Posted By Dan Greenfield on Jul 6, 2026 | 3 comments

A BIRTHDAY SALUTE to the comics master…

By AARON HAMMONDS

In June, for its 40th anniversary, I shared my feelings about John Byrne’s The Man of Steel and how it forever altered my perception of the Metropolis Marvel, cementing itself as my preferred version of his origin story. The three months of that miniseries were the beginning of Byrne’s 25-month tenure as the chief architect of a new version of the Man of Tomorrow.

Now, for Byrne’s 76th birthday — he was born July 6, 1950 — we’re taking a look at the first 13 months of his actual run. Superman #1 kicked off Sept. 16, 1986, followed by The Adventures of Superman #424 (taking over the numbering of the original Superman flagship title) and Action Comics #584, which became Supes’ team-up title.

In celebration of Byrne’s birthday, here are my picks for the TOP 13 stories from the monthly Superman titles during Byrne’s first 13 months in Metropolis (in chronological order, and including stories produced by others because it was all of a piece):

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1. Superman #1. Had to start with Numero Uno. I know some people criticize it for not really feeling like a first issue (including the cover), but I loved it. From Superman’s discovery of Professor Vale’s lab (finally paying off all those mysterious moments from The Man of Steel), to Clark’s ill-fated jogging date with Lois, to Superman’s battle with Metallo, to the introduction of Kryptonite to the post-Crisis universe, this story was jam-packed with exciting moments that never gave you a chance to catch your breath. If the miniseries hadn’t already done so, this issue convinced you that Byrne was the perfect choice to take Superman in a new direction.

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2. The Adventures of Superman #424. Marv Wolfman is often the unsung hero of post-Crisis Superman; a lot of people overlook that he wrote the first year’s issues of Adventures, from #424 through #435. (He was actually the one who suggested the “powerful businessman” version of Lex Luthor to Byrne). Now this felt like a first issue; three characters who will become major supporting players as time goes on are introduced (Cat Grant, Inspector Henderson (from the old George Reeves TV series, and Professor Hamilton), and we get to see a more shadowy, Machiavellian side to Lex.

After Lois’s mother is injured in a chemical accident, Lex offers a drug to keep her alive that must be taken monthly; we later find out that, not only could he give her a drug that would cure her with one dose, he actually caused the accident just so Lois would be dependent on him to keep her mother alive. Cat Grant was a particular highlight: a love interest openly attracted to Clark, not Superman. All illustrated by Jerry Ordway.

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3. Superman #2. This one is often cited as a fan favorite (it was even included in The Greatest Superman Stories Ever Told in 1987) and I am no less susceptible to its charms. Luthor has several of his employees working on a research project to determine what, if any, connection exists between Superman and Clark Kent. The conclusion: Clark Kent is Superman! The genius conceit that Luthor is handed Clark’s secret yet refuses to accept it because he insists everyone is as power-hungry and selfish as he is, made for an all-time classic wrap-up.

This issue introduces the Kryptonite ring Lex wears to keep Superman at bay, eventually with disastrous consequences. We also get to see the “Caligula” side of Lex when he treats Amanda McCoy, obviously a top-notch computer scientist, as little more than a concubine, there to serve any and all of his whims. This “clinical psychopath” side of Lex will be further developed by Byrne and others over the next few years, and McCoy’s tragic fate will serve as the catalyst for an excellent Superman/Batman team-up a few years down the road.

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4. Action Comics #585. Action Comics was now the official Superman team-up title and Byrne was pulling double-duty here and on Superman (technically, quadruple duty, as he wrote AND drew both books!). It was Byrne’s chance to use the DC Universe as his own personal toybox; not all of his team-ups were bangers, but I’ve always been particularly fond of this entry, co-starring the Phantom Stranger.

The Stranger enlists Superman to battle a prison graveyard that has been anthropomorphized by a magical amulet. While Superman battles the graveyard creature from the outside, the Stranger engages in a courtroom battle with the zombified prisoners buried therein, eventually joined by the spirits of the prisoners’ victims. I’m not really partial to Superman’s dalliances with the supernatural, but I like this one.

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5. Superman #3/Adventures of Superman #426/Action Comics #586. This is a fun 3-parter, a crossover with DC’s big event series at the time, Legends (which was being drawn by…John Byrne! Damn, the guy was a machine). Superman takes an unplanned vacation to Apokolips, care of travel agent Darkseid, and eventually gets brainwashed into thinking he’s Darkseid’s son. After being used by Darkseid to crush a rebellion and seduced by Amazing Grace, Orion and Lightray eventually help get him home; not absolutely essential to the Legends narrative, but one of the better crossovers, in my opinion.

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6. Superman #4. Bloodsport claims to be a Vietnam vet embittered by what he sees as the American people wasting the liberties he and someone named “Mickey” fought for in Asia. This issue is also the debut of Captain Maggie Sawyer, head of Metropolis’s Special Crimes Unit, a police unit specifically tasked with dealing with costumed/superhuman threats. In the end, it turns out Bloodsport isn’t quite what he claims, but a lot of people die before the truth comes out. The villain’s use of Kryptonite ammunition to take Superman out tells the hero who is backing Bloodsport, although, of course, he can’t prove anything. The story ends with a moving tribute to the veterans named on the recently completed Vietnam Memorial Wall.

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7. The Adventures of Superman #428. Wolfman liked to focus on more ground-level stories in his book, reminiscent of the TV show from which his series’ title was derived. In this one, Jerry White, son of Clark’s boss Perry White, has been kidnapped (a running plot thread throughout the Adventures run was Jerry’s varying involvement with the gangs of Metropolis) and it’s up to the Man of Steel to rescue him. While this issue has a decent story, probably the biggest standout is the introduction of a fan favorite of the later Triangle Era, Bibbo Bibbowski, the lovable lug who is Superman’s #1 fan and eventually becomes an integral supporting character.

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8. The Adventures of Superman #429. In his first issue, Wolfman introduced a supernatural group called The Circle, which was presumably meant to become a major recurring threat, but never really went anywhere. The main plot of this issue is the final resolution of The Circle’s storyline, its departure leaving Superman just as mystified as the reader. The most significant aspect of this issue is the introduction of another important character and subplot: Cat Grant’s son, Adam, and Cat’s fight for visitation rights. Cat eventually gains custody of Adam, but they don’t live happily ever after, as Triangle Era readers are well aware.

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9. Action Comics #589. The Action Comics team-up stories rarely introduced any important story elements or new characters to the Superman mythos; they were just meant to be fun stories showing Superman interact with the rest of the DC Universe. This is no exception, although it is technically a sequel to two previous issues of Action: #585 (Superman and the Phantom Stranger) and #588 (Superman and Hawkman).

The Green Lantern Corps (the post-Crisis Earth-bound team of seven GLs led by Hal Jordan) finds Superman adrift in space after the events of the previous issue, while searching for a suitable home for some lifeforms who lost their home in the Crisis. Shortly after reviving Superman, they find a giant dirtball in space on a collision course with Earth. This one is a particular favorite of mine because Green Lantern was the first series I collected month to month, from #178 until it ended with The Green Lantern Corps #224.

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10. The Adventures of Superman #430. This was Wolfman doing what he does best: deep character exploration, as this issue examines the emotional pressure Clark feels juggling his responsibilities as a reporter, a son, and the world’s greatest hero. Clark is feeling the heat after a defeat at the hands of the Fearsome Five and missing deadlines at his job; it all comes to a head when he ends up missing his parents’ wedding anniversary while fighting the Fearsome Five a second time, again unsuccessfully.

He quickly flies to the Kent farm after the other guests have left the party to apologize to Jonathan and Martha, leading to one of the most heartwarming moments in any Superman story. Jonathan gives Clark some much-needed words of encouragement and fatherly wisdom, leading to Superman ultimately defeating the FF (you know who I mean) and Clark getting a front-page exclusive on their capture. Wolfman would only be on the title a few more issues, but really left his mark with this one.

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11. Action Comics #590. I had to include this pairing of Superman and the Metal Men for a few reasons. For one thing, they are fighting a version of Chemo with some of Clark’s skin cells mixed in, giving Chemo Superman’s powers (including hairstyle and costume design lol). Additionally, during the battle, we get some cool exposition from Superman regarding how his powers operate in contrast to pre-Crisis. Finally, I thought it was a nice bit of symmetry that the first time Superman teamed with the Metal Men in DC Comics Presents, they fought Chemo; the first time they team up in this iteration of Action Comics… they fight Chemo!

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12. Superman #8/Action Comics #591. I know a lot of people over the years have commented on certain concepts introduced in this story as being strange, or weird, or confusing, but dammit, I love this. When The Man of Steel established that Clark never had a career as Superboy, an explanation was needed as to what inspired the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th Century. To me, the easiest explanation would have been a retcon that they were inspired by the Teen Titans, but since Superboy had appeared in the Legion’s title after Crisis, an explanation that included him was needed too. Hence, the Pocket Universe saga.

This is actually a 4-part story that began in Legion of Super-Heroes #37 and concluded in LSH #38, so Superman and Action are actually Parts 2 and 3. Part 2 shows Superman meeting the Legion for the first time (along with a strange power fluctuation setting up the next entry on this list) and ends with the meeting we never thought would happen… the post-Crisis Superman and the pre-Crisis Superboy! In Part 3, Superman travels to pre-Crisis Smallville and finds a “Twilight Zone version” of his hometown, and a Superboy who is a good bit more powerful than he is. This story also paves the way for the introduction of the Matrix version of Supergirl roughly a year later.

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13. Superman #10. Rounding out the list is a personal favorite of mine, a story involving Clark’s powers going haywire. On the opening page, as he’s stepping into the elevator at work, everyone else in the elevator appears to him as skeletons; later, in the Daily Planet offices, everyone around him suddenly looks naked! Next, his heat vision melts the lenses of his glasses. The culprit is ultimately revealed (a certain bald-headed billionaire we all know), but not before Superman is put through the proverbial ringer.

(One of my favorite panels in any Superman comic depicts the Man of Steel suddenly able to hear everyone on Earth talking all at once; the cool thing is that the word balloons surrounding him in the panel are from actual comics published by DC that month!) This issue ends with Maggie Sawyer letting Luthor know she’s on to him and sees through his altruistic façade, which puts Maggie herself on Luthor’s radar, as well.

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MORE

— THE MAN OF STEEL AT 40: Why John Byrne’s Superman Will Always Be MY Superman. Click here.

— HOW I FELL IN LOVE WITH SUPERMAN — Though He Did Need a Refresh by 1986. Click here.

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AARON HAMMONDS fell in love with comics and superheroes over 40 years ago; his passion was reignited in 2025 by James Gunn’s Superman. He resides in Pensacola, Florida, with his beautiful wife.