Summer of Superman: What to Expect From DC’s Huge 2025 Celebration of the Man of Steel

Look, up in the sky! It’s an ongoing! It’s a one-shot! It’s a young readers graphic novel! It’s all of these things, starring Superman.

To get ready for James Gunn’s much-anticipated film reboot of Superman, DC Comics is celebrating the Man of Steel with new offerings for a wide range of readers. A-list creators Mark Waid, Dan Slott, and Dan Jurgens offer new looks at Superman and his friends and foes, including villain Lex Luthor and members of the Justice League.

Let’s break down what’s coming up as part of the publisher’s Summer of Superman initiative kicking off in April:

Action Comics #1085 (April 9)

The ramp-up begins with Action Comics #1085 on April 9, written by G. Willow Wilson and illustrated by Gavin Guidry. The issue completes the “Superman Superstars” storyline that Wilson has been telling, in which Superman meets a scientist who claims to have solved the global warming crisis… at a terrible cost.

Summer of Superman Special – April 16

The Summer of Superman truly launches on Superman Day on April 18, marking the 87th anniversary of the first superhero’s debut in 1938’s Action Comics #1. Written by Waid, Slott, and Joshua Williamson, with art by Jorge Jiménez, the oversized one-shot Summer of Superman Special #1, which is out on April 16 just in time for Supes’ big day, features that most venerable of comic book traditions: a wedding. The wedding of John Henry Irons aka Steel and Clark Kent’s old Smallville squeeze Lana Lang drives a story that sees old friends gather and new threats arise.

Superman #25 – April 23

One week later, on April 23, Superman #25 brings back the Man of Steel’s greatest enemy: Lex Luthor himself. The criminal mastermind/former president returns to wrestle away control of Supercorp, the do-gooder organization at the center of Williamson’s run on Superman. The 48-page issue pairs Williamson with artists Dan Mora, Eddy Barrows, and Eber Ferreira, completing the series’ first major storyline and setting up the Man of Steel’s next challenge.

Superman Unlimited #1 – May 21

The adventure continues with the highly-anticipated new ongoing Superman Unlimited by Slott and artist Rafael Albuquerque beginning on May 21. Famous for his daring takes on Spider-Man and She-Hulk, Slott begins his Superman tenure with equally audacious ideas, including a world-wide infusion of green Kryptonite making the planet more dangerous for our hero and the Daily Planet getting a new employee transferred from the mythical Gorilla City.

According to group editor Paul Kaminski, Slott’s take harkens back to the widescreen action of the Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness Superman/Batman series of the early 2000s. “Superman Unlimited will capture the big, fun, high-flying adventures that Superman is known for, while also providing big moments for DC’s Superman-related comics with the introduction of a massive new Kryptonite deposit. Imagine a world where Superman is stopping a bank robbery, but every weapon is packed with Kryptonite ammunition and every petty criminal carries a Kryptonite shiv,” says Kaminski. “This is a world of unlimited danger on a level that Superman, and DC’s Superman family of characters, has never faced before.”

Superman: The World #1 – June 25

While most books focus on Superman’s beloved Metropolis, Superman: The World shows what the Man of Tomorrow means for people across the globe. Legends Dan Jurgens (The Death of Superman) and Lee Weeks (Daredevil) team up with a host of creators from everywhere from Brazil to Bosnia to India to take a cosmopolitan look at Man of Tomorrow. Superman: The World releases on June 24.

Superman’s Good Guy Gang – July 1

Of course, you can’t celebrate Superman without also including the littlest superhero fans. July 1 sees the release of Superman’s Good Guy Gang, the first in a kid-friendly series of graphic novels. Designed for young readers between the ages of 5-7, Superman’s Good Guy Gang stars Clark Kent as an eight-year-old getting used to his new powers. Writer and artist Rob Justus pairs young Clark with other new heroes Hawkgirl and the Green Lantern Guy Gardner, the latter of whom somehow makes perfect sense.

No matter what you want of the first superhero, this sounds like a very nice way to spend the lead up to the Man of Steel’s return to the big screen on July 11.

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