If you enjoy Superheroes without Superpowers, than whats the point?

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

@Natemens, you were gonna say something?

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

You think Batman, a millionaire with a fricking butler, is more relatable than a superhero. Seriously? Superpowers done well give you far greater weaknesses than "occasionally isn't able to buy his way out of things". Look at Rogue, for example. A far more relatable character than Batman.

Well, let?s not let Batman entirely off the ?superpower? hook; being a BILLIONAIRE is pretty much a superpower. I mean, if Bruce Wayne managed to do all that cool ?Batman? stuff whilst living in his mom?s basement, struggling with a tenuous hold on a full-time job at Best Buy, Alfred was an unreliable stoner friend and the Batmobile was a used 2003 Toyota Corolla he?s still paying off, THAT?D be impressive?

I have never understood the fascination with billionaires on these things. Like Iron Man. Private billionaire buys himself superpowers and attempts to shape geopolitics to suit his whim. And we're supposed to root for this guy?

Because for most people, being a billionaire is pretty much as unattainable as developing laser vision.

And lets not forget Batman inherited his billionaire status from his billionaire family.

 

[Xprimentyl]

You think Batman, a millionaire with a fricking butler, is more relatable than a superhero. Seriously? Superpowers done well give you far greater weaknesses than "occasionally isn't able to buy his way out of things". Look at Rogue, for example. A far more relatable character than Batman.

Well, let?s not let Batman entirely off the ?superpower? hook; being a BILLIONAIRE is pretty much a superpower. I mean, if Bruce Wayne managed to do all that cool ?Batman? stuff whilst living in his mom?s basement, struggling with a tenuous hold on a full-time job at Best Buy, Alfred was an unreliable stoner friend and the Batmobile was a used 2003 Toyota Corolla he?s still paying off, THAT?D be impressive?

I have never understood the fascination with billionaires on these things. Like Iron Man. Private billionaire buys himself superpowers and attempts to shape geopolitics to suit his whim. And we're supposed to root for this guy?

Because for most people, being a billionaire is pretty much as unattainable as developing laser vision.

And lets not forget Batman inherited his billionaire status from his billionaire family.

Nothing political intended by this post, but this thread reminded me of this stand-up routine about Batman. XD (It?s trimmed to the Batman bit, 45 seconds or so.)

 

[Bedinsis]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

 

[Cicada 5]

The only thing that overpowered about Batman is his intellect.
He's just a human being so he has to figure out a way to beat a superpowered enemy in a way that doesn't involve direct 1 on 1 combat.
If you think about humanity, our entire history is about figuring things out and using our brains to achieve otherwise impossible things such as the ability to fly.
I think that's why the idea of someone like Batman speaks to people.
Batman became the best because of hard work and determination. That's inspiring, unlike someone like Superman who was just born awesome and never had to work for his skills.

My mom doesn't like superheroes because they're overpowered but she likes Batman because he's just a guy who got good.
She also likes him because there's tension when he's fighting. One stray bullet and he's gone.
Superman took a nuke to the face in BvS and was only out for 10 minutes, that's boring.
Wonder Woman got seriously smacked around by Zeus in her movie and didn't even get a scratch, that's boring.
It took 3 movies for Thor to finally get an injury, that's boring.
when Batman takes off his shirt in Justice League and we see all his bruises and scars, when WW has to pop his arm back into place, that's interesting.

Overwhelming strength is boring.
Overcoming weakness is interesting.

Bruce doesn't get any scratches from his fights either. Diana was also in more danger from bullets than he's been in his entire film history.

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

 

[Cicada 5]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

 

[Squilookle]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

I think that's an /thread.

Completely and utterly.

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

I think that's an /thread.

Completely and utterly.

But I still think there is a lack of appreciation for actual superheroes with superpowers in favor of Batman and his ilk

 

[Squilookle]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

I think that's an /thread.

Completely and utterly.

But I still think there is a lack of appreciation for actual superheroes with superpowers in favor of Batman and his ilk

Well I'm sorry to hear that, but I doubt it's going to change. Personally I think powered-up superheroes suck.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

Because all the other heroes have powers. It makes the few without powers stand out more. Sure, it's awesome to see two of what are essentially gods duke it out above (or through) a city, but it's also satisfying to watch a powerless human being punch way, way above their weight class. Batman defeating Darkseid is more interesting than Superman doing it. And the less they have the better. I mean, Tony Stark, Hal Jordan, Jane Foster, Ted Kord, and Michael Carter all technically don't have powers, but they have access to technology or magic that essentially give them powers. I also like heroes with weaker abilities that don't allow them to level a city block. That isn't to say I don't like overpowered heroes, they're just not as interesting.

 

[PapaGreg096]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

I think that's an /thread.

Completely and utterly.

But I still think there is a lack of appreciation for actual superheroes with superpowers in favor of Batman and his ilk

Well I'm sorry to hear that, but I doubt it's going to change. Personally I think powered-up superheroes suck.

I'm pretty sure people still like Spiderman

Because all the other heroes have powers. It makes the few without powers stand out more. Sure, it's awesome to see two of what are essentially gods duke it out above (or through) a city, but it's also satisfying to watch a powerless human being punch way, way above their weight class. Batman defeating Darkseid is more interesting than Superman doing it. And the less they have the better. I mean, Tony Stark, Hal Jordan, Jane Foster, Ted Kord, and Michael Carter all technically don't have powers, but they have access to technology or magic that essentially give them powers. I also like heroes with weaker abilities that don't allow them to level a city block. That isn't to say I don't like overpowered heroes, they're just not as interesting.

Batman has the freakin hell bat armor and not that he has tons of military grade weaponary and vehicles. Its not like he's Daredevil or Wildcat where he just fights with the Grit of his teeth

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

I like characters without powers that fight characters with powers. Solid snake, Batman, Etc. I think there's a lot to be said about how vulnerability makes a character more interesting.

I do agree with you to some extent though. I'd probably say my favorite hero (at least conceptually) is spider-man. He's pretty powerful but has extremely clear limitations that are regularly put to the test.

 

[Pseudonym]

So I don't really care for superhero stories in general but I have seen some batman and superman on tv back in the day. I thought both were ok for their own reasons. Two remarks though.

Batman the story was never interesting because of batman the character, was it? It was interesting because of the villains batman went up against.

Secondly I think there is a distinct advantage of batmans lack of superpowers and it isn't vulnerability. A billionaire genius martial arts specialists is not vulnerable in any relevant sense and no trauma or depression will make him so if he's still able to be acting batman. The advantage is that batman is slightly (though not too much) more grounded in what is possible in our own lives. This means that batman has to obey physical rules that we all know and intuitively understand (this intuitive understanding also has its limits). Superman often feels like he has the power the writer wants him to have at any given moment. Batman, slightly less so.

Thing is, even if vulnerability or realism of a certain kind is ussually good, you can write a story around someone who isn't very vulnerable or realistic and it can work. If superman or any other hero works or fails as a story should be judged by that story itself, not by some overly simplistic comparison with not entirely comparable other superhero's.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

Batman has the freakin hell bat armor and not that he has tons of military grade weaponary and vehicles. Its not like he's Daredevil or Wildcat where he just fights with the Grit of his teeth

But that's exactly what he's doing most of the time. Yeah, he's got the Hell-Bat armor and probably more than one tank, but how often does he actually use them? More often than not, Batman fights with his fists and he gets beaten to a bloody pulp. He isn't my favorite powerless hero, but I wont write him off completely for occasional use of powerful tools.

 

[PapaGreg096]

Batman has the freakin hell bat armor and not that he has tons of military grade weaponary and vehicles. Its not like he's Daredevil or Wildcat where he just fights with the Grit of his teeth

But that's exactly what he's doing most of the time. Yeah, he's got the Hell-Bat armor and probably more than one tank, but how often does he actually use them? More often than not, Batman fights with his fists and he gets beaten to a bloody pulp. He isn't my favorite powerless hero, but I wont write him off completely for occasional use of powerful tools.

Batman has his gadgets and has either Fox or Alfred giving him intel on the the situation. Also while the batsuit isn't as strong as say the Ironman Armor, at least in modern incarnations it does give him a boost in strength and durability. As for getting beaten into a pulp maybe when it comes to supervillians like Bane or Joker he does but most of the time he mostly gets scratches and shallow cuts.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

I dunno, why did you enjoy Kim Possible?

Same reason I enjoy World of Warcraft, and Danny Phantom, and Tolkien.

Because I like them.

Well, there's your answer to why people like superheroes who don't have super powers.

I think that's an /thread.

Completely and utterly.

An epic conclusion to a thread that basically opened with this

Spoiler

OP I know you don't like Batman but bringing it up over and over isn't going to change how people feel about the character.

Superheroes aren't always about who has the craziest power or who can punch the hardest. Batman and other powerless heroes speak to the human spirit and the will to survive. Despite all the danger Batman and other heroes without powers face they still get up every day/night, suit up, and throw themselves into danger because it's the right thing to do. They put strangers and the common good above their own safety, and Batman in particular is the prime example of this.

Bruce Wayne devoted his life to a crusade of doing everything he can to stop others from having to experience the same pain he did. Admittedly these are not the actions of a rational adult, but that goes deeper into the psychology of the character than this discussion calls for. The fact of the matter is people like myself find Batman inspiring and admirable because of the absolute dedication he has to his cause. He is the man that no matter what happens, no matter how bruised and broken his body is, no matter how dark things become, he throws on the cowl and gets work done. I don't think it's hard to imagine why that is so appealing to people.

When I'm at the gym and I'm squatting with 415 pounds on my back I don't think about Superman who could do it without breaking a sweat. I think of Bruce busting his ass day in and day out, perfecting his body and mind because if he doesn't people could die. Because if he is weak or too tired for even one second he could miss a grapple or fail to free someone from under a piece of debris. He doesn't have an endless supply of power or magic. All he has is his body and mind.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

Batman has the freakin hell bat armor and not that he has tons of military grade weaponary and vehicles. Its not like he's Daredevil or Wildcat where he just fights with the Grit of his teeth

But that's exactly what he's doing most of the time. Yeah, he's got the Hell-Bat armor and probably more than one tank, but how often does he actually use them? More often than not, Batman fights with his fists and he gets beaten to a bloody pulp. He isn't my favorite powerless hero, but I wont write him off completely for occasional use of powerful tools.

Batman has his gadgets and has either Fox or Alfred giving him intel on the the situation. Also while the batsuit isn't as strong as say the Ironman Armor, at least in modern incarnations it does give him a boost in strength and durability. As for getting beaten into a pulp maybe when it comes to supervillians like Bane or Joker he does but most of the time he mostly gets scratches and shallow cuts.

Scratches and shallow cuts isn't exactly the impression I've had of Batman. There are many Batman books I haven't read, but getting stabbed, beaten, blown up, and tortured is basically part of what I've come to expect.

But yeah, his Batsuit and other tech does provide a boost that may make him more like Blue Beetle and Booster Gold than I originally suggested.

 

[PapaGreg096]

Honestly if anyone wants a heroes who gets their licks check out Invincible the stuff he endures makes Batman look like a chump.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Because they exhibit other qualities the we can look up to like courage, compassion, determination... among others.
I do agree that Batman is overdone to the point of absurdity and is often poorly written to give him an edge over heroes with powers just because he's a fan favorite. Also I love the spectacle of a good super power beat down, but that doesn't discount the appeal of non-powered heroes.