My Childhood Superheroes
While looking through a book of 400 writing prompts I came across this. I spoke to a lot of friends about this like Richard, Jane, and my Accountabilibuddies.
I grew up raised by a young superhero generation, so I couldn't write about just one. That would be disrespectful to the others.
I watched Teen Titans, Xiaolin Showdown, and Static Shock on Kids WB on the weekday afternoons and Saturday morning. Teen Titans and Xiaolin Showdown also aired on Cartoon Network. A few years later I started reading the Maximum Ride series. A couple great things about all these casts were a diverse cast members and unique skill sets among the teams.
Teen Titans was one of my favorite shows. I even rewatched it recently. There was a bit of a debate in my head about if I should add Robin or not. He was my least favorite character and he has no powers. I noticed how important he is to the team while rewatching it. He's helped every teammate with personal demons they faced, and the team fell apart without him in the very first episode. Because we learned the most about Raven and Beastboy they were my favorite characters. I felt more invested with them. Every one of the characters had great character arcs. Raven, not only has to fight her own inner demons, but she also has to learn that premonitions don't always have to come true. She also had to stand up to her father. One of my favorite thing about Beastboy is that even though he's mostly comic relief he has had amazing moments where he saved everyone even if he's the one who caused the damage. Cyborg went undercover to a school raising villains, he knew how to change the plan as new information came up, and he even had his own villain to deal with. Starfire was always trying to understand our Earth culture. I've seen her stand up to her sister, turn down the Tameranian thrown, go through puberty, and deal with racism. One of my favorite episodes was when Raven and Starfire switched bodies and had to learn more about each other and how their powers worked. They were able to save the guys after learning a bit about each other. Other favorite episodes were Nevermore, Fear Itself, and How Long is Forever? The Teen Titans were even mentioned in Static Shock. It's a shame they didn't have a crossover episode.
Static Shock was another one of my favorites. When the show started there was a gang war going on on the docks, and police tried to intervene and that's when the Big Bang happened creating Bang Babies. A common misconception is that only gang members were out there and effected by the chemicals, but kids were there hanging out there too. My favorite heroes in the show were Virgil aka Static, Richie aka Gear, Rubberbandman, and She-Bang. Static met Batman, Robin, Anasi ("The Spider" he met in Ghana on a family trip), Terry McGinnis, and others. Gear and Static met and saved the Justice League.
Virgil was on the docks because a gang member stood up for him against a school bully, so he wanted Virgil to join his gang. Virgil didn't want to join because his mother passed away while trying to stop gang riots when he was a kid. When the gas was released he was able to escape before he was exposed to it for too long. Virgil lives with his overbearing sister and his father. I feel I should give a shout out to his dad because even though his father has no powers he is great father and a dedicated social worker. Virgil wanted to be a hero because when he found out the high school bully had powers and was terrorizing people. In the show Static saved Batman and Robin, got to learn more about his heritage which he loved, and he helped a lot of confused Bang Babies. Virgil receives a lot of help from his best friend Richie.
Richie doesn't have powers in the first two seasons. As soon as Virgil confided in him about getting powers Richie wanted to help him be a good hero. He invented a lot of gadgets for Static including the infamous Shock boxes and found their headquarters. At first we didn't know a lot about Richie's life away from Virgil. One episode shined a light on how he doesn't like his dad because his dad is racist. Virgil overheard a comment that Richie's dad made and left a sleepover. This caused Richie to run away from home. Richie's dad asks Virgil's dad, Robert, for help. After this episode you never see Richie's family again. Before he got his powers Richie saved a bully from getting shot but ended up getting shot in the leg in the process. Static did a PSA after that episode. In season three Richie starts exhibiting powers because of passive exposure of the chemicals he got from hanging out with Virgil so much. He gets enhanced intelligence that makes his inventions even better. His best invention in season three was Backpack that could do anything.
Rubberband Man didn't start out as a hero. When Static first met him he was trying to get revenge on a musician and music producer because one, if not both of them, stole his music and claimed it as their own. Thanks to Static and Sharon, Virgil's sister, Rubberband Man became a hero. We rarely see him after that. We do see him "become a criminal again" before Static and Gear (I believe) find out the truth. In another episode while Rubberband Man was working with Static and Gear we found out that Rubberband Man is dyslexic. Static found this out and kept it a secret not even telling Gear. After Static finds out Rubberband Man has never even read his fan mail Static helps him through it. At the end of the episode Static and Rubberband Man do a PSA at the end about dyslexia.
She-Bang was not a Bang Baby I believe she was built in a lab where a couple of scientists fell in love with her and took her in. Because of this her family was on the run She-Bang was never able to be herself. She thought she could when she got to Dakota because of the the Bang Babies. She was strong, independent, and even though she had to hide who she was she had a very strong sense of self that people that age rarely have, but it was still believable. I appreciated that she had her own story, when she her parents got kidnapped Static and Gear helped her get her parents back. At the end of the episode she had to move away, but I want to say she came back later.
She-Bang wasn't the only one superhero who was bred in a lab who a scientist became attached to which brings me to the franchise that has had the biggest hold on me. I still fangirl about it to this day. I stumbled upon it when I was on a shopping trip at Costco with my mom. She always let me hang out by the books knowing that's where I was always most comfortable. I got hooked on Maximum Ride right away and begged my mom to buy it. She bought me the first two before I went back to Dad's. I think one of the reasons that I love it so much is because I started reading the books when I was about Max's age. The last Maximum Ride book a parent bought me was Fang. I was so super excited about it coming out that I constantly talked about it. A few days before Easter 2010 my dad gave it to me. I must have been grinning like an idiot. The franchise also has mangas, but I think I only have six or seven of them. I waited YEARS for the movie to be made. As soon as it came out Richard and I bought it and watched it. After reading the third book I also read the predecessors and inspiration behind the series When the Wind Blows and The Lake House involving a different Max and Flock. The Maximum Ride series has influenced me a lot as a person and a writer. Maximum Ride and is about Max and her family dubbed the Flock having two percent bird DNA, and they were experimented on a lot before one scientist saved them and helped them live on their own until he died. Books one through three were my favorites. I even read chapters of the third book to my brother, Ethan on one summer vacation.
Max was the first team leader I liked. When I was a kid I was against like all team leaders in all books and shows I was watching. I think part of the reason I love her so much is because I can identify with her, and she reminded me of my parents. Max was always brave for everyone else and she treated people with respect based on their individual personalities. She could pretty much handle anything thrown her way. She was able to make tough decisions that no one else would make like leaving Gazzy and Iggy home alone when the rest of the team went to rescue Angel, diverting from the mission from saving Angel to save a girl in need, and even killing someone she used to know in self-defense. In Max's whole story she only broke once, and her family (the Flock) was able to help bring her back from the brink which I can relate to. My family might not have known they were helping me through stuff like that though.
Fang taught me two important survival techniques that I had to use a few times: when you have to choose between protecting yourself or another it's (sometimes) best to choose you and in the face of danger (sometimes) it's best not to show any emotion. He was very stoic, and I chose to emulate that once when I felt threatened once. Anyway, Fang was Max's right hand man. He also made his fair share of tough decisions like leaving the Flock on two different occasions. He even formed his own Flock by blogging about their adventures and finding some people with abilities as well. He held a team member as they died in his arms. After she passed on he snapped at the team member who betrayed them getting the girl killed. But he lost all of his confidence of a leader because of this. He ended going back to the Flock after that.
As cliche as it may sound Iggy gave me more confidence to be who I want to be. This is because he was backing the lessons my parents have been teaching me my whole life. Even though I'm disabled doesn't mean I can't do whatever the hell I want to do in life. Iggy was blind, and he was the best cook on the team. He and his best friend Gazzy could build explosives together. He's the cynic/ realist of the group and is often sarcastic.
Nudge is a sweet girl who always listened to Max at the beginning thinking Max was always right, but throughout the series being on the run took a toll on her. During the series she just wanted to be normal, wanting to meet her biological family, and even wanting to do away with her wings at one point. But she was also was a self-proclaimed fashionista. I added the fashionista part of Nudge to my character Daniya Atwater in Head Hunters. One ability of her that I would have liked and wish she would have been able to practice more was her hacking ability.
Gazzy reminds me of my brother, Ethan, or Ethan reminds me of Gazzy. I can never be too sure. They share the same physique, they've always been brave, intelligent, and mischievous. Gazzy is also fiercely loyal too his family. I used that trait of his in my character Cayden Atwater in Head Hunters. One of Gazzy's favorite hobbies was building explosives with his best friend Iggy.
Angel was so sweet and adorable in the beginning. She was like any six-year-old with the added ability to read minds. Both fortunately and unfortunately, once the Flock was on the run she practiced her powers almost non-stop. It heightened her powers to the ability of control thoughts and tell the future. The information she holds is way too much for adults to handle much less her. But she handled it as well as anyone would.
UPDATE: So I have a few shout outs to give to some lost heroes. I thought Ari was pretty cool. He's been through so much, but he wasn't always a villain. When he was a hero I really liked what he did. Then there's Maya. She made a life for herself which I loved for her. She was a great fighter, brave, and once she figured out her own life she was loyal to those she cared for. Then there's Dylan. I initially didn't like him because something about him rubbed me the wrong way. But he saved the Flock more than once so I respect him.
The last cast of superheroes I want to mention is the main cast of Xiaolin Showdown: Omi, Raimundo Pedrosa aka Rai, Kimiko Tohomiko, and Clay Bailey. The show follows them learning how to use their powers over the elements and finding hidden items that can heighten their abilities. Omi is an orphan who has always lived at the temple they are training at. He sees himself as the leader even though though he was a student like all of them were. Omi was the Dragon of Water. He did not understand idioms, and Rai constantly tried to correct him. Clay moved from Texas He didn't usually talk as much as the others. With his background in farming he was the Dragon of Earth.
My favorite characters were Rai and Kimiko. Rai was the Dragon of Wind because of his laid back attitude. He was street smart, stubborn, and would do anything to protect his friends. He did join the Heylin (dark) side at least once because he was jealous of his friends successes. But when his friends really needed him he shined through. Kimiko is a tech-savvy girl hothead from Japan and the Dragon of Fire. One of my favorite things about her was her fashion was different in every episode.
I grew up raised by a young superhero generation, so I couldn't write about just one. That would be disrespectful to the others.
I watched Teen Titans, Xiaolin Showdown, and Static Shock on Kids WB on the weekday afternoons and Saturday morning. Teen Titans and Xiaolin Showdown also aired on Cartoon Network. A few years later I started reading the Maximum Ride series. A couple great things about all these casts were a diverse cast members and unique skill sets among the teams.
Teen Titans was one of my favorite shows. I even rewatched it recently. There was a bit of a debate in my head about if I should add Robin or not. He was my least favorite character and he has no powers. I noticed how important he is to the team while rewatching it. He's helped every teammate with personal demons they faced, and the team fell apart without him in the very first episode. Because we learned the most about Raven and Beastboy they were my favorite characters. I felt more invested with them. Every one of the characters had great character arcs. Raven, not only has to fight her own inner demons, but she also has to learn that premonitions don't always have to come true. She also had to stand up to her father. One of my favorite thing about Beastboy is that even though he's mostly comic relief he has had amazing moments where he saved everyone even if he's the one who caused the damage. Cyborg went undercover to a school raising villains, he knew how to change the plan as new information came up, and he even had his own villain to deal with. Starfire was always trying to understand our Earth culture. I've seen her stand up to her sister, turn down the Tameranian thrown, go through puberty, and deal with racism. One of my favorite episodes was when Raven and Starfire switched bodies and had to learn more about each other and how their powers worked. They were able to save the guys after learning a bit about each other. Other favorite episodes were Nevermore, Fear Itself, and How Long is Forever? The Teen Titans were even mentioned in Static Shock. It's a shame they didn't have a crossover episode.
Static Shock was another one of my favorites. When the show started there was a gang war going on on the docks, and police tried to intervene and that's when the Big Bang happened creating Bang Babies. A common misconception is that only gang members were out there and effected by the chemicals, but kids were there hanging out there too. My favorite heroes in the show were Virgil aka Static, Richie aka Gear, Rubberbandman, and She-Bang. Static met Batman, Robin, Anasi ("The Spider" he met in Ghana on a family trip), Terry McGinnis, and others. Gear and Static met and saved the Justice League.
Virgil was on the docks because a gang member stood up for him against a school bully, so he wanted Virgil to join his gang. Virgil didn't want to join because his mother passed away while trying to stop gang riots when he was a kid. When the gas was released he was able to escape before he was exposed to it for too long. Virgil lives with his overbearing sister and his father. I feel I should give a shout out to his dad because even though his father has no powers he is great father and a dedicated social worker. Virgil wanted to be a hero because when he found out the high school bully had powers and was terrorizing people. In the show Static saved Batman and Robin, got to learn more about his heritage which he loved, and he helped a lot of confused Bang Babies. Virgil receives a lot of help from his best friend Richie.
Richie doesn't have powers in the first two seasons. As soon as Virgil confided in him about getting powers Richie wanted to help him be a good hero. He invented a lot of gadgets for Static including the infamous Shock boxes and found their headquarters. At first we didn't know a lot about Richie's life away from Virgil. One episode shined a light on how he doesn't like his dad because his dad is racist. Virgil overheard a comment that Richie's dad made and left a sleepover. This caused Richie to run away from home. Richie's dad asks Virgil's dad, Robert, for help. After this episode you never see Richie's family again. Before he got his powers Richie saved a bully from getting shot but ended up getting shot in the leg in the process. Static did a PSA after that episode. In season three Richie starts exhibiting powers because of passive exposure of the chemicals he got from hanging out with Virgil so much. He gets enhanced intelligence that makes his inventions even better. His best invention in season three was Backpack that could do anything.
Rubberband Man didn't start out as a hero. When Static first met him he was trying to get revenge on a musician and music producer because one, if not both of them, stole his music and claimed it as their own. Thanks to Static and Sharon, Virgil's sister, Rubberband Man became a hero. We rarely see him after that. We do see him "become a criminal again" before Static and Gear (I believe) find out the truth. In another episode while Rubberband Man was working with Static and Gear we found out that Rubberband Man is dyslexic. Static found this out and kept it a secret not even telling Gear. After Static finds out Rubberband Man has never even read his fan mail Static helps him through it. At the end of the episode Static and Rubberband Man do a PSA at the end about dyslexia.
She-Bang was not a Bang Baby I believe she was built in a lab where a couple of scientists fell in love with her and took her in. Because of this her family was on the run She-Bang was never able to be herself. She thought she could when she got to Dakota because of the the Bang Babies. She was strong, independent, and even though she had to hide who she was she had a very strong sense of self that people that age rarely have, but it was still believable. I appreciated that she had her own story, when she her parents got kidnapped Static and Gear helped her get her parents back. At the end of the episode she had to move away, but I want to say she came back later.
She-Bang wasn't the only one superhero who was bred in a lab who a scientist became attached to which brings me to the franchise that has had the biggest hold on me. I still fangirl about it to this day. I stumbled upon it when I was on a shopping trip at Costco with my mom. She always let me hang out by the books knowing that's where I was always most comfortable. I got hooked on Maximum Ride right away and begged my mom to buy it. She bought me the first two before I went back to Dad's. I think one of the reasons that I love it so much is because I started reading the books when I was about Max's age. The last Maximum Ride book a parent bought me was Fang. I was so super excited about it coming out that I constantly talked about it. A few days before Easter 2010 my dad gave it to me. I must have been grinning like an idiot. The franchise also has mangas, but I think I only have six or seven of them. I waited YEARS for the movie to be made. As soon as it came out Richard and I bought it and watched it. After reading the third book I also read the predecessors and inspiration behind the series When the Wind Blows and The Lake House involving a different Max and Flock. The Maximum Ride series has influenced me a lot as a person and a writer. Maximum Ride and is about Max and her family dubbed the Flock having two percent bird DNA, and they were experimented on a lot before one scientist saved them and helped them live on their own until he died. Books one through three were my favorites. I even read chapters of the third book to my brother, Ethan on one summer vacation.
Max was the first team leader I liked. When I was a kid I was against like all team leaders in all books and shows I was watching. I think part of the reason I love her so much is because I can identify with her, and she reminded me of my parents. Max was always brave for everyone else and she treated people with respect based on their individual personalities. She could pretty much handle anything thrown her way. She was able to make tough decisions that no one else would make like leaving Gazzy and Iggy home alone when the rest of the team went to rescue Angel, diverting from the mission from saving Angel to save a girl in need, and even killing someone she used to know in self-defense. In Max's whole story she only broke once, and her family (the Flock) was able to help bring her back from the brink which I can relate to. My family might not have known they were helping me through stuff like that though.
Fang taught me two important survival techniques that I had to use a few times: when you have to choose between protecting yourself or another it's (sometimes) best to choose you and in the face of danger (sometimes) it's best not to show any emotion. He was very stoic, and I chose to emulate that once when I felt threatened once. Anyway, Fang was Max's right hand man. He also made his fair share of tough decisions like leaving the Flock on two different occasions. He even formed his own Flock by blogging about their adventures and finding some people with abilities as well. He held a team member as they died in his arms. After she passed on he snapped at the team member who betrayed them getting the girl killed. But he lost all of his confidence of a leader because of this. He ended going back to the Flock after that.
As cliche as it may sound Iggy gave me more confidence to be who I want to be. This is because he was backing the lessons my parents have been teaching me my whole life. Even though I'm disabled doesn't mean I can't do whatever the hell I want to do in life. Iggy was blind, and he was the best cook on the team. He and his best friend Gazzy could build explosives together. He's the cynic/ realist of the group and is often sarcastic.
Nudge is a sweet girl who always listened to Max at the beginning thinking Max was always right, but throughout the series being on the run took a toll on her. During the series she just wanted to be normal, wanting to meet her biological family, and even wanting to do away with her wings at one point. But she was also was a self-proclaimed fashionista. I added the fashionista part of Nudge to my character Daniya Atwater in Head Hunters. One ability of her that I would have liked and wish she would have been able to practice more was her hacking ability.
Gazzy reminds me of my brother, Ethan, or Ethan reminds me of Gazzy. I can never be too sure. They share the same physique, they've always been brave, intelligent, and mischievous. Gazzy is also fiercely loyal too his family. I used that trait of his in my character Cayden Atwater in Head Hunters. One of Gazzy's favorite hobbies was building explosives with his best friend Iggy.
Angel was so sweet and adorable in the beginning. She was like any six-year-old with the added ability to read minds. Both fortunately and unfortunately, once the Flock was on the run she practiced her powers almost non-stop. It heightened her powers to the ability of control thoughts and tell the future. The information she holds is way too much for adults to handle much less her. But she handled it as well as anyone would.
UPDATE: So I have a few shout outs to give to some lost heroes. I thought Ari was pretty cool. He's been through so much, but he wasn't always a villain. When he was a hero I really liked what he did. Then there's Maya. She made a life for herself which I loved for her. She was a great fighter, brave, and once she figured out her own life she was loyal to those she cared for. Then there's Dylan. I initially didn't like him because something about him rubbed me the wrong way. But he saved the Flock more than once so I respect him.
The last cast of superheroes I want to mention is the main cast of Xiaolin Showdown: Omi, Raimundo Pedrosa aka Rai, Kimiko Tohomiko, and Clay Bailey. The show follows them learning how to use their powers over the elements and finding hidden items that can heighten their abilities. Omi is an orphan who has always lived at the temple they are training at. He sees himself as the leader even though though he was a student like all of them were. Omi was the Dragon of Water. He did not understand idioms, and Rai constantly tried to correct him. Clay moved from Texas He didn't usually talk as much as the others. With his background in farming he was the Dragon of Earth.
My favorite characters were Rai and Kimiko. Rai was the Dragon of Wind because of his laid back attitude. He was street smart, stubborn, and would do anything to protect his friends. He did join the Heylin (dark) side at least once because he was jealous of his friends successes. But when his friends really needed him he shined through. Kimiko is a tech-savvy girl hothead from Japan and the Dragon of Fire. One of my favorite things about her was her fashion was different in every episode.
Comments
Post a Comment