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For a much more detailed look at the evolution of Superman's powers -- and the character and backstory in general -- there's a pretty detailed history on the Superman Comics website (which includes reprints of various issues over the ages).

I grew up on the "silver age" Superman, which pretty much matches the movies. Jerry Siegel was back at DC Comics then, and SF writers like Edmond Hamilton and Otto Binder were contributing. A real SF twist on a lot of the stories back then, and set the backstory for much that came later.

Of course, silly me I didn't realize you lived on Htrae.

First, personal anecdotes do not constitute evidence, so while it's interesting that you haven't seen a virus on Windows lately this does not mean that viruses are not a problem. This is of course ignoring spyware and other types of malware which also affect Windows and plagues many small IT departments. I've personally cleaned up a dozen machines in the last month that were nearly crippled due to all the associated malware, including one that was totally hosed by SmithFraud.

IMHO, there are two kinds of Windows users, those who've had a virus and those who don't know it yet.

I don't know what to be more disturbed about. a. the fact that you knew which comic it was in or b. that I immediately had to figure out a Google to prove to check your facts! Superman's Powers

Superman, we need your help! Lex Luthor just stole the Einstein document just after its discovery! Fortunately, your friend Jimmy Olsen of the Daily Planet was one of the witnesses; he can tell you what happened.

Superman, we need your help! Lex Luthor just stole the Einstein document just after its discovery! Fortunately, your friend Jimmy Olsen of the Daily Planet was one of the witnesses; he can tell you what happened.

Now tell me commie's aren't cool....

What it should have been is a War Hero who saved the Galaxy. THEN he got hungry with power.

Actually thinking about this part a little more, I think you are again on to something. One could easily develop a story a little akin to say Red Son which does a fine job of turning the all powerful hero into something of a villain in an elegant and believable way. Just add some material about Anakin's rage at not being able to control everything the way he feels he should/deserves to (perhaps the death of his wife could come in here somewhere) and thus falling to the dark side and you would have a much more compeeling story.

Jedidiah.

As these ridiculous examples come to surface, you'll see more public momentum to freeing culture.

It's bad enough that only DC and Marvel can use the (obviously generic, but actually trademarked) term Super-Hero.

It was only 24 years ago that a wrestler took the name Hulk Hogan. Nobody seemed to mind back then. Why is it that we have to avoid 'hulking males with green skin and tattered purple pants' in our video games?

Any why doesn't Marvel sue the pants off of DC with their obvious Hulk-ripoffs Soloman Grundy and Bizarro Superman? Maybe because Marvel ripped off DC?

And how about the similarities between the civilian careers of Peter Parker and Clark Kent?

The whole super-hero scene is so full of rip-offs, homages, and influences they ought to be ashamed of their action.

Actually, they really ought to be ashamed of the Hulk movie, the more time that passes, the more violated I feel.

That would actually be the pre-"Crisis on Infinite Earths" mythos.

Back in the day (before 1985/86 - see http://www.sequart.com/crisis.htm) the "DC Universe" was bifrocated into to "main" universes so as to provide some "logical" reason for the fact that many characters had histories streatching from as early as WWII. The "Earth 1" universe had the "modern" superheroes who's careers started ten or twelve years ago, while the "Earth 2" universe had many older heroes who's careers started before WWII. On Earth 2, many of these heroes were retired and had kids or sidekicks who had taken over their hero-identities. Batman/Bruce Wayne had married (and died?) and had had a daughter (Helena Wayne - see http://my.execpc.com/~icicle/THEHUNTRESS.html. Superman had wed Lois Lane and was in semi-retirement, and many others of the "golden age" heroes/JSA were also "old and grey".

There were many more "earths" to mine for material. Earth-3 had hero and villian roles reversed. Earth-S had the Captain Marvel heroes and others like Spy-Smasher from the Fawcett characters that DC had aquired. There was a world with talking animals that had Hoppy the Marvel Bunny and Captain Carrot and the Zoo crew. There was Earth-Prime that had no superheroes and was where comic books about super heroes were published (supposedly WE are on Earch-Prime). The "Crisis" smushed all of these universes together and re-wrote history to try to simplify it all, and it was stated that there was now only ONE universe.

The idea of parallel universes is however just too useful to not use, and recent DC stories are revived it with "Hyper-Time" and of course the whole "ElseWorlds" storylines are also in some sense alternative universes. Many DC/Marvel or DC/Other crossovers use the ideas of multiple universes too.

In the last issues of the Superman comics before the rewrite of Crisis, "Superman# 423 and Action Comics #583, was a story about the future of the non-Crisis Superman's world. http://theages.superman.ws/History/whatever.php. It opens with one of my favourite quotes " This is an imaginary story... Aren't they all? "

No problemo.

Here is an Arctic Base.

It's super!

I can't believe they didn't remember this!

Oh, great: now I've gone and distracted myself from my actual JOB (fortunately, this site'll be /.'d beyond all recognition within moments and I'll be able to get back to work...)

Oh yeah, that reminds me of this. Best superman spinoff ever. I love the hammer and sickle instead of his S!

I wonder what DC Comics (and the other owners?) have to say about NetGear using their copyrighted character in a commercial product ?

I presume of course you only use lynx to browse?

Occasionally, but not exclusively. My browsing needs are met by a number of applications and programming libraries depending on what is needed. There is no best browser. Certainly, I believe that images (lacking in lynx) are massively useful in portraying certain types of web content.

The blind analogy is false, and you have missed the point. A better description would be 'I shall open my eyes when I need to. I shan't get run over by a train, because I shall hear it coming'.

This also explain why so many characters have two L's in their names.

There's a classic radio sequence -- alas, I can't remember who did it -- that addresses this very point. They make the world's biggest ice cream sundae out of Lake Erie...

Evidently it was Steve Allen, in a skit titled "Let's See Television Do This!"

http://superman.ws/stta/GuestBook/2000.php

Google is awesome!

http://superman.ws/fos/copyright/comicon1.php

I was delighted with the first Batman, and although Keaton didn't have the face for Bruce Wayne, he did a marvelous job of acting

I remember reading an interview with him at the time, and he was kind of fed up with all the critisizm that he didn't look the part. He said something to effect that if they wanted a square jaw for the cowl they could have gotten Lenno.

That being said this was the first time I'd seen Keaton departing from comedy roles, so it's understandable that he could pull of a surprisingly good performance. Keanu, on the other hands has shown himself to be a wooden actor... On the other hand, for comic characters, Supes is a bit wooden, so maybe it'll work out. I'll keep an open mind. But you know, the kid who plays Clark on Smallvill doesn't do a bad job (considering the lame, overly propagandistic, poorly thought out scripts they give him). I think he'd be a better choice.

Yeah, I think we all have fond memories of Christopher Reeve as Superman. Oddly enough, what I remember as good about his portrayal, was how well he did Clark and the bumbling doofus act. It was just so sweet and charming. And then the shift when he pulled his glasses down a couple inches... If I was gay, that would definately get me going...

Back to the point: He did Okay in matrix, because it wasn't a very demanding role. It may be that Superman can be crafted to fit him okay. But I think I'll miss the bungling clark (he was lost in the last revision of superman I read through. Has he come back, does anyone know? My casual perusal of superman says no but maybe I'm wrong.

Oh and a question: Didn't I read somewhere that the copyrights went back to the Siegel family? Are there any non Warner implementations of Superman in the pipes, or what's the story?

and will Jerry Siegels curse still apply? Is that what happened to Christopher Reeves? If you don't know about jerry's curse it's in the article, here's the quote:

Jerry Siegel, himself, in response to news that a big budget Hollywood picture starring his creation was underway in 1974, wrote, "The publishers of SUPERMAN comic books, National Periodical Publications (now DC Comics), killed my days, murdered my nights, choked my happiness, strangled my career. I consider National's executives money-mad monsters. I, Jerry Siegel, the co-originator of SUPERMAN, put a curse on the SUPERMAN movie!"