Superhero
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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| + | "Were would [[Spider-Man]] be without the [[Green Goblin]] [...] or any of his other splendidly savage and sinister [[supervillain]]s? Sure, you always need the hero, but ask yourself this: how eager would you be to read about a [[superhero]] who fought litterbugs, jaywalkers, or income-tax evaders?"--Stan Lee | ||
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| + | "[[Spider-Man|Peter]] dons the requisite [[Spandex]] and goes out to [[Spiritual warfare|battle evil]]."--''[[Our Gods Wear Spandex]]'' (2007) is a book by Christopher Knowles | ||
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| + | "The [[superhero]] film genre experienced renewed and intense interest throughout the [[2000s]]. Some attributed this increased popularity to the social and political climate in Western society since the [[September 11 attacks]]."--Sholem Stein | ||
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| - | A '''superhero''' (also known as a '''super hero''') is a [[fictional character]] "of unprecedented physical prowess dedicated to acts of derring-do in the public interest.” | + | In modern [[popular fiction]], a '''superhero''' is a type of [[hero|costumed heroic character]] who possesses [[supernatural]] or [[superhuman powers]] and who is dedicated to fighting crime, protecting the public, and usually battling [[supervillains]]. A [[female]] superhero is sometimes called a '''[[superheroine]]'''. [[Fiction]] centered on such characters, especially in [[American comic book]]s since the 1930s, is known as [[superhero fiction]]. |
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| + | By most definitions, characters do not require actual supernatural or superhuman powers or [[phenomena]] to be deemed superheroes. While the Dictionary.com definition of "superhero" is "a figure, especially in a [[comic strip]] or cartoon, endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime", the longstanding [[Merriam-Webster]] dictionary gives the definition as "a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person". Terms such as masked crime fighters, costumed adventurers or masked [[vigilantes]] are sometimes used to refer to characters such as [[Spirit (comics)|the Spirit]], who may not be explicitly referred to as superheroes but nevertheless share similar traits. | ||
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| + | Some superheroes use their powers to counter day-to-day crime while also combating threats against humanity from [[supervillain]]s, who are their criminal counterparts. Often at least one of these supervillains will be the superhero's [[archenemy]]. Some long-running superheroes such as [[Superman]], [[Batman]], [[Spider-Man]], [[Wonder Woman]], [[Captain America]], [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]], [[Hal Jordan|Green Lantern]], [[Wally West|The Flash]], [[Hulk (comics)|Hulk]], [[Thor (Marvel Comics)|Thor]] and [[Iron Man]] have a [[rogues gallery]] of many villains. | ||
| == See also == | == See also == | ||
| *[[Hero]] | *[[Hero]] | ||
| - | *[[Supervillain]] {{GFDL}} | + | * [[Real-life superhero]] |
| + | * [[Science hero]] | ||
| + | * [[Superhero film]] | ||
| + | * [[List of actors who have played superheroes]] | ||
| + | * [[List of superhero debuts]] | ||
| + | * [[List of comic book superpowers]] | ||
| + | *''[[Our Gods Wear Spandex]] '' (2007) by Christopher Knowles | ||
| + | * [[Supervillain]] | ||
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| + | {{GFDL}} | ||
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"Were would Spider-Man be without the Green Goblin [...] or any of his other splendidly savage and sinister supervillains? Sure, you always need the hero, but ask yourself this: how eager would you be to read about a superhero who fought litterbugs, jaywalkers, or income-tax evaders?"--Stan Lee "Peter dons the requisite Spandex and goes out to battle evil."--Our Gods Wear Spandex (2007) is a book by Christopher Knowles "The superhero film genre experienced renewed and intense interest throughout the 2000s. Some attributed this increased popularity to the social and political climate in Western society since the September 11 attacks."--Sholem Stein |
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In modern popular fiction, a superhero is a type of costumed heroic character who possesses supernatural or superhuman powers and who is dedicated to fighting crime, protecting the public, and usually battling supervillains. A female superhero is sometimes called a superheroine. Fiction centered on such characters, especially in American comic books since the 1930s, is known as superhero fiction.
By most definitions, characters do not require actual supernatural or superhuman powers or phenomena to be deemed superheroes. While the Dictionary.com definition of "superhero" is "a figure, especially in a comic strip or cartoon, endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime", the longstanding Merriam-Webster dictionary gives the definition as "a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person". Terms such as masked crime fighters, costumed adventurers or masked vigilantes are sometimes used to refer to characters such as the Spirit, who may not be explicitly referred to as superheroes but nevertheless share similar traits.
Some superheroes use their powers to counter day-to-day crime while also combating threats against humanity from supervillains, who are their criminal counterparts. Often at least one of these supervillains will be the superhero's archenemy. Some long-running superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, Captain America, Wolverine, Green Lantern, The Flash, Hulk, Thor and Iron Man have a rogues gallery of many villains.
See also
- Hero
- Real-life superhero
- Science hero
- Superhero film
- List of actors who have played superheroes
- List of superhero debuts
- List of comic book superpowers
- Our Gods Wear Spandex (2007) by Christopher Knowles
- Supervillain
