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Superman Post-Crisis #old 31
Superman: Transformed!
Between dying and splitting in two, it was the most controversial thing that ever happened to the Man of Steel. Superman's loss of power following the events of The Final Night, his search for a means to regain his abilities and his subsequent transformation into a new-costume-wearing Man of Energy are collected for the first time in Superman: Transformed.
197 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1997
About the author
Dan Jurgens
2,232 books288 followersDan Jurgens is an American comic book writer and artist. He is known for his work on the DC comic book storyline "The Death of Superman" and for creating characters such as Doomsday, Hank Henshaw, and Booster Gold. Jurgens had a lengthy run on the Superman comic books including The Adventures of Superman, Superman vol. 2 and Action Comics. At Marvel, Jurgens worked on series such as Captain America, The Sensational Spider-Man and was the writer on Thor for six years. He also had a brief run as writer and artist on Solar for Valiant Comics in 1995.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 15, 2016
I very rarely give "2 star" ratings.
But this volume merits it.
Poor concept, poor art, poor execution. Certainly not Supermans finest moment.
But this volume merits it.
Poor concept, poor art, poor execution. Certainly not Supermans finest moment.
December 4, 2025
Part of my comic book reread project. Continued from Superman: The Wedding and Beyond.
Preread note (9/25/25):
This is the start of the "Superman Blue" storyline which goes on for at least a year. It's been 28 years since I read it, and I remember being underwhelmed and annoyed with it except for one part that involved the Millennium Giants which I thought was cool. It looks like this arc was so reviled by Superman fans that the powers that be didn't even bother making trade paperbacks for it past volume one which covers about three months though the intention was to make it a four volume set. One of the reasons I've stalled on my comic book reread project for almost two years now (at least with the Superman comics) is because I'm not looking forward to dropping into it. However, since today is Comic Book Day, I'm using that as a catalyst to stop dilly-dallying and git-r-done. Since it's so long, I'm breaking it into three sections. Let's see if my memories are correct.
Postread review:
Well, it's not as terrible as I expected, but note that my expectations were pretty low. Let's get the new look out of the way immediately.
If you'll recall, Superman sported a mullet for three bloody years and finally cut his hair when he got married in the last checkpoint. Then this happens. That means he looked like the real Superman for a measly four months. Oh well. At least it's better than the mullet era because Clark still looks like Clark, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
Superman's powers change, and he has moments of incorporeality which increase in frequency over the course of four issues. Soon, he's about to wink out of existence, but Professor Hamilton makes a suit which can contain his energy, and suddenly he's ELECTROMAN!
He kinda shazams himself between Clark and Superman with a bolt of lightning, but he's now a normal human as Clark, and... something else as Superman Blue. I really can't even begin to explain it. He can't fly, but he can zip places instantaneously, but it's not exactly teleporting, and he can control magnetic fields, or something, and this also works on things that aren't magnetic, and he does this, then that, and he explains his process as he does it, and... I don't know. I got C's and D's in science... and maybe even an F once. I think he absorbs nuclear radiation at one point, and projects it onto a bad guy in the form of a fist, or maybe it was something else (it was hard to tell). Actually, Professor Hamilton explained part of it once. Take it away, Emil:
"Superman's become a being of energy, but that doesn't mean he's dangerous. His containment suit gives him real control... As an energy being, Superman can't physically touch anything, but he can manipulate the surrounding magnetic fields, all by harnessing the power of the mind. Superman can travel as a bolt of lightning..."
Great Scott! Let's hope he never hits a passing DeLorean... Sorry, Professor Hamilton. Please proceed.
Thank you. He can "align atmospheric electrons to create solid-energy fields which he can shape at will. Energy can't be created or destroyed, but it can be changed. There is even a possibility that given enough power, Superman could expand the scope of his energy field, allowing him to grow, potentially altering his own shape."
Yes, that was my assessment the first time I read this and that's my assessment now. It's amazing what he manages to do with these powers, and I wondered where he gained all his scientific knowledge when coming up with new solutions to his problems. I expressed this confusion to mama back in the day, and she told me "Superman was always smart." I guess that will have to be good enough. At one point he couldn't carry people from a burning building, but he was able to get the people into an elevator, then did some kind of zip-a-dee-do-dah with an energy tornado to get that out of the building... or something like that. I might not have that exactly right, but whatever it was, it was just as nonsensical. You can find this kind of thing happening all the time.
As for the stories, the power changing shit happens, Superman goes into Kandor (the bottle city) and somehow lets out Ceritak
Due to some misunderstandings and a language barrier, everyone thinks he's a bad guy and name him Scorn, and let's face it, that isn't exactly the visage of an angel. But, he's actually pretty cool. He's just trying to figure out things in the out world, learn the ropes, etc., and he's kind of growing on me. He also helps out Superman from time to time.
Superman takes on Metallo, the Atomic Skull, and some other no-namers while trying to figure out what happened to him and how he can get his old body back. He ventures into Kandor again with Atom to see if the answers lie there and discovers a revolution going on since Tolos seems to have been killed. Turns out he was just chilling, waiting for Supes to show up again so he could possess him and escape Kandor forever. He almost gets away with it, but Superman manages to trap Tolos in Kandor's shield forever (we'll see about that), then Supes and Atom leave after saving the city and promising to return when he finds a way to free everyone trapped in it.
Some stranger is rolling through Metropolis, causing trouble by freeing baddies and recruiting others into his new revenge squad, or something. One of those freed is Saviour who can do anything he can think of, but luckily he's not very good at thinking.
Superman takes care of him with Scorn's help, but the best thing about that story is that Bibbo decks Jimmy Olsen. Pops him right in the eye. This was well-deserved and long overdue even though his ex-girlfriend did it too in an earlier issue. I mentioned in the last checkpoint that he was showing signs of maturity, and I guess they're still there somewhere, but the mature actions were short-lived. It's easy to fall into old behaviors, after all. Jimmy thinks he's discovered Superman's identity at the end of this, and we'll see if he's right and whether or not he uses the information to further his career as an anchor for GBS.
The Daily Planet is leaning into sensationalism to stay competitive with other news media outlets. Clark is supposed to be acting editor during Perry White's absence, but he's not very good at it since his Superman duties keep him out of the office, but Perry White is declared cancer free and comes back. (I'm wondering if this is true. I reckon I'll find out soon.) Dirk Armstrong, the conservative columnist, is still horrible. Yeah, I know I'm a conservative myself, but he showcases the worst my side has to offer. Naturally everyone with more progressive views are presented in a much more favorable light. That's just where comics were in the 90s, and I'm pretty sure they've stayed left ever since.
Dirk's 17-year-old daughter, Ashbury, is blind and has taken up with Scorn kinda/sorta romantically... maybe? They just hang out a lot. This drives Dirk crazy since he's an invincibly-ignorant asshole and still thinks Scorn is a bad guy in spite of evidence to the contrary and that he causes a bunch of trouble, though that part's true. It's accidental trouble and nothing you don't see every single day in Metropolis all over the city, but I can't gainsay that Scorn tends to make a mess. Ashbury is grounded at the end of this, and yeah, good luck with that. Blind or not, she's rather strong-willed. I kind of like her as a character too.
Lex and Contessa are still expecting, and Lex is about to go on trial for all of his crimes. He somehow has it figured that he can prove his innocence to the world if only he had the Kryptonite ring he had years ago which gave him cancer and killed his old body, forcing him to make a clone of himself and pose as his son, then that body went comatose, and he sold his soul to Satan to get his health back (but not his hair), and... I don't know. He didn't know it was Kryptonite; he just thought it was a nice jewel befitting a man of his position... Right. And Michael Jackson never had a rhinoplasty. I can't wait to see the mental acrobatics in his trial that's going to convince a jury of that. Anyway, he and his lawyer use Dirk Armstrong as a tool (which is fitting since he clearly is a tool) to sway public opinion and force Superman to get the ring back from Batman. They let some scientists study the ring, but Luthor manages to steal it and replace it with a fake. Superman is supposed to return it to Batman, and if anyone discovers the switch, it will probably be the world's greatest detective. Time will tell. What Luthor really wants with the ring is anyone's guess since it can't hurt Superman anymore.
Take away point: The Superman comics have kind of gone off the rails, but it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. I'm enjoying the stories well enough, I reckon. I certainly don't hate them. I think I've just accepted the fact that much of this is going to be rather inane for the next year or so and just roll my eyes or shake my head at said inanities and soldier on. It's certainly not annoying me as much as Moby Dick, and really, we must thank MD. If the middle section of that weren't so tedious, I wouldn't be hitting my comic book project as hard as I am at night before bed.
From our sponsors:
Nothing special at all, but here are a couple of ads for cereals. Apple Jacks...
...which are awesome, and Cap'n Crunch's Crunch Berries...
...which aren't.
These ads used to be much more fun. Maybe they will be again, but I doubt we'll ever see the silly awesomeness from the 80s and early 90s offerings again.
Next checkpoint: Action 736 (Superman Blue part two)
Preread note (9/25/25):
This is the start of the "Superman Blue" storyline which goes on for at least a year. It's been 28 years since I read it, and I remember being underwhelmed and annoyed with it except for one part that involved the Millennium Giants which I thought was cool. It looks like this arc was so reviled by Superman fans that the powers that be didn't even bother making trade paperbacks for it past volume one which covers about three months though the intention was to make it a four volume set. One of the reasons I've stalled on my comic book reread project for almost two years now (at least with the Superman comics) is because I'm not looking forward to dropping into it. However, since today is Comic Book Day, I'm using that as a catalyst to stop dilly-dallying and git-r-done. Since it's so long, I'm breaking it into three sections. Let's see if my memories are correct.
Postread review:
Well, it's not as terrible as I expected, but note that my expectations were pretty low. Let's get the new look out of the way immediately.
If you'll recall, Superman sported a mullet for three bloody years and finally cut his hair when he got married in the last checkpoint. Then this happens. That means he looked like the real Superman for a measly four months. Oh well. At least it's better than the mullet era because Clark still looks like Clark, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
Superman's powers change, and he has moments of incorporeality which increase in frequency over the course of four issues. Soon, he's about to wink out of existence, but Professor Hamilton makes a suit which can contain his energy, and suddenly he's ELECTROMAN!
He kinda shazams himself between Clark and Superman with a bolt of lightning, but he's now a normal human as Clark, and... something else as Superman Blue. I really can't even begin to explain it. He can't fly, but he can zip places instantaneously, but it's not exactly teleporting, and he can control magnetic fields, or something, and this also works on things that aren't magnetic, and he does this, then that, and he explains his process as he does it, and... I don't know. I got C's and D's in science... and maybe even an F once. I think he absorbs nuclear radiation at one point, and projects it onto a bad guy in the form of a fist, or maybe it was something else (it was hard to tell). Actually, Professor Hamilton explained part of it once. Take it away, Emil:
"Superman's become a being of energy, but that doesn't mean he's dangerous. His containment suit gives him real control... As an energy being, Superman can't physically touch anything, but he can manipulate the surrounding magnetic fields, all by harnessing the power of the mind. Superman can travel as a bolt of lightning..."
Great Scott! Let's hope he never hits a passing DeLorean... Sorry, Professor Hamilton. Please proceed.
Thank you. He can "align atmospheric electrons to create solid-energy fields which he can shape at will. Energy can't be created or destroyed, but it can be changed. There is even a possibility that given enough power, Superman could expand the scope of his energy field, allowing him to grow, potentially altering his own shape."
Yes, that was my assessment the first time I read this and that's my assessment now. It's amazing what he manages to do with these powers, and I wondered where he gained all his scientific knowledge when coming up with new solutions to his problems. I expressed this confusion to mama back in the day, and she told me "Superman was always smart." I guess that will have to be good enough. At one point he couldn't carry people from a burning building, but he was able to get the people into an elevator, then did some kind of zip-a-dee-do-dah with an energy tornado to get that out of the building... or something like that. I might not have that exactly right, but whatever it was, it was just as nonsensical. You can find this kind of thing happening all the time.
As for the stories, the power changing shit happens, Superman goes into Kandor (the bottle city) and somehow lets out Ceritak
Due to some misunderstandings and a language barrier, everyone thinks he's a bad guy and name him Scorn, and let's face it, that isn't exactly the visage of an angel. But, he's actually pretty cool. He's just trying to figure out things in the out world, learn the ropes, etc., and he's kind of growing on me. He also helps out Superman from time to time.
Superman takes on Metallo, the Atomic Skull, and some other no-namers while trying to figure out what happened to him and how he can get his old body back. He ventures into Kandor again with Atom to see if the answers lie there and discovers a revolution going on since Tolos seems to have been killed. Turns out he was just chilling, waiting for Supes to show up again so he could possess him and escape Kandor forever. He almost gets away with it, but Superman manages to trap Tolos in Kandor's shield forever (we'll see about that), then Supes and Atom leave after saving the city and promising to return when he finds a way to free everyone trapped in it.
Some stranger is rolling through Metropolis, causing trouble by freeing baddies and recruiting others into his new revenge squad, or something. One of those freed is Saviour who can do anything he can think of, but luckily he's not very good at thinking.
Superman takes care of him with Scorn's help, but the best thing about that story is that Bibbo decks Jimmy Olsen. Pops him right in the eye. This was well-deserved and long overdue even though his ex-girlfriend did it too in an earlier issue. I mentioned in the last checkpoint that he was showing signs of maturity, and I guess they're still there somewhere, but the mature actions were short-lived. It's easy to fall into old behaviors, after all. Jimmy thinks he's discovered Superman's identity at the end of this, and we'll see if he's right and whether or not he uses the information to further his career as an anchor for GBS.
The Daily Planet is leaning into sensationalism to stay competitive with other news media outlets. Clark is supposed to be acting editor during Perry White's absence, but he's not very good at it since his Superman duties keep him out of the office, but Perry White is declared cancer free and comes back. (I'm wondering if this is true. I reckon I'll find out soon.) Dirk Armstrong, the conservative columnist, is still horrible. Yeah, I know I'm a conservative myself, but he showcases the worst my side has to offer. Naturally everyone with more progressive views are presented in a much more favorable light. That's just where comics were in the 90s, and I'm pretty sure they've stayed left ever since.
Dirk's 17-year-old daughter, Ashbury, is blind and has taken up with Scorn kinda/sorta romantically... maybe? They just hang out a lot. This drives Dirk crazy since he's an invincibly-ignorant asshole and still thinks Scorn is a bad guy in spite of evidence to the contrary and that he causes a bunch of trouble, though that part's true. It's accidental trouble and nothing you don't see every single day in Metropolis all over the city, but I can't gainsay that Scorn tends to make a mess. Ashbury is grounded at the end of this, and yeah, good luck with that. Blind or not, she's rather strong-willed. I kind of like her as a character too.
Lex and Contessa are still expecting, and Lex is about to go on trial for all of his crimes. He somehow has it figured that he can prove his innocence to the world if only he had the Kryptonite ring he had years ago which gave him cancer and killed his old body, forcing him to make a clone of himself and pose as his son, then that body went comatose, and he sold his soul to Satan to get his health back (but not his hair), and... I don't know. He didn't know it was Kryptonite; he just thought it was a nice jewel befitting a man of his position... Right. And Michael Jackson never had a rhinoplasty. I can't wait to see the mental acrobatics in his trial that's going to convince a jury of that. Anyway, he and his lawyer use Dirk Armstrong as a tool (which is fitting since he clearly is a tool) to sway public opinion and force Superman to get the ring back from Batman. They let some scientists study the ring, but Luthor manages to steal it and replace it with a fake. Superman is supposed to return it to Batman, and if anyone discovers the switch, it will probably be the world's greatest detective. Time will tell. What Luthor really wants with the ring is anyone's guess since it can't hurt Superman anymore.
Take away point: The Superman comics have kind of gone off the rails, but it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. I'm enjoying the stories well enough, I reckon. I certainly don't hate them. I think I've just accepted the fact that much of this is going to be rather inane for the next year or so and just roll my eyes or shake my head at said inanities and soldier on. It's certainly not annoying me as much as Moby Dick, and really, we must thank MD. If the middle section of that weren't so tedious, I wouldn't be hitting my comic book project as hard as I am at night before bed.
From our sponsors:
Nothing special at all, but here are a couple of ads for cereals. Apple Jacks...
...which are awesome, and Cap'n Crunch's Crunch Berries...
...which aren't.
These ads used to be much more fun. Maybe they will be again, but I doubt we'll ever see the silly awesomeness from the 80s and early 90s offerings again.
Next checkpoint: Action 736 (Superman Blue part two)
October 2, 2011
I absolutely, positively despised this book when it came out if only for the pure principle of the matter.
January 9, 2020
I have no idea why the whole Superman Blue storyline was so hated. Like shit let the writers get creative!
This is one of my all time favourite volumes of Superman, it was followed by about 60ish books that came to an end with the Millennium Giants story and Supermans return to his original powers and costume in Superman Forever. I own every appearance of superman blue and red and love the over year long story that took place in action comics, superman, man of steel, the adventures of superman etc.
I see now DC has begun to collect these stories in more tpbs... shame I already own all the singles.
Love love love this huge story... if they come out with the full run in trades I recommend you collect this historic run which all begins with the loss of Supermans powers in final night, which was a huge parallax redemption story.
This is one of my all time favourite volumes of Superman, it was followed by about 60ish books that came to an end with the Millennium Giants story and Supermans return to his original powers and costume in Superman Forever. I own every appearance of superman blue and red and love the over year long story that took place in action comics, superman, man of steel, the adventures of superman etc.
I see now DC has begun to collect these stories in more tpbs... shame I already own all the singles.
Love love love this huge story... if they come out with the full run in trades I recommend you collect this historic run which all begins with the loss of Supermans powers in final night, which was a huge parallax redemption story.
June 1, 2022
Something so huge as to change Superman's powers and costume and its in such a throw away manner here. This is a lame, cliched storyline with no weight to it. How did this come about? No one will actually care or remember because it was so inconsequential. Embarrassing on DC's part. The art was dated but decent. Overall, a big event that wasn't because DC had not editorial clue what it was doing.
March 26, 2026
I read this primarily because I’ve been reading Grant Morrison’s JLA run and wanted to know why Superman suddenly changed powers and costume. It ended up being a fairly weak attempt to update the character and the change certainly didn’t last very long. The issues collected here leave at least one major plot point unresolved and what is here feels rushed and contrived. Definitely not one of the better Superman stories.
December 8, 2025
SUPERMAN TRANSFORMED!
January 14, 2026
A nice, readable Superman of late 90's by various artists and writers.
January 16, 2011
Granted, I've thought that Superman could use a facelift for some years now, his death and rebirth accomplished that rather handily; why they bothered with this horrible transformation is beyond me - it would have been enough to stop at the point where he regains his powers (in a rather silly, abrupt manner).
This comic served to remind me of why I've always preferred Batman as a hero; the Batman comics have always been rather conservative about supervillains and their powers. Every single comic doesn't feature an epic fist fight in the downtown area of Gotham, Batman worrying the whole time about innocent bystanders getting hurt and whether he can use his full strength. What the Superman comics have always overdone is the appearance of a struggle - Superman, being the greatest superhero on Earth, shouldn't have to concern himself with pulling his punches and then eventually hitting some ridiculous villain (case in point, the Atomic Skull? give me a break, dude...) with his full strength. This happens in every single Superman comic I've read and it's getting old. Every fight can't be the fight of your life - that's just not interesting.
I'm beginning to think that Superman shouldn't have been resurrected - they're obviously running out of material for him.
This comic served to remind me of why I've always preferred Batman as a hero; the Batman comics have always been rather conservative about supervillains and their powers. Every single comic doesn't feature an epic fist fight in the downtown area of Gotham, Batman worrying the whole time about innocent bystanders getting hurt and whether he can use his full strength. What the Superman comics have always overdone is the appearance of a struggle - Superman, being the greatest superhero on Earth, shouldn't have to concern himself with pulling his punches and then eventually hitting some ridiculous villain (case in point, the Atomic Skull? give me a break, dude...) with his full strength. This happens in every single Superman comic I've read and it's getting old. Every fight can't be the fight of your life - that's just not interesting.
I'm beginning to think that Superman shouldn't have been resurrected - they're obviously running out of material for him.
June 22, 2018
Interesting story. Any Superman fan worth his salt remembers the new costume that he wore when he became in contact with an electric energy force that caused a transformation within him. Believing this was a permanent change of the costume fans were outraged and prayed that Superman would return to his traditional outfit. He would, be it would be enforced that this wasn't going to be erased. It did happen and whether for good or bad some of the story was very cool.
Still. It wasn't well told, it was disorganized and despite some pretty artwork this collection of stories didn't seem as great towards the angle. Superman meeting with the Legion and the New Gods were cool. But I admit it could have been done better. I only wish that this included the Red Superman transformation as well as the Blue Superman. C+
Still. It wasn't well told, it was disorganized and despite some pretty artwork this collection of stories didn't seem as great towards the angle. Superman meeting with the Legion and the New Gods were cool. But I admit it could have been done better. I only wish that this included the Red Superman transformation as well as the Blue Superman. C+
September 18, 2011
A Superman story of the late nineties—a period that the Man of Steel might wish could be rebooted and forgotten (oh, wait…)—here we find out how Superman turns into the “All New Superman” with a new blue suit and electricity flowing out of his eyes.
Fans hated the change, pretty much universally. Having come to this story late, and being spared the ire fans must have felt at the time (by knowing that the change was short-lived), this wasn’t the worst Superman story ever told. Sure, it’s got all the earmarks of the period—dodgy dialogue, silly villains (Atomic Skull!), and inconsistent art… but mainly this just silly fun.
In reality, this is for Superman completists only, but it’s still not as bad as you might have been led to believe.
Fans hated the change, pretty much universally. Having come to this story late, and being spared the ire fans must have felt at the time (by knowing that the change was short-lived), this wasn’t the worst Superman story ever told. Sure, it’s got all the earmarks of the period—dodgy dialogue, silly villains (Atomic Skull!), and inconsistent art… but mainly this just silly fun.
In reality, this is for Superman completists only, but it’s still not as bad as you might have been led to believe.
September 8, 2014
Okay I've read a lot of one-star superman stories lately. But this is unquestionably the worst of the lot.
I actually feel a bit guilty adding this to my read list, because I only got about 10 pages in before giving up in disgust. The writing, my god, the writing.
It's bad-fanfic level. Worse actually. Clunky exposition in every panel. Just. Ugh. Words fail me. It angers me that something this bad actually got published.
Honestly I think this is the worst written comic I've ever read. And I include the Beano I used to read when I was a kid in that estimation.
I've had short sharp blows to the testicles that were more enjoyable than this.
I actually feel a bit guilty adding this to my read list, because I only got about 10 pages in before giving up in disgust. The writing, my god, the writing.
It's bad-fanfic level. Worse actually. Clunky exposition in every panel. Just. Ugh. Words fail me. It angers me that something this bad actually got published.
Honestly I think this is the worst written comic I've ever read. And I include the Beano I used to read when I was a kid in that estimation.
I've had short sharp blows to the testicles that were more enjoyable than this.
March 2, 2016
I only got this book because I didn't want to prejudice my son against Superman, just because I hate Superman. I thought the reboot of the series would be a good place for him start; luckily for me he hated it as much as I did. The new suit and new rehashed powers were a nice touch but became ridiculous after that.Sorry Supes you still suck.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews