ComicBook reviewed Jason Aaron’s Absolute Superman, yet another alternate world take on classic creations, and I guess because of who the writer happens to be, that’s why the specialty news site is okay with delivering political messages in the pages of such a comic:
DC’s Absolute Universe got its Superman this week with the release of Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval’s Absolute Superman #1 and while this new version of Superman does have some major differences from his main universe counterpart — differences that aren’t just limited to the heroic figure himself but the world he hails from and more — there are some huge similarities as well. Perhaps the largest of those similarities is just how moral and to an extent political the message conveyed by character’s story and actions are. Absolute Superman #1 gives readers who, despite not being the Man of Steel they’re familiar with, is still fighting for justice in ways they can easily recognize. […]
While the circumstances and details of Absolute Superman’s story are different than the main universe hero readers know, fundamentally the actions of the character are not. Throughout his nearly 90-year publication history, Superman has always been protective of Earth and its people, standing up for the common man against threats — including those posed by those with great power who use it to oppress those without. Superman has always taken on threats such as fascists, racists, evil corporations, corrupt politicians and more in addition to otherworldly threats. It’s the character’s sense of justice and his strong moral code that is perhaps his most defining feature and, as such, makes him a genuine hero of the people.
Umm, more recently, Superman has not taken on serious threats like racism and fascism, because when the perpetrators are Islamists, suddenly political correctness must take hold, and when Dan Jurgens was writing the Man of Steel a number of years ago, he certainly demonstrated what side of the spectrum he was taking then. Which was victimologists using protected class status as a weapon against otherwise civilized societies. Since the time Jurgens signed onto a petition in favor of the family of the infant kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023, Kfir Bibas, is it possible he’s changed and reevaluated? Maybe. But if he’s not willing to write any stories that serve as even a metaphor for the subject of Islamic terrorism, then Jurgens for one is demonstrating how in the long run, people like him are failing to send a message.
Most annoying about this article is how it simplifies and dumbs down its subject to make it sound like Superman’s never been depicted going after common street thugs who are far from millionaires, but can still be quite murderous and racist. By that logic, even Joe Chill, the villain whom Batman later discovered was the murderer of his parents, wouldn’t be a big deal. But isn’t that odd how corporations are cited in the article, considering DC/Marvel have been owned by such for many years now, and in the long run, it only worked to their detriment.
And as for political messages, here’s another problem: if the messages conveyed in Superman were right-wing, these same news outlets would be decrying that to no end. Today, they’d even attack writers conveying patriotic messages, regardless of whether it’s in mainstream or independent productions. So it’s hypocritical to defend political allusions in comicdom when they won’t respect conservative-influenced messaging in sharp contrast to liberal. All that aside, any story written by a writer as awful as Aaron is bound to better avoided.
Originally published here.
English (US) · 