The never ending battle for Truth Justice and the American way incudes going to hell sometimes to save the souls of those you care about. The next few weeks in October I will be talking about Superman and Horror as there are a lot of stories involing the Man of Steel and monsters. Joining me for this will be Michael Bailey at the end of the month a writer for the Superman Homepage and Podcaster of a few Superman shows. As well as another guest with the details still being worked on.
Soul Search Parts 1-3 ran in Action Comics #656, Superman vol 2#47, and Adventures of Superman #470. By Roger Stern, Brett Breeding, Jerry Ordway, Dan Jurgens and the rest of the Superteam at the time.
Jerry White (son of Perry White Editor and Chief and Jimmy Olson are guned down out side a club that Jerry worked at for a woman named Blaze. As they lay bleading and dying in a hospital bed Clark and Lois rush to the hospital to find out their condition. Clark is vistied by the Black Racer (Angel of Death type character neither good nor bad just does his job to bring souls to their FINAL DESTINATION ;).
He alerts Clark that he can save his friends lives if he comes with him right away and they fly to a volcano which happens tk be the home of the demones BLAZE, the same Blaze Jerry was working for. A cloven footed red skin horned demon in a scantly clad dress. She tries to kill Superman by dumping him in liquid hot magma ….and turning him into a demon. She is torturing the souls of Jerry and Jimmy just for shear pleasure like something from a Clive Barker Novel. Superman is able to save Jimmy but Jerry dies unfortunately.
I condesnsed a lot of this story mainly cuz its filled with side plots and characters not important to the topic of this article.
This is a great horror story I wish was made into an animates episode of any cartoon with Superman in the last 20 years. A live action version of this story on Smallville or Lois and Clark would have been great if they could get KNB effects to do the demon make up on a demon Superman or Blaze her self. Blaze would also summon a demonic version of a character who only had two apearnces alled Skyhook a bat like creature who waa kidnapping children but was killed in battle with Superman and Maggie Sawyer.
Superman fighting for his life snd the souls of those he cares about in hell would be a interesting new story for a new reader to get into. If you get the basics of who Superman is then that’s all you really need. ( There is a subplot of Jerry actually being Lex Luthors son) Blaze is pretty much introduced here in all her demonic glory and reminds me in a lot of waya of Mephisto…except no Marriage destroying powers. She cackles laughs and is just pure EVIL!!!! I always had a thing for Goth Bad Girl Demons and Blaze certainly takes the cake. Reminds me of Cenobite woman and Dark Angel The Ascent the Charles Band Full Moon movie.
This story would be followed up in the Blaze Satanus War which Ill cover next week.
Check out the Superman Homepage for other great content.