A superpower is a special or extraordinary ability far greater than what is considered normal, possessed by those of

superhuman The term superhuman refers to humans, humanoids or other beings with abilities and other qualities that exceed those naturally found in humans. These qualities may be acquired through natural ability, self-actualization or technological aids. ...

status. Superpowers are typically displayed in

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

media such as

comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

TV shows A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming platfo ...

video games A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

, and

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

as the key attribute of a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

. The concept originated in

American comics American comics may refer to: * History of American comics *American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form ori ...

and

pulp fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence ...

of the 1930s and 1940s, and has gradually worked its way into other genres and media.

Definition

There is no rigid definition of a "superpower" beyond the general idea of them being a set of capabilities and traits exhibited by characters in fiction that are considered beyond the limits of normal beings or are

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

to some degree. In popular culture, it is often associated with unusual abilities such as

flight Flight or flying is the motion (physics), motion of an Physical object, object through an atmosphere, or through the vacuum of Outer space, space, without contacting any planetary surface. This can be achieved by generating aerodynamic lift ass ...

super-strength Superhuman strength is a superpower commonly invoked in fiction and other literary works, such as mythology. A fictionalized representation of the phenomenon of hysterical strength, it is the power to exert force and lift weights beyond what is ...

, super-speed,

invulnerability Vulnerability refers to "the quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally." The understanding of social and environmental vulnerability, as a methodological approach, involves ...

, etc. However, it can also describe natural abilities that reach the peak of human potential, such as advanced intelligence or weapon proficiency. Characters like

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

and

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...

may be classified as superheroes even though they have no actual superhuman abilities beyond their exceptional talent and advanced technology, yet their capabilities are still considered far superior to that of the average individual and even comparable to overtly paranormal beings with explicitly supernatural capabilities. Similarly, characters with superhuman abilities derived from artificial, external sources, like Green Lantern’s power ring and Tony Stark's

armor Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

may be described as superpowers even though the wearer is not necessarily superhuman on their own. In fiction and fantasy, superpowers are often given scientific, technological,

pseudoscientific Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable cl ...

, or supernatural explanations. They come from sources such as

magic Magic or magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces ** ''Magick'' (with ''-ck'') can specifically refer to ceremonial magic * Magic (illusion), also known as sta ...

, technology, or the character's own physiological nature (being an alien, a

supernatural being Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

, or a

mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It i ...

In animation

Superpowers are commonly used in animated television. In shows such as ''

Ben 10 ''Ben 10'' is an American media franchise conceived by Man of Action and owned by The Cartoon Network, Inc. The franchise, mainly consisting of animated series produced by Cartoon Network Studios, revolves around a young boy named Ben Tennys ...

'', '' American Dragon: Jake Long,'' and ''

Danny Phantom ''Danny Phantom'' is an American animated paranormal superhero action adventure television series created by Butch Hartman for Nickelodeon. It premiered on April 3, 2004, immediately after the 2004 Kids' Choice Awards, and concluded on August ...

'', young protagonists are bestowed with transformative powers which lead them to live a double life. ''

Winx Club ''Winx Club'' is an animated television series co-produced by Rainbow S.p.A., Rainbow and, later, Nickelodeon. It was created and directed by Italian animator Iginio Straffi. It premiered on 28January 2004, becoming a ratings success in Ita ...

'' and ''

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe ''He-Man and the Masters of the Universe'' (often referred to simply as ''He-Man'') is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's toy line ''Masters of the Universe''. The show was one of the most popular an ...

'' feature characters who adventure in fantastical worlds which put their inherent superpowers to the test. In ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...

'', ''

Road Rovers ''Road Rovers'' is an American animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Television Animation that premiered on Kids' WB on September 7, 1996, and ended after one season on February 22, 1997. It was later shown on Cartoon Network from ...

,'' and ''

Street Sharks ''Street Sharks'' is an American animated television series about the adventures of crime-fighting half-man/half-sharks. The series was produced by DIC Entertainment, DIC Productions, L.P. and Bohbot Entertainment and was initially Broadcast synd ...

'', the characters' superpowers are the result of being transformed into anthropomorphic animals (either from animals or humans) combined with combat training. Other examples include: ''

Biker Mice from Mars ''Biker Mice from Mars'' is an American animated series created by Rick Ungar. The series premiered in syndication the week of September 19, 1993. It consists of three seasons of 65 episodes, with the final episode airing in syndication the we ...

'', ''

Toxic Crusaders ''Toxic Crusaders'' is an American animated series loosely based on '' The Toxic Avenger'' films. It features Toxie, the lead character of the films, leading a group of misfit superheroes who combat pollution. This followed a trend of environmen ...

'', ''

Samurai Pizza Cats ''Samurai Pizza Cats'' is an animated television show produced by Saban Entertainment. It is an adaptation of the anime series ''Kyatto Ninden Teyandee'' (''Cat Ninja Legend Teyandee''), produced by Tatsunoko Production and Sotsu Agency, w ...

'', ''

Loonatics Unleashed ''Loonatics Unleashed'' is an American superhero animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation that ran on Kids' WB for two seasons from 2005 to 2007. It also aired on Cartoon Network internationally (excluding US and Japan). Th ...

'', ''

Darkwing Duck ''Darkwing Duck'' is an American animated superhero comedy television series produced by Disney Television Animation (formerly Walt Disney Television Animation) that first ran from 1991 to 1992 on both the syndicated programming block '' The Dis ...

'', '' Gargoyles'', ''

Drak Pack ''Drak Pack'' is a 1980 animated television series about the classic Universal Monsters villains fighting for good. It aired in the United States on CBS Saturday Morning from September 6 to December 20, 1980. It was produced by the Australian di ...

'', ''

Ghostforce ''Ghostforce'' (also named ''Ghost Force'') is an animated television series created by Jeremy Zag that premiered on TFOU in France on August 21, 2021. The show is licensed by Disney for international distribution; in the United States, it premiere ...

'', '' El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera'', ''

The Mighty B! ''The Mighty B!'' (stylized in all caps) is an American animated television series created by Amy Poehler, Cynthia True, and Erik Wiese for Nickelodeon. The series centers on Bessie Higgenbottom, an ambitious Honeybee girl scout who believes ...

'', ''

Three Delivery ''Three Delivery'' (also known as ''Chop Suey Trio'') is an animated television series inspired by kung-fu movies. It was created by Larry Schwarz, who also created similar series, '' Kappa Mikey'' and '' Speed Racer: The Next Generation''. It ...

'', ''

Teamo Supremo ''Teamo Supremo'' is an American animated television series created by Phil Walsh. Animated in the limited animation style pioneered by Jay Ward, predecessors who inspired its style, it tells of three superhero children: Captain Crandall, Skate ...

'', '' Mummies Alive'', ''

Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! (also known as ''SRMTHFG'' or simply ''Super Robot Monkey Team'') is an animated television series created by Ciro Nieli. It is produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, with animation being done by The Answer Studio in Japan. The series wa ...

'', ''

The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest ''The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest'' (also known as ''Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and broadcast on Cartoon Network from August 26, 1996, to April 16, 1997. ...

'', ''

Totally Spies! ''Totally Spies!'' is a French anime-influenced animated spy-fi series created by Vincent Chalvon-Demersay and David Michel mainly produced by French company Zodiak Kids & Family France, with seasons three to five being co-produced with Cana ...

'', ''

Code Lyoko ''Code Lyoko'' (; stylized as ''CODE: LYOKO'' in season 1 and in all caps in seasons 2–4) is a French anime-influenced animated series created by Thomas Romain and Tania Palumbo and produced by Antefilms Production (season 1) and MoonScoop ...

'', ''

Storm Hawks ''Storm Hawks'' is a Canadian animated television series created by Asaph Fipke and produced by Nerd Corps Entertainment. It premiered on YTV in Canada on September 8, 2007, and on Cartoon Network in the United States on May 25, 2007. Plot ...

'', '' Zevo-3'', ''

Chop Socky Chooks ''Chop Socky Chooks'' is an animated action television series produced by Aardman Animations, Decode Entertainment, and Cartoon Network Europe that ran on Cartoon Network from 7 March 2008 until 24 July 2009. It was created and directed by Ser ...

'', ''

Butt Ugly Martians ''Butt-Ugly Martians'' is an animated television series co-produced by Mike Young Productions, Digital Content Development Corporation Limited and Just Entertainment. It was sold to ITV on October 2, 2000, for the original television pilot an ...

'', '' Kung Fu Dino Posse'', etc.

In manga and anime

Superpowers are a commonly used concept in

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

and

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

— particularly in the shonen genre. The types of powers featured vary from series to series. Some, such as ''

Dragon Ball is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The Dragon Ball (manga), initial manga, written and illustrated by Toriyama, was Serial (literature), serialized in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 indi ...

'' and ''

Fullmetal Alchemist is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa. It was serialized in Square Enix's shōnen manga, manga anthology magazine ''Gangan Comics#Monthly Shōnen Gangan, Monthly Shōnen Gangan'' between July 2001 and June ...

'', feature many different characters who have the same types of powers. Others, like ''

One Piece ''One Piece'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, as he explores the Grand Line in search of the myt ...

'' and ''

Bleach Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color from (i.e. to whiten) fabric or fiber (in a process called bleaching) or to disinfect after cleaning. It often refers specifically t ...

'', feature characters with a wide range of different powers, with many powers being unique to only one or a few characters. Examples include: ''

'', ''

Saint Seiya , also known as ''Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac'' or simply ''Knights of the Zodiac'' (translated from the French title ''Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque''), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada. It ...

'', ''

YuYu Hakusho is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi. It tells the story of Yusuke Urameshi, a teenage delinquent who is struck and killed by a car while saving a child's life. After several tests presented to him ...

'', ''

Black Clover is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yūki Tabata. It started in Shueisha's Shōnen manga, manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' in February 2015. The series ran in the magazine until August 2023, and moved to ...

'', ''

Naruto ''Naruto'' is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who seeks recognition from his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the leader of his village. T ...

'', ''

Code Geass , often referred to as ''Code Geass'', is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise. It was directed by Gorō Taniguchi and written by Ichirō Ōkouchi, with original character designs by Clamp. Set in an ...

'', ''

Fairy Tail ''Fairy Tail'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It was serialized in Kodansha's ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collect ...

'', ''

Hunter × Hunter ''Hunter × Hunter'' (pronounced "hunter hunter") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi. It has been serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' since March 1998, although the man ...

'', ''

Attack on Titan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. It is set in a world where humanity is forced to live in cities surrounded by three enormous walls that protect them from gigantic man-eating humanoids referred to a ...

'', ''

Bungo Stray Dogs , also abbreviated as ''B-S-D'', is a Japanese manga series written by Kafka Asagiri and illustrated by Sango Harukawa, which has been serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's Seinen manga, manga magazine ''Young Ace'' since 2012. Each cha ...

'', ''

My Hero Academia is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kōhei Horikoshi. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from July 2014 to August 2024, with its chapters collected in 42 volumes. Set in a wor ...

'', etc.

In live-action TV series

Superpowers feature in subgenres of

tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction film, science fiction, War fi ...

, a form of television characterised by heavy use of special effects. This is embodied by the franchise ''

Super Sentai The is a Japanese superhero team media franchise consisting of television series and films produced by Toei Company and Bandai, and aired by TV Asahi. The shows are of the '' tokusatsu'' genre, featuring live action characters and colorfu ...

'', known for ''

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...

'', and its counterpart ''

Kamen Rider The , also known as ''Masked Rider Series'' (until ''Kamen Rider Decade, Decade'' and except Thailand), is a Japanese superhero fiction, superhero media franchise consisting of tokusatsu television programs, films, manga, and anime, created by ...

''. In Western television, superpowers are often depicted in adaptations of comic books. However, series such as ''Heroes'', ''

Misfits MiSFiTS was the acronym for the ''Minnesota Society for Interest in Science Fiction and Fantasy''. This organization has now changed its name to GPS, an acronym for Geek Partnership Society. It was founded in 1999 and was the parent non-profit org ...

'' and ''Henry Danger'' are original to television. They use superpowers to heighten the conflicts of otherwise ordinary characters, without strong ties to other superheroic tropes such as codenames or costumes.

References

External links

8 Super Powers
an online ''

Wired Magazine ''Wired'' is a bi-monthly American magazine that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. It is published in both print and Online magazine, online editions by Condé Nast. The magazine has been in public ...

'' article on how certain superpowers might work
The Physics of Superheroes
by James Kakalios- a book examining how the powers of several comic book characters would work if they were real. {{Superhero fiction Superhero fiction themes

Definition

In animation

In manga and anime

In live-action TV series

See also

References

External links