I started watching My Adventures With Superman recently and it’s pretty fun! We’ve also got that new Superman movie coming out next year or so. And that live action Superman & Lois show is coming upon it’s last season. So everything is coming up Superman these days! I figured that meant I should do a Superman list.

This list is about my personally preferred Superman status quos. Is that the right way to say it? I wasn’t sure of the word choice. Basically, there are a bunch of factoids about Superman’s basic set up and origin, and they tend to change from one adaptation or comic to the next. It’ll make more sense what I’m talking about once I get to the actual list. I’m not entirely sure where these opinions came from, probably stuff I was introduced to about the character when I was a kid. And now all of that has been weathered by age and seeing various takes on the Man of Steel. Well, these are my favorite takes!

Join me after the jump for my personal choices when it comes to crafting Superman’s status quo! And feel free to share your own versions in the comments below!

6. Slower than the Flash

Superman is fast, obviously, and he can fly, but he shouldn’t be as fast as or faster than The Flash. They get their speed from two very different sources. The Flash is powered by the Speed Force, and almost mystical energy source that grants him super speed. Superman is just naturally fast thanks to the whole yellow sun thing. The Flash is and should always be levels above Superman in terms of speed.

5. Didn’t know he was being sent to Earth

I don’t like the idea that Jor-El knew he was sending Kal-El to Earth, and that Earth’s yellow sun would give him super powers. I especially hate any implication that Jor-El specifically chose the Kents. No thank you. I want baby Kal-El born on Krypton, and in a desperate bid to save him, his parents send his rocket out into the depths of space. I want the powers, the yellow sun, the Kansas family and all of that to be totally random and unknown. Also, Kal-El should be born on Krypton. I only learned recently that there was some weird xenophobia going on in one comic reboot that used a birthing matrix so that the boy could be born on Earth and therefore be a U.S. citizen? Nah. Born on Krypton, immigrated to Earth/America.

4. Homemade costume

I’m not a fan of Superman’s costume being some kind of suit worn by Kryptonians, and that it’s already premade and waiting for him for when he discovers his origin. I prefer the idea that Ma Kent made his costume out of the blankets he was swaddled in on his rocketship. Of course, that begs the question of how Ma Kent was able to sew/alter fabrics that would go on to be impervious when Superman fights bad guys. But maybe the first costume she made couldn’t stand up, so Superman got a better one the second time. Or maybe just his cape is made from the blankets. Either way, I want Clark and his mom to design him a superhero costume.

3. Metropolis is not in Kansas

I don’t like the idea of the big city of Metropolis being right down the road from the little village of Smallville. That seems weird to me. I want Smallville to be in Kansas, in America’s heartland. And I want Metropolis to be the Big City somewhere on the East Coast. It’s the biggest, boldest, bestest city in the DC Universe version of America, and that’s where Clark Kent wants to go when he grows up. It’s as far from America’s heartland as one can get. Makes Metropolis seem like a bigger deal then. At least to me.

2. First meets Lex Luthor in Metropolis

A lot of adaptations have Clark and Lex meeting when they’re both kids in Smallville. Doesn’t work for me. I want Lex Luthor to be an established businessman in Metropolis when Superman suddenly shows up. They’ve no history together, no great friendship ruined over time. Lex is a businessman and, to him, Clark Kent is just a byline in the Daily Planet. Obviously once Clark is more established as a lead reporter for the paper, the two men can know one another on a professional level, but that should be it. They didn’t know each other when they were kids. Clark and/or Superboy didn’t cause Lex to go bald. They are two grown men who come to blows.

1. Parents alive

I prefer it when Clark’s parents are alive. I know the story of Pa Kent’s heart attack is an important one, but I feel like that can happen well into Clark’s career as Superman. I like the idea that Superman’s kindly, old parents are just hanging out on the farm in Kansas and he can go see them whenever he wants. They’re simple folk living simple lives, super impressed with and proud of their son and all of his accomplishments. It keeps Superman grounded, which is a key point to make about the guy. He’s not Jesus Christ. He’s just a good-hearted Kansas farmboy who was raised right. And his parents are still around, and he has a nice adult child/parent relationship with them. That’s what I like to see!

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