Will there ever be a real life modern day super hero?

Serious, yet facetious question. You don't necessarily need super powers to be a super hero. Batman didn't have any real powers. Just a good fighting technique and some nice technology in his equipment that helped him.

But I'm not even talking about on that level of outrageousness. If someone invented some type of equipment that allowed them to do things normal people wouldn't do, and combine that with being highly trained in martial arts, they could be well on their well to being a modern-day super hero. All they need is a costume, which would be the first thing to get them recognition. Then you go around and fight some crime.

Yes, I know it's all far-fetched, and I'm actually being part facetious, but at the same time, I guess it is technically possible. Someone with superior fighting skills, a costume, and some type of equipment to wear with technology that enables them to do things a normal human wouldn't do(like glide through the air) would be more than capable. Obviously, they wouldn't have the city-wide effect like a lot of super heroes have, but someone could certainly make the papers.

So, do you think it's possible? Will it ever happen in our lifetime?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

The problem with most Super Heros that are not even gifted with abnormal/beyond normal abilities is that they tend to ignore the fact that
1. They operate largely outside the law.
2. The comics ignore the implications from Law Enforcement authorities billing them as 'lone gunmen' 'vigilanties' or probably 'terrorists'.

There have been a tiny few instances in the real world where people step up to a threat and help in getting at a drug lord, a gang or some other threat that normal police/officers just can't get at. Typically these would be Bounty Hunters (The real kind with licenses) or people with a loose grip on reality who happen to take thier obesseion with Super Heros to a point where they do become that which they idolize and save a few lives.

Its certainly always a possabilty and its happened before I'm sure, but I think the real question is: Will a popular well known super hero appear within our lifetime?

Lets not forget another point: Firefighters, Doctors and Police Officers (The kind that are out in the field and not behind a desk) are in thier own way heros, since they have a job which requires enormous amounts of strength, enudurance, intelligence, and a good dose of instinct.

The only kind of super hero power I've ever heard of in the news is about a Russian girl who could inexplicably see inside a person's body and view thier internal organs, and have even assisted doctors in operations due to her incredibly accuracy. I can't find an article about it now.

Good question, I've got to get some sleep, so maybe someone else can provide a bette response.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Aren't firemen good enough for you?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Dark Nation

The problem with most Super Heros that are not even gifted with abnormal/beyond normal abilities is that they tend to ignore the fact that
1. They operate largely outside the law.
2. The comics ignore the implications from Law Enforcement authorities billing them as 'lone gunmen' 'vigilanties' or probably 'terrorists'.

You haven't read Watchmen.

...Well, Rorschach kind of avoided the anti-viglilante bill of '77, and a few others ended up breaking it.

Someday, Dr. Manhattan will return and save us all.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Bush is the super hero. Considering he is above law, fussing other people's affairs and he has freedom to choose who the villain would be.

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Originally Posted by Oric

You haven't read Watchmen.

...Well, Rorschach kind of avoided the anti-viglilante bill of '77, and a few others ended up breaking it.

Someday, Dr. Manhattan will return and save us all.

Actually I did read Watchmen, I just forgot about that series when I made my post >_>

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

No. They would get arrested for:
a) being a vigilante.
b) being a loon.

FELIPE NO

i think if you get any of those wrestlers right now like those of WWE or TNA, find a good one who can actually fight and has style and stuff, he can become a super hero!

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

No, I reckon they would be locked up by the government to hide what a shitty job they are doing.
Nothing against servicemen and women, it's just recently they've made so many cock-ups what with underfunding and all.

Also, we don't need one. Do you see any signs of the Joker at work? I think not. We need super heroes for super problems, and at the moment we have dedicated people with no extraordinary powers, but with the skill and dedication to sort out all kinds of things, whether it be crime, ill health or natural disasters.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Never would happen. Super Heroes often stepped in when something abnormal appeared, or when someone "bought out" the cops and such. We don't really have a ton of that these days, y'know =p Police handle situations involving criminals. If they're bought out, word is easily given to the Feds and the situation is handled.

Hate to sound corny, but Policemen, Firefighters, etc are old-time heroes. It's a shame kids these days argue which of them is going to be "the next Michael Jordan" as opposed to playing cops & robbers.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

No, because there's one aspect about superheroes that people tend to overlook. In addition to possessing powers and skills beyond those of mortal men, superheroes are universally super-competent. DC sort of was stressing this in their Infinite Crisis series; when's the last time you heard of Superman punching someone just a little too hard and knocking their head clean off?

In comics, the death of Gwen Stacy was especially shocking because of the reason it happened: Spider-Man screwed up. That just doesn't happen. Real life superheroes can't happen because us human beings are generally too incompetent to be pulling stunts like that. No real person can be that precise with a batarang and not rack up a few accidental deaths.

With that in mind, the usual arguments against vigilantism apply. Operating outside the law, who are you to judge right and wrong? If you're that concerned about crime, set up a neighborhood watch, become a police informant, join the force yourself, or become a political activist. No matter how good he would be at his work, the Batman doesn't follow due process and the lawyers of those criminals WILL get them out of jail for it.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

It is always nice to delve into theory. Yes, it is theoretically possible to have a superhero in our society. This possibility has been around for a while. However, it is highly unlikely.

There have been court cases dealing with people who have done something someone might expect out of superhero. The other day, I was watching a show where a man was tried for shooting three black teenagers because he feared they would do to him what he had already experience a few weeks earlier, that being his money being stolen and him being attacked mildly. I know this case isn't really a good representation of what we're discussing here, but it shows the potential for vigilante work, epsecially since the man was found not guilty.

Take the case above. If the attack on the thugs, as they were proven to be within the trial, had been thought out beforehand and the attacker had set up a secret base some where, as Batman would do, in order to avoid capture, then, assuming he continued to do these kinds of things, he could be considered a superhero. The only problem with this is that this vigilante could be seen as a menace on society, targeting people randomly for the pettiest of crimes. The people of the city might become paranoid. The vigilante becomes despised. So, he's no longer a superhero, but instead a super-problem.

That's always been my main concern with comics. They never delve into what the general public is thinking in regards to the heroes. Sure, we see a journalistic standpoint and I have an comic in which we see the police standpoint. But what do the people think? How are their lives affected by this masked man traveling their streets? It isn't really discussed.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

one thing: do you ever see a comic book about a super hero who doesn't have something special if not out of the natural, hence fictional power? they always do and that is what makes them SUPER! so until someone gets a SUPER power, some kind of magic, we ain't finding us a super hero walking the streets!

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by han89

one thing: do you ever see a comic book about a super hero who doesn't have something special if not out of the natural, hence fictional power? they always do and that is what makes them SUPER! so until someone gets a SUPER power, some kind of magic, we ain't finding us a super hero walking the streets!

Batman.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

yes but he still has those out of the ordinary fictional gadgets that he uses. without them, do you think he would have faught crime that good? so there is still that special thing...

FELIPE NO

Actually, Batman's weapons aren't too unbelievable. He uses miniature boomerangs, smoke pellets, mild explosives, etc. The only thing I would think would be truly hard to mimic is the grapple.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

yes but still, do you imagine anyone in real life that can do what batman does?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Well, no. But, then again, I can't imagine any billionaire orphans either.

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what billionaire orphan?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Rorschach is an ordinary (well, not mentally) guy. He's nowhere near rich, and is a vigilante.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

How I wish there was a real batman.

check these batman paintings I made:

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/31802578/
http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/33408879/

edited. sorry, pasted identical links. fixed now. Thanks Ruth Loose! Glad you like em.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I have an even simpler reason why there would never be any super heroes. Power corrupts you.

Any human with any kind of advantage like a super power isn't going to hit the streets and fight crime. They're going to cause crime. They're going to want to be ontop and in control of the world. They have the power and will want more. Why restrict themselves to fighting crime when they can do what they want?

I seriously doubt any of you would spend all your time fighting crime if you could do something like fly or had above average strength. :P

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I know if I had some kind of super power I would take advantage of it by playing professional sports... just like LeBron does.... wait...

Originally Posted by Roan

How I wish there was a real batman.

check these batman paintings I made:

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/31802578/
http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/31802578/

AMAZING BATMAN paintings you have done there. Did you do more than just that one, b/c I only see one picture. Now you only need to stylize him after Christian Bale and you would have rocked my socks completely off.

FELIPE NO

The reason we don't have bonafide superheroes is because our villains aren't gimmicky enough.

Who's out there robbing the First National Bank with a motorized drill, or kidnapping the commissioner's daughter from a giant inchworm-shaped balloon? Nobody. Our world's criminals are all politicians or multi-millionaires. They don't have gimmicks. They make a phone call, a small nation blows up the next day. That's how it works.

On the rare occasion that we get a legitimate psychopath, he's never anyone you can identify. He doesn't stand on top of the Empire State Building and taunt the powers of good. He doesn't hijack the nation's television reception so that he can reveal his nefarious plot during Desperate Housewives. No, he's a fucking recluse. He lives out in the middle of Montana, 74 miles from the nearest toilet, or something. He's not concocting Doomsday devices or freez-o-rays. He's mailing spores to the Attorney General's Assistant Deputy Vice-Secretary. That kind of thing is pretty sinister but it's not the type of evil that makes for exciting cinema on the 11 o'clock news. What kind of superhero dons lycra and spandex to combat the United States Postal Service?

But suppose someone did decide to go out and thwart crime. How does he do it? Does he just loiter around seedy street corners in a trenchcoat with a cape dangling out the bottom, yelling at the pimp to finish up with the phone booth already? Does he sit in his driveway, listening to a police scanner all night, waiting for disaster to strike two blocks over so that he can finally save the day before the squad cars arrive?

How would he even fight crime? Most criminals possess weapons, usually guns. Unless he's decked out as "Kevlar Man", he's gonna get perforated before he even finishes his heroic catchphrase. I don't care if he's got moves like Jackie Chan and Hulk Hogan's bastard love child, that shit ain't gonna matter against hollow-point bullets.

Seriously, anyone aiming to become a career criminal knows that being identifiable is a big no-no. Finding a theme and sticking with it, no matter how often it leads the cops directly to your doorstep, is something of a detriment to the entire goal of being evil. "Hmmm, there's slime all around this overturned armored car. This could only be the work of THE SLUG! He stays at the apartment over Finsky's Tavern. Round him up boys, and bring me some of Finsky's cheese fries. Those things are incredible."

Not that being a vividly themed hero is a better idea. If a bad guy thinks someone is onto him, who's he more likely to shoot on impulse first? The dude in blue jeans and a Megadeth shirt, or the guy in the bright yellow bodysuit and Lone Ranger eye mask? Sometimes it pays to be subtle. This is why your best detectives wear earth tones and are perpetually drunk to the point of bumbling incompetence. Nobody suspects they're on the case! Or even capable of walking upright! Imagine the shock when Mike Hammer apprehends the jewel thief, then vomits all over his cliched, stripey jail outfit!

So yeah, we don't have traditional superheroes because they just wouldn't fit in. Besides, some of the police and firemen out there are pretty fucking spectacular in their own right.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

I've always thought about this, and I think the closest we could get would be more like the Punisher. Not superheroic or anything, just guns. Likely be a guy (or girl, we can't be sexist now) who hangs out with stoners or bums, blends in with them, the so-called waste of society, ala Spawn. Probably spend his/her time hunting down muggers, abusive husbands, rapists, and all the others that tend to slip through the cracks, and putting the fear of all that is holy into them before tying them up in an alleyway and making an anonymous phonecall to the cops.

How ya doing, buddy?