Warning: Spoilers for Absolute Superman #3
Supermanboasts a vast selection of impressive Kryptonian powers, from heat vision to super-strength, all of which have aided him in saving lives over the years. However, he also has one useful ability that isn’t quite as obvious as the rest, and his Absolute Universe variant just proved it’s the best skill in his arsenal. Superman fights for people on and off the battlefield, and this overlooked power allows him to help in a whole new way.
InAbsolute Superman#3by Jason Aaron, Rafa Sandoval, Ulises Arreola, and Becca Carey, young Kal-El struggles with his academics because he chooses to write his assignments himself rather than rely on a device to do them for him. His parents inquire about this, and he says,“My words make me happy. Theirs are just…words.”
Kal’s parentsencourage him to explore this passion and use it to forge his own path, and he does exactly that.Superman’s affinity for writing doesn’t only apply to academics, as he goes on to apply this skill in a practical manner to save Krypton’s people.
Superman Uses His Journalism Skills to Make a Difference on Krypton
Before He Became Superman, Kal-El Helped People With His Writing
Superman flexes his writing muscles whenKrypton’s imminent destructionstarts to rear its head. He explores the Redlands and discovers the various environmental disasters that have occurred under everyone’s noses, harming the working-class Kryptonians who don’t have a platform to speak up about their suffering.Kal, radicalized by what he’s seen, decides to write down his findings in hopes of spreading awareness about the danger Krypton poses to its inhabitants.This heroic act is unlike what people expect from Superman, as Kal-El uses his journalism skills to make a positive impact.
DC Comics Reveals Superman’s Official ‘Threat Level’ But Does the Warning Actually Add Up?
Kal-El gets an official threat ranking, but does it truly capture the full extent of his power, and how does it compare to his DCU counterparts?
While battling it out can stop most heavy-hitters, Superman has learned that those who exercise power covertly can’t always be thwarted through traditional methods. In DC’s prime continuity, Superman’s Clark Kent alter egoworks as a journalist at the Daily Planet, and he’s used this position to enact change in ways that he can’t as a superhero. For example, inWonder Woman#16 by Tom King and Bruno Redondo, Clark helps take down thevillainous Sovereignby carrying out an investigation.Even without becoming Clark Kent in name, Absolute Superman has shown that he too can take down oppressive forces with his words.
Absolute Superman Helps Rescue His Fellow Kryptonians by Embodying Clark Kent
Kal-El’s Best Superpower Involves His Words, Not His Fists
Although the elites of Krypton take down Kal’s story before it can reach the wider population, he later finds a different means of spreading information about Krypton to the public. Upon infiltrating a Kandorian law office, Kal discovers that Krypton’s ruling class is hiding the truth about the planet’s deteriorating condition so they can hoard ships for themselves, leaving the laborers to die. He then uploads this information to the Luminarium to make every citizen aware ofKrypton’s tragic fateand grant them the opportunity to flee.Superman’s physical abilities are great, but his investigative journalism is definitely his most beneficial superpower.
Absolute Superman#3is available now from DC Comics.
Superman
The icon who launched the entire world of superheroes, the last son of Krypton escaped his dying world to crash land on Earth and be raised as Clark Kent. The world knows him better as Superman, the Man of Steel, the leader of the Justice League, and the most well-known hero in the DC Comics Universe. Blessed with the powers of a demigod, Kal-El of Krypton fights enemies both small and cosmic in his endless pursuit of truth, justice, and a better tomorrow.
