LogFAQs > #910350943

Obviously, this goes in an extremely different direction than the previous Superman IV. It's a close-out of the series in a way that I think would work great in the Cold War era in which the film was released. Using a very light homage to Watchmen and a template borrowed also from "Must There Be a Superman?", I think this ties up the story of Superman completely. Superman wrestles with his own heritage, the changing values of humanity and the faith they put in Superman, and it turns Nuclear Man into a character with having. Granted, that character is Bizarro.

It also gives Lex Luthor the win, which I think is extremely important for something else on this list, which you'll see later.

Ultimately, I recognize that this might seem convoluted, and I am coming up with this as I write it out, so there is room for some improvement, but I feel like this is the magnum opus that Superman could use. The Quest for Peace concept is subverted completely thanks to Lex's brutal tactics, and the fact that Superman might even believe Lex, in the end, especially when his own words are turned against him from earlier, make this a perfect way to make Superman alien once again to his own world. And, let's be honest, the death of Steve Lombard is probably the only death that would matter at this point, given that Steve is the only person in whom Superman can confide. Ultimately, I like this patchwork quilt made from several of the great DC stories of the 80s, and I think it caps a series with a surprising amount of depth.
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"It is too easy being monsters. Let us try to be human." ~Victor Frankenstein, Penny Dreadful