October 24, 2006

Native superheroes made easy

You too can create a Super-Chief, American Eagle, or Red Wolf. Just follow these 12 easy steps:

Create Your Own Native American Superhero!!!In honor of DC's "Relaunch Native American Superheroes" Month, we present a handy guide so you, too, can create an original Native American Superhero just like REAL comic book writers!

2 comments:

Rob said...

Hale of Angelthorne kind of covered that when he wrote that all Native superheroes have "inherent super powers." But he could've been more specific.

I must admit that my PEACE PARTY heroes have nature-based powers too. It seems natural that when a people emphasize their oneness with nature, their powers should reflect that. But if it's done too often, it becomes stereotypical. That's why my next group of Native superheroes will have a broader range of powers.

Rob said...

Well, Drew lives in a pueblo, which conforms to rule 2. But I don't think rule 2 is valid these days, if it ever was. Indian superheroes are more likely to be angry or alienated city dwellers, a la Super-Chief, than reservation-based traditionalists.

Billy and Drew's powers are arguably magical, or at least supernatural, which conforms to rule 3.

Actually, I don't think their names sound that "Indian." If I told you the names in isolation, especially if I didn't pair them, I don't think you'd think they were Indian. Maybe Rain Falling, because of the association with rain dances, but Snake Standing? Indian superheroes are usually named after wolves, eagles, bears, or hawks, not rabbits, snakes, thrushes, or mosquitoes.

I should add that as the stories unfold, their powers will evolve somewhat. In other words, they'll seem less clichéd as time goes by.