The newest sneak peek at James Gunn’s upcoming Superman film gave us our first look at the DCU’s Fortress of Solitude, and there’s a lot to dissect from those few minutes alone. From its ability to disappear and reappear from under the ice and all of the alien technology we see lying around it, there’s a lot to focus on. Something that stands out is the robotic servants that helped save Superman’s life. It might seem strange, but the Man of Steel is no stranger to having robot friends or assistants, and they actually come from very far back in his comic lore.
Superman has mingled with the sci-fi genre since the very start of his publication, especially with the incredible technology that he has at his disposal at the Fortress of Solitude. In fact, the first ever robotic assistant of Superman appeared way back in World’s Finest Comics #42, which was released in 1949. Instead of looking like the blue and white robots seen in the trailer, this robot was an exact duplicate of Superman. Long before Superman had his more robotic-looking assistants, he had a small army of Superman lookalikes he would use whenever Clark Kent was needed in the same place Superman was.
These robots didn’t just look like Superman, they also mimicked his many powers. Granted, none were as capable as the real Man of Steel, but throughout the ages, Superman possessed dozens, if not hundreds, of robots that were at least vaguely on his level of strength. That certainly makes for a powerful deterrent to people attempting to take over the world. In fact, these robots have even been used offensively, such as in the “King of the World” storyline from 1999, where the villain Dominus possessed Superman and used his robotic army to take over the world.
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There is also Superman’s ever-loyal caretaker and friend, the Kryptonian service robot Kelex. Kelex is a golden robot that first appeared in the 1986 miniseries Man of Steel, which reinvented Superman’s origins in the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity. Krypton was reimagined as a sterile, xenophobic world obsessed with scientific perfection, and Kelex was the assistant of Superman’s father, Jor-El. This Kelex was destroyed by Krypton’s explosion, but was eventually remade on Earth. He serves to this day as the overseer of the Fortress of Solitude, and is dedicated to helping the House of El however he can, although he lacks any combat capabilities.
What the Robots Mean for Superman
The specific robots from the trailer aren’t the classic Superman robots, given that they look nothing like him. Instead, their design is drawn from what is widely considered to be one of, if not the single best Superman comic, All Star Superman. It is in the pages of All-Star Superman that we see this design for the robotic automatons for the first time, not as robots ready to stand in for Superman, but as the ones who take care of the Fortress of Solitude. They are Superman’s servants and assistants, safeguarding dangerous alien technology that Superman has stored in the Fortress, or taking care of small tasks, such as fixing Lois Lane’s car when it needs repairs. They even fought alongside Superman in the comic’s final battle, though they proved themselves much weaker than the Man of Steel, and much easier to break.
They appear to have less personality in the comic than in the movie, but are fiercely loyal to Superman’s wishes. Importantly, while they do not appear to possess all of Superman’s powers, they are incredibly strong and capable of flight. The movie shows that their strength may be comparable to their comic counterparts, given that they are able to hold down Superman as he writhes in pain. While the robots may not fight side-by-side with Superman in the upcoming movie, their strength could well be used in other ways. The Superman vs the Elite movie had the robots help him fake destroying an entire street to sell his deception to Manchester Black, all while keeping the citizens safe.
The robots’ appearance in the movie means one thing at least: Gunn’s movie will be taking inspiration from very deep and important parts of Superman’s lore. It shows that, at least on some level, All-Star Superman is a defining influence in more than just name. If the movie continues to dive into the history of Superman to pull out these references, then I can safely say Superman fans will be very happy come its release.
Superman opens in theaters July 11th.
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