Whether you love him, hate him or have a general indifference toward him, there’s no denying that Superman is one of the most influential fictional characters of all time. Superman has been an enduring presence in pop culture for over 70 years and has led headlines the world over as a global icon.
For me he’s been a true inspiration in a hard life and I’ve been a hardcore fan of his since I was five years old. My love for Superman continues to grow no matter how much criticism and satirizing he receives in pop culture, and ultimately I felt compelled to celebrate him in a list.
Here are fifty reasons why I believe Superman is the greatest superhero of all time.
50. The Symbol
The iconic symbol on his chest is instantly recognizable. It’s almost as recognizable as the American dollar sign, or the yin and yang. When villains see the big S emboldened in red and yellow, they know that their days are numbered and Superman means business.
When they shoot at him, they shoot for the chest, and the S is impenetrable. The S is not just an icon for a superhero, it’s the icon for character’s meaning and what he stands for. Whether it’s S for Superman, or S the house of El family crest, The big red S means something… the ultimate symbol of hope.
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39 Comments
Batman
Yup, Batman.
I know a few people that used to be avid readers of the site, but like me they can’t stand the click to read feature you have decided to go with. I’m sure it’s a fine article, but I won’t be reading it because of this stupid new feature that’s designed to get you more clicks, help you get commercials and in the end lose readers. Good luck with that.
Why post on the goddamn article if you’re not going to read it, half wit?
A well written tribute top supes . Keep up the good work
Actually, he’s had four successful live action television series. Starting with “Adventures of Superman” starring George Reeves in the 50s and the late 80s/early 90s syndicated “Adventures of Superboy” show, on top of the two that were mentioned in the article.
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman lasted only 4 seasons in the 90s. That’s hardly forever.
So that he can let the moderator/editor know that he, as one of WC’s readers, is unhappy with the way things are. That’s one of the reasons the Comments section even exists in the first place.
Wow, Felix, way to be professional: a person posts a comment about the site’s functionality (a very valid comment IMO, but the validity of his point is irrelevant), and you insult him. Granted, his tone was unnecessarily condescending, but as a writer for a publication, YOU should be above that. There’s no reason you couldn’t have either responded professionally to his comment or simply ignored him. This is my first visit to your site — which I was quite enjoying up until this point — and I’m sorry to see that at least one of its writers has no clue whatsoever how to talk to readers.
I’m just curious as to why you thought Smallville was awful? I’m a HUGE Superman fan, love it all!! And I thought Smallville was really good. Sure there are cheesy parts to it, but I have all 10 seasons on DVD and just from one fan to another, I’d like to know your opinion and perspective on Smallville.
I agree. Seems like more sites are doing this (more page hits?) and I tend to skip past them.
P.S. Kind of a dick move lashing out, Felix.
“Felix Vasquez Jr. has written for fifteen years”
Seriously? Huh. Could’ve fooled me.
Felix apologize, are you a man?
Why Batman Is The Greatest Superhero Ever:
1. Because he’s THE GODDAMN BATMAN!
Superman hasn’t done any good films that’s his major problem, that is why in my opinion Batman is the best
Derk, are you serious?! Did you just say that Superman has not had a good movie?!?! Do your research before you speak, little man…
Are you blind? Did you not see me put “in my opinion”?
Well if people aren’t allowed an opinion then we might as well let ourselves be brainwashed.
What you said is is like me saying “Batman has not had one good movie” Superman 2 nuff said
Amazing article, loved it <3
You can compare all superheroes with each other, but Superman should never be compared to any one!
I learnt today that Jerry Seinfeld is a superman fan so that makes me like him more :D thanks for sharing this article with us <3 god bless you ^_^
I loved the Superman references in Seinfeld.
Awesome article and you mentioned all of my favorite points that I bring up when I’m debating Superman greatness.
Aquaman is the best
Batman!!!! Hes a superhero by his own merit. He is just a master of fight because he works out every day. He isn’t a silly alien who smash every thing…. Batman > superman
superman fail in comparison to batman. batman mythos have surpass every comic book characters. even people who dont like dc characters like batman.
Superman is best. Period. All you Batman hacks are wanting to point to certain eras in Superman’s 75 year history to trash him. Yet you are conveniently forgetting that Batman has the most embarassing, sordid, corny, campy, lampooned history in ALL OF COMIC BOOK HISTORY!!! You want to go down that road with Superman? Be prepared to do the same with Batman! Adam West TV show; 12 yr old “wards” in green shorts and shaved legs; rogues gallery of pranksters, quizmasters, and clowns; Joel Schumacher films, etc.
I like Batman as much as anyone. But you can not point to various eras to trash other characters, and not be aware that Batman was almost cancelled by DC in 1981 because he was considered too silly.
Deep down, Clark always knows that he’s my bitch. Always and forever.
You know why?
CAUSE I’M THE GODDAMN BATMAN!
Uh, Bruce… You just shouted out your secret identity to everyone. Way to go.
ummm Spidey was never a corporate ploy. Stan had to sneak him in BECAUSE the publishers saw that he didnt fit the Superman Superhero archetype of being an adult, good-looking, successful and over powered. The reason Spiderman is one of the most enduring characters and arguably IMO the greatest is because he is the most human character. He screws up, he screws up bad, and learns from it and becomes a hero. Life is complicated for Spidey, hes got a moderate power set, crappy finances, complicated social life… he still screws up, but he never gives up and always does what is right. Learn to argue your points without logical fallacies. Superman is a great character, not because he was the first superhero, not because hes been around so long, and not because hes so powerful. And you did mention the good points like despite being god like he still strives to be human. he cares and wants to make the world a better place. It’s arguably Clark Kent, whom is raised by Pa and Ma Kent who make him who he is. It isnt the powers, it is the human side to him, which is also what makes Spiderman great.
:-D
Win for Superman!
I also am a fan of Smallville. Season 3 to about 7 were pretty crap, but the 1st season as well as the last two were great watching! Even when I had to watch them on crappy internet links because the show was about 3 years behind in Australia for a while..
i love batman but why are all the batman fans jumping on her to talk about him? this article is for superman not the dark knight.
Superman “inspired” Goku’s character in DB? ARE YOU FCKING DUMB, Felix Vasquez jr.? Goku’s the best and there is no reason to justify this (unlike the 50 you gave for super*lame*man).
Did you even watch smallville? Or are you basing your opinion on a half assed attempt to view it,or what you heard about it from others who didnt like it. He was not sent their to conquer, that was one of Jor-El’s tests. Smallville is the thing that made me appreciate superman as a character, before that i thought he was a one dimensional impossibly indestructible, therefor making any story with him in it pointless.
Batman. Superman second yes, but Batman first.
Superman has been the basis for more than two successful TV shows.
Smallville and Lois and Clark were both successful, or at least the first two seasons for L&C, the first was a creative success as well, but Superboy was one of the highest-rated syndicated shows of the 80′s and 90′s. Superman: The Animated Series was also a ratings hit for Kids’ WB!. You could also count Superfriends and the Superman-based cartoons from Filmation as successes. Both were big money makers. Justice League and Justice League Unlimited were also highly-rated and critically acclaimed. Even Krypto: The Super Dog was a hit on Cartoon Network.
And finally, how did you not count The Adventures of Superman with George Reeves? That wasn’t successful? It was a worldwide phenomenon! Superman’s popularity rivaled Beatlemania and some say beat it. I’m actually inclined to agree with that from a historical perspective.
So as you can see, more than two.
Not every kryptonite is bad for him, Blue kryptonite cancels the effects of others forms of kryptonite (but can’t cure him of golden kryptonite).
Wait a second…does this Felix dude call himself an author? Dude, you’re a blogger. You don’t have a single book or original story of any kind. You’re just an insignificant critic. And how dare you insult Frank Miller. You aren’t even worthy to hold his jockstrap. Felix, you are a complete tool.
only an idiot would say that superman is better than batman,superman’s secret identity is glasses lol he is too powerful and overpowered,has there ever been a good superman game?thr have been amazing batman games u know d reason y coz superman is so powerful he cant b put in a game,superman movies sucks,his villains suck in front of batman’s,,everyone knows arkham asylum no one knows phantom zone,he needs to be toned down nobody would ever like an overpowered hero who can only b defeated by a space rock,batman sells more comics,games,movies everything more than superman lets see if man of steel changes dat
To the more modern, teenage audience you are absolutely right.
Compared to Batman and a lot of Marvel heroes, Superman hasn’t:
Had a good game.
Had a good movie, most teenagers have never seen the old Reeve movies and most probably haven’t even seen Returns, and that had no action and was boring.
And a lot of his backstory, villains etc aren’t very well known.
But with MOS coming out next month, that could change and make the more modern teenage audience like Superman a whole lot more.
Because you ask 10000 16 year olds who their favourite superhero is, most will say Batman, Iron Man or Spider-Man, with a few Hulks and other heroes.
With the teenage/young audience, it’s all down the films.