Progressive Panels Superman “Grounded No More!” By Andy Frisk August 3, 2011 - 13:35 Publisher(s): DC Comics $2.99 US The end of “Grounded,” and Superman as we know him, has arrived. At least what will most likely go down in history as the greatest incarnation of the Man of Steel, who was born in 1986 and died in 2011 at the tender young age of 25, received a worthy sendoff artistically. The incomparable Jamal Igle, who along with writer Sterling Gates created the greatest ever characterization of and stories about Supergirl, handles the artistic chores on the last issue of Superman, which has run uninterrupted since June of 1938 (albeit under the title Adventures of Superman for a while). This incarnation of Supergirl is also meeting an untimely fate after less than ten years back on the scene properly. Both are victims of sales panic at DC Comics and, to some, the impeding loss of the Superman copyright. For anyone left reading “Grounded,” which started brilliantly but suffered somewhat when Straczynski was pulled from it, all loose ends are tied up, and Clark and Lois literally kiss and make up. Straczynski and Roberson also manage to bring a bit of closure to this “dead at 25” incarnation of Superman, stating, again literally, that they “lived happily ever after” and that “together, they fought the never ending battle for Truth, Justice, and The American Way.” The 1986 thru 2011 versions of Lois and Clark might live “happily ever after,” but many current readers of the Superman Family of comic books will not be living happily ever after with Superman, the character and comic book. While Superman #714 might be subtitled “Grounded No More” Superman is about to, very ironically, be grounded in several ways. The Superman of the new Action Comics #1 won’t even be able to fly, and seriously looks to be a semi carbon copy of the Superman of the 1930s. Superman will be dark, snarky, and battle bad guys at the local level. Thematically, this Superman was great and was what was needed for the Great Depression days, but nowadays we need a more progressive, open-minded, and tolerant Superman. We need a Superman who is willing to stand up and fight the big battles, lead by example, and be a Boy Scout. The Superman of 1986 thru 2011 embodied much of what modern day America embodied. The courage to make the hard choices, fight the tough battles, sacrifice himself for the good of his loved ones, and seek out compromised solutions to difficult problems. This Superman died and came back to fight the never ending battle. DC Comics might have it right though as concerns Superman thematically when it’s all said and done. America isn’t willing to come to compromises anymore on difficult issues. America is growing more and more intolerant with each passing day. The average American is becoming more and more cynical and is nowhere near as hopeful as he or she once was. The average American, on both the right and the left, are angrier now more than they’ve ever been. Maybe the time is right for a Superman to come along who reflects these qualities. The problem is that art, and yes Superman comic books are art, should inspire one to be more than what they are. The Superman of 1986 thru 2011 did this in spades. The characters around Superman might have been a little more filled with angst, anger, violence, and a varying sense of self, but how they interacted with Superman and how Superman inspired them to overcome their problems and challenges is what made the stories of this now ended era so great. Stories like the brilliant New Krypton, and even Grounded, showed us that this Superman too could go through some difficult times and suffer loss, but he always returned to relying on what he strove to represent, and believed in, at heart: “Truth, Justice, and The American Way." An "American Way" that relies on the promise of equal opportunity. The opportunity to better oneself, to fall in love, to have a family, to live in peace, and to learn to accept and understand what is often considered The Other, but is actually part of the great melting pot that is America.  Not the opportunity to rip off your fellow men, stalemate the processes that made our country great and free, or seek to destroy and drive out what is different from you. Hopefully, one day Superman will get back to these values or, better yet, not waver from them as dramatically as he appears he might be in the coming years.   © Copyright 2002-2026 by Toon Doctor Inc. - All rights Reserved. All other texts, images, characters and trademarks are copyright their respective owners. Use of material in this document (including reproduction, modification, distribution, electronic transmission or republication) without prior written permission is strictly prohibited.