Superman: The Definitive History

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This massive tome details the entire history of Superman, from his creation in 1938 and first appearance in Action Comics #1 to his modern day depictions. Not only does it detail his entire comics lore and background, but this book analyzes every movie and TV show adaptation, his video game appearances (both good and bad ones), and features commentary and interviews from some of the character’s most prolific creators. This massive 400 page book also includes dozens of little tactile bonuses like posters, cards, smaller books, and even some never-before-seen pieces of Superman history. It makes the perfect gift for any die-hard Superman fan, or works well as a coffee table centerpiece.

James Gunn’s Superman just came out last week, and IGN’s Tom Jorgensen gave it an eight, saying “Superman is a wonderfully entertaining, heartfelt cinematic reset for the Man of Steel, and a great start for the DCU on the big screen.” I was able to see it at an early screening as well and loved it. As a comics fan, this felt like the most comic-accurate adaptation of the character we’ve had in years.

Superman Comics Recommendations

Speaking of comics, here are some of my recommendations for jumping into Superman and more. Gunn’s Superman takes heavy inspiration from Grant Morrison’s All-Star Superman, and the upcoming Supergirl film is based on Tom King’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. Then you have Superman Unchained, a standalone story from one of the most ridiculously stacked crews of comics creators to ever contribute to the medium in Scott Snyder, Jim Lee, Alex Sinclair, Dustin Nguyen, and more.

Myles Obenza is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Bluesky @mylesobenza.bsky.social.