Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Oct 1, 2014 17:59:02 GMT -5
So, I was reading a TPB collection of Superman stories recently with a forward written by John Byrne, and in it he was quite critical of the decision to make Clark Kent a television newsreader for WGBS-TV in the '70s and early '80s. Byrne's reasoning was that it was ridiculous for someone to whom maintaining a secret identity was of the utmost importance to then go and actively pursue a career as a television personality, being beamed into millions of people's homes every evening. Being an investigative news reporter for the Daily Planet, allowed Superman to keep tabs on what crimes were happening in Metropolis and also meant that he could go snooping. Clark couldn't investigate crime stuck behind a desk in a television studio.
To be honest, I can kinda see Byrne's point, but then again, isn't the entire premise of Clark Kent's disguise patently ridiculous? I mean, sure, we all buy into the fact that a simple pair of glasses is a good enough disguise that nobody recognises Clark as Superman, because that's how suspension of disbelief works. But the instant we all really think about it, it's all a bit absurd. So, for Byrne to apparently be OK with this particular conceit, but then have issues with Clark working on TV because it's too unbelievable seems a bit mean-spirited.
Myself, I'm a big fan of this era of Superman; this is the era of Superman that I grew up reading -- especially the immediate pre-crisis period of the early '80s. I think that Cary Bates and Curt Swan created some great comics during their time together, with some memorable new supporting characters (like Steve Lombard), and some interesting twists on some old favourites (like robot Brainiac and Lex Luthor's battle suit). But I also realise that my generational bias towards this era makes me, well...biased. I can't help thinking that Byrne's love of earlier periods of Superman comics has biased him towards this era of Superman comics too, but in the opposite direction to me.
So, is what do we think? Was it a good move or a bad one to stick Clark Kent in a television studio at WGBS-TV?
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Oct 1, 2014 18:07:51 GMT -5
No particular opinion. I really liked Lana as co-anchor, though; The 60-year-old woman in a 27 year old body who's seen it all and call's everybody "luv" is one of my favorite supporting characters in comics.
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Post by Pharozonk on Oct 1, 2014 18:29:07 GMT -5
I love the Superman stories from this era too. 1980-1985 is my favorite Superman period.
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Confessor
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Not Bucky O'Hare!
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Post by Confessor on Oct 1, 2014 18:31:13 GMT -5
No particular opinion. I really liked Lana as co-anchor, though; The 60-year-old woman in a 27 year old body who's seen it all and call's everybody "luv" is one of my favorite supporting characters in comics. God, yes! I'd sort of forgotten about that particular characterisation of Lana Lang, but you're right, it was really good. As a kid, that character always seemed a little...saucy or flirty or something. Great fun. Thanks for reminding me, luv. |
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Post by Rob Allen on Oct 1, 2014 19:24:50 GMT -5
I can see Byrne's point also, but like everyone so far in this thread, I like the stories from the WGBS era.
Kurt came up with a brilliant solution to the problem of Superman's disguise in Lash House, which I think he posted at CBR but has not posted here yet. His idea was that there was more to the Clark disguise than just the glasses - Kryptonians have more control over their bodies than we do, and as Clark he compresses his spine to make himself shorter and gives himself a bit of paunch.
Unfortunately Curt Swan drew Supes and Clark identically except for the glasses and clothing, so we have to imagine that people in the DCU are just half-blind.
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Post by Action Ace on Oct 1, 2014 19:40:24 GMT -5
My question is this, how many tv cameras did Superman destroy in the Bronze Age? The amount of money WBGS spent on cameras and backup news anchors had to be staggering. No wonder Morgan Edge was always in a bad mood.
While I like Bronze Age Superman stories, I would have preferred that he was a newspaper journalist at the time.
Since Google, Twitter and various other modern things can alert him of trouble these days, maybe he should just go back to farming in Smallville.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2014 20:22:25 GMT -5
I always enjoyed those stories and I do have 40-60 odds and ends books and I loved it when Clark teams up with Lana during that time frame and having said that - I have no issues of Clark Kent being a television reporter for WGBS-TV and gave Clark more freedom to become Superman when the situation warrants it.
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Post by dupersuper on Oct 1, 2014 21:20:54 GMT -5
I always enjoyed those stories and I do have 40-60 odds and ends books and I loved it when Clark teams up with Lana during that time frame and having said that - I have no issues of Clark Kent being a television reporter for WGBS-TV and gave Clark more freedom to become Superman when the situation warrants it. How would being on camera give Clark more freedom to become Superman than being a print journalist who can disappear as long as he hands in a story at the end of the day? |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Oct 1, 2014 21:25:02 GMT -5
I can see Byrne's point also, but like everyone so far in this thread, I like the stories from the WGBS era. Kurt came up with a brilliant solution to the problem of Superman's disguise in Lash House, which I think he posted at CBR but has not posted here yet. His idea was that there was more to the Clark disguise than just the glasses - Kryptonians have more control over their bodies than we do, and as Clark he compresses his spine to make himself shorter and gives himself a bit of paunch. Unfortunately Curt Swan drew Supes and Clark identically except for the glasses and clothing, so we have to imagine that people in the DCU are just half-blind. It's been a while since I read it but I think they used a similar idea for the Samaritan in Astro City and I think it would be great for Superman as well. |
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Post by chadwilliam on Oct 1, 2014 22:24:27 GMT -5
I liked Clark Kent as a TV personality and it seemed like a natural fit for the character. It was that Clark wasn't pursuing a career as a TV newsman that made it interesting - it was something he clearly wanted to free himself from but couldn't, hence the tension of "How am I going to cover this story as Kent and be a part of it as Superman?". It also provided a nice narrative structure to many tales - a splash page of Clark Kent announcing late breaking news that the Parasite has broken out of Star Labs is an effective way of starting a story, filling in the reader, and lending a certain gravitas to the proceedings. Morgan Edge also proved to be a different type of boss from Perry White and gave Superman someone new to play off of - I believe there were times where Kent would shed his mild mannered personality and tell Edge where he could shove the job he was doing if he didn't like it. That Superman would have to mentally admonish his alter ego and keep this side of himself in check added a nice dimension to the character as well.
John Byrne may not have liked the idea, but to be honest, his run always read like "Superman for those who don't like or understand Superman" anyway. |
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Post by chadwilliam on Oct 1, 2014 22:36:19 GMT -5
I can see Byrne's point also, but like everyone so far in this thread, I like the stories from the WGBS era. Kurt came up with a brilliant solution to the problem of Superman's disguise in Lash House, which I think he posted at CBR but has not posted here yet. His idea was that there was more to the Clark disguise than just the glasses - Kryptonians have more control over their bodies than we do, and as Clark he compresses his spine to make himself shorter and gives himself a bit of paunch. Unfortunately Curt Swan drew Supes and Clark identically except for the glasses and clothing, so we have to imagine that people in the DCU are just half-blind. I'm sorry Rob, but I have to take issue with this. I've always appreciated the way that Swan was given the directive to basically draw Superman with a pair of glasses minus the spit curl and create someone new and succeeding at his task. I would look carefully at the characters thinking that Swan had somehow cheated in his presentation of the two - perhaps he had rounded Kent's chin more when the glasses were added, or made the face thinner, but no - Curt Swan would actually give Kent's face a different personality from Superman's. Kent's eyes would usually display a slight touch of worry, his brow somewhat furrowed, his mouth would take on the contours of one about to voice a concern of some sort but without the courage to speak up. Gone would be Superman's perfect posture, the conviction of his face, the determination often carried in his eyes - to me, they were two different aspects of the same person. Frankly, if he had to, I think Curt Swan could have convinced me they were two different people even without the glasses. And the compressing the spine bit was definately a feature of the pre-Crisis Superman - I believe it was Eliot Maggin's idea though it may have even predated him. |
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Post by Randle-El on Oct 1, 2014 23:09:18 GMT -5
I never really thought that Superman's secret identity was that much of a suspension of disbelief. I was always a fan of the view that the absence of a mask led people to believe that he didn't have a civilian identity. I also think that the wardrobe, glasses, and change of hairstyle is a much better disguise than people give it credit for, simply because it defies our expectations -- we don't normally expect to encounter someone famous in a mundane setting wearing unremarkable clothing. We would be more likely to notice George Clooney wearing a tux at a movie premier than if he were wearing a track suit at the supermarket.
Then there's this:
Or this:
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Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2014 23:29:54 GMT -5
I always enjoyed those stories and I do have 40-60 odds and ends books and I loved it when Clark teams up with Lana during that time frame and having said that - I have no issues of Clark Kent being a television reporter for WGBS-TV and gave Clark more freedom to become Superman when the situation warrants it. How would being on camera give Clark more freedom to become Superman than being a print journalist who can disappear as long as he hands in a story at the end of the day? I need more time to think this out ... sorry, you are right about the print journalist part. |
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Crimebuster
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Post by Crimebuster on Oct 1, 2014 23:43:29 GMT -5
I think it was a good idea in terms of providing some much needed modernization. However, like all the other modernization ideas that came about as a result of the 1970 soft revamp of the Superman lineup, it quickly became just a surface change rather than real change - just a way to keep presenting the same old stuff while giving it a surface makeover.
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Post by Paradox on Oct 2, 2014 0:17:58 GMT -5
I would have preferred he just be a TV reporter as opposed to an "anchorman". Needing to be in certain places at certain times kind of hampers his mission.
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