Superheroes

Alternate stories: Superman

A Superman story that’s pretty much the same as the original, except he has a different reason for being a hero.

It’s not because he feels he should help people since he has superpowers. It’s not just because he’s a good guy at heart.

Superman went to the Fortress. He saw the history of Krypton. He knows what led to the planet exploding—his parents’ neglect.

Jor-El was a skilled scientist, so he knew what was wrong with the planet. But he was arrogant. Instead of raising an alarm, he wanted to fix it on his own.

Lara was on the governing council. People’s safety should have been he top priority. But she was too comfortable with the status quo.

Besides, the House of El was high society. If anything really bad happened, they had escape pods ready. No problem flying off planet.

Arrogance and laziness. They both shirked their responsibilities.

And Superman knows.

It sickens him.

He’s trying to make up for their shortcomings. Every person he saves. Every disaster he stops. It’s because his parents wouldn’t step up.

It’s the reason Clark became an investigative reporter—to make sure people in power are honest and ethical.

He spends both lives, as Clark and Superman, making sure that no one hurts people out of arrogance or neglect.

Superman isn’t interested in bringing back Krypton.

He wants to make sure it never happens again.

11 things I love about Spider-Man: Homecoming

When Spider-Man Homecoming was originally announced, a lot of people were surprised that the superhero would be rebooted again so soon after The Amazing Spider-Man movies. Spider-Man is one of my favorite characters, so I was excited regardless. Now that I saw Homecoming, there’s a lot to love about the movie.

My list is after the cut. (Spoilers, of course.)

Hero, Sidekick, Villain

Hero, Sidekick, Villain

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created a classic trio of characters with his Sherlock stories: hero, sidekick, and villain. For example: Sherlock, Dr. Watson, and Moriarty.

I took a look at other stories to see how closely they fit Conan Doyle’s setup. These aren’t in any particular order and this certainly isn’t an exhaustive list — just off the top of my head.

StoryHeroSidekickVillain
SherlockSherlockDr. John WatsonMoriarty
Harry PotterHarryRon, HermioneVoldemort
Merlin (v1)MerlinArthurMorgana
Merlin (v2)ArthurMerlinMordred
FringePeter/OliviaWalter, AstridWalternate
SupermanSupermanJimmy OlsenLex Luthor
BatmanBatmanRobinThe Joker
Doctor WhoThe Doctor[companion]The Master
Teen WolfScott McCall[his pack][multiple]
HavenAudreyNathan, Dukethe Troubles
ChuckChuck, SarahCasey[multiple]
Back to the FutureMartyDoc BrownBiff
Dresden FilesHarryMurphy, [multiple][multiple]
RoswellMax[his friends]FBI
MatildaMatilda(none)her parents, Trunchbull
The SandlotBennySmallsthe Beast
Star Wars (original triology)LukeHan, LeiaDarth Vader

How smart is Superman?

Superman
I finished reading It’s Superman! by Tom De Haven, and one of the things that struck me in the book is that Clark thinks he is dumb. He mentions it briefly at first:

Especially since he’s not smart the way that he feels he should be, all things being equal. Intelligence to match his physical powers: is that too much to ask?

Later he thinks about it again:

Because no matter how strong he is or how fast or how far he can see, he is still a farm boy, as Lois rightly called him, a twenty-year-old wheat from Kansas who never figured out the mysteries of the slide rule, who can’t fathom electricity or the principles of music theory, much less radio transmission, and who is utterly mystified by the atom, the X-ray, and the salinity of the ocean. So just how is a guy like him supposed to take on and best somebody like Lex Luthor, a grown-up, a millionaire, a genius who evidently can snap his fingers and make whatever he wants or doesn’t want vanish into thin air?

I took Superman’s intelligence for granted. He is super strong and super fast. I thought super smart was a given, especially since his Kryptonian brain should be able to process thoughts faster and remember more than the average human brain. I still think that’s the case, and the key point is that Clark in It’s Superman! isn’t really Superman yet—he is Clark Kent running around town in a movie costume.

It makes sense that Clark Kent, new to the big city, still discovering what he is capable of, doesn’t realize his full potential. Maybe it’s just a matter of him trying to learn something new on his own, and then he’ll be able to pick it up quickly without a problem.

I’ve always been interested in Clark Kent’s story, pre-Superman, and It’s Superman! does a great job showing us what Clark is like when he is figuring out what kind of person he is and what he should do with his power. I’m glad Tom De Haven specifically points out Clark’s intelligence, because a Clark Kent who doesn’t think he is smart is not something I’ve seen in other Superman stories.

Matt Murdock’s ordinary acts

A while ago, I wrote a few tweets tagged #OrdinaryActs, and the idea was that these are little things superheroes do to blend in, to make it seem like they have ordinary lives. For example:

“Clark Kent grabs a cardboard sleeve for his coffee. Details matter. #OrdinaryActs”

“Peter Parker joins The Bugle’s softball team. He strikes out in the first inning; misses an easy catch in the third. #OrdinaryActs”

We know a hot cup of coffee wouldn’t affect Clark, and we know Peter has excellent hand-eye coordination, but these are everyday moments where they could play up being ordinary.

And then I watched the Daredevil Netflix series and saw that Matt Murdock does these kinds of things too. Even though he has heightened senses and is not in total darkness, he pretends at complete blindness when he is around people in his everyday life.

Small things, like reaching out to touch a door frame or missing someone’s hand for a handshake. Relying on his cane as he walks down the sidewalk, but we know he can toss it and run, full-speed, if he wants to.

I love seeing details like that, where Matt acts that way on purpose as part of his disguise.

It’s a reversal: He stops pretending when he puts on the mask.

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