Return he does and with quite a bang in Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns- a sequel of sorts to Superman and Superman II made more then twenty years ago. It may have been over two decades since the Man of Steel was last on the big screen, but in the movie his absence has lasted only five years. After spending that time searching the remains of his planet Krypyon, Superman (Brandon Routh) along with his second identity Clark Kent return to Earth and finds just how many changes there have been. One of the most devastating for him is that Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth), who is now a Pulitzer Prize winner for her piece "Why the World Doesn't Need Superman”, has moved on and gotten herself a young son and fiancé. However that’s only one of the hero’s troubles for the moment because Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) is out of jail and at his nefarious schemes again. This one involves, you guessed it, world domination, and you guessed it again, only Superman can stop him.

Director Bryan Singer’s reverence towards Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman is obvious from the start. We are immediately treated to John Williams' score from the original, the familiar swooshing opening credits, and borrowed footage of the late Marlon Brando as Jor-El. Then there’s also the fact of Brandon Routh's resemblance to Christopher Reeve. On the matter of Routh, he has perhaps one of the hardest jobs which is recreating the role of the Man of Steel himself. Routh certainly doesn’t fail and brings believability to both the mild-mannered Clark Kent and the heroic Superman. The rest of the cast is a mixed bag. While Kevin Spacey seems to revel in the evil nature of Lex, Kate Bosworth lacks any real pizzazz as Lois. At 23 years old in real life she also looks too young to be either the mother of a five year old son or a plausible Pulitzer Prize winner. The special effects are as spectacular as anyone would expect, and in a way the same could be said for the movie. However, as sleek and beautiful as it is, Superman Returns can’t quite call itself perfect. We’ll just have to wait for the inevitable sequels.

Three and a half stars out of four for Superman Returns

"VALHALLA, N.Y. (AP) - Lying in his hospital room, on a mattress designed to protect his fragile skin, 13-year-old Achim Nurse poked his bandaged fingers at an orange button on what looked like a souped-up video game console.

Half a second later, in a social studies class discussing the Erie Canal, a 5-foot-tall steel-blue robot raised its hand. 'You have a question, Achim?' said the teacher.

Achim is using a pair of robots - one, called 'Mr. Spike,' at his bedside, and its mate, 'Mrs. Candy,' in the classroom - to keep up with his schoolwork and his friends for the months he will be bedridden at Blythedale Children's Hospital in Valhalla, just north of New York City."