10 Worst Things Superman Has Ever Done

3. Becoming A Government Lapdog - The Dark Knight Returns

The Adventures of Superman Annual #3 Maxima
DC Comics

Given his long-standing mantra of truth, justice and the American way, Superman has often been aligned with the US government in. In Frank Miller's seminal The Dark Knight Returns, though, this is taken to the extreme when the Man of Steel becomes the ultimate, brainless government lapdog.

With Bruce Wayne having hung up the cape 'n' cowl a decade prior, this four-issue 1986 offering saw Bruce suit up once more after the nefarious Mutants begin to terrorise Gotham City. Where Superman comes into this, he's tied at the hip to President Ronald Reagan.

Unhappy that Batman has resurfaced - with independently-minded heroes all viewed as loose cannon vigilantes by the authorities - Reagan debates what actions to take against the Caped Crusader. For Superman, he's tasked with warning (see: threatening) his on-off BFF that he may have to take him down should the World's Greatest Detective carry on suiting up.

Never one to shy away from a threat, Bruce implores Superman to do whatever he needs to do.

So blindly loyal to the US President is Big Blue here, he ends up eventually battling Batman in a fight that culminates in the Dark Knight's 'death'. Granted, this demise would be a fake-out planned ahead of time by Bats, but Superman didn't know that when he was beating his old ally to a pulp - all because the man in the Oval Office told him to.

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