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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Superman_Batman_Public_Enemies_11.jpg]]
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3NextSundayAD, a recession leads to ComicBook/LexLuthor becoming President of the United States. Seemingly solving the financial crisis with a wave of his hand, he declares the curbing of vigilantes the main focus of his Presidency, even forming a government SuperTeam. Understandably, ComicBook/{{Superman}} is ''pissed''.
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5Soon, it's discovered that a Kryptonite meteor the size of a small country is headed towards Earth and will impact in seven days. While President Luthor tries fighting it off with rockets, Batman slyly hints he's "working on something with one of his contacts". Luthor proposes to meet with Superman to discuss the threat; it turns out to be an ambush where Secret Service Agent John Corben (Metallo) lays the smackdown on the Man of Steel until Batman bails him out. In the aftermath of the ambush, however, Metallo is found murdered. Luthor frames Superman, citing mental imbalance due to the meteor, and places a bounty on his head.
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7Cue an entire movie's worth of Superman and Batman going up against pretty much the entire DCU. Along the way they pick up a grand total of two allies: ComicBook/PowerGirl and Japanese 13-year-old genius the Toyman. Things change quite a bit as the film progresses, however. A sub-plot deals with Luthor having a VillainousBreakdown as panic spreads, his anti-meteor tactics fail and his Presidency goes south.
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9A direct-to-video adaptation of the first arc of ''ComicBook/SupermanBatman'' story arc ''ComicBook/{{Public Enemies|2004}}'', and one of DC's [[WesternAnimation/DCUniverseAnimatedOriginalMovies Bruce Timm-produced animated films]]. Creator/KevinConroy, Creator/TimDaly, Creator/ClancyBrown and Creator/CCHPounder reprise their respective roles from the Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse as Batman, Superman, Lex Luthor, and Amanda Waller, while Creator/AllisonMack of ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' fame takes on Power Girl's first animated appearance.
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11A sequel, ''WesternAnimation/SupermanBatmanApocalypse'', was released in 2010.
12----
13!!''Superman/Batman: Public Enemies'' provides examples of:
14* TwoDVisualsThreeDEffects: Essentially every vehicle and especially the composite Batman/Superman rocket, which makes for some mixed animation.
15* ActorAllusion:
16** Alan Oppenheimer's credits include Alfred {{Expy}} [[Anime/TheBigO Norman Burg]]. Here, he voices the actual Alfred.
17** Allison Mack's character, Power Girl, had been referenced on ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' quite a few times. In fact, it was Chloe who discovered the existence of the character in the show's universe in the first place.
18** The casting of Creator/LeVarBurton as Black Lightning, as Jefferson Pierce's day job in the comics was a teacher and one of Burton's best known gigs was the host of ''Series/ReadingRainbow''.
19* AdaptationDistillation: The film refines the storyline in many ways with increased coherency (such as giving Luthor a more plausible case in incriminating Superman and putting some more reason into Batman and Superman's story). A few of the comic's more awesome moments had to be omitted, however (such as the tussle with the future Superman, the appearance of the Bat- and Super- families, and Batman's fight with Luthor).
20* AdaptationalHeroism: Amanda Waller. In the comics, she sided with President Luthor's actions and policies against superheroes, even under the threat of an impending asteroid collision. In this movie, she confronts and complains about President Luthor's actions from the start [[spoiler:and eventually orders his arrest for treason when she realizes he's dooming the world]].
21* AdaptationalKarma: Although defeated and disgraced, Lex Luthor was able to escape at the end of the comic and managed to evade charges by blaming Alexander Luthor Junior after ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis. Here Luthor is arrested and the [[WesternAnimation/SupermanBatmanApocalypse sequel]] confirms he was formally impeached for his role in the near-disaster.
22* AdaptedOut: The Green Lantern John Stewart , Pete Ross, the future Superman, and the Super- and Bat-families (Superboy, Krypto, the Cir-El ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, the Natasha Irons Steel, Nightwing, the Tim Drake Robin, the Cassandra Cain Batgirl, and Huntress) all appear in the comic, but not in the movie. John Stewart and Pete Ross are notable because in the comic version, John was part of Luthor's SuperTeam and Pete was Luthor's VP. The Michael Holt Mister Terrific and the original Flash and Green Lantern were also in the comic, but their only scene was in the lead-in to Superman and Batman's confrontation with Hawkman and Captain Marvel.
23* AnalogyBackfire: The exchange between Captain Marvel and Superman.
24-->'''Captain Marvel:''' It doesn't take the wisdom of [[Literature/TheBible Solomon]] to know that you should stay down.\
25'''Superman:''' Tell me something, Captain Marvel: would Solomon have gone to work for Lex Luthor?
26* AnimeHair: Toyman.
27* AscendedExtra: Amanda Waller didn't figure as much into the comic version of the event as she does here.
28* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: Amanda Waller
29* AxCrazy: Lex Luthor during his VillainousBreakdown.
30-->'''Lex:''' *with a manic, ear to ear grin on his face* ''I CAN'T THINK OF A MORNING...WHEN I HAVEN'T WOKEN UP...WITH THE THOUGHT OF '''STRANGLING YOU!''' '' That sanctimonious image of yours fooled ''eeeeveryone''--except '''me!''' Because ''I...KNOW...'''EVIL!!!'''''
31* BadassInANiceSuit:
32** Metallo as a Secret Service Agent combined with prosthetic skin.
33** President Lex Luthor is usually seen in his business suit outside of his mech suit.
34* BadassNormal: Batman, obviously. And this movie does more than a good job of showing just ''how'' badass.
35* BatDeduction: Batman deduces that Grodd is the one mind-controlling villains based on the speech pattern of ''one'' sentence said by Nightshade.
36* BerserkButton: From Toyman's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech, second only to Superman, basically being told he's not smart enough is this for Lex.
37* BigBad: Lex Luthor spends his Presidency pursuing his vendetta against Superman. [[spoiler:With the looming threat of the Kryptonite meteor in the horizon, he decides it would have been better if it hit Earth, so he can remake it in his own image]].
38* TheCameo: The gang of super-villains who show up to claim the bounty is basically a small army of these from across the DC Universe. It includes [[ComicBook/{{Aquaman}} Black Manta,]] Deadshot, [[ComicBook/WonderWoman Cheetah, Giganta]], Icicle, [[ComicBook/{{Superman}} Parasite, Riot]], [[ComicBook/TheFlash Captain Boomerang II, Girder, Captain Cold]], [[ComicBook/JusticeLeague Copperhead, Despero, Brimstone]], Kestrel, Killer Frost, King Shark, Eclipso, [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} Bane, Catman, Black Spider, Mr. Freeze, and Zeiss]].
39* CaptainErsatz: The political comedy show at the beginning of the movie is called ''[[Series/TheDailyShow The Weekly Show]]''.
40* CastingGag: The casting of Allison Mack and John C. [=McGinley=] definitely qualifies, given that they are best known from [[Series/{{Smallville}} a show about a young Superman]] and [[Series/{{Scrubs}} a show whose theme song is called "Superman"]], respectively. Furthermore, Mack's character, Power Girl, has been referenced on ''Smallville'' quite a few times, and it was Chloe who discovered her Starware corporation in a Season 3 episode.
41* CasualDangerDialogue: Both Superman and Batman seem fond of doing this, even though at one point, Batman asks him to stop.
42* CompositeCharacter:
43** Black Lightning takes John Stewart's place when he has to use his powers on [[spoiler:Major Force to stop him from going nuclear]].
44** Power Girl is the one to [[spoiler:damage Major Force's suit]] instead of Katana, who is in the movie unlike John but gets DemotedToExtra.
45** In the climax, Batman is the one to [[spoiler:pilot Toyman's missile manually towards the meteor instead of Captain Atom. While Atom got teleported to the [=WildStorm=] Universe, Batman survives by ejecting in the last minute]].
46* ConflictingLoyalty: Power Girl, between Superman and Lex Luthor. She truly believes Lex had changed and made America (and possibly the world) a better place. And she wants Superman to be a part of it, because they (and she) need him. But Superman doesn't believe Lex has truly changed and knows he's planning something. Power Girl was disappointed Superman refused the offer. Later, she doesn't really believe Superman killed Metallo. Lex tells her that people change, using himself as an example. She seemed thoroughly convinced. Yet, she admits to Superman and Batman that she was very disturbed by Lex in person, as Power Girl states he "makes [her] skin crawl", which led her to believe Superman was right about him all along.
47* ContinuityNod: A number of references are made to past events from the comics.
48** "That planet's been an endless source of grief for me." Though he may be obviously referring to Superman, he could also be referring to the Kryptonite cancer he suffered.
49** Batman and Superman's banter before a battle references ''WesternAnimation/SupermanDoomsday'':
50--->'''Batman:''' Your funeral.\
51'''Superman:''' Already had one.
52** At one point Superman asks Batman whatever happened to Magpie, who has the distinction of being the first villain that Superman and Batman faced together in the post-Crisis DCU (during Creator/JohnByrne's ''ComicBook/TheManOfSteel'').
53* ConservationOfNinjitsu: Superman and Batman are mobbed by hordes of supervillains all looking to collect the billion dollar bounty on Superman, and each of the villains is defeated by a single punch or combo, despite many of them frequently challenging (and ''defeating'', in some cases) these heroes single-handedly. ComicBook/{{Bane}} and ComicBook/LadyShiva probably get the worst of it.
54* CoolStarship: Toyman's Composite Superman/Batman rocket.
55-->'''Batman:''' Wow.
56* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler:Luthor is handing Superman one using a kryptonite-powered battlesuit. [[TranquilFury Until Superman thinks Batman is going to die because of what Luthor did.]] Then Superman returns the favor.]]
57* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler:Metallo.]]
58* DemotedToExtra: While they don't have big roles, Starfire, ComicBook/LoisLane, and ComicBook/{{Katana}} do speak in the comics version. The latter in particular had her most significant moment such as [[spoiler:damaging Major Force's suit]] is given to Power Girl instead.
59* DirtyKid[=/=]HormoneAddledTeenager: Hiro is close to the cutoff point between the two, but is clearly at least one of them given the mention of an incident involving Power Girl and a pair of x-ray goggles.
60-->'''Power Girl:''' He's not really that much of a boy, you know? He's thirteen.
61* DressingAsTheEnemy: [[spoiler:Superman and Batman infiltrate Luthor's compound dressed as Captain Marvel and Hawkman.]]
62* EngineeredPublicConfession: Batman goads Major Force into admitting that he killed Metallo. This results in the rest of the team turning against Luthor and Power Girl [[UnstoppableRage flipping out]] and lethally attacking Major Force.
63* EyesAlwaysShut: [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]].
64* FanDisservice: Lex Luthor provides about forty tons of it. That's as many as four tens. AndThatsTerrible.
65* FascinatingEyebrow: Lex Luthor pulls one when Power Girl walks into his office with "something important to talk about".
66* ForcefulKiss: Lex Luthor plants one on [[spoiler:Amanda Waller.]] It's not romantic, however; it's just a further sign of how he's completely losing it.
67* {{Foreshadowing}}:
68-->'''Batman:''' "I'm working on something with one of my contacts."
69** Lex Luthor claiming that Kryptonite radiation is affecting Supes' mind, and that the approaching meteor drove him crazy. [[spoiler:It's actually what's happening to Luthor.]]
70** Power Girl says that Lex makes her skin crawl. Maybe that's because she can sense he's evil, or maybe it's because [[spoiler:of the liquid Kryptonite he's been pumping into himself]].
71* {{Frameup}}: Luthor [[ManipulativeEditing strings together out-of-context clips]] to make Superman appear to be acting irrationally and guilty of murdering Metallo.
72* FreezeFrameBonus: The ''Gotham Gazette'' article about Luthor's election isn't just meaningless filler text, but presents a coherent narrative. It includes such tidbits as the names of Luthor's opponents (Perkins from the GOP and Diaz from the DNC) and the fact that his Vice President was "[[Characters/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries Max Yezpitlek]]" (imagine Mister Mxyzptlk).
73* GoshDangItToHeck: During Superman's PunctuatedPounding delivered to Mongul.
74-->'''Superman:''' You want to be...Luthor's...boy now?!
75* HarmlessFreezing: Batman is briefly frozen, then thawed out in seconds by Superman's heat vision with no ill-effects. If nothing else, it lasted barely a minute.
76* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:Amanda Waller.]]
77* HeroicBuild: The movie is somewhat infamous for depicting every single male superhero with the physique of an oversized bodybuilder, while all the women (save the realistically muscular Power Girl and the plus-sized Amanda Waller) look like borderline supermodels. It provides the current trope image.
78* HeroicSacrifice: In the movie, when Luthor blows up the guidance system for the rocket, Batman decides to fly it into the meteor himself at the cost of his own life, taking the role Captain Atom had in the comics, though he ends up having survived rather than presumed dead.
79* HumongousMecha: All through Toyman's base.
80* AnIcePerson: One of the villain sub-groups consists of ''four'' of these: Captain Cold, M. Freeze, Killer Frost and Icicle.
81* AnIceSuit: The ice/cold themed villains Mr. Freeze, Killer Frost, Captain Cold and Icicle.
82* IsTheAnswerToThisQuestionYes: When Superman question about the Toyman's HumongousMecha.
83-->'''Superman:''' Are you sure this thing can do the job?\
84'''Toyman:''' [[BoobBasedGag Does Power Girl have big--]]\
85'''Batman:''' Just input the codes!
86* ItsAllAboutMe: Lex's defining character trait. His presidential campaign is noted as one big ego booster, and he would rather die and doom the entire world with him than live in a world where he wasn't the one to save it. After he fails to do so, he becomes noticeably unhinged and decides that since he couldn't stop the meteor it must be destined to come, in order to usher in a world where he is ruler and savior.
87-->'''Luthor:''' God bless America! ''God bless me!''
88* JokerImmunity: {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d.
89--->'''Superman:''' Why is it the good villains never die?\
90'''Batman:''' Clark, what the hell are "good villains"?
91* LackOfEmpathy: [[spoiler:Unsurprisingly, Lex doesn't really care if the meteor destroys the earth, along with everyone on it, so long as he gets to preserve and strengthen his reputation. He even tries to ruin the duo's attempt to stop the meteor themselves when he confronts them.]]
92* LargeHam:
93** Captain Marvel to an extent, he seems to enjoy it too.
94---> "You know, you've never been any good against magic. And magic's what I'm all about!"
95** Clancy Brown gets to ham it up a bit more here than in the regular DCAU, particularly in the climax. [[spoiler:Probably because Luthor's off his head on steroids and liquidized radioactive rocks.]]
96* LegacyCharacter: The Captain Boomerang who briefly appears with the army of supervillains is Owen Mercer, the son of the original Captain Boomerang in the comics.
97* MagicPants: Once Metallo walks out of the fire, all of his skin has been burned off. The only piece of clothing that's remaining on him are his pants, which appear to be fireproof.
98* MagicSkirt: Amanda Waller.
99* ManOfKryptonite: Besides the obvious example of Metallo, [[spoiler:Luthor's been injecting himself with liquid kryptonite, which is why Superman felt weak during their meeting.]]
100* MostCommonSuperpower: Power Girl, natch. Her costume even has the CleavageWindow. (Lampshaded twice by Toyman, including an apology for an incident with his experimental x-ray goggles.)
101* MotifMerger: The exact logo at the top of the page also appears in-universe [[spoiler:on the chest of a giant robot that Toyman, Japanese wunderkind Hiro Okamura, built to destroy a Kryptonite asteroid that would hit Earth. Cut him some slack: he designed it when he was seven.]]
102* MsFanservice: Power Girl, [[MostCommonSuperpower naturally]]. She is this trope in-universe if Toyman's reaction to her is any indication.
103* MyCountryRightOrWrong: Captain Atom initially believes that it's his duty to carry out President Luthor's orders. He turns against Luthor after hearing Major Force admit that he (not Superman) killed Metallo.
104* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Power Girl felt guilty for nearly getting Captain Atom killed because of her anger at Major Force and Lex.
105* MythologyGag:
106** After Batman drove the rocket into the meteor, Captain Atom shows up and sadly quips that he arrived "a little too late." This is a reference to the comic the movie is based on, where it's Captain Atom and not Batman who makes the sacrifice.
107** Superman mentioning that he's [[ComicBook/TheDeathOfSuperman already had a funeral]].
108* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: One commentator discussing Luthor's election at the beginning of the movie is clearly an {{Expy}} of [[Series/TheDailyShow Jon Stewart]].
109* NoSell: Superman, naturally, does this quite often. [[spoiler:Near the end, he starts doing it to ''kryptonite beams'' after entering a TranquilFury.]]
110* OhCrap:
111** [[spoiler:Amanda's reaction to Luthor's kryptonite-induced insanity.]]
112** Later on, [[spoiler:Luthor's reaction when he realizes Superman is starting to resist the kryptonite due to thinking that Batman was going to die...from a situation Luthor put them all in.]]
113* OutOfCharacterAlert: Both Superman and Batman notice that something's amiss because of the fact that in spite of Mongul's penchant for {{Trash Talk}}ing, he didn't say a word during his fight with Superman, along with the fact that Grundy, who is only capable of HulkSpeak, sounded surprisingly intelligent in his speech. They quickly conclude that mind control is involved. When Nightshade shows up, her speech pattern is enough for Batman to figure out who's controlling her: [[spoiler:Grodd.]]
114* PowerFist: Hawkman whips one out and punches Superman through a ''mountain''.
115* PreAsskickingOneLiner:
116** After Superman pushes President Luthor to the ground when he finds out that their meeting was actually an ambush:
117-->'''Metallo:''' Shouldn't have done that. He's the President.
118** After Solomon Grundy is freed from Grodd's mind control:
119-->'''Grundy:''' [[HulkSpeak Grundy not feel good.]]\
120'''Batman:''' Grundy gonna feel a lot worse!
121** After [[spoiler:Batman takes off on a suicide mission]]:
122--> [[spoiler:'''Superman:''' ''(to Luthor)'' [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown That was my best friend.]] ''[[TranquilFury And you just killed him.]]'']]
123* PrecisionFStrike: Luthor calls Amanda Waller a bitch just before jumping into his PoweredArmor.
124* PresidentEvil: Lex Luthor, obviously.
125* ProperlyParanoid: Superman doesn't believes Luthor really changed despite all the good he's done for the country. He turns out to be right all along.
126* PsychoPartyMember: Major Force turns out to be this for Captain Atom's crew.
127* PunchCatch: How Superman gains control of the fight against Mongul.
128* PunctuatedPounding: Superman uses this trope to finish his fight against Mongul.
129-->'''Superman:''' You want to be...Luthor's...[[GoshDangItToHeck boy]] now?! I'm sick...of LEX LUTHOR!
130* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech:
131** Toyman gives a short one to Luthor when Luthor, seemingly about to kill him, calls Toyman the only other person on Earth smart enough to stop the meteor.
132-->'''Toyman:''' The ''only'' person. You couldn't do it, remember?
133** Earlier than that, Batman gives an epic one of these towards Major Force, sending him into a VillainousBreakdown
134-->'''Batman:''' Tell me something!\
135'''Major Force:''' What do you want, dirtbag?\
136'''Batman:''' Did Metallo say anything before he died? Was he surprised to see you?\
137'''Major Force:''' I don't know what you're talking about!\
138'''Batman:''' What did Luthor promise you, money?\
139'''Major Force:''' What do I need with money? I'm living energy!\
140'''Batman:''' You're not going to tell me you killed him for your country are you?\
141'''Major Force:''' ...Some of us still believe in putting our country first!\
142'''Batman:''' Sorry, but I don't see any patriotism here! All I see is a psycho who's latched onto an excuse to kill people! And who's so ''stupid'' he doesn't realize he's being used by Luthor!
143* RevengeBeforeReason: Lex Luthor would rather let the world die than accept help from Superman in saving the world - he would rather let the world die than accept help from ''anyone'' in saving the world, but with Superman it's particularly pronounced. He spends valuable time and manpower attempting to hunt down and frame Superman instead, and when it's clear that Supes is going to save everyone where he can't he nearly dooms the world trying to stop its only hope for survival.
144* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: Solomon Grundy's OutOfCharacterAlert has him speaking in a verbose, eloquent fashion -- or, as Batman put it, "sound[ing] like [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_F._Buckley William F. Buckley]]" -- instead of his usual HulkSpeak.
145* ShapeshifterWeapon: This version of Metallo has near [[Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay T-1000]]-levels of ability to reconfigure.
146* ShoutOut: The [=SuperBat=] Mecha had a [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Gundam crotch]].
147* SinisterShades: John Corben AKA Metallo as a Secret Service Agent, which serves to hide his green, [[ElectronicEyes robotic eyes]].
148* SlasherSmile: Grodd gives one to Batman after Superman gives away his location.
149* TheSociopath: Lex Luthor gets elected President to spite Superman, orders Superman and Batman killed because he can, and [[spoiler:decides to let a giant meteor crash into the Earth and rule over the ashes when his attempts to stop it don't work]].
150* StealthHiBye: It's Batman.
151* StopOrIShootMyself: The first criminal Superman catches (the red car driver) attempts this. Superman simply blasts away his Colt Python revolver.
152* TokenEvilTeammate: Major Force is the only supervillain among Captain Atom's group, and revealed to be [[spoiler:Metallo's actual killer and framing Superman for it]].
153* TornadoMove: Superman does this to simultaneously overpower Captain Atom, Starfire, Black Lightning, Major Force and Power Girl.
154* TranquilFury: After Superman believes that Batman is dead thanks to Luthor, he stops holding back and beats him to a mess on the floor. Luthor is lucky to escape with his life.
155* UnstoppableRage:
156** Superman does this to Luthor after Batman takes off in the rocket ship. For starters, he punches him so hard that he ''coughs blood''. A few minutes later, Superman takes ''a kryptonite beam to the face'' while chasing Luthor and keeps flying at full speed.
157-->'''Superman:''' That was my BestFriend. And you just killed him!
158** Power Girl, after finding out Major Force killed Metallo on Lex's order.
159* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: Luthor, drugged-up on Venom, decides that the meteor crashing into the Earth might not be such a bad thing since it means he has a chance to start the world anew with a few carefully chosen survivors who can build a glorious new {{Ubermensch}}en society under his leadership. {{Subverted|Trope}} though since this is just InsaneTrollLogic to protect his ego by justifying why his original plan to blow up the meteors failed- after all, the alternative is [[NeverMyFault that Lex himself just made a mistake]].
160* TheVoiceless: Starfire and Katana.
161* VillainousBreakdown: Luthor goes through one of these. From trying to ''stop the only human on the planet capable of destroying the meteor'' to donning an armored power suit to wildly rambling at the cheering crowds at the end:
162-->'''Luthor:''' The voice of the people must be heard! I am the President! God bless America! God bless ''me!''
163* WouldHitAGirl: Batman versus Shiva. Superman versus Giganta, as well.
164* WouldHurtAChild: Luthor tries to squish the Toyman, but Superman stops him.
165* XanatosGambit: Lex lures Superman to a meeting only to provoke him and set Metallo upon him. Either Metallo kills Superman or he fails, and [[spoiler:Major Force]] murders Metallo and frames Superman for it, letting Luthor turn the entire country against him. A particularly clever spin on this is that neither Lex nor Superman think the general public will just buy this story, so Lex also suggests that the Kryptonite meteor is affecting Superman's brain and causing him to act violent and irrationally, making the story much more plausible even to people who don't trust Luthor and know that he and Superman hate each other.
166* YourSizeMayVary: Luthor's armor is ''huge'' when we first see it, towering over everyone. It suddenly shrinks down to human size again when Superman begins tearing off armor pieces.

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