(SPOILERS WITHIN)
My favorite comic book story of all time. It was the first and best story to give me a sense of why Superman is a great character.
Like many millenials, I was drawn to Batman: Year One, DKR, and I even liked in its own way the Dark Knight Strikes Again. I saw Superman as a boy scout, as boring, overpowered and too hard to relate to. And in the Frank Miller sort of way, Superman is a shill for authority, someone who never really questions the premises of American political or economic culture, never actually addresses big picture injustice like systemic abuse of power, ecological destruction, etc. etc.
All of that is still true in a way, but this story captures an even bigger element to Superman: the ability to inspire to greatness, and the reminder that we have an ideal to aspire to, and a reason bigger than ourselves to persevere.
The book goes off the rail a bit in some of the middle chapters- the Bizarro world issue I still don't get, and some of the wonkier mythology I just read past. But it's all worth it for some of the big payoff moments. When Superman comforts the would be jumper, the look in her eyes carries so much weight; can you imagine what it would be like if Superman showed up behind you in a moment of despair?
I want a world where Superman exists, and inspires. The weight of the loss of him in his final days is palpable. You realize at a certain point that there's no easy fix, there's not going to be an 11th hour deus ex machina that brings him back. That because this story is self contained in an alternate universe, this is really happening, and as Superman becomes more frantic toward the end accomplishing his end of life work, we feel frantic and worn out too. When he says goodbye to Lois at the end, we feel the loss ourselves.
Plus there's the art- the beautiful, emotive art. For the first time perhaps anywhere it's plausible that Superman and Clark are not the same person, that Clark really is just a lumbering farm boy in the big city, and not an obvious pretense for Superman.
There's a hidden suggestion running through the length of the book that Lex is Leo Quintum, gone back in time after seeing the world as Superman does. Though Morrison has discounted this himself, I continue to hold stock in that theory. Superman wins ultimately, reforms even Luthor.
What more to say really? This is my favorite comic of all time, one of the very few I've ever bought, after having borrowed and read it from the library a half dozen times. It's now in the hands of colleagues and friends, who, I can only hope, will get as much from this book as I do every time I read it.
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Reviews with images
I'm a Superman fan now
I had genuine laughs and tears reading All-Star Superman and enjoyed nearly every bit of it. I practically grew up with Marvel characters but this DC boy scout really surprised me with how wholesome, goofy, and um, super, he really is in the comics. I initially dismissed the Man of Steel but I guess I like him quite a bit now!The condition I recieved my copy is acceptable. There are a few dents and scratches on spine but it doesn't bother me too much. The paper is quite thin so be careful when turning them!
Top reviews from the United States
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Goes off the reservation at times, but still the best Superman story and best comic book of all time
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2015Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2024
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2022
Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2014
Top reviews from other countries
Shopper112
Great alternative take on Superman
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 12, 2023
