Movies News Talk
Holy Mullet, Batman! Superman's Almost-Legendary '90s Hairdo!
Let's be honest, Superman's '90s mullet was…a thing. It wasn't exactly universally loved, causing some serious debate. But get this: an artist almost made it a MILLION times better! A recent Twitter thread blew the internet's collective mind by bringing back a seriously awesome design idea for that Electric Superman version, bringing back nostalgia that's totally awesome.
This happened because of the iconic split into "Superman Blue" and "Superman Red"; two distinctly different versions after an epic, multi-part story arc featuring that villain duo and other developments that completely shifted that storyline towards more action-based sequences, culminating in a temporary splitting of Superman's identity which brought about both this specific unique transformation in design but more importantly also brought about radical personality changes to Superman and resulted in this really unique storyline!
Before Superman's '90s look became a thing, there were numerous alternative designs – and these became hugely popular. Comic book creator Dan Jurgens shared early concept art; causing a huge online discussion with responses from Adam Mallinger and Michael Bailey bringing back memories concerning an earlier publication. These recollections are mentioned in the Aztek: The Ultimate Man #10; with images surfacing of Paul Ryan, Tom Grummett, Jon Bogdanove, and Jurgens's own work on several concepts.
Grummett's design completely steals the show, that unique idea really is worth discussion! The suit becomes that super cool containment suit. The most memorable addition, folks? A mullet with a Kirby Krackle effect!
That mullet that first appeared in "Reign of the Supermen," was a total shock after Doomsday killed Superman! Many fans disliked that hair change, yet it almost became legendary thanks to Grummett's insane artistic choice which takes something so strange and delivers this epic update! The Kirby Krackle effect (those amazing, energetic dots frequently associated with big-time cosmic characters like Galactus or Darkseid), turned it into a really iconic symbol which clearly communicated just how tremendously powerful and electrifying that "Superman Blue" truly was.
It adds a completely new dimension to Superman. This makes use of something many critics didn't appreciate: that extremely strange and unpopular hairdo; yet this idea takes that controversial decision; elevates this unexpected plot and redesign of Superman; to turn this unpopular haircut into a symbol which adds a completely new layer of depth to an existing design. If only they’d gone with that. This version, folks, would’ve been the greatest mullet in comic history.
This is one of the best "what if" moments ever! That amazing Kirby Krackle mullet design is fantastic! That awesome alternate timeline's hypothetical reality really gets people thinking and wondering what would have been different. This completely missed opportunity has continued to make people wonder; reminding comic fans how much a small detail like hair (seriously!) matters. And that Grummett's design serves to elevate the entirety of Superman's design.