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DC scraps ‘the American Way' from Superman's motto, Internet calls it 'a disgrace'

DC Comics scraps WW2-era motto in favor of 'a Better Tomorrow', internet trolls Fox and other right-wing groups as some see red

Since 1938, Clark Kent aka Superman has been thrilling readers and audiences with his heroic acts. Come 2021, it now appears he's causing a major rift among fans because of a small change that DC Comics is making. Avid comic readers will know Superman's motto "Truth, Justice and the American Way". Well, it not appears as if he's ditching his American patriotism once and for all. DC has announced it will be scrapping 'the American Way' in favor of 'a Better Tomorrow' in the motto.

For decades, the character has seen many iterations in comics and on screen and sometimes they have been met with massive backlash. Remember Henry Cavill's infamous CGI mustache removal in 'Justice League'? In fact, DC caused quite the storm on October 11 after it announced Jonathan Kent would come out as bisexual. That news led to fury and uproar, lead by Dean Cain.

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Despite that, it appears DC is in no mood to give up just yet. Days after making that controversial announcement, it has followed up with news that it's scrapping the 'the American Way' bit from Superman's motto. As you would expect, Twitter users were incredibly divided over the move, with some slamming DC, while others mocked those crying over the end of 'the American Way'.

No more 'the American Way'

The shift of motto was announced by DC Comics' chief creative officer Jim Lee at the DC Fandome event on October 16. He said, "Superman has long been a symbol of hope who inspires people from around the world, and it is that optimism and hope that powers him forward with this new mission statement." In a press release, the company said the change "will better reflect the global storylines that we are telling across DC and to honor the character’s incredible legacy." 

DC will now use the motto 'Truth, Justice and a Better Tomorrow' across comics books, films, TV, video games, and more for Clark Kent’s Superman. Now before you decide where you stand on this issue, you should know 'the American Way' was never originally part of Superman's motto. As Variety noted, the character has had several mottos over the decades, "all of which involved variations on 'truth' and 'justice' as central to the iconic superhero’s identity." The addition of 'the American Way' was made in the 1940s, first in the Superman radio show to allude to America's military efforts in World War 2.

In the 1950s, the motto was adopted again for the TV show 'Adventures of Superman', again as a political tool to bolster America's image during the Cold War. After that, the phrase dropped out of the character's vocabulary after a brief revival in Christopher Reeve's 1978 feature film. Since the 90s, the phrase hasn't been used at all, so in reality, it's not a big shift. If anything, it's just cementing a legacy that was already in place. 

'Heads are exploding at Fox'

But, that's not what social media believed. DC's announcement was instantly met with some backlash. One user tweeted, "Without America there is no tomorrow." Alt-right political activist Jack Posobiec tweeted, "Superman's new motto is remarkably similar to Build Back Better." Another said, "First a token bi Superman and now DC completely abandons the 'American Way' for Superman's motto. Though lets be honest, modern woke comics stopped caring about 'Truth and Justice' a long time ago as well. They rather endorse riots and division instead."

Other's though, didn't appear to have an issue with the change and in fact used it as a golden opportunity to mock the haters. One person trolled, "Just In: Heads are exploding at Fox News because DC Comics changed SUPERMAN’S motto from "truth, justice, and the American Way " to "truth, justice and a better tomorrow."." One user dryly noted, "*looks at the current state of America* Good change." Another mocked, "DC is really leaning into all the free publicity that comes from triggering the Right."

Barring the 1978 film, the motto has never really appeared in full in any 'Superman' films, including the recent DCEU movies. In the 2006 reboot starring Brandon Routh, Frank Langella's character Perry White jokes if Superman still fights for "truth, justice, all that stuff." But beyond that, there's been no real reference to the motto at all. So for most fans, this change will have little effect on their experience.