Superman
Many people hate Superman because of his powers. The one that gets a lot of attention is his invulnerability because it means he can never be hurt. People roll their eyes when kryptonite appears and call it a strained plot device. They argue that it shouldn’t be as common as it seems, which hurts the story even more. You end up seeing arguments online about how Superman should be able to end a problem within seconds instead of the time period of movie. It ends up being a feeling that he is overpowered and unrealistic . . . Which is entirely warranted.
The issue here is that an author may have an invulnerable character and not do anything to create tension. This is weak writing, which turns this powerful being into a hindrance to the overall story. If done enough, like with Superman, average readers might not pick up on any attempts to circumvent this power. This is because you have to be cunning in creating weakness without eliminating the invulnerability. Otherwise, there’s no point in having it in the first place. So, what can be done?
Let’s use Superman as an example and point out a few things that people may miss:
- While he cannot be hurt by most attacks, he can still be held back by an enemy with equal strength. You can hinder a person without hurting them. If Superman can’t overpower his enemy and can’t be hurt, he is in a bad position. That is because he is a protector/guardian type, which means he also holds himself back. So, his invulnerability keeps him safe, but it doesn’t do the same to those around him. Best example that people hate is when he killed General Zod, who was about to kill innocent bystanders. Neither Kryptonian could be hurt and Superman couldn’t overpower his more experienced enemy, so he was forced to kill.
- Morality holds heroes back regardless of their powers, including invulnerability. These are the good guys and typically don’t kill. Yes, anti-heroes are an exception, but they rarely have Superman-level powers. This is because many authors try to avoid the abuse of such power and instill a strict moral code. This is why characters like Superman hold back and depend a lot on being shields. Push an idea that they are aware that they cannot be hurt, but others can and you can have them be more cautious. This makes them more human and prone to mistakes. It’s always made clear that Superman holds back.
- Invulnerability has usually been physical like in the case of Superman. Authors who want to create tension will attack the character on another level. I don’t mean psychic attacks even though that is fair. I’m talking about emotional damage. People see characters like Superman as god-like because of their powers and it’s made worse when the heroes are stoic. It makes sense for Dr. Manhattan in ‘The Watchmen’ since he lost his humanity, but that was a storyline. For Superman and similar heroes, he needs that vulnerable heart to counter the backlash caused by having an invulnerable body. It won’t matter if he can ignore bullets when he left a crying husk because he failed to protect a loved one. Readers can relate with someone so powerful if they can be brought to tears or enraged by losses that an average person can suffer. It makes them human in spite of their abilities.
I know I’ll have some arguments in the comments, but that’s what it is. Superman is a controversial figure at times because of his powers. Invulnerability is a key component of the criticism, which is why anyone who writes a similar character should consider his history. There have been versions that made him too powerful and the story suffered immensely. Others have made him so human that you can forget that he is one of the strongest figures in the DC universe. So, there is plenty of examples you can find of what to do and what not to do.
Still, the main thing to consider is if you really need to have a hero with this much power, especially invulnerability. If so then don’t use it so casually. People will react to how you play it off and look for reasons to care.
Legends of Windemere 
I find the objection to Superman’s invulnerability and the accusation of weak writing interesting since nowadays so many people demand that female heroines have extraordinary power without any training or cost or that regular female heroines have the ability to beat up a male twice her size with no explanation required. This is not to say that at times I haven’t been frustrated because of a lack of tension in regard to Superman’s invulnerability. But those instances are rare, because the writers (and I’m referring to those who wrote Justice League/Justice League Unlimited) knew how to build tension through the use of magic (he’s weak against it), emotion (as you mentioned), and other struggles Superman had. I feel the same way with Wonder Woman and her super strength. Sometimes, it’s relaxing to not feel tension, and to know that certain heroes are going to get the job done.
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I’ve noticed that trend too. Even when Supergirl is the character in question. It’s challenging to balance invulnerability and weakness.
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It really is. That’s probably why I haven’t even tried to write a character like that. I admire people who can pull that off.
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I have one in my superhero series. Used to think Clyde would count, but he can get hurt and does so quite often. You really need the right story for an invulnerable hero to work.
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For me, Superman’s powers are balanced by morality. Sure, he COULD kill villains, but he respects the law and waits for its process. He COULD become a dictator. He chooses to be a reporter instead, because information is the greatest power of all.
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That’s one of the easiest ways to work with a character at that power level. It’s all about personality.
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Great discussion Charles. I hope you have a super weekend.
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Thanks. Enjoy your weekend too.
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😊
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This is a good reason to think twice before creating such a character. We expect the hero to win, but also expect some risk, danger, and emotional growth. Even something like Achilles’ heel was one thing to worry about.
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As someone pointed out, we’re in a period where some character types aren’t expected to face much risk and danger. Makes this an even more complicated challenge.
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I saw that comment, and agree with her. Mary Sue is making a comeback.
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Great points. I’ve been thinking of this overpowered-ness with the recent heroes, like Captain Marvel. There’s not much depth or struggle in the superpowered heroes.
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The funny thing is that you can do depth and struggle with an overpowered character. Great example is Dr Manhattan from The Watchmen. He’s extremely powerful, but he struggles with losing his humanity. You don’t really know what he will do since his morality is skewed. The internal conflict helps to make him deep.
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True.
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Interesting points. I’m not the biggest Superman fan and I’ve made similar criticisms before. To be fair, there were times where he wasn’t written well. I also think most villains aren’t believable enough of a threat to beat him except for Doomsday, Darkseid, or Ultraman (the Crime Society member, not the tokusatsu hero, obviously). It gets tough because I feel that Superman rarely ever has any obstacles with the exception of a select few villains.
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I think people underestimate Lex Luthor. He can’t go toe-to-toe with Superman, but he’s smart enough to create difficult situations. It’s Superman’s morals and refusal to kill that makes Lex such a dangerous opponent. You also have Metallo, Bizarro, and Brianiac who have given him a run for his money. Superman actually has a lot more dangerous enemies than people realize, but that’s because of the bad writing. While I didn’t read the run, I remember they did a storyline where the world learned that Clark Kent is Superman. It happened just as he was losing his powers, so he had to fight his enemies as his became a normal human. Read that they are about to go back to giving him a secret identity though.
Looks like I ranted. I think the obstacles that Superman is made to face have to be of the non-physical nature. You can’t really hurt him, but you can put him into situations where he has to choose between stopping you or saving an innocent. He’s a great example of how a boy scout hero’s morals act as a weakness.
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I do agree that Lex Luthor’s greatest strength is his intelligence which I won’t dispute, but I feel that he’s not a threat unless he’s teaming up with a much stronger villain or if he has that Kryptonite suit. Good call with Bizarro and Braniac. I didn’t hear about that storyline with his identity being revealed. Also, don’t get me started about the flimsy disguise issue with the glasses when he doesn’t have his superhero uniform.
Ranted in the comment or the actual article? I’ve dealt with more contentious people online and I know the frustration wasn’t aimed at me. Trust me, I’m definitely capable of ranting especially after being bullied into silence a lot in my life. Going back on topic, Superman does seem the most interesting when he has a villain who can beat him without using Kryptonite or if he has to make a choice where he can’t save everyone at once.
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That’s the trick with Luthor vs Superman. The threat doesn’t have to be physical. Superman can be hurt psychologically or his morals used against him. That’s a reason why Luthor is considered his archenemy. There’s also the times Luthor isn’t publicly seen as a villain. Superman can’t go after him directly and has to prove Luthor is up to something. Again, it’s tricky to pull off.
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That is a tricky situation because I know Luthor isn’t a physical threat to Superman. He does have publicity given his massive company which an effective PR campaign, but how have Superman’s morals been used against him or being psychologically damaged outside of those moments where he is forced to choose between saving people?
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One story had Luthor trick Superman into going to save astronauts, but it required facing red sun radiation to the point Superman got cancer. I’ve read several stories where a villain escapes because Superman has to save someone, which is his morals being used against him. Then there’s the Injustice Superman who went evil after Joker killed Lois. I’d say that’s fairly psychologically damaged.
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Gotcha. I wasn’t aware of some of those storylines and I haven’t played Injustice, so I wasn’t familiar with that iteration of Superman.
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Injustice had a comic series alongside the games. That’s what I know the story from. DC is big on alternate stories. There’s one where Superman landed in the USSR and became a communist champion.
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Okay. I’m aware of some alternate stories since I’ve read Kingdom Come and Crisis on Infinite Earths for example. That’s Red Sun and I’ve heard of that alternate version before.
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