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DC Cinematic Universe ( The James Gunn era)

I also have been seeing comments about Superman bleeding and disliking it.

A better question would be, when is Superman not being hurt?

Superman TM - Nearly killed by Luthor with Kryptonite and left to drown.

Superman 2 - Beaten and bruised by that trucker in the diner. After Clark removes his powers.

Superman 4 - Nearly dies after being poisoned by Nuclear Man.

Superman Returns - Poisoned by Kryptonite radiation, beaten by Luthor's thugs and finally stabbed in the ribs with a Kryptonite knife. Also nearly dying a second time when he lifts the kryptonite island into space.

Man of Steel - Nearly killed while stopping the World Engine in the Indian Ocean.

BvS - Nearly killed by Batman with the K-Spear, nearly killed by the cold bringer nuclear device used against Doomsday, killed by Doomsday.

Superman and Lois Season 4 -
Doomsday nearly kills Superman, and removes his heart. Requiring a transplant from Sam Lane.


Superman 2025 - My guess is he'll be wrecked by Ultraman. From the teaser, it looks like Superman and the JL will stop the Kaiju in the city.


Point is, a lot of creators have pushed back hard on the "invincible hero means he's boring" trope that has been applied to Superman and now Black Panther. With how OP vibranium is. The same people who complain Superman is invincible, will come with a thousand and one praises of how badss Wolverine and Deadpool are given all the scenarios they survive. Call out double standards when you see them.
 
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in Byrne's Man of Steel, since that was the first time Luthor was depicted as a businessman instead of an evil scientist/supercriminal
A clever aspect of Elliot S! Maggin's 1970s "Last Son of Krypton" novel was that Luthor was both. He had one or more hugely successful legitimate corporations under fake names, which he helped use to fund his anti-Superman crusade and would check in with from time to time when not in prison.
 
Byrne's Luthor was not a businessman instead of a scientist. In one of his early appearences he says offhandly to Superman "I rarely get into the laboratory these days, myself," suggesting that his source of wealth rests on inventing things like the armored suit one of his (supposed ex-) employees later used to attack Superman.

About 9 million views on the trailer in five and a half hours, BTW.
 
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A clever aspect of Elliot S! Maggin's 1970s "Last Son of Krypton" novel was that Luthor was both. He had one or more hugely successful legitimate corporations under fake names, which he helped use to fund his anti-Superman crusade and would check in with from time to time when not in prison.

But Luthor was also a scientist and a businessman in "Batman v. Superman".
 
Well we know this Superman bleeds. Weird choice to introduce him all beaten up. I don’t want to see Superman as a weakling.
The capacity to be physically harmed does not make one weak. In fiction, it makes the character relatable. Superman's fading status as one of the top comic book characters (compared to the rise of more realistic heroes or more adult versions of heroes just as old) was the poor choice of various misguided writers and editors insisting on the character being some indestructible slab of metal (yes, I know what I did there), which made him about as interesting as other characters who were never going to be harmed, such as Mickey Mouse.

I also have been seeing comments about Superman bleeding and disliking it.

A better question would be, when is Superman not being hurt?

Superman TM - Nearly killed by Luthor with Kryptonite and left to drown.

Superman 2 - Beaten and bruised by that trucker in the diner. After Clark removes his powers.

Superman 4 - Nearly dies after being poisoned by Nuclear Man.

Superman Returns - Poisoned by Kryptonite radiation, beaten by Luthor's thugs and finally stabbed in the ribs with a Kryptonite knife. Also nearly dying a second time when he lifts the kryptonite island into space.

Man of Steel - Nearly killed while stopping the World Engine in the Indian Ocean.

BvS - Nearly killed by Batman with the K-Spear, nearly killed by the cold bringer nuclear device used against Doomsday, killed by Doomsday.

Superman and Lois Season 4 - Doomsday nearly kills Superman, and removes his heart. Requiring a transplant from Sam Lane.


Superman 2025 - My guess is he'll be wrecked by Ultraman. From the teaser, it looks like Superman and the JL will stop the Kaiju in the city.


Point is, a lot of creators have pushed back hard on the "invincible hero means he's boring" trope that has been applied to Superman and now Black Panther. With how OP vibranium is.

..and in every example you posted above, the character was better off for being able to feel--to suffer in ways audiences could relate to in the most basic manner, rather than Superman always be that slab of metal who feels nothing, flying off untroubled by the threats of the world or universe.

The same people who complain Superman is invincible, will come with a thousand and one praises of how badss Wolverine and Deadpool are given all the scenarios they survive. Call out double standards when you see them.

Personally, Wolverine surviving that which should have killed him was never appealing. It did not make him a "badass". Instead, he's a freaking glorified action figure who can be tossed off of the roof, stepped on and slammed into other action figures, then come up roses a second later. No drama. No feeling that he's truly going through anything of (potential) consequence, because his healing factor always drags him back.
 
The capacity to be physically harmed does not make one weak. In fiction, it makes the character relatable. Superman's fading status as one of the top comic book characters (compared to the rise of more realistic heroes or more adult versions of heroes just as old) was the poor choice of various misguided writers and editors insisting on the character being some indestructible slab of metal (yes, I know what I did there), which made him about as interesting as other characters who were never going to be harmed, such as Mickey Mouse.


So when was kryptonite introduced in the Superman mythos?
 
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