panel though) and we'll only know the efficacy of doing so as time progresses.

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