I Can't Cover What I Am - Did Superman Just Kill That Guy?

CBR

By Brian Cronin

Published Jun 22, 2013

In this feature, I spotlight comic book covers that follow a specific theme. Here is an archive of all the cover themes we’ve spotlighted so far.

Today we look at examples of Superman seemingly killing his friends, typically Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Batman, but also some other folks mixed in!

Enjoy!

You don't get much more direct than this 1970 Swanderson cover from Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #102...

Superman just rubs it in on this 1973 Bob Oksner cover from Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #135...

Superman is more sympathetic to Lois' death on this 1959 Curt Swan/Stan Kaye cover to Superman #129...

This 1972 Oksner cover to Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #128 is a bit unclear whether it is REALLY Superman's fault...

Neal Adams leaves no doubt about Superman's intentions on this 1968 Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane #81 cover...

This Kerry Gammill/Dennis Janke cover for 1988's Superman #25 isn't explicit that Lois is dead, but it is close...

Both Lois AND Perry White get it on this 1968 Superman #203 cover by Swan and George Klein...

This one is a bit tricky. This Swan/Klein cover to 1965's Action Comics #328 has Superman destroy ALL of Metropolis, so surely that counts as killing Lois Lane, Perry White and Jimmy Olsen, right?

This classic Neal Adams 1968 cover to Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #115 has Superman ready to kill either Jimmy Olsen or Aquaman...

Superman drops the OR part for this 1965 Swan/Klein cover to World's Finest Comics #147, as he is trying to kill both Robin AND Jimmy Olsen...

What I love about this 1970 Swanderson cover for World's Finest Comics #195 is how Superman actually brings up his code against killing in this context...

Go on to the next page for more covers of Superman seemingly killing Batman and other superheroes!

While they're not explicitly dead, the name of this 1968 issue of Justice League of America is "Time Signs a Death-Warrant for the Justice League!" so I presume the implication of this Mike Sekowsky/Jack Abel cover is supposed to be that they're all dead...

On this 1964 Dick Dillin/Sheldon Moldoff cover to World's Finest Comics #139, Robin gives Superman a hard time. Geez, kid, all Superman did was kill the guy!

On the cover to 1968's World's Finest Comics #180 by Neal Adams, at least Batman should be honored to be Superman's first victim!!

Neal Adams and Dick Giordano must know that people were catching on to these fake-out covers, so on this 1970 cover to World's Finest Comics #202 they tried to make it more explicit...

Ernie Chan and John Calnan have Superman team up with an unlikely ally to kill Batman on 1976's World's Finest Comics #239...

This is a beautifully bizarre combo on World's Finest Comics #186 and 187, where on back-to-back covers (it IS a two-part story, but still, it's odd to repeat the same exact cover gag on both issues), Superman tries to kill Batman as a witch (Swan penciled each cover, with Adams on inks for the first one and Murphy Anderson on the second)...