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The Greatest Stories Ever Told
Superman: The Greatest Stories Ever Told, Vol. 2
Superman's career is chronicled in this collection, featuring a host of tales from his early years to his adventures in 21st century Metropolis. This volume also contains a previous uncollected Frank Miller story, 'The Legend from Earth Prime!'.
192 pages, Paperback
First published December 6, 2006
About the author
Jerry Siegel
622 books85 followersJerome "Jerry" Siegel, who also used pseudonyms including Joe Carter, Jerry Ess, and Herbert S. Fine, was the American co-creator of Superman (along with Joe Shuster), the first of the great comic book superheroes and one of the most recognizable icons of the 20th century.
He and Shuster were inducted into the comic book industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1993.
He and Shuster were inducted into the comic book industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1993.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 21, 2018
Another volume in DC’s Greatest Stories Ever Told collections. For Superman, it’s volume 2. When this was published, Superman had been around for 60 plus years, so it should have been easy to come up with some worthy stories the second go around. Right?
Eh.
To say that some of the Golden Age stories are more entertaining than there modern counterparts isn’t exactly damning the editorial choices here, but it leaves the reader to wonder about the ability of the modern writer to offer up something new and vital for the Man of Steel.
The book starts off with the first appearance of Mr. Mxyzptlk, the pain in the ass imp from another dimension.
Golden Aged comics can be rather “wordy”…
…it took me five headache inducing minutes to read the last two panels on the right.
Still this one was a decent read and Mxysptlk became a popular foil for Superman – proving that Superman could be entertaining beyond just punching the crap out of stuff.
The art rendering of the character has bordered on the creepy, so it was nice that the DCAU version paid tribute to the original. And gave him a hot wife.
Also, over the years, the writers have had to come up with clever ways to have this lil’ a$$hole say his name backwards, so he could be sent back to wherever he came from.
It’s Superman’s birthday and because Batman and Robin couldn’t convince Wonder Woman to don stripper gear, they came up with the idea of feeding pictures of baby Supes into a computer to find out what would have happened if Kal-El had never left the non-exploding planet Krypton.
What would happen if Superman flew so fast he ended up back in Krypton before it exploded?
Aside from the creepy “he looks very familiar” looks he gets from his mother, Superman uncovers an intergalactic ring of space harlots planning to take over Krypton.
Damn, Jeff, that sounds awesome! Is it true?
Well, Random Goodreader, because there was a lot of naughty stuff going on in the subtext of old comics, it probably is true. On some level.
Lex Luthor and Brainiac team up for a super villain beat down.
It’s a triangle of duplicity as Luthor and Brainiac try to outwit each other in addition to taking down Superman.
The rest of the entries veer in quality from excellent (John Byrne) to WTF (that little f**ker, Mxysptlk returns).
Superman loses his vulnerability to Kryptonite, so he starts doing some crazy stuff…
Kryptonite is gluten and sugar free.
In the second issue of Byrne’s run on the Superman revamp, Luthor is one big blubbery ball of evil as he goes to great lengths to find out Superman’s real identity – including murder, torturing Lana Lang and shooting tranq darts at Ma and Pa Kent.
All to what end?
This one is first-rate and the best issue by far contained here.
In a story that should have had a more emotional impact, Pa Kent, who’s in a coma, helps Superman back from the land of the dead, so DC could sell warehouses of "Superman isn't dead, he's much better" comics back in the ‘90’s.
Do we really need another Mxysptlk story to book end this volume? Here Clark and Lois get a look into the future:
Bottom line: Maybe one day comic book publishers can put a little more thought into putting together these retrospectives – a common theme of some sort – instead of throwing together stories that were pulled out of continuity and don’t have much entertainment value beyond the fact that it’s just Superman. This is probably why the self-contained Golden Aged stuff, although ponderous to read at times, works better here.
Takeaway and note to self: Read Byrne’s Superman stuff.
Eh.
To say that some of the Golden Age stories are more entertaining than there modern counterparts isn’t exactly damning the editorial choices here, but it leaves the reader to wonder about the ability of the modern writer to offer up something new and vital for the Man of Steel.
The book starts off with the first appearance of Mr. Mxyzptlk, the pain in the ass imp from another dimension.
Golden Aged comics can be rather “wordy”…
…it took me five headache inducing minutes to read the last two panels on the right.
Still this one was a decent read and Mxysptlk became a popular foil for Superman – proving that Superman could be entertaining beyond just punching the crap out of stuff.
The art rendering of the character has bordered on the creepy, so it was nice that the DCAU version paid tribute to the original. And gave him a hot wife.
Also, over the years, the writers have had to come up with clever ways to have this lil’ a$$hole say his name backwards, so he could be sent back to wherever he came from.
It’s Superman’s birthday and because Batman and Robin couldn’t convince Wonder Woman to don stripper gear, they came up with the idea of feeding pictures of baby Supes into a computer to find out what would have happened if Kal-El had never left the non-exploding planet Krypton.
What would happen if Superman flew so fast he ended up back in Krypton before it exploded?
Aside from the creepy “he looks very familiar” looks he gets from his mother, Superman uncovers an intergalactic ring of space harlots planning to take over Krypton.
Damn, Jeff, that sounds awesome! Is it true?
Well, Random Goodreader, because there was a lot of naughty stuff going on in the subtext of old comics, it probably is true. On some level.
Lex Luthor and Brainiac team up for a super villain beat down.
It’s a triangle of duplicity as Luthor and Brainiac try to outwit each other in addition to taking down Superman.
The rest of the entries veer in quality from excellent (John Byrne) to WTF (that little f**ker, Mxysptlk returns).
Superman loses his vulnerability to Kryptonite, so he starts doing some crazy stuff…
Kryptonite is gluten and sugar free.
In the second issue of Byrne’s run on the Superman revamp, Luthor is one big blubbery ball of evil as he goes to great lengths to find out Superman’s real identity – including murder, torturing Lana Lang and shooting tranq darts at Ma and Pa Kent.
All to what end?
This one is first-rate and the best issue by far contained here.
In a story that should have had a more emotional impact, Pa Kent, who’s in a coma, helps Superman back from the land of the dead, so DC could sell warehouses of "Superman isn't dead, he's much better" comics back in the ‘90’s.
Do we really need another Mxysptlk story to book end this volume? Here Clark and Lois get a look into the future:
Bottom line: Maybe one day comic book publishers can put a little more thought into putting together these retrospectives – a common theme of some sort – instead of throwing together stories that were pulled out of continuity and don’t have much entertainment value beyond the fact that it’s just Superman. This is probably why the self-contained Golden Aged stuff, although ponderous to read at times, works better here.
Takeaway and note to self: Read Byrne’s Superman stuff.
March 23, 2018
"The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk" is clearly the inspiration for Paul Dini's Mxy episode of Superman animated. It's a delightful story, with the terrific old-school, square-jaw Superman art (Ira Yarbrough replacing Joe Shuster in this case). Fast, fun and enjoyable.
"Superman's Other Life," by Otto Binder & Wayne Boring - Batman uses a device in the Fortress to show Superman what his life would've been like if Krypton hadn't exploded. By "startling twists of fate," Futuro, the Kryptonian superhero is created, Kal becomes his "Jimmy Olsen," Futuro meets Lois Lane, marries her and move to Earth, and Futuro duplicates the experiement that gave him his powers, empowering Kal with all of his Superman powers so that he can protect Krypton. Urgh. Five too many coincidences.
"Superman's Return to Krypton," Siegel and Boring. Much better. Superman is investigating an anomaly, which flees from him at high speed. Accidentally, he breaks the time barrier, is flung into the past, and finds himself in orbit of Krypton before it explodes. He races to the surface before his powers fade under the red sun, and is trapped. He meets his parents, falls in love with actress Lyla Lerrol, and tries to find a way to save his doomed world. In a more believable twist, Kryptonians don't think Jor-El is a loon for predicting doom: Jor-El never tells them! Krypton doesn't have space travel, so he doesn't want to terrify everyone until he can arrange the planet's evacuation. (I always thought this would be a better reason for the planet's failure to evacuate.) They nearly escape, but in a charming bit of continuity, Brainiac shrinks and steals Kandor before they can get the ultra-rare fuel that they need. Ultimately, Kal escapes doom when - in the story' only lame twist - a fire-beast caused the "rocketship" he's in (while helping Lyla film her movie) to blast into space, out to where there is a yellow sun, where Superman's powers return. Regretting his loss, Superman flies back to his own time and Earth. Classic.
"The Team of Luthor and Brainiac," Edmond Hamilton & Curt Swan. Eehh. Luthor and Brainiac team up, defeat Superman, and the Kandorians come to the rescue (why don't they ALWAYS operate outside of the bottle?). However, the Kandorians must let Brainiac and Luthor go that Brainiac will reverse the effect of the "coma-ray" that he subjected Superman to. Superman is duty-bound to let the villains go and swears to the Kandorians that he'll return them to normal size and bring Brainiac to justice, since they gave up their chance for vengeance to save him. Nice twist of having Kandor lose their chance for revenge, but otherwise, only decent.
"Superman Breaks Loose," Denny O'Neil & Swan. More set-up than story - Kryptonite no longer harms Superman - the famous scene of Superman eating Kryptonite comes from this story, but there is a mystery about the cost of the end of Kryptonite, which is not resolved in this story. In fact, outside of the set-up, the story itself is completely pedestrian. Not a "best story," imo, but perhaps the opening salvo of one.
"The Legend from Earth Prime," Elliot S! Magin & Frank Miller. In the far future, scientists searching parallel dimensions find recordings of the Adventures of Superman TV series starring George Reeves. They speculate, does this mean that Superman was really Clark Kent, rather than Morgan Edge or Bruce Wayne, as popularly believed. Charmingly cute.
"The Secret Revealed," John Byrne. One of the most character-defining Lex Luthor stories ever. The end, Luthor's refusal to accept Superman's secret ID, is a little hokey, but otherwise, this story is Lex at his most malevolent. Terrific.
"Life After Death," Jerry Ordway & Tom Grummett. One my first Superman comics, Jonathon Kent has a heart attack and pursues Clark into the afterlife. Doesn't make much sense outside the context of the Death and Return storylines, but it's a nice story about the bond between father and son, and it gives some good history of Jon Kent's family. Good stuff.
"Narrative Interruptus Tertiarus," Greg Rucka & Matt Clark. Terrific story about the hope that Superman engenders, with Mxy showing Lois and Clark a possible future where they have a daughter. Recommended.
"Superman's Other Life," by Otto Binder & Wayne Boring - Batman uses a device in the Fortress to show Superman what his life would've been like if Krypton hadn't exploded. By "startling twists of fate," Futuro, the Kryptonian superhero is created, Kal becomes his "Jimmy Olsen," Futuro meets Lois Lane, marries her and move to Earth, and Futuro duplicates the experiement that gave him his powers, empowering Kal with all of his Superman powers so that he can protect Krypton. Urgh. Five too many coincidences.
"Superman's Return to Krypton," Siegel and Boring. Much better. Superman is investigating an anomaly, which flees from him at high speed. Accidentally, he breaks the time barrier, is flung into the past, and finds himself in orbit of Krypton before it explodes. He races to the surface before his powers fade under the red sun, and is trapped. He meets his parents, falls in love with actress Lyla Lerrol, and tries to find a way to save his doomed world. In a more believable twist, Kryptonians don't think Jor-El is a loon for predicting doom: Jor-El never tells them! Krypton doesn't have space travel, so he doesn't want to terrify everyone until he can arrange the planet's evacuation. (I always thought this would be a better reason for the planet's failure to evacuate.) They nearly escape, but in a charming bit of continuity, Brainiac shrinks and steals Kandor before they can get the ultra-rare fuel that they need. Ultimately, Kal escapes doom when - in the story' only lame twist - a fire-beast caused the "rocketship" he's in (while helping Lyla film her movie) to blast into space, out to where there is a yellow sun, where Superman's powers return. Regretting his loss, Superman flies back to his own time and Earth. Classic.
"The Team of Luthor and Brainiac," Edmond Hamilton & Curt Swan. Eehh. Luthor and Brainiac team up, defeat Superman, and the Kandorians come to the rescue (why don't they ALWAYS operate outside of the bottle?). However, the Kandorians must let Brainiac and Luthor go that Brainiac will reverse the effect of the "coma-ray" that he subjected Superman to. Superman is duty-bound to let the villains go and swears to the Kandorians that he'll return them to normal size and bring Brainiac to justice, since they gave up their chance for vengeance to save him. Nice twist of having Kandor lose their chance for revenge, but otherwise, only decent.
"Superman Breaks Loose," Denny O'Neil & Swan. More set-up than story - Kryptonite no longer harms Superman - the famous scene of Superman eating Kryptonite comes from this story, but there is a mystery about the cost of the end of Kryptonite, which is not resolved in this story. In fact, outside of the set-up, the story itself is completely pedestrian. Not a "best story," imo, but perhaps the opening salvo of one.
"The Legend from Earth Prime," Elliot S! Magin & Frank Miller. In the far future, scientists searching parallel dimensions find recordings of the Adventures of Superman TV series starring George Reeves. They speculate, does this mean that Superman was really Clark Kent, rather than Morgan Edge or Bruce Wayne, as popularly believed. Charmingly cute.
"The Secret Revealed," John Byrne. One of the most character-defining Lex Luthor stories ever. The end, Luthor's refusal to accept Superman's secret ID, is a little hokey, but otherwise, this story is Lex at his most malevolent. Terrific.
"Life After Death," Jerry Ordway & Tom Grummett. One my first Superman comics, Jonathon Kent has a heart attack and pursues Clark into the afterlife. Doesn't make much sense outside the context of the Death and Return storylines, but it's a nice story about the bond between father and son, and it gives some good history of Jon Kent's family. Good stuff.
"Narrative Interruptus Tertiarus," Greg Rucka & Matt Clark. Terrific story about the hope that Superman engenders, with Mxy showing Lois and Clark a possible future where they have a daughter. Recommended.
September 13, 2014
This second Volume of DC's new Superman Greatest stories collect tales spread out between 1944 and 2005.
It begins with style with the first appearance of Mr. Mxyztplk in Superman #30 (1944).
Next up is the Imaginary Tale, "Superman's Other Life," (1959) which examines what Kal-El's life on Krypton would have been like had Krypton not exploded. What kills this one for me is the really unnecessary framing device of Batman and Robin having set this up on computer so that Superman could see what his life would be like if Krypton hadn't exploded. Who thinks that's a good gift. The only appropriate response, "Hey Bruce, let me program it to see what your life would have been like if the robber hadn't been carrying a gun. Plus, Superman's own commentary on his "other life" just slowed down the tale. Still, it's not too bad if you can get past the framing.
"Superman Returns to Kypton" (1960) was a necessary inclusion particularly after Volume 1 included John Byrne's far darker re-imagining. Anyone who think Superman during the Silver Age was just goofy fun hasn't read, Superman Returns to Krypton which finds Superman crashing back through time and crashlanding on Kyrpton without powers and facing the possibility of dying of Kyrpton. He meets his parents and finds love-love for him not for his powers from a wonderful woman. Yeah, there's some silly parts but this is also a very moving and poignant story.
"The Team of Luthor and Brainiac" (1964) was a watershed issue that brought together two of Superman's most powerful foes battling Superman (and each other). For a romp with great supervillains, this one was to beat.
"Superman Breaks Loose" (1971) was Denny O'Neil's first Superman story. It sees Superman's strength changing and him gaining invulnerability to Green K while losing some power so he can't move planets any more, and Clark Kent being made a TV reporter. This is certainly an important story that would signal a new direction for the series but it doesn't really do much on its own. Like many stories after the Silver Age, the enjoyment of "Superman Breaks Loose" is hurt because its tied into a much larger story and doesn't stand up as well on its own.
As Volume 1 contained a story by Jim Steranko that wasn't the greatest but was noteworthy for him working on it, Volume 2 features, "The Legend from Earth Prime" (1984) drawn by Frank Miller. This was actually an interesting story based on the idea of people from the DC Universe looking in on our universe and discovering Superman's secret identity through that with their actions. It's actually a fun concept.
"The Secret Revealed" (1987) is an oft-repeated reprint of John Byrne's run on Superman that shows the new Luthor's ruthless and psychopathic nature. It's a well-written story, moreso if you really enjoy Byrne's intepretation of Superman. It's only really lessened by the fact that this comes from a long story arch that we don't really get here.
The same problem plagues "Life after Death" (1993) from Adventures of Superman #500 which finds Jonathan Kent in between life and death and trying to bring Clark back but is there a Clark to bring back. It's a somewhat metapyhiscal tale but entertaining.
The book began with Mxyztplk and ends with Mxyztplk in "Narrative Interruptus Tertiarius" which finds a married Lois Lane thinking about having a baby after having been shot while Clark is hesitant as if he couldn't protect Lois, how could he protect a child. This cues Mxyztplk's extraordinary visitation as he shows them a future that might be and has one of his best moments. It's beautiful.
Overall, this book lives up to its name, delivering some fascinating stories and great emotion.
It begins with style with the first appearance of Mr. Mxyztplk in Superman #30 (1944).
Next up is the Imaginary Tale, "Superman's Other Life," (1959) which examines what Kal-El's life on Krypton would have been like had Krypton not exploded. What kills this one for me is the really unnecessary framing device of Batman and Robin having set this up on computer so that Superman could see what his life would be like if Krypton hadn't exploded. Who thinks that's a good gift. The only appropriate response, "Hey Bruce, let me program it to see what your life would have been like if the robber hadn't been carrying a gun. Plus, Superman's own commentary on his "other life" just slowed down the tale. Still, it's not too bad if you can get past the framing.
"Superman Returns to Kypton" (1960) was a necessary inclusion particularly after Volume 1 included John Byrne's far darker re-imagining. Anyone who think Superman during the Silver Age was just goofy fun hasn't read, Superman Returns to Krypton which finds Superman crashing back through time and crashlanding on Kyrpton without powers and facing the possibility of dying of Kyrpton. He meets his parents and finds love-love for him not for his powers from a wonderful woman. Yeah, there's some silly parts but this is also a very moving and poignant story.
"The Team of Luthor and Brainiac" (1964) was a watershed issue that brought together two of Superman's most powerful foes battling Superman (and each other). For a romp with great supervillains, this one was to beat.
"Superman Breaks Loose" (1971) was Denny O'Neil's first Superman story. It sees Superman's strength changing and him gaining invulnerability to Green K while losing some power so he can't move planets any more, and Clark Kent being made a TV reporter. This is certainly an important story that would signal a new direction for the series but it doesn't really do much on its own. Like many stories after the Silver Age, the enjoyment of "Superman Breaks Loose" is hurt because its tied into a much larger story and doesn't stand up as well on its own.
As Volume 1 contained a story by Jim Steranko that wasn't the greatest but was noteworthy for him working on it, Volume 2 features, "The Legend from Earth Prime" (1984) drawn by Frank Miller. This was actually an interesting story based on the idea of people from the DC Universe looking in on our universe and discovering Superman's secret identity through that with their actions. It's actually a fun concept.
"The Secret Revealed" (1987) is an oft-repeated reprint of John Byrne's run on Superman that shows the new Luthor's ruthless and psychopathic nature. It's a well-written story, moreso if you really enjoy Byrne's intepretation of Superman. It's only really lessened by the fact that this comes from a long story arch that we don't really get here.
The same problem plagues "Life after Death" (1993) from Adventures of Superman #500 which finds Jonathan Kent in between life and death and trying to bring Clark back but is there a Clark to bring back. It's a somewhat metapyhiscal tale but entertaining.
The book began with Mxyztplk and ends with Mxyztplk in "Narrative Interruptus Tertiarius" which finds a married Lois Lane thinking about having a baby after having been shot while Clark is hesitant as if he couldn't protect Lois, how could he protect a child. This cues Mxyztplk's extraordinary visitation as he shows them a future that might be and has one of his best moments. It's beautiful.
Overall, this book lives up to its name, delivering some fascinating stories and great emotion.
May 15, 2017
Read for "Miracle Monday".
I really can't enjoy the Golden Age superman stuff, so there are only a handful of stories here that have any resonance for me. Definitely a "Crowd pleaser" volume than anything with real heft or weight.
The only one's I enjoy are Steranko's strip from Superman #400 and Superman #775 (What's So Funny About Truth Justice and the American Way".
Imo, Superman works best as a six to twelve issue run, rather than a grand corporate narrative. Some of the best Superman stories are merely analogs.
I really can't enjoy the Golden Age superman stuff, so there are only a handful of stories here that have any resonance for me. Definitely a "Crowd pleaser" volume than anything with real heft or weight.
The only one's I enjoy are Steranko's strip from Superman #400 and Superman #775 (What's So Funny About Truth Justice and the American Way".
Imo, Superman works best as a six to twelve issue run, rather than a grand corporate narrative. Some of the best Superman stories are merely analogs.
September 22, 2013
Do not judge this collection of Superman stories by the awesome Alex Ross cover art, beacuse there is a reason they were not included in volume 1 of Superman: the Greatest Tales. Stories are arranged chronologically with almost half of them coming from the Silly, I mean Silver, Age of the 50s. They do get better though the 70s, 80s, 90s, and today. I just wish they hadn't started & ended the book with the annoying villian Mr. Mxyztplk.
May 21, 2017
A book of hits and misses. If nothing else, this is a fun ride through Superman's historic legacy with art and storytelling from multiple decades and many contributors. "Greatest Superman Stories?" probably not, but several fun ones and an interesting trip with the Man of Steel made it something of an experience.
May 17, 2015
These older comics are harder to review, since the storytelling style was so different than it is today. These are also compilations, which means there are stories I liked much better than others. I went with 4 stars because I really enjoyed the silly Silver Age vibe overall.
November 14, 2025
Good book. Was a little hot and cold, sometimes had some strong stories while others (mainly the early issues) were a little weak.
I enjoyed it overall though, would recommend.
I enjoyed it overall though, would recommend.
April 28, 2009
This is a great collection of stories. I recommend this to anyone new to the Superman comics fandom and to fans who would enjoy a trip down memory lane.
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