The Comics Professor

Superhuman Ethics Class is in session in Avengers Academy #10!

Wow, I thought Christos Gage was just kidding when he had Hank Pym mention Superhuman Ethics Class in Avengers Academy #8 (noted here), but he was serious: in this week's Avengers Academy #10--pencilled by the incomprable Sean Chen, by the way--class is in session! And how do our students (and teachers) do? Let's see...

--- SPOILERS BELOW THE FOLD ---

Superman Is Morally "Grounded" in Superman #708 (UPDATED)

For my money--which ain't much, but still--J. Michael Straczynski is an amazing writer. His writing on Amazing Spider-Man was inspiring; his brief run on Fantastic Four was innovative; and his done-in-ones on The Brave and the Bold were stunning. (And don't get me started on Thor...) I hope to write posts on much of his work in the future, but now the book of the moment in Superman (though he's not scripting anymore, of course, since the success of Superman: Earth One, which I have to admit I was less crazy about).

(Note: I fully realize that Chris Roberson is scripting the current issues of Superman to JMS' plots, and to whatever extent Mr. Roberson is responsible for the broader ideas within the book, I commend him too.)

UPDATED NOTE: After corresponding with Chris Roberson, I now know that he was actually responsible for most, if not all, of the ideas I discuss in this post. Apologies from Chris for overlooking his contributions before, and kudos to JMS and Chris as an incredible writing team!

The current "Grounded" arc, in which Superman takes a stroll across America (similar to Green Lantern and Green Arrow's road trip in Denny O'Neil's classic 1970s run), has been controversial, to say the least, especially since Superman was not seen--at least not as Superman, and not on Earth--for a year during the "New Krypton" storyline. And now that he's back, he's... walking. I can walk. I know a lot of people who can walk. Walking's easy. Flying, now that's tough. Now who can fly... hmm... let's see...

Nonetheless, I like it. "Grounded" is supposed to humanize Superman, bring him in touch with the common folk, and highlight the problems of present-day America (as O'Neil did in the 70s in Green Lantern/Green Arrow). But I like to think it brings him in touch with moral decisions that he normally doesn't have to make, dilemmas we all face everyday. (I discussed some of this previously here.)

(Spoilers for Superman #708 after the jump...)

Superman discovers the need for moral judgment

I haven't had much time to read comics the last couple weeks, so I caught up on a few today, including Superman #707, which continues the "Grounded"... well, "storyline" doesn't seem like the right term... "theme," maybe. Whatever. He's walking. (If he wanted to connect with the common man and woman, he'd realize that most of us really want to fly, and he's just rubbing it in our faces by walking instead. Hmph.)

At least Hal and Ollie drove a pick-up truck... and didn't wear their costumes while they were driving across the country... just sayin'...

Oh, yeah, my point... the issue contains an excellent illustration of moral conflict, and the importance of moral judgment in making all but the simplest of ethical decision.

SPOILERS to follow the jump...