How I'd Write Superman (If Someone Was Nice Enough To Ask Me...)

The pitch: Superman is supremely confident in his ability to save the world but lacks any confidence in his social skills.

At first this disconnect seems to lack any common sense. But think about it: how many successful, fine looking men find that no matter what talents they possess they can't get a girl or be popular? They sit at their computers, or toil away in their labs, coming up with the modern miracles that are literally saving lives but come home at the end of the day to an empty apartment because they fear they don't have the social skills to be surrounded by people who care about them. This is the lens through which I would view Superman.

Obviously he knows if he just goes around as Superman all the time women will flock to him and he will have no shortage of friends. But he would never be able to truly assess how many of those are genuine and how many just "love" him for his riches. Not to mention he feels like that approach would be using his powers to emotionally exploit people. This doesn't work for someone who wants genuine emotional connections. Thus the secret identity. He wants to save the world as Superman but he wants to feel loved as Clark Kent, the geek that he is.

The emotional disconnect allows Superman to still be the role model for all that is good and save the world, while making Clark Kent be someone we can all relate to.

Some thoughts on a few characters and how this would affect their relationships:

• Lois Lane: He loves Lois unconditionally. He wants her to love him unconditionally too. That means loving Clark Kent, not Superman. But the poor guy just can't figure out how to get her interested! He's persistent and she's constantly shooting him down. "Clark, I really care about you... like a brother."
• Jimmy Olsen: Superman's pal and Clark's best friend. Clark confides in Jimmy as both. I like the idea of a 3-way friendship with only two people. Jimmy's always getting into stupid trouble. Clark doesn't want to lose his best friend so he's always there as Superman to save him.
• Lex Luthor: The exact opposite of our hero. Lex yearns for the freedom to be a rotten a person on the inside but be revered by all for the power he wields. He hates Superman because this strange visitor from another planet doesn't take advantage of the fact that everyone loves him. He feels like Superman's power is wasted on such a goody-goody.
• The Fortress of Solitude: Ok, this is not a character but a fun idea. If Superman is a geek, then the Fortress is his parents' basement. He gets to relax playing with the coolest computer and chemistry set on the planet. 

At the end of the day I wanted to take a different approach from the recent entries (such as Superman: Earth One graphic novel and Smallville) that try to sexy-up Superman. I wanted to make him someone the geeks can really relate and look up to. He was ours first, after all.

Bonus! A slight redesign of the Superman shield I sketched the other day.