Why Superman Doesn't Take Over the World Read online

  This brings us to the punchline for Green Lantern, Flash, and Deadpool. Another way in which an individual can increase their human capital is by becoming a superhero. The powers that Hal Jordan, Barry Allen, and Wade Wilson are granted, regardless of how they were acquired, have made them vastly more capable of doing their jobs. Hal doesn’t get fired because, thanks to his power ring, his productivity has increased so much that he can complete his work at Ferris Aviation while keeping Sector 2814 safe from marauding aliens. Barry Allen may still be late for a date but his speed at getting the job done, and his ability to do it well, keeps him fighting crime as the Flash while he remains employed with the police department. Wade Wilson can now execute his duties without fear of being shot, stabbed, or maimed. This means he can carry out his directives much more rapidly and effectively.

  Because we know the backstories of heroes, we can see what they were like before. Some were successful and became more so. Others were floundering and became invaluable. By increasing their human capital, these ordinary men and women become extraordinarily productive.

  It’s Only the Beginning

  Origin stories are part of the fabric of superheroes. While the initial issues of a hero’s exploits provide minimal background on who they are and where they came from, those characters whose names are familiar to fandoms large and small have seen a history built up around them. Often those origins are retconned for one reason or another. For instance, Thor didn’t start as the Norse god of Thunder. He was a handicapped doctor who stumbled upon a hammer with some magic words etched into it.15 Aquaman’s backstory also had a significant reboot from its incipient form where Arthur Curry’s father used Atlantean science to imbue his son with powers. In this version of the story, Atlantis was a long-dead civilization. In the new version, Arthur’s mother gets kicked out of the underwater kingdom for spending too much time with the surface dwellers. She marries a lighthouse keeper and gives birth to the future king of Atlantis. Hawkman’s and Hawkgirl’s backstories are so convoluted that it might take a Ph.D. in falconry to decipher them. Hawkman is either an archaeologist named Carter Hall who discovered a mystical metal out of which he built wings, a police officer from the planet Thanagar named Katar Hol, a combination of both characters, or a reincarnated Egyptian named Prince Khufu who finds an alien metal that transforms his soul. Hawkgirl is either a Thanagarian warrior and police officer who just really loves hanging out on Earth, a reincarnation of the Egyptian Chay-Ara (later Shiera after a few thousand years of reincarnation) who is linked to Prince Khufu for all time, or Kendra Saunders, the niece of Shiera who kills herself but is resuscitated by the soul of aunty Shiera Hall.16 Even the great Spider-Man backstory has been tinkered with. In a 2001 story arc, it was explained that the radiated spider that bit Peter Parker was really a spider totem-spirit (Straczynski and Romita, 2001). The radiation did augment his powers, but it wasn’t the radiation that was fully responsible for turning Peter into Spider-Man. The spider was going to bite him anyway. The radiation was just a coincidence.

  The backstories of heroes are always complicated. Narratives are revamped, and new personas are introduced to keep up with the times and changing story arcs. Yet, behind nearly all accounts are three economic principles that whet reader’s appetites for the source of these fictional characters. Incentives provide the foundation for why some people, powered or not, join the fray. There are a variety of motivations for putting on the tights, including revenge, fame, and fortune. These incentives are certainly not all pure, and sometimes there are unintended consequences for the decisions made, but that is part of making choices. It isn’t any different for the non-heroes who live among us. We do not have a clairvoyant crystal ball that tells us how the future will unfold, and looking back on life, sometimes we make bad choices. Nevertheless, the incentives put in front of us guide our actions and might just lead us into a life of crime fighting.

  Another economic force that drives the origin stories of superheroes is utility. It is clear that for some crime fighters the life they are living is a burden. The weight of keeping a city and its people safe sits like the world on their shoulders. Many other heroes take up the crime fighting mantle with joy. Their backstory essentially explains that “if I didn’t fight crime, I would be nothing.” The rush of adrenaline, the opportunity to save the day, and the adulation of the masses are more powerful than any drug. The brushes with death, the lack of a social life, and the bumps and bruises are all worth it. They are just happy to be fighting the bad guys.

  Finally, origin stories illustrate how becoming a superhero makes someone more productive. As readers, we are amazed at how rapidly heroes can construct a hideout. We marvel at their record-breaking comprehension rates. Their strength lets them lift burdens that would take construction crews hours or days, their speed makes global travel an afterthought, and their stamina makes us ashamed that we can only work an eight-hour day. Because of their powers, these heroes can do so much more than us mortals. They are an employer’s dream, although they prefer to be their own bosses.

  Of course, the origin story is just the beginning. Once the transformation from ordinary Joe to superhero happens, expectations for your life change. It is a new day with a new job, and starting a new job usually means some new clothes. Superheroes might put their pants on one leg at a time, just like anybody else, but their pants are probably more colorful and form-fitting than yours. In the real world, people don’t normally go to the office in spandex tights, a cape, and a mask. Honestly! Why do we as readers accept that these supermen and superwomen look as if they’re on their way to a Halloween party? The answer is an economic one. When heroes don their masks, risks rise up like cockroaches in the Texas heat, not just for them, but for the people they care about. Protecting as many people as possible from those risks requires some innovative insurance, which means you are going to have to go to work incognito.

  Endnotes

  1. While this is traditionally attributed to Uncle Ben, the original line appeared in a caption at the end of Amazing Fantasy #15 (Lee and Ditko, 1962). In The Ultimate Spider-Man #1 (Bendis, Jemas, and Bagley, 2000), Ben delivers a speech to Peter saying something similar to this. The most famous recitation of these words of wisdom occurs in the movie Spider-Man 2 (2002).

  2. For instance, each Powerball lottery ticket has a one in 292 million chance of being the winner. According to the National Weather Service (n.d.), the odds of being struck by lightning are one in 1,083,000.

  3. The argument that cigarettes and marijuana are substitutes for each other is an unsettled one. Goel’s (2009) research suggests that they are. This would mean that as the price of cigarettes rise, the quantity of marijuana demanded would also rise.

  4. This is the 2016 Rebirth series #1, not the original Batman comic.

  5. For his time (1748–1832), Bentham was unique, an advocate for women’s rights, separation of church and state, the right to divorce, and the decriminalization of homosexuality, which certainly set him apart; however, he is possibly most known for his will, in which he asked to have his body dissected and the remains dressed up and seated in a glass enclosed box. This, of course, was done. His skeleton, padded and dressed, along with a wax head (the original didn’t really look so hot after a poor effort at mummification), naturally fitted with some of Bentham’s own hair, can be viewed at the University College London. Interestingly, there have been a few occasions when the remains were wheeled out to attend a meeting of the College Council. At these meetings, Bentham is listed as present, but not voting.

  6. Fans of the Flash comic usually have a favorite alias as there have been a few different speedsters to call themselves Flash. Jay Garrick was the first, then came Barry Allen. Barry was supposedly killed by a villain from an alternate dimension called the Anti-Monitor. This left the position of Flash to Wally West, who was the only Flash for a number of years until Barry was able to break out of the Speed Force, a field of energy from which all Speedsters derive their powers
and to which Barry had been merged. As you might have guessed from the discussion, I prefer Barry Allen because he is the Flash I remember from my youth.

  7. This is the original origin story from More Fun Comics (Samachson and Young, 1943).

  8. This is the silver age re-write by Kirby and Herron (1959).

  9. The comic origin story is a bit different than that of the television show, although both involved Oliver being stranded on an island where his skills are honed.

  10. This is based on the origin story found in Wonder Woman #1 (Marston, 1942).

  11. The first Green Lantern was named Alan Scott, who starred in 38 issues throughout the 1940s.

  12. If you aren’t intimately familiar with the Green Lantern saga, there are around 3,600 Green Lanterns, not to mention countless other Lanterns of different colors. Hal Jordan’s responsibility is to space sector 2814, into which Earth falls.

  13. The first Flash was actually Jay Garrick. He inhaled some gas while in the lab, which gave him his super speed. Garrick was the Flash from the inception of the comic in 1940 through the end of the decade. He still shows up now and then in stories with Barry Allen and other Flash characters.

  14. Lest you think I jest, this is known as the infinite monkey theorem. The premise of which is that, given enough time and enough monkeys, primates pounding on typewriter keys could randomly reproduce a work of great importance, such as Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Probabilistically, this could occur, but the odds are very, very long. You might as well start buying Powerball lottery tickets with the hope of winning four or five times in a row.

  15. This gets explained away as Odin, Thor’s father, reached the point where he was so sick of Thor that he transformed him into a mortal. This reveal happened years after the original story (Lee and Kirby, 1968).

  16. If I’ve missed anything here, please forgive me, there are simply too many variations of Hawkman’s and Hawkgirl’s origin stories.

  References

  Bendis, B., Jemas, B., and Bagley, M. (2000). Ultimate Spider-Man, #1. Marvel Comics.

  Broome, J. and Infantino, C. (1959). The Flash, #105. DC Comics.

  Broome, J. and Kane, G. (1959). Showcase, #22. DC Comics.

  Goel, R. (2009). Cigarette Prices and illicit Drug Use: Is There a Connection? Applied Economics, 41(7–9), 1071–6.

  Goodwin, A. and Tuska, G. (1972). Luke Cage: Hero for Hire, #1. Marvel Comics.

  King, T. and Finch, D. (2016). Batman, #1. DC Comics.

  Kirby, J. and Herron, E. (1959). Adventure Comics, #256. DC Comics.

  Kirby, J. and Simon, J. (1941). Captain America, #1. Captain America Comics.

  Lee, S. and Ditko, S. (1962). Amazing Fantasy, #15. Marvel Comics.

  Lee, S. and Ditko, S. (1963a). Strange Tales, #115. Marvel Comics.

  Lee, S. and Ditko, S. (1963b). The Amazing Spider-Man, #1. Marvel Comics.

  Lee, S. and Kirby, J. (1968). Thor, #159. Marvel Comics.

  Loeb, J. and Lee, J. (2002). Batman, #608. DC Comics.

  Marston, W. (1942). Wonder Woman, #1. Wonder Woman Publishing Company.

  Miller, F. and Mazzucchelli, D. (1987). Batman, #404–407. DC Comics.

  Miller, M. and McNiven, S. (2007). Civil War. Marvel Comics.

  National Weather Service. (n.d.). How Dangerous is Lightning? [Online] National Weather Service. Available at: http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/odds.shtml [Accessed April 4, 2018].

  Samachson, J. and Young, C. (1943). More Fun Comics, #89. DC Comics.

  Shakespeare, W. (1994). William Shakespeare: The Complete Works. New York: Barnes and Noble Books.

  Spider-Man 2. (2002). [Film]. New York: Sam Raimi.

  Stevens, D. (1982). Starslayer, #2. Pacific Comics.

  Straczynski, J. and Romita, J. (2001). The Amazing Spider-Man, #32. Marvel Comics.

  2

  Who Is That Masked Man?

  If you have ever considered becoming a superhero (and who among us hasn’t?), you have probably also considered what superpower you would possess. Perhaps after missing the school bus you imagined running faster than the speed of sound (or at least faster than the bus). It would be incredibly convenient to have rapid healing powers after bashing your thumb with a hammer. Maybe there was a day that you forgot about a test—being able to read the teacher’s mind would certainly come in handy.

  Settling on a superpower is an imperative first step in any superhero reverie. Once you have established a power though, you are faced with two other related decisions that could make or break your career. The first is a credible name. Don’t take this lightly. A solid hero name should describe who you are and what you do. Those unlucky enough to run up against The Hulk know to expect a huge and menacing opponent. If their adversary was called the Husky or the Jumbo, the message that you are better off avoiding this guy might not be quite so clear. Names not only establish identity but also reputation. Criminals tremble at the mention of Batman. Bats are kind of creepy and so is the man under the cowl. It is a curious juxtaposition that Batman’s sidekick is Robin, a sign that spring is just around the corner after a long harsh winter. What’s in a name? A hero by any other name might end up as the butt of many jokes, or in the dustbin of history.

  Ruminate on some of the strange but true names of forgettable comic book rubes. Bouncing Boy and Matter Eater Lad were the inspiration of Jerry Siegel who, fortunately, had Superman to fall back on. 3-D Man was a result of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee hitting the wall of creativity (after so many successes they were bound to fail at some point). Negasonic Teenage Warhead is about as convoluted as a name gets and doesn’t tell you much about this telepath who is connected to the X-Men.1 Other names, in retrospect, should have been left on the cutting room floor. Fruit Boy (he can grow fruit really quickly), The Whizzer (who can quickly run away from the bad guys who laugh at his name), Arm Fall Off Boy (guess what his power is), Lady Fairplay (infused with the spirit of justice), or Absorbing Man (who turns into the stuff he touches) are some of the ignominious names of heroes. In fact, the list of poorly-named characters is longer than the lines at Comic-Con. There is a reason you have probably never heard of these heroes, and why the powers they possess aren’t featured in the most banal of superhero daydreams.

  The other component of assuming a superhero persona is your costume. While you might not ever contemplate pulling on brightly colored spandex, the unforgiving tights are essential for most heroes. Part of this is marketing of course. As the world of heroes gets crowded you want to be able to distinguish your brand. A memorable logo and the right color combinations will help ensure some longevity. Getting the right look is important. The Green Lantern ought to be wearing green, and Deadpool wears red because it hides the blood better. Yet these choices aren’t just aesthetic—the costume is the first line of defense in keeping the public and private lives of superheroes separate.

  This chapter explores the economics behind maintaining a secret identity, and why heroes exert so much effort to obfuscate their enemies and preclude the press from outing them. At the most superficial level, costumes keep the bad guys guessing and close friends and family from becoming fodder for ruthless fiends. But there is an economic spin that can be put on the cosplay. By applying some basic cost tenets, and one of the most transcendental of economic powers, we can understand how rational it is to keep your face disguised and your real name confidential.2

  What Do I Have to Lose?

  To begin with, some heroes never adopt a secret identity. Powerman doesn’t bother with a costume, even though his Heroes for Hire partner, Iron Fist, dons a green and yellow jumpsuit. Iron Fist’s alter ego is Danny Rand, the child of a wealthy entrepreneur and heir to Rand Enterprises, so he has more to hide. Powerman’s situation is very different. Due to his unbreakable skin, Powerman comes complete with a defense mechanism, so if a bad guy tries to hurt him, even in his sleep, they will need some serious weaponry to prevail.

  Additionally, Powerman is married to Jessica Jones, a superhero signi
ficant other who can take care of herself, giving him one less thing to worry about. The Fantastic Four also share this characteristic; the people they hold most dear are each other. Reed Richards is married to Sue, whose brother, Johnny Storm, is also part of the crew, and Ben Grimm, the Thing, is Reed’s best friend. Even if everyone knows their identities, the closest family and friends of the Fantastic Four can all defend themselves.

  Most heroes, however, do try to keep their identities hidden. Their family members aren’t super-powered and as a result can be liabilities. A common trope in comics is when the girlfriend, child, or parent of the hero is captured by the villain and threatened with harm. This means that a hidden identity has the advantage of ensuring that unscrupulous criminals don’t know who to pursue. Sometimes, however, the rationale for remaining unknown is more self-interested.

  Batman keeps his identity hidden not so much to protect others but to protect himself. Due to his obsessive vigilantism, Bruce Wayne doesn’t form personal bonds very easily. Other than his association with Alfred, his relationships are often toxic. As a result, there are few people in his life who need protecting. Instead, his motivation for his undisclosed identity is his desire to continue his vigilantism—he is so successful at putting criminals behind bars that if anyone found out who he really is, the entirety of the criminal element would descend upon Wayne Manor like a swarm of locusts, breaking up the operation. For Bruce Wayne, his motivation for remaining secret is to continue his run as Batman.

  Yet another reason to keep an identity under wraps is to maintain some privacy. Some heroes such as Tony Stark (Ironman), Johnny Storm (the Human Torch), and Crackerjack crave attention;3 they really don’t seem to care who knows who they are. Most other heroes need to be able to get away from it all on occasion and being anonymous promotes that goal.