Spoilers for Action Comics #1050 by DC Comics
Lex Luthor has made the world forget Superman's secret identity as the villain has reversed one of the more shocking storylines in recent DC Comics history. In Action Comics #1050, Luthor reveals that he's telepathically erased the world's memory of Clark Kent being Superman, as he admits that the world needs the Man of Steel but that they need to believe he's a god, not a man who walks among them.
In Action Comics #1050 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Tom Taylor, Joshua Williamson, Mike Perkins, Clayton Henry, Nick Dragotta, Frank Martin, and Dave Sharpe from DC Comics, Lex Luthor is revealed to have captured and killed Manchester Black, using his telepathic powers to unleash a powerful signal across the world. Luthor tells Superman that after the recent crises in the DC Universe, he realized that the world needed to think of Superman as a god and needed the world to forget he's Clark Kent. As a result, only a select few people in the world know the truth about Superman's secret identity.
Superman's Secret Identity Reversal Undoes A Controversial Storyline
A few years ago, Brian Michael Bendis' run on Superman made the bold decision to unmask the hero to the public, as he revealed his secret identity as Clark Kent to the world. Changing the status quo with the Man of Steel in such a big way sent shockwaves across the DC Universe, as Superman outing his non-heroic persona ended up staying in effect for a few years - pushing Clark to the side. But now, DC Comics is reversing that decision as the world is forgetting who Superman is.
Thankfully for Superman, not everyone has forgotten about his secret identity, as Jon Kent (whose secret identity has also been wiped), Jay Nakamura, Lois Lane, and Pa and Ma Kent were protected from the psychedelic attacks. The Justice League, Titans, and reservist heroes also weren't mind-wiped, as Batman reveals Martian Manhunter has given the heroes psychic defenses against such widespread attacks. Still, with the world forgetting Superman's secret identity, it sets up the hero as a mythic figure in the DC Universe again - as nobody knows he walks among them when he's not saving the world.
It will be fascinating to see how Superman's secret identity reversal impacts upcoming stories and his status in the DC Universe, as the world no longer knows that Clark Kent and the Man of Steel are one and the same. Readers can see the shocking Superman identity reversal in Action Comics #1050, which is in comic book stores now.