| Superman: Red Son | |
|---|---|
 Cover art from theSuperman: Red Sontrade paperback. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Limited series |
| Genre | |
| Publication date | 2003 |
| No. of issues | 3 |
| Main character(s) | Superman Batman Wonder Woman Lex Luthor Brainiac |
| Creative team | |
| Written by | Mark Millar |
| Penciller(s) | Dave Johnson Andrew Robinson Walden Wong Killian Plunkett |
| Letterer | Ken Lopez |
| Colorist | Paul Mounts |
| Editor(s) | Anton Kawasaki Mike McAvennie Maureen McTigue Tom Palmer Jr. |
| Collected editions | |
| Red Son | ISBN 1-4012-0191-1 |
| Deluxe Edition | ISBN 1-4012-2425-3 |
Superman: Red Son is an American three-issueprestige formatcomic bookmini-series published byDC Comics that was released under theirElseworlds imprint in 2003.[1][2] AuthorMark Millar created the comic with the premise "What ifSuperman had been raised in theSoviet Union?" It received critical acclaim and was nominated for the 2004Eisner Award for best limited series. The story mixes alternate versions of DC super-heroes with alternate-reality versions of real political figures such asJoseph Stalin andJohn F. Kennedy. The series spans approximately 1953–2001, save for a futuristic epilogue.
InRed Son, Superman's rocket ship lands on aUkrainiancollective farm rather than inKansas. As an adult he becomes a state-sponsored superhero whose civilian identity is kept a state secret, and who in Soviet radio broadcasts, is described not as fighting for "truth, justice, and the American Way", but as "the Champion of the common worker who fights a never-ending battle forStalin,socialism, and the international expansion of theWarsaw Pact".
The ideas that made up the story came together over a long stretch of time.Mark Millar said:
Red Son is based on a thought that flitted through my head when I readSuperman #300 as a six-year-old. It was an imaginary story where Superman's rocket landed in neutral waters between the USA and the USSR and both sides were rushing to claim the baby. As a kid growing up in the shadow of the Cold War, the notion of what might have happened if the Soviets had reached him first just seemed fascinating to me.[2]
As I got older, I started putting everything together and I first pitched something to DC when I was thirteen, I think — although it was in a much cruder form, of course, and my drawings weren't quite up to scratch.[2]
By 1992, he had already developed many of the plot points:
Instead of landing in Kansas as a child, I've decided to explore what could have happened if his rocket would have landed on a collective farm in the Soviet Union. Instead of working for theDaily Planet, he'll be a reporter forPravda. There's a reversal of the current situation, this time it's the U.S.A. that's splitting up withGeorgia andLouisiana demanding independence — tanks rolling through the streets ofNew Orleans. I'll be including a whole bunch of DC characters, likeBatman andGreen Lantern — who you'll see in a new light.[3]
Grant Morrison has given interviews about giving Millar the idea of sending Superman back to the past, as was used in the end ofRed Son.[4]
Certain images from the series are taken from famous comic book covers or panels. A splash panel from the first issue references Superman's pose on the cover ofSuperman #1. Another panel showing riots in the U.S. mimics the cover toAction Comics#1, which was the first appearance of Superman.
TheSoviet Union revealsSuperman to the world in 1953. The news of a superpowered alien under Soviet control causes panic in theUnited States, shifting the focus of theCold War arms race fromnuclear weapons tometahumans.CIA agentJames Olsen recruitsLex Luthor, a scientist employed byS.T.A.R. Labs, to destroy Superman. Luthor's first act is to causeSputnik 2 to plummet towardsMetropolis. After Superman diverts the satellite away from the city, Luthor retrieves traces of Superman's genetic material from the satellite and uses them to create amonstrous clone of Superman dubbed Superman Two.
Meanwhile, Superman meetsWonder Woman at a diplomatic party, and she becomes smitten with him.Pyotr Roslov, the head of theNKVD andJoseph Stalin's illegitimate son, is angry that Superman has turned his father's attention away from him and ended his chances of advancement within the Soviet government. Pyotr shoots a dissident couple in front of their son for printing anti-Superman propaganda. Stalin dies from cyanide poisoning, and Superman initially refuses command of theCommunist Party. However, a chance meeting withLana Lazarenko, his childhood sweetheart, changes his mind. Superman chooses to use his powers for the greater good and turn his country into a utopia.
TheU.S. government sends "Superman Two" to engage Superman, and their duel causes an accidental nuclear missile launch inGreat Britain. The clone sacrifices itself to save millions. Luthor murders his research staff at S.T.A.R. Labs and foundsLuthorCorp, dedicating his life to destroying Superman.
By 1978, the United States is on the verge of social collapse, whereas the prosperous Soviet Union has peacefully expanded its influence to nearly every corner of the globe. The cost of this progress is an increased infringement on individual liberties, with Superman becoming aBig Brother-like figure, and the introduction of a brain surgery technique that turns dissidents into obedient drones, or "Superman Robots". Superman now works with Wonder Woman to save lives as well as govern the Soviet state. Wonder Woman has become increasingly enamored of Superman, but he considers her simply as acomrade, and is oblivious to her love for him.
Luthor plans to shrinkMoscow, but this plan fails whenBrainiac, his collaborator, shrinksStalingrad instead. Superman intervenes and retrieves both Brainiac's central processing unit and the city, ending the Brainiac-Luthor cooperation. He is unable to restore Stalingrad and its inhabitants to their proper size. This becomes his one failure and a source of great guilt.
Luthor's third plan involves the vigilanteBatman, who was the boy orphaned by Pyotr. Batman joins forces with LuthorCorp and Pyotr, now head of theKGB. They capture Wonder Woman and use her as bait for Superman, hoping to sap his powers with rays that imitate sunlight from Superman's home planet. The plan works, but Superman convinces Wonder Woman to break free of the lasso that she is tied up with and destroy the generators running the lamps emitting the solar energy. She does, severely injuring herself in the process, but the lamps stop running and Superman's powers return. Scared that Superman was going to lobotomize him and turn him into a robot, Batman kills himself as a martyr to his cause. Pyotr is turned into a Superman robot, and Wonder Woman no longer has feelings for Superman, as he shows little to no regard for her injured condition.
Luthor enacts his fourth plan when he finds a mysteriousgreen lantern in an alien ship that crashed atRoswell, New Mexico. Brainiac is reprogrammed into Superman's aide, and the construction of aFortress of Solitude, located inSiberia and referred to as the "Winter Palace", begins. Superman's reign continues with no crime, poverty, or unemployment, but with an ever-present state authority. Superman is committed to "winning the argument" with the U.S., and repeatedly refuses Brainiac's suggestions of an invasion. Stalingrad remains his one failure,now contained within a protective glass bottle.
In 2001, Luthor and Olsen are electedPresident andVice President, respectively. Using his scientific expertise, massive economic capital and dictatorial powers, Luthor returns prosperity to his country. This is only a part of a more general plan to provoke Superman into invading the United States. Luthor shows Olsen two of his greatest discoveries: thePhantom Zone and theGreen Lantern Corps.
Luthor confronts Superman in the Winter Palace. Brainiac yanks Luthor deep into the recesses of the Fortress to be converted surgically into a Superman Robot, claiming that Lex would convince Superman to commit suicide in less than 14 minutes. Superman agrees that his hand has been forced, and prepares to attack.
First LadyLois Luthor visitsParadise Island to forge an alliance with theAmazon empire, now ruled by an embittered and vengeful Wonder Woman. Superman attacks theEast Coast, confronting and defeating the Green Lantern Marine Corps, which is led by ColonelHal Jordan. The Amazon forces, commanded by Wonder Woman, attack Superman but are quickly defeated, along with a collection of "super-menaces" (including theAtomic Skull,Parasite, andDoomsday) that Luthor had put together over the years. Brainiac's spaceship cuts theU.S. Pacific Fleet to pieces, and the two superbeings meet at theWhite House. They are greeted by Lois Luthor with the last weapon, a small note written by Lex that reads: "Why don't you just put the whole world in a bottle, Superman?".[5]
Realizing he has meddled in affairs that he had no place in, Superman orders Brainiac to end the invasion. Brainiac, however, reveals it hasnever been under Superman's control, and instead attacks Superman withgreen radiation. Brainiac is shut down from inside by Luthor, who evaded the surgery. As thesingularities powering Brainiac's ship threaten to collapse, Superman rockets it into space, where it explodes. The Earth is saved, but Superman is apparently dead.
The Soviet Union falls into chaos, but is soon brought back under control thanks to the Batmen (resistance members who began wearing the costume after Batman's death). Luthor integrates many of Superman's and Brainiac's ideas into the new philosophy of "Luthorism" and forms a "Global United States". This becomes the defining moment for mankind's future as it enters an unprecedented age of peace and stability. A benevolent world government is formed and maintained. Luthor presides over a string of scientific achievements, including the curing of all known disease and thecolonization of the Solar System. Luthor lives for over 1,000 years.
At Luthor's funeral, it is revealed that Superman survived the explosion of Brainiac's ship and is apparently immortal. Superman attends the funeral wearing a business suit and thick glasses. Luthor's widow, Lois, sees this mysterious figure in the crowd and, other than an eerie sense ofdeja vu, suspects nothing. Superman walks quietly away from the ceremony, planning to live among humans rather than ruling over them.
Billions of years in the future, Earth is torn apart by tidal stresses from the sun, which has become ared giant. Luthor's descendant,Jor-L, sends his infant son, Kal-L, into the past in a ship. The final panels of the comic book depict the landing of Kal-L's timeship in a Ukrainian collective in 1938, effectively causing apredestination paradox (and, thus, making Superman a descendant of Luthor and Lois).
In 2004 the story was collected into a 160-pagetrade paperback.[6] (Titan Books, March 2004,ISBN 1-84023-801-1)
In 2009, it was collected into a 168-page hardcover Deluxe Edition.[7] (Titan Books, December 2009,ISBN 1-84856-431-7)
InThe New 52 (a reboot of DC's continuity), the alternate Earth depicted inSuperman: Red Son has been designated Earth-30. The Superman of Earth-30 also appeared in theCountdown: Arena series in 2007, in which he came into conflict with theCold War U.S.-based Supermen of Earth-31 (The Dark Knight Returns) and Earth-15 (Chris Kent). In 2008, Earth-30 and its Soviet Superman also appeared in theCountdown to Final Crisis: The Search for Ray Palmer storyline, where it was one of the alternate Earths visited byJason Todd,Donna Troy andKyle Rayner to locate Earth-0's absentAtom (Ray Palmer). Characters fromSuperman: Red Son also appeared in theAction Comics andDetective Comics tie-ins to the "Convergence" storyline, in which they are forced to fight against the heroes from the originalEarth-Two's Metropolis. A promotional comic,Kentucky Fried Chicken Presents: The Colonel Corps had theColonel Sanders of Earth-30 ("Comrade Sanders") joining with Colonels from other universes to take on Earth-3's evil Colonel Sanders. This Sanders wore anushanka.
In the alternate 1940 setting ofDC Comics Bombshells,Stargirl andSupergirl are both Soviet aviators in theNight Witches, which was seen as a nod toSuperman: Red Son.[8]
In March 2018, the Batman featured in this story made a cameo appearance in the sixth issue of theDark Nights: Metal comic book series.
Figures based on characters from the series include Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, President Superman and Green Lantern. A boxset was released in 2008 featuring Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, and a remolded Bizarro.[9]
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