10 Most Inappropriate DC Comics Storylines Ever

2. With Great Power Comes Irresponsibility - Superman: Grounded

Deathstroke Inappropriate
DC Comics

It must be tough being Superman. The pressure on him to be ever-ready to save the world from any and all threats and disasters must be pretty immense. So you couldn't really blame him if he wanted to take a break from the whole superhero thing, and just go for a long walk. This is the premise of Superman: Grounded, a seven issue run in which Superman gives up flights and fights in an effort to find himself and the meaning of his existence.

Along the way, he makes some truly bizarre, wildly out-of-character choices. In one scene that mirrors one of the most famous moments from the far superior All-Star Superman, Superman tries to talk a young suicidal girl down from jumping off a building. How does he do this? He tells her to go ahead and jump if she really wants to, and he promises not to catch her.

Thankfully, she decides against jumping in the end, but Superman makes a point of letting everyone know that he was serious about not catching her.

In another issue, Superman discovers a factory that is wildly unsafe to work in, and is destroying the environment of the town around it. He initially plans to help Lois Lane shut it down, but changes his mind when he realises how many people it employs. That's right: Superman sides with Big Business over the environment and safety of regular people. A far cry from the social crusader invented by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in 1938.

 
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Contributor
Contributor

Jimmy Kavanagh is an Irish writer and co-founder of Club Valentine Comedy, a Dublin-based comedy collective. You can hear him talk to his favourite comedians about their favourite comics on his podcast, Comics Swapping Comics.