Shannd1

Great, thought-provoking article. Superman is a great example of how something so intrinsically human and hopeful can be taken and spoiled with patriotism. Patriotism is fine and well when it’s simply a love of where you come from and live. But when it’s taken to its extremes and used to hate and start wars? That’s where characters like Superman and publishers like DC have to draw a line. Superman stands for so much more than America, he stands for the world as you so eloquently stated. Trying to tie down what he represents to one geographic location? That’s just selfish. That’s Captain America. And that’s why Superman works so much better than Cap. It’s the same morals but they ring truer with the Man of Steel because it doesn’t have the addendum “as long as it’s America” after it. Heroism isn’t exclusively American, and DC, along with the rest of the nation, would do well to remember that.

This was a fantastic article. Well researched, well written, and, from one Superman fan to another, much appreciated. Though, I have to argue the point about Darkseid. Yes, absolutely, I see the point that he’s a DC Universe villain, a threat to all of existence comparable to Marvel’s Thanos. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen Darkseid up against anyone other than Superman. What I mean is, yes, he attacks universes at a time with hordes of destruction and anarchy, necessitating the combination of the world’s heroes to stop him. But it’s never without Superman leading the charge. And I don’t recall off the top of my head (correct me if I’m wrong) Darkseid ever making it his personal mission to destroy any particular hero outside of Superman (not counting Orion or Mister Miracle). I don’t think he sees anyone other than those three as a threat to him and his empire and Superman most of all. While Lex Luthor is Superman’s greatest foe by quite a margin, that relationship is defined by a god with unlimited potential against a man with squandered potential. Darkseid’s relationship to the Man of Steel is more along the lines of the Ultimate Good against the Ultimate Evil. And that alone is just too perfect to not have Darkseid be classified as a Superman villain. I’m not arguing with the list, I think it’s perfect. But Darkseid is.

An interesting piece, though I have to disagree about this “locked” view you seem to have of some of these characters. Honestly, any heroic or villainous character has the potential to be an anti-hero. Take your example from earlier, Loki. Yes, Loki has been shown to be quite duplicitous and honestly just not a very good person since his creation in 1962. But, and this is important, he’s always been on the lookout for Number One: Himself. This is key to his transformation. During the events of the 2010 crossover Siege, Loki engineered an assault on Asgard to gain control of the throne once again. He was driven to this moment by greed, by a thirst for power. But, towards the end of the siege, Asgard began to be destroyed by the uncontrolled power of the Sentry, which woke Loki up. He didn’t want this. He wanted Asgard to himself, he didn’t want it destroyed. What good was that? So, realizing what he had done wrong, he sacrificed himself to save everyone. And that is where the character started to take the shape that he resembles today. He was later reborn as a child, one with the potential to do good. And he’s been on that path ever since. Even the latest series, Loki: Agent of Asgard, has him actively trying to be better. He’s not perfect by any means, but he’s trying. Loki works as an anti-hero specifically because of the things we have seen him do before, not in spite of it. Because we’ve seen the heinous things he’s done in the name of himself, we root for Loki because we know he’s trying to be better, something we all can relate to. Anti-heroes that start as villains are easier to relate to than those that start as heroes due to our human desire to be better than we are, which is exactly what characters such as Loki, Magneto, and almost the entire cast of any incarnation of the Thunderbolts are. And even the anti-heroes that start their lives as heroes we at least feel sympathy for because we know they’re better than what they’ve become. It doesn’t ring any less true (unless that character is Superman, but that’s a whole ‘nuther thing). A character is never chained down by their past actions. A character worth any measure of salt should be able to overcome those past mistakes or fall from grace at any point because that is who we are as people: ever-changing.