The Man of Steel Scrapes

For as much trash as I talk on Warner Bros/DC Comic's latest Superman film "Man of Steel" I can admit there were some things about this snorefest I actually liked. "Man of Steel" is kind of like a diamond covered in feces, its smelly and ugly and you don't to be near it, but you can see the shimmers of potential beauty. And neither a feces-covered diamond or "Man of Steel" are happy in any way. This is The Panel Biter's Top 5 Pros to Man of Steel.

5. The Mysterious Openings

Being it's own movie for three years, "Man of Steel" had a lot of openings for other stories afterwards and not using villains other than General Zod-who is pretty much evil Superman-meant more varied villains could be future threats. Genius and rich manipulator Lex Luthor, power-zapping monster Parasite, collecting tech-being Brainiac, even inter-dimensional beings like Bizarro and Mr. Mxyzptlk were possibilities. Superman has a lot of villains and supporting characters who could've made refreshing additions. Especially considering past Superman movies mostly stuck to Luthor and/or Zod. With so many interesting alien villains, the cosmic-themes of the film would have suited these new antagonists. Plus, no Kryptonite! A bold idea for a first film.

4. Superman's Look/Movements

The blue is too dark, the lack of underwear is obvious, but other than that I really like Superman's costume in this film. It has a good mix of classic design and otherworldly, mythological design. Henry Cavill was also a great actor to put in the role, he looks like a real-life version of the character. If he were given more direction-or the right direction-Cavill could have personified the big blue boy-scout perfectly, though we only got glimpses of the true Superman mentality. The first flight scene is what almost sold me on the film, it followed Superman's pattern and showed how his flying could break sound barriers, and hey, he actually smiled! Remember that tagline from the Donner/Reeves Superman films? "You'll believe a man can fly". That's what I think of when this Superman flies. The actual fight scenes between Superman and the other Kryptonians-destructive as they might be-are really great to watch to. It's pretty much how Superman-or any DBZ character-should fight in a film.

3. Planet Krypton

Only within the comics and the "Superman: Animated Series" has Superman's home planet Krypton been given history like this film. Though I'm really against the design work and the eugenics on this Krypton, I admit it isn't as vague as Donner/Reeve's version and the beginning story focus on Superman's birth father Jor-El is admirable to the character. Showing more of how Zod ties into the film, how the ecosystem of Krypton works, and hearing there history through shifting metal pictures on a crashed ship give the dead planet much more life. And though I'm partial to a lair of icebergs, the Kryptonian ship crashed on Earth acting as Superman's "Fortress of Solitude" isn't an awful take on the iconic lair of Superman.

2. The "S" Stands For Hope

Looking at it objectively, wearing the first letter of your name as a symbol is a bit odd. It's not like an initial or a football jacket, in fact there is no "S" in either of Superman's names! Clark Kent and Kal-El. The only reason it was ever there was because Clark came up with the name Superman because he could be a man who was "super". And what kind of symbol can you get from a word like "super"? It's not an animal or an object, it's just a word made of letters. How much of a tool would he look if he just had "Superman" written on his chest? The simple "S" symbol was given an actual reason for being there thanks to this film as "Man of Steel" reused the old idea of the "S" being a family crest on Krypton, but invented the idea of "S" being the Kryptonian symbol for "hope". Like, Kanji or something like that. Since Superman-as early as 1938-represented hope, it made total sense.

1. Superman Killing Zod

One of the most hated parts of "Man of Steel" is one of my favorites. Not because I'm a death-loving sociopath like The Savage Justin, but because I see this murder as more than just a reason to stamp out the bad guy with no complications. Everyone remembers the scene when Superman snaps Zod neck and kills him, but does anyone remember how before this Zod was going to kill citizens with heat vision? How about how Superman pleaded Zod not to make him kill him, or maybe how Superman screamed in anguish after killing Zod? You see, this had to happen to establish Superman's reluctance to kill, to solidify why this man with all the power in the world wouldn't just murder his problems. This film didn't do Superman's character justice, avoiding the fact that he doesn't like to put people at risk or cause property damage, but creating this instance of helplessness gives Superman a lesson, character development the character desperately needed in this film. Zod didn't die because they wanted Superman to seem hardcore, he died so people could see that Superman is just as mortal as anyone else, that killing is always an easy solution, but never an easy thing to live with. Plus, Reeve's Superman killed Zod and nobody said feces.
Thanks for reading!

Facebook: The Panel Biter
Twitter: @ThePanelBiter
Podbean: Panelbiter.podbean.com