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Dave said:
Hmm. Maybe. I'm not convinced The Flash (or Green Lantern, and certainly not Wonder Woman) are that different from Superman. It was a guy in a costume with a power, just like all the rest. "He's like Superman, but he runs fast." Certainly Greek mythology played a decisive role in the character's creation - the helmet and (IIRC) the winged feet.



Well, certainly, if you quantify everything down to "Guy/Girl in a costume", then, of course you will find the entire genre redundant unto itself. But, then again, that would mean you are accusing the spandex medium of being into spandex. Recursion, thy name is recursion.

And, of course, if you try and compare the superhero medium to other realms of fiction or literature, then, you certainly find relatable comparisons. Samson=Doc Savage=Superman. The Scarlet Pimpernel=Zorro=Batman. Alladin=King Arthur=Green Lantern. Mercury=Flash. Of course it is that obvious.

But, everything comes from something before it. Anything deemed truly original in fiction can be generally tracked to an earlier version/notion of that idea. That, in itself, is obvious, as well. However, if you follow the train of that particular logic, then you'll just end up arguing yourself all the way back to Beowulf. And, really, that's a moot point.

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I actually need to start my thesis, rather than just talk about it, but I see no reason why I couldn't post excerpts of the draft from time to time.



Do it here. You could make it a regular series of articles...