Ultraman is on another level

One of the few villains to never appear in a Superman film is Ultraman. With a new Superman film being released next year, one of the main antagonists is rumored to be Ultraman, marking his first live-action appearance. If this rumor is true, it could give Superman the biggest live-action fight of his film career.

Due to the changing nature and history of comics, many different versions of Ultraman have emerged over the years. The first premiered in 1964 Justice League of America #29 by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky. This story explored the history of the first version of Ultraman, who was markedly different from Superman. Ultraman was sent from Krypton to Earth-Three for unexplained reasons, considering this version of Krypton never exploded.

Upon landing on Earth-Three, Ultraman slowly gained more and more power as he came into contact with kryptonite. Unlike Superman, kryptonite does not harm Ultraman; instead, it increases your power and even grants you new ones. This trait remains with the character in many of his comic appearances, with some stories going so far as to have Ultraman snort kryptonite as a drug.

Ultraman was one of the first evil versions of Superman in DC Comics

“Crisis on Earth-Three!” of Justice League of America #29 by Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky, Bernard Sachs and Gaspar Saladino

This pre-Crisis version of Ultraman teamed up with other evil heroes known as Owlman, Super Woman, Power Ring and several others, to form the Crime Syndicatethe most powerful group of criminals on Earth-Three. The group easily conquers the planet and eventually sets their sights on multiversal domination. Not satisfied with ruling one Earth, they invade Earth-One, where they first encounter the Justice League. Although the Crime Syndicate lost this battle, they appear repeatedly throughout DC history. No matter how many times the universe is reset or changed, the Crime Syndicate always appears

The original version of Ultraman eventually dies in Crisis on Infinite Earths #1 by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez when the Anti-Monitor destroys their entire universe. Despite his death, this story is not the last readers see of Ultraman, as it's simply too good an idea to abandon. Ultraman appears again twenty-five years later in LJA: Earth 2 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. This story gives Ultraman the biggest departure from Clark Kent's origin yet, as this version of Ultraman has a completely different origin, further differentiating him from the heroic Man of Steel.

The second Ultraman has a completely different origin than the first

LJA: Earth-2 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely

Superman has perhaps one of the most famous superhero origins of all time. Sent on a rocket to Earth due to the death of his planet, the first Ultraman had a nearly identical origin, but the second Ultraman couldn't be more different. Instead of being an Alien that lands on Earth, the post-Crisis Ultraman is a decorated astronaut who has been to space several timesbut during one of his many sorties, his ship crashed. Instead of dying a violent death, he was saved by a race of aliens. Seeking to create the ultimate weapon, the aliens use kryptonite to enhance Ultraman's human body, transforming him into a being of unbelievable power.

The aliens, however, made a deadly mistake: they attempted to brainwash Ultraman only after granting him his powers. This plan didn't work and Ultraman ended up freeing himself from his alien captors and killing them with the new powers they gave him. He then returned to Earth and immediately used his new powers to take over the planet. Ultraman's brutal attack on Earth only inspired other super-powered beings to rise up as well. This universe's Lois Lane was also revealed to be the Amazonian villain Superwoman, who joined Ultraman when she formed the Crime Syndicate.

The Crime Syndicate's dominance over the planet ended up inspiring that world's Lex Luthor to rise up and try to defeat them. Using his incredible genius, Lex summons the Justice League from Earth-Prime, leading to another of the “first” meetings between the Justice League and the Crime Syndicate. This version of Ultraman is one of the most enduring, but again, it wasn't the final version. After the events of Dark Nights: Death Metal, a third new Crime Syndicate has appeared in the DC Universe.

Ultraman has once again been reinvented for DC's latest era

Dark Nights: Death Metal Inverts the DC Universe

This final version of Ultraman returned to his origins of being a dark mirror for Superman. In this interpretation, Jor-Il was a maniacal scientist who sent his son, Kal-Il, to Earth. During the rocket's journey, young Kal-Il was indoctrinated with videos about how he should be the strongest in the universe and eradicate any weaknesses of himself or others. Because of this “brainwashing”, Ultraman grew up with a much darker personality.

When he landed in Kansas, he immediately forced the Kent family to act like his parents, but when he turned seven, he killed them. Ultraman then traveled the world, attacking randomly, before finally killing the President of the United States and forming the Crime Syndicate. This version of Ultraman was also once again strengthened by kryptonite.

Evil Superman characters proliferate in comics – and not just in the DCU

But Ultraman was one of the first

There's something about the evil Superman trope that has clearly fascinated fans and creators alike. Superman should be a figure of hopesomeone who shows what humanity could be if they truly cared about each other. At the heart of the Superman character is the idea that, with unlimited power, a single man could choose to use it for good, which is the inverse of the idea that “absolute power corrupts absolutely.“

But not everyone can believe in this idea, which may explain the obsession with the evil Superman trope. With how powerful Superman is, it's hard not to imagine what he would be like as a villain, and that's something DC realized very early on, as did other independent creators. From the Superman of Injustice to The boys Homelander to Invincible Omni-Man, there is no shortage of “evil supermen” in pop culture.

While Superman himself has always been a force for good, Ultraman has always existed as his polar opposite. More than Bizarro, Ultraman becomes completely evil because he was corrupted by his powers. While there have been dozens of different versions of Ultraman over the decades, the one thing they all have in common is how they immediately try to take over the world when they gain the power to do so.

The Crime Syndicate will always be a major threat to the Justice League

And Ultraman is always their brutal leader

There are so many villains who can challenge Superman physically, but Ultraman has always been a special villain because he reflects everything Superman shouldn't be. He is a brutal dictator who only cares about himself and using his power to hurt others. This trope has been explored dozens of times, with major popular villains like Homelander and Omni-Man, at least initially, being directly inspired by the idea of ​​an evil Superman. While these characters are certainly iconic, they are just a ripoff of the original Ultraman.

Justice League of America #29 and LJA: Earth 2 are now available from DC Comics!