100+ Definitions 21

Invincible # 21

The Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): In the article “The Experience of the Superhero: A Phenomenological Definition” by Dr. Dana Anderson, he uses “the visceral experience one has of `superheroes’ in the world,” for his phenomenological definition.  Anderson comments:

“…we need to keep in mind that collective experiences, like that of the superhero, are actually a sum of many individual encounters.  Each superhero starts as an idea, is translated onto paper in drawings and words, and is then published.  As the first issue or strip reaches out into the world, primary relationships are formed with readers.  Over time, if the superhero is successful, a collective relationship begins to form between him or her and an audience that stretches across time.  As readers experience him or her, this gestalt relationship begins to form around those encounters, generating a group dynamic through which the superhero evolves into an icon.  The superhero needs a consistent audience, supported by a distribution system and enormous numbers of unique reading experiences, in order fro this process to be possible.  I think that one of the things that separate a superhero from an ordinary hero is the fact of this gestalt, group experience.”

Invincible #21 (I#21):  My issue shows Invincible tracking down Darkwing, a member of the past Guardians of the Globe killed by Omni-Man, in Midnight City, a city in eternal darkness from a magic spell and abandoned by the government.  Invincible discovers Darkwing’s sidekick adopted the superhero mantle and is killing criminals in Midnight City.  After a swift journey into a shadow realm, Invincible apprehends the new Darkwing and brings him to the Pentagon.  The issue ends with Robot getting tampered with by a mutant baby in a mechanical amniotic sack.

L-FL: Weird, but it leads to the superhero definition of a being who adheres to a code of ethics while helping other super-beings adhere to this ethical code in any setting. 

I#21: That works for one definition, for the other possibilities, let’s get started.