As the flagship superhero of DC Comics, Superman has starred in iconic comic book stories for over 80 years. However, one of the most enduring tales to feature the Man of Steel comes from superstar comic creators Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons and the one-issue story "For the Man Who Has Everything."
Published in 1985's Action Comics Annual #11, shortly before the creative team's Watchmen changed superhero comics forever, the story was one of the last to feature the superhero before the reality-altering effects of "Crisis on Infinite Earths," which rewrote decades of his history. Despite this, the issue remains both a unique and timeless approach to the character and his place in the DC Universe that has stood the test of time for 35 years.
For the Man Who Has Everything
The issue begins with Superman's birthday, as Wonder Woman, Batman and Jason Todd's Robin visit the Fortress of Solitude to celebrate the occasion with their friend. However, they discover him in the thrall of an alien plant called the Black Mercy, which has trapped the Man of Steel within his own mind as part of the machinations of the villainous Mongul. As Wonder Woman battles the despot across the Fortress, the perspective shifts to Superman's imagined world, where he lives a quiet domestic life on a Krypton that was never destroyed. However, Kai-El's reunion with his long-lost homeworld is far from idyllic, with the burgeoning family man in a strained relationship with his father Jor-El and trapped in an unfulfilling job.
As Superman comes to the horrific realization that none of this world -- including his imagined son -- are real, Batman and Robin are successful in prying Black Mercy from him, only for Batman to become incapacitated. Enraged at the attack and the false world he had become emotionally invested in, Superman brutally defeats Mongul -- using his heat vision for the first time in combat -- before the alien villain is subdued by his own Black Mercy. Following Mongul's defeat, the shaken superheroes proceed with Superman's birthday celebrations.
A Modern Man of Steel
"For the Man Who Has Everything" is the culmination of the Pre-Crisis Superman, in many ways more than Moore and Curt Swan's "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?," which can be a supremely depressing read as Superman's extensive supporting cast is gruesomely killed off. Moore and Gibbons provide readers with a vulnerable look at Superman's inner psyche by asking what could a man who can walk on water and crush coal into diamonds with his bare hands ever want. As this issue reveals, the answer to that question is the one thing he'll never have: a normal domestic life, complete with a midlife crisis with the family he'll never get the chance to truly know. The moment of wounded vulnerability when Superman snaps out of the hallucination is especially memorable and reminds readers that even a bulletproof man can get hurt as he angrily confronts Mongul.
While they only really play supporting roles in the story, Moore and Gibbons' depictions of Wonder Woman and the Dynamic Duo are well-handled, from Diana Prince refusing to submit to Mongul's fury while Batman's brief exposure to Black Mercy provides its own heartbreaking look into Bruce Wayne's damaged psyche. When Superman finally comes to, his own role with the rest of the DC Trinity is seen, including a surprise interaction with Wonder Woman that closes out the story.
Subsequent Adaptations
Hailed as an instant classic from two iconic comic creators at the height of their powers, the legacy of "For the Man Who Has Everything" has loomed large over the DCU and its subsequent media adaptations. Both Mongul and Black Mercy would return in future comic book stories. Mongul went on to become a threat to the entire DCU, perhaps most memorably in "The Return of Superman," forming an alliance with Cyborg Superman to destroy Coast City.
The issue would be adapted into an episode of Justice League Unlimited, with the teleplay written by J.M. DeMatteis, allegedly with Moore's tacit approval of the adaptation. Additionally, the premise would be loosely adapted in "For the Girl Who Has Everything," a Season 1 episode of Supergirl, with Kara Zor-El ensnared by Black Mercy, trapped in a fantasy vision of her hometown Argo City. Even though this story is long in Superman's past, the dream that it gave him still left a lasting impression on the Man of Steel.