Shameless, Shameless Superman

The solicitation copy for the recently-digitized Superman 713 reads:

What could possibly make The Man of Steel decide to stop being Superman? Superboy and Supergirl catch up with him in Portland, Oregon, and they want answers!

It just as easily could have read:

What could possibly make The Man of Steel decide to undress in front of his teenaged girl cousin? Superboy and Supergirl don't want to know!

Really, he couldn't have changed out of his costume before meeting them? This is a trend I've noticed not only with comic book characters, but with fictional characters across various media: nobody has any sense of shame about casually undressing in front of others. Not that I think people should be ashamed of their bodies--I think it's kind of silly when guys make a big deal about changing under their towel when in a men's locker room--but in my experience most real people are not so cavalier about displaying their bodies for friends, family, and random strangers to see. So why do writers of fiction feel compelled to write characters who are so entirely without shame? (Except for Supergirl, who is clearly ashamed of her cousin.)


Or do I just know the wrong people? Because if there are men who look like Superman who are in the habit of casually undressing in front of their acquaintances, I want to be friends with these men. (And what straight man would not want to be friends with someone like Wonder Woman who sleeps nude and has no qualms about getting dressed in front of random strangers who magically appear in her bedroom?)

Digital Video: Young Justice "Terror"

Young Justice s1e11: "Terror"
Air date: September 23, 2011
Rating: 4 out of 5 Pixels

As I've come to expect from Young Justice, this episode was packed with guest-stars from the DCU: Hugo Strange, two Icicles, Killer Frost, Captain Cold, Mr. Freeze, that Brick guy from Judd Winick's Green Arrow, the Riddler, a handful of Justice Leaguers, and best of all, Amanda Waller. I don't say "best of all" because Waller is my favorite character or anything. Amanda Waller is an okay character who works well in certain types of stories--a story about villains trying to break out of Belle Reve being one such type of story. The "best of all" thing here is that Young Justice lets Amanda Waller be Amanda Waller, not Halle Berry:

Thank you, YJ, for recognizing that not everyone has to be skinny.

Apart from a faithful depiction of the Wall, this episode has a great infiltrating-the-bad-guys story with the same tension, character development, and suspense that this show has displayed in the previous ten episodes, and on top of  all that Superboy and Miss Martian finally kiss. This is not a coupling that I would have thought of, but it works. My only complaint is that this is the second episode in a row without Robin, Kid Flash, or Artemis. Here's hoping they return next week...