Superman’s Scariest (and Saddest) Weakness is Growing OLD

There is no superhero greater than the one and only Superman, the strongest man in DC’s Universe. But believe it or not, the Man of Steel’s greatest weakness was once exposed by having him age forty years — becoming a senior citizen superhero.

Superman experienced many oddball stories during the Silver Age of Comics, as writers tended to favor episodic tales and more cartoonish plots that let Superman use his powers in outlandish and less violent ways. One popular trope was to have a sudden transformation take place, like the time Superman grew a giant ant’s head to communicate with giant ants from outer space. But even that isn’t as terrifying as the nightmare of Action Comics #251… when Superman actually grew old.

While current comics almost all agree that Superman is immortal and actually becomes stronger as he ages (due to his body absorbing more solar energy from the sun), the comic showcased a feeble Superman who gradually lost more of his powers as he aged. As such, the story actually showed a lot of age discrimination as it ridiculed the infirmities of age just for laughs.

The story began as Clark Kent was doing a story on a scientist who developed a miraculous potion that could potentially add years to a human being’s life span. When the elderly scientist (who looked oddly similar to KFC’s Colonel Sanders) mentioned he’d be using himself as guinea pig, Clark decides to drink the potion himself so the scientist won’t have to risk his own life. This was a particularly arrogant and stupid move on Clark’s part, especially since – as a Kryptonian – the potion wouldn’t necessarily affect him the same way it would a human. Clark even realizes this as he believes his body would be completely immune to the effects – making his act even more useless.

Amazingly, the scientist discovers Clark drank the potion and instead of yelling at the reporter for destroying his life’s work, thanks the reporter for taking the risk for him (this was the Silver Age when comic book characters regularly acted in weird ways). Clark goes to the Fortress of Solitude to test the remaining formula with his more advanced machines, only to discover the formula contains isotopes resembling Kryptonite, making him vulnerable to the effects.

The next day, Clark finds the formula has aged him forty years, making him look like an elderly Rip Van Winkle, complete with a long white beard. He feels tired, weak, and slow – and decides to go to the scientist who informs him that the aging effects of the serum will wear off in three days (the standard amount of time for most of Superman’s bizarre transformations to last).

Clark immediately discovers people are very prejudiced to the elderly when he goes to the Daily Planet and Perry White jokes about retiring Clark for being too old to be a reporter. He also makes Clark go undercover at a retirement home where he’s fed dishes of mush and forced to play checkers with the residents. However, Clark’s real problems come from fulfilling his duties as Superman. Since his powers are gradually fading with age, Superman must come up with more creative solutions to stop criminals – posing as Father Time and the Old Man of the Sea to scare crooks and pirates into surrendering, and even getting a job as a department store Santa Claus to take down some robbers.

As Clark’s invulnerability fades, however, he becomes nervous since Superman is scheduled to be shot out of a canon during a circus appearance. Rather than just cancel the performance (as any sensible superhero would), Superman allows himself to be loaded into the canon (wearing a helmet to hide his elderly appearance). At the last minute, Clark gets the idea to sabotage the canon, giving him enough time for the three days to end and for his youth and powers to be fully restored.

Although meant as a quick read for children, “The Oldest Man in Metropolis” often comes across as needlessly prejudiced toward the elderly as Clark complains through the entire tale about “how horribly I’ve aged” and is basically shown as borderline incompetent (although he does find ways to solve his problems – barely). Considering the DC Universe is now full of active heroes who are senior citizens (such as the Justice Society of America), Superman’s early turn as a senior citizen is something best left in the past.

About The Author

Michael Jung
(700 Articles Published)

Michael Jung is a mild-mannered freelance writer-for-hire, actor, and professional storyteller with a keen interest in pop culture, education, nonprofit organizations, and unusual side hustles. His work has been featured in Screen Rant, ASU Now, Sell Books Fast, Study.com, and Free Arts among others. A graduate of Arizona State University with a PhD in 20^th Century American Literature, Michael has written novels, short stories, stage plays, screenplays, and how-to manuals.

Michael’s background in storytelling draws him to find the most fascinating aspects of any topic and transform them into a narrative that informs and entertains the reader. Thanks to a life spent immersed in comic books and movies, Michael is always ready to infuse his articles with offbeat bits of trivia for an extra layer of fun. In his spare time, you can find him entertaining kids as Spider-Man or Darth Vader at birthday parties or scaring the heck out of them at haunted houses.

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