Superman - The Embodiment of White Privilege

I'm not a big fan of the term "privilege" as it is used by my fellow progressive. While recognizing how some groups are advantaged in our society is certainly important, contextualizing it as "privilege" suggests that it is something to be desired rather than dismantled.

Lack of discrimination is not a privilege to be desired, but it is a power that can be wielded for good or ill. From that perspective, perhaps the greatest icon representing white privilege is Superman. Sure, he isn't rich in the sense of Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark, but when it comes to happy childhoods, is there any superhero who had a better one than Clark Kent?

Superman's childhood is literally modeled after the American ideal depicted in the artwork of Norman Rockwell paintings. Growing up in the farmlands of Kansas, he is solidly from the heartland of America. Although religion is rarely discussed in Superman, you can't help but think that his upbringing is solidly Protestant (whether that's what he believes as an adult is a question for another day).

The very idea that Superman is invulnerable is a representation of white privilege itself. Superman has absolutely nothing to fear. Those few things capable of hurting him are also things that he can easily avoid, if he chooses to. Unlike the X-Men or Spider-Man, Superman is not chased down and actively discriminated against for who he is (Lex Luthor being the exception). He doesn't even have to wear a mask!

Unlike many of the others I've mentioned, it is virtually impossible to depict Superman as anything other than a white heterosexual male because every aspect of his upbringing and character is compatible with that identity. If Clark Kent were black or gay, we would naturally be concerned that his rural upbringing was full of tragedy and strife that helped shape the hero who he had become. If he were a woman, his gender would be politicized as much as Wonder Woman's. This kind of pathos is great for most superheroes, but with Superman, it is the idealism of his upbringing that makes him into such a pure being.

And yet, Superman is not a negative character. He is not meant to show the problem of white privilege, but rather the responsibility of privilege. Because he is invulnerable, he considers it his responsibility to protect those who are most vulnerable. He wants everyone to have the same chance at happiness that he has had.

Recent Superman comics and movies have been trying to make Superman cool and edgy. They insert a lot of tragedy and pain in his life. They show his frustration at having to hide who he is, creating some obvious parallels to homosexuality. They show him getting angry and frustrated, shaving his head into a crew cut. They pair him up with Wonder Woman to show that he can get the greatest piece of ass in the DC universe... but they are getting further and further away from what makes Superman great.

Superman isn't great because he's like us. He's great because he's better than us, but he is 100% on our side. He isn't you. He isn't your friend or your brother or your dad. He is the mentor that we all want. He is the leader who stands out from a crowd of politicians and speaks to your heart. He's great because we want to be him... not to impress anyone, but just to feel what it is like to be so happy and safe and secure... so much so that you can spend your life giving without ever wanting for anything.

That's privilege... and we should all be so lucky.

Top 11 Dream Assignments

I can't help it. Try though I might to be an independent writer with my own creations and maintaining some sort of dignity, I spend a lot of time thinking about how I'd write other people's comic books, usually Marvel or DC. Often it isn't even characters I like or read. They are often comics I would avoid, but that's part of the challenge.

Like they say in theater, there are no small parts, only small actors. Writers have a similar expression. There are no bad characters, only bad interpretations. From the right angle, almost anything is interesting.

So without further ado... here are my top eleven dream assignments, in no particular order. Why eleven? Because I had one more than ten.

Superman: The Early Years

This is a concept I'm working on right now. This is about Clark Kent's first days in Metropolis. It's about moving from a small, happy town where everyone knew everyone to the big, exciting city where no one knows anyone. It is before Clark learns how to fly, before he knows he's an alien, before the costume.

This is a story where I hope to illustrate that Superman aren't two different personas, but the same person seen through different circumstances. When he is saving a bus full of people, it is easy for him to look heroic. The powers make this easy for him. When he is interviewing for a job or trying to help someone with relationship problems, he is very weak and ineffectual... or at least he feels that way, and acts that way... and hence people under estimate him, especially Lois. When she enters a room, everyone shuts up; when Clark enters a room, no one notices.

I also want to play up the idea that Superman is a great person simply because he cares about the people around him and has such small town values. He won't let the big, intimidating city desensitize and dehumanize him. He will obstinately behave as though he were still in a small town, introducing himself to everyone he meets by name and becoming genuinely interested in their problems.

Too often Superman is portrayed as saintly or Christ-ly while Clark Kent is portrayed as a clownish disguise, but I want to try to make both of them more human and relateable. Try to appeal to our better nature.

X-Men: Chapter One

Another concept going back to the original days. Again, I want to draw out the original themes of the X-Men with a focus on characterization. If you read the original comics, it is easy to miss the strongest elements of the story due to a lot of hackneyed writing (sorry, Stan. Much love).

I'd like to focus on the relationships of the characters, particularly how Scott became the leader of the X-Men and the original love triangle between Scott, Jean, and Warren. This love triangle is often forgotten due to the more popular Scott/Jean/Logan love triangle, but I think the symbolism is brilliant. Scott is self-repressed and has poor self-esteem, conflicted by his desire for love and his fear that he will destroy it. Jean's telekinesis manifests almost like a poltergeist symbolizing her own insecurities and an unwillingness to accept her own power. When presented with an actual angel (who is also rich and beautiful), she leaps into a relationship, but soon questions if that is actually what she wants. Warren, on the other hand, simply wants the best and most beautiful, but this too is wrapped up in his own insecurity and the feeling that he must prove himself to his father.

Although I'd like to do a faithful interpretation of the original comics, I would like to add a few more characters, particularly Moira MacTaggert as a foil for Xavier and female role model as well as Storm, since it might be fun to see her character before she grows into adulthood. I'd like to retell classic tales like the first meeting with the Brotherhood of Mutants, the discovery of the Savage Land, and the invention of the Sentinels all as very contemporary science fiction stories.

Batman & Robin

If you read a Batman comic, you get the distinct impression that Bruce Wayne has no life. He seems to spend the majority of his time in the Batcave investigating crimes. Occasionally, he will attend a social function and play the part of the billionaire playboy, but like the clownish Clark Kent, it often feels like an act. I've often thought that if Bruce Wayne was serious about stopping crime, he would use his business empire rather than his fists. Money is the greatest superpower, after all.

This story would focus on the day-to-day lives of Bruce Wayne and Tim (Robin) Drake. In Bruce Wayne's story, we would find Bruce realizing that Wayne Industries does not have the sterling reputation he believed when he is forced to confront their history military weapons development, unethical drug testing, and sweatshop labor. As he struggles to reform the company's business practices, he starts to realize that he is being strategically attacked by an unknown enemy.

In Tim Drake's story, we follow his life in high school as he makes friends and begins to carve out his own territory in Gotham. He sets up the "Bird's Nest," his own treehouse version of the Batcave, hidden in a broadcasting tour. He falls for a charming, blind redhead destined to be a new Batgirl and fights off an invasion from an evil parallel version of himself. The goal would be to focus more on the relationships of the characters, their day-to-day life, and broad adventures rather than the brooding, serious crime dramas we normally get.

Fantastic Four

I have a strange fascination with the Fantastic Four. There are a couple marvelous characters, but mainly the tone is somewhere between Leave It To Beaver and The Brady Bunch. It's incredibly white and incredibly wholesome. But despite this, the eccentric genius of Mr. Fantastic is extremely compelling as is his counterpoint in the friendly, grounded, but often brooding character of the Thing. Furthermore, you get the sense that the Fantastic Four is nothing but a private scientific research agency whose scientific accomplishments never amount to any actual change or progress.

When I look at the Fantastic Four, I see Reed Richards creating the kind of technology we see in Star Trek and I want to see the social progress that comes with it. In my Fantastic Four, the team would be refocused as a scientific institute for study, exploration, and most importantly development. I think they've gone a little more in this direction with the Future Foundation (see pic above), but I think this can be expanded dramatically.

The Fantastic Four would be less of a team and more of a brand name for academics, brainstorming, exploration, and practical scientific application. Rather than being the story of a small family unit exploring the cosmos, it would be the story of a small family unit running a complex, state of the art organization with hundreds of employees ranging from scientist and students to lawyers and military personnel... all of whom are not only exploring but colonizing the cosmos. Sue would run the business, Reed would head the think tank, Ben would command the troops, and Johnny... well, Johnny would finally have to face how directionless his life is.

The first story would be about building a gateway for intergalactic travel through the Negative Zone. Trouble abounds from monsters in that dimension and greedy investors who want to use the gateway for exploitative purposes.

Alpha Flight: Socializing Superheroes

I always found Alpha Flight to be a funny concept: Canada's Avengers (particularly because Canada has a much lower crime rate than the US). Or the nefarious government agency overseeing Alpha Flight, Department H, as if Canada could compare with the US when it comes to shadowy, invasive black ops.

The problems of Canada simply don't compare to the problems of the US... and that is all to their credit, yet it makes it difficult to take seriously when the US is so much more dangerous. But that alone is a very interesting idea. A team of superheroes, sponsored by a government without any militaristic or tyrannical intentions, overstaffed, marvelous benefits and very little in the way of actual threats to deal with. Sure, the problems may not be as epic, but they can be weird, twisted and personal. Because the team is government run, you can have a cast of dozens spread across the provinces and focus more on their interpersonal relationships.

I also think it would be fun to have a guest appearance by Spider-Man early on to make relentless Canadian jokes all while being unnerved by the general cleanliness and politeness of Toronto.

Wonder Woman

Regular readers of this blog will know that I have an obsession with Wonder Woman. She's the most recognizable female superhero, extremely popular, but she has never had a quality comic. Her fans may disagree, but its hard to argue when there has never been a Wonder Woman comic that is anywhere near as popular as the character herself.

I've made some detailed descriptions of how I'd revamp Wonder Woman, but mostly what she needs is a secret identity to contrast her heroic personality, a city to call her own, a good supporting cast, and a villain makeover.

In my interpretation, Wonder Woman has her life redrawn by the mythic Greek Fates and is reborn as Diana Prince, a psychology professor at the University of Opal City. She has dreams of being Wonder Woman, but psychoanalyzes it as fantasy based on a perceived hopelessness about her job and life. She gradually realizes who she is, but both her Gods and her home are gone. Eventually, she realizes that there is a chance that all of them, like her, were reborn in another form and seeks to restore them. This would mythologize WW stories of the past so they would still be canon, but the story and all characters would be recast in a modern contemporary "wish fulfillment scenario."

Her supporting cast would be constructed from students, colleagues, and existing DC characters. Enemies and allies would also be reborn. The big villain of the series would be Vandal Savage, the immortal warlord, in the attempt to create a true arch-nemesis who contrasts Diana properly. The stories would largely revolve around gender, control, and alternative lifestyles, thereby playing into the prominent themes of the original stories and avoiding the familiar elements of Greek myth that (for me) weigh Wonder Woman down and make the comic less approachable.

Doctor Strange

Another character who has always interested me, but his stories have always disappointed. Marvel isn't very good at developing a cohesive magical world, at least not as good as DC. It is very hard to figure out what Dr. Strange can or cannot do, so you don't really get a sense of peril. He's also burdened by a bland, emotionally flat cast consisting of himself and his loyal manservant, Wong.

I'd like to add some depth to his story by making him a caretaker for all things magical, particularly people who have been adversely effected by magic. As a doctor, healing the sick and troubled should be his first priority, but with as serious a character as the good doctor, you have to have some characters who are more emotional to contrast with.

I would start by including new characters who have a vague relationship to magic who could benefit from Strange's help. First on this list is Scarlet Witch who was recently written to have unchecked magic potential without the wisdom to utilize it. This would be a good contrast to the always wise and controlled doctor. Next would be Juggernaut, a character whose magic-based powers have always been an awkward fit in the X-Men. Since Juggernaut receives his powers from Cyttorak and Dr. Strange is often evoking the same source, he may be able to provide help that Professor Xavier never could. Finally, I would also want to add Hawkeye, since his bow-wielding skills would be much better suited to the fantasy environment, and his brash attitude would also be a necessary contrast to the doctor.

The story would center largely over Strange's attempt to expand his services to those in need as well as a search for his lost child by his wife, Clea.

Avengers

Although I am not an Avengers fan, I'm attracted to the idea of writing for the best of the best. The problem I've always had with the Avengers is that their roster has always seemed awkward and their threats are usually hackneyed superhero fair. Just another megalomaniac, alien, or vague entity...

My Avengers would incorporate classic elements with the Invaders (the original Marvel superhero team) and new members, characters who deserve wider recognition and fit within the team dynamic. This would include Captain America, Iron Man, Namor, Human Torch, Black Panther, Vision, Storm, Scarlet Witch, Longshot, and Valkyrie.

The story would focus largely around Doctor Doom forming an alliance with other nations to bring about a third world war. His first target is the Avengers and he hits their every weak spot, targeting them individually and dividing them by their separate interests, and by placing a spy in their roster to hit them at their weakest.

Another story would be about the robot Vision evolving beyond a simple machine, detaching from biological concepts like gender, and becoming akin to a technological Hindu god. As he finds other AI striving for their own sense of identity, he becomes a reluctant messiah figure only to find his counterpart in his "father," Ultron, as he seeks to conquer the world for AI. This would lead directly into my next idea.

X-Men: The Third Race

With the X-Men, I often think about how I would write two books at once, since there are far more X-Men characters than one book can handle. This title would focus on the X-Men in San Francisco as a mutant rights and relations agency. The team would consist of Cyclops, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Rogue, Sentinel Omega, Emma Frost, and Multiple Man.

The first story revolves around a set of terrorist bombings committed by robots disguised as people. While tracking down the culprits, the X-Men find that there is a revolution taking place by AI which is objecting to the way they are being used - usually for military, dangerous labor, or even sexual purposes. The X-Men have to decide whether to support or stop this revolution. This becomes complicated when they realize that there are Sentinels who have joined the movement. Eventually, this revolution becomes their own race of sorts and which conflicts with mutants as both races are poised to usurp the planet from the human race.

Uncanny X-Men: The New School

The other X-Men title I'd like to write is a throwback to the original idea of the X-Men as a school. We've seen enough of Xavier running the school, Cyclops and Emma Frost were no good at it, so I'd like to see a new headmaster and headmistress. My choice would be Storm and Beast. Storm has the evolved sensibilities and wisdom that made Xavier so effective while Beast has intellect and humor well suited to the job. Add to them the combination of Kitty Pryde and Colossus as student advisers and you have a team of classic members comprising an actual school.

As for the students themselves, you would need a class that actually feels deserving of the X-Men title, so I would go with a few new creations and a couple members from previous classes like X-23, Hellion, Penance, Pixie, Surge, Mercury, Petra, or Prodigy. I'd like to create a new telepath character for this series, since telepaths seem to be a necessary part of the X-Men.

For the story, I'd like to focus on recreating a classic feel but without relying on overexposed villains, so the first story arc would focus on the character who took Professor Xavier's legs coming back to destroy his dream.

WildStorm Revival

Finally, the last major property I would like to work on is the WildStorm line currently owned by DC. This was my favorite comic franchise before DC drove it into the ground and I would love to have a chance to streamline it with a series of interlocking stories introducing the history of the world.

The story would begin with two alien races, the Kherubim and Daemonites, crashing to Earth thousands of years ago and continuing their war on our isolated planet. Although they wage their war largely in secret, the manipulations of the alien races alters the natural development of our species. Through civilization, war, and religion, the human race become unknowing pawns in an alien conflict. We follow a lone Kherubim warrior, Zannah, as she fights the war through the millennia, often creating or destroying empires in her hubris. For this reason, she deservingly earns the nickname "Zealot."

The Kherubim/Daemonite war comes to the forefront during World War II when advances in communication, record keeping, and intelligence reveal the Daemonite influence on the Third Reich. In response, the Allied forces form their own team of superhuman operatives including Jenny Sparks (the foul-mouthed Brit with powers of electricity), Marc Slayton (an assassin who can disappear in a puff of smoke), and John Colt (a genetically engineered soldier based on a long-dead Kherubim warrior).

Flash forward the 1970s, an Kherubim scout probe bonds to a Russian cosmonaut over Earth's atmosphere and lands in war-torn Cambodia. The event is referred to as a "wild storm" due to the cosmic energy fluctuations in the atmosphere. The American black ops company known as International Operations send their foremost wetworks group, Team 7, to investigate. They are the best soldiers the nation has to offer and they are only used in the worst circumstance. Upon retrieving the woman/probe, they find themselves gifted by incredible telepathic powers, driving many insane, and causing the others to question their loyalties.

In the late 80s, children who were in utero during the "wild storm" are born with powers, most of which do not manifest outside of extreme stress. These potentials are found and recruited by the United Nation's StormWatch program, enlisted to deal with superhuman phenomena. They are this world's premiere superhuman response team.

In the late nineties, the hidden children of Team 7 are found and recruited by International Operation and enlisted in the Gen13 program to find out how their parent's exposure has manifested in them. This leads to the rescue of the alien probe called Void.

Uniting with the remaining Kherubim on Earth, Void prepares for the coming of the Kherubim which they quickly realize is not the beginning of a renaissance, but possibly the beginning of an invasion.

The idea would be to streamline WildStorm continuity to include storylines that were previously in continuity while creating a fresh jumping point for original content. Ideally, I'd want this series to continue in real time (e.g. characters age a year for every year of publication), but of course, this decision would not be up to me.

So that's it! Of course, there are other ideas I've had for stories, but these are the big ones. There are actually fewer than I thought and I think this exercise has helped me focus my ambitions a bit. Next, I'll do rough outlines of all of the original projects I would still like to work on. Until then, your comments and criticism are always welcome.

Zack Snyder is directing the Superman movie

So Zack Snyder is directing the Superman movie...

He previously brought us 300 and Watchmen...

*sigh*

So he did two comic book movies and he is qualified to do another one? Is that how it works?

You couldn't have found someone who, I don't know, has storytelling qualities which will best exemplify the tone and major themes of Superman?

LOL!

Now I'm acting like comic books have literary themes. How stupid of me...

UPDATED:

Everyone is writing their guidelines to making a good Superman film. Pretty much everyone agrees they need a new villain, someone for Superman to punch repeatedly, but rumor has it, they are just going to do Zod again (ho-hum).

Anyway, I threw my 2-cents in years ago... and here are the links if you haven't read them.

Saving The Franchise: Superman - Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Casting The Ultimate Superman Movies

"And the American way..."

I just finished reading this article by Bill (Fables, other stuff) Willingham. In this article, he condemns the fact that Superman's battle for truth and justice often no longer includes the words "and the American way."

Are you fucking kidding me? You have no idea why this might be?

This article was written in early 2009 after 8 years of having our country and its ideals raped by an arguably elected leader. We invaded two countries (at least one without provocation), wiretapped our citizens, and justified torture. This was just the big stuff, of course. I won't count the shitty response to Hurricane Katrina or Cheney's hit squad (oh wait, just did).

The fact that Willingham quoted Rush Limbaugh in the article should tell me everything I need to know.

So I guess the heroic American qualities that Willingham wants to see involve Superman waterboarding Toyman? Or shoving an electric pear up Lex's ass?

Just like how the pledge of allegiance added "under God" as propaganda to distinguish between God-fearing capitalists and godless Communists, the phrase "American way" was added to Superman's oath to make Americans feel like their way is the right way. It first appeared in the Superman radio program of 1942 to reflect wartime patriotism. It was dropped by the end of the decade and returned again in the 1952 TV series to (once again) reflect the Cold War with Russia.

The problem with having a character who is both absolutely moral and yet a protector of the law is that often laws are immoral... if not by their design then by their implementation. If the law conflicts with what is basically "truthful and justified," the law should not be obeyed and a moral person will risk legal consequences to support their values.

Why do so many writers exclude "the American way" from Superman's oath? Because it portrays him as being narrow-minded and jingoistic. It encourages that "American way" as if that were better than other ways. It identifies him as supporting American interests above other interests.

The Superman that most writers want to portray is the populist Superman who supports "the human way," who identifies Earth as his home rather than one country.

This is the same reason that the Justice League of America was renamed the Justice League in the '80s (and later, Justice League International and later still, JLA). The "America" in the name suggested a preference for defending or representing a single country, but to have the most powerful and trustworthy heroes on the planet represent such narrow interests seemed laughable, if not insulting to anyone outside our country.

But I suppose the fact that his article is read by hundreds if not thousands says all it needs to. Don't worry, Bill. I'm sure that you will be given the opportunity to make Superman a fascist again. It's all cyclical.

Smallville canceled?

So the rumor is that Smallville is only going to have one more season... its tenth.

You know, I always thought this show would end right as I started to get interested in it.

It is really no surprise and everyone is just amazed that it lasted this long. What I would like is for "Smallville" to be canceled and replaced with "Superman: Metropolis." Enough foreplay. Let's see the real Superman! I'd settle for these actors (or at least the ones who play Clark and Lois) to star in the next Superman film.

But probably neither of these things will happen, so what would I like to see in season ten?

Well, I heard a rumor that Darkseid will be the villain. That would be awesome, but improbable on a TV budget. Really, the show needs to go full circle and bring back Lex Luthor as an uncompromising villain. If Lex doesn't have a major role by the series finale, it will be a big failure in my book.

Comics on television

Until very recently, it wasn't possible to show superheroes on film. The feats of the comic books (and the costumes) were so incredible that there was really no way to reproduce it effectively without advanced CGI. Although wirework had been around in 1975's Superman, you can't use wires to convey Spider-Man's acrobatic swinging or Iron Man's jet boots. This is still the primary factor preventing superhero TV shows, but that is starting to go away.

It has recently been announced that Heroes is being cancelled, but two new superhero shows have already been developed for the next season. The Cape is an antihero story somewhere between Batman and Spawn while No Ordinary Family is about a family that gains superpowers, similar to Fantastic Four or The Incredibles. I'm not sure that either of these will last, but it shows me that there is a big interest in bringing superheroes to the small screen.





Personally, I think this is fantastic because the story progression of comic books lend themselves better to the episodic nature of television rather than the blockbuster style of film. Case in point, a comic series, like a television series, is based entirely on the premise which is shown in the first issue (or pilot). In Cheers, the premise was of a Harvard educated woman working as a waitress in a sport's bar. In Arrested Development, the premise was of a responsible single father trying to save a failing family business as well as a failing family. Likewise, superheroes are defined by their origin - which is both how they got their unique abilities and how they came to use those abilities for the general good. For this reason, the first superhero movie has a much greater possibility for success because it has the most engaging aspect of the story - the premise.

However, in order to develop this premise slowly, you need to be able to show it from many different perspectives. This cannot be easily done in a few short films because unlike, say, Star Wars which had an obvious conclusion in Luke becoming a Jedi master and the destruction of the Empire, comics do not have an obvious conclusion, so there is nothing to build toward.

Think about it. What is "the end" of the Hulk? Does he find the cure for the Hulk? Does he die? How about Fantastic Four? Or Spider-Man? Or Superman? Or Batman? I'm willing to bet that I know these characters better than you, but even I don't know what the logical conclusion of these stories would be.

In large part, they are designed not to be concluded. As the Superman announcer used to say, its a "never-ending battle" that they are on and that is part of the charm. This is why television would lend itself better to adapting comics.

Television has a long-running, open-ended format that is very similar to comics, but different in a few crucial ways. First, television is finite. Every show is canceled at some point, so this forces the writers to work toward some sort of conclusion eventually. Second, television comes in seasons with each season (usually) representing a year in the life of the character. This would add a lot more structure to superhero concepts because a season premiere/finale serves as a natural transition point.

Of course, there have been several great superhero cartoons - X-Men, Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, The Tick, Wolverine & the X-Men, Justice League, Spectacular Spider-Man... but few have managed to make it into live action drama. Of course, the most notorious example is the 1966 Batman series. While his lack of powers would seem to lend itself well to television, his costume, resources, and privacy are an impediment to that, so it works best in film (although, I have no doubt that there will someday be a great live action Batman TV show).

One superhero who has succeeded in live action television better than any other is Superman. On the surface, you would think that Superman has too many powers to represent him on film, but all of his powers are easy to do on a budget - super-strength, super-speed, invulnerability, heat vision, super-hearing, X-ray vision... The hardest one is flight, which is why Smallville intentionally left that power out. Additionally, Superman has a lot of elements that just lend itself to good television drama. First, there is the romantic tension between him and Lois. Second, they work in a newspaper - which is an easy way to write them into all sorts of situations.

So what other superheroes would lend themselves well to the little screen? Well, if you've read my previous posts, you know that I would put the X-Men and Daredevil at the top of that list. The X-Men is going to be more difficult for several reasons, but it is insanely popular especially amongst young women so it has possibly the best chance for wide appeal. Daredevil, on the other hand, would be a lot more gritty and grounded, but when seen as a legal drama, the cross-genre potential is obvious.

Probably the character most suited to live action drama is Spider-Man. He starts off as a teenager and is constantly conflicted between the demands of superheroing, school, work, relationships, and family. He is an absolutely identifiable figure and it is virtual impossible not to get caught up in his problems. The big problem is the aforementioned web swinging. This is very difficult to do without CGI, so it would mostly depend on tricky editing and sound effects to minimize the actual acrobatics and focus on the emotional moments.

Another big problem with Spider-Man would be the villains. These are not characters that lend themselves easily to low budget interpretations. Some would work very well like Punisher, Kraven, Silver Sable, Hammerhead, Kingpin, the Enforcers, maybe even Mysterio... but the big ones, Dr. Octopus, Green Goblin, the Lizard, Rhino, Sandman... these would be really hard to do on a TV budget.

I'm not sure what else would work. Fantastic Four? Probably not. Hulk? I could easily see a new Hulk series taking off, as long as they could afford the obvious CGI necessary.

Food for thought.

Superman movie update

So... word is that David Goyer is writing a new script for a new Superman movie. Goyer helped kick-start this superhero renaissance with Blade in 1998 (after writing the horrible Nick Fury movie starring David Hasselhoff, but you can't blame Goyer for that). Goyer's more recent prolific work includes both of the new Batman films and [Batman director] Christopher Nolan will be around to give him a hand.

On top of which, Grant (All-Star Superman) Morrison and Geoff (Superman: Secret Origins) Johns have recently been made the official comic book consultants on all DC superhero films.

I hate to get excited about a superhero film (especially this early) because its often like being in a room full of hot women and then realizing they are all born again. Very disappointing... but if I ever heard news to get excited about, this is it.

But then, all they need is one bad actor or director to topple their house of cards.

Casting the ultimate Superman movies

Well, I wrote a couple of blogs about how to inject a little life into a Superman movie (parts 1, 2, & 3), but the closer we seem to be getting to a new Superman movie, the less we know about it. With any luck, Bryan Singer will not be invited back for a sequel, nor will Brandon Routh. Apparently Kevin Spacey is still signed on, if they want him (although he's probably on pay or play, so he gets paid either way).

In any case, rather than talk about the series thematic strengths or most relevant characters, I thought I would play Hollywood and cast the movie myself... hell, I'll cast the next several. So here are my choices for the ultimate Superman movies.

The Director - Steven Spielberg

Who better to portray the greatest American icon than America's most iconic filmmaker? Now, I'm not a huge Spielberg fan in general, but I have to imagine that no one could do it better. Whatever your thoughts about the new Indiana Jones film, I haven't heard anything against Spielberg's directing. Unlike Lucas, he can tell an action story as well as he ever could.

Maybe Spielberg wouldn't be interested if he couldn't produce it through Dreamworks, but if not, you could go with Peter Jackson, who obviously loves to work on big, iconic epics. Or the Wachowski brothers whose ending to The Matrix looked like a backdoor Superman pitch while Speed Racer proved that they can work in vibrant colors for an all-ages audience.

The Writer - William Goldman

For the script, I'd go with award winning writer William Goldman (The Princess Bride, All The President's Men, Chaplin, The Stepford Wives). He already wrote a Shazam! script, so I bet he'd be willing to do Superman.

One thing really going for Goldman is his age. He would have been seven years old when Superman came out. How many great screenwriters remember what Superman was like in the very beginning? Probably not too many. But most importantly, he knows how to write a strong script with a tight structure.

Other possible writers Nicholas Meyer, who revitalized the Star Trek franchise with Wrath of Khan. He is great with characterization and big, science fiction adventures. Lawrence Kasdan is another writer known for his characterization, but also for the last two Star Wars movies. You know, the ones that had good dialog.

Comic writer, Mark Millar, best known for the Wanted comic upon which the movie was based, has written award-winning Superman comics and wants nothing more than to write the movies. As a comic writer, he would be far more experienced with the Superman mythos. He wrote the amazing Superman: Red Son. Actually, they should team him up with Grant Morrison who, as of about a week now, is one of the official DC superhero movie consultants. Morrison wrote the modern classic All-Star Superman and has collaborated with Millar before.

The Musician - John Williams

Hands down. He did the original Superman movie, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, and just about every memorable score ever. No choice. You go with the best.

Superman / Clark Kent - Tom Welling

I never said I was going to be original! I never would have suggested this a year ago, but Welling has really grown into the role, so much so that I can't imagine anyone better. He has all of the awkward charm of Clark Kent along with the self-assured gentility of Superman.

He was 24 when he took the role as a sophomore in high school which means he's 32 now... the perfect age to play the adult Superman.

The only pitfall they need to avoid is making it a Smallville movie. This would restrict them to "established continuity" which would be a needless straight jacket the production of this film. People are smart enough to figure out that there are multiple interpretations of a character.

Lois Lane - Erica Durance

Another one ripped straight from Smallville, but I have never seen a Lois Lane performance that was more engaging, complex, and true to the comics. Erica Durance perfectly captures the fast talking, fast living reporter who is moving too fast to see who mild-mannered Clark Kent really is.

Come to think of it, Margot Kidder, Teri Hatcher, and Kate Bosworth all did a pretty horrible job. Lois always either seemed ditsy or like a bitch. Probably the best actress previously was the original, Noel Neill, from the serial and TV show.

Its hard to explain what I like about this feisty character so, check out this clip of Clark and Lois from Smallville and see if you can see it too.

Jimmy Olsen - Michael Cera

You know, I was going to disqualify him for being too old... then I found out he's ten years younger than Tom Welling and Erica Durance, so let's go for it! As I said before, Michael Cera is perfect for the role of Superman's pal. His quirky, awkward sense of humor perfectly fits everyone's favorite photographer. And since audiences like him anyway, when you put him in danger, people will care.

Perry White - Martin Sheen

This was a hard one to cast and it's always been the most overlooked role in Superman, but Perry White is the old wise man of the Daily Planet crew. He's the one that challenges them and supports them.

Since J. Jonah Jameson was such an effective character in the Spider-Man movies, it seems important that Perry White be effective as well... but in a different way, obviously. So I decided to cast The West Wing's Martin Sheen in the role, as someone who can be both admirable and frightening... sometimes at the same time. I see him as a man who thinks of himself as preserving the integrity of print journalism when no one else is. Why are Lois, Clark, and Jimmy his favorites? Because they are serious and ethical reporters.

Ma & Pa Kent - K Callen & Eddie Jones

My favorite Ma & Pa Kent (AKA Martha and Jonathan) were the ones from Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. They might be too old to play Tom Welling's parents, but this is a role that you can cast to unknown actors. You just want ones that are charismatic.

Often in the Superman mythos, Jonathan Kent dies before Clark becomes Superman, but I always saw more storytelling potential if both of his parents are alive. Is this idea based on the Freudian presumption that you need to kill your father to become a man?

Lex Luthor - Clancy Brown

Perhaps the second most important role next to Superman himself. So far, like Batman before Begins, we have only seen the goofy Lex Luthor in the films. It's time to see the diabolical Lex Luthor... the Lex Luthor who became President Luthor. The Lex Luthor whose genius and ego are equal to Superman's strength and humility.

Although Kevin Spacey could play this, after the last movie, I'd like the role to move to someone new... ish. This is another bit of unoriginal casting as Clancy Brown played the role of Lex Luthor in Superman: The Animated Series as well as Justice League... but damn, he did it well. And you want to talk about scary? Check out Highlander, Shawshank Redemption, and Carnivalé. Clancy Brown can epitomize evil.

Check out this clip if you don't believe me.

Brainiac - Patrick Stewart

The other thing that clip should have taught you is that Brainiac would be an awesome villain to star in the next film. Lex is played out as the main antagonist, but he would be incredible as a supporting character ready to stab you in the back the moment it is most advantageous.

Brainiac would be a fantastic villain and I think Locutus himself should play the role. Patrick Stewart is really excellent at playing villains, particularly cerebral ones. Brainiac could serve almost as an abstract father figure... the only other survivor of Krypton. But ultimately, Brainiac represents cold, computer logic over human compassion and that is where the conflict comes in.

Darkseid - James Earl Jones

For the big, booming voice of pure evil, I would like to see the man who originally defined "the dark side." James Earl Jones (you know, there is no proper way to abbreviate his name) would not only provide the perfect voice, but the visual basis for a character who would be best portrayed in CGI at eight or nine feet tall. Stick a bunch of ping-pong balls on him, and he could model all of the action... which is more than he ever did for Star Wars.

More than anything, I just think you need a colossal threat for Superman, and who is a big enough threat for the greatest, most powerful hero ever? A dark God.

But just in case old J.E.J. isn't interested, you could go with the animated series voice of Michael Ironside or The Matrix's Lawrence Fishburne or another Star Trek captain, Avery Brooks.

General Zod - Gerard Butler

In the event that they do bring back General Zod, Gerard Butler who played King Leonidas would be a great choice. I only hope that if they make a movie around him, they wait at least three films. We really need to see some things in Superman that we haven't seen before and a remake of Superman II would send the wrong impression. You need to take us away from something before we can get nostalgic for it.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Got any better ideas? I want to hear 'em.