History ReimaginingTheArtifact / Superman

* [[Characters/SupermanTheCharacter Superman]]

* ComicBook/KryptoTheSuperdog was one of many animal sidekicks introduced during the Silver Age of comics. He would go on adventures with the other Kryptonians and had a thought process like a human. After ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' and DC's mandate that Superman be the only surviving Kryptonian various substitutes for Krypto were created but none of them stuck. Eventually the mandate lessened on Krypto came back, but by then DC has moved away from goofy animal sidekicks. So instead writers emphasized his dog nature, making him act like an actual dog with a dog's temperament and loyalty to his masters, and usually hangs around the Kents.
* In the very first issue of ''Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane'', Lois gains supernatural powers and becomes "[[TitleDrop Lois Lane, the Witch of Metropolis]]". It's a typical fakeout issue where [[spoiler: [[DoingInTheWizard it turns out that Superman was actually behind all the seemingly supernatural things she was doing]]]], but apparently the image must have stuck in at least one writer's head, as another, much later storyline used the name for when a villain named Euphor gave people from Metropolis (including Lois) YourMindMakesItReal powers. This time, though, instead of riding a broomstick, [[RuleOfCool Lois rode a comet]] ''[[RuleOfCool like]]'' [[RuleOfCool a broomstick]].

* ComicBook/LexLuthor was created in 1940, when {{mad scientist}}s were a staple of comic books and pulp novels, and nearly every superhero's {{rogues gallery}} included at least one. Nowadays, the trope is generally considered a dated cliché, but Luthor [[GrandfatherClause has nonetheless stuck around]], and he remains ComicBook/{{Superman}}'s archenemy, with the writers devoting considerable effort to fleshing out the character's personality and motivations. One of the more popular reinventions was to make him a [[CorruptCorporateExecutive sleazy businessman]] who posed a threat to Superman due to his vast influence in Metropolis, [[VillainWithGoodPublicity respected public image]] and [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney incredible wealth]], which has become the most popular interpretation of the character. But as a nod to his roots as a mad scientist, most modern versions still portray him as a scientific genius who runs a ''tech'' company, and uses advanced technology to fight Superman--providing a plausible excuse for the two characters to go toe-to-toe.
* Bizarro was originally a dimwitted clone of Superman created by a scientist's replicating ray, and he famously ruled over the topsy-turvy cube-shaped planet of "[[BizarroUniverse Bizarro World]]", which was populated by similarly dimwitted replicas of Superman and his friends. Some of the campier aspects of the character's origin story -- like the cube-shaped planet, and the replicating ray -- wouldn't have translated very well to the darker Post-Crisis continuity, but the general concept of a flawed Superman replica was popular enough that Bizarro was reimagined as a genetically engineered clone created by a team of scientists on ComicBook/LexLuthor's payroll, and his mental deficiency was played a bit more dramatically, making him more of a TragicMonster than a bumbling simpleton.
* Originally, he was Superman, disguised as mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent. He really had no reason to have a human identity, especially after his powers increased to the point that the job at the newspaper in order to find out about dirty deeds was no longer necessary. ComicBook/PostCrisis, he's now more Clark Kent who dresses up as Superman and not the other way around. It's also been said that he likes the SelfImposedChallenge of learning to be good at something for reasons other than his super-powers.
* There's also [[ClarkKenting Superman's use of glasses to hide his civilian identity]]. Today, very few people seriously believe that he can effortlessly disguise his face just by donning a pair of glasses, but a few modern writers have toyed with the idea that he actually uses the glasses to hide his distinctive eye color (a bright shade of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_egg_blue robin's egg blue]] that isn't seen in normal human eyes), which is one of the few visible markers of his Kryptonian heritage. Creator/ChristopherReeve's performance in the movies is also credited with making ClarkKenting a lot more plausible; with his acting ability, he was able to play Clark and Superman as two completely distinct characters, establishing that Clark also completely changes his voice, posture, and overall demeanor whenever he becomes Superman. This was enough to make pretty much anyone say "Okay, now I can see it."

* In a rather ironic case of CelebrityParadox, ComicBook/{{Brainiac}}'s name began to come off as a bit ridiculous after the character had been around for a decade or two, as the term "brainiac" eventually entered the popular American lexicon as a juvenile slang term for "genius" (the character is actually ''the origin of the word'', which was coined simply as a portmanteau of "brain", "maniac", and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ENIAC "ENIAC",]] the first programmable computer), making one wonder why an alien robot would unironically call himself that in-universe. Some Post-Crisis comics retroactively decided that his name was an abbreviation of "'''Brain''' '''i'''nter'''a'''ctive '''c'''onstruct", so it was a bit easier to take seriously.

* The version of ''[[Characters/DCEULexLuthor Lex Luthor]]'' as seen in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' is an attempt at this. When he was created in the 1930s, he was a MadScientist. Once that take got dated in the 1980s, he was changed into an evil businessman evocative of that era. Creator/JohnByrne specifically modeled him on assorted contemporary businessmen during the 1980s. Lex here is meant to be the stereotypical evil businessman of TheNewTens like the guys of the 80s, a millennial tech CEO. He's [[AgeLift a significantly younger]] science prodigy with [[BunnyEarsLawyer an eccentric, manic personality]], who commands respect despite [[NoSocialSkills being flippant and irreverent to everyone he meets]]. The way he acts can also be seen as a justification for going by the diminutive nickname "Lex", which has long been established as [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname being short for "Alexander"]]. Back in the 1930s, it was [[RuleOfCool a distinctive name with a sinister ring to it]]. Today, writers only really use it because [[TheArtifact it's unthinkable to call him anything else]]. It's far easier to imagine ''that'' version of the character calling himself "Lex" rather than the now more common "Alex".

ReimaginingTheArtifact in this series.

!![[Comicbook/{{Superman}} Comic Books]]

** Lana Lang became ''ComicBook/Superwoman'' in 2016, receiving a costume and electric-themed superpowers that were also directly inspired by Superman Red (naturally [[RedOniBlueOni the more aggressive and hot-headed Superman compared to Blue]]).

** 2023 saw Clark's son, Jonathan Kent and [[LegacyCharacter official second Man of Steel]], once again also developing his own energy-based superpowers, regaining a very similar look once used by his old man.

!!Comic Books

* ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'s origins in ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton1959'', where she was raised in Argo City which survived the destruction of Krypton, were confusing to some creators. ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton2004'' simplifies her backstory by having her leave via a rocket like Superman, except that the rocket went off course, arriving at its destination years later. The technology of the rocket kept her in an unaging stasis, thus while she is chronologically older, she is physically younger. More modern interpretations focus more on the ChildOfTwoWorlds aspect contrasting her perspective to the Earth raised Superman.

* ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'s origins in ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton1959'', where she was raised in Argo City which survived the destruction of Krypton, were confusing to some creators. ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton2004'' simplifies her backstory by having her leave via a rocket like Superman, except that the rocket went off course, arriving at its destination years later. The technology of the rocket kept her in an unaged stasis, thus while she is technically older, she is physically younger. More modern interpretations focus more on the ChildOfTwoWorlds aspect contrasting her perspective to the Earth raised Superman.

* ComicBook/LexLuthor was created in 1940, when {{mad scientist}}s were a staple of comic books and pulp novels, and nearly every superhero's {{rogues gallery}} included at least one. Nowadays, the trope is generally considered a dated cliché, but Luthor [[GrandfatherClause has nonetheless stuck around]], and he remains ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}''s archenemy, with the writers devoting considerable effort to fleshing out the character's personality and motivations. One of the more popular reinventions was to make him a sleazy businessman who posed a threat to Superman due to his vast influence in Metropolis, respected public image and incredible wealth which has become the most popular interpretation of the character. However despite this reimagining his mad scientist roots still reappear, mainly since for comic fans it is an essential part of the character and actually provides a way for him to actually fight Superman one on one.

* ComicBook/LexLuthor was created in 1940, when {{mad scientist}}s were a staple of comic books and pulp novels, and nearly every superhero's {{rogues gallery}} included at least one. Nowadays, the trope is generally considered a dated cliché, but Luthor [[GrandfatherClause has nonetheless stuck around]], and he remains ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}''s archenemy, with the writers devoting considerable effort to fleshing out the character's personality and motivations.

* The version of ComicBook/LexLuthor as seen in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' is an attempt at this. When he was created in the 1930s, he was a MadScientist. Once that take got dated in the 1980s, he was changed into an evil businessman evocative of that era. Creator/JohnByrne specifically modeled him on assorted contemporary businessmen during the 1980s. Lex here is meant to be the stereotypical evil businessman of TheNewTens like the guys of the 80s, a millennial tech CEO. He’s [[AgeLift a significantly younger]] science prodigy with [[BunnyEarsLawyer an eccentric, manic personality]], who commands respect despite [[NoSocialSkills being flippant and irreverent to everyone he meets]]. The way he acts can also be seen as a justification for going by the diminutive nickname "Lex", which has long been established as [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname being short for "Alexander"]]. Back in the 1930s, it was [[RuleOfCool a distinctive name with a sinister ring to it]]. Today, writers only really use it because [[TheArtifact it's unthinkable to call him anything else]]. It’s far easier to imagine ''that'' version of the character calling himself "Lex" rather than the now more common "Alex".