Cover to Cover: Superman #1

Much like I did several weeks ago for the famous cover of Action Comics #1, I thought I'd post all of the homage covers I could dig up for the slightly less famous, though no less memorable cover of Superman #1 (1939). In fact, design-wise, I think it's superior to Action Comics #1 (Gasp! Heresy!) 

Just as with Action #1, this batch "covers" much of the same ground. Some of them appeared on Superman-related titles, while others featured different heroes assuming the famous pose. Still others are the scrappy "Indies", whose obscurity lessens just a bit when they pay tribute to their dashing Patriarch.

Of course, just as before, I appeal to my readers to alert me to any Superman #1 homage covers I may have missed. There were several Action Comics #1 homages I wasn't aware of last time, and that's probably the case this time around as well....so feel free to leave a link in the comment section letting me know where to snag them!  I'll be sure to post them as updates to this post.

With that, enjoy the homage cover gallery of Superman #1. 

(click on the image for a larger view)

Comments

[Greg Scott]

Mark, from your vantage point as an artist yourself, can you break down the artistic merits of the original cover?

I think one of the most unique aspects of the cover is the oval frame, and the marquee below:

From today's point of view, the oval framing looks quaint and retro; perhaps it was even at the time -- conjuring more of a Gilded Age/Penny Dreadfuls style. This is a bit at odds with the modern sci-fi that Superman represented in those days; (a modernity that I guess could be seen in the more streamlined and angular ACTION COMICS logo).

Perhaps this framing on SUPERMAN #1 was simply a fallback to an still-viable earlier style; but perhaps unconsciously it's a way of unifying familiar past heroes with one representing the future; focussing on the *new* hero through what is, almost literally, an older lens.

Greg

[Mark Engblom]

"Perhaps this framing on SUPERMAN #1 was simply a fallback to an still-viable earlier style; but perhaps unconsciously it's a way of unifying familiar past heroes with one representing the future; focussing on the *new* hero through what is, almost literally, an older lens. "

I think you hit on it right there, Greg. Although much of the 1920's featured the sleek Art Deco design movement, these early decades of the 20th century were still very much a transitional period from the 19th century's Victorian influences...which featured alot of the ornate, curvy frames similar to what you see on the cover of Superman #1. I like your theory that the use of the frame, whether conscious or not, was a way to "soften" the jarring impact of a character like Superman, by (literally) framing him in a more comforting or accessible visual "language".

Speaking of that design, it hit me a few years after John Byrne's 1986 reboot that the spaceship that carried Kal-El to Earth in Byrne's new origin had a profile somewhat similar to that frame design on Superman #1. Later on, the "Eradicator" device (similar in function to the Green Crystal from Superman the Movie) seemed to echo that same design.

I'm wondering if that was intentional on Byrne's part, though I've never heard one way or the other if that was the case.

[Joe Lewallen]

Not a cover, but Neo struck the pose in The Matrix Reloaded.

[Allen]

There's also Superman: Strength #1 (March 2005) but it only sort-of qualifies, as it only has the pose, and no border (and he's carrying two cars). See http://www.comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=243105&zoom=4

[EHH]

As an Archie Sonic fan, I'm impressed you put that image in there.