The Man of Steel 1-6

Man of Steel 1-6, DC Comics, 1986

Published just a few months after Crisis on Infinite Earths, John Byrne’s The Man of Steel updated the saga of Superman for modern audiences. His origin was altered, as were many other aspects of the character.  Written and drawn by John Byrne, with inks by Dick Giordano Dec 1986

1A) Special Collector’s edition (direct ed.). This first issue reveals that Kal-El was conceived via the mingling of seeds in a matrix chamber, Clark’s powers developed slowly over time (meaning Superboy was written out of continuity), and Superman’s body projected an aura that protected his now vulnerable costume.

#2 published Oct 1986: Lois Lane drives off a pier in order to get Superman’s attention so she can interview him for The Daily Planet. In addition, Clark writes his first story for the Planet. Unlike the pre-Crisis Lois Lane, the revised Lois doesn’t spend time trying to uncover Superman’s secret identity (since no one knows he has a secret identity).

#3 published November 1986.  The third issue finds Superman in Gotham City and at odds with the brutal (and oftentimes unlawful) methods Batman uses to fight crime. During pre-Crisis times, Superman and Batman were the best of buddies.

#4 published Nov 1986.  In this issue, Lois and Clark on a cruise that gets hijacked, establishes Lex Luthor as a scheming, power-mad business mogul who is jealous of Superman’s increasingly felt presence in Metropolis. Prior to Crisis, Luthor was a brilliant (if crooked) scientist

#5 published Dec 1986.  Lex Luthor scans Superman’s cellular and molecular structure, enabling one of his scientists to create a being with strength and powers (and memories) almost equal to Superman. In pre-Crisis continuity, Luthor created Bizzaro with an imperfect duplicating ray.

#6 published Deb 1986.  Here we see that Clark Kent’s parents are alive and well in Smallville (originally they had died shortly after Clark’s graduation from high school), and Clark’s childhood sweetheart Lana Lang is back in town. Clark learns that he is the sole survivor of Krypton (thus erasing Supergirl and others from continuity), but swears his allegiance to Earth