For a genre that was once considered the domain of the nerd, the superhero genre – across all of its various media platforms – is doing rather well. So, have we turned into an audience of geeks, or is there something deeper to the long-lasting appeal of the superheroes?
Endless movie reboots don’t seem to have done too much harm to our caped and masked heroes – the recent Spiderman movie is a perfect example. Both Marvel and DC comics have invested a huge amount in marketing their products and have almost become arch enemies themselves, battling it out for supremacy at the box office. Every angle has been covered with mash-ups such as the Avengers and Justice League, and risks have been taken with the likes of Deadpool, with its somewhat controversial dark humour. And with the Black Panther, Avengers, Deadpool, Incredibles, Ant-Man and Aquaman all set to lead movie titles in 2018, there does not seem to be a Superhero saturating point. The law of diminishing marginal utility does not seem to apply where comic global salvation is concerned.
Wherever you look, the world is full of superheroes. On TV shows, at the cinema, in bookshops, in toy departments and in music stores, the appetite for this classic representation of good over evil, laced with moral conundrums, is stronger than ever. Marvel and DC comics have even ventured into the gaming world with video slots titles featuring Iron Man, the Avengers, Batman and Superman available on sites such as Betsafe. As a result, even a trip to the casino or an online gaming website often results in an encounter with a superhero. So what is it about these lycra-clad purveyors of justice that keep millions of us engaged year in, year out?
When analysing their popularity, there are some very fine lines that need to be explored. Some have suggested that Spiderman is so popular because regular people can relate to his socially-awkward and somewhat imperfect human persona. But on the flipside, he can spin webs, climb walls and traverse between buildings, so he is hardly a regular guy. So, perhaps there is a childlike ‘normal guy/girl who can take on the world’ fantasy at play here. Our superheroes tap into something inside us that never dies and indeed needs feeding now and then.
But of course, this rule does not apply to all of the characters. Superman pretends to be a normal guy in his daily life but he is actually an alien who hides behind a gawky persona, while Batman is a billionaire who could hardly be described as down to earth. But they all share a vulnerability, an uncomfortableness in who they really are. They all struggle with identity and being accepted in society. They all have secrets to hide. And of course, they can all kick ass when required.
So, from the teenage angst of Spiderman through to the reclusive tendencies of wealthy heir Batman, there is a common thread. Their strength and power are always offset and sometimes driven by their weakness. Their own disillusionment with a world where they feel like outcasts are channelled into their drive to make the world a better place for others, even if it means sacrificing any chance they might have of ever being accepted for who they really are.
Perhaps this trade-off between godliness and immorality, and the ability to help others, at the expense of a defined place in the world represents a moral dilemma that is entrenched in the human psyche.
