Download Here
- Intro
- Email us voice recordings of your thoughts on Batman & what he means to you for upcoming episode – capesonthecouch@gmail.com
- Background (1:13)
- Superman: Red Son, written by Mark Millar with artwork by Dave Johnson, Andrew Robinson, Walden Wong, Killian Plunkett, colors by Paul Mounts – released June 2003
- Elseworlds tale that asks: What if Superman landed in the Soviet Union? – takes both familiar DC characters and real-world people and combines them into an interesting story
- In 1953, the Soviets reveal Superman to the world, leading CIA agent James Olsen to ask Lex Luthor to create a metahuman for the USA
- Pyotr Roslov, head of the KGB and Stalin’s illegitimate son, resents Superman for disrupting his plans to take over the country – after Stalin’s death, Superman takes over the USSR
- By 1978, only the US and Chile are not part of the Warsaw Pact, and all communist nations are under the heel of Superman – any dissidents are turned into robots with mind-control technology
- Luthor works with Brainiac to shrink Moscow, but shrinks Stalingrad instead – Superman takes control of Brainiac and reprograms him to help
- Batman, orphaned son of parents killed by Roslov, leads a Soviet resistance against Superman, and manages to use Wonder Woman to lure Superman into a trap using red-light lamps that turn him mortal – unfortunately Wonder Woman breaks free of the restraints and destroys the device, which leads Batman to kill himself as a martyr
- Luthor then uses the ship that landed in Roswell in 1947, and its green ring, as a weapon to create an army of Green Lanterns
- In 2001, Luthor, now President, has turned the US into a profitable nation once again, and eggs Superman to attack after breaking into his Winter Palace
- Superman assaults the East Coast, and defeats both the Green Lantern Corps and the Amazonian forces – when he reaches the White House, he sees a letter from Luthor saying “Why don’t you just put the whole world in a bottle?”
- Superman instantly regrets everything he’s done, and tells his team to stand down, but Brainiac refuses and says this was all part of his long plan to take over – Luthor, who was scheduled for mind control surgery, shuts down Brainiac from within, but not before Brainiac could start a self-destruct countdown
- Superman flies the ship into space, and it explodes, seemingly killing Superman
- The world enters a period of peace and prosperity under Luthor, who unites the world into a collection of countries – in a distant future, Jor-L (a distant descendant of Lex) sends his son into the past to save the planet from certain destruction
- Issues (15:59)
- Superman: The warped use of “Might is Right”
- Pyotr Roslov: Will never get Stalin’s approval as an illegitimate son (21:03)
- Wonder Woman: Soured relationship with Superman over his sterile view of the world (27:38)
- Batman: Goes farther than his mainstream counterpart in support of his ideals (35:37)
- Lois Lane: Why does she stay with Luthor in a loveless marriage? (44:54)
- Lex Luthor: Functions as a hero but with the motivation of a villain (50:45)
- Break (58:09)
- Plugs for Scotch N Sports, Popcorn Psychology, and Phillip Kennedy Johnson
- Treatment (59:21)
- In-universe – Superman gets treated in red room and gets refocused on helping mankind; Lex (62:32)
- Out of universe – Start by addressing differences in backgrounds, and go from there
- Ending (69:20)
- Next episodes: Mojo (Matt), Batman Month 1, Batman Month 2
- Plugs for social
References:
- The Who – “Won’t Get Fooled Again” – Anthony (4:47)
- Dexter – Doc (52:50)
Apple Podcasts: here
Google Play: here
Stitcher: here
TuneIn: here
iHeartRadio: here
Spotify: here
