-- Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz
In the Beginning...
Following Glinda's sage advice, I will indeed be starting Superman@70 month at the very beginning...all the way back to Action Comics #1!
Featuring the debut of Superman, the cover of Action Comics #1 was utterly unlike anything else on the newsstand, as you can see from the photo below (courtesy of Dial B for Blog). Note the sea of celebrity, detective, and women's magazines surrounding the spectacle of a costumed man hoisting a car over his head!
As everyone knows, the instant and enduring popularity of Superman made Action Comics #1 the most important comic book ever published...which naturally made it one of the most homaged covers as well.
Members of the Superman family were natural choices to star in tributes to their patriarch's debut, as seen here on the covers of Action Comics #685 (1993) and Superboy & Risk Double Shot #1 (1998).
(Click on the cover images for a larger view)
On the cover of Superman #136 (1998), a super-descendant in the year 2999 smashes a futuristic car as robots and aliens stand in for the original fleeing criminals.
Even the monstrous Bizarro and Scorn (a 90's pal of Superman's) offered their respective takes on the covers of Tales of the Bizarro World (2000) and Superman #124 (1997).
Some early superheroes of the Golden Age proved that homage covers are by no means an exclusively modern practice.
Only two years after Superman's debut, Whiz Comics #2 (1940) finds Captain Marvel throwing down the "anything you can do, I can do better" gauntlet by not only picking up a bulky Studebaker, but also hurling it (as well as its passengers) straight into a brick wall. Ironically, this cover and other (much more vague) similarities to Superman would bring an almost immediate lawsuit from DC Comics, ultimately resulting in Cap's demise.
Although I'm not entirely sure what's happening on that 1946 cover of Sensation Comics #51 (as is often the case with the wonky Golden Age Wonder Woman), the nod to Action Comics #1 is obvious. Despite the car's somewhat goofy perspective and diminutive size, note its similarity to the original model from Action Comics.
Back in the Modern Age, DC rival Marvel Comics got into the spirit of Superman's (then) 50th anniversary with this cover from Amazing Spider-Man #306 (1988). A Superman analog named Mr. Majestic also "assumed the position" on the cover of Superman #201 (2004).
A few of the "Indies" have offered a more humorous interpretation of Action Comics #1, including Mike Allred's Madman and FYI's Fuzzy Bunnies from Hell.
Finally, the Man of Steel himself appeared on covers that weren't so much homages of Action Comics #1 as they were alternate perspectives of that famous scene.
For years, DC Comics assigned the divergent Golden Age (1940's) adventures of Superman to an alternate world named Earth-2. On the cover of Secret Origins #1 (1986), this version of Superman and his fellow Earth-2 oldsters relive his Studebaker-smashing debut via a magic crystal ball. A sharp eye will note that the crystal ball scene (as well as the issue's interior artwork) was drawn by the legendary Wayne Boring, the definitive Superman artist for much of the 1950's.
Action Comics #800 (2003) featured a cinematic shift in camera angle courtesy of renowned movie poster illustrator Drew Struzan (which was unfortunately the highlight of the entire double-sized issue).
Speaking of things cinematic, the movie Superman Returns (2006) featured its own tribute to Action Comics #1, causing fanboy heads to collectively explode with glee on opening night.
Of course, what's a milestone like the 70th anniversary of Action Comics #1 without Legos? A guy named Julian Fong cleverly captures the famous scene with the ubiquitous plastic blocks...right down to the broken front tire and terrified crooks!
Are there more Action #1 homage covers? Considering its age and influence...probably. If you know of any I've missed, please mention them in the comments section below or, better yet, email me a link or an image so I can post it as an update to this post.
UPDATE: Sure enough, here's another one (click on the image for a larger view). Paolo Bassotti from Italy alerted me to a cover of Leo Ortolani's Rat-Man. Paolo writes, "This brilliant superhero spoof/homage is probably the most successful Italian comic book of the last ten years. Its covers are very often tributes to the classics." Thanks, Paolo! I wonder how many other international comics have done an Action Comics #1 homage?
UPDATE: Blake sent me a link to the limited edition hologram cover of Prime #1 (1993). Doesn't that bring back memories of the early 90's and its glut of special-effect printing?
Gotta admit, though...it looks pretty cool. Thanks, Blake!
UPDATE: Like I said in the comment section: AAAARRGGGHH! I can't believe I forgot about Fantastic Four #291 (1986)! I remember it coming out only a few months before John Byrne was scheduled to take over the Superman titles...but apparently I didn't remember it enough to include it here. Thanks to my pal Paul for bringing it to my attention!
UPDATE: A couple more from Allen, one featuring Peter David's Fallen Angel and the other a print by Disney Duck artist Don Rosa (which is now officially my favorite Action Comics #1 homage cover).
Thanks, Allen!