Superman‘s return to the big screen was just what the doctor ordered, bringing back a more classic comic-inspired version of the hero. Superman was a dose of “hope punk” when fans needed it the most and since its success, the DCU has been getting its share of attention, and even with recent shakeups, the world is still excited for the sequel to the 2025 hit: Man of Tomorrow. DC announced the movie with piece of Jim Lee art with Superman and an armored Lex Luthor standing with each other and fans were teased that the two foes, who had been so perfectly played as enemies by David Corenswet and Nicholas Goult, teaming up against an even bigger threat: Brainiac. That opens the doors for numerous stories, including one forgotten Superman event.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Brainiac has been menacing the Man of Steel since the ’50s. Much like Lex Luthor, he was also a villain who used his brains to battle the Kryptonian hero. Unlike Lex, he was an alien cyborg from the planet Colu, where he was the most intelligent – and evil – of the bunch. Another thing he and Luthor have in common is mutability; Brainie has changed a lot since he first appeared with his impenetrable force field in the ’50s. One of the biggest changes came in the post-Crisis DC years, when writer/artist John Byrne changed the history of first superhero. His villains would also get their changes, all of which lead to 1992’s “Panic in the Sky”. This was the first major Brainiac event story after Crisis and it could give us some clues to where the DCU is going to take the villain.
“Panic In the Sky” Showed the True Threat of Brainiac
Image Courtesy of DC Comics
So, there have been numerous versions of Brainac over the years, with the post-Crisis one being unique. The villain first appeared as a green-skinned humanoid, with what looked like little electrodes on his head. This was the default version of the character for years, with artists like Curt Swan able to bring so much menace to the emerald enemy of the Man of Steel. Eventually, he would gain a new robotic body with a distinct skull design that would become his trademark, also gaining the massive tentacled skull ship.
Crisis would see a new version pop up. This one was the Coluan Vril Dox, who would end up possessing the mind of Milton Fine on Earth, a circus psychic. He would try to use this new body to take over the world, running afoul of the Man of Steel. It was an interesting modification on the original, organic version of the villain and it gave him powerful mental abilities. Brainiac is one of Superman’s greatest villains, so he showed up several times over the proceeding years, all leading up to “Panic in the Sky”.
This story would run through Action Comics #674-675, Superman: Man of Steel #9-10, Superman (Vol. 2) #65-66, and Adventures of Superman #488-489. It saw Brainiac return, which was dangerous enough, but this time he brought something else with him: Warworld. He had manipulated events on the mobile fortress world, leading to him taking the throne and pointing it at Earth, teaming with Maxima and the world of Almerac (she was obsessed with having babies with Superman). Superman was forced to call in the rest of the superhero community for help, but Brainiac was able to take control of some of them. It all went sour, a perfect storm of people breaking from his control and failed ultimate attacks, with Superman and company winning in the end.
“Panic in the Sky” came during the Jurgens/Stern/Ordway/Simonson period of the Triangle Era. The four writers, working under editor Mike Carlin, had picked up the post-Crisis Man of Steel from talent like John Byrne and Marv Wolfman, taking this modern Superman in new directions that were reminiscent of the past but still new (post-Crisis DC’s modernization of classic DC wasn’t obvious to me back then, but now I look back and see it perfectly). “Panic in the Sky” took the new version of Brainiac, used elements of Mongul, and gave readers an exciting story.
“Panic in the Sky” doesn’t really get talked about a lot and there’s a simple reason for that – “Death of Superman” hit half a year later. That story took what the team had been building up and set it on its ear, leading to over a year of stories about the death and return of the Last Son of Krypton. I vaguely remember seeing a collected edition of it in the early ’90s at a grocery store, as part of the “Death of Superman” marketing blitz of the time, but the story had little impact. There was a short, pre-Internet period when I thought I made it up. Post-Crisis Brainiac would go back to being a more robotic version of the villain, which would be his default setting until Infinite Crisis.
“Death of Superman” was something of a dare of an idea – every year, Ordway had said they should kill him, and that was the year Carlin said, “Okay, what next?” “Panic in the Sky”, which changed the status quo of Brainiac, Warworld, and brought Maxima into the heroic fold, seemed like it was the culmination of the last cycle of stories and the next cycle mostly overshadowed it. Supes would return to Warworld after he returned, but Maxima disappeared with the marriage of Clark and Lois and Brainiac would be transformed, finding a new body. However, I think it does have some clues for Man of Tomorrow.
Could “Panic In the Sky” Hold the Key to Man of Tomorrow?
Image Courtesy of DC Comics
Brainiac forcing Superman and Lex Luthor to team up in Man of Tomorrow is going to be really cool to see. It makes sense that both of them end up fighting the same threat, but getting to them to team up is going to be difficult. I think that “Panic in the Sky” shows how they can pull that off, especially with the mind control technology. Brainiac in the movie taking control of various members of the Justice Gang and other heroes would be the perfect excuse to bring the two foes together.
On top of that, the scope of the story matches what the movie should give to fans. Brainie bringing in Warworld and Almerac made his threat even greater and is exactly the direction that DC Studios should take the movie; even if they don’t copy this exactly, they should make the threat this big. Gunn has shown a love of post-Crisis ideas in his DCU, so there’s a very good chance that we could get a lot of “Panic in the Sky” in Man of Tomorrow.
Do you think DC Studios is going to use ideas from “Panic in the Sky” in Man of Tomorrow? Sound off in the comment section below.
5 Writers Who Built Superman’s Legacy — and Made Him Bigger Than the Comics
More Comics
<img src="https://comicbook.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/11/dca880b6-a255-4f21-be66-c599e623f979.jpg?w=300" alt="Marvel Comics’ Best Kang Story Proves the MCU Shouldn’t Give Up on the Avengers’ Greatest Foe”>
Comics
23 hours ago
Marvel Comics’ Best Kang Story Proves the MCU Shouldn’t Give Up on the Avengers’ Greatest Foe
Image Courtesy of DC Comics
Comics
1 day ago
Harley Quinn Is Getting a Brand-New Design and Bringing Back Batman’s Greatest Forgotten Villain
Image Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Comics
1 day ago
Howard the Duck’s Greatest Foe Is One of Marvel’s Most Ridiculous Villains, But His Name Is Even Worse
Collectibles
2 days ago
These Iconic Spider-Man, Hulk, and Fantastic Four Comics Are Going for a Fraction of Their Usual Price, With One Catch
Comics
2 days ago
The DCU Has a Chance to Give Superman’s Strangest Foe the Reinvention He Deserves
