WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Batman/Superman #10, by Joshua Williamson, Clayton Henry, Alejandro Sanchez and John J. Hill, on sale now.
The Man of Steel shocked the DC Universe last year when he unveiled his secret identity as mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent to the world in a globally broadcast press conference. Since then, both aspects of Clark's life as Superman and a civilian have faced intense public scrutiny. And while most of the subsequent fallout has centered more on the life and times of the Man of Tomorrow, a recent development puts Clark himself right in the crosshairs with one of his most unstoppable opponents yet: the media.
After having a romantic date night with Lois Lane interrupted by the paparazzi in Paris, Superman flew to Gotham City where one of his classic enemies, the Atomic Skull, razed an entire abandoned neighborhood and nearly killed Batman when he self-destructed. As Batman recovers and Gotham reels from millions of dollars of property damage, newscasters begin to accuse Superman of not only failing to contain his own villains to Metropolis but failing to take down Atomic Skull before he could become such an explosive threat in the first place.
And as the self-blaming Man of Steel watches the news reports by Bruce Wayne's side in the Batcave in Batman/Superman #10, the accusations are made all the more painful by the reporters insisting on referring to Superman as Clark Kent, which makes their words that much sharper.
RELATED: Superman Has a BOLD New Plan to Bring Crime Down to Size
The immediate consequences of Superman's identity reveal had been more massively devastating, with Lex Luthor leading the Legion of Doom, along with Leviathan and Red Cloud, on an epic attack on Superman as his revenge of the Man of Steel's identity being under his nose for years. While vast swathes of Metropolis were leveled, the combined might of the Justice League, Young Justice and members of Lex's Superman Revenge Squad stopped the attack in its tracks. More personally, Clark was fired from The Daily Planet from lying to his employers and the general public about the true nature of his connection to Superman for years.
Superman has certainly been the target of negative mass-media coverage before, but this latest round of public accusations is the most personal yet. The Man of Steel no longer has the benefit of a secret identity to hide behind. And with Atomic Skull making such a devastating attack outside of his usual stomping grounds, the media coverage is no longer isolated to Metropolis.
This coverage will shade public perception against Superman, at a time when Batman is having similar media scrutiny in the pages of Strange Adventures as the investigation of Adam Strange strains his relationship with the Dark Knight and Justice League.
As a hero who holds himself more accountable than he perhaps should, Superman will certainly take this increased criticism to heart. The Last Son of Krypton has especially been feeling a lot of pressure lately, sharing his vulnerabilities and insecurities with Doctor Fate from everything to missing his son grow up to the heightened scrutiny from his identity reveal. This level of media coverage won't be doing wonders for the Man of Tomorrow's mental health, especially as he can hear a news broadcast from the other side of the solar system. And with the true culprit of Atomic Skull's self-destruction still on the loose and targeting the World's Finest, the two heroes may face even more negative headlines in the days to follow.
0 Links