Well, I don't hate Superman... I do, however, find him less interesting than super heroes who are much less powerful than him. For a character to interesting, or at least their adventures to be interesting, they have to be challenged and there HAS to be the possibility of failure.
Try to imagine this: A new heavy weight boxer comes along and is amazing beyond amazing. He's faster, stronger, and more skilled than any boxer in history.
- He moves so fast that he is almost never hit
- He's so sturdy that even when he is hit, he almost never suffers damage.
- He's so healthy that even when he suffers damage, he heals within seconds.
- He hits ten times harder than any boxer in history
- He has perfect hand - eye coordination, perfect balance, and reflexes that border on precognizance.
So, this new young fighter comes along and wins his first fight by a knock out in less than one minute.
His second fight he wins by a knockout in less than half a minute.
His third fight doesn't even last 15 seconds...
Before long he's won a hundred fights most ending in less than 10 seconds....
Now, how many tickets are being sold to these world championship fights? Today, people will pay HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS just to watch a championship fight on Pay Per View... But how many would pay to see a fight with this amazing fighter? Answer- virtually none... How many will pay for a ringside seat? How many want to buy tickets, pay for parking, take a night away from other things to go watch this AMAZING boxer? Answer - almost none... And it is not because he's not amazing; he obviously is... It's not because they doubt their guy will win; he obviously will. So, why aren't people paying to see this guy fight? Why bother? He's GOING to win.... There is absolutely no doubt, no challenge, no mystery... Nada...
Now, I know this example is a bit exaggerated, but the point is, UBER powerful heroes can easily lose the interest of the readers...
Let's try another imaginary scenario... This one is going to be a little difficult, but imagine that Chuck Norris is a GREAT actor... Stop laughing... Now concentrate. Try to imagine that. Also, try to imagine that someone writes a few martial arts action movies for him to star in and the films are made... Now, answer the following questions:
- Will Chuck lose ANY of the fights he is in during the movie? Answer - No. Chuck NEVER loses fights in movies he is the star of... He lost in one movie, but it was a Bruce Lee movie and Bruce Lee was the one who beat him...
- Will Chuck defeat the villain? Answer - OF COURSE. DUH...
- Will Chuck get killed in the film? Answer - What a STUPID QUESTION! Chuck doesn't even slow down when he's shot.
You can substitute "Steven Segal" for "Chuck Norris" and the example still works...
There's no suspense in a Chuck Norris or Steven Segal film... If you watch them, you watch them for the action only. You KNOW the ending before the movie even begins.
Most of the time, Super Man simply cannot lose. He can't... He won't. DC had to invent Doomsday and Darkseid before Superman was in any real danger... (Kryptonite aside)
Super Man is stronger than the Hulk, Faster than the Flash, as smart as Reed Richards, and indestructible... Laser vision, x-ray vision, heat vision, freeze breath, can SEE DNA, and on and on and on....
How can he lose? Most of the time, he can't.
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