One of my many interests is comic books. I love comics. To me its an almost perfect medium. I’m partial to superhero comics, but I also love me some indie comics as well. I used to be scared about my love of the medium because I didn’t want to be seen as a nerd or anything like that. As I’ve gotten older though I realized how silly that is. Comic books are just as legitimate as novels and short stories or any other piece of literature. For me I am a big fan of DC comics. I grew up watching Batman the Animated Series, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, Teen Titans, and a bunch of the movies as well. I’ve always been a big Batman fan, I dressed up as him many times as a kid. He definitely is one of my all time favorite comic book characters, though he is not the focus of what I’ve had on my mind as of recently. I think one of the best and most misunderstood characters of all time is Superman. Way back when, I was a Superman hater (not really but more so was a bigger Batman fan). The biggest criticism of the character is always the same, he’s boring because he is overpowered. I think that is an inherently bad take. Is he overpowered, yes of course he is he’s Superman, he was the first superhero, why wouldn’t he be? People go based on what other people say about him without really diving into the character in his written history. Some people only know him through the movies he’s had. This is fine to be fair, not everyone is going to read his comic stories and not everyone is gonna agree on what the character should be like. For example the Man of Steel version played by Henry Cavill is different from both Superman starring Christopher Reeve and Superman (2025) as played by David Corenswet (my personal favorite). There is nothing wrong with liking one over the other, but in my opinion Man of Steel, which I liked, was detrimental to how people view Superman. To me Superman isn’t conflicted, he isn’t brooding, and he isn’t a Christ like figure. Superman is champion of the oppressed, a beacon of hope, and an allegory for immigrants.

There are many people who think that Superman is the most interesting when he is becoming evil. Or worse there are many people who believe that Superman would be a hardcore conservative. Yes he grew up in Kansas, but that does not mean he was raised to be a bigot. He is literally an immigrant from another planet. One of the things that Superman used to fight for was “Truth, Justice, and the American Way,” obviously in the time he was created and the times we are living in now are different. The American way has only really been for people who were white. People see Superman as white, but they forget he is literally from another planet. Sure he passes as human, but when he learns of his origins he feels like an outsider. My family like many other families in this country, are immigrants, granted my family has been here longer than they were in their homeland, just like Superman by the way, some people will always just see them as immigrants. I think though Superman being an immigrant is also one of the most interesting things about him. While he was born on Krypton, he grew to only ever know Earth as his home. Upon learning about his origins he doesn’t cease to care about his adoptive family or adoptive home world and when he learns that he has all this power, what does he do, he chooses to help those in need. Champion of the Oppressed. That is what his creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, had in mind for what they wanted to create a character for. I don’t really remember when this happened, but at some point in the comics Superman renounces his American Citizenship, and eventually the slogan changed, to “Truth, Justice, and a Better Tomorrow.” To me that is a more perfect fit for the character. He believes that all life is sacred. Yeah its a bit corny and yeah not realistic. But it really doesn’t matter. One of my favorite quotes from Superman comes from Action Comics #775 “Dreams save us. Dreams lift us up and transform us. And on my soul, I swear…until my dream of a world where dignity, honor and justice becomes the reality we ALL share…I’ll never stop fighting. Ever.” Imagine having the power to pretty much do anything you wanted and not many people could stop you. Would you be able to say that you would remain a good person? Would you be able to swallow any hardship or derogatory comments even though you could squash the people responsible like a bug? I don’t think many, if any, of us would be able to do so. That’s exactly why Superman is interesting. He chooses to be good, he chooses to protect and love regardless of where people come from. Yes I know it’s fiction, and especially cause it’s comic books most people would dismiss it. I genuinely believe that non-fiction is great for learning concrete things, history, facts, data, etc., but fiction is where we can get a grasp of abstract concepts like good and evil, love, and meaning. Superman teaches me that if I have the power to make a difference in a positive way, then I have an obligation to do so. Superman teaches me that even in times where I feel powerless I have the power to impact someone, and do good. Superman teaches me that in a world filled with injustice not every action has to be grand, we can talk to people, when more action is required we do what’s necessary. Hope is an abstract concept, and hope is what Superman is all about. We can all strive to be a little more like the man of steel, a champion of the oppressed in search for truth, justice, and a better tomorrow for all.