A Super Story

Originally published May 29, 1998, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1280

A couple of things…

* * *

Current reports are that the Superman movie, starring Nicholas Cage, has been put on hold. Apparently no one could agree on a script that satisfied everyone.

What I thought was amusing was all the sweepingly negative fan response to the initial reports that Cage would be playing the role, and that he would not be appearing in the famous red and blue outfit. That instead what Burton was looking for was an incarnation of the character that had a more humanistic approach, rather than the “standard” superhero fare. How could anyone make any sort of affecting or interesting movie with Cage as the out of costume, Superman-esque hero?

Easy.

Basically, you do a remake of Superman II (in which Superman gave up his powers in order to live out a mortal life with Lois) but rethink the entire concept of Superman. Here’s the pitch: On the planet earth, there is a secret race of super-powered beings called Kryptonians. Unbeknownst to us, they help and protect us. They save lives. They can move faster than speeding bullets, faster than thought itself. Great coats, like capes, swirl around them. They are invulnerable, incapable of being hurt but, as a result, incapable of feeling anything either. They are among us, but not of us. They are an unseen super race, with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men. Their personal god is the sun. It is from there that they derive their power, and every evening at sunset they gather to worship the setting sun. They each wear a pendant around their neck with the letter “S” for sun.

One of them, however, is named Kal-El, and although he has the same incredible gifts as the other Kryptonians, something happens to disrupt his immortal life. He encounters a woman, Lois Lane. Lois is a good reporter, one of the best. She has a source whom she is urging to aid her with a story. The source is reluctant to do so. He feels that he will be at risk, that he will be endangering his life. But he agrees to help Lois. Lois believes in the rightness of her cause. Lois believes, almost naively, that good will triumph. The source is on his way to give Lois evidence she needs for the story, but is shot before he can get it to her. He is rushed to the hospital and Lois stands in the observation area of the operating theater, watching, praying. He can’t die, he can’t.

Kal is standing right next to her, and murmurs, “He’s not going to make it.” And to his surprise, Lois looks right at him. “Yes, he will,” she says tightly. But Kal, of course, is right, and the patient dies. Lois is devastated. She feels responsible. Because of her digging and her desire to do her job, the man is now dead, his wife and children now bereft of their husband and father.

When Lois returns to the Daily Planet, she discovers her story has been spiked for lack of evidence. She is ready to resign, to pack it in. Kal appears to her, tells her that none of it was her fault. That the source had free will, that the decision was his, and that she’s not responsible. She finds this strange, soulful man odd but, for some reason, she finds herself slowly trusting him. More… she finds that she’s falling in love with him. And Kal, for his part, is falling in love with Lois.

But Kryptonians have superhuman abilities. Mating with a human is impossible.

But Kal discovers that there is an alternative, albeit a very surprising one. He is present at a bank robbery where he miraculously saves the life of a beefy, balding cop by stopping the bullets shot by a panicked bank robber. After the emergency has passed, the cop suddenly speaks to thin air and says, “You’re here. I know you are. I can’t see you… but you’re here.” Kal makes himself visible to the cop, whose name is Turpin.

Turpin, it turns out, was once a Kryptonian as well. But he fell in love with a human woman, and wanted to be with her. Wanted it more than he wanted his immortal life as a Kryptonian. And he gave up his superpowers, became mortal. But even as a mortal, he felt the need to be a guardian, and so he became a cop, to continue to serve and protect.

“How do you become mortal?” asks Kal.

“It’s called gold Kryptonite,” says Turpin. “Takes away your powers forever. You become one of them… but you can never go back.”

Kal carries this knowledge with him, but is still not sure what to do. His relationship with Lois develops, and finally he confronts her with knowledge of his secret identity. She sees proof of his invulnerability. She freaks and sends him away.

And Kal knows that he is at a decision point in his life. Does he continue his career as a superman? Or does he give himself over to gold kryptonite, lose his powers, gain mortality, get Lois, be able to touch, feel and experience… and, in doing so, give up eternity?

As I said, it’s a remake of Superman II. It’s a totally new version of Superman, but—like Burton’s new take on Batman—refreshing, adult, and thought-provoking. I could definitely see that as a Superman film.

And if that doesn’t work, then change Kryptonians to celestial beings, change Kal-El to Seth, change Lois to Maggie, make her a heart surgeon instead of a reporter, change Turpin to Messenger (although you can still cast a cop in the role), eliminate gold kryptonite and come up with another way for the newly named Seth to give up his powers, set it in Los Angeles instead of Metropolis, and call it City of Angels.

Might make a few dollars.

* * *

Just got the latest Marvel comics solicitation information. Always feel nostalgic for that, considering I wrote it for five years. Couldn’t help but notice the following sales point for Incredible Hulk #468… “New characters, a new mystery–the title known for change turns a corner as–for the first time in nearly 12 years–a new writer infuses some new blood into the one and only Green Goliath!”

Speaking as the writer who made a lot of those changes, and who was forced to leave the title because he wouldn’t take the character in a direction that had been done to death–may I say how all warm and squishy it makes me feel to be considered, after more than decade worth of work, nothing more than “old blood.”

Although according to a piece earlier on in the same publication, snarkily entitled “Image Isn’t Everything,” Marvel proudly describes its line-up of writers including ” Top Ten’ types like Kurt Busiek, Scott Lobdell, Joe Kelly, Steven Seagle, Peter David and Mark Waid.” Not actually me, you understand, since I’m not writing any titles for Marvel, but writers “like” me.

How nice.

At least the new Hulk writer is Joe Casey. That’s the real reason Erik Larsen didn’t get the book and Todd DeZago didn’t stay around: Only guys with two first names get to write the title from now on. Which means, I guess, that if/when Joe Casey leaves, Roy Thomas should be next up. Or maybe Tony Isabella.

Oh, and please ignore fan reports that state my final issue of Hulk consists of me showing up in the book and telling the Hulk everything that’s going to happen in the next ten years. Yes, there is an off-panel freelancer named Peter, but he states that he works for the Daily Bugle. You figure it out.

I’m not a big fan of the writer showing up as the writer in a book and interacting with his characters. It just always comes across as self-indulgent to me. I didn’t like it in She-Hulk, hated it in Animal Man, and wish that Dave Sim would knock it the hell off in Cerebus. Sure, I know, I did appear in cameo as the priest who married Rick and Marlo, but I classify that more as a Hitchcockian walk-on than anything. Besides, I’m Jewish; how “not me” can you get than to portray me as a priest.

Still haven’t shown my parents that issue. Always afraid they’d take it wrong…

(Peter David, writer of stuff, can be written to at Second Age, Inc., PO Box 239, Bayport, NY 11705.)