seekquaze
05-20-2008, 03:02 PM
In our world or just about any fantasy world having superpowers and assuming they are actually useful and not harmful to the user are usually seen as a good thing that can make someone "special" or "gifted" whether it is the ability to run at the speed of sound, bench press fire trucks, or even shoot heat beams out of ones eyes.
However, in a world like Marvel Earth what does it mean? Does it have any value any more? At the beginning powers were rare in that Spider-Man was surprised to recieve powers, Banner surviving a gamma bomb and becoming the Hulk was a surprise, a scientist such as Tony Stark inventing some type of nifty suit of armor was a major breakthrough, Galactus coming to Earth was a shock for a planet that thought itself alone in the universe(or at least did not have prove of alien life), dr. Strange being an actual wizard was something people thought of only in fairy tales, or Thor actually being the Norse god of thunder was something to stand in awe about. You get the idea.
Now days it seems that has changed. Whenever someone shows up with powers they are written off as mutants, aliens, or recieving their powers from an industrial accident or meteorite. Wizards are so common that SHIELD has about a dozen on their payroll. Where powers used to be a source of accident, granted through a higher power (Celestials, gods, etc.), or through some rare feet of science. Yet now it seems just about any average joe with a decent amount of money can either build their own high-tech equipment or buy it. Tony Stark or Reed Richards can give you superpowers of your choice with a fifty to hundred percent success rate. They are even reaching the point where they can give you those powers permanetly instead of only for a year or so. Heck, even being an actual god doesn't mean anything any more.
One thing that comes to mind is the recent return of Adam Warlock. Instead of the soul gem or his cosmic powers Adam war reborn with some mystical powers including travel through space, energy blasts, force fields and apparently power over souls. He was given these powers for a purpose, but what makes him special of different from the zillion other energy manipulators outthere. What makes his powers separate or "special" from any other half-decent wizard?
When the rare become common place are the Marvels no long marvels?
thoughts???
However, in a world like Marvel Earth what does it mean? Does it have any value any more? At the beginning powers were rare in that Spider-Man was surprised to recieve powers, Banner surviving a gamma bomb and becoming the Hulk was a surprise, a scientist such as Tony Stark inventing some type of nifty suit of armor was a major breakthrough, Galactus coming to Earth was a shock for a planet that thought itself alone in the universe(or at least did not have prove of alien life), dr. Strange being an actual wizard was something people thought of only in fairy tales, or Thor actually being the Norse god of thunder was something to stand in awe about. You get the idea.
Now days it seems that has changed. Whenever someone shows up with powers they are written off as mutants, aliens, or recieving their powers from an industrial accident or meteorite. Wizards are so common that SHIELD has about a dozen on their payroll. Where powers used to be a source of accident, granted through a higher power (Celestials, gods, etc.), or through some rare feet of science. Yet now it seems just about any average joe with a decent amount of money can either build their own high-tech equipment or buy it. Tony Stark or Reed Richards can give you superpowers of your choice with a fifty to hundred percent success rate. They are even reaching the point where they can give you those powers permanetly instead of only for a year or so. Heck, even being an actual god doesn't mean anything any more.
One thing that comes to mind is the recent return of Adam Warlock. Instead of the soul gem or his cosmic powers Adam war reborn with some mystical powers including travel through space, energy blasts, force fields and apparently power over souls. He was given these powers for a purpose, but what makes him special of different from the zillion other energy manipulators outthere. What makes his powers separate or "special" from any other half-decent wizard?
When the rare become common place are the Marvels no long marvels?
thoughts???