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Top Banana
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OP
Top Banana
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Comments here Now, I didn't put whether it was a stand-alone or not and this seemed to be a natural stopping point. But if people want more, I can do more.
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Kerth
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Kerth
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I think it's very good as is - I wouldn't change anything.
Marcus L. Rowland Forgotten Futures, The Scientific Romance Role Playing Game
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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I'm with Marcus. Not every tragic ending needs to be redeemed. This is a very well-done stand-alone.
This *is* my happily ever after.
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Beat Reporter
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Beat Reporter
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Yes, the ending is perfect as is.
Of course I can't say I am fond of the story, because I'm never happy to see an evil Clark, or Clark destroyed. But I enjoy reading all your stories, no matter what the topic.
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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Excellent story. I'm not fond of thinking of evil Superman either, but this was a great story. Artemis
History is easy once you've lived it. - Duncan MacLeod Writing history is easy once you've lived it. - Artemis
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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~•~
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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Clark: “If we can be born in an instant, and die in an instant, why can’t we fall in love in an instant?”
Caroline's "Stardust"
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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Interesting. When I read this, I don't see an evil Superman so much as an insane one.
Normally something like this would bother me, but this Superman was clearly insane. There is no relationship, or at least there isn't at this point.
I think the sad part would be if this had been Clark and something had driven him to the point of insanity shown here. If it were our normal Clark, and something happened to him to bring him to this point, then this would be a very sad story. In that situation I would favor a continuation to see about a chance of redemption. However, given that he is a triple-digit multiple murderer, even if his mind could be recovered, I see no future.
So, as it is, it makes for an interesting Lois-takes-down-insane-Superman story.
Bob
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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No, seriously. That was so, so good. Thanks for the evil story. The set-up was chilling, but what really got me was the last line.
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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Ooh, creepy stalker Superman! And he's lost all his Supermanly ethics. Triple-digit-murderer!
Thanks for writing this chilling (but excellent) fic. And I agree with BJ - great last line.
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797 |
This is a really good vignette, but it is an especially brilliant counterpoint to Terry's fic about the evil Lois. What this story shows us is that an evil Superman frankly has to be killed, because there is simply no limit to how much havoc he could wreak and how many people he might see fit to kill if he was allowed to live and remain unchecked. I agree with Bob, by the way: This is an insane Superman, and it is hard to see him as a person who has ever been the Clark that we know.
I don't want to see this particular Superman saved. I wouldn't want to see a sequel where he is saved from the Kryptonite at the last moment only to become "good" again. Well, I have to admit that it would be interesting to see him become good and deal with his guilt and his horrible reputation. Could the public learn to trust a Superman who may have reformed, but who previously killed a hundred people? And would Clark be able to trust himself not to "slip" again? And would Lois and a reformed Clark be able to trust each other and fall in love and maybe marry? Admittedly that would be interesting to see.
Ann
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Boards Chief Administrator Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Boards Chief Administrator Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 9,066 Likes: 31 |
That was... disturbing. Heart-wrenching. Sad. What happened to Clark? Given his actions, I'd say he acted out of a possessive love for Lois, wanting to protected her from everything bad in the world, without putting her in a gilded cage, or a tropical island. And did Lois know about him being Clark?
Michael
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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It was terrible to behold. I bet. That’s a powerful and simplistic way to describe it. Metropolis became a shadow of itself as people fled the city to escape Superman’s reign of terror. Wow, imagine being terrified by Superman and having to run. I’m glad he’s a good guy (especially since in Shuster’s and Siegal’s first incarnation of him, he was not.) “I loved you,” he managed to gasp as the window behind him shattered and high powered slugs entered his body.
“I know,” Lois said through her tears. “That’s why I had to be the one to stop you.” Hmmm.... I think I would have liked to see their “little dance” carried on longer - maybe to the point that at the end, Lois has made Clark realize what he had been doing and how wrong he was. Good short! I wouldn’t want to see more. He’s dead or close enough that there is no saving him. And most SWAT teams aim for the head, don’t they? I don't see an evil Superman so much as an insane one. Yes, I think I agree, Bob. I think an evil Superman would be more insidious. If he wanted someone dead, I’d think, in Lex Luthor style, that he’d “keep his hands clean” and have someone else do the deed. I wouldn't want to see a sequel where he is saved from the Kryptonite at the last moment only to become "good" again. Well, I have to admit that it would be interesting to see him become good and deal with his guilt and his horrible reputation. Could the public learn to trust a Superman who may have reformed, but who previously killed a hundred people? Could the public ever trust Charlie Manson (who, as I understand it, never actually killed anyone). Could the public trust Jeffrey Daumer? John Wayne Gacey? The Green River Killer? The BTK (bind, torture, kill) killer? Jack the Ripper? Adolf Hitler? Pol Pot? Genghis Khan (while is reputation has been somewhat tempered in recent years, let’s face it, he was an evil man)? No, these people could never be trusted, and neither could a Superman who had killed so many. Even if he reformed, he’d likely get the death penalty. I’d think even countries who didn’t have the death penalty would want to see such an evil insane Superman die. He couldn’t just be put in an insane asylum. How would they keep him there? And I can assure you that at some point, he’d want out - even if he was “good” again. And did Lois know about him being Clark? She’d either figure it out when Clark didn’t show up at work, or someone from the government would have told her because I’m betting they would have already known. Interesting story, Deborah, and interesting discussion.
~~Even heroes have the right to dream.~~
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Top Banana
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OP
Top Banana
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What I'm finding interesting is everyone's assumption that it's Clark who went crazy and had to be taken out. There are other candidates you know... :rolleyes:
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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Hmmm.... Well, Lois does call him Superman, but I suppose "he" could be an alt Superman or the clone Superman. And now that I think about it, that behavior does sound a lot like the clone - especially with the whole Luthor thing. So, enlighten us, dear Dandello.
~~Even heroes have the right to dream.~~
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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Originally posted by Dandello: What I'm finding interesting is everyone's assumption that it's [b]Clark who went crazy and had to be taken out. There are other candidates you know... :rolleyes: [/b] Okay, I'll bite. But if this is a clone or some other incarnation of Superman, where was Clark? I can't see him standing by while this was taking place. I guess that Clark could have been one of the victims of this rogue Superman, but either he's dead, which makes it both sad and, in my opinion, uninteresting or he's "on ice" somewhere. Now that might be interesting. Clark coming back as Superman and trying to convince the public that he can be trusted. It would help that there would be the body of the rogue Superman to point at and say "See! It wasn't me." Bob
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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Bob - you are talking to someone who has destroyed the entire planet in less than twenty words, started a Christmas story with the world having come to an end and is working on a story series where the protagonists are already dead.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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That would be my deathfic, Dandello. It seemed a fitting gift for someone who liked to lurk in the dark side. I assumed when I read this that it was Luthor's clone who had done the killing. It sounded like his voice speaking. I was surprised from the comments that nobody else did. The only thing this short needed was a soundtrack. It was perfect. Elisabeth
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
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he's "on ice" somewhere. Now that might be interesting. Clark coming back as Superman and trying to convince the public that he can be trusted. It would help that there would be the body of the rogue Superman to point at and say "See! It wasn't me." Yep, I agree. Are you going to develop this story? And, why I never figured out this was a rogue Superman of some kind, I don't know. I think I may have if I hadn't read the other thread first. I did think of the Superman in the comics who went a little nuts and took over the world. But I don't know enough about that storyline to even begin to comment.
~~Even heroes have the right to dream.~~
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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Bobbart's challenge was for Clark to turn evil or controllable via something like the 'Moon and Stars' hypnotic prompt. BUT since hypnotism can't force someone to do anything they couldn't be talked into normally, at least not without drugs to lower the victim's resistance and some serious psychological reprogramming ala Patty Hearst.
And since one of Superman's unsung powers is super-coping (he will never get PTSS), it's unlikely even programming would work well without extraordinary measures on the writer's part... AND since I have yet to do a challenge exactly the way the challenger proposes...
And yes, 'The Rest of the Story' is in the works.
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