Although Superman may not have the same relatability as Batman or the vulnerability of Captain America, fans don’t want him any other way.
For decades, Superman has faced criticism for the aforementioned reasons and many others pertaining to the fact that he’s too perfect. While perfection used to be appropriate for a superhero, today’s heroes are supposed to be super sad, super angry or super traumatized in addition to being superpowered. Redditor MonkeMayne is the latest proponent of “nerfing” (weakening) Superman to aid his assimilation into the contemporary comic-cinematic zeitgeist.
“It’s no secret that WB and plenty of your average joes see Superman as a pretty boring hero that’s hard to adapt,” the Redditor wrote in r/DC_Cinematic. They went on to say Superman’s supreme powers hinder his storylines.
“Personally, I think he is too ‘OP’ and his stories/villains suffer as a result. He needs a good nerf. A good part in why Captain America is so successful is, aside from his persona being embodied properly, he can be hurt and killed. He can be physically/mentally tested frequently. I think it’s difficult on the big screen to accurately and in a fun way to bring the man of steel to life.”
Their solutions are to “have high caliber bullets hurt him how a rubber bullet would hurt us,” make him “bleed and be bruised,” “put limits on his strength levels,” and “reimagine his villains.”
Although this post facilitated an interesting discussion, basically no other Redditors want to see Superman fundamentally changed to fit modern sensibilities.
Others don’t think the OP’s critiques are valid. Thus, Superman doesn’t need to be changed at all.
Whether or not you agree with the Redditor’s thesis, you can check out the ongoing discussion here.
Published: Jul 4, 2022 09:25 pm