I started Superman: Man of Tomorrow on HBO Max the other night. I’ve always been a fan of the DC Comics superheroes and I finally got around watching this one, though it only came out in 2020, so it’s not super old.

The story isn’t really connected to any of the other movies from what I’m aware of. It’s really another Superman origins movie. It starts out focusing with Clark Kent accepting that he’s an alien from outer space.

So he moves to Metropolis when he grows up and becomes an intern for the Daily Planet. While he really wants to become a respected reporter, he gets famous in the news as the “flying man” when people need saving.

But his heroics will be put to the test when an alien named Lobo comes looking for him exactly. Lobo is a galactic bounty hunter who is apparently coming to collect his fee for the capture of the last Kryptonian.

While Lobo is an antagonist, the real bad guy in the movie is a monster called Parasite. I won’t spoil anything about him, but while he was an interesting villain, the nature of his powers are so crazy that he makes Superman look weak.

I also enjoy this incarnation of the Martian Manhunter in the movie. With the chaotic mess of the DC Extended Universe , I wonder if we’ll ever see him on the big screen.

This movie also had one of the best versions I’ve ever seen for Lois Lane. She’s smart as a whip, she’s edgy and powerful, and you can see why Clark Kent would fall for her.

At the end of the day Superman: Man of Tomorrow is actually a pretty fantastic film, for a direct to video animated movie anyway. It shows a weaker and more naive Man of Steel which humanizes his character when it’s badly needed. While it’s not quite the best story Superman has ever starred in, it’s definitely one of the better ones for a standalone plot.