Issue Description

Cover by Dick Dillin and Neal Adams."The only way You'll Save the Earth... Is over My Dead Body!" written by Martin Pasko, penciled by Curt Swan, inked by Dan Adkins and colored by Jerry Serpe."DC Publishorial: "Remember the Five-Cent Phone Call?" text piece by Jenette Kahn."DC Profiles #10 Trevor Von Eeden" text piece by Mike Gold.

Notes:

This issue contains the Hostess Superhero Ad, Batman and Robin in "Birds of a Feather".

The story so far. An alien plague has been unleashed, at a journalist's convention, in Central City. Superman mistakenly believed that Nam-Ek, a mutated Kryptonian scientist, was the party responsible for the epidemic. After a pitched confrontation, Superman believed that Nam-Ek had been killed. In reality, Nam-Ek was teleported to an alien spacecraft, in Earth orbit, under the command of Amalak, the true architect of the plague. After constructing a special infirmary for the plague victims, Superman and Supergirl discovered Amalak's spaceship. While Superman was again able to defeat Nam-Ek, encasing him in a jeweled coffin that blocked out the sun's power giving rays, Amalak bested Supergirl. Holding Supergirl at gunpoint, Amalak demands Superman return to Earth, though he allows Superman to keep Nam-Ek as his prisoner.

Accepting the fact that he cannot kill Superman, Amalak has engaged in a campaign to psychologically cripple the Man Of Steel. Amalak's first weapon is guilt, the overwhelming guilt Superman will feel when people begin dying from a plague he cannot stop The second arm of Amalak's strategy is to place Superman in a situation where he absolutely has to break his code against killing, thus ending the Man of Steel's career. Having no further use for Supergirl, Amalak shoots her with his star-cannon, to no effect. Unbeknownst to Amalak, while Superman was on board the ship, he used his heat vision to fuse the barrel of the star-cannon shut. Supergirl takes this opportunity to break free of her bonds and beat Amalak into unconsciousness. Superman delivers the imprisoned body of Nam-Ek to the infirmary. Nam-Ek's mutation is the result of drinking a potion made from a Kryptonian animal's horn. Nam-Ek, himself, sprouted a Rondor horn when he mutated. The horn emits a universal healing radiation, which begins to cure the plague. Before Supergirl can completely tie Amalak down, the alien villain escapes. Reaching his weapon's console, Amalak activates an electro-surrogate of himself, a warrior composed entirely of animated electrically charged particles. Supergirl battles valiantly against Amalak's electro-surrogate, while Amalak finishes freeing himself from his bonds. Unbeknownst to the two adversaries ,the trigger of Amalak's star-cannon jammed, and the weapon has been building up a massive charge of cosmic energy the entire time. It detonates, resulting in an explosion that destroys Amalak's starship.

Back at the journalist's convention, Clark Kent checks on Steve Lombard's young son, Jamie, and his dog. When more people begin collapsing from the plague, Kent realizes that not only is the crisis far from over, but the source of the plague must be in the convention center. Needing a distraction to switch to his guise as Superman, Kent forces Jamie's dog to bite his hand. When the dog refuses to unclench it's jaws, Kent focuses his heat vision on the dog's tail. The dog leaps from Jamie's arms and runs off, with Kent's watch still gripped between it's teeth. Kent gives chase, but only long enough to switch to Superman. As Superman prepare to double back, to collect the new plague victims, he is attacked by Jevik, a winged alien. The two battle it out, in the skies above a ski resort. When Jevik momentarily gains the advantage over Superman, the alien flees to the convention center. Having noticed that Jevik emits a strange ticking sound, Superman is easily able to track him. Entering the convention center, Superman is surprised to find Supergirl waiting for him. Supergirl attacks the Man of Steel, then reveals herself as Jevik. Whirling Jevik around at super speed, dislodges Kent's watch from the alien. Now Superman sees the truth. The shape shifting alien Jevik, disguised as Jamie Lombard's dog, has been Amalak's plague carrier. As Superman prepares to destroy Jevik, to save humanity, Jamie Lombard enters the room. Seeing only that Superman is about to kill his dog, Jamie puts himself in between Jevik and the Man of Steel. Jamie declares that the only way Superman will save the Earth is over Jamie's dead body.

Superman (1939)

Publisher

DC Comics

Volume Description

Superman launched May 18, 1939 with its first issue (that doesn't actually have a #1 on the cover) and although it was a seasonal book for its first five issues, with its sixth it began a bimonthly publishing rate and kept up with said rate until its eighty-fifth. With its eighty-sixth issue Superman began it's mostly consistent monthly publishing rate which it continued using up until 1986 when the series ended at 423 issues, the last issue featuring Alan Moore's acclaimed story "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" After that, the title's numbering was continued through Adventures of Superman which lasted for several decades. It was in 2006 with #650 that the title returned to its original name, kicking off it's new era with the One Year Later storyline co-written by Geoff Johns and Kurt Busiek. After the arc, the series was written by Busiek from 654-675, with James Robinson taking the reigns in 677 and holding them tight until the milestone 700th issue where JMS took over with an arc entitled "Grounded" that would feature Superman walking across America. However, JMS left the book earlier then planned and new writer Chris Roberson worked off of JMS' original notes and plotline. Unfortunately, Roberson never got to prove himself with his own story on the book as with the launch of The New 52 in September 2011, after 72 years and 714 issues (including Adventures of Superman) Superman Vol. 1 came to an end with the final chapter of the Grounded story arc serving as the final issue of the series. Superman will survive as an ongoing series at DC, with the month following the release of Superman #714 serving as the launching point of the third ongoing Superman series in DC history with #1.

For Post Flashpoint volume 3, refer to Superman.

General Notes

Superman #424-649 do not exist, however, the issues that took those numbers can be found on the Adventures of Superman page.

Another ongoing title from DC entitled Superman does exist and was published with its own numbering while Adventures of Superman was in print, thus even though this title began publication in the 30's and lasted until 2011, no two Superman titles were hitting shelves at the same time. The other Superman volume can be found here.

The main star of the series has of course been Superman but from #686-697 Mon-El was the star as Superman was away from Earth and the covers bore the banners "World Without Superman" for the first five and "World Against Superman" for the last six issues of this absence.

Collected EditionsSuperman Chronicles (Collects the earliest issues)Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus vol. 1 (#1-31)Showcase presents: Superman (late 50`s, early 60`s stories)Adventures of Superman: Gil Kane vol. 1 (#367, 372 & 375)Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? (#423, Action Comics #583)Up, Up and Away! (#650-653, Action Comics #837-840 )Camelot Falls Vol. 1 (#654-658)Camelot Falls Vol. 2 (#662-664 & 667, Superman Annual #13)Redemption (#659 & 666, Action Comics #848-849)3-2-1 Action (#665, Action Comics #852-854, Legends of the DC Universe #14)The Third Kryptonian (#668-670, Action Comics #847, Superman Annual #13)Shadows Linger (#671-675)The Coming of Atlas (#677-680)New Krypton Vol. 1 (#681, Action Comics #871, Adventure Comics Special Featuring The Guardian #1, Superman New Krypton Special #1, Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen Special #1)New Krypton Vol. 2 (#682-683, Action Comics #872-873; Supergirl #35-36)Mon-El Vol. 1 (#684-690, Action Comics #874, Action Comics Annual #10)Codename Patriot (#691, Action Comics #880, Supergirl #44, Superman: World of New Krypto #6, Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen Special #2)Mon-El Vol. 2 (#692-697, Adventure Comics #11, Superman Annual #14, Superman: Secret Files 2009 #1)Nightwing and Flamebird Vol. 2 (#696, Action Comics #883-889, Adventure Comics #8-10)Last Stand of New Krypton Vol. 1 (#698, Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton #1-2, Adventure Comics #8-9, Supergirl #51)Last Stand of New Krypton Vol. 2 (#699, Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton #3, Adventure Comics #10-11, Supergirl #52)Superman: War of The Supermen (#700)Grounded Vol. 1 (#700-706)Grounded Vol. 2 (#707-711 & #713-714)

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