cr1mson5thestranger:

Superhero Songs: Cr1mson-Style, Pt. 3

“Just Like You” by Three Days Grace

I hear so much of Superboy in this song that it’s uncanny. Specifically, the lyrics really speak to the point in Conner’s life shortly before his death and shortly after his resurrection. The song itself is kind of a “teenage rebellion” anthem, a song about a person who wishes to separate their identity from that of their parental figure/mentor/teacher/guide. In the aforementioned points of his life, Conner struggled very much with his identity in light of the revelation that he was cloned partially from Lex Luthor’s DNA. He was tormented by the thought that his genetics could cause him to become a terrible person or even a straight-up villain. The lines, “I could be mean, I could be angry,” and “I could be cold, I could be ruthless,” express this particularly well.

Also, Conner wasn’t really sure he wanted to completely follow Superman’s example. Of course, he wanted to be a hero and do the right thing and all that, but he wasn’t sure how sold he was on basically being Superman’s successor anymore. It didn’t help that Superman seemed to be butting in on Conner’s life a lot, trying to make a lot of very important decisions for him without giving him a real say in things. The refrain, “You thought you were there to guide me, you were only in my way, you’re wrong if you think that I’ll be just like you,” really captures that sort of boyish, teenage defiance. Conner doesn’t either of his “fathers” controlling his life. He wants to be able to make his own decisions and choose his own way, but they make it so difficult to do.