What is this board's view on Real-life Superheroes?

[Bullet Sniper]

As in people in real-life (with obviously no special abilities or powers, but there actually do exist people like that in reality lol) who wear various costumes and call themselves "real-life superheroes", rather than what if comic superheroes we all love and know theoretically became real?

Basically something like this?



are they cool? do they help society? do you wish they had real superpowers? what are all your thoughts?

[Don C]

People who visit schools or hospitals and try to inspire kids? Cool.

People who go on patrol and actually try to fight crime? I don't recommend it.

[Stony]

Where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods? Where's the street-wise Hercules to fight the rising odds? Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed? Late at night I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need.

[Spike-X]

Where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods? Where's the street-wise Hercules to fight the rising odds? Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed? Late at night I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need.

You need a hero?

[Spike-X]

I think superheroes are something better left to the worlds of fiction. The more you try to make them real, the more you realize how they could never be.

[8BitRedBeard]

As in people in real-life (with obviously no special abilities or powers, but there actually do exist people like that in reality lol) who wear various costumes and call themselves "real-life superheroes", rather than what if comic superheroes we all love and know theoretically became real?

Basically something like this?



are they cool? do they help society? do you wish they had real superpowers? what are all your thoughts?

That was a pretty neat documentary. A lot of them did it for a good cause (feeding the homeless), some were both doing it for a good cause AND "fighting crime"), but that one group could be the real deal. Overall, I think it's a cool idea but being hassled by the cops must really be irritating. I'd love to be a real-life superhero but I wouldn't want to put myself in danger and/or put my loved ones in danger as well.

[DrNewGod]

People who visit schools or hospitals and try to inspire kids? Cool.

People who go on patrol and actually try to fight crime? I don't recommend it.

This captures it for me, with an additional thought on the second part.

Our world doesn't need lone people sweeping in to substitute their personal opinions (or issues) for due process. We need a larger number of us willing to cooperate, to more equitably make room for all of us in that "us", to jointly accept that the laws that govern us are more important than the interests of any one of us, and to all collectively pay attention to the issues of our world, and to hold the people we appoint to represent us accountable.

Come to think of it, we might have better odds of developing superpowers.

[Spike-X]

This captures it for me, with an additional thought on the second part.

Our world doesn't need lone people sweeping in to substitute their personal opinions (or issues) for due process. We need a larger number of us willing to cooperate, to more equitably make room for all of us in that "us", to jointly accept that the laws that govern us are more important than the interests of any one of us, and to all collectively pay attention to the issues of our world, and to hold the people we appoint to represent us accountable.

As long as we can wear capes while we do it, I'm in.

[JCAll]

As long as we can wear capes while we do it, I'm in.

You don't need to be a superhero to wear a cape. Capes are super fashionable and look great with anything, superheroes were just the first ones smart enough to realize it.

[ed2962]

People who visit schools or hospitals and try to inspire kids? Cool.

People who go on patrol and actually try to fight crime? I don't recommend it.

Exactly. It's cool as a civics lesson type of thing or a public service thing. But it's not like these guys are actually having fist fights with mob guys and terrorists. People who want to actually fight crime usually end up doing things like becoming activists, joining the police, etc

[ed2962]

You don't need to be a superhero to wear a cape. Capes are super fashionable and look great with anything, superheroes were just the first ones smart enough to realize it.

Don't the french police wear capes?

[t hedge coke]

I'm not a fan of real life vigilantism in general. Adding masks and "a sense of fun," just scares me and makes me sad. But, then, we had crossed burned in our yard when I was a kid, so I'm coming at this from an angle that these guys may not be.

That said, I don't really get how diehard superhero fans don't walk around trying to be good, trying to be better people. How do you read a zillion Superman or Captain America comics and not try hard to be decent and helpful and forthright? I want some of that to soak into the fans. That, to me, is the most important aspect of superheroism, anyway.

[FanboyStranger]

My personal opinion is that most of them are a bunch of goofs. Unless it's a volunteer effort for younger kids, it's a waste of time. If you actually think you're fighting crime, then I think you deserve a beating.

I do volunteer with a guy who occasionally dresses like Batman every now and then to tutor younger students in a rough neighborhood, and I respect his commitment. I help teenage kids, and when they ask me why I don't dress up like a superhero, I tell them that I'm the Incredible Hulk, and you wouldn't like it if you press me too hard about a costume. Fortunately, I'm big enough to get away with that threat.

I do let the kids that I tutor borrow comics from what I feel is an age-apporprriate library, though. Hellboy and BPRD are generally the most popular, but I don't stock a lot of "regular" superhero stuff. The Mexican wrestling stories, in particular, are big hits, as the kids I tutor are mostly Latino.

[Paradox]

I can't speak for the board, but I consider them delusional idiots, generally a danger to themselves, if not to those around them. That's the actual "crime fighting" super-hero types. Now, there's people that dress up in super-hero costumes to do charitable work, and that I find cool and am all for.

[Michael P]

People who just put on a bright costume and go engage in some sort of social activism or charity work are OK by me; they're just marketing themselves effectively.

People who actually go out looking to beat up muggers and drug dealers are a danger to themselves and others.