Superman had an interesting time of things in the ’90s. He had some of his biggest successes of the modern era of the character during the decade. After the highs of the mid ’80s, the ’90s found a way to obliterate that with the “Death of Superman” saga. However, DC decided that big events were the only way to make the Man of Steel popular, and overdid it throughout the decade of extreme (there’s a joke there I’ll trust you to make yourselves). The ’00s were a time of great change for DC Comics, and Superman became a huge part of the revitalization of the publisher. It was an amazing time to be into DC and the Last Son of Krypton and his comics had some brilliant moments over the decade.
While there aren’t a lot of really well-known, pop culture-changing events in the ’00s from the character, there are still a lot of really great moments. Many of these changed the Man of Steel for years to come and put him on the road to the success that he’s having today. These are the five best Superman moments of the ’00s, and they helped define the decade for the character.
5) Kurt Busiek on Superman
Image Courtesy of DC Comics
Infinite Crisis was a big time for DC Comics, with new creative teams and books dropping. Superman went back to its classic, pre-Crisis numbers (Adventures of Superman took on its numbers after Crisis, but then that book’s number was given back to the original book), and it got an amazing writer: Kurt Busiek, one of the greatest Avengers writers ever. Busiek is amazing at taking classic ideas and making them modern, and had proven adroit with the Man of Steel in Superman: Secret Identity. He gave readers the Superman classic “Camelot Falls”, and numerous cool one issue stories starring the weirder of the hero’s villains. It was amazing, and yet another reason it was great to read Supes in the ’00s.
4) The Return of the Legion of Superheroes
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Once upon a time, the Legion of Superheroes were vitally important to the origin of Superman. He first met the team back when he was Superboy, and spent years moving up and down the time stream, going to the 31st century to fight alongside the team and then coming home to the present. However, Crisis on Infinite Earths did away with all of that. However, Infinite Crisis would bring it all back, leading to the amazing “Superman and the Legion of Superheroes”. Bringing back the Legion meant bringing back Superboy, and it made the character even better than ever. It was a key moment in Superman history.
3) All-Star Superman
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All-Star Superman has become a legendary story. Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s classic is the kind of comic that only comes around once a generation. The 12-issue story combined every era of the character to tell the ultimate Superman story, one that saw him facing the end of his life, and trying to leave the world a better place. Morrison’s love of Superman and superheroes bled through every page, and Quitely’s art is gorgeous, wonderfully detailed and laid out. This is peak Superman, and has become integral to the success of the character in 2025.
2) Geoff Johns on Action Comics
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Geoff Johns became a DC superstar over the first few years of the ’00s, writing the Flash, the Justice Society, and Green Lantern. After Infinite Crisis, the writer would become the scribe of Action Comics, and played a huge role in bringing back all of the best aspects of pre-Crisis Superman. He gave readers the ultimate General Zod story in “Last Son”, brought back the Legion and Bizarro World, and the scariest version of Brainiac in years. Johns proved how well he got Superman, and gave readers some of the best Man of Steel stories of all time during his run. It wasn’t all perfect, especially towards the end, but it was a gamechanger.
1) Infinite Crisis
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Infinite Crisis was the 20th anniversary of Crisis on Infinite Earths. The story was a massive turning point in DC history, and Superman played a huge role in it. The book brought back the original Superman, the Earth-Two Superman, and made him one of the focuses of the book, giving him the ending he deserved. Meanwhile, the post-Crisis Superman relearned the heroism that the modern era had leeched from the superhero community. The story dealt heavily with the Superman family, and was the catalyst for bringing back numerous beloved aspects of the hero. If you love the current comics starring the Man of Tomorrow, even his newest movie, and the retro modern approach they’re taking, you have this book to thank.
What’s your favorite ’00s Superman moment? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!