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Superheroes

A variety of superheroes[1]

Superheroins

A variety of superheroines[2]


Superheroes are typically people who have super powers, and use them to fight off the forces of evil, and protect humanity from other disasters.

Not all superheroes have super powers however, some are just incredibly athletic or intelligent, or just well trained in the martial arts. Take Batman for example; He's a superhero with no super powers whatsoever. Still, he's considered one of the most famous superheroes. (although the term Mystery Men is also used for non-powered heroes)

Most superheroes wore special costumes. They usually have capes, cloaks, masks and other elements in their costumes. Superman, Batman, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman are among the most famous superheroes.

Hero vs. superhero[]

Bob Singer Painting

The Superfriends with a bunch of other superheroes.[3]

Although the terms hero and superhero were very often used interchangeably, they usually meant something a bit different.

Although any superhero would also be considered a hero, not every "hero" would also be considered a superhero. It wasn't always easy to distinguish them, but usually a "hero" had to have superhuman abilities or at least an incredible set of skills in order to be considered a "superhero." A costume was normally enough, but even then, sometimes such characters were only called crimefighters or costumed crimefighters or Mystery-Men. Sometimes firefighters, soldiers and police officers were also considered heroes. Champion was another term often given to superheroes, especially the greatest ones; although that term could apply to many things, such as the greatest sports player. Superheroes were also often called protectors. People that were not considered bad guys, but were good instead, but they weren't necessarily heroes either; were generally called good guys.

Even still, some characters, such as Deathstroke for example, might either walk they gray area between hero and villain, or be considered both hero and villain. People like that were often referred to as anti-heroes.

Teams[]

Team-ups were common in the superhero community. Many superhero teams existed on Earth, including the Justice League of America, Doom Patrol, Teen Titans, Freedom Fighters, Freedom Force and many others. Not all teams were superheroes though, as there were a number of supervillain teams and sports teams as well.

An example of supervillain teams was the Legion of Doom, the Injustice League, the League of Assassins and more, while examples of sports teams included the New York Jets, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Metropolis Metros.

Teams generally consisted of at least two people, but usually more. For example, Superman and Batman were part of the team called the World's Finest, and Batman and Robin were part of the Dynamic Duo. Teams were also at times called gangs, groups and clans.

See Also[]

List of Superheroes

References[]

  1. As seen in the opening theme of the Hero High segment of The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!.
  2. As seen in the opening theme of the Hero High segment of The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!.
  3. This image was painted by Bob Singer in 1973. The heroes shown here are Birdman, Shazzan, Frankenstein, Jr., Human Torch, Coil-Man, Fluid-Man, Young Samson, Goliath, Space Ghost, Superman, Mighty Mightor, Wonder Woman, Batman, Thing, Zok, Tundro, Zandor, Gloop and Gleep.
  4. As seen in the Fortress of Solitude Playset from Mego's The World's Greatest Super-Heroes! (1976).
  5. As seen in Filmation promotional artwork.

External Links[]

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