Superhero Academy

A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, or dedicating themselves to protecting the public and fighting crime. Superhero fiction is the genre of fiction that is centered on such characters, especially, since the 1930s, in American comic books (and later in Hollywood films, film serials, television and video games), as well as in Japanese media (including kamishibai, tokusatsu, manga, anime and video games).

Superheroes come from a wide array of different backgrounds and origins. Some superheroes (for example, Batman and Iron Man) derive their status from advanced technology they create and use, while others (such as Superman and Spider-Man) possess non-human or superhuman biology or study and practice magic to achieve their abilities (such as Zatanna and Doctor Strange). While the Dictionary.com definition of "superhero" is "a figure, especially in a comic strip or cartoon, endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime", the Merriam-Webster dictionary gives the definition as "a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person." Terms such as masked crime fighters, costumed adventurers or masked vigilantes are sometimes used to refer to characters such as the Spirit, who may not be explicitly referred to as superheroes but nevertheless share similar traits.

Some superheroes use their powers to help fight daily crime while also combating threats against humanity from ''supervillains'', who are their criminal counterparts. Often at least one of these supervillains will be the superhero's archenemy or ''nemesis''. Some popular supervillains become recurring characters in their own right.

History

1900s–1939

The word superhero dates back to 1899. Antecedents of the archetype include such mythologic characters like Gilgamesh, Hanuman, Perseus, Odysseus, David, and demigods like Heracles, as well as folkloric heroes as Robin Hood, who adventured in distinctive clothing. Real life inspirations behind costumed superheroes can be traced back to the " masked vigilantes" of the American Old West such as the San Diego Vigilantes April 30, 1992 and the Bald Knobbers January 20, 2019 who fought and killed outlaws while wearing masks. The French character L'Oiselle, created in 1909, can be classed as a superheroine.

The 1903 British play ''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' and its spinoffs popularized the idea of a masked avenger and the superhero trope of a secret identity. Shortly afterward, masked and costumed pulp fiction characters such as Jimmie Dale/the Gray Seal (1914), Zorro (1919), Buck Rogers (1928), The Shadow (1930), Flash Gordon (1934), and comic strip heroes, such as the Phantom (1936) began appearing, as did non-costumed characters with super strength, including the comic-strip characters Patoruzú (1928) and Popeye's character Hugo Danner (1930). Another early example was Sarutobi Sasuke, a Japanese superhero ninja from children's novels in the 1910s; by 1914, he had a number of superhuman powers and abilities. In August 1937, in a letter column of the pulp magazine ''Thrilling Wonder Stories'', the word superhero was used to define the title character of the comic strip Zarnak by Max Plaisted.

In the 1930s, the trends converged in some of the earliest superpowered costumed heroes, such as Japan's Ōgon Bat (1931) and Prince of Gamma (early 1930s), who first appeared in kamishibai (a kind of hybrid media combining pictures with live storytelling), Mandrake the Magician (1934), Olga Mesmer (1937) and then Superman (1938) and Captain Marvel (1939) at the beginning of the Golden Age of Comic Books. The precise era of the Golden Age of Comic Books is disputed, though most agree that it was started with the launch of Superman in 1938. Superman has remained one of the most recognizable superheroes, and his success spawned a new archetype of characters with secret identities and superhuman powers. At the end of the decade, in 1939, Batman was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger.

1940s

During the 1940s there were many superheroes: The Flash, Green Lantern and Blue Beetle debuted in this era. This era saw the debut of one of the earliest female superheroes, writer-artist Fletcher Hanks's character Fantomah, an ageless ancient Egyptian woman in the modern day who could transform into a skull-faced creature with superpowers to fight evil; she debuted in Fiction House's ''Jungle Comic'' #2 (Feb. 1940), credited to the pseudonymous "Barclay Flagg". The Invisible Scarlet O'Neil, a non-costumed character who fought crime and wartime saboteurs using the superpower of invisibility created by Russell Stamm, would debut in the eponymous syndicated newspaper comic strip a few months later on June 3, 1940.

In 1940, Maximo the Amazing Superman debut in Big Little Book series, by Russell R. Winterbotham (text), Henry E. Vallely and Erwin L. Hess (art).
Captain America also appeared for the first time in print in December 1940, a year prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese government, when America was still in isolationism. Created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the superhero was the physical embodiment of the American spirit during World War II.

One superpowered character was portrayed as an antiheroine, a rarity for its time: the Black Widow, a costumed emissary of Satan who killed evildoers in order to send them to Hell—debuted in ''Mystic Comics'' #4 (Aug. 1940), from Timely Comics, the 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics. Most of the other female costumed crime-fighters during this era lacked superpowers. Notable characters include The Woman in Red, introduced in Standard Comics' ''Thrilling Comics'' #2 (March 1940); Lady Luck, debuting in the Sunday-newspaper comic-book insert '' The Spirit Section'' June 2, 1940; the comedic character Red Tornado, debuting in '' All-American Comics'' #20 (Nov 1940); Miss Fury, debuting in the eponymous comic strip by female cartoonist Tarpé Mills on April 6, 1941; the Phantom Lady, introduced in Quality Comics ''Police Comics'' #1 (Aug. 1941); the Black Cat, introduced in Harvey Comics' ''Pocket Comics'' #1 (also Aug. 1941); and the Black Canary, introduced in ''Flash Comics'' #86 (Aug. 1947) as a supporting character.Jim Amash & Eric Nolen-Weathington, (2010), ''Carmine Infantino: Penciler, Publisher, Provocateur'' p.30-32 The most iconic comic book superheroine, who debuted during the Golden Age, is Wonder Woman. Modeled from the myth of the Amazons of Greek mythology, she was created by psychologist William Moulton Marston, with help and inspiration from his wife Elizabeth and their mutual lover Olive Byrne. Wonder Woman's first appearance was in ''All Star Comics'' #8 (Dec. 1941), published by All-American Publications, one of two companies that would merge to form DC Comics in 1944.

Pérák was an urban legend originating from the city of Prague during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in the midst of World War II. In the decades following the war, Pérák has also been portrayed as the only Czech superhero in film and comics.

1950s

In 1952, Osamu Tezuka's manga ''Tetsuwan Atom'', more popularly known in the West as ''Astro Boy'', was published. The series focused upon a robot boy built by a scientist to replace his deceased son. Being built from an incomplete robot originally intended for military purposes Astro Boy possessed amazing powers such as flight through thrusters in his feet and the incredible mechanical strength of his limbs.

The 1950s saw the Silver Age of Comics. During this era DC introduced the likes of Batwoman in 1956, Supergirl, Miss Arrowette, and Bat-Girl; all female derivatives of established male superheroes.

In 1957 Japan, Shintoho produced the first film serial featuring the superhero character Super Giant, signaling a shift in Japanese popular culture towards ''tokusatsu'' masked superheroes over ''kaiju'' giant monsters. Along with ''Astro Boy'', the ''Super Giant'' serials had a profound effect on Japanese television. 1958 saw the debut of superhero ''Moonlight Mask'' on Japanese television. It was the first of numerous televised superhero dramas that would make up the ''tokusatsu'' superhero genre. Created by Kōhan Kawauchi, he followed-up its success with the tokusatsu superhero shows '' Seven Color Mask'' (1959) and '' Messenger of Allah'' (1960), both starring a young Sonny Chiba.

1960s

It is arguable that the Marvel Comics teams of the early 1960s brought the biggest assortment of superheroes ever at one time into permanent publication, the likes of Spider-Man (1962), The Hulk, Iron Man, Daredevil, Nick Fury, The Mighty Thor, The Avengers (featuring a rebooted Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Ant-Man, Quicksilver), and many others were given their own monthly titles.

Typically the superhero super groups featured at least one (and often the only) female member, much like DC's flagship superhero team the Justice League of America (whose initial roster included Wonder Woman as the token female); examples include the Fantastic Four's Invisible Girl, the X-Men's Jean Grey (originally known as Marvel Girl), the Avengers' Wasp, and the Brotherhood of Mutants' Scarlet Witch (who later joined the Avengers) with her brother, Quicksilver.

In 1963, ''Astro Boy'' was adapted into a highly influential anime television series. '' Phantom Agents'' in 1964 focused on ninjas working for the Japanese government and would be the foundation for Sentai-type series. 1966 saw the debut of sci-fi/horror series ''Ultra Q