In the interest of good writing: Define A Superhero!

[lugaru]

One thing I was thinking of posting about since it would be fun is a running thread that defines the elements that compose a certain superhero, such as what is core and cannon and what makes a great story too. For example:

Wolverine aka Logan aka James Howlett.
- His powers are regeneration, enhanced senses, adamantium claws and a whole lot of training.
- He has a bestial side he tries to contain, known commonly as his berzerker rage. Some byproduct of his animal side gives him a certain animal empathy which allows him to calm or scare off animals. Not an official power, but instead a frequent plot.
- He is trained in intelligence, black ops, wetworks, bushido and other skills.
- He was born well over a century ago as James Howlett and did not remember most of it until recently.
- He has made appearances in other parts of history (mostly war or violent times).
- He loved Jean Gray, which caused a lot of problems with Cyclops.
- When necesary, he kills. Especially if it's ninjas, guards and hitmen. And when he starts killing he dosent stop for a while.
- He inevitably froms mentorships with younger female x-men who think he's really cool, for example Kitty Pride, Jubilee and more recently "Armor" or whatever name the Japanese exoskeleton girl takes.
- Beyond the fourth wall Logan really drives sales and will make a guest appearance within the first ten issues of most new series.
- Despite his training he is the easiest x-man to hit. No X-men ever gets hurt except for him, but he can take it just fine.
- His "spiritual" nemesis is Sabretooth, Ideologically it is Magneto and owes a lot of past grief to Apocalipse, Hydra and the Hand.
- He is a loner and a cynic, hates teams and belongs to more teams than any hero I can think off.
- He plays well with other lethal enforcers such as ghost rider, the punisher and deadpool.
- He smokes, drinks and loves his bloody red meat. He's a hunter with a profound apreciation for nature.
- His stomping grounds are Japan, Madrypoor, Shanghai, Yukon and New England/NY.

You think that would help future Wolverine writers?

[zuludelta]

- He inevitably froms mentorships with younger female x-men who think he's really cool, for example Kitty Pride, Jubilee and more recently "Armor" or whatever name the Japanese exoskeleton girl takes.

I've always found this to be a little on the creepy side... maybe not on the same level as Batman's preoccupation with teenage boy sidekicks in hot pants but still. I mean, I know that Wolverine and Batman are supposed to be viewed as their respective charges' surrogate father figures but comic book iconography is already so contextually loaded (the skintight/skimpy outfits, the hypersexualized rendition of the female form, the overt androcentrism, etc.) that one can't help but wonder if these depictions serve as some form of unconscious fantasy fulfillment on the part of the writers.

Thankfully, I can still turn off that part of my brain that likes to read too much into things and still enjoy comics for what they are  :D

[Renegade]

The fact that this thread title misspells "writing" tickles my sense of irony.

[BentonGrey]

Haha...well, ZD, I have to admit that when he picked up the second Robin, Batman's case for responsibility and everything else wasn't exactly strengthened.  I feel like the original Robin is justifiable, but not the next two....especially the fact that they all look exactly the same.  Anyroad, I might be willing to do this, maybe for Aquaman in a bit.

[The Hitman]

[Minor Threadjack!]

- When necesary, he kills. Especially ... hitmen.

AHHH!

[Threadjack over! Sorry!]

[The Enigma]

- Beyond the fourth wall Logan really drives sales and will make a guest appearance within the first ten issues of most new series.
You think that would help future Wolverine writers?

I think that will help them make cash, but upset more fans than you'd really like...

[lugaru]

The fact that this thread title misspells "writing" tickles my sense of irony.

Finally fixed it... as I always say "My english, she's not so good..."

About Logan and the younger ladies I think the deal with logan vs Batman is that Batman is some kind of celf centered genious who frequently is not aware of his surroundings if its not crime related. He dosent notice if girls hit on him, he dosent notice if the boy wonder makes him look like an amber alert candidate. If a girl wants to get his attention she needs to dress up like a cat and rob jewels, or be the daughter of an eco terrorist... Logan on the other hand has had TONS of stories centered around him and women therefore he's not a character with ambigous sexual preferences. With the younger set it's clear that he has no interest nor is he flattered (because he dosent hold back, he would just do something about it) but he loves beeing seen as cool. As far as them having a crush on him I feel that with Jubilee she was sometimes written that way and it was cool in a "teacher crush" as long as the teacher dosent do anything way...

[Revenant]

Oh superhero dating...

Also Batman would see a heavy relationship with a woman as a distraction from his duty as a crimefighter.  He's said in the past that he doesn't settle down for that reason.  He dates and sows his oats (so to speak)... but settling down is out of the question, for now.

And as for Wolverine, I think having a relationship calms him down, as we've seen in elseworld-type scenarios, (like in House of M, with Mystique) although such relationships are necessarily short-lived.  He is basically a killing machine so his mental capacity isn't engaged in his work, like Batman's, so he has more freedom to get involved emotionally with women.