Hey ma! I found one!Actually, whenever I discuss DC What If stories, I always have this one in the back of my mind. Maybe it's Byrne's well-remembered run on Superman or the Mike Mignola artwork (perfect since he also drew the World of Krypton mini-series). Either way, the only problem with this What If is that it's not long enough! The framing story takes up too much room, though I'm fine with Mignola drawing the Hawks the rest of their natural lives.
The story goes like this: Hawkman and Hawkwoman take Superman on a trip to where Krypton used to be. There's a huge kryptonite asteroid filed in its place, and Superman jumps into it with a spacesuit in order to commune with his father's spirit. By the end, he thinks he may have a cure for kryptonite poisoning, but it doesn't work. So there.
Superman Vol.2 #18 (June 1988)
Based on: Action Comics #1 originally, but actually its retelling from Man of Steel #1
The true history: Scientist Jor-El tried to convince his fellow Kryptonians that their world was about to explode, but they didn't believe him. He only just managed to send his infant son on a rocket to Earth, where he would grow up to become... Superman.
Turning point: What if the Kryptonians heeded Jor-El's warning?
Story type: New World Order.Watcher's mood: Kryptonite field hallucination. Without a Watcher, the DC Universe has to find other ways to tell these tales.
Altered history: After the Kryptonians give Jor-El a blank check, he plans a migration to that same primitive Eden he was going to send his son in our world - Earth! As kryptonite poisoning sets in, there is a fear that they won't be able to complete their fleet of ships in time, so Jor-El finds a cure for it. When they land on Earth, Jor-El extends a hand of peace to the Kents and then to Earthers everywhere.
A new golden age does not come, however, because Kryptonians either isolate themselves from humans or revel so much in their powers, they become corrupt and enslave humanity. Jor-El won't stand for it and becomes a costumed champion called the Savior.
He creates a new form of kryptonite and the Kryptonians are either killed (presumably) or flee into space. Their last bastion is in Metropolis/New Kandor, led by his love Lara. He can fight her, but can he fight the next generation led by the son he didn't even know he had, Kal-El! NOoooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!! (Swear to God, this is how it ends - see what I mean about it being too short?).Books canceled as a result: Fiddling with Superman's origin is likely to make the whole DC line collapse. A Savior comic is possible, as well as rebel stories for the rest of DC's stars (there's an Elseworld where this sort of happens, but I don't want to blow all of DC's beans in one go), but unlikely. Once DC Earth can no longer be "our" Earth, its usefulness as a superhero line evaporates.
These things happen: Though this scenario could never happen, we HAVE had large masses of Kryptonians creating havoc on Earth as lately as the New Krypton storyline which just wrapped up. Them Kryptonians are bad news.
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