It started with Greatman, who had a kind of purple costume and Spider-Man eyes on his mask. He could fly and he was super-strong, and he was the flagship hero of a line that also included the Fabulous Five, Brink the Atomic Man, Moss Boy (who later evolved into Moss Man), and some other superheroes whose names may be lost to the ages. This was before my age ended in “teen.”
In high school I came up with Captain Zap, who shot power beams or electricity or something out of his fingers. And, of course, as a grownup kid there came Make Phoenix.
We love the larger than life, the mythological hero who fixes things for us mere mortals. We love telling their stories, and we love that they have secret identities and walk among us. Any one of us might be the superhero who saves the day.
We also love the stories of normal people who get caught up in larger than life adventures, Indiana Jones finding the lost ark of the covenant or the Holy Grail, Eliot who finds an extra-terrestrial in the cornfield next to his yard, or Bruce Wayne who trains himself to be so extraordinarily powerful a human that he seems to be super-powered to the criminals he strikes fear into with his bat costume.
Lately I’ve been rediscovering these stories of my youth and remembering how much fun it was to read and write them. When they’re ready, it’ll be fun to share them. I hope you’ll agree.