Superman: Earth One (My Version)

Superman: Earth One (My Version)

If Earth One was done properly. If there were some real changes. If there were any good changes, what would this world look like?

By carboncutout - Dec 12, 2010 10:12 PM EST
Filed Under: Fan Fic

In essence, this is me winding the clock back a good six months or so and doing Superman: Earth One as I see it should have been; a true, complete re-imagining whilst preserving the true spirit of Superman as a mythos. This ties in by also being what I think should be the basis for the upcoming film version of Superman under Zack Snyder.
First the main points to this new mythos and quick reasons why:

1. The Kryptonians and Krypton
The major bugbear I have always had with the Superman mythos, which whilst not enough to make me put down any book, yet is enough to put me off is the humanoid appearance of Kryptonians. The point of Superman is that he is an alien brought up by human values. I am definitely not suggesting a Roswell-like little green man in a supes costume , there lies Krypto the SuperDog territory (Shudder)
But I do think that an interesting portrayal tying towards the planet climate of Krypton would be better. I ended on liquid life-forms which could inhabit and animate certain crystalline shapes, hence obviously tying into the crystallised tech of Superman inherited from the Donnerverse.
This obviously would mean that Krypton itself would be a volcanic, hot planet with two levels. The lava level, where the alien Daxamites work day and night to provide energy for the Kryptonians. Then above it, an upper level of crust which rapidly cools allowing for the crystals to form. The portrayal of Kryptonians as a race would change too, gone are visions of a peaceful race with the occasional criminal. Instead, a race with one motto; the search for truth. They have become a galactic powerhouse which harbours great military potential yet rarely acts, a race torn between which way to obtain truth: force or diplomacy. There would also be a caste system based upon the families/ houses you were born into i.e. Zod is warrior caste.
Krypton’s destruction is in this canon due to a dying red sun. It is preserved though at the cost of all lifeforms except the city of Kandor kept secretly in stasis by Braniac and Jor-El as the rest of Krypton is terraformed in preparation for a return.

2. Superman’s reason to exist
Jor-El, Zod, the other council members and other great scientific minds are rescued by Braniac, a program working for Jor-El. The two of them began terraforming the planet for the greater good. On this spaceship is: Zod, Non and Ursa including their creation (Doomsday). Jor- El and his crystal which contains his programmed version of Superman to lead Earth by example and other council members. Zod stages a coup and succeeds in capturing the Crystal of El but not before Jor-El scrapes off a part of Doomsday and sends it to his Martian spy, J’onn J’onzz for analysis and seperates the ship into two disabling Zod in space, yet he suffers mortal wounds and is assimilated into Braniac. Zod injects a poison (Parasite) into the crystal and sends it to Earth.
This fascination with Earth is that the New Gods (Darkseid) are planning a full scale offensive and the Kryptonians believe that the powered down army of Manhunters are involved yet the Guardians will not listen to such talk. Zod plans to militarise Earth to protect Krypton and stop Darkseid by force whilst Jor-El wishes to utilise the Manhunters for himself with Earth as a science tower to study the yellow sun. This less positive portrayal of Jor-El is due to a return to Siegel’s original motivation, his relationship with his father which I feel should be more cathartic as it is portrayed well, for once, on Smallville.

3. Villains and other characters
Obviously the poisoned crystal Superman is Bizarro, who is the only Kryptonian not to adopt an appearance based on his initial surroundingings due to his digital nature. He possesses a physical presence whilst also highlighting Kal-El’s power at manipulating people’s feelings and government. He strives to become the leader of the free world whilst encouraging the extreme retaliation to crime and other such things, streamlining the human race.
Parasite would leave the crystal and have the ability to possess people and control them. This allows Bizarro to use him to manipulate the political figures and keep the population scared whilst being caught by Bizarro intentionally for the publicity.
Lex Luthor is a young head of a media conglomerate, Luthorcorp, yet who has his eyes on the Oval Office. This puts him in opposition to Bizarro’s conquest so he publicy supports and privately plots the Kryptonian’s overthrow.
The majority of supporting characters are extremely similar yet I would keep Jimmy Olsen’s change to a mature photographer who wishes to become more of himself. I would have him as a young reporter who had to stop due to diagnosis of type 2 diabetes yet continues as a determined photographer, this gives a Clark an example of his effect on humanity.
In general, the Daily Planet would be shown as more of a modern media centre involving a news website, radio station and newspaper, perhaps also T.V. station, like the BBC. This updates the Daily Planet more than the actual Earth One did. The premise being that all the old workers have been made redundant in the current climate, replaced by younger and more affordable young’uns. The only survivors being Ron Troupe, the father of the bullpen and Steve Lombard, the cocky sports anchor. The relationship between Lois Lane and Clark Kent is obviously in its infancy at this point yet an attraction is shown towards Clark’s assertive silence whilst fixing Lois’s computer.

4. Clark Kent/Kal
The main man, I liked the visual stylistic choices for both Superman and Clark Kent , they both made sense and re-invigorate the character. So for starters, I would keep the suit as original mainly. It is iconic and yes, trunks on the outside are always out of fashion but I love that oddball touch it adds which is so right and so wrong. Although Steven Johnson’s recent Flyby designs were extremely good and a middle ground could perhaps be best.
Right boring stuff out of the way, the biggest change if you had already guessed is that Superman is not the original intended heir to the House of El. He is not even related, he is a part of Doomsday which kills the original Clark Kent upon impact in his truck. As I said above Kryptonian’s adopt the likeness of whatever is around at the time. Here Kal, absorbs Clark Kent; his memories, his appearance and his emotions. This obviously is a major turning point yet it concentrates on the element that Superman is actually an alien in a human world. This shows the differences between Kal and Bizarro.
Clark finishes school with a surprisingly improved last year especially due to a newfound fascination with technology due to his form as a crystallised lifeform. Clark quickly succeeds in applying for a job at the Daily Planet as an IT consultant along with his friend from high school, Pete Ross. Yet the detective in Kal cannot be contained and so instead of actively stopping crime, he begins a blog which exposes all kinds of crimes which no ordinary human could have found out. Lex Luthor takes interest and secretly begins employing Clark to investigate Bizarro and General Sam Lane, the four star general in charge of containing Parasite. This leads to the final climactic battle between Kal and Bizarro above the Daily Planet, which concludes with Kal stabbing Bizarro with the Crystal of El. This causes Bizarro’s suit to copy onto Kal with some modifications as the colours change to form the suit that we all know and love. Kal then proceeds to throw the weakened Bizarro hurtling directly toward the yellow sun. The film concludes with Clark Kent being fired as IT consultant and hired as a reporter after being strangely nearby as Lois Lane interviewed Superman for the first time. The film ends on a sinister note though, as Lex Luthor manages to manipulate his obtained Parasite sample to infect Earth crystals to become green Kryptonite.

In general, whilst I know that origin of Superman and all superheroes have been done to death yet I feel that this serves up enough difference from the expected to provide entertainment for both fans and the masses. I do also have more detail in the story and this is a brief overview if you will( well as brief as I could be). Oh and P.S. those of you wondering where the Fortress of Solitude is, the spaceship containing Jor-El crashes into the Arctic in the epilogue with the final shot being Superman flying to investigate and claim his name: Kal-El.


Fan Cast:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Clark Kent/Kal-EL



With some weight training, JGL has converted me. He is the person to bring a brilliantly acted yet wholesome portrayal of the Man of Steel. Serious without all the brooding that the normal Earth One brought.


Anna Kendrick- Lois Lane



Damn good actress and good looking

Pa Kent- Tom Hanks



Ma Kent- Annette Benning



Iconic roles filled by two great actors who eaily can portray the parent figures that Kal-El lacked

Jor-El- Jon Hamm



Many people figured him as great Superman, there is a reason which I appreciate but it really is bit of a pipe dream. Same reason suggest him as Jor-El

Lara-EL- Lena Headey



Very good at portraying strong female roles, see Sarah Conner Chronicles

Gerard Butler- General Zod



Passion as Leonidas would be great if channeled through Zod plus gives Butler better chance at villain other than Phantom of the Opera.

Doug Jones- Parasite



Highly uncredited actor, bringing untold number of great creations to life, I think we know who would have helped portray Smaug if GDT had stayed with Hobbit.

Anton Yelchin- James ‘Jimmy’ Olsen



Rising Star, one good thing really about Terminator:Salvation.

Leo DiCaprio- Lex Luthor



Previous reasons stated e.g. Howard Hughes plus bald head = version of Lex

Chris Cooper- Perry White



I wanted a serious portrayal with high credit character actor who could truly show what it means to be fair yet harsh editor of world newspaper.

Voice of Braniac- Benedict Cumberpatch



Chilling voice, which can perfectly show robot nature. Props to whoever suggested this first.

Lana Lang- Amy Adams



Hot, young actress with 'take home' quality of Lana

Cat Grant- Emily Browning



Hot, young actress. Don't see any need for further justification.

Ron Troupe- Cuba Gooding Jr.



Could be an amazing return for the largely forgotten and shunned, Oscar-winning actor

Steve Lombard- Jeffrey Dean Morgan



Whilst he could be great as Lobo, his great portrayal of arrogance of the Comedian in Watchmen would translate well here. Plus Danny Trejo for Lobo.


Also if this radical change to the mythos is appreciated, I have ideas for all of Justice League (that includes GL , Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Aquaman and Martian Manhunter. I believe Nolan’s vision is reboot enough and his Batman would not join instantly instead sizing his friends up i.e. Tower of Babel. A good Justice League sequel story)
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BobGarlen
BobGarlen - 12/12/2010, 10:44 PM
yay I'm the first to post JGL as Supes and not the only
carboncutout
carboncutout - 12/12/2010, 11:13 PM
@garlen green , its a sweet choice and the best dark horse by far

@earzmundo, dnt get me wrong Earth 1 was a really well told story and like I said I loved the visual stuff and general feel for the characters yet it just felt like another graphic novel. No risk like with ultimate spider man
BobGarlen
BobGarlen - 12/12/2010, 11:32 PM
@carboncutout yeah he is. I'm glad i wasn't the only one, if you haven't seen my fan cast:
http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/robertgarlenoncmb/news/?a=26365
I think you'll like a couple choices. But i'm happy i didn't get shit for saying JGL. I got more support for JGL than anything. But yeah with serious weight training, and lifts to make him 6ft, epic casting lol.
BobGarlen
BobGarlen - 12/12/2010, 11:36 PM
right now i'm planning out a fan fic comic script which is me telling an Ultimate Version of Superman and exploring the character in a different way then before. I want to fully write out the entire series before posting it.
Ibz
Ibz - 12/13/2010, 3:40 AM
thats not abby cornish dude thats emily browning, besides i am starting to like the idea of JGL even more, he's a fantastic actor,with proper weight training he could more then pull if off and any one that says he cant go check bale in mechanist and then check him in batman begins, guy went from playing a some one who had anorexia to playing batman, if its possible to do that then i dont see why JGL cant pull it off either. dicaprio would be fricking amazing as lex luthor, great choices, i enjoyed superman earth one but your right i didnt take risks like ultimate spidey, atleast you have a reason for not liking at as much that makes sense unlike other who said they didnt want to see emo superman, the BS reason i have ever heard but great dude
BobGarlen
BobGarlen - 12/13/2010, 4:15 AM
@IBZ ahhh, i see you've started using the Bale-Defense. Anyone notice how he was skinny before Batman Begins and he was almost as Skinny before the Dark Knight Rises? Weird isn't it.
ager
ager - 12/13/2010, 6:13 AM
hes only that skinny due to the roles he signs uo for. JGL is just skinny i dont beleive he could become a bulked up Superman
wedontdie
wedontdie - 12/13/2010, 12:11 PM
strange line up but i like the add of stacy pilgram as lois lane and i think its funny that leonardo as lex cuz I can't see him as bald. i personaly liked earth one and it would be awesome to be a film. I myself wanting to be a film maker want to direct superman earth one but im still just in junior college so im just an amateur. i wish theres going to be a sequel to earth one cuz im totally buying it.
Ibz
Ibz - 12/13/2010, 12:23 PM
@wedontd1e there is going to be a superman earth one sometime next year JMS stopped doing the main superman title to work on the sequel
Ranger14
Ranger14 - 12/14/2010, 7:47 AM
While I like the cast JGL could never play the Man of Steel unless you want a small unimposing Superman. He is only 5'10. That means he will never have the physical stature to look imposing. Adding 4-6 inch lifts to him does not give him a larger stature (6ft doesn't cut it for the Man of Steel). I grow so weary of the "with proper weight training" comments. You have to have the right frame to start off with in order to get to the right size. JGL has way too slight of a frame to get to where he would need to be to fill Superman's shoes. Bale was skinny, but he still had a much larger frame to put the bulk on than JGL has. Add in the fact he doesn't have the height and there is no way his torso could ever grow longer through any type of training, it just doesn't work the way some people seem to think it does. "just throw him on a weight program and he will be fine" Umm...no, he won't be just fine. He will still be a short and small Superman.
wedontdie
wedontdie - 12/14/2010, 7:55 AM
awesome!
BobGarlen
BobGarlen - 12/14/2010, 11:00 AM
@Ranger14 Bale isn't 6'2", he's only 6'. Superman is the same height as Batman. You have to commit more to one side then the other. If you commit to making a Superman Movie and you cast someone who looks like him but can't act is worse then casting an actor and not being big enough for him. JGL has a frame that can physically improve. So giving him intense weight training can work, and yes it can work just as good, because frame or no frame, you start with what you have, Bale had nothing his weight was almost under 100. then look at him. So yes good weight training can help. Another thing to point out, Topher Grace before Spider-Man 3 was a bean pole, during Spider-Man 3 he was pretty big compared to his usual, and he could've pushed it more if he wanted. Topher has the same frame as JGL. So intense physical workout, maybe the same trainer Gerard Butler had during 300. 3-4 inch Lifts. He can BE SUPERMAN.

Plus does anyone complain about Heath Ledger wasn't a complete and utter bean pole like the joker is in the comics? No! He had a more massive frame then the Comic Book Joker. That worked out. Michael Keaton never had the frame to play Batman yet his interpertation is the 3rd most iconic(1st before Conroy, 2nd after, 3rd after Bale) So frame and muscles aren't everything.
Ranger14
Ranger14 - 12/14/2010, 11:25 PM
So...GarlenGreen... have you ever been a personal trainer? I have. JGL does not have the wide upper frame that Bale has. It is quite simple. No matter what kind of weight program you put him on, he will not be able to have the kind of build that Bale has now. He is way too slight in frame to achieve that kind of build. you also can't put on an additional 4-6 inches to his frame to make his torso look more imposing height-wise. Lifts in the heels don't make your frame taller. I never said Bale was 6'2". Superman is supposed to be 6'3" tall though. Look up his bio.

Topher was nowhere near the size to be Superman and no way he could ever have that kind of physique no matter how much he lifted. Yes, he put on some muscle. There is a difference than putting on some muscle and looking the part of the Man of Steel. Again, not everyone can put on muscle mass like Bale did. It takes the right physiology to do so. JGL may have that...he may not. The one thing he doesn't have is a large enough frame to start with. Not much you can say to convince me otherwise. Again, so many people think that with the right training everyone can put on the muscle to make them look incredible. If that were the case, everyone working out on a regular basis in a gym should all look incredible. I suggest you go to various gyms and workout centers and see how many people who work their butts off and never see hardly any improvement. It is more the norm than not.

Batman is a completely different character. He isn't known for his strong build. He is known for his suit and the suit is built to make him look bigger. It really isn't as significant what size the person playing Bruce Wayne is because they are completely masked and converted with the suit. The suit can make up for the lack of a larger frame. Superman has a naturally large imposing build and stature. His costume fits his natural build. Look at the comics.

I don't think there has to be a compromise on the acting skills and build. You don't have to settle for one or the other. Get someone who has the build and can act. There are enough choices out there. JGL is a shrimp and boy amongst men when it comes to his look for Superman. My opinion. To each their own.
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