At DC's The Source, co-publisher Dan DiDio offered, "Joe created a Superman for the modern reader – a Clark Kent that’s conflicted and inexperienced but also focused and determined to embrace his destiny. We couldn’t be more pleased with how it turned out.”
“I’d originally come to DC to do the Superman Earth One book which, at the time, was top secret so nobody knew about it,” Straczynski said, “and filled out on Brave and the Bold for a while to have fun and get up to speed on the DCU. When I was done with SEO I took on the Superman and Wonder Woman monthlies on the theory that I’d have time to script the full 12 issues before bounding back onto Earth One. But when the huge numbers started coming in on Earth One, and the need to fastrack the next volumes became evident in order to keep the momentum going, I knew there was no way in god’s green earth that I could write that and the monthlies simultaneously."
He added that he would be taking a one-to-five year sabbatical from writing monthlies to focus on graphic novels like Superman: Earth One and Samaritan X. Graphic novels, he feels, is the way of the future. "And creatively," says Straczynski, "limited series and graphic novels have always been my strong suit in that they let me tell cohesive stories with a beginning, middle and end. They can also be written and drawn before anything is ever announced or solicited, as was the case with Earth One, which has been one of the greatest and most creatively rewarding experience of my career.”
With Superman being revamped for the big screen — and this is purely conjecture — one has to wonder if the success of Superman: Earth One will have any sort of impact on Man of Steel. Not too far-fetched when one keeps in mind rumblings that the film might deal with Clark making the decision to become Superman. The real question is: would Superman: Earth One serve as an interesting relaunching point for the character on the big screen?
For more information and to learn who will be replacing Straczynski on Superman and Wonder Womnan, just follow the link.