“Redemption” - An Easter 2026 Post - (Ft. DC K.O., Absolute, Dispatch)

Happy Easter!

        As people who've followed me for a while now know, I'm a practicing Catholic. As with the past few years, I spent Lent off of my usual activities on social media. Nearly 4 years ago, I came back with a Justice League Incarnate/Dark Crisis article posted on Easter Sunday. Besides having extra time to myself, we usually get the entire Holy Week off from school (including medical school up until 3rd year) here in the Philippines, and that's how I got time to make that. After this year, I have Clerkship, Internship and then Residency, so this would be my last real Holy Week break and chance to make a post timed for Easter. 

So what would it be about it?

• I was originally planning to compile all the Reddit posts I made on the video game Dispatch by AdHoc Studios, and add some original/exclusive stuff on how the game handles redemption. 
• I also wanted to talk about comics specifically, my thoughts on Absolute Batman and Superman, DC K.O. and more. 
• Plus some additional thoughts on DC on Film/TV.
• AND I also edited this near 8 minute long video paying tribute to both Superman (2025) and Dispatch. I was originally going to put a long breakdown on Reddit, but since I was going to archive it here too, why not let it speak for itself there and let the people who want a longer breakdown read it here?

So I figured...

Why not do all of that in one big Easter post?

        ...And since I was going to write about Redemption in relation to Dispatch, why not write about it in general in the end tying them all together?

So I'm dividing this post into 5 Parts:

I. DC K.O.

II. Absolute DC

III. DC on-screen

IV. Superman (2025) x Dispatch

V. Redemption

        If you're just here for the Dispatch stuff after I shared that video and linked to my blog, feel free to just read part IV, but hey if you're curious about DC and the world of comics in general, I happily invite you to check out the rest at your own time and pace of course. I'll do my best to put them all together in that big final write-up on redemption in the end to reward people for sticking around.

I. DC K.O.

        So Scott Snyder and company have finally done it. A DC Anime/Fighting Game style tournament arc was the new line wide Crossover Event for the DC Universe. It's not shy of it either, plenty of not so subtle references throughout, variant covers etc. Artist Javi Fernandez straight up has Superman wear Potarra Earrings to make it look like he fused with Captain Marvel/Shazam like Goku and Vegeta did with Vegito for example. One issue even has actual cameos of Mortal Kombat characters like Sub-Zero and Scorpion.

Edit by @DCFilmnews on IG: https://www.instagram.com/p/DTgvbJrjZC-/?img_index=1

Now, referencing Anime and Manga is not new in DC, especially in recent years.

Snyder, James Tynion, Joshua Williamson, Jorge Jimenez, Dan Mora and more have paid homage to Anime and Manga a lot in their works for years now. 

Just to name a few examples:

• The Sixth Dimension arc had Snyder and Jimenez pay tribute to the Father-Son Kamehameha with Superman's multiversal punch. Snyder and Nick Dragotta have talked about the Manga influence on Absolute Batman recently. 
• Mr. Jimenez especially has snuck in a lot of Naruto and Dragon Ball references in his works from Super Sons to now. He has shared art of himself with a Superman shirt with Naruto, of Goku paying tribute to Akira Toriyama (RIP), he did covers for the Naruto-TMNT crossover comic and many more. 
• Dan Mora put a Dragon Ball reference recently in Superman as well, and now in the Knightfight tie-in side story for DC K.O. 

Source of Edit: https://www.facebook.com/callmearj/photos/a-homage-to-dragon-ball-zs-father-son-kamehameha-by-artist-jorge-jimenezheres-wh/902029489273892/

        Now outside of that Superman & All-Might (with Naruto as a bonus) post I did last year, I haven't really written about Anime or Manga (essentially Japanese animation and comics) much, talking almost exclusively about Western comics. 

    But I am a fan of both, especially of Naruto and Dragon Ball. Truth is, here in the Philippines Anime & Manga are more popular than western comic books, which I guess makes sense since we're Asian. It's always been a huge part of my life, but that's the same for a lot of people here. Most of my close friends IRL are much bigger fans of Anime and read Manga, so I get to talk about those with them all the time. Superhero stuff? They follow the movies and shows, and we can talk about them. 

    But comics specifically? I know a few trade readers and people who read not so legally online, but otherwise I don't know anyone my age who actively & regularly keeps up on new comics, much less still has a pull list at a LCS or at least buys actual physical floppies like me. I'm always the "comics guy" in the group. But I'm seeing more and more new people who go to the LCS I go to (younger and older) so who knows, maybe the next generation will be different. 

       

 In any case back to DC K.O....

        ...because it embraces those influences as a fun tournament arc I actually did get to talk about it and share it a lot with those friends, making comparisons to Anime to make it relatable and getting them somewhat invested. 

I mean it's kind of like if there was a tournament where the winner gets the power of a god of destruction and has to fight an evil alternate timeline Beerus with the power of Zeno for the fate of the Multiverse. In the climax it seems like Vegeta wins as he masters Ultra Ego, but then Whis reverses time to revive Goku, gives him true mastery over Ultra Instinct to beat Vegeta. Then Goku masters both powers to defeat evil Beerus, only to deny the role of destroyer in the end. 

Swap Beerus and Whis, it's Darkseid and Time Trapper Doomsday, instead of Goku and Vegeta fighting to be the new god of destruction, it's Superman and Lex Luthor fighting to be King Omega, and it's Alpha and Omega energies instead of Ultra Instinct and Ultra Ego.

But does that sound like a final arc for Dragon Ball Super or what?

        Backing up before the ending though, a lot of the creative events like the graveyard of gods with legendary items that contestants had to pick up and the tag team battles were fun, and Superman vs Captain Atom was an excellent 1v1 from fight month. I also really enjoyed both Batman's Knightfight and Superman Superboy-Prime's tie-in issues, both written by Williamson. It was all really fun and had a lot of great character moments. Despite SBP making reference to it, powerscaling and vs battle debates isn't really the point of this story. (But not gonna lie it did suck how Jason was deprived of a win with the Joker.) 

        As Scott Snyder has said repeatedly, this is a Superman story at its core, so naturally Clark is the focus of the narrative. Superman was at the center of Doomsday Clock, but that wasn't really a crossover event, and House of Brainiac was confined to the Superbooks, so it was great to see Superman take center stage here. Like Batman did in Dark Nights Metal and Wonder Woman did in Death Metal (both also written by Scott Snyder). 

        Referring back to that post I did on him compared to other anime heroes, Superman actually isn't like Shonen protagonists in the sense that he doesn't have the ambition to be the greatest at what he is. He doesn't want to become the strongest fighter like Goku. He doesn't want to be the very best that no one ever was like Ash. He never wanted to be the Mayor of Metropolis or of the Hidden Smallvillage like Naruto once did (past tense important, more on Naruto later). Superman is all about trying to make the world a better place. The hope he inspires is the hope for change. He fights for the outsiders and alienated, not just static "Truth and Justice" in the ordinary sense of "maintain the status quo" but uncovering lies and restoring justice to those done injustice. "The Champion of the Oppressed". A man of action who fights for a better tomorrow. 

        So what made the story for me is how Superman does enter this tournament with reluctance. He didn't go in there wanting to win, or anyone to fall and become like Darkseid, even if the Quantum Quorum say the power attained form the tournament can be purified and used against him, and that it's the only way to save all reality besides another reboot. Then Lex Luthor comes in, and his goal becomes "make sure anyone except him wins", but that isn't enough. The story's heart was essentially him trying to still be good, still be Superman, even when he has to win a tournament that rewards you acting more like Darkseid, with all his friends (especially Batman) pushing him to win and Lex threatening to reshape reality himself. The Heart of Apokolips was getting to everyone in the tournament, including the heroes, like the One Ring in Lord of the Rings. It makes sense from a storytelling standpoint, at least IMO, that the heroes win by not playing by its rules. The battle was between the Heart of Apokolips, and his own heart.

        So yeah, I didn't have a problem with Superman winning and letting go of that power in the end. I've seen some people say there was no character growth compared to the alternative, but him going back on his philosophy and compromising his ideals is regression not growth. Many of his best stories like Kingdom Come and What's so Funny...(AC #775/Superman vs the Elite) are about him refusing to change, in the hopes that it would inspire others to change instead. Lex was also never going to win, because if he did then all reality would be worshipping him. He's been close to another redemption arc recently in Williamson's run, but he isn't quite there yet. This tournament would only worsen that. Just look at how the Heart of Apokolips' influence corrupted Captain Atom. Lex was never going to redeem himself in this context. 

        Superman not giving into the temptation to forcefully shape the world to his image but remaking it to the way it was, in the hopes people could change through their own free will is predictable because anything else would arguably be subversion for subversion's sake. In the same way, "the heroes win" is predictable and subverting that works only when there's a deeper reason or meaning. What makes a predictable outcome worth it then? The details, the journey, the how, which leads me to:

 

       Time Trapper, the future Doomsday who finally redeemed himself by giving his once never ending life to Superman so he could save the day. As someone who has been reading Joshua Williamson's Superman run this whole time, it worked for me but I can see why it doesn't for people have not. You don't have to read his whole run but with this, I do recommend reading his Superman tie-in issues. TT Doomsday's own redemption has been set up over a year in advance and his original purpose as the wielder of the Alpha energy to counter Darkseid's Omega was set up just before the event and delved into during it. He was always a being of rebirth and adaptation, and taking that to the extreme in this direction, in the way that it was the key to him transcending his role as destroyer, killer and conqueror was actually really good to me. 

        Speaking of Doomsday Clock, Time Trapper makes a direct reference to it and Dr. Manhattan, as well as the Metaverse concept. I definitely see the parallels there. While versions of Doomsday has gained sentience before, becoming the TT allowed him to see all of past, present and future(s) and reflect on his role in the Multiverse in relation to Superman. He didn't immediately get redeemed from that, the Time Trapper was still a villain, certainly more than Jon Osterman was, but in context now his newfound desire to change his purpose in reality leading to this made sense to me, with the final piece of the puzzle being the true original purpose that he didn't know.

            Going back to the East one last time in this section: 

            The event makes the most allusions to Dragon Ball, and in general the most Superman-like characters in the world of Anime/Manga are popularly thought to be:

• Son Goku/Kakarot from Dragon Ball
• All-Might/Toshinori Yagi from My Hero Academia 
• Saitama from One Punch Man

        However, this event actually perfectly illustrates what I said in that post on why Naruto Uzumaki (from Naruto) is actually closer to Superman than most think, and in some ways more than those other characters. 

While Naruto starts out with this goal of becoming the strongest Ninja in his village to be Hokage, that was always because he wanted people to acknowledge him as a lonely outcast. As the series went on, his motivation changed. His biggest one was to bring back a former friend (Sasuke) who left said village, another lonely person who sought power (not too different from Clark and Lex in Smallville). But more than that, especially starting around the Pain arc, the series has him tackle head on the problems of the human condition, of the cycle of love and hate, of the never ending battle of finding true peace in the world (sound familiar?). It tackles themes of loss, revenge, forgiveness, fate, family and friendship. In the end, becoming Hokage was a footnote. Naruto in the end became a hero to the entire Shinobi World. He redeemed many friends and villains, his actions choosing mercy over revenge lead to more life instead of more death, he inspired change in many people and he stood by what he believed was right. People mock the talk-no-jutsu often but for the most part it's what makes him and his story special.

        Now yes, Goku has redeemed many villains too, arguably more, but most if not all the time it's not exactly out of pure intentions, or from his direct effort to redeem them. This isn't a slight against Goku, in fact many fans would argue for example that the original English Dubs of Z would make him less in character and more like Superman, when him being more of a warrior at heart is important as fixed in Kai (the speech to Frieza comes to mind). Not better or worse, he’s just different. I’m a martial artist myself, and that part of me is more connected to Goku’s love for the fight. Meanwhile, All-Might is a great hero important to his world, but something I go more deeply in said post, Deku in that story is deliberately positioned as the one to actually change it for the better, and All Might was always an imperfect "Superman" to be surpassed, the peace he protected and maintained being just as flawed as ours. 

But anyway, that's just me, admittedly I'm biased as a Naruto fan first lol. Back to DC K.O. to wrap it up now:

        As much as I’ve been positive so far, I will say as someone who's also a fan of Jack Kirby's Fourth World and all the New Gods characters, I did feel like this was a bit of a wasted opportunity for Orion and Mr. Miracle. Orion has always struggled with his destiny to be the one to kill his father as prophesied since Kirby's original saga, and in many later stories the possible futures that have him become the new Darkseid, the new ruler of Apokolips, which he's come close to even in present times such as Walt Simonson's Orion run. 

        In hindsight Orion is perfect as a candidate for King Omega. The god of war who hates war would be right at home in this tournament. Similarly, Scott Free has always struggled with his place as the god of escape and freedom, and also positioned as Darkseid's opposite in a way. He could've been the source of Alpha energy for Orion to wield both, and become the champion of the Source, the One True God of All, against Darkseid, who attempted to take that role in his own reality. Once more they’re sidelined as Darkseid’s greatest enemy is Superman, which is disappointing as a NGs fan.

        But I digress. At the end of Ram V's recent run, we're promised their return and possibly having prominence in what is to come. Scott Free has once more become the new Highfather succeeding Izaya and receiving his Shepherd's staff, the new prophet of the Source and shepherd of New Genesis. Something he once briefly did in John Byrne’s Fourth World run. Meanwhile, Orion left with Metron to face his destiny to fight Darkseid. DC K.O. is not the final chapter of this All-In saga, we have the first true (intra-universe) Absolute crossover this year, and Absolute Crisis foreshadowed. Whether we’ll see the remains of New Genesis before that, have Orion be involved in the Absolute Universe or the Crisis, we can only hope.

        Overall, this event may not be a literary masterpiece and the marketing with the brackets and match ups were misleading true, but otherwise and subjectively I really, really enjoyed it. Like many I really hope we get a DC K.O. game one day too, hopefully soon. Definitely preferable over another Injustice game with Regime Superman. 

Just to blitz through other comics news real quick before moving on since this part's already gotten long:

• DC and Marvel are finally having crossovers again. It was awesome to have The Grant Morrison to come back one more time for Batman/Deadpool, both as a writer and as The Writer character lol. Superman/Spider-Man was even better, absolutely loved Mark Waid and Jorge Jimenez getting to headline it with their story, and of course this actually isn't the first time these two had a big crossover issue. Actually got the giant sized reprint as well.

• Batman: I'm a medical student aiming to become a doctor, so of course I can't not mention Damian Wayne taking after his grandfather to become one. I can't imagine how he'd juggle being a superhero and studying medicine but hey he's done some pretty impossible stuff. The Robin raised as an assassin becomes a healer. Poetic. Bruce has always cited Thomas' Hippocratic Oath as an influence on his code against killing too, so now his son will have it. With his and Book of El, PKJ's doing a lot of great final stuff, I hope they come back to DC again eventually. No strong opinion on Matt Fraction's new Batman run, it still feels too early to say anything just yet. Tom Taylor's still on 'Tec, and while I wasn't a huge fan of the Joe Chill arc he did, I think it's been solid otherwise. Especially huge fan of his lead story in #1100, but that Annual by Al Ewing was definitely my favorite issue from the past year. I actually haven't gotten around to reading the new B&R Year One or Dark Patterns yet, but I just recently got the trade of the former and ordered the trade for the latter. Saving time to finally read them when I can.

• Superman: I'm looking forward to how things pick up with Reign of the Superboys and the recently announced Superman Year 1000 to see how Clark's doing and how the Superfamily's handling his absence. There's another tease of young Jon's return, Superboy-Prime's redemption arc continuing, Superboy Clark time traveling to the past and whole lot more. Especially loving how Williamson's writing Prime. I've said before I would've been fine if he was left alone after his "death" but he's made his comeback really worth it so far. Here's to SBP finally having the full redemption arc Clark wanted to give him since Final Crisis Legion of 3 Worlds. I've been a huge fan of Waid's Superboy run on Action too It's like a remix of his previous work on Birthright with some Silver Age elements too. Fitting with what he's been doing with World's Finest. I hope we get to see the Legion show up in Clark's childhood again. I've heard great things about Kryptonite Spectrum, but trade waiting that too.

• I talked about it a bit in this post, but I really dug Mark Waid's New History of the DC Universe. Yeah, there's a few questionable changes, and a lot of things it didn't cover, but I honestly really appreciate most of the things it did to create a timeline that has a bit of the best of every past DC continuity, and man he and Dave Wielgoz cover a lot of material. This is what Rebirth aimed to do all those years ago, and for the most part it'll help with people confused on what the continuity currently is, and also a celebration of how rich the DC Universe's lore is when they do their best to embrace as much as possible.

• Still picking up both World's Finest and JLU along with the Super and Batbooks. Man it's crazy WF's already at #50. I still remember how huge it was when it first started and for me at least it's maintained quality. Happy to see Dan Mora coming back. JLU also seems to be handling the aftermath of DC KO in regards to how many villains felt overlooked and cheated at a chance of redemption, which leads to their recruitment. Including Lex. Again, redemption seems to be a common thread in all of this.

II. Absolute DC (Batman & Superman)

        It's been over a year now since the Absolute Universe launched, and it's taken the comics world by storm, while also bleeding into the mainstream too. By that I mean even casual readers and non-comics readers are at least aware of the Absolute line if not actually getting into it. Scott Snyder and co. have really done it. I could probably write a lot about it but since I'm mainly a Superman and Batman guy (and admittedly I've only been buying the single issues of their series' right now, I've got a budget), I'll just go over the highlights of their respective Absolute titles. But no means does this mean I don't recommend the other books! They've all been well-received but I've heard the most praise for Absolute Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter especially. 

Absolute Batman

        I've talked about this before around when it first launched, but man Scott Snyder has proven even someone who's already written the "standard" version of a character so well for so long can still reinvent them to something that feels new and fresh. Something he has talked about in interviews too. Absolute Batman is the face of the line and for good reason. I'm especially a fan of how he's handling Waylon, Harvey, Eddy and Oswald being his childhood friends here, and how they fall apart when their destinies catches up to them. 

        The live-action Gotham series kind of did something similar with Bruce & Selina, but as much as I was a fan of that show I'm already a bigger fan of how they're done here. Bane's an absolute monster, surpassing expectations, but man Snyder's nailed it with the Joker again. It feels almost like this is the Joker he's always alluded to the main universe Joker being but couldn't fully commit to with the supernatural, monstrous horror elements, mixed with him masquerading as basically this universe's Bruce Wayne, a billionaire CEO on top of the world pretending to be his own descendant.

        Of course got to give credit to Nick Dragotta too, I think the first time I read or was wowed by his work was actually on Action Comics #1050 with how he did the Superman vs Lex fight. He packs in a lot of great action and visual storytelling here, but of course what gets famously memed about are his nightmarish designs for the villains as well. Really sells the Action Horror aspects of this book. Batman is a detective of course so there is some mystery and investigation as well. I've talked a lot about the Joker already but as of writing, Scott's brought in his own creations, the Court of Owls, into the fold.

        That being said, I gotta say, my favorite issue from the series so far is the annual issue, specifically the story written and drawn by Daniel Warren Johnson. The same writer who did that famous Superman Red and Blue story where, inspired by Jonathan, who in turn was inspired by a Priest's advice, showed his love and pride over the world. Again, here we have a Priest character in the story, but contrasting Batman instead of influencing him. The twist is that this Priest knew and worked alongside Thomas as activists they were younger, friends on a never ending battle for peace (sound familiar?). Similar to The Batman here we have him struggling with vengeance and mercy, and what his way should actually be. Here though he also reflects on his father's words on how deep down, he had a strong and compassionate heart, that he would do his best by staying true to that, but also that he'd be proud of him no matter what he does. As a Catholic/Christian Batman fan, of course I'd love this issue.

        As of writing this, it seems like Bruce is at his lowest and in his fight with Poison Ivy, resorts to an extreme, cold measure. It looks like he's finally giving up on his friends too. But of course, I know, or I hope, that's not how it ends. Earlier in the run Bruce refused to give into Bane's methods. He stayed true to who he was, how he did things and even in doubt believed in Waylon. Because that's what the Absolute Universe is all about in the end. That's what being Batman is about. Taking your darkness, and turning it into something good. Joe Chill gave him pain and suffering, but Batman is Batman because Thomas and Martha Wayne taught Bruce what it means to be a hero. That's just as true hero. Thomas may not be a doctor, but he is a teacher and a good one. Martha's not a philanthropist but she's alive and continues to support her son. Both give him the compassion and love for humanity and justice that makes Bruce Batman.

Absolute Superman

        So I love Absolute Batman, and I love what I've read of the other titles so far too, but actually my favorite title has to be Jason Aaron's Absolute Superman. There's a few connecting key themes in the Absolute Universe that also sets it apart from just being another "modern" alternate universe. The one people quickly point out is that these heroes "lack" something, but the deeper point is that despite lacking things, their core is intact. Next, is that the heroes are the rebels of an oppressive system instead of the enforcers of a benevolent one. Hope still exists, it's just the underdog now. The point of that is to show that it endures, that "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it".

        Superman is The Symbol of Hope of the DC Universe, and his Absolute counterpart embodies that hope in the context of this world perfectly. He was raised on Krypton, wearing a crest that signified his and his family's status as the working class. The upper class of Krypton is as malevolent as ever, but Jor-El and Lara, even deprived of their places in the science guilds, remained loving parents. Kal-El witnessed his whole world's destruction and drifted alone in space, conscious with nothing but a sentient A.I. to accompany him. 

        On Earth he loses the Kents as fast as he's gained them and had to become a wandering hero, battling an evil mega corporation (Lazarus) hunting him down as he continues to fight for the oppressed. Despite attempts by the Peacemakers, Ra's or Brainiac can do however, despite everything Kal still refuses to give up, or to take any life. Despite how hard it is he chooses to help, even forgive and redeem. From Lois Lane (who starts out a Lazarus Corp soldier here), to the man who sold out the Kents, to even trying to redeem The Demon's Head himself by relentlessly reading him poetry by his cell despite being mocked. 

        Kal is not "naive", he knows how ugly this universe can be and it's taken so much from him already. There's even a few moments where he seems always suicidal. But something in him pushes him forward. It makes him look at people with a hardened resolve and tells them to change instead. A true hero with a broken heart of gold. 

        The last few issues especially have been great. We see him fully embrace both Krypton as Kal-El and Earth as Clark Kent, despite how ugly both worlds can be he sees the good in both worth fighting for. I actually really love the change to blue, as cool as the black was I honestly did kind of hope it would turn blue from the start, and when and why it happened were well done. He finally has a home, friends and a future. 

Art wise, I really dug Rafa Sandoval’s work, even though he wasn’t originally supposed to be the artist on the book he really defined the designs for this Superman, Lois, Jimmy and Brainiac. But yeah I’m loving Juan Ferreyra’s work on the newer issues too. From the dramatic moments like in #15, to the action with Hawkman and Parasite, to again Superman being an inspiring badass who can’t be bought and brings hope to an entire city.

        On the negatives, yeah it's weird Ra's al Ghul of all people takes center stage here but Brainiac is the real big bad, and he even got an entire issue to himself. Him being one of many Brainiac clones/drones in the universe, originally being nothing more than a janitor for other Brainiacs but driven insane and deformed after eons as the lone survivor of his ship makes for an interesting new take. The use of Peacemakers, as I said in that All Might post, does show how despite fighting for peace, he isn't a Symbol of Peace but Hope, because the the kind of peace he hopes for needs a lot of conflict first. 

    Still, yeah it would've been nice if Christopher Smith was actually John Corben or renamed Metallo when he got his cybernetics. Ra’s could’ve been Vandal Savage too yeah. Definitely hope we get more Superman villains at the center and not just on the side like Parasite and Toyman (who's a corrupt businessman here), and maybe Lex’s entry could change things. But for now we’ll have an evil Absolute Shazam/Black Adam first.

        III. DC On-screen

       

        Whew okay, let’s talk Lanterns first. Not gonna lie, I was never a big fan of what I’ve heard of the show. A grounded True Detective style series with a much older Hal mentoring John in a terrestrial/Earth-based only story. I remained cautiously optimistic as I followed interviews and news closely. 

Then the trailer came out, Grant Morrison chimed in, Damon Lindelof actually gave an apology, and then Mr. Morrison also addressed that and with an apology too.

        Overall I think a lots been said from both sides already. I just want to say that if we’re to learn anything from this it isn’t “Lindelof bad” or “Morrison bad”. Lindelof made a bad joke on a podcast off the cuff. Grant made a rant based on out of context information on his personal blog, off the cuff. Both of them apologized for their faults and expressed sincerity, and it’s actually really good and rare to see these days in Hollywood and media.

Right now, I’ll just wait for the show to come out before saying anything rash. Expect the worst, hope for the best, stay sincere in wanting what’s good for everyone. That’s what I’m taking from this. One last thing before moving on though is that like Lindelof, I would want to share that I'm a huge GL fan too. Again I've mostly written about Batman and Superman, but the first floppy issues I've ever bought were GL comics and my first big event was Blackest Night. Definitely need to catch up on recent runs, but I've always been a GL fan and I hope the DCU does him justice.

As for Supergirl & Man of Tomorrow…

        I liked the new Supergirl trailer and I get why they changed it so Krypto is her dog now. It certainly adds even more of a strong connective tissue between his role in the present and Kara’s backstory, really strengthens that emotional part. Of course though I’m most interested in how they’ll handle Krypton and the House of El. I’ve written a  lot about what Superman ‘25 did with Jor-El, and how my stance on that has shifted from negative to acceptance for various reasons. Still not my preference of course but bar a complete 180 which James Gunn insists won’t happen, what I hope for at least is more nuance on Krypton and the House of El. Zor-El and Alura here, along with Argo City, are the perfect way to start doing that and clarifying Gunn’s intentions for how DCU Superman relates to his immigrant heritage.

But there’s more…

        In the trailer, some point out it looks like Kara’s ship leaves as the shield covers Argo City. This could just be misleading editing, but who knows. Maybe they’ll take from both Tom King’s Supergirl Woman of Tomorrow and Geoff Johns’ Superman Brainiac by leaving Argo and Zor-El’s fate somewhat ambiguous. In the latter, before Argo’s destruction, Brainiac found it and abducted Zor-El and Alura, placing them in his collection, inside the Bottled City of Kandor, where they would reunite with both their nephew Kal-El and daughter Kara. Alura died on Argo in the former before Kara leaves, so it would only be Zor-El here. 

This would be perfect set up for Man of Tomorrow.

Clark could meet Zor-El there, learn more about the world and family he longed for in the first film and come to peace with it. Maybe.

Lastly, there’s The Batman Part II.

        My last Easter post wasn’t the only thing that came out 4 years ago, Matt Reeves’ The Batman did too. I’m glad that whatever personal things Reeves’ went through is resolved and I respect his privacy on it and need for time. There’s been a lot of speculation and rumors already on what Part II will be about. 

I’m of the part of the fandom that really, really hopes he brings in Dick Grayson and fulfill the arc Bruce had in Long Halloween and Dark Victory by having him take in another broken lonely soul, an orphan like him. Robin is one of the most important parts of the Batman mythos, to his story and character growth, which the films have ignored for way too long. 

He already foreshadowed it to a certain extent with Bruce’s empathy for the mayor’s son, as well as him opening up his parents’ room, the same one Dick enters in Dark Victory to parallel a young Bruce.

But chances are that’s not happening at least in this film unfortunately.

Or at least it won’t be the focus.

It seems like Harvey Dent will be a huge part of the story again. 

        Which I’m fine with, as while Nolan’s The Dark Knight also took heavily from The Long Halloween including Harvey’s partnership with Batman & Jim Gordon and tragic fall, it was subservient to Batman vs the Joker and the greater story. There’s a lot more to Harvey’s character, as Dent and as Two-Face, from TLH and beyond. His childhood trauma, struggle with Dissociative Identity Disorder before the accident, and friendship with Bruce are all missing. That can all be tackled here, and there’s a lot that can involve Bruce as a character too because of their relationship, and both their internal battles with duality.

I was hyped at the idea of Scarlett Johansson playing Andrea Beaumont and the film taking inspiration from Mask of the Phantasm, but it looks like she’ll be Gilda after all. With that, yeah I’m sincerely hoping initial reports of her being both a villain and a love interest for Bruce is false. We really don’t need a love triangle between Bruce, Harvey and Gilda, and it would be too similar to what TDK did with Rachel too. Not to mention, if Gilda is already married well, I don’t like the idea of her cheating on Harvey with Bruce, for both their characters. It also reminds me of how Telltale’s Batman has a choice of doing that to Harvey with Selina, which unfortunately most players did. No sense of Bro Code, sigh tsk tsk.

Anyway, in all seriousness I really hope they emphasize Bruce and Harvey’s friendship, and how as both Bruce and Batman, he would never give up on trying to save and redeem his friend. It’s something BTAS did really well too. Bruce believes in rehabilitating criminals, of pulling them out from the abyss that once nearly consumed him too. Something he extended even to the Joker. While on the surface Batman seems more cynical than Superman, his best stories including The Batman ‘22, show that he’s just as hopeful a hero who believes in, you guessed it, redemption.

IV. Superman (2025) x Dispatch

        So first off for those unfamiliar with what this game is, here’s an introduction: 

        Adhoc Studios’ Dispatch is a choice-based story game where you play from the perspective of Robert Robertson III, AKA the superhero Mecha Man Blue, the third of the Mecha man legacy. During the game his suit is damaged beyond his ability or resources to repair, and he’s offered a job at mentoring and dispatching heroes under the corporation “Superhero Dispatch Network” (SDN). Think of what Oracle does with the Batfamily basically. It’s a superhero office comedy, that famously also has a romantic element as well. Adhoc is made of former members of Telltale Studios, who previously made two seasons of Batman games that I first played when they came out, and this is a superhero game so that‘a what got my attention. 

End of Intro.

        I’ve archived/compiled my previous Reddit posts on Dispatch just now on another blog post just before this, but the biggest one that I’m featuring here is one I’ve also just published. My final post last year was how James Gunn’s Superman and Dispatch were the best on-screen superhero media of 2025 and wrote about how much they actually had in common in themes and arcs. 

This new post is a video edit version of that and more.

Links to the main Reddit posts here: r/Superman, r/DispatchAdhoc

This video is basically divided into four parts, let’s call them:

1. Introduction
2. Choices and Destiny
3. “We’re so different”
4. Humanity and Redemption

1. Introduction

    Music: Last Son by David Fleming, Superman (2025)

        This section introduces us first to our two protagonists. Both the film and game actually open with a scene of them lying on the floor, bleeding, accompanied by their dogs and dwelling on their (biological) fathers’ legacies for them. For Kal, it’s his Kryptonian father Jor-El. For Mecha Man Blue, it’s his father Mecha Man Astral. For now they define their identities and purposes in life based on this. Clark’s worldview is shattered when he learns the full message, while Robert is weighed down by how his predecessors both died in the suit, and how he may have to do the same, dying alone as a hero. 

        Still, they are true heroes in their world, an “old-fashioned” kind too. Robert as a legacy who’s spent his whole life training for, and then since he was about 15 being a hero. He seems to have no one and nothing else in his life, his arc in this story being accepting friends and family, old and new. Clark deals with loneliness in his own way as the Last Son of Krypton, but also as a hero with strong convictions in classical ideals, including belief in the sanctity of life and seeing the goodness in all people and things. 

Meanwhile, new corporate heroes have become abundant. 

• In Dispatch, SDN employs both Phenomaman and Blonde Blazer, both “Superman-esque” in their own way, but also both fundamentally different in others, similar to what I wrote about with All Might. Phenomaman is in SDN’s advertising, wasn’t raised on Earth, like Absolute Kal, but more than that he doesn’t seem to have a strong heroic stance on things and still has trouble adapting to Earth culture. Blazer is not only an employee add involved with SDN’s brand deals, but an important character trait for her is that she is a very corporate minded person, which she admits. She is actually the head manager for SDN’s Torrance branch, making her the boss of the entire office. The team Robert has to mentor and dispatch is one specifically made of ex-supervillains too, the Z-team of Phoenix Program.
• In SM’25, we have Lexcorp Luthorcorp headed by Lex Luthor, who employs Ultraman, the Engineer and an army of armored forces, plus holds captive metahumans like Metamorpho. There’s also Lordtech which owns the “Justice Gang”, which includes GL Guy Gardner, Hawkgirl and Mr. Terrific. They already are real heroes, however they don't all exactly share the same values as Superman to the same degree, at least at the moment.

        Now, corporate superheroes aren’t inherently bad or good, but more often in superhero stories they’re neutral if not the former. Superman specifically has generally always been anti-corporate, from his Golden Age Champion of the Oppressed roots to even now. Beyond Lexcorp, he’s taken on Morgan Edge and WGBS, who he once exposed as Clark, there’s Glen Glenmorgan in Morrison’s Action Comics and I’ve just tackled Absolute Superman who’s the most anti-corporate he’s been since 1938 (scroll up for curious Dispatch fans who haven't read the other parts of this article). In the film, he's deliberately at odds with both corporations and national governments as an independent superhero not bound by their rules and laws who puts his principles above them (see: Boravia-Jarhanpur).

    Because of all this, both Superman and Mecha Man are recognized as the "real deal", a "real superhero" in the words of Prism. Blazer herself would admit in episode 4 that Robert is "the pep talk guy" and in episode 7 if he chooses to still trust Invisigal, that he's more optimistic than her. Now to be clear, this isn't to discredit either Phenoma or Blazer as heroes. Blazer makes mistakes but she is a real compassionate hero, and despite being faced with culture shock and being alienated Phenoma does his best to do the right thing. More on that in the last section of the video!

        Meanwhile, of course, Robert is a malleable player character. Not a complete blank slate, he has constant traits as a developed character, but you can make choices that makes him either a "True Hero", "Everyman" or "Anti-Hero". As a superhero fan I roleplayed him as a True Hero, and that's the Robert this video is based on. 

        I'm of the personal opinion that when it comes down to it, this successful mentor and True Hero Robert is actually the closest to Superman at heart, and in choices. In some ways like Steel (John Henry Irons) was in Reign of the Supermen, despite being the only one of the 4 "replacement" Supermen without any real powers and not to claim he was (or is a clone of) Superman, Jonathan Kent agreed he was the closest. Like Clark also once told Superboy-Prime in Infinite Crisis '05-'06, it's not about the powers, it's about what you do, "it's about action". 

In contrast to the modern corporate heroes, Superman and Mecha Man are the "old-fashioned", iconic heroes, Men of Steel still trying to guide Tomorrow, as both Clark and Robert can inspire the next generation to follow their lead through their choices and actions.

Which leads to the next section:

2. Choices and Destiny

    Music: Your Choices, Your Actions by David Fleming, Superman (2025)

        The heart of the video and why it's titled "Your Choices Make Your Destiny" is the parallel between these two scenes here. I made that the title screen in the opening seconds in part also to reference how choice based games like these start with saying "your choices matter" too but the deeper meaning is that choice and free will determining your fate is a central message of both stories. Here however, at first it looks like Robert parallels Jonathan Kent more than Clark, who Invisigal echoes here.

        But "in teaching you will learn", and the truth is that Robert needed to hear what he said too. No matter what choice you make he empathizes with Visi's plight later in the story, because he feels trapped by fate too. Something made clearer if you choose to be honest with the team on his identity, where she also reveals her real name as "Courtney". Playing off that and how Pa also calls Clark by name in this section, I allowed each of them to have name titles of their real non-hero names, and then did the same for Katon-Ur (Phenomaman) and Mandy (Blazer) later in the video. Each time it's when they show their "real" self. Back to Robert, it's only in episode 6 when it seems like he has no chance at becoming Mecha Man again that for the first time, Robert considers a life without it, and right after that Courtney throws him a surprise party with all the new people of his life giving light into his empty apartment.

        Something I couldn't add in this video is that the DLC comics also show Robert II/MM Astral was, similar to this version of Jor-El, not the perfect hero and father he seemed. The truth was he was hard on our Robert, and was often absent. His poor mentorship of Elliot is part of what lead him to become the villain Shroud. That's not to take away Shroud's agency, but it is a factor into his fall, Astral could have lead him better. In the end, Chase/Track Star is the closet to a Jonathan Kent he is.

3. "We're so Different"

    Music: 

    The Real Punk Rock by John Murphy, Superman (2025)

    Rob & Courtney by Andrew Arcadi, Dispatch (2025)

        Whew, here we go. So this game is unfortunately infamous in some areas of the internet because of the romance options. But the truth is it's so much more than just a dating sim or "twilight for men", which this video shows. I've already gone into this in my other posts, how I initially chose neither deliberately and why I chose who in subsequent runs, but for this video?

I almost chose to make it neutral but...

        ...honestly, the parallels between Clark & Lois and Robert & Courtney, which I touched on before, are so strong and simultaneously so overlooked, and works perfectly with this movie especially. Again, no disrespect at all for those who chose or prefer Blazer. But the truth is that only resembles Superman and Lois if you reverse the roles, and even then IMO not as much. It's kind of more like Superman & Wonder Woman, or Batman & Wonder Woman.

        The truth is in majority of Superman media, Clark and Lois are opposites in many ways. They vary a lot in dynamic and personalities to a certain extent but there are constants. The hopeful farm boy and the cynical city girl. The "alien" superhero who wants to be seen as human and the rebellious army brat trying to make a name for herself. A common thread is that they often do clash at first, sometimes having a rivalry as investigative journalists at the office. But somehow they're also drawn to each other, and they change each other for the better. The new film digs into that the most out of every live-action theatrical film, surpassed only by TV and animated adaptations.

        Not to mention there's also the color parallels. Lois' signature color in the past few decades is also famously purple/pink, and Superman's red, blue and yellow, but most famously has a nickname of "Big Blue". I did my best to match some shots, their positions next to each other and rotation to show those color parallels.

Also, fun fact, I mentioned this in another post but I wanted to bring it up here too, voice actress Laura Bailey not only voiced Catwoman (who Invisigal also heavily resembles) in Batman Telltale, but also Lois Lane in the Super Sons animated movie, where Phenomaman VA and her husband Travis Willingham also voiced Superman. I highly recommend it for those who haven't seen it. As a fan of the Super Sons comics, it might be my favorite World's Finest/Superman-Batman movie.

Back to the video, I hope that part of the edit shows those strong parallels well enough by itself. Aside from that, I also did deliberately edit it so it looks like Rob & Court are watching James Gunn's Superman at the cinema lol. I kept their banter on movies earlier as well to foreshadow this, along with how this film can easily count among the others they mention.

"All fine films with a fine message"

Speaking of, the other big message of the film, is what "the real punk rock" actually is, and what that means. Yes it's kindness, but what kind of kindness? More specifically it's seeing the good and beauty in everyone. From dogs and squirrels and dogs, to rampaging Kaiju, to Lex Luthor. 100% something applicable to Dispatch, especially with a successful mentor and true hero Robert who chooses to place his trust in Invisigal, bring out the good in her, and even spare Shroud (more on that later). In a world where most people see mercy and empathy as "weak", "dumb", "cheesy" and "naive", choosing them is a rebellious act. That's what it means to say kindness is the real punk rock.

4. Humanity and Redemption

    Music: Being Human & Look Up by David Fleming, Superman (2025)

    

    Now the final and longest part of the video. 

        It starts off showing the villains, Lex and Shroud (both evil enough to take dogs captive), as well as showing a parallel between Clark and Katon-Ur with a line about how they're not humans or persons because they're aliens. Now I was originally going to show who said that line, but again it did seem too much like I was comparing said character to the villains. Truth is, it was Blazer who said it, but she did without the same xenophobic malice. This was possibly an oversight on the writers but likely them showinig her again being very corporate in her use of terminology. 

        In any case, the point was to show Phenomaman himself has a similar arc in showing that despite not being from Earth, he has the same soul and emotions as a human being, a person. An important point for Clark not just in this film, but many, many Superman stories across media, from the beginning to now, as an alien character raised human created by children of immigrants. Even beyond Superman, sci-fi has often positioned aliens as metaphors for foreigners, immigrants, refugees, and indigenous peoples. It's a very common trope that I do believe Dispatch 100% was conscious of when it comes to how it handles Katon-Ur's character, leaning into the culture shocked outsider side of Superman.

        And now, the climax of the video, with Superman's Being Human speech. It's here we see Superman sincerely opening himself up to Lex in an effort to reach out to him emotionally. A vulnerable Superman here pours out his heart, talking about how he feels, how he loves, and how even with his limited abilities and knowledge, gives the effort to make the best choices he can based on what he believes is right. That's what's being human is to him, and something most miss or cut is he ends that speech by again, reaching out to Lex and saying they both share that. I parallel that to Robert's speech after giving both Astral Pulses to Shroud, who uses technology to predict and help make choices for him. 

        Meanwhile, I of course show Phenomaman's human side hugging Robert, and a shot of him and Blazer in the final fight showing they're on good terms despite the break up. We also see Blazer's humanity and vulnerability, before showing her true self as Mandy. And yes, I also did put Visi with the "I love" line, not just because she's the love interest chosen but because of her act here. As a Christian, I believe love in the purest form is simply willing the good of another, and in its greatest form it's selfless and sacrificial ("No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends." Jn 15:13). For those who read the earlier parts, I brought up Naruto a lot before, this actually reminded me of what Hinata did for Naruto with Pain. 

But, this form of love doesn't necessarily have to be romantic either, you can sacrifice your life out of love for friends and family, or love of an ideal. To be a hero, in a way involves this kind of sacrificial love. Especially Superman. That Superman Red and Blue story by Daniel Warren Johnson I mentioned earlier in this post shows that. In any case whether her feelings are reciprocated or not, a successfully mentored Visi was willing to die for Robert, and it's a truly heroic act. 

More on this in the final part of this blog post.

        Again, seeing the good in everyone is the real punk rock. So naturally, a Superman-like Robert would 100% spare Shroud. Not that he wouldn't have a hard time doing so, not that he wouldn't be tempted, but a True Hero Robert who cares more about helping people, saving someone who just got shot, and respects human life when he can, sparing Shroud is a must. Back to Clark, Lex is just as bad as Shroud, no actually much worse. But like in comics, Clark is right that there is potential for good in Lex. Just as there's potential for good in Shroud and everyone on the Z-team. The next film Man of Tomorrow will feature Lex as a co-protagonist against Brainiac. Lex has had many redemption arcs in comics, most aren't permanent, but some are. I guess we'll have to wait and see how this will go. Back to Dispatch, if hero Invisigal can learn it's more heroic to die for someone than kill for someone, what kind of mentor would Robert be if he doesn't do the same? 

Again, more on that in the final part.

        Lastly, we have the final part showing the impact of Clark and Robert's actions on the other heroes around them. The Justice Gang are inspired to break international law and act outside of corporate authority by intervening in the Boravia-Jarhanpur military conflict, saving the people who were crying out for Superman. The Z-team finally step up and get seen as The heroes of the day, and with the right choices that includes Invisigal. Even the team traitor, chosen here as Coupe who somewhat parallels the Engineer, can be given a chance at redemption, while Metamorpho, who Superman saved the son of and helped escape, gets his chance to be a real hero. 

    Related to that, I'm fully of the opinion that Blazer's decision to have someone cut was the wrong move. Not to absolve Robert, he ultimately did go with it and then choose someone to cut too, but we the players can have him question, regret and make up for it in the end, which IMO we should. Similarly, I believe not cutting Visi was the right thing. Like Flambae said, the was let back on despite doing far worse (and you have no choice on that lol). Everyone there have shown they want to change, they're here for you to help them. Your job, no, your duty is a hero, is to help those who need it. The game is confirmed to agree with this because choosing not to cut Visi and forgive the traitor in the end count as hero points while the alternative are anti-hero points.

Again, more on redemption in the final part.

I snuck in a shot of Mister Terrific hanging onto Krypto and Chase holding onto Beef, showing the dogs safe and free and finally some matching shots of Superman, Phenomaman and Mecha Man before the big curtain call. Of course, got to leave a final message and an Easter greeting, along with one of my favorite shots from the game of Robert's reflection alongside a Rosary.

And that's the video!

For Dispatch fans, thanks for checking this out. Feel free to step out here but hey, feel free to read the rest of this article, or at least this next part to finish things off.

Edit: 

Something I was thinking of mentioning or not but decided just now to add to this part anyway, is that subconsciously, I may have been influenced with this Naruto 20th anniversary special video in how I edited this. To add, this video and breakdown sums up why to me a True Hero and successful mentor Robert is the Superman of Dispatch, but who’s #2? Again, no offense to Blazer fans, while she’s the popular choice, I still cast my vote to Phenomaman. Copy and pasting a comment I just wrote on why, and also why Blazer in a way is more like Wonder Woman:

        Personally I’d say Phenomaman is underrated for #2. We don’t get to see him be too inspiring since he’s depressed for most of the game, and his initial impression to the player can be socially awkward at best if not ominous at worst (players who have Robert kiss Blazer have their music change), but he tries to do the right thing even when he’s really brokenhearted and Robert says he’s a legend if recruited. If Robert does go for Blazer he can react sadly in the party but still support it too. My initial/main runs chose Visi and Waterboy (who’s a big fan of his) as the edits I made show but I got to say, Katon-Ur and Herm are a tough choice. They can both develop good friendships with Robert, but I ultimately usually go with the latter because in Robert’s mind, it would be helping the little guy, which is the Superman thing to do.

        The difference between him and Absolute Superman, who also wasn’t raised on Earth, is he doesn’t have an A.I. helping him with Earth languages/social interaction, a motivating trauma and a really bad history with big corporations (even more than regular versions of Superman lol). I imagine Absolute Kal especially would be empathetic towards him as a fellow alien outsider, but very skeptical of Blazer as an SDN office manager and for the “alien not a person” comment, which definitely wasn’t malicious in intention but honestly did rub me and other fellow Superman fans (1, 2) fans the wrong way. 

        Then there’s Katon’s choice to not take a vote compared to Blazer approving if you cut Visi and even suggesting using her as a scapegoat for the press. It reminds me of the DCAU Justice League animated series (Pre-JLU) where Hawkgirl actually was a spy, but she betrayed her own people in the end for the League. Clark voted her to stay, like Robert can shut it down and just overrule the vote to defend Courtney. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman voted to cut Shayera. I made this comparison before but Diana and Mandy actually are closer than Clark her IMO. Their leadership style and lesser aversion to killing is similar, and both do balance that with compassion and kindness too. Not to mention the Amulet implies her powers are also more mystical in nature.

V. Redemption

        By the time I've posted this, it's past midnight on Black Saturday night here in the Philippines. Easter Vigils would have been celebrated and it would officially be Easter Sunday here in the Philippines. Easter, a day of resurrection, reunions, celebration, but most relevant to this post:

REDEMPTION

        There's a lot of talk about if Superboy-Prime or Doomsday deserve or earned their redemption arcs. Same goes for Invisigal, and Flambae. Similarly, while Lex often does (almost) redeem himself, does Shroud deserve mercy and a chance at that? My answer has always been the same:

Chance for redemption isn't earned. 

Mercy isn't earned.

Forgiveness isn't earned.

        They are given, freely out of the good will and choice of the other person, and that often brings out redemption more than punishment. Mercy is not deserved, because to give people what they deserve is justice, not mercy. They are not the same. Both are good and they can co-exist, but they are not the same. In fact they can be at odds, and one can be more appropriate than the other at certain times. That's essentially the lesson of the Prodigal Son. There the father didn't even let his wayward son speak and give his terms, that he would become a servant instead to pay his debt. No lets go of that debt and embraced him as his son. But that's not where the story ends! The faithful brother objects, how could he do that? How could he just let his other son back in after all he's done?

        There will always be people who cannot atone and redeem themselves alone, but can with help. Does that mean they shouldn't have that chance? Does the need for help from others mean they should be deprived of it? Should we let them be doomed eternally? We are all human beings with fallible minds of limited knowledge and understanding. It's not wrong for us to feel pain and anger at those who wronged us. It's not wrong for us to want punishment. There is nothing wrong with wanting to be separated from them. There's always a chance someone will never change no matter how many chances and how much help you give them.

But it is better to let that go if we can, and give those chances anyway.

If there's someone who's alone or more in trouble than anyone else, it's the super-heroic thing to do to reach out to them when you can. Whether it's helping them when they're lonely, sad, angry, struggling with addiction, or having a hard time changing in general. It's hard, and requires extra selflessness, possibly to your own detriment, but that is sacrifice.

Superman? Just now in the recent Superman/Spider-Man crossover, he went out of his way to reach out to the goodness in Doctor Octopus instead of just beating the crap out of him. His success rate with Lex is hit or miss, but he has legitimately won out with people like Manchester Black, Bizarro, Parasite, Livewire, Silver Banshee, and countless regular criminals.

Speaking of sacrifice...

        I wrote about sacrificial love being the greatest form it in Part IV, which is a biblical concept as I cited. Another is the idea that this sort of love is a powerful catalyst for redemption, and it's something a lot of stories outside the Bible have embraced too. Redemptive love, romantic or platonic is all over pop culture.

        My favorite examples would be from Star Wars. Anakin's redemption is tied to his love for his son and giving his life for him. Beyond the movies though, and these are romantic examples now, Luke redeems Mara Jade and even marries her. Something I went into quite a bit in my Superman-Luke Skywalker post earlier this year. In KOTOR, it's quite difficult for Revan to redeem Bastila if you try doing it from the detached Jedi perspective, but not if you do embrace Jolee's teachings on love and let that be what saves her, which was the canonical ending. Outside Star Wars, Disney's Hercules famously does it with him and Meg (who actually is a spy for Hades). 

I guess you can almost say the same thing about the Absolute universe's Superman and Lois.

        Point is, I've seen some argue that choosing to have Robert romance Courtney undermines her redemption. As if that means it isn't "pure" in intention. But again, she has feelings for the man whether he reciprocates or not, and whether he does not she was willing to die for him. She can't be rewarded by his affections if she's dead. Love does not make heroic acts unheroic. Again, Daniel Warren Johnson's Superman Red and Blue story shows that how important it is for Superman to love humanity. Romantic love is a specific derivative form of that kind of love that can be possessive and selfish instead of selfless, but IMO, and of many other sources, that can't be the case when sacrificing your life is involved. Back to what I just taked about in the last paragraph, for many philosophers, Christian or not, love empowers redemption, not undermines it. But especially if you are.

To quote another Scripture that I also cited in my Moses & Superman post from last year:

• “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you [...] For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others?

Back to redemption in general, again it's the super-heroic, the Real Punk Rock thing to do, to extend compassion, empathy and mercy, even to your "enemies". That's the point of this excerpt.

Now these are fictional stories and characters...

It's easy to say all this and do them in a video game. It's easy to support Superboy-Prime's redemption when he's a fictional character (and he knows it too lol). I can't say I've followed these principles perfectly in my life, but I do my best. Despite all my own flaws, "I try to make the best choices I can. I screw up all the time, but that is being human, and that's my greatest strength. And someday I hope, for the sake of the world, you understand that it's yours too."

HAPPY EASTER SUNDAY!

- Earthmine52
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Gavri-El