SUPERMAN (Kal-El / Clark Kent)	BIOGRAPHY
Created by Jerry Siegel; Joe Shuster

Superman (Clark Kent) (New 52)

PERSONAL DATA

Real Name: Kal-El / Clark Kent
Aliases: Johnny Clark
Identity: Secret
Occupation: Reporter
Status: Active
Homeworld: Formerly Krypton; now Earth
Place of Birth: Krypton
Citizenship: American
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: Jor-El (father, deceased); Lara (mother, deceased); Zor-El (paternal uncle, deceased); Alura (aunt by marriage, deceased); Kara Zor-El (cousin); unnamed maternal grandmother (deceased); Zora (maternal aunt, deceased); Jonathan Kent (adoptive father); Martha Kent (adoptive mother)
Base of Operation: Metropolis
Group Affiliation (current): Justice League; Justice League of America
Group Affiliation (former): Legion of Super-Heroes
Gender: Male
Height: 6' 3"
Weight: 235 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black
First Appearance: (cameo) Flashpoint Vol. 2 #5 (Late October 2011); (actual appearance) Justice League Vol. 2 #1 (October 2011)
First Appearance (historical): Action Comics Vol. 1 #1 (June 1938)
Creators: Jerry Siegel; Joe Shuster

OVERVIEW

Superman is the last son of the dead planet Krypton, rocketed away as an infant by his father who believed that the planet was about to explode. Arriving on Earth ouside Smallville, the child was taken in by Jonathan and Martha Kent, who raised him as their own child. As he grew to adulthood, he discovered that due to this solar system's yellow sun, he had fantastic powers, of flight, speed, strength, endurance and enhanced senses. He decided to use these powers for good, ultimately becoming a hero. Superman also finds time to work at the Metropolis newspaper the Daily Planet in his civilian identity as mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent. He serves on the Justice League.

HISTORY

Superman appears in Metropolis as a crusading champion of social justice. Given the name "Superman" by Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane, he is known to be able to leap great distances, lift tremendous weights, and possess a steel-hard skin. Six months later, General Sam Lane hires Luthor as a consultant to help stop Superman. Superman attempts to reveal the corruption of Glen Glenmorgan, CEO of Galaxy Inc. Glenmorgan has agreed to help General Lane and Luthor to take down Superman. At the same time, he is making dealings with a mysterious short man. Luthor is able to capture Superman and examine him to some extent before Superman escapes. As Clark, he receives a tip by a person under the pseudonym "Icarus", telling him to look into the shady dealings of a local factory owner Angus Grundig. Grundig's robotic subway cabins and robotic drivers are infected with an alien virus and become Terminauts. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor reveals himself to have been working with Brainiac, who is connected to the destruction of Krypton. Luthor is betrayed and Metal-Zero (John Corben) falls under Brainiac's control. Superman engages with the Metal-Zero and the Terminauts with the help of Steel (John Henry Irons). Brainiac contains a huge section of the Metropolis city-scape, containing Lex Luthor, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and others. While Superman is left astonished by the disappearance of the city, important events are occurring in the future Fortress of Solitude.

The Anti-Superman Army, a collection of Superman's villains from the future, take out the Kryptonite Engine from the rocket that brought Superman to Earth. Superman from 5 years in the future, alongside the original three members of Legion of Super-Heroes, to stop them, but they arrive too late. The mysterious short man who was previously seen working with Mr. Glenmorgan has taken charge of the Anti-Superman Army, and asks for their allegiance in exchange for the Raw Kryptonite from the engine. Superman and the Legionnaires are attacked by Erik Drekken, another future villain of Superman. Saturn Girl (Imra Ardeen) looks into Drekken's mind and discovers that the Anti-Superman Army have shrunken themselves down and hidden their operation as well as the engine inside a special bullet shot inside Superman's brain by Nimrod the Hunter. The Legion is able to thwart their plans, but the mysterious man forces his assistant to fragment the Kryptonite Engine and shoot it out into the world. This is the origin of the several variants of Kryptonite Superman will later have to deal with. The Kryptonite, now exposed inside Superman's brain, is slowly killing him. Superman manages to plant the Krpytonite back into the Rocket, and then says farewell to his friends from the Legion- making sure to leave before the current unarmored Superman can see him.

Superman would later go on to join several other superheroes in forming the Justice League. When Batman (Bruce Wayne) and Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) traveled to Metropolis to question Superman about a mysterious alien artifact, Superman knocked Green Lantern out at super-speed and then faced Batman directly.

CHRONOLOGY

For a definitive list of appearances of Superman in chronological order click here