Just about every DC Comics fan knows of Dan Jurgens and Brett Breeding's Superman #75— "The Death of Superman" —when Doomsday and the Man of Steel fought to the death. Readers will also know that Clark Kent eventually returns after several other Supermen try to take his place, leaving some fans to wonder whether or not Superman was actually really dead in the first place.

"The Death of Superman," "Funeral for a Friend," and "Reign of the Supermen" storylines totally reshaped the DC Comics universe now that the Man of Steel was out of the picture. After Superman #75 made national news, several other books followed suit. Almost every superhero in the 1990s had a death/return story, from Batman's back-breaking in the "Knightfall" run to Oliver Queen's death in Green Arrow comics. But when it comes to the original, did Superman even really die?

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Superman's death was more like Batman's broken back than people might think since neither scenario lasted too long. Though several cartoon, movie, and other adaptations of Clark's final battle literally kill Superman, things are not so cut and dry in the comics. The books that built up his return show that Superman didn't exactly die. In the giant-sized Adventures of Superman #500, by Jerry Ordway and Tom Grummett, Clark Kent and Jonathan Kent team up in heaven and confirm Superman was in a comatose state after his fight with Doomsday. While the fight nearly had seemingly the Man of Steel, it turned out he had actually gone through a "near-death" experience.

Lois Lane mourns besides Superman's dead body in Death Of Superman

In the final pages of Superman: The Man of Steel #25, by Louise Simonson and Jon Bogdanove, Clark Kent makes his first real return. His allies find Superman in a Kryptonian reanimation chamber, which the Eradicator secretly placed him in. Before Clark returns, Lex Luthor, Supergirl, Steel, Lois Lane, and Superboy discuss Mongul's potential attack on Metropolis. Superman exits the chamber, making his triumphant return stating, "Metropolis--? Over my dead body!"

Even if Superman never really died, the "Death of Superman" story remains a pivotal one in comic book history that changed the DC Universe forever. Clark Kent seemingly died (at least temporarily) at the hands of Doomsday, however, like most comic book deaths, it wouldn't last long. Nonetheless, Superman #75 remains a staple in comic book history, for better or for worse.

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