Action Comics #1 (1938)
by Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster
This is the big one. While there were proto-superheroes before him, it’s undeniable that Superman codified what we understand as a superhero.
As of 2023, it’s been 85 years since this comic was published. I’m not sure if I can find anything new to say about those 13 pages and 97 panels, but I’ll give it a try.
Heck the cover ALONE has several things to discuss!
June 1938 is the cover date; the comic actually hit the stands on April 18th, in case you need to wish Superman happy birthday. It was a Monday.
[edit: it’s probably not. See the comments]
The price was 10 cents, which would be about 2.18 dollars in 2023.
The highest price paid for a copy is 3.25 million dollars in 2021.
It is not, however, the most expensive comic book sale: in 2022, Superman #1 was sold for a staggering 5.3 million dollars.
Even Spider-Man narrowly beat Action Comics’ record, with Amazing Fantasty #15 selling for 3.6 million dollars in 2021.
Action Comics #1 might be rarest among them; it’s estimated that there are from 50 to 100 copies still in existence. For reference, the original print run was 200,000 copies, which sold out VERY quickly.
The cover has, of course, been homaged and parodied countless times. And it was definitely a factor in Superman’s success. Publisher Jack Liebowitz is on record stating that Superman’s story ended up as the main feature only because he chose “the most thrilling cover”.
(Action Comics was an anthology series, like most comics at the time)
With all the rightful praise the cover receives, I think we should also appreciate the logo. Just look at this beauty! It’s such a strong design that has lasted for decades.
I could also talk about the long journey necessary to even get Superman published… a story that begins all the way back in 1933 when Siegel wrote the short story The Reign of the Superman… or how the first Superman story is actually a re-work of a comic strip version that got rejected… but I should probably start to talk about the actual Action Comics #1.
The very first panel is the ONLY mention of Superman’s home planet, that doesn’t even get named. Superman himself won’t even discover he’s an alien from Krypton until 1949 on Superman #61.
One of my absolute favorite bits of trivia about Golden Age Superman is that the rocket ship was found by “a passing motorist” and taken to an orphanage!
Most future versions of the origin story will skip the motorist entirely, with the Kents being the one to find him (even in versions where they DO take him to the orphanage before adopting him).
I’m not aware of ANY other version that keeps the motorist, who I’m pretty sure has not yet appeared in a single comic.
Famously, Superman’s powers were WAY weaker than what they will eventually become… mostly because he’s Superman, because he’s not exactly weak. Even compared to most pulp heroes that preceded him, he’d be among the strongest.
And here it is: the very first panel featuring Superman. Aside from the symbol, the costume hasn’t really changed much!
“Superman, champion of the oppressed” is sometimes considered the title of the first story. It was also part of the introduction of the radio serial for a while.
As mentioned the story used to be part of the unpublished comic strip, so the panels had to be cut and re-arranged to fit a (now) standard comic book page.
This requires the awkward addition of a scientific explanation for Superman’s strength.
Alright, let’s now focus on our hero… who is first shown carrying a tied-up woman.
He then proceeds to break into the house of the Governor of… whatever state this is supposed to be.
I know the 30s were not exactly an easy decade to live in, but… the Governor has a steel security door to his bedroom? What the heck was going on at the time!?
Superman is not without a sense of humor!
I’m not criticizing Superman for kidnapping the woman at the beginning of the story: she has confessed being a murderer, and Superman is here to prevent an innocent from getting the electric chair.
Not sure that confession is going to hold up in court, but this superhero business is new for everyone.
The governor’s butler even shoots Superman (!!!), with predictable results.
In a holdover from the comic strip, these few panels have a ticking clock to the time of execution. That’s a neat idea for the strip, but I don’t think it holds well in comic book format.
This succeeds in saving the life of the wrongly accused woman.
We never learn ANYTHING about this case, by the way… who was killed, why she was accused, how Superman found out the truth… nothing. And as far as I know, there is no story set in this period that goes into detail.
Surely SOMEONE has thought about giving the backstory to Superman’s first case!!!
EDIT: they did! Thanks for A.Gerard in the comments, I recalled that the story was expanded in Superman #1 from 1939.
Next we get to see a bit of Clark Kent. He doesn’t work at the Daily Planet yet: the newspaper is called the Daily Star. And its boss is named George Taylor, because Perry White will be introduced in the second episode of the radio show, in February 1940.
Perry will make the transition into comics in Superman #7 of the same year, in case you thought that characters being introduced in another media and then being popular enough to move to comics is a modern thing.
Superman’s SECOND case ever is taking on a guy who beats his wife, in case you thought that Superman tackling real world issues is a modern thing.
The story also has the first appearance of Lois Lane, who shockingly enough accepts to go on a date with Clark Kent in her very first panel!!!
Aaaand she regrets it immediately.
Clark Kent acting like a coward to protect his secret identity is also there right from the start.
Also, Golden Age Lois is amazing!
Still… she’s Lois Lane, so she gets kidnapped on her very first story!
Superman soon catches up to the car…
…and THAT is the backstory behind the cover!
Superman sure makes a memorable first impression!!!
The cover scene gets all the attention, but this is my favorite panel.
He’s also very protective of his anonymity, asking Lois to stay silent about their encounter…
…which she disobeys THE NEXT PANEL, because Lois Lane.
And finally, Clark Kent is assigned a story about a war going on in South America, with “San Monte” being the first fictional country of DC Comics.
Also: there were no news to report in 1938? Really?
THIS is the front page of the New York Times for April 18th 1938, the publishing date of this story. Nothing exciting enough for a comic book reader, sure, but it’s still news!
Clark Kent goes to Washington D.C. to discover that a lobbyist is corrupting a Senator, in case you thought this was a modern thing.
It is important to remember that WWII had not started yet, but it was right around the corner: Nazi Germany annexed Austria just 37 days before this story hit the stand.
Superman has been eavesdropping on the conversation from outside the window!!! I guess we’re back to Metropolis, because there are no skyscrapers in Washington D.C.
His solution is to KIDNAP THE LOBBYIST AND SCARE THE CRAP OUT OF HIM!!!
The story ends on a cliffhanger.You will need to buy the second issue of Action Comics to discover if he drops the lobbyist.
Or you could just keep reading this review.
In Action Comics #2, turns out he was only pretending to struggle to scare the lobbyist.
You probably expected that. But maybe not that Lois Lane becomes a war correspondent in her SECOND appearance!
Superman’s actions has terrorized the arms manufacturer that corrupted the Senator so much that he enlists in the Army(!!!)…
…which is followed by SUPERMAN JOINING THE ARMY OF SAN MONTE.
This is all part of Superman’s plan to show to the arms manufacturer what his weapons do in a war.
I wonder if Superman later regretted forcing an American arms manufacturer to drop out of the business once WWII starts.
Also Lois Lane gets accused of espionage. At least she’s not kidnapped!
And Superman ends the war in the least believable way ever.
As a final note: Superman’s city won’t be named Metropolis until Action Comics #16.
At this point, apparently he works in Cleveland!
Historical significance: 11/10
It is my policy to never go above 10/10 for this category. However, considering THE ENTIRE GENRE WOULD NOT EXIST WITHOUT IT, this one warrants an exception.
Silver Age-ness
Action Comics #1: 1/10
The fact that Superman is an alien is ONLY referenced in the first panel and never addressed in the story, which is extremely Golden Age but at least has a tiny bit of Silver Age-ness.
Action Comics #2: 4/10
I could see Silver Age Superman coming up with the scheme to have the arms manufacturer join the Army just to scare him out of business.
Does it stand the test of time? 7/10
This is a hard call. It’s extremely old-fashioned in many ways and surprisingly modern in others.
It is kind of amusing that Superman will be associated mostly with fantastical plots in opposition to Batman dealing with street level crimes… considering Superman DID start as a street level hero!
He’s also surprisingly more direct than the Superman we’re accustomed to, plus he doesn’t really have much of a personality.
Lois, on the other hand, starts out great! Her Golden Age incarnation could be a bit ditzy at times, but give me 40s Lois over 60s Lois any day.
The artwork is more solid than Shuster’s standards; I’m not a huge fan, but he does deliver some fantastic shots. The panel when Lois meets Superman for the first time REALLY sells the shock!
And most importantly of all… even after 85 years, this story is still very much enjoyable! Many Golden Age stories have not aged this well.
How close is this to the modern character? 6/10
Early Superman is definitely more direct, even something of a bully at times, and like I said he doesn’t have much personality. At least for the very first story.
The powers are not there yet, and doesn’t show his typical level of empathy.
What IS there right from the start, however, is Superman standing up for little guy: “champion of the oppressed” REALLY represents the character.
The look is ALMOST there… only the boots and the symbol will go through multiple adjustments. The symbol in particular, despite how important and iconic it will become, is barely noticeable here.
Still… you can definitely see the hints of what will sustain over a thousand issues of the series.
Hmmm. I thought there was more story to it. Clark Kent tries to get employed at the Daily Star, learns there was a recent murder of one Jack Kennedy. One of the accused has his jail besieged and almost lynched by a mob until Superman comes to the rescue. The grateful prisoner tells that neither he nor the woman in death row killed Kennedy. The real murderer is a nightclub singer. Superman confronts the singer, who draws a gun and confesses to the crime. Supes disarms her and takes her to the Governor. OT I think the Huey Long assassination was still fresh in people’s minds in 1938.
You’re talking about Superman #1 from 1939, which added a few scenes. I totally forgot it expanded the story behind the woman! I’m adding the scans to the review, thanks for reminding me!
I’ve been reading your blog for a long time and it’s one of my favorites, this is my first time commenting because I felt the need to point out Action Comics was most certainly NOT released on April 18th. The most likely release date was May 3rd 1938, which was a Tuesday meanwhile April 18th was the date Action #1 was copyrighted. CBR covered the topic in April 2018 based on the research of Mike Voiles (from Mike’s Amazing World).
Just a minor nitpick, I’m always very grateful for your reviews
Thanks for following! The very concept of publishing dates being so different from cover dates is still alien to me to this day, so I defer to the experts. I’ve added a note to the review.
Fantastic review of a quintessential comic upon which the whole super-hero genre was built upon!