Superman's father, Jor-El, is no longer the man who gives a hideous I-told-you-so to his superiors as the planet they're on falls apart. Now he's the leader of Taza, a Kryptonian nation, which is embroiled in a civil war. Krypton no longer explodes. Now Taza is laid waste by giant robots. The people of the utopian Taza are slaughtered; the survivors are rounded up and enslaved in a concentration camp. Before being captured, Jor-El puts his only son, Kal-El, in a transport capsule and shoots him into space, toward Earth. And who is behind this warring, bloodthirsty army that sends Taza to its knees? Jor-El's brother, Kata-Zor. It seems Kata-Zor didn't like being pushed aside by their daddy to give way to Jor-El and took it personal. And now, with the help of his own son, Ty-Zor, he's going to make him suffer. Kal-El (a.k.a. Superman) is found by farmers Jonathan and Martha Kent. (By "found" I mean the pod Supes is in blasts down into their field and nearly crashes into their home.)

The Kents take him in, raising him as their own. Little Clark is not your normal kid. He's not out of diapers before he's lifting couches and throwing them through walls. And that whole "you have to walk before you run" thing? Doesn't work for him -- he's flying not long after he takes his first step. The Kents accept their beautiful little alien, but explain to him that he's "special" and he can't fly around or show his massive strength. He has to keep it in check. Clark gets a quick lesson in the importance of restraint when the Kents' drunk landlord gets a bit too friendly with Martha. Five-year-old Clark beats the man senseless. And the horrified man screams, "You're a freak!

That kid's a monster!" It's the thing that will haunt Clark for the rest of his life: being an outsider, a freak, that has no place in the world. Clark grows up a self-conscious, painfully-shy person. He is lonely and friendless. When he gets to college he does nothing but study. In his fourth year, after never leaving the dorm, his roommate Jerry Shuster (wink, wink), forces him to go to a party. Lucky Clark did, because it will change his life. Seven years later we meet Lex Luthor, a CIA Special Agent who investigates UFOs and alien activity, as he's called to Arizona to examine what is supposed to be an extraterrestrial ship that has crash-landed in a large field. It ends up being a fake a hoax created by Lois Lane (now a working reporter) for a story. The article she writes creates enough of a stir to give Luthor the bright idea to go public with his work. Over at the Daily Planet, where Lois works, it's Clark's first day. He meets the photographer, Jimmy Olsen (yep, he's gay), and the editor, fast-talking Perry White.

Though she had such an astounding effect on his life, Lois has no idea who Clark is. He does an embarrassing amount of explaining about their night before she vaguely remembers. Luthor holds a press conference and reveals the U.S. has in its possession a genuine UFO. Something, Clark makes note of, quite similar to what he arrived in. But it's not his. It's some other alien's. Lois tells Clark it's total BS -- "classic reactive PR fiction" -- but Clark knows better. Lois lands an interview with the President on Air Force One. An engine panel happens to be loose and during the flight the panel blows into one of the engines and ruptures it. Before long another engine is out. The plane nose-dives toward earth. And now Clark, who has shied away from his awesome powers, scared by them, uninterested in being a hero, dons the famous red-and-blue suit, flies off into the air, and saves the day. He literally holds Air Force One in his hands and guides it to the ground.

The world gets its first look and taste of the Man of Steel and they like what they see. Though it's just Clark without glasses, the longest-running gag in history remains: Lois (as well as the rest of the world) can't figure out they're the same dude. While the world celebrates its newest hero (which Lois has dubbed Superman), Clark gets the news that Pa Kent had a heart attack and passed on. Worse still, Kata-Zor and Ty-Zor now find out where Kal-El ended up and Ty-Zor (who has already murdered Supes' mom trying to find out his location) jumps in a ship and heads off, evil purposes in mind. Luthor blows his top trying to portray Superman as dangerous and gets canned. Clark discovers, among Jonathan's personal effects, five mysterious coins. Martha explains they each have a meaning -- Courage, Sacrifice, Wisdom, Faith, Love -- and they were given to them by a stranger thirty years ago. Pa Kent happened to have a camera that day and snapped a few photos. The man was...Jor-El. Staking out Earth, looking for the right people to nurture his special son. He picked the Kents, and now Clark -- that is, Superman -- realizes he has a purpose in life. "Go save the world," Martha says. And he does. Lifting a fishing boat out of a storm. Stopping an erupting volcano from destroying a town. Typical fanciful superhero stuff. Luthor, meanwhile, has brought together two men he can trust -- Agents Gray and Burk -- and lets them in on a little secret: he had a vision when he was young. Of outsiders coming to Earth. These outsiders will be hunting for a "superman" and bring with them grave destruction. If he helps these outsiders he gets "supreme power over this world." Sounds nutty, but the men believe him. Lois followed Luthor here and caught this all on tape. Luthor snatches her, ruins her evidence, and the cops show up and arrest her. Lois gets fired, but since Clark will be miserable without her, Superman shows up to let Perry White know he's down for an interview with his "favorite reporter." Post-flying-around-the-city, Supes and Lois talk on the roof of the Daily Planet. They flirt, they parry and feint, and she lets him in on what he already knows: Lex Luthor wants him dead.

Over in Washington, D.C., Ty-Zor has sent down a titanic military machine, the exact same kind that defeated Jor-El and his people, and calls for Superman. Superman does battle with this thing, in one of many budget-busting, sugar-high action scenes. Luthor's boys are busy stealing Kryptonite. Lois tries to enlist the help of four-star general Stuart Sutton to stop Lex before he harms Superman. Superman beats the machine, but that's the least of his problems. First of all, the people of Earth are now scared of him. He's not a hero to them anymore; he is, once again, a freak. His worst fear realized. The smoke hasn't dissipated before the fickle press is questioning whether Superman is a miracle or a menace. But there's bigger worries. Namely, Ty-Zor and three cronies are down here on Earth and they are gleefully tearing it apart. Superman engages the foursome, but he is no match. They slap him around like a weakling in a schoolyard. With the help of Luthor, they set a trap for Superman (using Lois, of course). The trap works perfectly: Superman dies. Ty-Zor sends the good news to his father. Lex is given rule over Earth. Millions turn out for Superman's funeral. But wait. Supes' dad "knows" his son is dead and kills himself. It's not out of sadness. He comes to his son and tells him of a Kryptonian Prophecy. It goes something like this: A prince is sent away to live in another world. He will face a challenge.

If he bests the challenge he will return to Krypton to save his people. Jor-El hugs his boy, Superman rises from the grave, goes to the U.N. to enlist the world in his fight, and guess what? In true worldwide-community spirit, the nations of the world pull together. Superman fights the four baddies, this time with the "Jor-El touch," and it ain't so easy for them to push little Kal-El around. Causing billions of dollars in damage, the five superpowered beings throw down. In the end, through a Superman-created ruse, the army rids the world of the bad guys. Supes gets to go back to Lois. It's bittersweet, though, as he tells her he must return to his home planet and save his people. They confess their love for one another and Lois, briefly, wonders if the timorous Clark might be something (or someone) else entirely.

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