What is it with all these movies about people with incredible powers?
I’m sitting here rewatching The Avengers, and I’m looking forward to seeing Captain Marvel in March and Avengers: Endgame in April.
I’ve been a fan of superhero stories since I was a kid. Comic books, movies, tv cartoons on Saturday morning, and even low-budget television shows.
I actually enjoyed The Amazing Spider-man with Nicholas Hammond (1978-1979). This was long before CGI made the impossible seem real.
I think there are three things that draw me to the superhero genre. Maybe these are your reasons, too.
Power
The power to fly. The power to lift planes, trains, and automobiles. The power to move faster than bullets.
Power is what superheroes are known for.
And for a kid who didn’t feel all that powerful, imagining a world in which I had superpowers certainly excited me. I may have been a slightly overweight nerd with glasses, but I could imagine that was not the real me, and that there was great power within.
Of course, with great power comes great responsibility.
Help
With superpowers, saving those in trouble would be no trouble. I know being able to help others certainly drew me to the superhero genre.
If I had superpowers for real, that’s exactly what I would do. Wouldn’t you?
Maybe that’s not for everyone. I guess there are selfish super-powered individuals. 🙂
But when you see bullies, and you have the ability to stop them, how could you not help those in need?
However, sometimes it’s not others who need saving. It’s us.
Salvation
Maybe another reason we’re drawn to the superhero genre is a general feeling of hopelessness in the real world. When we don’t feel confidence in the system, when politics is just ick, and when those we used to look up to fall from the pedestals we put them on, maybe some part of us looks around for someone to fly in and save the day.
I think that might be why the superhero genre is so huge right now.
What do you think?
