American manga: I drew Superman in the Great Depression

Jimmy is gone.

He left the newspaper office with Colin's discount guarantee and a new slogan.

Immediately afterwards, this week's Courier was printed.

At the same time, the content sung by newsboys on the streets of New York also changed from the popular Hoover nursery rhymes to new slogans.

"Is that a bird? Is that a plane? That's Superman! (That's a bird? That's a plane? That's - Superman!)"

Although the content of the slogan is not as resonant as the original nursery rhyme, the Superman mentioned by the newsboys can still attract the attention of passers-by.

After a few weeks of publication, the Courier has successfully attracted a small number of readers.

The vast majority of them were people who had lost their jobs due to the impact of the Great Depression and were dissatisfied with the status quo, especially President Hoover.

I bought the Courier and as usual read the criticism of Hoover on the front page of the newspaper. The spicy content gave these people who were struggling during the Great Depression an object to vent.

"...Yes, even if you choose a dog, it is better than Hoover. At least the dog can be fed by throwing in a bone. One meal of Hoover is enough to feed a poor family for a month...

…”

He complained as he flipped through the newspaper in his hand, and soon a four-frame cartoon appeared in front of the reader's eyes.

"what happened?"

Looking at the cartoons serialized in The Courier, readers' eyes flashed with confusion.

"Why is there so little content about criticizing Hoover this time? What kind of comics are you serializing!"

Obviously, the Courier's practice of serializing comics was not appreciated by readers. On the contrary, it aroused their dissatisfaction.

After all, the reason why they bought the newspaper was to watch and criticize Hoover.

It's just that you have already spent money to buy the newspaper. It would be a pity if you don't read it anymore. Although the price of a copy of "The Courier" is not high, it is still an expense after all.

With such thoughts in mind, these people could only pinch their noses, suppress their inner dissatisfaction and complaints and continue reading.

"...In the vast universe, a planet called Krypton is about to be destroyed because its life span has expired. A pair of scientist parents put their son into a newly designed spacecraft and launched it towards the earth!

"

"The spaceship landed in a farm on Earth. A childless couple found and adopted the sleeping child on the spacecraft and named him Clark Kent."

"This child's physiological structure far exceeds that of humans on Earth for millions of years, and he has shown amazing abilities since he was a child."

"When he grew up, he found that he could easily do it: he could jump over a twenty-story building with a single leap, faster than a flying bullet, stronger than a locomotive, and even an exploding bomb could not penetrate it.

Through his tough skin, Clark soon decided to use his god-like power to benefit mankind, and thus Superman was born!"

"This hero vowed to use his power to help those in need..."

Limited by the length of the four-frame comic, the content of the comic is not complicated.

In the first episode, the birth of Superman was briefly described, especially in the last frame, Colin also tried to use a "scientific" method to explain the source of Clark's power.

This specious 'scientific' explanation may not be true in the eyes of professional scientists.

However, for readers, it has produced an extremely effective persuasion, allowing them to better accept the setting of Superman in comics.

Flipping the newspaper down, the content of the second issue of "Superman" is also presented to the reader.

In this chapter, the power of Superman as a superhero is more clearly demonstrated. When he saw him easily lifting a car high and saving the passengers in the car, even the readers who originally complained about the comics

I couldn't help but sigh.

This kind of superhero setting is simply groundbreaking for readers of this era.

In particular, it is different from many comics serialized in newspapers currently on the market.

The background of Superman's story does not take place in a distant fantasy world, but in a modern city - Metropolis.

This city is like any other big city, with well-dressed gentlemen and hard-working blue-collar workers; criminal gangs, police and soldiers...

It is almost a portrayal of the real world, and it gives readers a great sense of immersion, as if Superman exists in the world they live in.

"What, Superman is so strong that he can lift a car!"

"Superman can break such a thick chain with just one hand..."

Different from the plots of comics serialized on the market, where the protagonist encounters difficulties and crises and then breaks out of the situation, Superman's power in the comics is absolutely invincible, as powerful as a god.

Therefore, the plots of comics are often about dangerous situations for ordinary people in reality, but they are easily resolved by Superman when they fall into his hands.

Three chapters are serialized, giving comic readers a refreshing feeling.

When seeing Superman solve a crisis and save a beautiful female reporter named Lois Lane, readers are imagining what will happen next between Superman and this female reporter, and are full of expectations.

Turning over the newspaper in his hand, he found that it was already the last page of the Courier.

Printed on the back page of the newspaper is a cover image of Superman wearing a tight suit and a cape with a shield-shaped S mark on his chest, holding a car high above his head.

Due to the black and white printing of newspapers, the Superman cover on the page has no color.

However, looking at the man holding a car high in the newspaper, the reader has a completely different feeling in his heart at this moment than before.

"Why not serialize more Superman content!"

The final complaint changed from why comics were serialized in the first place to why there were so few serialized comics.

The discussions triggered by the cartoons are not limited to readers of the Courier.

The settings of aliens, superpowers, and superheroes have successfully attracted the hearts of readers and produced a chain effect.

After all, compared with previous newspaper content, the plot of the "Superman" comics has a wider audience, so the promotion effect on newspapers is greater. In this world, there are only a few people with extreme hatred.

Some people still like to watch some normal content.

With the help of the discussion caused by the comics, "The Courier" has successfully sold more than 10,000 copies, and this is just the beginning.