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Superman Secret Origin Review (Geoff Johns, Gary Frank)

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Geoff Johns and Gary Frank are two of my favorite comic book creators. I had passed on reading Superman: Secret Origin limited series only because it's been done so many times. Grant Morrison's one page origin in All-Star Superman is good enough for me, but changes to Superman's history in the 2000's created a "need" for them to sort out the mess...I guess. Does DC need a reason to create a reason for another comic book showing the origin of Superman? I guess this is the reason why I spend more time listing the negatives of this wonderful series than the positives. So I'm sorry for writing a review like that, but I just gotta get it off my chest. I have not been following Superman comics in years. I bailed out when Jeph Loeb was undoing John Byrne's Man of Steel retcon with "The REAL TRUTH About Kryton" (can I have my money back?). I missed Kurt Busiek retooling Superman. I've read the different takes on Superman's origin, from the 1960's to John Byrne's MOS, DC's Year One Annuals, Loeb and Tim Sales excellent Superman: For All Seasons, Mark Waid's Birthright, World's Finest Limited Series, and all the movies and TV shows, etc. Just so you know where I am coming from, I liked Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, and Modern Age Superman versions, but I have grown tired of the Superman reboots and changes to his history. I don't need the additions- like a bunch of survivors from Krypton or Superman revisiting Krypton. Heck, even the Phantom Zone rubbed me the wrong way back in the old stories. That being said, I thought Alan Moore's Supreme got it right: let all the stories happen and "count". Superman has a long history, so just let things be without a "reboot" or "retelling" of the origin. The Good Artist Gary Frank (whom I enjoyed in Hulk, Supergirl, Midnight Nation, etc) may have pulled off his greatest work yet. No joke. From panel layout to facial expressions, the artwork in Secret Origins in phenomenal. It was great to see Clark Kent look and act like Christopher Reeve. This was the show stealer. In fact, it was cool to see Johns pay tribute to the Superman movies. They usually get disregarded in the comic book series, so it was awesome that Johns and Frank recaptured Reeve's take on the character. I actually couldn't put the 6 issues down when I finally read them in one sitting. Understand that SO is an extremely entertaining comic book mini-series, and the pacing is good. The Bad Since the purpose of this comic series is to explain the secret origin of Superman, I just thought it leaves itself open to nitpicks from me. First of all, there's not a whole lot of "secrets" anyway, just a merging of the different Superman myths. I guess there are some changes to the new continuity: Lex Luthor once again gets changed slightly- he was back in Smallville, but this time was never friends with Clark; the Parasite and Mentallo get new origins; Metropolis is a horrible place before Superman arrives; Superman goes one on one with the U.S. military, headed by General Lane, and I guess some minor details were changed from Waid's Birthright. Byrne's origin was completely disregarded. Two different Superman origins within three years (three origins if you count E1)? DC has got to be kidding me. Superman: For All Seasons worked just fine for me: it was a great Smallville story; I didn't need another one. Secret Origins is for continuity geeks, and I think Johns was having a field day putting in things that he liked about Superman. Byrne, Waid, Loeb, and Busiek were no different; it's a comic book geek thing. Look, I had problems with the writers in the 1950's and 1960's adding new elements and changing Superman's origin. Superboy has always been a huge continuity problem, so this is nothing new. SO is not refreshing to me. It's a rehash. Back in the late 1980's and most of the 1990's, the Silver Age didn't exist to DC editorial. That was policy. Over time, many cheesy 1960's aspects of Superman crept in his mythos again. Secret Origin solidifies all of the Silver Age hokey stuff that we demanded be recognized. Smallville the TV show. Will its influence ever go away? Ma and Pa Kent are pretty much the Smallville versions. The Legion of the Super-Heroes. Ugh. Just like the Silver Age, these wacky kids from the 30th century come back and ruin the time-line by bringing Superboy into the future with them to their little super-hero club. To keep this in Superman's origin does the Legion more service than Superman. The Legion telling Superboy he will the greatest of them all is cheating Clark's development into a hero. Superman Earth One vs Superman Secret Origin

• Different target audiences.
• Different continuities.
• Fanboys who geek out over what the "official origin" and "current continuity" will get off on SO, while casual fans or non-fans would think E1 is an original and fresh take on modernizing Superman. SO does nothing to modernize Superman, and seems to have been made to lead in John's New Krypton storyline.
• E1 was more emotional to me. SO's is too Silver Age for me. I remember when I picked up a modern version of the Marvel Official Handbook and read about Magneto; it listed his appearances and plot lines in order, and I was cracking up with my friend Tony- it just sounded SO comic booky. SO feels the same way over 6 issues- way too many hokey elements in Superman's origin. Grant Morrison's ONE PAGE origin is THE COOLEST!!!!!!!
• So take heed: don't read Earth One and then Secret Origin in succession. Once you read SO, you will be like "OMG...is this really Superman's origin? It has so many details and is so 'comic-booky'." E1 is hip and trendy; SO is...nerdy.

Conclusion Was Superman Secret Origins good? Yes. It would be a great addition to your comic book collection or bookshelf. For me- a hardcore fan who has read so many Superman issues-  I think it falls short of the hype. I think Geoff Johns is better than that. However the story itself is a good read, it combined many of the elements from movies, and Gary Frank's artwork is marvelous. Read it now!