Photography
Notes
Superman was the flagship release of Kenner's 1984 Super Powers Collection and the figure that introduced the world to the line's hidden spring mechanisms. Sculpted from José Luis García-López's DC Comics style guide artwork, the figure captures the Man of Steel in his classic red-and-blue costume with a bold chest shield and a removable red cloth cape. Squeezing his legs together triggers the Power Action Punch, driving both arms forward in a two-fisted blow. Superman appeared on every major U.S. cardback across all three years of the line and was produced in enormous quantities, which keeps him one of the most affordable and easily found figures in the collection today.
Superman's removable red cloth cape attaches by way of a molded plastic collar that seats between the shoulders and the neck post. The cape gives the figure the flowing silhouette seen throughout DC's 1980s style guide artwork and is essential to a complete loose example.
Collector Notes:
Original capes have a slightly coarse weave and a distinctive stitch line along the collar seam. Reproduction capes are extremely common and usually give themselves away with brighter, more saturated red fabric and cleaner machine stitching.
Every Series 1 and Series 2 figure shipped with a 16-page full-color mini-comic tucked into the bubble. Superman's issue tied directly into the DC Super Powers storyline that ran alongside the toy line.
Mini-comics are almost always separated from loose figures. A carded example with the comic correctly positioned in the bubble commands a real premium.
Credits
- José Luis García-López — packaging art (style guide basis)
