Kent returns to his small town roots, only to see how much the world needs the heroic ideal. We're in Superman's world, however, where evil plots do not succeed. The young Kent has doubts, which Luthor exploits in a calculating manner. They cover a broad canvas here, as well, but each portion focuses on the concept of the hero. Loeb and Sale's foray into Batman's history suffered from a chaotic plot that had too little focus.

Seasons proves superior to The Long Halloween. Loeb also explores the psychology that makes Kent want to become a hero, and he examines the doubts he might reasonably experience, without plumbing the angsty depths later explored by Smallville and 2010's Superman: Earth One. Kent may have played high school football, and be far less mild-mannered than in prior incarnations, but we don't see him cheat his way into The Daily Planet by pretending to have the first interview with his alter-ego.

Loeb, however, brings that version closer to the character's essence than Byrne did, at least as I see it. The story clearly uses Byrne's revised version of Superman’s history- this is Byrne's version of Kent's early life and his corporate Lex Luthor. The story connects Superman's familiar career with John Byrnes' Man of Steel (which rewrote Superman's origins) in much the same way that Loeb and Sale's earlier Batman: The Long Halloween bridged the landmark Batman: Year One and the Dark Knight's later adventures. Luthor's narration strikes an appropriate tone for a man so blinded by ego and ambition that he cannot grasp true altruism, nor can he see how twisted he has become.

Pa Kent loves his son, but he wonders if he has done right by Clark and the world in bringing up this strange visitor from another planet. We get a sense of each of these characters, and Loeb does especially well with the male narrators. Each has a different narrator: Pa Kent, Lois Lane, Lex Luthor, and Lana Lang. Loeb and Sale have created a Superman for all seasons, a shining example of why this character continues to fly the skies of childhood and pop culture.Įach chapter takes place during a different season, at a different point, early in Superman's career. We're looking at a Superman heavily influenced by the 1980s, and changes made by Crisis of Infinite Earths and Man of Steel. 'How many people do you know that have the intials ‘L.L.’?'ĭC first published this graphic novel as four comics in 1998, just before the company threw itself, for better and for worse, into wild-eyed adulation and imitation of its Silver Age.

A superman for all seasons