Quoted By: >>148533142 >>148533266,1
Why is it always like this?
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Quoted By: >>145371076,2
How do y'all feel about that? Post show
125KiB, 800x1068, superman_kirk_alyn_by_donchild_dcue5on-fullview.jpg
Quoted By: >>148535838
I’ve been revisiting really old Superman stories to help craft a an alt-timeline fanfic series, and the deeper I go, the clearer it becomes: Superman belongs in the world of 1939 to 1950. Not just aesthetically, but spiritually. He makes sense there in a way that’s hard to replicate in modern or postmodern stories.
That era was built on bold contrasts—good vs. evil, fascism vs. freedom, truth vs. propaganda. It was a time when the lines weren’t always clear, but people wanted to believe they were. Superman didn’t offer complicated moral ambiguity, he offered clarity, strength, hope. He wasn’t "relatable" in the modern sense; he was aspirational. He gave people something solid to believe in during an era of wars, depressions, and existential threats.
Fiction from that time wasn’t ironic. It was earnest. Heroes didn’t wink at the camera. They punched crooks, saved innocents, and looked good doing it. Superman thrives in that kind of storytelling where idealism isn’t mocked, and values like humility, kindness, and self-restraint are strengths, not quirks.
Postmodernism kills Superman. It sneers at sincerity, unravels heroism, and turns truth into opinion. In that framework, Superman becomes a problem to solve, a symbol to subvert, or worse—just another sad man in a cape with a god complex. Writers keep trying to "update" him by breaking him down or dragging him into "realism," but in doing so, they miss what makes him special. Superman isn’t meant to reflect our cynicism—he’s meant to defy it.
Is it any wonder that most of the successful Superman media—Fleischer cartoons, the George Reeves show, the first Donner film, even Superman: The Animated Series—leans into that retro, classic Americana vibe?
Maybe Superman doesn't need to be modernized. Maybe we need to meet him in his time.
Anyone else feel this way?
That era was built on bold contrasts—good vs. evil, fascism vs. freedom, truth vs. propaganda. It was a time when the lines weren’t always clear, but people wanted to believe they were. Superman didn’t offer complicated moral ambiguity, he offered clarity, strength, hope. He wasn’t "relatable" in the modern sense; he was aspirational. He gave people something solid to believe in during an era of wars, depressions, and existential threats.
Fiction from that time wasn’t ironic. It was earnest. Heroes didn’t wink at the camera. They punched crooks, saved innocents, and looked good doing it. Superman thrives in that kind of storytelling where idealism isn’t mocked, and values like humility, kindness, and self-restraint are strengths, not quirks.
Postmodernism kills Superman. It sneers at sincerity, unravels heroism, and turns truth into opinion. In that framework, Superman becomes a problem to solve, a symbol to subvert, or worse—just another sad man in a cape with a god complex. Writers keep trying to "update" him by breaking him down or dragging him into "realism," but in doing so, they miss what makes him special. Superman isn’t meant to reflect our cynicism—he’s meant to defy it.
Is it any wonder that most of the successful Superman media—Fleischer cartoons, the George Reeves show, the first Donner film, even Superman: The Animated Series—leans into that retro, classic Americana vibe?
Maybe Superman doesn't need to be modernized. Maybe we need to meet him in his time.
Anyone else feel this way?
Quoted By: >>148541156 >>148542318
What was your first webcomic?
Quoted By:
POST THE BEST EPISODE OF A CARTOON RIGHT NOW
Quoted By: >>148536026 >>148537407
what would an early DreamWorks's adaptation of the Book of Joshua be like?
Quoted By:
I liked it; it's a short and fun adventure.
Lots of pop culture references, like the Avengers Assemble.
5 very good episodes, plus 15 minutes of 2D animation about the adventures of two wild boars.
Lots of pop culture references, like the Avengers Assemble.
5 very good episodes, plus 15 minutes of 2D animation about the adventures of two wild boars.
Quoted By: >>148533211
somewhere out there, randy is shredding in power
Quoted By:
Who does this trope appeal to?
Quoted By: >>148538618
>Networks are obsessed with reboots and spinoffs. Why don't networks like my original ideas like this?
