Yareah Magazine

Charles Kinney Jr.

by Martin Askem

 I'd put down my bowl of Cap'n Crunch cereal (so sharp it would rip the roof of your mouth) and in pure childhood innocence, extol, “In the great hall of the Justice League, there are assembled the world's four greatest heroes from the cosmic legends of the universe; Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Aquaman.  Their mission: to fight injustice, to right that which is wrong and to serve all mankind!” It was as close to nirvana as a kid could get.  Watch it at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0Tsut72X48
 
 Wikipedia says superheroes usually have things in common: 1. Extraordinary powers and skills and/or advanced equipment 2. A strong moral code 3. A motivation 4. A secret identity 5. A costume 6. An underlying theme that shapes the hero's persona 7. Allies 8. Enemies 9. Independent wealth or an occupation that allows for minimal supervision 10. A headquarters or base of operations 11. A back-story, most involving tragic elements and/or freak accidents that result in the development of the hero's abilities.  Follow these elements, and you have a superhero.

 In the United States, superheroes were white, professional, middle to upper-class and male.   Think Superman.  With changing social mores and ethnic composition, American superheroes have morphed into women, minorities, homosexuals and the disabled.  Think Wonder Woman,  Firestorm (African-American), Atom (Asian), Blue Beetle (Latino), Apollo and Midnighter (gay, and so progressive that they're married and have an adopted daughter), and Daredevil and Oracle. 

 Superheroes reinforce national identity, a common history or a shared enemy.  Not all reside in the United States.  If they did, the world would be in trouble if a global calamity struck and the United States was wiped off the planet.   In South America, there's the Cabellero Rojo, who defends the Argentinian innocent in Buenos Aires.  Captain Chile works out of Pancho City (Valparaiso), helping to defeat unemployment and high fuel prices.  Venezuela has Martin Valiente, Peru has Capitan Leo.  Not to be outdone, Brasil (no captain, as he was never in the army) fights politicians on the other side of the border.

 North of South America, Costa Rica has the very feminine Kinetics.  Mexico has a bewildering array of wrestling superheroes (Neutron, Santo, Tinieblas), who battle evil monsters and vampires when not in the ring.  Canada, influenced by Great Britain, France and a larger English-speaking nation to the south, produced Johnny Canuck and Canada Jack.  Appearing in World War II, they added their powers to the Allied war effort.

 Across the pond, the Europeans have a bewildering array of national superheroes.  In Spain, el Guerrero del Antifaz deals with the consequences of a mixed Muslim/Christian identity, fighting each at various times in his crusade.  El Coyote moved to Mexico to defend Spanish/Mexicans against US colonialism.  Superdupont, protector of France and all that is France, has the unique ability to cure gonorrhea with a ray from his hands.  Britain's Olympians (a British Justice League) almost destroy London when two of their members duel, while SuperGran uses a magic bike and tea to fight crime.  Cúchulainn (Ireland), Dukse Drengen (Denmark), Octobriana (Russia), Kaptain Sverige (Sweden), de Moker (the Netherlands), Asso di Picche (Italy), and Kapteeni Hyperventilaattorimies (Finland) seem lesser known than Pippi Långstrump (Sweden), Baron Münchhausen (Germany) and TinTin (Belgium).  They're not your standard superheroes, but all are unique with superhero traits.  Most recently, Captain Euro and his ally Europa work for the Twelve Stars organization, which defends the security of Europe and the values of the Union.  They're both multilingual, obsessed with information technology, are in peak physical condition and attempt diplomacy over violence.

 Keep going around the globe.  Egypt has Jalila.  Turkey has Karabasan.  The Philippines has Darna.  Australia's Captain Koala works with Australian, Japanese, New Zealand and American intelligence to fight gun runners.   New Zealand's Southern Tribe, a group that was abducted at birth, fights terrorism in the southern hemisphere.  The Golem of Israel fights the Nazi's.  Science Wonder Boy of China is based on technology from Japan.  The Cayman Islands' Fishkar seeks revenge on industrial polluters.  Indonesia has a large array of male and female superheroes, including Godam (The Hammer), who looks strikingly like an Indonesian Superman.  Japan has so many superheroes that they're a universe onto themselves.  Last but not least, India's Chacha Chaudhary (Uncle Chaudhary), an elderly gentleman with a red turban, and an institution in India, fights crime with his friend Sabu while driving his red convertible.  The universe, at least the human one, seems to have no lack of superheroes.  Perhaps because we need them.  They are what we aspire to be, and fight evil and dark forces like we do.  They empower children and adults alike to be better.

 I could never decide if I wanted to be Aquaman or Wonder Woman.  Either way, I wanted to be part of the Justice League.  Every time I see a general assembly of the United Nations, I wish, somehow, all of them could be given bath towel capes and aluminum foil bracelets.  Maybe they'd relax a bit.  Then they could begin each session with a new motto, “Our mission: to fight injustice, to right that which is wrong and to serve all humankind!”  It seems a much better way to start the day then figuring out how to outwit and combat each other. 

"Superhero by Country." An International Catalogue of Superheroes. 29 Jan 2009. Web. 9 Dec 2009. <http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/

Read more about Charles Kinney Jr:

http://charleskinney.blogspot.com

*Yareah magazine es una revista cultural fundada y dirigida por el escritor Martín Cid: http://www.martincid.com
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