Superman: Man of Steel

Lead Up
Superman is now a well established hero in Metropolis.

Prologue - "Mild Mannered"
Superman wakes up one day to find himself without powers. Superman has been wreaking havoc across the city; Luthor attempts to put a stop to him using a kryptonite weapon but fails as it has no apparent effect. Superman takes over the Daily Planet, kidnapping Lois Lane.

Jimmy Olsen receives a mysterious signal from a program called COMPUTO telling Olsen that he knows how to defeat the attacker.

Clark Kent confronts the impostor Superman, standing up as his eyes blaze heat vision. Kent is blasted by Superman, but finds himself unscathed. Superman laughs, teleporting everyone out of the Planet building.

Clark finds himself in his Superman costume, as the imposter transforms into a man in a derby hat; calling himself "Mister Mxyzptlk", imp of the 5th dimension. He congratulates Superman on his triumph, telling him that he must enjoy the calm before the storm, as a larger threat is coming to Earth. Outside of the planet, Olsen allows COMPUTO into the network, projecting the word "KLTPZYXM" on all screens. Mxyzptlk sees this, waves goodbye to Superman, and is transported back to the 5th dimension.

Chapter One - "First Contact"
Luthor and Sam Lane recieve a distress signal from the space team Excalibur. Hank Henshaw reports a large ship passing Jupiter's orbit, and heading towards earth. The ship severs excalibur's connection with Luthor, broadcasting one word: Brainiac.

The ship sends a probe, honing in on Jimmy Olsen's telephone. It crashes into the Daily Planet, transforming into a robot being. It interfaces with the Daily Planets systems, using the building as a larger signal to lure the mothership to earth.

Superman springs into action, battling the robot. They take the fight into the streets, with the robot analyzing Superman's genetics. Just as the robot is destroyed, it relays a message to the mothership: Kryptonian. The being on the ship smiles, and the vessel arrives over metropolis.

Chapter Two - "Bottled City"
Brainiac arrives on Earth. Superman flies toward the ship but is blasted back down. Multiple probes rain down on metropolis, creating a sort of forcefield. Luthor and Lane believe that Superman somehow caused this attack. With the military doing little damage against the alien robots, Luthor takes matters into his own hands; releasing his own military grade Lex-corp drones. Ex-military John Henry Irons debuts a powersuit saving the daily planet staff from danger.

None of the resistance proves substantial however, and the robot forcefield succeeds. Superman gets up, charging once more towards the spaceship. He enters, but is dispatched by legions of brainiac drones. In metropolis, an message is broadcast: "I am Brainiac, and your city will be added to my collection." A beam emerges from the mothership, and Metropolis vanishes from the Earth.

Superman awakens on Brainiac's ship, escaping from his bonds. He finds the vast collection of cities that brainiac has gathered across centuries. Superman finds Metropolis and another city, one named "Kandor". Brainiac blasts superman, and recognizes the crest of El. Brainiac refers to him as Kal-El, last son of Krypton, and Superman is shocked.

Chapter Three - "Legacy"
Brainiac battles Superman, revealing to superman his true motivations.

''Brainiac's home planet was faced with annihilation, but he took it upon himself to prevent destruction and save his society's culture. Now, he traverses the universe, preserving cities on planets which he foresees extinction.''

Superman asks why he captured Metropolis, and Brainiac states that Earth will be faced with an imminent invasion. Brainiac then explains that he believed he had saved Krypton from destruction by preserving Kandor, but now sees that Superman, a surviving Kryptonian, is an anomaly; as he is imbued/tainted with yellow solar energy and now must be preserved as well. Superman grabs Kandor and Metropolis.

The two battle, with Brainiac insulting Superman's father, Jor-El, revealing that he could have saved Krypton from destruction. Superman is astounded to learn his father's name, but his rage propels both out of the mothership.

They crash in the swamps of Louisiana, and Brainiac is exposed to earth bacteria and germs, which overload his systems with new information of biological life outside of containment. Superman pummels the android, but Brainiac knocks superman back, conveying a signal that transports the mothership away. Superman destroys the villain once and for all.

Superman restores Metropolis. Returning to Smallville, Clark retrieves the rocket he arrived in; reactivating the console. Recognizing his kryptonian DNA and the crest of El, the ship is decrypted revealing Jor-El's last message. Taking the rocket to the Arctic Circle, Superman crafts a Fortress in the ice. He places Kandor in the fortress of solitude, promising to free them. Superman discovers that this Brainiac was only a drone, and the true collector is still out there in the universe, invading planets.

Epilogue - "The Specimen"
On board Brainiac's ship, Hank Henshaw awakens to find himself half cyborg. He sees Superman and Brainaic battling, and calls for superman to save him, but the hero cannot hear his cries. Brainiac robots subdue henshaw and continue operating on him, as the ship departs with Brainiac's command.

With all his will, he crushes one of the drones and crawls towards an airlock. Now mostly machine, he interfaces with the network and sends himself and the drones attacking him into space. As he floats, all Henshaw thinks about is revenge against he who did not save him: Superman. Suddenly, Henshaw finds a floating piece of debris (a pod) gaining momentum. He grabs on and examines the cargo, revealing data regarding an unstoppable monster. Henshaw smiles as the pod floats through the void.

Timeline

 * This event is part of The Golden Age
 * This event is preceded by The Dark Knight
 * This event is followed by World's Finest

Links

 * Full Reading Order
 * Superman Reading Order