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Is there a consensus about modern day Superman's powers and vulnerability?

I know that Superman's powers vary from version to version, especially compared to Golden and Silver Age Superman.

But is there a consensus about modern Superman, how vulnerable and how powerful he is? In some movies he gets taken down easily, in others he is nearly unbeatable. It's just confusing.

3 Answers

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  • ?
    Lv 4
    8 years ago
    Favorite Answer

    Like all heroes, there are several writers for each, and each portrays Superman differently. There apparently is no rule to what they can make Superman do, or not be capable of doing, as long as he wins all the time at the end. But, DC's excuse for bridging it all together is that Superman is always holding back for the sake of the world and everything in his surroundings. This is the only way they're capable of maintaining an amusing fight scene in Superman comics while also declaring him the most powerful thing in existence or non-existence, ever and ever to be.

  • 8 years ago

    Different writers have portrayed his powers to differing degrees, but there are definitely certain limits that have been observed in place since the mid-eighties story, "Crisis on Infinite Earths", after which they re-booted the character. Superman can no longer fly faster than light or time-travel under his own power. He can hold his breath for extended periods, but can't survive indefinitely in the vacuum of space or underwater. No more moving planets out of their orbits. Also gone are the more ludicrous powers displayed over the course of the Silver Age: super-ventriloquism, super-smell, super-taste, super-hypnosis, super-genius-level intellect, (presumed) immortality, etc.

  • 8 years ago

    ^

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