Does anyone else miss secret identities?

[phonogram12]

It depends on the theme of the character in question.

Is isolation a theme pertinent to the character the way it was with Spider-Man? Is it a /sacrifice/ that says something about who the character is? Is the secret identity evocative in some way?

I will say, however, that the most important point raised here is the death of the civilian supporting cast. Secret identities were a tool that kept the hero grounded in the 'real world' a bit more with friends and neighbors who didn't necessarily know stuff. With amove to '24/7' heroing, some of that grounding has been lost and it hasn't really been replaced with anything that doesn't leave the heroes seeming somewhat in a bubble. When all their friends are heroes, when they only date heroes, when all their primary interactions are with the hero community, it begins to feel more like 'celeb culture' than it does anything else.

This is an issue I had when they brought Kara Zor-El back post-Crisis/pre-52. I mean, all her friends were superheroes. Her only Earth experience was superheroing. It's like when I hear that people like Tom Cruise hasn't been to an actual movie theater since the early '80s as just a regular ol' movie patron or Gwyneth Paltrow is recommending lifestyle products to her fans that the ordinary middle income person would never, ever be able to afford in a million years. These celebrities are so far removed from ordinary people they couldn't even begin to hope to understand them.

That said, a guy like Tony Stark was born into celebrity and pretty much relishes it, so I never thought it was necessary for him. Batman (another rich guy born into celebrity) OTOH, uses his secret id as a tool to help crimefighting as Batman, so it makes sense that he keeps his. Cap's entire life since he first joined the army has revolved around being a soldier and every time they tried giving him a secret id, it just seemed horribly awkward and out of place.

I kind of miss when the Hulk used to have one, though. I mean, I understand that most of his best stories came out after he was already outed, but it just seems like such a wasted opportunity when there is a clear distinction aesthetically from the Hulk and Banner.

The idea that most of the Marvel Heroes now are independently wealthily so they don't need a secret identity is more unbelievable to me than them actually having one.

No joke. Especially in one of the most expensive cities to live in in the US.

[Agent Z]

Actually it does make sense considering how he’s often used for covert operations. But then again, Marvel isn’t really known for realism.

In my fanfiction, William Nasland is the person who’s known as Captain America while Steve Rogers is the real one.

He wears a brightly-colored outfit and is a known war hero/propaganda tool with an entire museum dedicated to him and everything. A public identity isn't his only issue in that regard.

[phonogram12]

The other big thing I miss is broke superheroes. I want a hero who has a part-time job they hate. ****, give me a Millennial superhero, working a part-time job to pay off student loans while living with their parents. That's what I want to see. Instead, every hero these days seems to have some sort of independent income that comes out of nowhere. The ones who do work all have really high-profile careers that make them plenty of money. It's a shame that writers have abandoned broke-ass heroes.

YESSSSS to all of this.

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Top 10 Superheroes Who Need Secret Identities

[Chris0013]

Miss the secret iIDs...mostly for the fact that they had friends in the life who knew.....and they could hang out without things being suspect. I remember after the Dark Reign storyline there was scene of all the New Avengers hanging out in the park...most of them did not have secret IDs...but there was Peter Parker...the guy who took all those pics of Spider-Man...hanging out with the team that Spider-Man is on. That would send up some flags if you were paying attention.

The other big thing I miss is broke superheroes. I want a hero who has a part-time job they hate. ****, give me a Millennial superhero, working a part-time job to pay off student loans while living with their parents. That's what I want to see. Instead, every hero these days seems to have some sort of independent income that comes out of nowhere. The ones who do work all have really high-profile careers that make them plenty of money. It's a shame that writers have abandoned broke-ass heroes.

Not so much the broke here for me...but the one who is out there working for a living and running around as a hero. Scott Lang's current status as homeless and destitute annoys me. With his skills he could be doing a heroes for hire sort of thing or insurance recovery and be making a living....then helping people for free if they can't pay. Sort of like Burn Notice.
[/I]

[Otto Gruenwald]

Extremely so. Superman's secret identity dynamic was the driving force of his characterization for most of his history and was novel enough that one can argue it was the big element that seperated superheroes like Superman from proto-superheroes like Doc Savage and Tarza

[DrNewGod]

Extremely so. Superman's secret identity dynamic was the driving force of his characterization for most of his history and was novel enough that one can argue it was the big element that seperated superheroes like Superman from proto-superheroes like Doc Savage and Tarza

That's an interesting take. The division in Superman's two lives waxed and waned a bit in the first year or two, but rapidly sunk in deep after that.

[Ascended]

Oh, the dynamic between "Clark Kent" and "Superman" is one of the core, fundamental aspects of the mythos. I agree with Otto that it's one of the defining features that (in conjunction with some other things) separates superheroes from their pulp forefathers.

In Clark's case, his identity going public was never something I wanted to see happen. It seemed a viable move for "in the future" stories, set after his glory days, but not something we should actually experience. But I'll be damned if Bendis isn't selling me on it so far. It reminds me of the marriage to Lois. A lot of people said it shouldn't happen in main continuity, but it actually worked, and a lot of the fears people had didn't come to pass (outside of some bad writers; bad writers are bad writers regardless). Given the nature of comics and how reboot happy DC is, I don't expect this to stick. But I'm starting to think that it *could.*

For most of Marvel's heroes....unless they're wearing a Spider mask I feel like it's not as critical. But I didn't really get into Marvel until they were starting to phase out secret ID's, and the MCU has reinforced that opinion for me.

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Fantastic Four #336 Jan 1990
"Dark Congress!"
Congressman James Pertierra has just accused Reed Richards of creating the device
that has caused a number of super-villains to attack the Fantastic Four during
the Senate committee to determine if the Super-Powers Registration Act
should be put into law in order to win the government to their side.
Televised on live television, the press begins a quick poll with the average American to get their opinions.
With Pertierra joining the committee, Reed is asked to answer the allegations that have been made.
Reed explains that if he had designed the device that has caused so much chaos, he would have made it completely undetectable.

Reed is given a chance to speak again and he tells the hearing that the super-hero community works for the greater good.
He also points out the danger of government regulation, referring them to moments earlier when Flying Tiger attacked the hearing.
He stated that while the congressmen were mad that Reed didn't do anything,
he pointed out how Ms. Marvel was the best suited to deal with that foe and did so accordingly.
To punctuate his point about heroes having the best skills to deal with the job than the government,
he points to how Apocalypse also flew over the Capital Building and that had he actually planned to attack,
the Fantastic Four could have formulated a plan to deal with him based on their years of experience working together.

Suddenly the hearing is interrupted when one of the guards informs the Senators that
a number of individuals in trench coats and dark glasses were seen heading towards the Capital.
Recalling how all the villains who attacked previously wore similar attire,
everyone suddenly wonders if the device Reed found has been properly deactivated or not.
Ben, Johnny and Sharon decide to deal with the matter and tell Reed and Sue to stay and continue their testimony.
Sue suddenly whispers to her husband her suspicions that the device might not just be influencing super-villains but the Senators as well.
This gets Reed thinking, and while the others deal with the villains outside, Sue address the committee with her thoughts.
She once again likens super-powers with the Constitutional right to bare arms
and that super-powers, like weapons, are a means of protecting people.
That those who would use their powers to break the law must not have advantage over those who do not.
Reed also points out how government interference impeded the work of super-heroes:
How the military has never been able to capture the Hulk, or how Henry Gyrich's
time as a government liaison to the Avengers only impeded the groups ability to function.

As Reed's argument comes to a close, the device suddenly comes to life and bombards everyone in the room.
Suddenly the spectators and the Senators become violent and try to attack Reed and Sue.
As they try to contain the mob, Reed grabs the device and resists it's electronic shocks in order to shut it down and restore order.
As the people return to normal with no memory of their attack, Ben and the others
re-enter the court room to inform Reed that the villains have all been dealt with.
Reed then ushers the Senators outside to see the effectiveness of unrestrained super-heroes
where the police are taking away the Armadillo, Stilt-Man, the Orca, the Owl, Whirlwind and the Man-Ape.

Going back into the court room, Reed makes his final statement:
comparing the Super-Powers Registration Act to the Mutant Registration Act.
Pointing out how can someone like Spider-Man be classified, is he a super-human, or a mutant?

He also asks what the definition is of someone who is extraordinary from a normal human
pointing out that anyone in the court room outside of the Fantastic Four could meet that classification.
Reed then pulls out a device to see if the Senators would register for the potential for super-powers.
Reed's device indicates that they, and the security guard on hand could all potentially have super-powers.
Finally, Reed points out that they could potentially be invading people's privacy
and limiting their freedoms based on government classifications.
With his point punctuated, Reed rests his case and the Senate decides against implementing the Super-Powers Registration Act.

As they are leaving, Ben remarks how Reed had his scanner turned up to maximum sensitivity to prove his point.
Reed quips that they can't be too careful, and laughs about the idea that members of the Senate could be super-heroes.
The Fantastic Four then allow Franklin to go to his much anticipated trip to the Smithsonian
with Ms. Marvel while the rest of the team return home to the Four Freedoms Plaza.
There, Reed examines the device and learns the origins of its components,
tracking them to a technology company that went out of business a few months earlier.
The Fantastic Four decide to go an investigate, but before they leave Ben
puts on his old Thing exoskeleton in order to be a part of any potential battles.
The group goes crashing into the abandoned warehouse where they find what appears to be their old foe Doctor Doom.
Doom explains that he is part of a cabal of super-villains who masterminded a conspiracy
to try and destroy their enemies by pitting them against foes they never faced before.
When Johnny suddenly attacks "Doom", they quickly realize that it is actually one of his Doombots instead.

With the Doombot's destruction, it releases the Super-Adaptoid, which quickly begins to adapt the Fantastic Four's powers.
However before the android can attack, the Thing manages to knock it down with a single punch.
As they are preparing to leave they are suddenly confronted by both Hydro-Man and the Water Wizard.
However instead of attacking the Fantastic Four, the two begin arguing with each other
over who has the better control over water and a fight breaks out between the two of them.
Ben remarks how this is going to be an amusing fight, but quickly slips on a puddle of water
and come crashing down, much to the amusement of his teammates.

Story by Walter Simonson. Art by Ron Lim and Mike DeCarlo.

[MadFacedKid]

No, it is stupid outside the couple of characters that it works for sometimes. Sometimes.

This. I’m not even fond with it over at the DC Universe but I get why it’s kept around.

I could see it working for some characters spoof characters like Hyperion, maybe Sentry and Ironman or Doctor Strange who is doing the surgeon thing now but most of the other main universe characters I wouldn’t care for it for.

Definitely not interested in Carol having a secret identity if she got a job military based or as a covert agent I’m game for but I don’t want Captain Marvel to be the hero while Carol Danvers be the secret identity type thing. There’s enough at this point parodying her off other characters keep the stuff that makes her unique.

[DrNewGod]

This. I’m not even fond with it over at the DC Universe but I get why it’s kept around.

I could see it working for some characters spoof characters like Hyperion, maybe Sentry and Ironman or Doctor Strange who is doing the surgeon thing now but most of the other main universe characters I wouldn’t care for it for.

Definitely not interested in Carol having a secret identity if she got a job military based or as a covert agent I’m game for but I don’t want Captain Marvel to be the hero while Carol Danvers be the secret identity type thing. There’s enough at this point parodying her off other characters keep the stuff that makes her unique.

I don't believe it's a fit for every character, but there are some for who it would work. Most of the reasons it has utility have already been spoken for (connection to the everyday people, protection of loved ones, insulation against legal repercussions).

I even agree with you about the current Captain Marvel, but I'd say the (by Marvel standards) original had a sound reason for a secret ID in his first series: he was a spy for the Kree and needed to hide. He couldn't even pretend to be like the Fantastic Four because if somebody got deep in his background, he was going to get discovered. Sure, he was using a dead guy's identity, but if somebody went sniffing into him too hard (as they might in the case of a superhero), it wasn't going to hold up.

[TheRay]

But the reason I miss them most is that it kept the heroes humble.

Many of them still are, though, because they look up to and try to emulate Captain America.

[TheManhunterfromMars]

I miss them, I insist: without secret identities, the characters I feel them less humans, less connected to reality on earth and more obssesed with almost every future menace except the same than always: the human.

[Skullkid]

Frankly the idea everyone needs a secret identity does nothing more than restrict stories and make everyone more generic.
Especially since in this thread, the only reason I'm seeing is that they need secret identities to have a supporting cast and civilian friends, which is a falsehood in all actuality.

[Hypestyle]

Frankly the idea everyone needs a secret identity does nothing more than restrict stories and make everyone more generic.
Especially since in this thread, the only reason I'm seeing is that they need secret identities to have a supporting cast and civilian friends, which is a falsehood in all actuality.

well, when a supporting cast gets murdered by maniacal villain(s), then you'll have your wish, I guess.