YMMV / Superboy

• Accidental Innuendo: This cover of features him getting spanked by the principal.
• Broken Base:
  • In regards to the retcon that Conner was a clone of Superman and Lex Luthor — that it's made it into every adaptation of the character doesn't help. Some fans grew to dislike this decision in that Conner suddenly became obsessed with the revelation and feared he'd eventually turn evil because half his DNA came from Luthor, dominating most of Conner's personality besides his relationship with Wonder Girl. Others liked that it gave his character more depth, and that it toned down his arrogance from prior to the reveal.
  • The promotion of Jon to the Superboy name angered Conner fans, especially since Conner never gave the name up and no one asked his permission. Later hints that DC were looking to return the pre-Flashpoint Conner to continuity only added fuel to the fire, since Jon's popularity means he has a monopoly on the Superboy codename for now. Conner has never had a different superhero codename since his creation in 1993, so the fandom is split over whether he should gain a new one or share the name. A third argument is that the older Conner is technically no longer a "boy" anyway, and could simply take a spin-off name like "Superguy" or something like that.
• Ensemble Dark Horse:
  • Of the four "replacement" Supermen from the "Reign of the Supermen" arc, Superboy was the only one who received a lasting series. (Steel got one, but it was canceled not long after.)
  • Jonathan, for being a character that allows writers to explore new ground with Superman. Not only that, but people have wanted Superman and Lois Lane to have a child for decades. Readers also find his cheerful and naive, but slightly mischievous personality to be refreshing after years upon years of dark and gritty deconstructions of the sidekick archetype.
• Fanon Discontinuity:
  • Conner gets a lot of it from Young Justice fans, who still insist on calling him Kon.
  • Fans of Superboy-Prime would rather forget that one Teen Titans issue where he lashed out again, undoing the Character Development he went through in Blackest Night and suffered The Worf Effect hard and got placed in the Source Wall.
• Fan-Preferred Couple:
  • Post-Crisis Tim and Connor get by far the most shipping out of any incarnation of Superboy due to their close friendship and numerous statements that can be taken as Ho Yay, though his eventual canon relationship with Cassie Sandsmark was a popular ship for a long time due to her crush on him and their friendship.
  • The sentiment has since been transferred to Damian and Jon as of the Rebirth continuity, ignoring the three year age difference and their vastly different personalities. Part of it is also transferring some of the Ho Yay between their dads onto them.
• Germans Love David Hasselhoff: While Conner has always been popular in Japan for his Ho Yay shipping with Tim Drake, Jon Kent seems to be especially popular among the Eastern crowd given the sheer amount of Japanese fan art he gets (though a lot of it is with Damian).
• It's Popular, Now It Sucks!: Although Jonathan has been extremely popular as of late (especially after the title character's poor treatment in the New 52), critics have argued that he's being overly exposed and marketed to the point of taking time away from other characters, with his character arcs taking over much of his father's major comics.
• Like You Would Really Do It: A primary criticism of the climax of Superman #18 is the fact that Jonathan's extensive marketing and starring role in Super Sons all but ensures his survival, sapping a great deal of the impact behind his horrific fate at the end of the comic.
• Moral Event Horizon: Superboy-Prime, who in almost every one of his appearances, ends up finding new and horrific ways to become more and more of a deranged, violent Jerkass.
• My Real Daddy: Jonathan was created by Dan Jurgens, who mostly writes him as a typical kid with a bit of a curiosity thanks to his parents. It would be Peter J. Tomasi who defined the character as a gigantic Nice Guy, gave him his "Well Done, Son" Guy elements that have defined his relationship with his father, and introduced his Vitriolic Best Buds relationship with Damian Wayne.
• Only the Creator Does It Right: This trope was invoked on the 90s-era books. After sales dropped substantially during the run of Ron Marz and Ramon Bernado, the character's original creators (Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett) returned to the title in an attempt to recapture the magic the book once had. However, the new stories featured a radically different direction and despite the original team, never truly recovered.
• Replacement Scrappy: While he's liked by the majority of readers, some Conner fans do not like Jonathan Kent. After years of Superboy being... well, crap, they hoped he would be fixed somewhat by Rebirth... this did not happen. In fact, he doesn't seem to appear in anything after the the DC YOU Teen Titans series. And to rub salt in the wound, Jon gets to co-star in Superman (Rebirth) written by Peter J. Tomasi and he gets to appear alongside Damian Wayne in Super Sons, never mind the likelihood of him likely making guest appearances in Teen Titans, Justice League, and the specials. Suffice to say, Conner fans are not amused that Jon gets such a big push.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Jon being aged up to 17 as part of Superman (Brian Michael Bendis) was not at all well-received. The circumstances behind it were contrived (Lois and Jon trusted Jor-El, who has tried to convince Clark that Humans Are Bastards and triggered murder and chaos around the globe, to take them into space), the notion of having another teenage Superboy is undercut by Connor's return in Young Justice (2019), and it skips over tons of potential character development.

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