Superman made his debut in the pages of 1938’s Action Comics #1. Since then countless actors have brought the character to life on screen. Which live-action iteration of the Man of Steel is our favorite? George Reeves? Christopher Reeve? Brandon Routh? Henry Cavill? One of the many other performers who have played him? It’s almost impossible to pick just one as the best. But it’s not hard to name our top choice when it comes Kal-Els who have actually flown in the real world. The internet is rediscovering the joy of RC Superman, a moppy-haired remote-controlled recreation of the iconic superhero.
Chris Wolf, who goes by the online handle The RC Geek, recently celebrated his delightful 2015 device by uploading a new short YouTube video of his model RC Superman. (Which we first saw at Laughing Squid.)
His super remote-controlled device made its debut at the 2015 PVMAC Big Jolt all-electric RC event. It featured a body that looked like a blue and red model airplane up-close. (Well, a model airplane that had a head with floppy black hair for a nose.) But the real genius of his flying contraption is best appreciated when it’s actually being used. His design made it so that when RC Superman took to the sky, it captured the look and feel of the “real” Man of Steel.
This machine is fantastic unto itself. If we saw it in-person our brains would short circuit until we figured out what was going on. But seeing it soar high in the air in this latest video is its own reward. It features John Williams’ iconic Superman theme. That song makes this footage something special. It’s strangely captivating, as though, for just a brief moment, Clark Kent is real and here to protect us.
The song really does matter, too. Just compare the new video to the original longer one that doesn’t use Williams’ song.
It’s not a bird. It’s not a plane. And it’s not even actually Superman. But it’s still something that is bringing us joy after all these years—just like Superman himself has since 1938.