Open Thread: Oracle Hotline

[mithen]

So... how are we feeling? I'm still numb and horrified, and trying to figure out how to manage my information diet (I cannot, cannot, cannot deal with a steady flow of terrible news and doom; I have to figure out a way to get information without being buried in despair). Please feel free to vent here, or just to ignore the election and talk about fic.

The last time I posted, I mentioned that the new Absolute Superman comic wasn't out yet and I was curious how they would handle Clark. Well, it's not really to my liking in a lot of ways--Krypton exploded much later in this universe, when Clark was eight or nine, and he never met the Kents. They've shifted Lara and Jor-El's characters so that they're former scientists who have become outcasts and farmers, so they kind of have melded the Els and the Kents into one couple. Kal on Earth itself is very kind and humane, looking out for the downtrodden, but also very definitely alien, with no real human connections/friends at all. I don't know if I can get something to work with a Clark/Bruce setup with them, but it does seem worth a try... Weirdly, now it's Superman who watched his parents die in front of him when he was a young boy. Absolute Batman's Martha Wayne survived the shooting! It's a very odd shift.

I'm curious if that would make Kal unwritable for you guys? (For the Clois shippers among us, Lois is a government agent trying to stop the mysterious do-gooder alien, and I'm sure that'll be a fun dynamic as well, it's just quite odd).

Comments

[bradygirl_12]

Kind of shaking my head. I figured this would be the outcome. With stagnant wages and skyrocketing prices, people voted their pocketbooks while holding their noses. The Dems did a poor job of convincing people they could make progress with the economy.

And no one says it, but Kamala's gender was probably a factor. Other countries elect women as their leaders but we can't seem to do it.

They really changed Clark's background, huh? I guess I could work with it, but his actual history is so ingrained it would take effort! ☺️

Take care of yourself. We live in bizarre times, my friend.

[mithen]

Take care of yourself as well, it's going to be a challenging time. My younger niece has just started college at Simmons, so I'm glad to know both she and you are in a blue state, at least!

They really changed Clark's background, huh? I guess I could work with it, but his actual history is so ingrained it would take effort! ☺️

Yes, exactly this! I want to see if I can make it work, but even though I've written versions of Clark that are a little like this, it's a real challenge to remember that nope, he actually grew up on Krypton until he was 7 or so. Absolute Batman is also much more working-class (son of a teacher who was killed in a mass shooting at a zoo--Martha survived, which is weird!) But I do feel like their essential personalities manage to shine through, somehow.

[svgurl]

Yeah, a week later and I'm still in shock. It was bad enough in 2016 and the fact that they chose to do it all over again is just disheartening, especially considering the Dems lost the popular vote. :\

I've only read a few comics and none of them were Superman, but that is an ... interesting take? I guess. The Kent family dynamic is important so that is disappointing, but it is fun to explore. Lois as a government agent is definitely weird though.

[mithen]

Lois as a government agent is definitely weird though.

Yeah, I think (she's only appeared for maybe 2 panels) the hook is that she followed in her father's footsteps and works for him now? We're definitely going to get a fun slow-burn story where she realizes she's pursuing an innocent man (did you ever watch the 90s show The Pretender? It feels a lot like that!)