10 Superman Moments That Shocked The World

4. Offering Pete Ross’ Son Up For Alien Abduction - DC Comics Presents #13

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DC Comics

You’d think having one of the most powerful beings in the universe as your BFF would offer up its fair share of perks. That may well be the case for some, but that certainly wasn’t the case for Pete Ross.

A childhood pal of Clark Kent’s, Pete was one of the few people to know that Clark and Superman were one and the same. Given the trust between the two, you’d think that this friendship was unbreakable. And it was. Well, until Kal-El allowed Pete’s only son to be abducted by aliens.

This all played out in 1978’s DC Comics Presents #13, with the alien Nyrvin race kidnapping Pete’s son Jon. The Man of Steel would swoop in and save the day, attempting to rescue the youngster, only to be informed by the Legion of Super-Heroes that Jon’s abduction was a vital part of bringing peace to the future.

Ever the great friend, Supes decided to leave Jon with the aliens and break the news to his bestest bud. Given that Pete was already a widower at this point, the loss of his only son promptly brought a bitter end to his friendship with Clark.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.