So, who’s been enjoying the DC Finest collections? Introduced last year, they’re DC’s answer to Marvel’s Epic Collections – thick, good-looking paperbacks collecting runs of series at an excellent price. I’ve bought five so far, and love them all, but my favourite is this just-out Superman collection.
Kryptonite Nevermore is the overall title for a sequence of Superman stories from 1971… well, it’s the title these days, it was The Sandman Saga for several decades due to the prominence of a grainy Super-Doppleganger who stole half of our hero’s powers. It was a particular bummer for Supes, as he’d only just seen all the deadly green Kryptonite on Earth turned to lead by a rogue chain reaction. Talk about good news, bad news. The story was the lynchpin in new series editor Julius Schwartz’s scheme to make Superman less godlike, more human. Other changes in the strips in Superman and sister book Action Comics – edited by Murray Boltinoff – included Clark Kent being swapped from the Daily Planet to WGBS News and the lurking presence of the recently debuted Darkseid, whose Earthly agent was a clone of Clark’s new boss, Morgan Edge.
It was an exciting time to be a Superman fan, even for those of us who didn’t see the need for the reduction in power – the best Superman stories weren’t those which, as the cliche had it, saw Superman juggling planets (did that ever actually happen?), but which challenged his brain, his beliefs. The Sandman Saga has been reprinted a few times – I have a hardback collection myself – but it’s only part of this new collection. The bulk of the book comprises less-lauded stories, and that’s what I’m here for.
A down and out Superman on the streets of Metropolis.
Superman fighting Supergirl to the death.
The Man of Steel banged up with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Colonel Custer.
Clark Kent investigating a ghost in the Tower of London.
And this nightmare fuel.
I’d thankfully forgotten all about this image of Supergirl turned plant, a typically effective illustration by the classic team of penciller Curt Swan and inker Murphy Anderson, who handle pretty much all of the strips (Dick Giordano inks one story and Ross Andru & Mike Esposito drop by on the way to their classic Spidey run). As for the writers, Denny O’Neil does the title story arc, Cary Bates contributes a few, but the majority are from the hugely under-appreciated Leo Dorfman and his pseudonym, Geoff Brown – mostly 8-14pp stories full of twists and turns. We don’t get much in the way of WGBS/Daily Planet shenanigans as the mid to late Seventies would bring, but Lois and Jimmy pop up, along with guest stars the Incredible I-Ching and the NEW Wonder Woman.
The stories can go anywhere, even when they’re not of the imaginary variety – the far future, the past of Smallville, a Native American reservation, the vastness of Space, even Hell itself… revisiting tales I first read as a seven and eight-year-old (please don’t do the maths) is a gut punch of the most joyful variety.
The art team of Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson stand as the greatest Superman had in the Bronze Age. Swan, whose consistency perhaps caused folk to take him for granted, is perfectly partnered by Anderson, an inker with a lush, naturalistic line who occasionally treated us to full art, most notably on Hawkman. Their knack for conveying emotion put a lie to any idea that Superman was a god rather than a man. And dig those clothes, from Clark’s trendy threads to Supergirl’s first change of uniform!
The colours are uncredited but I really like them on this book’s glossy paper, they pop but don’t hurt the eyes. Lettering is from the likes of John Costanza (identifiable by his habit of reversing out the page number if a story included a page 13) and Ben Oda, and it’s always good.
As well as covers – even those for reprint giants whose contents aren’t included – we get the two-page preview of the new Superman status quo and a look at the early days of Superman.
Whether you were there and want a kick of nostalgia, or are curious about what Superman was like 15 years before Crisis on Infinite Earths, I recommend this book hugely. It’s my favourite Superman collection in years.
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
I’m so excited for this book! Thanks for the sneak peek. Looks like there’s a lot of treasures in its pages.
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You’re very welcome, I’d come to terms with the fact DC were never going to collect any more Bronze Age Superman work – I thought the basic Kryptonite Nevermore and Kirby stuff was it.
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The 70s are the start of some vast unreprinted territory for DC — a solid 15 years of pre-Crisis material they’ve been ignoring.. But I expect that’ll change, as DC’s reprint department tries to chase the dollars of people our age, who were kids in the 70s and early 80s.
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Bring it on! Mr & Mrs Superman next, please.
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I adored the Sandman saga, not only because Di and Ching were there, but because it depowered Supes to interesting levels. It was also well-written with gorgeous art, if poor printing.
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Hey, that comment was from me. Technology!
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We need a Purple Ray version of the internet.
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It was great that Denny O’Neil took the opportunity to give the new Wonder Woman and I-Ching some exposure. I loved that little kiss Diana gave Superman – that’s how they should be, like siblings.
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