A few months back, we brought you the news that DC Comics was planning a brand new addition to their stellar digital-first lineup in the form of Adventures of Superman, a series of the industry's top creators doing out-of-continuity tales about the Man of Steel -- with the red trunks!
The first of those stories debuts today on the DC Comics app for a meager .99 cents, and is written by Jeff Parker with art by Chris Samnee. I can't think of two better creators to kick this thing off, so I'm super pumped to show off the preview of this first chapter.
We also got the current lineup of creators for the first couple of months of this weekly book, check it:
- April 29 -- #1 written by Jeff Parker with art by Chris Samnee
- May 6 -- #2 with Jeff Lemire on board as writer and artist
- May 13 -- #3 written by Justin Jordan with art by Riley Rossmo
- May 20 -- #4 written by J.M. DeMatteis with art by Giuseppe Camuncoli and Sal Buscema
- May 27 -- #5 written by Joshua Hale Fialkov with art by Joëlle Jones
- June 3 -- #6 co-written by Michael Avon Oeming and Brian J.L. Glass with Oeming also doing pencils and inks
- June 10 -- #7 first of a three-chapter arc written by Matt Kindt with art by Stephen Segovia
- July 17 -- #8 second of a three-chapter arc written by Matt Kindt with art by Stephen Segovia
- July 24 -- #9 third of a three-chapter arc written by Matt Kindt with art by Stephen Segovia
- Cover for chapters 1-3 by Bryan Hitch
- Cover for chapters 4-6 by Giuseppe Camuncoli
- Cover for chapters 7-9 by Stephen Segovia
Not too shabby, eh?
Additionally, I had a quick chat with Parker about his take on the Man of Steel.
Chapters 1-3 Cover by Bryan Hitch
IGN Comics: We’ve been talking about this question a lot at IGN for Superman’s 75th birthday, so I’ll ask you as well… what does Superman mean to you?
Jeff Parker: Uh, everything? He means heroes, he means comics. Superman made really clear to young me the ideals of justice and morality, things kids believe in strongly and want to see somebody who isn't afraid to to fight for those things.
And when I'd pull Superman off the spinner rack I knew I was going to get some BIG ideas dropped on me. I was lucky to have a lot of old comics left over from a relative so I got to read Otto Binder stories early on. Also I was really into the stories by Nelson Bridwell and the novels of Elliot S! Maggin.
IGN: What’s the basic premise of your story?
Parker: A man who is really not ready for it has had great power thrust upon him, and he's self-destructing- taking everybody with him. Superman is trying desperately to keep everyone around this living catastrophe alive. It's keeping with Superman's sci-fi roots and showcases the guy you'd love to have for a pal.
IGN: You’re working with Chris Samnee – for my money, one of the best in comics today – what did he bring to your story and the character?
Parker: A while back in a completely unrelated context I shot my mouth off about how I would handle writing Superman, with the caveat "but I'd need Chris Samnee working with me." And then for this it worked out, which is just magical to me.
Chris just flat-out gets a character like Superman, he knows how to make him powerful and iconic and extremely human all at once. It goes beyond even his drawing ability- Chris I think now qualifies as one of the greats in the greater sense of Raymond, Caniff, Toth, that level- but that he really understands what we all relate to in Superman.
We didn't have Lois Lane in our story, but she's another character he can bring across completely in one drawing. For a while Chris and I lived in the same neighborhood and we would just rattle on about how we'd approach Superman and Lois and everything, so this was a real treat to be able to make some of that happen.
IGN: Would you be interested in handling the Man of Steel in a longer format, or perhaps doing another Adventures of Superman?
Parker: Nope, I'm done.
Are you kidding? I'd love to tell a long Superstory. I'd also like to work more with DC digital, I got to do a Batman story with Gabriel Hardman I was very happy with and now this. They're creating quality stories in a venue where the larger world can find it.
IGN: We talked about Batman ’66 recently, another book you’ve got going with DC. Is there more stuff in the pipeline for you with them?
Parker: At the moment I'm focusing on Batman '66, which is exactly as much ridiculous fun as you might imagine. But yes, there may be more still!
Check out the full preview for the issue below:
Joey is a Senior Editor at IGN and a comic book creator. Follow Joey on Twitter @JoeyEsposito, or find him on IGN at Joey-IGN. After Man of Steel comes out, his life will lose all sense of direction and purpose.
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