" It is a remarkable dichotomy. In many ways, Clark is the most human of us all. Then... he shoots fire from the skies and it is difficult not to think of him as a god. And how fortunate we all are that it does not occur to him. " -- Batman src
Superman is the most powerful being on the planet Earth[1], an alien immigrant named Kal-El from the planet Krypton who was raised in Smallville, Kansas, to become an American superhero. Raised with high moral ideals, he uses his incredible strength, speed, flight and various other powers to fight evil and protect the innocent. In his civilian identity he is Clark Kent, a mild-mannered reporter working for the Daily Planet in Metropolis. He is a founding member of the Justice League of America and a charter member of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th Century.
The Man of Steel
The planet Krypton was on the brink of disaster, and married scientists Jor-El and Lara Lor-Van were determined to build a rocket that they could use to save their unborn son Kal-El in his gestation chamber. Wanting him to reclaim the fullness in life denied him by the sterility of Kryptonian culture, his parents sent him to the less advanced planet Earth, where exposure to the yellow sunlight would supercharge his cells into living solar batteries and gift him with incredible powers.
Upon landing, the alien child was discovered by Jonathan and Martha Kent in Smallville, Kansas. The kindly couple decided they would adopt and raise him, announcing the child as their own after months of seclusion during a blizzard and naming him Clark Kent.
Clark's abilities increased steadily as he grew up, with super-strength and invulnerability manifesting at an early age and the power of flight developing during high school. His adopted parents finally revealed the rocket and his foreign heritage to their son when he was 18, leading Clark to the decision that he would become a hero in secret and use his powers to protect innocents without ever revealing himself.[2]
During this time he pursued his education at Metropolis University while seeking out a living to put himself through school, losing his smalltown accent in the process.[3] He operated this way for seven years until he was forced to save a space-plane in front of crowds of people, then meeting the reporter Lois Lane for the first time at age 25. Deciding that it was time for him to become a public figure, Clark and Jonathan designed a symbol for him to wear while Martha created a costume. In his secret identity, he would drastically change his physical appearance and mannerisms while wearing spectacles so that nobody would suspect he led a double civilian life.[2]
During his first costumed adventures in Metropolis, he was dubbed Superman by reporter Lois Lane. Clark began his new career as a reporter for the Daily Planet working for chief-editor Perry White, alongside Lois and cub reporter Jimmy Olsen, with Superman's first exclusive interview.[4] The media coverage would eventually attract the attention of corrupt business mogul Lex Luthor, who tests Superman and tries to get him on the villain's payroll by withholding support during a terrorist attack. Mayor Frank Berkowitz deputizes Superman so he can arrest Luthor, and Luthor swears his revenge.[5]
Repeated attempts to murder Superman eventually led to LexCorp developing an imperfect clone of the Kryptonian named Bizarro. Superman destroys the flawed creature, and its bizarre chemical structure is somehow able to heal Lois' sister Lucy Lane's blindness.[6]
Jimmy began using a signal watch of his own design to call Superman whenever he was in peril.[7] Returning to Smallville after many years and sorting out childhood best friend Lana Lang's feelings for him, Superman is exposed to the rocket once again. This time he receives a message from his birth parents Jor-El and Lara, learning of Krypton for the first time when Kryptonian technology implants centuries of knowledge in his brain. Superman considers his dual heritage, and decides that no matter where he's from, his life on Earth has made him a human and an American.
