In literature, mythology, and comic books, heroes often have a “kryptonite” or “Achilles’s heel”, basically a weakness that makes them vulnerable. I’m curious, what would be considered Superman’s “kryptonite”?
In literature, mythology, and comic books, heroes often have a “kryptonite” or “Achilles’s heel”, basically a weakness that makes them vulnerable. I’m curious, what would be considered Superman’s “kryptonite”?
First time I’ve ever read of this interpretation and that’s super fucking cool.
It’s a really great book that I recommend to even the most casual Superman fan and especially people who think Superman is just an overpowered boy scout. It explores how Superman has evolved over the decades through the influence of different writers and artists and how their personal experiences and cultural shifts helped to evolve the character. He also examines the character’s transformation across other media, including radio, television, and film. Like how the now cheesy sounding, “It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Superman” originated from the radio broadcasts that had to adapt a comic to a non-visual medium. Or why they didn’t just write a Superman comic in the 40’s where he goes and defeats Hitler, because they didn’t want to take away from the GIs or give kids false hope that Superman could just swoop in and save the day in a real life situation. But they also didn’t want kids to think Superman would ignore what was going on, so that’s when they started introducing a lot of off-world stories.