All-Star Superman is allegedly one of James Gunn’s influences in creating his Superman movie. It could be true or he could have just looked up popular Superman stories. I’m not going to pretend I know. What I do know is that YouTube has it up free with ads and embeddable, so I get to share it with you.
I’m not usually a fan of Grant Morrison’s work, and I’ve only read the first issue, but this is actually a pretty good story. In it, Lex Luthor tricks Superman into flying so close to the sun that his body is overcharged. He’s dying, and the story follows the last tasks he wants to perform before he burns up. This is actually not the first time there was a Superman story with him dying and performing some final feats. I think it was a Silver Age or early Bronze Age tale, but that was either changed at the last minute or an alternate timeline. Still, it’s the execution–a sort of “12 tasks of Hercules” approach–that makes the story work.
The adaptation was done by another comics legend, Dwayne McDuffie. They couldn’t fit all 12 issues into the movie but they chose some pretty good ones. I wish they had gone with an art style closer to Frank Quietly’s art and Jimmy Grant’s inks in the miniseries, but at least the bulk isn’t as bad there as it was in Superman Vs. The Elite or some other adaptations. Overall it’s a really good story and one I’m happy to be able to highlight for as long as its available. Hopefully it’s available in your area. Enjoy if it is, but if not I do recommend looking for it. I have the DVD.
Examining The Terms “Science Fiction” And “Fantasy”
Hang on, let me put that song in your head.
Someday I want to see Robotech: The Movie. Or at least find time for the original Megazone 23, which I can find. Looks like an interesting bit of science fiction.
Ah, that term. Science. Fiction. The science is fictional. Maybe that’s why it can’t save her. I didn’t even know the terms “science fiction” and “fantasy” were debatable terms outside of the snooty types who insist that “sci-fi” is somehow an insulting shortcut or something. However, here we are.
The source of this commentary comes from author Brian Neumeier, a name that’s come up on this site more than once. Usually it’s in the form of article links as he has some fascinating ideas, being a published author and all, and a chronicler of “cultural ground zero”, the point where our culture stopped changing as media and merchandise failed to advance out of fear of trying. Other times…I have notes. Guess which time this is. In this case we’re looking at a blog from his Kairos Publications site titled “Why ‘Science Fiction’ And ‘Fantasy’ Are Dead“. He doesn’t mean the genres because his whole thesis is that the terms were never real to begin with.
I looked up Cowan’s site via that link, an article series titled “Science Fiction Doesn’t Exist”. I considered using that as the source of this discussion but it’s a full series, with article lengths that make mine look tame in comparison. Let’s just say I learned my lesson with Seduction Of The Innocent and I might read that on my own someday. I’ll stick with Neumeier’s take, as I trust his honesty. We don’t always agree but there’s a reason I read and use his articles on this site.
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Posted by ShadowWing Tronix on July 25, 2025 in Art Of Storytelling, Book Spotlight, Comic Spotlight, Movie Spotlight, radio/audio drama, Television Spotlight, Video Game Spotlight, web series and tagged commentary, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, science fantasy, Science fiction, terminology.
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