Comic books have long held the imagination of young men and women all over the globe. Certain comic book figures have grabbed hold of our imaginations and never let go. Batman, Superman, The X-Men, The Fantastic Four and many more have all been a part of comic book culture for decades on end, and yet they are still going strong years later. Spiderman is certainly a comic book character that fits among this group of superstar super heroes. In looking at why a particular superhero becomes legendary, let us look at Spiderman as the example.
Spiderman has remained popular in the world of comic books for many years, and he is certainly near the top of super heroes that our generation recognizes. His comics have been drawn by the greatest comic book artists of all time, and his movies are far and away the most popular of all the comic book films. Why is Spiderman such a hit with virtually any age group?
One reason is because of the back story. Spiderman is actually Peter Parker, a young student/photographer that is trying to make his way through college. He is bitten by a radioactive spider, and suddenly has the power to do things that a spider does. This includes having a “spider sense” which allows him to sense danger far in advance. It includes spider strength, the ability to climb walls, and the ability to swing from the rooftops by a web that he shoots from special web shooters on his wrists. These powers are really neat, and most people would love to have them for a day, but this is not the draw for most Spiderman readers and viewers.
It is instead the story of Peter Parker that intrigues us. First, he is young. Second, he is fallible. Spiderman is one of the first comic book super heroes that actually showed weakness both in person and character. When Spiderman was first getting started, Peter Parker let a criminal escape out of spite, and that criminal ended up murdering his Uncle Ben. This brought Spiderman to a sense of responsibility with his powers. “With great power comes great responsibility” became his mantra.
Most people can relate to this problem on some level. The fact that Parker is so young seems to only enhance the fact that he is shouldering the load of the world on his shoulders. We as an audience are drawn to cheer him on. Most people can relate clearly to the fact that we often have more than we can bear. It is those decisions which define us, and so define Peter Parker as Spiderman.
When you add to this that Spiderman has had some of the best story lines and artists of the comic book world, and it is easy to understand how he became one of the best of all time. Spiderman is also one heck of a funny read to boot, so there is the humor factor as well. There are plenty of reasons to love Spiderman comic books.
