Books by Waid generally are...

So, my bad in not knowing this until now (and I can't believe no one corrected me on this), but this entire plot line is straight out of Kirby's run on Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen.



I understood that Project Cadmus came from there, but not these specific characters nor their backstory (and that includes their "Syms" -- guess Claremont was the true thief there).

To be completely honest, I've only read New Gods previously. I haven't read the Jimmy Olsen stuff beyond #133 and #134 (still trying to acquire the Jack Kirby's Fourth World Omnibuses for a reasonable price).

In the letter column for Superman #41, Ordway explains that he's a massive fan of The Fourth World and intends to keep bringing aspects of it into the Superman title, so I'll have to find a way to start reading all of these soon.

I get where you're coming from now. However, I think that was very much the point that Carlin/Perez/Stern/Ordway/Jurgens were going for. They're trying to find a balance where the Post-Crisis Superman can be taken seriously and have realistic elements, especially in character relationships, while still meshing with the best of the Pre-Crisis hokiness. I think they WANT Mxyzptlk and other fantastic elements to look as out of place in this world as they must to the world of Metropolis itself.

A Breakdown of the Changing Creative Teams and Editorial Policies that Shaped the Post-Crisis Superman

By 1989 (and likely earlier), annual "Super Summits" were being held in which editor and creative teams would work together to shape the coming year's worth of Superman stories. During these summits, policies and visions were shaped, and sometimes old policies and visions were scrapped entirely. Here's my best understanding of how those visions and policies looked from year to year:

1986-1987: The Initial Relaunch

The original concept for the Superman reboot came from Frank Miller and Steve Gerber and envisioned a depowered Superman, some of the more fantastic elements of the mythos (for example: Superboy) being removed from continuity, and Lex Luthor as a business tycoon. Marv Wolfman fought hard to get on the project but knew that DC wanted a bigger powerhouse creative talent on the book, so he recommended John Byrne. Wolfman and editor Andrew Helfer shared the original pitched vision for a Superman reboot, but Byrne, a longtime Superman fan, wanted the campier/more fantastic elements back in continuity. Thus, while the initial emphasis is on a depowered/less perfect Superman facing depowered, less fantastic enemies, Byrne begins reintroducing those more fantastic elements (including Mxyzptlk and a Pocket Universe Superboy) by the fall of 1987.

At this point, Superman is the core title, written and drawn by Byrne, while Wolfman and Jerry Ordway control Adventures of Superman, and Action Comics is a Byrne-controlled team-up title. Wolfman does not seem allowed to utilize Lex Luthor in his stories.

A drastic ideological difference develops between Byrne's and Wolfman's handling of Superman. Wolfman tries to "depower" Superman by placing him in morally and existentially difficult circumstances, where Byrne tries more to "depower" him by depicting Superman as having the personality of an average person -- quick to anger, succumb to temptations, and make mistakes, and also falling into decidedly un-heroic situations. The Action Comics storyline in which Superman and Barda fall under the hypnotic spell of a pornographer is practically infamous today and turned many fans away from the Post-Crisis Superman that Byrne was writing.



1988: Everyone Jumps Ship

1988 is a year of massive shake-ups for the Superman Office. It begins without Marv Wolfman, leaving presumably due to creative differences with John Byrne, who is increasingly shaping the franchise to suit his own vision. Editor Andrew Helfer soon follows suit, replaced with Mike Carlin. Byrne introduces a series of limited runs throughout 1988 (World of Krypton, World of Smallville, World of Metropolis) that further flesh out his vision of the Post-Crisis Superman Universe and culminates the year with the arrival of the Pocket Universe Supergirl, as well as the controversial moment in which Superman executes the rogue Kryptonians who destroyed the Pocket Universe Earth. In June, Byrne loses control of Action Comics in favor of the Action Comics Weekly experiment. Byrne then departs (seemingly abruptly) in the Fall, claiming that DC was constraining him too much.



1989: The Clean-up Year

The remaining people in the Superman office -- fill-in writer Roger Stern, Adventures of Superman co-plotter and artist Jerry Ordway, and new editor Mike Carlin -- shift from following Byrne's vision to suddenly having to cultivate one of their own. After playing out Byrne's intended direction for Superman in the wake of his execution of the rogue Kryptonians, the Superman Office spend four months attempting to restrategize while Superman (literally) wanders aimlessly in space, ultimately reorganizing for the second half of 1989 with George Perez as lead creator, and Roger Stern and Jerry Ordway plotting beside him, while Dan Jurgens and Kerry Gammill handle penciling chores. After taking on Mogul and Warworld, Superman returns to Earth to coincide with Action Comics reverting to a monthly Superman book. The titles are reorganized so that Action Comics focuses on Superman's adventures, The Superman title gives greater emphasis to the supporting cast and Superman's life as Clark Kent, and Adventures of Superman focuses on Superman's Kryptonian heritage.

Most of the emphasis throughout 1989 is on cleaning up and completing old Byrne plot points still left hanging. But, most importantly, Perez pushes for a return to Superman's more classic characterization (which Stern and Ordway had already been subtly working at) and reverses the original idea of keeping the more fantastic Pre-Crisis elements out of Post-Crisis continuity. We get a Fortress of Solitude, Red Kryptonite, several homages to Pre-Crisis storylines, and a clear acknowledgement that this Superman has been as much the patriarch of the DC superheroes as his Pre-Crisis counterpart.

Unfortunately, Perez's involvement in the new direction quickly downshifts from lead creator to marginal contributor, both due to over-commitment on other projects and health issues. As a result, Dan Jurgens is soon upgraded to writer/penciler and comes into his own beside Ordway and Stern.



1990: New Directions and Multi-Title Crossovers

1990 marks yet another restructuring of the Superman titles as the previous narrow focuses imposed by George Perez are now lifted, allowing for multi-part story arcs regularly sweeping across all three titles. In addition, with most of Byrne's old storylines resolved, the franchise begins moving in bold new directions, including two major deaths and the quick acceleration of Clark and Lois' relationship into territory the Pre-Crisis couple never arrived at. Additionally, the tense relationship between Batman and Superman, established in Dark Knight Returns and supported by both the Batman and Superman offices, gets undone with the Dark Knight over Metropolis storyline.



(this post will be updated as my reviews progress past 1990 )

Lois & Clark?



Man of Steel?




Marriage?

The joke suggestion was always hey what if we killed Superman....because no one ever thought they would, and then the dollar signs flashed and well...suddenly the punchline for the joke (or butt of the joke) was the readers and customer base.

-M