The Appeal of the Superhero Genre
Why Audiences are Drawn to the Fantastic in Contemporary America
Many aspire to be champions as kids. Of the possibilities of life and the dreams of parents and their children alike. Some want to play in professional sports leagues. Some want to go to the most exclusive schools. The young mind boggles with ambition.
This is a common refrain in the world of youth today. Those who get left behind are also in need of an escape. Hence, some are attracted to the escapism and others to dreams of fiction. Of these fictions, the quentisensual fiction is that of the superhero genre in contemporary America.
Action comics number 1 is thought of as the first graphic novel to be considered as part of the superhero genre with the first appearance of Superman. It was first published in 1938. It is the most valuable comic ever printed and opened the world of popular culture to the genre. That genre would later become the highest grossing movie franchise in box office history in the form of the Marvel comics film universe.
Quickly after Superman, Captain America Comics number one was published by Timely Comics in 1941 which later became Marvel Comics. Therefore, the advent of comics could also be considered as part of the war effort given the geopolitical climate at the time. Captain America comics number 1 even featured a direct punch into the face of Hitler on the cover.
The superhero genre didn’t end with the war. Once peace was declared kids were still drawn to the stories of the fantastic. This was the era of Superman and Batman. And the era of Wonder Woman if you were a girl. Just don’t get caught reading Wonder Woman if you were a boy as the culture demanded. This is known as the Golden Age of the comic book and roughly lasted between 1938 to the 1950s.
The Golden Age was followed by the Silver Age (1958-1970), the Bronze Age (1970-1985) and the Modern Age (1985-present). Of these ages, the Silver Age saw the advent of Stan Lee and the new Marvel comics universe that remains intact till this day. Heroes like Iron Man, Spiderman and X-Men all appeared due to the “work” of Stan Lee even though historians somewhat question his involvement in these iconic characters today.
So what makes these stories so appealing? The genre could probably be due to some literary device where the tales of the rich and famous draw in the audience. This story telling can even be linked to Shakespeare. Many of Shakespeare’s plays deal with royal households and even included the play Julius Caesar. Palace intrigue has been a part of fiction for a long time.
This also applies to the superhero genre. The heroes have superpowers that make them wielders of great power. A gift that requires great responsibility according to the Spiderman mantra. Often, the heroes and villains in these tales represent heads of great businesses, have high level government jobs, or have direct dealings with mayors and even Presidents.
The themes of comics also offer a glimpse into a world that can by all intensive purposes be considered a mythology. A comic being a story of Hercules or Odysseus. A story of Thor who is actually a Norse mythical figure himself and a member of the Avengers. It could be seen as the Achilles that fights crime in Gotham City. Today many know the superpowers of the Green Lantern. Such as was seen in the powers of Athena in ancient Greece.
The Modern Age of comics began in 1985 with a turn in popular culture in general towards a darker side of storytelling. Comics like “Dark Knight Returns” and “Watchmen” dealt with mature themes along with a change in the broader culture to gloominess in storytelling. This continues to this day given the nature of most entertainment that finds audiences in the contemporary landscape. At least this is the most noticeable change. Lighter themes like the stories of Spiderman still exist depending on your mood.
Tales of the macabre are also actually nothing new. German folktales are dated at least to the early 1800s include some tales that could be considered off color for children. These included Grimm’s fairy tales which have since become staples in the Disney library. Shakespeare also had his tragic plays. Bram Stoker even wrote Dracula in 1897.
What attracts the audience for a tale of someone like the Joker? Much more the tale of someone like Harley Quinn who married the Joker? Is there some dark side in our soul? Can we find goodness in evil? Does it offer a deeper exploration? What is certain is that comics and contemporary popular culture in general usually doesn’t offer the family values that were once the target of Congressional hearings in America.
Some commentators on this trend towards darker story lines offer explanations. One is the idea that things aren’t black and white in events in the real world. There is no truly mythical good guy in Superman or Batman. In fact, some commentators have said that Batman has psychopathic leanings due to the vigilante style of his actions. This is particularly true in later incarnations of his character.
In turn, the idea is that things in comic books aren’t black and white but extend into shades of gray. Is Catwoman really a villain since she is non violent and steals from the rich for instance? Do villains have sufficient motivation for their own actions due to their circumstances? It goes without saying antiheroes are the common structure for characters across most pop culture and this includes comic books in today’s era.
The tales of absolute good and evil are no longer the simple lines they once were in comic ages of the past. Instead, many heroes and even villains each have more rich tapestry. Their motivations and psychology are theirs alone. Superman and other heroes of his kind always will uphold the finest moral principles. This is important, but so is the believability of characters. Therefore, it can be argued that the comic book industry is richer in storytelling than it was during ages past.
So is this twist in culture that began the Modern Age merely a reflection of society at large? There has been a turn away from religious faith that could even be blamed on something like the superhero genre. The tales of fiction can displace the truths of faith and philosophy into a state of being entertained to the point of losing one’s sense of self. This is probably the rabbit hole that led to this dark turn.
As children, many of the young are fascinated with the idea that they could be superhuman. Debates of “who would beat who” in a fight are common. So is the imagination that is utilized by the mind in the form of superpowers that heroes invoke. Girls and boys especially dream of having super strength or the dream of being able to fly like Superman.
Children are also told to dream when they are young. The sad fact is that dreams often don’t come true. Hence many have the failure emblem on their neck if they just end up having a simple life. This can lead to the defeatism that attracts one to mature themes in entertainment. As the 1980s rolled around, this was a casting of the new winner take all world that the era brought. Hence, the rise in the darker side of story telling probably came along with this phenonium.
Comics were originally considered as entertainment for children. However, not all consumers of the superhero genre are children. This includes some adults who harken to their childhood in nostalgia. It is not uncommon for some individuals to harken to their childhood later in life. This is especially true for the newer generations.
The harkening back to the music of the 80s and 90s is common for Generation X as they age. As is the looking back to movies and yes the superheroes of a time lost. This is something passed onto children as any toy aisle will tell you. Kids still consume a lot of the media endured to their parents and some new media. Superheroes included.
This is mainly considered the advent of geek culture. It is also becoming more and more common. Some individuals never grow up and remain in a state of childhood without adult responsibility. This type of behavior is also not something that makes an individual particularly attractive. Men are not supposed to be boys. Yet, there are many who refuse to grow up.
This is probably a natural order of things. Geekdom at a later stage of life is escapism. It is dreaming of far off galaxies and remembering one’s childhood. Unfortunately, it can also be self defeating in the form of mature entertainment. Sometimes life doesn’t work out perfectly for some and being drawn to fiction is common. The fiction of mature themes that is almost a sense of rebellion for some.
The breakdown of the family is a large culprit for this change in culture. Comics of ages past were used to be training for how one was to grow up and take responsibility. Now it is just a form of escapism in my opinion for many adults. Families and children have become less common at the same time geekdom has become more common. Perhaps we have been entertaining ourselves to an end of maturity.
Fiction and even non-fiction have common themes in their appeal. Non fiction can be considered part of the style of seeking high level intrigue as well. The field of history itself tells of legendary figures. Historic figures usually accomplished something monumental or at least of note. The same can be said of the fictional narrative of comic books where wars across worlds are part of the story line. The fantastic reaches out to the bounds of the extraordinary to offer its appeal.
The appeal of morality is also a central theme in many of these tales. There tends to be a code of ethics for the heroes and an obvious deficiency of morals in the villains. In this way comics can be seen as morality plays in their mainstream forms. While there are now richer tales of anti heroes and shades of gray, the superhero genre adds the extraordinary to the ordinary choices most of us are offered. That or they just offer an escape into a fantastic world of make believe. Either way, we can connect to superheroes in the escape to the new American mythology.