Superhero relapse
Regular life bores me
BEN POGGEMILLER STAFF
The word “nostalgic” is not nearly strong enough to describe me. I’ve never taken a psychology course, but I’m sure there’s probably a term for nuts like me who never want to let go of their childhood. Don’t laugh, it’s a serious condition — I still love sugary cereals and I read the newspaper just for the comics. Recently, however, it’s gotten much worse and I find my love rekindled for the greatest idea in all of kid-dom: the superhero.
I still remember wearing my ratty old black cape and running around the house when I was a kid. I got it for a Halloween costume when I was too young to have a choice in the matter (I’m pretty sure Zorro’s mother didn’t make him wear a bright aquamarine winter coat over his costume though). The plastic hat cracked and my painted-on moustache washed off, but the cape remained for years. I used to run off the two steps that went from my family room to my kitchen in a vain attempt to fly, but I’d always end up landing on my knees. I use that knee trauma as an excuse for not running to this day.
For a while my life was devoted to Batman (who I later grew to realize is not actually a superhero, but just a really, really cool crime fighter). Every day I would watch Batman: The Animated Series, and to this day it remains the best comic-book-adaptedto- a-cartoon show (I own the whole set).
Then along came a spider . . . man. Spider-Man was another ’90s cartoon show that I took to immediately. Peter Parker seemed to be the only superhero that had to worry about paying rent and keeping his girlfriend. Like a real person. Spider-Man is still my favourite superhero.
Once these cartoons went off the air, I needed to feed my insatiable lust for superheroes. They say cartoons are the gateway drug to comic books. Whoever “they” are, they’re right. I didn’t collect comics for very long, considering it’s a time-consuming and money-devouring hobby. Plus I didn’t really care about rare or valuable comics. It was the stories I was into.
Then the superhero obsession just went away for a few years. I still liked them but I didn’t need them anymore. Everything was fine, until superheroes started getting movies and their shows started coming out on DVD. I snapped them up pretty quickly but I still wasn’t completely into it.
This year it all changed though when Marvel Comics came up with an event that would rock the Marvel universe forever. The Marvel Civil War series hooked me immediately with its premise. In a post-9-11 world (yes, it happened in the Marvel world too), the American public is as paranoid as ever. When a young group of heroes filming a TV show is directly involved in an incident that decimates the town of Stamford, Conn., the government seeks action. Iron Man and the United States government propose the “superhero registration act,” which requires all superheroes to register their identities with the government, receive proper training and get a fat government salary.
Some heroes liked the idea and quickly sign up. Others despised it, claiming the system will become corrupt and some people might use the superheroes for their own political agendas. Some say it will destroy their liberties. The reason heroes were so effective before was because they didn’t have to answer to bureaucrats. Any hero that breaks the law will be arrested by Iron Man and SHIELD (Strategic Hazard Intervention, Espionage and Logistics Directorate). Captain America, whom I normally don’t particularly like, actually grows a pair and forms an underground force dedicated to fighting the superhero registration act. Pretty soon nearly every hero in the Marvel universe is tied into this story somehow. My man Spider-Man, in an act that broke my heart, stayed loyal to his mentor and benefactor Iron Man, a.k.a Tony Stark, at the beginning of Civil War. He even revealed his identity on national television!
Some of you are probably saying, “Hey that doesn’t sound like it’s for kids. Comics are just for kids and big dumb nerds.” (Though I suppose if you’re the type of person to say that, you wouldn’t have read this far anyway, so I can say whatever I like.) On the contrary, comics aren’t for kids anymore. They have complex storylines where people die and the violence is often brutal (especially in the case of Wolverine).
It seems like there is in increasing number of people like me out there, and I think the comic book industry knows that. As comic fans get older, their need for the same superheroes remains, but the need for an adult setting also arises. With comic companies catering to people like me, they make it’s easier to accept my fate as a hopeless nerd. Because as I get older, I feel the need to cling to my childhood more and more. My X-ray vision isn’t what it used to be, though.
