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All-Star Superman is often considered one of the greatest Superman stories ever told. It's so influential to the Man of Steel's history that even James Gunn's upcoming Superman Legacy is set to be inspired by the comic. It truly is one of DC's best and something that should be read by every Superman fan.
However, with All-Star Superman, it's not something you particularly start with when it comes to the Man of Steel. It surely is a deeply personal comic that highlights the best parts of the character, but it's about a Superman who is well into his career and is reflecting on a lot.
All-Star Superman is about a dying Man of Steel living his final days on Earth
All-Star Superman is a comic book written by Grant Morrison with art by Frank Quietly. The comic ran from January 2006 to October 2008. It focuses on Superman trying his best to accomplish as many heroic feats as possible before his inevitable death.
The story sees Clark receive a massive amount of solar radiation while rescuing a team of scientists from the sun. Turns out, the mission was sabotaged by Lex Luthor and was a coup to kill Superman by overwhelming his cells and giving him just one year to live. Returning to Earth, Clark writes an article on Luthor, which leads to his arrest, and he decides to keep his inevitable death a secret from the world and even his closest ones, including Lois Lane.
During this time, he decides to accomplish as many feats as possible and reveals his identity as Clark Kent to Lois Lane. Initially hesitant at believing him, Lois soon realizes that Clark is indeed Superman when he treats her to a dinner at the Fortress of Solitude. During this time, he also decides to take up the task of completing the "Twelve Labors of Superman," which sees him complete his last will and testament.
The story of All-Star Superman pretty much ends with him saving humanity while confessing his eternal love for Lois and seeing him fly into the sun to repair it after it was poisoned by the tyrant star Solaris. But that's not all, as he becomes a divine being and lives inside the sun while trying to keep it alive.
This, of course, isn't what you would expect the first story of the Man of Steel to be when adapting him to a new universe. However, you can see James Gunn taking inspiration from the themes of the comic, which is all about hope and still doing the right thing even when the odds are stacked against you. That's pretty much what Superman is about.
James Gunn has shown his love for the comic and stated how inspired he is by it. While details on Superman: Legacy are a bit scarce right now, Gunn initially confirmed that the story will focus on a Superman very early in his career. So we can pretty much see him adapting the themes of the comic and not the entire story itself.
All-Star Superman really is a monument in the vast library of the comics this iconic character has, and if James Gunn can replicate that hopeful nature with Superman: Legacy, we are pretty much in for a special movie. Superman: Legacy releases in theatres on July 11, 2025.
