Awesome Byrne Cover

For today's entry into the Awesome Cover Gallery, I decided to add a coda to the weeklong celebration of The Man Of Steel that ended yesterday.

All of the covers for that mini-series followed the same basic theme, with the character who was the main focus standing on the right hand side of the cover, while a key scene from the issue played out behind them. It was a nice touch that tied the series together, and given that it came out on a bi-weekly basis and was ordered in huge numbers, I can imagine it looked nice on the racks in the LCS as the weeks piled up.

But in what has to be one of the first instances that I can remember, the first issue also shipped with a variant cover. I can't remember at the time if it was a 50/50 split or some type of retailer incentive variant, but the other cover for the first issue was a close-up of Clark's chest as he rips open his shirt to reveal the S-Shield underneath.

I suppose instead of describing it, I could just show it, eh? That is the point of today's post anyway...


Now the eagle-eyed readers among you might notice that this particular issue was signed by John Byrne himself! I'd like to tell you the story about how a wide-eyed sixteen year-old comic book fan waited in line all day to get this particular issue signed. I'd also like to tell you how John Byrne gently took the book from my trembling hands and with a wink and a nod, he signed my copy while thanking me for being a fan at the same time.

I'd like to tell you that story...but the truth of the matter is I just picked this particular issue up at my LCS yesterday for two bucks.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The fact that it's signed by such a key creator in the history of the Superman books, and not even that could get this issue marked up even a token fifty cents more than the unsigned copies.

R.I.P. John Byrne-era Superman...you had a good, long run.

Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano

The Man Of Steel #1
July 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The New Beginning!

It's been fun looking back at the iconic The Man Of Steel mini-series, that launched a new direction and attitude for Superman that lasted a quarter of a century. That's not too shabby a legacy to leave behind, eh?

As we close things out, we'll finish up our celebration by looking at the last page of the final issue.


There's our boy! Coming to terms with his alien heritage, while at the same time recommitting himself to be not only America's protector, but humanities as well.

All in all, it was (and still is) a great little series, even if it did get a little wordy in the last issue. I hope everyone out there had some fun reliving some key moments from the beginning of the Superman era that comes to a close this September. I know I did.

Make sure to come back next week, as we go back to regularly plumbing the depths of the entire storied history of Superman on a daily basis.

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #6
The Haunting
September 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The Super-Villain!

The crew at the Daily Planet weren't the only members of the supporting cast getting a little update in The Man Of Steel, as Byrne played around with a couple of villains as well. With Lex Luthor, Byrne really focused his ambitions and made him a true antagonist for Superman for years to come.

Gone was the mad scientist with a petty beef towards Superman that dated back to a science experiment gone wrong, resulting in the lost off Luthor's hair when Superboy saves him.

In its place is the Machiavellian businessman and philanthropist, who soon finds out that his money can't "buy" Superman like it can everything else that he wants. Combine that with the fact that Superman's public debut has just usurped his position as Metropolis' favorite son, and you have a truly desperate character who will stop at nothing to destroy Superman.

All that rage, anger, and disappointment is captured perfectly in Lex's mug shot after he's arrested.


The nerve of Superman, interfering with Lex's plans!

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #4
Enemy Mine...
August 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The Intrepid Girl Reporter!

One of the more welcome changes that John Byrne brought to the Superman line with The Man Of Steel was an updating of the supporting cast. While Superman has arguably one of the best cast of players to interact with, they did need to be modernized just a bit.

Lois Lane benefited the most from the reboot, as she went from competent reporter to intrepid, persistent, confidant, reckless, and crusading journalist extraordinaire. Don't believe me? Then check out this panel...


That right there ain't your daddy's Lois Lane.

And while we're on the subject of Lois Lane...where's our Lois Lane comic book come September? I thought for sure after her co-starring role in Cornell's Action Comics (kind of) and her Flashpoint mini-series, that they were priming us for a new number one come September. Maybe with the second launch. I know that I would buy the hell out of a Lois Lane solo series.

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #4
Enemy Mine...
August 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The World's Finest!

So up until I read The Man Of Steel mini-series originally, old Superman and Batman had been the best of buddies since their days chasing the Legion of Doom around in the old Super Friends cartoon. At the time, it was still a bit of a novelty to read and experience their "first" meeting, and it was fantastic that John Byrne gave us a whole issue devoted to it.

While the villain they encountered was a bit of a lame duck, the issue did give us quite a few nice visuals, like this one...


It's a clever little twist, that gives Clark the upper hand initially. And if you know Batman, this wasn't the best of ways to introduce yourself. I'm pretty sure calling the future half of the World's Finest duo an "outlaw," doesn't help much either.

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #3
One Night In Gotham City...
August 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The Super-Hero!

As far as iconic images from the original The Man Of Steel mini-series goes, it's hard to beat the full page splash of Clark taking flight as Superman for the first time, in the costume that his mom made.


As well as being just about as classic an image of Superman you'll find, it was also a helluva way to bring the first issue to a close.

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #1
Epilogue: The Super-Hero
July 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics

The Man Of Steel 25th Birthday Celebration Week - The Rocket!

We interrupt our regular Sunday versus feature to bring you this special report. So don't go straining your eyes looking for Superman punching out a dinosaur in today's panel, as it ain't there.

What we do have in it's place, is a very special anniversary to celebrate. So special, in fact, that we're turning it into this month's theme week.

It was on this day, July 10th, back in 1986 that The Man Of Steel #1 was released!

It's hard to believe that it's been 25 years since John Byrne was brought in to work his magic with Superman! His story has been revised once or twice in the intervening years, but Byrne's story set the pace for the Superman that we're reading today. And aside from some of the fashions, it still holds up quite nicely to today's standards.

Now I never read this series until years later, as I didn't became a regular Superman reader until the year before they killed him off. Even so, there's images from this series that stuck with me. Byrne's artwork has been the standard image that my brain goes back to when someone mentions Krypton, or Clark, or Lois, or Smallville, etc...

With that in mind, let's spend the week reminiscing about those images and relive the story one more time.

One of the more iconic and lasting images from this series was the birthing matrix. So as we begin the week, we might as well start at the very beginning with the rocket's escape from an exploding Krypton.


So make sure you come back all week, as we'll be taking one last look at the Superman of the last 25 years before things get restarted in September. Which brings me to a quick sidebar, if you have a few minutes to spare.

There's been a fair amount of criticism about DC trashing a particular generations version of Superman. I personally think these people are being a bit reactionary and, dare I say it, a bit selfish too. Let's look at some quick numbers.

From Superman's first appearance to the birth of the Silver Age was 18 years.

From the Silver Age to the beginning of the Bronze Age was 15 years.

From the Bronze Age to the beginning of Byrne's reboot was 15 years.

And from Byrne's reboot to the September relaunch? 25 years!

So to everyone ready to burn DC at the stake because they're rejiggering "your" Superman, you guys have had the longest run. I say enjoy the books in your longbox, and take a deep breath, and come back in September to read the actual books. You never know, you might actually find something you like.

All right, I'm off of my soapbox now. I promise to enjoy the rest of this week with John Byrne's Superman and no more op/eds.

Script by John Byrne
Pencils by John Byrne
Inks by Dick Giordano
Colors by Tom Ziuko
Letters by John Costanza

The Man Of Steel #1
Prologue: From Out Of The Green Dawn...
July 1986
Copyright (c) DC Comics