Superman '78 #1 is like a lost Christopher Reeve & Richard Donner film

34 years after Christopher Reeve last donned the Man of Steel garb, his story picks up again later this year with Superman '78. Writer Rob Venditti and artist Wilfredo Torres are continuing the story of Reeve's cinematic Superman in this six-issue comic book series.

"There’s no fictional character that I love more than Superman, and of all the many interpretations of the big guy in Comics, animation, TV and Film, the Christopher Reeve/Richard Donner version is the one I love the most," Torres says in a DCComics.com article. "Working on this project is very literally a childhood dream come true."

Set between the films Superman II and Superman III, Superman '78 mixes the classic superheroes of the Man of Steel in Metropolis with the interpersonal relationships he has as Clark Kent with the Daily Planet staff (including most notably Lois Lane), who doesn't know his superheroic identity.

"My earliest memory interacting with the DC universe is seeing Christopher Reeve fly across the screen," said Venditti. "While others might say that the John Byrne era is their Superman, or the Dan Jurgens era is their Superman, Reeve is mine. Superman is and has always been my favorite superhero, but Superman '78 is a project I never dreamed of working on because it didn’t seem possible it could ever exist. This is the gig of a lifetime."

Check out this preview of Venditti and Torres' Superman '78 #1 (of 6):

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Superman '78 #1 preview

That's right - the main villain of Superman '78 #1 is Brainiac, a classic DC villain that was almost a Superman movie villain on numerous occasions - including Superman III, whose original script had Brainiac, Mister Mxyzptik, and evil Supergirl.

Superman '78 is the latest in a string of comic book continuations of classic DC TV and film heroes, including Batman '66, Wonder Woman '77, and the concurrent Batman '89.

Superman '78 #1 (of 6) goes on sale on August 24 with a primary cover by Torres. There are variant covers by Torres, Evan 'Doc' Shaner, and Mico Suayan. Check them out here:

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Superman '78 #1 covers

Can't wait? Check out our recommended best Superman stories of all time.

Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)