Audience and Media Response
The Death and Return of Superman storyline brought in millions of readers to DC Comics, despite the entirety of the story being intertwined through numerous different comic series, including Action Comics, Superman, Superman: The Man of Steel, and Adventures of Superman, among others. Superman's creator, Jerry Siegel himself, who in 1961 had predicted the Man of Steel's death in an "imaginary story," met with then Superman editor Mike Carlin to tell him that he was very impressed by his version of it.
The cover of Superman (vol. 2) #75 (shown above in infobox) became an iconic image: Superman's tattered cape wrapped around a pole, marking the spot where Superman died. (Certain prints of Superman #75 contained a black armband with the familiar "S" symbol adorning it.) DC shipped between 2.5 and 3 million copies of Superman #75, with most stores selling out of the issue on the day of its release.
The Death of Superman took place months before the breaking of Batman's back in the "Knightfall" storyline. Some critics praised DC for boldly and innovatively drawing in more readers. However, others were critical, citing the two concurrent storylines as publicity stunts, since it was unlikely that DC would ever eliminate its most popular characters. Some years later, Chuck Rozanski, owner of retailer Mile High Comics, would pen a controversial essay in the Comics Buyer's Guide which blamed the Death of Superman promotion for playing a significant role in the collapse of the comic book industry in the late 1990s.
Read more about this topic: The Death Of Superman
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