Mount Rushmore of Superheroes

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Thorpocalypse
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Mount Rushmore of Superheroes

Post by Thorpocalypse »

I saw this image the other day and it made me wonder who you fine Multiversal Denizens would put on your Mount Rushmore of superheroes.

For this particular exercise, let's add in all forms of media and not just the comic history of the heroes. For me, I'm sticking with who's on the pic, but if you throw in the MCU, you might have to drop Cap for Iron Man, just because of what he did for the superhero movie scene. I could also be convinced to drop Cap for Wonder Woman if you put more weight on the role in society.

What do you think?

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Batgirl III
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Re: Mount Rushmore of Superheroes

Post by Batgirl III »

The popular mnemonic for the four presidents chosen for Mount Rushmore is that they represent the United States' "founding, expansion, preservation, and unification." That seems like a fitting set of criteria to me.

Thus I nominate Superman, Captain America, Spider-Man, and the Batman.

Superman is unarguably the "founding father" of superhero comics as we know them. Although he had his precursors in the pulps and comic strips, it was Superman that really birthed the genre.

Captain America represents the expansion of the medium to something more than just a dime-store amusement for the kids. For millions of American men overseas during the Second World War, superhero comics were a fun escape and vital bit of relief from their daily grind... and thus we see the seeds of superhero comics being seen as something adults could read. Captain America and the other comicbooks of WWII also marked the first time that the American superhero genre really got seen outside of the US and parts Canada. Thus Cap is responsible for expanding the demographics and the markets.

But as we all know, the post-war years saw a big slump in the superhero genre. Westerns, horror comics, and romance stories became the big draws... The Golden Age of Superheroes ended not with a bang, but a whimper. Luckily, the Silver Age was born with Barry Allen. But I would argue that it was Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's "Marvel Way" that really cemented the Silver Age. The pinnacle of their "realistic heroes facing real problems" storytelling method —and one of the biggest stars of the period— is none other than your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

But just as the Golden Age lost its luster, so too did the Silver Age eventually give way to the Bronze. If the Silver Age can be said to have ended the night Gwen Stacy died, then the Bronze Age began when the Dark Knight returned. The Batman was key in making this new age of comics (and even the Iron Age that followed) into a distinct age of comics... But more than that, the 1989 Batman film was responsible for bringing the superhero genre a level of widespread awareness and interest like wartime comics had during WWII.
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Bladewind
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Re: Mount Rushmore of Superheroes

Post by Bladewind »

You're both "wrong:"

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And Lincoln gets blasted off for good measure.


:D :lol: ;)

Truth be told though, I like Batgirl III's reasoning for re-ordering the line up in Thorp's pic.
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StarGuard
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Re: Mount Rushmore of Superheroes

Post by StarGuard »

I agree but with the caveat (wait for it) ... Batman. I think I would prefer Wonder Woman. You have no idea how long I've waited for those pencil pushing bean counters running Hollywood to grow a pair and do a proper female lead superheroine movie. As mixed up as her multiple reboots are, for me, at the core she is the epitome of strong female, every bit the equal of any male. While Cap, no make that Steve Rogers, is my all time comic book character, if I were a young adult woman I would have no other than Diana Prince as my hero of heroes. Bats has many good points but I don't find him inspirational in this manner. He is just too dark and broody to be a face on Rushmore for me. Bruce's justice is a tad too dark and personal. As a face on Rushmore give me a symbol of hope and peace backed by a wickedly strong right upper cut. ;)
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