Third Eye Reading List: James Gunn Superman
December 20th, 2024
James Gunn’s SUPERMAN will be the most important comic book film to launch since 2008’s IRON MAN with Robert Downey Jr… and we’re here to tell you why & what to read to get ready!
Third Eye Faithful, there are certain moments in comics that go down in history, whether it’s 1989’s Tim Burton BATMAN, or 2008’s Robert Downey Jr IRON MAN, these aren’t just movie smash hits: these are moments where pop culture explodes, and a new era of cinematic storytelling for our favorite caped heroes begins!
And, we’re so excited to tell you now, just like IRON MAN began the MCU revolution, James Gunn’s SUPERMAN is about to do the same for the DC UNIVERSE with SUPERMAN this Summer!
The new film draws heavily from some of the best SUPERMAN stories of all time as influences, including the GRANT MORRISON & FRANK QUITELY masterpiece, ALL STAR SUPERMAN, and we’re so stoked to shine the spotlight here at Third Eye on these graphic novels you gotta scoop to dive into Supes!
With the unique and fresh take this movie is bringing, you’re going to want to see just where that influence comes from, and we’re here to help!
Without further adieu: the official THIRD EYE James Gunn Superman Reading List!
1 – ALL STAR SUPERMAN: The MAIN influence!
This isn’t just the main influence on the upcoming film, but, Third Eye Faithful: this is quite possibly THE BEST SUPERMAN COMIC OF ALL TIME!
Seriously: this book is INCREDIBLE, and even folks who aren’t into the MAN OF STEEL fall in love with it, due to the heartfelt storytelling & gorgeous artwork!
The complete 12-issue run of ALL-STAR SUPERMAN by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely is collected in a new trade paperback as part of the Black Label line!
Witness the Man of Steel in exciting adventures featuring Lex Luthor, Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, Bizarro and more! Plus: Superman goes toe-to-toe with Bizarro, his oddball twin, and the new character Zibarro, also from the Bizarro planet.
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2 – SUPERMAN UP IN THE SKY – The modern influence featuring James Gunn DC Comics architect TOM KING!
In addition to ALL STAR SUPERMAN, superstar TOM KING’s SUPERMAN UP IN THE SKY is another massive influence on the new film!
In addition, Tom’s influence on the upcoming film will be felt in a big way as he’s the main DC Comics consultant helping shape the GUNN-VERSE with James Gunn!!!
The all-star creative team of writer Tom King and artist Andy Kubert answer the question: How far across the galaxy will Superman go to bring a single child home?
How far will he go, what foes will he face, to find that answer? Aliens have kidnapped a young Earth girl from Metropolis, taking her off-planet.
Superman goes in pursuit of them, but with each stop along the path, the mystery of who the aliens are deepens, and the Man of Steel is faced with a new task. Is he getting closer to rescuing the girl, or further away?
And who is protecting Metropolis in his absence? Collects Superman: Up in the Sky #1-6.
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3 – KINGDOM COME – ANOTHER MAJOR INFLUENCE!
One of the best DC stories of all-time, and some of the most epic portrayals of SUPERMAN we’ve ever seen, including an incredible showdown with SHAZAM, KINGDOM COME is another graphic novel Gunn has listed as a big influence!
KINGDOM COME is the best-selling graphic novel from acclaimed writer Mark Waid and superstar painter Alex Ross, now back as part of the new DC Black Label line with the four-issue KINGDOM COME epic and more than 150 pages of behind-the-scenes material, including sketches, annotations and the never-before-published original proposal, series treatment, series outline, issue #1 outline and issue #1 script. In the near future, the DC Universe is spinning out of control.
The new generation of heroes have lost their moral compass, becoming as reckless and violent as the villains they fight. The previous regime of heroes-the Justice League-returns under dire circumstances, which sets up a battle of the old guard against these uncompromising protectors in a conflict that will define what heroism truly is.
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4 – SUPERMAN: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE MAN OF TOMORROW – THE CLASSIC INFLUENCE!
See, this is how we KNOW Gunn is bringing heat with this new Supes film: the books he’s listing as his influences are literally the ones we’ve been recommending for years (and c’mon: you know your pals at Third Eye got some good taste!), which means that he’s looking to the perfect material to make this world come to life!
WATCHMEN writer Alan Moore’s classic WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE MAN OF TOMORROW features two of the best Alan Moore Superman tales of all-time: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE MAN OF TOMORROW & FOR THE MAN WHO HAS EVERYTHING, both of which get to the true core of the character in a way that very few have!
Legendary writer Alan Moore’s seminal Superman stories are collected in this deluxe edition featuring the two-part “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” from Superman #423 and Action Comics #583 as Superman faces his final battle!
Also featuring the classic story “For the Man Who Has Everything” from Superman Annual #11 in which Superman, Batman, Robin, and Wonder Woman battle Mongul. And in DC Comics Presents #85, Superman crosses paths with Swamp Thing!
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5 – SUPERGIRL WOMAN OF TOMORROW – LOOKING AHEAD TO WHAT’S NEXT!
And, of course, with Tom’s involvement in the Gunn-Verse for DC, and the news about the upcoming SUPERGIRL movie, we KNOW you’re going to want to get ready for that one, and there’s no better place than the direct inspiration: SUPERGIRL WOMAN OF TOMORROW!
This gorgeously illustrated, incredibly written tale introduces the take on Krypto that we’ll see in the Gunn SUPES movie, and we have a feeling: we’ll be seeing some of Supergirl herself as well!
Kara Zor-El can no longer find any meaning or purpose in her life. But all that changes when an alien girl seeks her out to help her take revenge on the bad guys who destroyed her world.
Now a Kryptonian, a dog, and an angry, heartbroken child head into space on a journey that will shake them to their very core.
It’s Supergirl like you’ve never seen her before in a character-defining sci-fi/fantasy masterpiece!
Collects the entire miniseries Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #1-8.
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