The case against superheroes (Part One)

Maybe J. Jonah Jameson has it right. Throughout the years, he has been regarded as nothing more than an angry crackpot newspaper editor, functioning on the desire to take down Spider-Man and reveal that he is nothing more than a crook, thief, and a plethora of other negative connotations. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that Spider-Man and the other superheroes in existence are crooks or thieves, but they may be causing more problems than solving them.

First and foremost, the largest threats that people face in the world of superheroes are, of course, the supervillains. Without superheroes to protect all of us, the villains could run roughshod over the rest of humanity and do whatever they please with the world, perhaps making the humans their slaves. I don’t know about you, but I don’t particularly think working on a slave's wages in a country like Latveria would be all that enticing, so I suppose I would have the heroes to thank for that.

On the other hand, after witnessing heroes gain their powers in a myriad of freakish ways, doesn’t it seem just a bit odd that the villains start popping up onto the scene only after those powers are acquired? When thinking about it, the only time these colorful characters begin coming out of the woodwork is when the main hero actually starts to use his/her powers.

It’s hard to say whether or not villains would appear if the superhero did not exist first, but it’s worth noting the trend that the villains exist only after a hero is created. The villains, of course, are the antagonists of any comic book. If there is no protagonist, then what becomes of the villain? An antagonist in any story can only be called that if its opposite is present; the villain thrives on the hero to survive and vice versa. It would be impossible to have evil in the world without the presence of good to combat it as it is just not physically or socially possible.

Therefore, the absence of the superheroes could actually make the world a better place because it would also rid the world of its villains. There will always be crime, as even the superheroes cannot rid a city of that. Look at Batman for example. He’s been patrolling the streets of Gotham City for years, striking fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere and yet, each and every one contributes to the continuous downward spiral that keeps the city at cesspool status. The beatings and fresh-pair-of-pants-inducing experiences with someone as terrifying as Batman still have not taught these criminals to stop what they are doing and try to live an honest life. Small-time crime will always exist, but the police are a fine enough force to combat this dilemma.

And look at the damage that occurs in these cities! When Superman and Doomsday fought to the death (allegedly), who was cleaning up that mess? It definitely wasn’t the big guy in the red cape and even if he had lived through that battle, would he have contributed money to fix Metropolis? No way! His strength is a great asset to have, but he wouldn’t be paying for the damages and even if he could help rebuild the city, could he spend that much time helping when a new villain is most likely wreaking havoc somewhere else?