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in: Ross Andru/Cover Artist, Dick Giordano/Cover Artist, Edmond Hamilton/Writer,
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The Best of DC Vol 1 8

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"The Five Other Identities of Superman!": This story is reprinted from Action Comics #314.

The Best of DC #8 is an issue of the series The Best of DC (Volume 1) with a cover date of December, 1980.

Synopsis for "The Five Other Identities of Superman!"

This story is reprinted from Action Comics #314.

Superman is summoned by five fellow members of the Justice League to view an artifact that Aquaman's pet octopus has found deep in the sea. It proves to be a videotape from Jor-El, showing how he consulted the Computer Forecaster on Kal-El's future on any one of six different planets.

  • Planet Xann: A world of giants, where Kal-El is a tiny, superstrong Atom; but is lonely.
  • Planet Valair: A world covered in water, where Kal-El becomes an Aquaman, but longs for the sky.
  • Planet Ntann: A backwards world lit by a red sun, where Kal-El becomes a peaceful Green Arrow; but everyone wants war.
  • Planet Saruun: In the permanent twilight of an eclipsed red sun; Kal-El becomes a Batman; but longs for the light.
  • Planet Ganger: Despite the red sun, Kal-El becomes a Flash, but runs right off of the planet.

Jor-El discovers that Kal would not be happy on any of those worlds, and sends him to become Superman on Earth; where he is appreciated and loved.

As the tape ends, Superman realizes why his five comrades have greeted him — because, on the five other worlds, he had become a one-man Justice League.

Appearing in "The Five Other Identities of Superman!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Angra (Single appearance) (Flashback only)

Other Characters:

  • Diro the Bat (Flashback only)
  • Gorro the Whale (Flashback only)

Locations:

  • Planet Earth
  • Planet Krypton (Flashback only)
  • Planet Gangor (Flashback only)
  • Planet Ntann (Flashback only)
  • Planet Saruun (Flashback only)
  • Planet Valair (Flashback only)
  • Planet Xann (Flashback only)
    • Crime Citadel (Flashback only)

Items:

  • Computer Forcaster (Flashback only)
  • Green Kryptonite (Mentioned only)
  • Siren Arrow
  • Video Recorder

Vehicles:


Synopsis for "The 1,000 Lives of Superman"

This story is reprinted from Superman #99.

Reporter Mona Miles is even more persistent than Lois Lane in trying to uncover Superman's secret identity, so the Man of Steel adopts multiple secret identities to throw her off track.

Appearing in "The 1,000 Lives of Superman"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Other Characters:

  • Mona Miles

Locations:

Synopsis for "From Riches to Rags"

This story is reprinted from Action Comics #337.

Superman falls under a strange compulsion to take on various roles while performing his duties. He stops a crime while acting as a rich man, pretends to be poor to elicit government support for a slum project, captures two thieves while dressed as an indian chief, impersonates an attorney to stop a killer, and fakes an operation on Clark Kent acting as a doctor.

Superman then warns the FBI that he will commit a theft. Agents set up a Kryptonite trap, but Superman outwits them by stealing the Kryptonite. After disposing of the Green K, Superman returns and offers an explanation. He explains that the compulsion was caused by a nursery rhyme: "rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief, doctor, lawyer, indian chief". As a child a Kryptonian comet appeared in the sky while he was saying the rhyme. A hypnotic effect caused him to assume the roles when the comet reappeared.

Appearing in "From Riches to Rags"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • The Tiger Gang (Single appearance)
  • Two Thieves (Steve named) (Single appearance)
  • Gunner Murdock (Single appearance)

Other Characters:

  • Superboy (Flashback only)
  • Jonathan Kent (Flashback only)
  • Martha Kent (Flashback only)
  • Metropolis Mayor
  • Sir Jeffrey Winston (British Lawyer) (Single appearance)
  • Dr. Vaugn (Single appearance)
  • Dr. Stacey (Single appearance)
  • Princess Pale Flower (Single appearance)
  • Unnamed FBI Investigator (Single appearance)

Locations:

Items:

  • Pure Jade Pole
  • Bow & Arrow used by Superman
  • Gold Bricks

Vehicles:

  • Tiger Gang's Armored getaway vehicle
  • Thieve's getaway motorcycle
  • Flying Vacuum Cleaner

Synopsis for "The Super-Genie of Metropolis!"

This story is reprinted from Superman #157.

To trap a foreign agent, Perry White masquerades as a professor who has discovered the legendary lamp of Aladdin, with Superman disguised as the "genie".

Appearing in "The Super-Genie of Metropolis!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Spy

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

  • Aladdin's Lamp (Hoax)

Vehicles:

  • Boeing 707 Airliner
  • Space Capsule
  • Tanks

Synopsis for "The New Lives of Superman!"

This story is reprinted from Superman #182.

A flash of light that would have blinded a normal man forces Clark Kent to pretend he has been blinded, leave the Daily Planet, and try his hand a being a butler and an English disc jockey.

Appearing in "The New Lives of Superman!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Raffles Slyke (Single appearance)
  • Limehouse Lou (Single appearance)

Other Characters:

  • General Baxter (Single appearance)
  • Mr. Lloyd-Lloyd (Single appearance)
  • Clive Duncan (Single appearance)

Locations:


Items:


Vehicles:



Synopsis for "The Super-Cop of Metropolis!"

This story is reprinted from Superman #160.

In order to trap a spy ring, Superman pretends that he has caused the entire police force of Metropolis to become sick, and substitutes for them himself.

Appearing in "The Super-Cop of Metropolis!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • A foreign ambassador

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:



Synopsis for "The Shocking Secret of Super-X!"

This story is reprinted from Action Comics #408.

A University Bacteriologist asks Superman to dispose of a giant strain of dangerous bacteria that he accidentally produced in his lab. He attempts to fly the bacteria into deep space but the container jar holding the bacteria shatters into pieces due to the extreme temperature change in space. To avoid contamination into the atmosphere, Superman suctions the bacteria into his body with his breath. Once he returns to Earth, Superman discovers that he has contaminated every square inch of his skin. He will return back to normal in 24 hours once his super antibodies kick in but in the meantime Superman is forced to wear an insulated sterilized suite to protect others around him while he performs his duties. He adopts a third alter ego and calls himself Super-X. In the meantime Superman conceals his compressed regular suit in a book that is somehow obtained by Lana Lang. Superman swishes by her at super speed and douses her with a sampling of amnesia germs to make her forget she ever found the uniform in Clark Kents book. Lana is then left sitting by a tree wondering how she got there.

Appearing in "The Shocking Secret of Super-X!"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Locations:

Synopsis for "Who Stole My Super-Powers?"

This story is reprinted from Superman #220.

Superman and the Flash switch costumes during a space mission against a malevolent plant intelligence, but are beaten, given amnesia, and thrown back to Earth separately. When they awaken, Flash thinks that he must be Superman, and Superman believes he is the Flash. Eventually, they regain their memories, trade uniforms, and move the Earth out of the way of the approaching plant-being, which falls into the sun and dies.

Appearing in "Who Stole My Super-Powers?"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Alien seed

Other Characters:

  • Brad Hunter (Daily Planet)

Locations:

Items:


Vehicles:


Notes

  • "The Five Other Identities of Superman!" was originally titled "The Day Superman Became the Flash!".



See Also

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Links and References

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