Let's Talk January: Bruce/Clark OTP Origins!

[mithen]

dhfunk asked about how I got into shipping Clark and Bruce! Ooooh, I can talk about that for a bit. :)

I don't remember why I decided to get into back into American comic books back in 2005, but I did. I hadn't been reading comics for a decade or so, and then I'd been reading only Marvel, but I decided I wanted to reconnect with the DC heroes of my early childhood, so I ordered The Dark Knight Returns, Kingdom Come, and the first three Superman/Batman trades. The first two were so bewildering that I almost gave up on the spot, and I didn't even know that trade paperbacks didn't necessarily stand alone, so I picked up "Absolute Power" first (the second of the Superman/Batman trades). An AU where Clark and Bruce were raised as brothers by super villains to rule the world isn't really the most accessible beginning point, but the story was filled with so much angst and bromance that I hardly noticed I had no idea what was going on.

Then I realized I was reading these trades in the wrong order, and I went back and read "Public Enemies." "Public Enemies" is really the best starting point for trying to get anyone hooked on S/B (either that or the Justice League animated series that was running at the same time would be my recommendations) because Loeb's writing is just luxuriously slashy and he adores how well-matched and complementary they are. I can actually tell you the exact panel that things clicked for me: Superman and Batman are back-to-back, facing down a few dozen of their worst foes all at once.



At this point I closed the comic book, found my husband, and said, "Do you think maybe Superman and Batman are a little bit...you know...slashy?"

And he said, "Wow, are you slow."

And I said, "So, would it offend you if I happened to write something slashing your childhood icons?"

And he rolled his eyes (he is a good enabler). And I was off and running!

There's a theme across this month, which is that I am notoriously slow to start shipping. I'm not resistant, I just...really need time to process texts and contemplate them before I commit my heart to a pairing, even if I can "see" it right away. It took three viewings of the Hobbit before Thorin/Bilbo "clicked" with me, and I didn't truly ship Sherlock/John until after I saw "Reichenbach Fall." So I tend to approach pairings cautiously, kind of kicking the tires and tapping the headlights before I am willing to actually sit down in the driver's seat. I think actually that reading The Dark Knight Returns and Kingdom Come helped in the long run, because they gave me two alternate visions of the "path" of Clark and Bruce's relationship. And that sense of a "path" is really important to me. So seeing two different possible futures for them together, and one possible alternate history for them, really helped cement my ability to ship them.  But it was watching them working together, how they trusted each other with their back, how they respected each other, that clinched the deal.  

Comments

[tropicsbear]

I don't think anyone can read/watch Public Enemies and not think they were at least a little bit slashy :))))

[mekare]

LOL your husband sounds wonderful! And that is a great panel! (Haven't read it yet)

[mithen]

LOL, it's true, that doesn't exactly show the most sensitive of slash radars, does it? It's like coming out of the RDJ/Law Sherlock movies and going "Hmmm, that seemed just a bit..." :)

[mithen]

Oh, I can strongly recommend all of the Jeph Loeb Superman/Batman trades, they are DELICIOUS. He ships them like mad. "Emperor Joker" (also by Loeb) is a narrative mess but has some REALLY intense Clark/Bruce stuff in it...