I liked how totally used to all this nonsense the Daily Planet crew are in the movie. You don't get to be caught in Superman's immediate orbit for 3 whole years without building up a superhuman tolerance for crazy bullshit. Every person in that building has stared into the abyss and when the abyss stared back they told it "sir, this is a Wendy's."
Superman (2025) Spoiler Based Thoughts, Ratings, and Trigger Warnings.
I finally saw the new Superman. This time with a non comic book friend! Which gave me some very interesting perspectives. In case you are just stumbling upon my thoughts you should know: I am a huge DC comics nerd, I started my journey with the Cartoon Network Teen Titans and haven’t stopped since. My personal favorite character is Wally West, and often my opinions stem from that! I also am a huge movie and tv nerd, you name it I have opinions on it, I often recite the history of the American Shot when asked, so for your safety don’t ask.
First: The Bad
I have three major complaints that I think deserve mentioning, and one that isolates more a personal opinion! I wasn’t a fan of two casting decisions, one and a half costuming choices and one two point. But I do believe that at least one of the plot points is absolutely a valid choice to smooth along some superhero oddity’s.
So the actor who plays Lois Lane is a little flat for me, which is strange because I honestly liked her acting in the one other thing I’ve seen of hers. Now I don’t think she’s as large of a part as the story seemed to want her to be, which might be adding to it, or perhaps the part was lessened because of the acting.
The other casting I struggled with was Jimmy! Now if you knew me you’d know Ashmore is my Jimmy. You would also know my belief that you can add diversity but taking it away is rude at least. Not only did they cast a white Jimmy (post supergirl of all things), he’s also a brunette! Now that aside he was a fantastic actor who makes the role work, but his character is still a jerk for the way he treated Eve.
Now onto the costuming! I love costuming, so imagine my surprise when everything is perfect except the justice gang clothes. Well half of the clothes. Mr Terrific remains practically perfect in every way, the mask, the jacket, the chair! He is perfectly cast and the costume is wonderful, but the other two… Let’s start with Hawkgirl. Her outfit is fine, it’s militant and looks great with her wings and helmet but I was not a fan of the black and white color scheme. It’s Guy’s outfit that I am less than thrilled about, the outfit is fine but it’s black and white, it never goes green and in fact I believe they were really nervous bringing in a Green Lantern. He only really gets to show off twice and the constructs are not as cool as they could be.
And Omniman. The second I heard the name I knew that I was going to see Superman beat up the alternate universe version of him. Now color me surprised when he was Match. Now for those not familiar with the character of Match, he is exactly what you see with this Omniman only he’s the first attempt Lex makes to mix his DNA with Superman’s. Which I understand is far too much to explain in this movie, but I think the movie should have just called him Match and said he was a match for superman in skill and ability.
I also find it a real waist that Jimmy the photographer never takes a photo. Like he is important in three scenes and literally two of them would make more sense if he had a camera! In one he is supposed to see that a source has sent him secret information via selfie, only he doesn’t actually do that, Lois does! And in another as they are writing an article about the final battle, he’s doing the transcript instead of taking pictures, Kat could have done the transcript, but no!
The Good:
I will make this short: everything was good. Fine I’ll point out some of my favorite parts, just for you the reader! I was a personal fan of the characters, the easter eggs, and the politics. But I also thought the writing was good, as was the world building.
I am going to talk about the characters, easter eggs, and world building first because they share similarities. The characters are strong besides my one complaint. I knew each characters motivation and worldview pretty instantly with every main character, but it was the side characters that shined. Kat Grant was in a handful of scenes and truly showed she was a girls girl, as well as a reporter, something I think is often overlooked. Perry made every moment on screen about him, in true Perry White fashion. I think he could have easily been made into a J Jonah Jameson character but wasn’t! Eve was perfect from the start which made me think she would be Mercy reimagined. Mr Terrific was a particular standout to me, very autistic coded! He was funny, motivated, personable in the right way, and specific. Guy Gardner reminded me why Nathan Fillion is always a win, he was just on the right side of tool while also being a good enough guy to be a Green Lantern. Superman and Lex were both amazing as well! Everyone has mentioned it already, but Clark, Superman, and Omniman are so clearly played differently while still being in character, Clark was bumbling and silly, but when his voice drops and he straightens up we see Superman a paragon of Hope Justice and a Better Tomorrow, and Omniman gives real mindless Cave Man vibes.
The opening text told us about the world, when metahumans showed up, when Superman showed up. And yet that’s not the only world building. We see the world as it would have changed to adapt. There are protocols for when a giant kaiju shows up, some superpowered individuals have normal jobs and partners, others are being paid to respond to said kaiju. We see Stagg Labs when Superman walks into a random building, we hear of landmarks like Star Labs and Jitters, the daily planet cares about getting the story first! The world building is the easter eggs, is the characters!
Now onto the politics. Don’t scroll! I feel you should know now, I am pro Palestine, pro immigrants rights, pro LGBT rights, pro Human Rights, and in general pro People. Now I know there are other pro Palestine movies out there, but I have yet to see a mainstream movie so open about that opinion. Superman has always been what the far right is against, and that is clear here. I personally believe you would be a fool not to see the direct parallels being made in this movie, the politics inform the movie.
The writing is fantastic. Every single line felt right to me, like nothing failed in delivery. If it was humorous then it landed funny. If it was serious it landed serious. And if the was a nod to the fans it was a nod to the fans! You could watch the movie without being a fan, the friend I brought thought the movie was good without a caveat something that he’s only done for one other superhero movie. And yet everything was crafted for me as well, I already pointed out some easter eggs, but those were just the tip of the iceberg for me! I saw story beats from my favorite comics, I knew why some things weren’t said to leave room for specific character based storylines if a side character tested well, I see the Hawkgirl movie, I see the Justice League movie, and if those movies do actually get made they will have options. There was an in joke for the green lantern fans who think the ring oaths are just whatever the writers wanted them to be. And so much more!
Third: The Ratings
Plot: 🍿🍿🍿🍿.75/5. This movie has a bomb plot. Everything fits, each choice complements the story they want to tell. I do think that Jimmy’s lack of camera skills will forever taint this movie as will all the eye stuff…
Characters: 🦸♂️🦸♂️🦸♂️🦸♂️.5/5 Every character felt actualized and like they lived in this movie. But the sports writer felt a little hokey, which is partially the writing, and Jimmy has no camera, plus I genuinely don’t know the nanite girls motivation. actually she’s kinda the weakest character that the plot needs. And possibly should have been Mercy Graves…
Acting: 🎭 🎭🎭🎭/5. Like I said the main love interest didn’t really do it for me. She is the main secondary character but she doesn’t stand out or feel genuine. Every other actor feels right in this world and she did not. And again I really liked this actor in the other thing I saw of hers.
Cinematography: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️/5 I can’t remember a single bad shot. Do I think the CGI will age well? Still probably better than the Green Lantern movie. The movie seems like the perfect mix of action and heartfelt storytelling. Each place feels unique, the city feels different then kansas wich both feel different than the other countries/realms we visit. The glass box prison was expansive and terrifying. The Daily Planet felt warm where Lex Corp felt colder, they actually did this by making all of the Luthor owned stuff have silver and grey stuff while the rest of the city had gold/copper and even the cement was lighter in the buildings. I personally could have done without all the eye gore.
Dialogue: 🔊🔊🔊🔊.75/5 The lines are excellent, the banter is well done, the language isn’t too sci-fi nonsense, and it does a good job of sounding lived in. There is a scene that stands out where Clark is walking into work, he says hello to the doorman, goes to the main floor where each person has something to say to him, but not in a way that feels forced.
Sound Design: 🎵🎵🎵🎵🎵/5 The classic score meets the modern music. I believe the band at the end was just in universe. But it was the use of the classic theme that got me. I heard it at least twice and each time it was triumphant without being to cheesy, better ears would be able to tell you if it was edited but I wasn’t able to focus in theatre. I would say the general CGI noises (noises made from CGI beings) were not as pleasant as I think they could be, sometimes things were just a little fake sounding to me.
Emotional Impact: 💧💧💧💧💧/5 This is subjective and only my feelings matter on it. I teared up at points, and honestly will be thinking about several characters for a long time (many I didn’t mention here). I am drained, from it. Yet I couldn’t help but leave feeling as if people can make a difference.
Overall: 📰📰📰📰.71/5. I absolutely love this movie! I don’t think I have seen another like it in a long time! It is a perfect Superman!
Forth: Bizarre Trigger Warnings (These are just things I feel you should be warned about if possible but you might not see other places)
1. Axolotl death. A giant axolotl is killed by the good guys but not specifically Superman.
2.Dog Whimpers. There is a point earlier on where the dog whimpers because he can’t go with Superman. The do remains mostly if not completely unharmed in this movie, but the whimpers got to me.
3. Kidnapped woman. Listen I know that’s like every superhero movie in one. But, Lex Luther kidnaps his ex girlfriends and keeps them in his black ops prison.
4. Double end credits scene. zulu have to wait ten minutes to see all the footage.
This isn’t just about a student newspaper at a midwestern college. This is just one small piece of the puzzle of corporate interests and wannabe dictators dismantling the news industry, turning it into entertainment and a propaganda machine. This is the same force that is censoring comedians, leading legacy media to bend a knee to the Trump administration, and spreading misinformation that gets people killed.
We need public universities to maintain quality and integrity – yes, even the ones in states you dislike.
If you like what I do and want to
“What did you expect when you went to Indiana for school?” I expected quality and integrity. And I still expect quality and integrity. I expect that a tax-payer funded institution that is meant to serve the public by providing both economic opportunities through education and the development of knowledge (even when said knowledge isn’t profitable) fulfill that mission. Without IU, I never would have had the opportunity to do the work that I do. My work on LGBTQIA+ rights and religious liberty would be non-existent. When public universities decline in quality, society loses the writers, teachers, lawyers, doctors, artists, musicians, engineers, entrepreneurs, scientists, and beyond that push our world forward.
I know it is easy for self-styled progressives, liberals, and yes, even leftists to ignore this when it happens in a red state. This is a broader problem within left leaning activism, where we abandon the south and the midwest in particular because we think they’re unworthy of our care. But we cannot ignore the degradation of these institutions purely because they are in places we might want to mock. I won’t allow it. The cost is too high.
