If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.
The secret Britney Spears influence on DC's Superman: Harvests of Youth by Sina Grace
The pop star's hometown helped shape the look of Smallville
Popverse's top stories of the day
- Denzel Washington has a role in Marvel's Black Panther 3, which will be one of the actor's last before retirement (if it gets greenlit)
- Oscar Isaac would *love* to do Ru Paul's Drag Race, and even has his drag name already picked out
- How Lego Masters plays with the building blocks of reality TV
Superman: Harvest of Youth is a reimagining of Clark Kent during his high school days. Sina Grace, the writer and artist of the book, shared the inspirations he used to create the visual style during the ALA Annual Conference. Some were conventional such as the art of Jake Wyatt, while others were out of the box. A viewing of a Britney Spears documentary helped shape Grace’s version of Smallville.
In the graphic novel, Clark’s hometown is like another character so Grace wanted to create a “specific and modern Smallville rather than sort of this cookie cutter generic, anywhere. I really wanted it to have this texture.”
Sometimes you draw inspiration in the weirdest places. Grace continued, "Oddly enough, the Britney Spears documentary. All the pans over her hometown. Look, this place is my reference.”
For the character designs, Grace used an old Jake Wyatt sketchbook so he could learn how to draw youth like the artist. Little did he know that Wyatt was making My Adventures with Superman at DC. If you are a fan of the animated series, Grace thinks you’ll enjoy his book. “I feel like it visually looks like it and if you read this, it’s a perfect prequel to the cartoon because Clark was in college then. This Clark is in high school."
What’s next for Sina Grace? At the end of the panel, he shared a sketch of Plastic Man hoping to manifest working with the character.
Get ready for what's next with our guide to upcoming comics, how to buy comics at a comic shop, and our guide to Free Comic Book Day 2025.
About ALA Annual 2024
Dates
-
Location
San Diego, California
United States
Follow Popverse for upcoming event coverage and news
Find out how we conduct our review by reading our review policy
Let Popverse be your tour guide through the wilderness of pop culture
Sign in and let us help you find your new favorite thing.
Comments
Want to join the discussion? Please activate your account first.
Visit Reedpop ID if you need to resend the confirmation email.