9.8 KiB
[WIP] Alternate Ending to "The Metropolitan Man"
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Author: u/Afforess Hermione Did Nothing Wrong*
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URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/rational/comments/3kuwsz/wip_alternate_ending_to_the_metropolitan_man/
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Score: 22
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Created: 2015-09-14T02:13:31
Post:
I really enjoyed reading The Metropolitan Man, but I couldn't help but feel the author handed Superman the "Idiot Ball" in the final chapter. I have attempted a rewrite of the final scenes from the final chapter, with a different outcome from the original story. This is my first stab at this sort of thing, so I would appreciate critiques, grammar checks, and mentions of any plot-holes.
Comments:
u/NotUnusualYet [+19] (3 hours later)
I'm not sure it is fair to say that Superman was holding the idiot ball there.
More importantly, Spoilers for the rewrite
Could Superman have been smarter? Sure. But that's not enough for him to hold the idiot ball. He was acting in character, and he took a reasonable course of action given his options.
Nevertheless, an interesting rewrite. Thanks for sharing it!
u/kenshin8671 [+4] (2 days later)
By the end Superman knows that Lex has kryptonite and knows lead blocks his vision. At that point it's stupid not to treat all lead as if it has kryptonite behind it just in case.
u/NotAHeroYet [+1] City of Angles Municipal Government (8 days later)
Stupid as in foolish, yes. Stupid as in OOC idiot ball? no. Canon superman has fallen for less idiotic traps, i believe.
u/Kishoto [+12] (3 hours later)
I wrote a retelling of the ending of Metropolitan Man a few months back. It's from Superman's POV and I think it's pretty decent.
u/Faust91x [+3] Iteration X (12 hours later)
Wow that was really good. I thought that Superman acted that way because it was the first time he was vulnerable so the fear and shock overrode all his higher functions.
I still find it a bit hard he could analyze three days worth of information in seconds and not find a way to beat that challenge but at least it gets close. I like the way you phrased your story.
u/Kishoto [+4] (a day later)
Well, from what I interpreted, it wasn't so much that he couldn't "beat" the challenge. It was more that he didn't identify just how many layers to the challenge there were. The challenge he perceived was "Get away from here right now without harming these frail humans" whereas it was actually "Get away from here right now without harming these frail humans AND avoiding the kryptonite studded walls." Simply put, Superman wasn't paranoid enough. Which is almost understandable, as Superman doesn't face any real challenge, in regards to physical, visceral damage, which is what this threat to his life was. Even with the advanced caution he entered with, I can easily accept that his danger sense wasn't calibrated enough, as an invulnerable alien being.
u/Kishoto [+7] (3 hours later)
An enjoyable read, although I found your Superman to be a far departure from the Superman in u/alexanderwales' original story. The character seemed very different from what we got in MM. I liked the writing style though.
u/MoralRelativity [+1] (an hour later)
Thanks, that was nicely done. The ending was a surprise, and a bit scary too given I have some sympathy with Lex's arguments in The Metropolitan Man.
u/Sceptically [+1] (2 hours later)
The whole deal with Superman is that he seems to have a permanent grasp on the Idiot Ball. So to have him not be holding it for this fiction would be a little OOC for him.
u/Afforess [+4] Hermione Did Nothing Wrong (2 hours later)
I think you are right, Superman does view the world through a sort of childish lens. However, I noticed in Metropolitan Man, Superman did seem to catch on to the "game" Lex was playing. Superman became more rational as he also grew less good. I thought the ending in the canon story was a bit unfair - The canon story itself admits Lex had slim odds, and lampshades the deus ex machina conclusion.
u/Pluvialis [+3] Second Age Sauron (4 hours later)
The canon story itself admits Lex had slim odds, and lampshades the deus ex machina conclusion.
So you're left with the feeling that, damn, they got lucky, that could have (and probably would have on any other day) gone much worse? Sounds like a good enough ending to me. It's only supposed to be a short story with a message about the danger Superman represents.
u/rineSample [+2] (2 hours later)
Also, Spoiler
u/eaglejarl [+1] (3 days later)
True. He very clearly isn't [](#s "natural born".)
u/kaukamieli [+1] (16 days later)
He could hint Clark Kent is the best guy for the job, though.
u/None [+1] (16 days later)
[deleted]
u/kaukamieli [+0] (16 days later)
it would extremely limit his ability to be a superhero if he's in the White House 24/7.
Nah, he can just breeze through without supermaning at all! After his term is over, he can just fly back in time to thwart all the crimes and stuff during his term.
u/None [+0] (2 hours later)
If you want Superman to not hold the idiot ball here, the response is for him to rush to the wall, grab the shielding, wrap himself in it, and continue his escape.
u/Kishoto [+2] (3 hours later)
Question, how exactly would he go about doing this? He's strong but lead isn't exactly all that malleable in its final form. It's fairly brittle actually. Heavy and strong, but not very bendable.
u/None [+1] (3 hours later)
Fair objection. You could render it soft and molten with heat vision to form a semi-liquid coating over yourself. The only property we really need of it is its high-Z.
u/Kishoto [+1] (3 hours later)
Don't know if he has the time to do that in. He's more than fast enough, but physical objects are a bitch to deal with when you're moving at those speeds. Plus the kryptonite's embedded inside the lead, so Superman wouldn't be able to utilize it anyway. Not unless Lex put it very deep inside (which he wouldn't, as he established early on in the story that even centimeters of lead are good enough to block Superman's vision.)
u/None [+2] (3 hours later)
Plan C: Just go up fast ENOUGH.
Blow through the roof. Get enough velocity that even if the kryptonite depowers you, it won't have TIME to do so before you're clear of the physical obstruction. You can be weak as you sail high sunward through the air. Then once you have your distance from any traces of kryptonite, you can fly again. The idea is going fast enough to limit your exposure so it can't weaken you enough to interfere. If you're feeling generous, use superbreath downwards to counter the negative pressure and heat of takeoff and impact to save Mercy and Lex.
u/Kishoto [+5] (3 hours later)
I think we can all agree that Superman, with his time dilation aided thinking, has more than enough time and means to come up with a way to save himself. He just simply didn't plan for the kryptonite studded walls. He was arrogant (justifiably so, in my opinion) and it was only Lex's extreme over preparedness that saved him.
u/None [+1] (3 hours later)
Right, I was looking for a way to save everyone.
u/Kishoto [+2] (10 hours later)
Also, something i meant to mention last night, it would be remiss of our resident supervillain genius if he had kryptonite studded walls without including the roof as well.
u/None [+1] (15 hours later)
I wasn't assuming he had forgotten that.
u/Kishoto [+1] (a day later)
Oh. Sorry. You said plan C, go straight up. So I assumed. How would going straight up help him then, though?
u/None [+1] (a day later)
You break through the ceiling. The kryptonite depowers you, but by then you're already clear and your now-mortal body is gaining altitude through the sky in freefall, still ascending. As you get further from the kryptonite, you regain your ability to fly, and leave.
u/Kishoto [+1] (a day later)
If he's moving fast enough for that to work then, when he went through the wall, he should have ended up a pretty far distance already. The issue here is that Superman didn't put enough force into his initial thrust to get clear, regardless of direction. Also it's possible smashing through the wall had already killed Superman, depending on the amount of Kryptonite in them. He did hit them pretty hard.