Hiya!

It all started innocently enough. With James Gunn‘s new Superman coming up and the Philippines getting Superman fever thanks to the director and the actors visiting the country, there’s a lot of local channels and websites hyping up the film. So, of course, even social media is showing off various clips of the upcoming movie. Well, that’s how my parents saw the clip below regarding Superman, or, more appropriately, Clark Kent, is being mock interviewed by Lois Lane.

This genuinely confused my parents and this confused me. Well, after we did some talking, we realized it’s because my parents generally know different things about Superman’s lore as they generally stopped reading the comics or read about anything Superman related for decades now. While I can’t say I’ve kept up with the comics, my context for the Man of Steel’s lore is still pretty current.

Out of this, an idea for a post came about and I wanted to talk about how much Superman’s history has changed, especially after the vaunted original Crisis of Infinite Earths storyline of the ’80s. So, as kind of a primer for those who haven’t read a DC Comic publication for a good long while, let’s look at how much different Superman as well as DC Comics’ lore has changed over the years.

#1 Lois Lane knows Clark Kent is Superman

The one that inspired this post. In the clip mentioned, Lois Lane is interviewing Superman for a mock interview. However, you may noticed she’s not actually talking to Superman. Lois Lane is talking to Clark Kent. This utterly confused my parents as, prior to Crisis of Infinite Earths, some of the stories would revolve around Lois Lane’s schemes to prove Clark Kent is Superman. My parents grew up reading these stories and I guess it’s already embedded in their DNA. It’s still weird since the Zack Snyder DCEU movies overly showing she knows they’re the same person!

Anyway, the idea of Lois Lane knowing Clark Kent is Superman didn’t immediately start during the post Crisis of Infinite Earths. No, it took a while for this to happen as Clark only revealed his Superman identity to Lois after they started dating for a good while.

Speaking of which…

#2 Clark Kent and Lois Lane are married

Okay, to be fair, my parents were kind of aware of this because of the old Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman TV series, apparently. I never saw it because this was way before my time. So, I find it strange how my brain strongly recalls all the hype surrounding the Superman: The Wedding Album comic which was released around the same time the TV versions were tying the knot. Memories are weird, huh?

Although I don’t think Lois and Clark are going to get married or are married in the upcoming James Gunn movie, I do have to mention this as, during the time, this was a big deal. Before Crisis of Infinite Earths, Lois Lane would constantly try to either trick Clark Kent into revealing he’s Superman or trying to trick Superman into marrying her. So, seeing both of them actually join in matrimony must have been a momentous occasion for comic book readers.

#3 “Superman” is the secret identity, not Clark Kent

This took some explaining to my parents. It seems like, after Crisis of Infinite Earths, the idea of the secret identity has been flipped around quite a bit. I say this because, after Crisis of Infinite Earths, Clark Kent is the “real” person and Superman is the “disguise.”

This actually makes a lot of sense as Jonathan and Martha Kent didn’t raise Superman. They raised Clark Kent. It was Clark Kent who grew up in Smallville and went to school like any ordinary boy in Kansas. It just wouldn’t make sense for Superman to be the “real” person based on that. In fact, if you think about it, Clark Kent’s personality as a cowardly news reporter before Crisis of Infinite Earths doesn’t add up. I mean, how can an investigative reporter, who goes to dangerous places and report on life-threatening situations, do his job if he’s supposed to be a coward?

Speaking of Smallville…

#4 Clark Kent doesn’t wear glasses as part of his disguise

This is another big change my parents didn’t know about. In fact, I didn’t either and I had to do some research on this. As previously mentioned, Clark Kent is the real personality while Superman is the front. So, why would Clark Kent need to wear glasses? Before Crisis of Infinite Earths, the glasses were part of his “disguise” because wearing glasses instantly makes you unrecognizable from your close friends. This isn’t a fact because I do wear glasses all the time and my friends still recognize me on those rare days I choose to wear my contact lenses. So, why did Clark Kent grow up wearing glasses then when he didn’t have a secret to protect?

Well, that was explained much later. As Clark Kent was developing his powers during his teen years, he had trouble controlling them. This included some dangerous things like his heat vision. In order to stop him from accidentally burning someone to a crisp while talking to a girl or something like that, Jonathan and Martha Kent got some materials from his spaceship and fashioned glasses out of them. As these were Kryptonian materials, they were strong enough to resist Clark Kent’s accidental heat vision outbursts.

As he got older and got a better handle on his powers Clark Kent doesn’t really need to wear the glasses anymore but, as he grew up wearing them, he still wears them. When as Superman, he obviously doesn’t need them. As a side note, it’s still noted that the glasses does obscure his face enough, giving a tiny layer of protection regarding his secret identity.

Besides, these days, most people don’t think Superman has a secret identity because it would be silly as, if you have superpowers like Superman, why would you want to live like an ordinary person? In Superman #2 (1987), Lex Luthor is given this information but refuses to believe it because, to him, it would be ludicrous for Superman to behave like an ordinary person such as Clark Kent.

Speaking of Lex Luthor…

#5 Lex Luthor is a ruthless billionaire and not a mad scientist

This is something my parents were… kind of aware of. That’s only because they do have some memory remnants from the Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman TV show as well as the Smallville TV show. However, when I initially mentioned how Lex Luthor is now depicted as a billionaire with various nefarious plans, they still remembered him being the evil scientific genius from before Crisis of Infinite Earths. He just uses his immense wealth and influence to get away with his crimes. He also has an army of lawyers so, even if he is accused of any crimes, he can’t be touched. As an extra layer of protection, Lex Luthor isn’t under bribing or even taking out people who can stand in his way.

What makes Lex Luthor doubly scary is the general public do not think of him as a villain. To most people in the DC Comics universe, Lex Luthor is a billionaire philanthropist who is dedicated to helping the world. He has various companies, which helps the general population with much needed jobs. He has various outreach programs to help the needy. This is mostly his cover, however. This is why he was eventually elected as the President of the United States at one time!

BONUS: There are different Green Lanterns

While talking to my parents, I had to show them the various Superman trailers. They asked me who was the guy in the bowl cut. I said that guy’s this version’s Green Lantern. They didn’t really believe me.

Now this took a lot of time to explain. Before Crisis of Infinite Earths, there was only one prominent Green Lantern: Hal Jordan. However, even during that time, there were already other Green Lanterns who popped up! There was Guy Gardner, who was the “backup” Green Lantern to Hal Jordan and the one who’s going to be in the upcoming Superman movie. There’s also John Stewart, who took over the role after Hal Jordan was incapacitated. There are many more but I do find it weird because, as I mentioned, these characters were already showcased before Crisis of Infinite Earths. I guess Green Lantern wasn’t all that popular?

Byee!

What other Pre-Crisis changes do you think we need to address before the new Superman movie is released? Let me know in the comments section below!