chapter 156 part 2
Seeing Harry arrive, Colin said nothing and simply handed over the manuscript he had already prepared.
As Harry took the manuscript depicting the origin story from Colin, Little John and Jacob, who were nearby, both stood up in unison, eager to get a sneak peek at Superman's origin.
In the origin comic prepared for the Superman quarterly, details of Krypton's explosion were shown for the first time.
In these two comic pages, Superman's homeworld, Krypton, was introduced and described as a highly advanced planet. The destruction of Krypton was attributed to the Kryptonians' over-exploitation of their planet. Also on the first page, Superman's father made his debut, placing Superman in a spaceship, launching him to Earth, where he was adopted by his rural foster parents.
The second page of the origin story explained why Superman possessed such extraordinary powers.
Superman had superpowers because of Earth's weaker gravity and its yellow sun.
Because his physiology was different from that of humans, Superman was able to absorb the sun's light as his own super strength. At the same time, prolonged exposure to the sun awakened some of his special powers.
Unbelievable?
Of course not!
In fact, this is how plants grow. Rooted in the soil, they can grow strong and tall, sometimes as high as a building, just by absorbing the power of the sun. Superman possessed a similar ability, allowing him to grow continuously by absorbing the sun's energy.
To explain the reason behind Superman's ability, Colin deliberately included the example of plants in the annotations, all to make the source of Superman's powers seem more 'reasonable'.
"So, the key to Superman's power is the sun!"
Sure enough, after reading the explanation of Superman's origin, Little John couldn't help but exclaim in awe.
Clearly, he had accepted the setting presented in the comic.
"No wonder his eyes can shoot heat vision that burns through everything."
He then began to connect this new information with the plot from the previous serialized story.
...
Both the printing of the Superman quarterly and the production of the CBS radio drama required time for preparation.
Therefore, the only Superman-related content readers could access was still the latest installment of the serialized story in The Messenger Newspaper.
In this issue's installment, the Prankster King made his return.
He had previously been sent to prison by Superman over the English Tax affair, but even in prison, the Prankster King was a restless character. By tampering with the prison's radio and broadcasting fake news, the Prankster King successfully instigated a massive riot.
He seized this opportunity to successfully complete his prison break.
After escaping from prison, the Prankster King vowed to take revenge on Superman with a new, grand prank.
But first, he needed some accomplices.
It was in this issue that a group, the prototype of a supervillain team, was born. This was also the first supervillain team to appear in superhero comics, even predating the appearance of any superhero teams.
After his escape, the Prankster King's first stop was to find the Toyman. Apparently, the man had not died in the great explosion earlier. The Toyman was filled with hatred for Superman, the one who had destroyed his toy army. Thus, the moment the two villains met, they agreed to join forces.
Prankster King: "You have an opponent, and I have an opponent. Why don't we join forces against him?"
Toyman: "This opponent of mine isn't so easy to handle!"
Prankster King: "As it happens, mine isn't either."
Toyman: "He's Superman."
Prankster King: "It's precisely because he's Superman that it's worth our teaming up. Isn't that an interesting prospect?"
Of course, both the Prankster King and the Toyman knew that the two of them alone were no match for Superman. Therefore, they sought out another individual who had frequently caused trouble for Superman in his past crimes—Luthor.
Luthor also showed great interest in the Prankster King's proposal, but he clearly did not approve of the Prankster King's identity as the leader of their group. He even argued with the Prankster King over the leadership position. Ultimately, by virtue of being the one who proposed the idea and with the Toyman's support, the Prankster King successfully became the leader of their criminal group.
This also planted the seeds of their future failure.
"Luthor was clearly dissatisfied with the Prankster King as the team's leader, but to defeat Superman, he reluctantly joined the group."
From the text accompanying Luthor's panel, readers could clearly sense his inner discontent.
After confirming their alliance, Luthor suggested they should come up with a name for the group. In the end, "Metropolis Society" was chosen as the group's name.
Prankster King: "Metropolis Society, that's a good name, I like it!"
Toyman: "Superman, he's the key."
Luthor: "A foolish name, as if you're desperate to let people know your position."
In the newspaper, the last panel of the comic was frozen on the figures of the three villains—Prankster King, Toyman, and Luthor—sitting around a table.
At Colin's request, the background of this panel was filled with heavy blacks, creating a realistic sense of a secret criminal conspiracy.
In particular, the faces of the three villains, all of whom had previously clashed with Superman, emerging from the shadows, gave readers an immersive feeling, as if they were participating in the evil plan themselves.
...
As expected, the content of the new installment sparked heated discussions among readers.
Especially when they saw the Prankster King, Toyman, and Luthor joining forces in the comic, they all began to worry about how Superman would handle the emergence of this criminal group.
For a time, the mailbox of The Messenger Newspaper was flooded with letters from worried readers.
"...I think Superman should prepare as soon as possible. He can't let the Prankster King and the others team up. This is the evil entity that once plunged all of Metropolis into chaos over the English Tax!"
"Why didn't the prison react? How could they let a dangerous person like the Prankster King escape so easily!"
"I believe the 'Metropolis Society' is doomed to fail, because Luthor is clearly not the type to willingly work under the Prankster King. Unlike the Toyman, he's a villain with ambition!"
"Why not have Mr. Mxyzptlk join the 'Metropolis Society'? If Mr. Mxyzptlk became a member, Superman would be in a huge crisis."
"I strongly suggest letting the Human Torch join the 'Metropolis Society'. Luthor is the Human Torch's creator; he can definitely control it to fight Superman."
...
"...Mr. Collin Roper was very skilled at incorporating contemporary New York events into his comic creations. For example, the character 'Mr. Huang' and the 'Metropolis World' were allusions to New York's 'World Daily News' at the time. In fact, it was the newspaper consistently competing with 'The Messenger Newspaper' in New York City."
"Likewise, the concept of the 'Metropolis Society' also had its real-world prototype. At the time, New York's Tammany Hall and the Mafia Families were still serious social problems and were also targets of exposure by newspapers. Therefore, Mr. Collin Roper integrated this into his Superman comic. It is precisely because of Mr. Collin Roper's groundbreaking creative philosophy that Superman has remained beloved and sought after by readers for decades, because it is not just a comic, but also a witness to the history of New York!" — Excerpt from 1932: The Golden Age of Comics
Author: John Walker
(end of chapter)