'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id=' + i + dl; While people have used secret identities throughout history for various reasons, the use of a secret identity by a superhero dates back to the early 20 th century. In the fifth issue of Mark Waid and Peter Krauses Irredeemable, Volt, a member of the books answer to the Justice League, apprehends a kidnapper while sheepishly admitting to the people around him that yes, hes a black hero with electricity powers and yes, he knows that its a Thing, and hes kind of embarrassed about it. In 1977, DC Comics revealed their first headlining African-American superhero with Black Lightning. As for whether increased awareness of this tendency will change anything in superhero stories, its hard to say. As Black Lightning is a popular Black superhero, it'd make sense that others wanted to use himor at least a hero like himas often as possible. Its also worth pointing out Black Vulcan was created after Black Lightnings creator Tony Isabella left DC over creative differences.). In the fifth issue of Mark Waid and Peter Krauses Irredeemable, Volt, a member of the books answer to the Justice League, apprehends a kidnapper while sheepishly admitting to the people around him that yes, hes a black hero with electricity powers and yes, he knows that its a Thing, and hes kind of embarrassed about it. The Coli - The Best Hip Hop, Rap, Sports Forum and Message Board. Cookie Notice However, due to numerous controversies and licensing disputes, in the many, many adaptations of the DCU he has often been used via Captain Ersatz. To start viewing messages, 1. First Appearance : Wonder Woman #204 (1973) Powers/Skills: Flight, super strength, speed, "cold sight," magic armor, able to open . Fun as it was, the process of picking out which superhero I wanted to be always stressed me out for one particular reason that still bothers me to this day. Beware accidentally harming allies if the user's control over electricity is not precise enough. (function() { It may just be a coincidence, but I was curious if there was a behind the scenes or marketing reason for this trend. If you couldnt think of any black heroes that didnt use lightning, you werent trying hard enough. There are more heroes who aren't black who have electrical powers than black heroes. Often seems to be the theme for superheroes these days, with Hollywood rolling out blockbuster superhero movies in rapid succession. It may not display this or other websites correctly. Soul Power is Black Lightning in all but name, but again, he adds to the trope of all Black superheroes having electric powers. And also controlling electricity is badass. Lightning (DC) - black, electricity . Superman-Red proposes to Lois, while Superman-Blue asks Lana to marry him. Growing up as a kid who loved comic books, I spent many an afternoon running around the park pretending to be a superhero fighting all manners of evil. Electricity/Electric/Electrical Arts Electric Current Manipulation Electrokinesis Electric Users can create, shape and manipulate electricity, a form of energy resulting from the movement of charged particles (such as electrons or protons). Anthony Dean is the owner of Diverse Tech Geek and Diverse Media Notes. Ive written before about Black Lightning, whos usually seen as the center of this trend. Growing up as a kid who loved comic books, I spent many an afternoon running around the park pretending to be a superhero fighting all manners of evil. 'gtm.start': Though her depiction is the most famous in the mainstream, it was not in my household. Weve seen Storm as both a lethal weather goddess and a vulnerable human. I was talking to my homie (also black) a while back, speaking about Demon Slayer and he asked what techniques showed was my favorite at the time (this was during season 1) and why we both texted each other in the same minute, almost verbatim, that we were both fukked with Zenitsu's power due to always being partial towards electricity/lightning powers. Why do so many black superheroes have electricity powers? When I spoke with Wayne recently, he assured me that, when creating a new character and deciding which powers they should have, every comics writer sits down and considers how similar their creation will end up to others that came before them. Such heroes include DC Comics' Black Lightning, Lightning, Static, Thunder Fall, and Black Vulcan. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. 5) Lack of Peripheral Vision. Max's main weakness is his inability to . why do black superheroes have electric powers. This is both going off the top of my head and checking sites like Wikipedia and TV Tropes. Red decides to live on New Krypton with Lois . Sub-power of Charged Particles Manipulation and Electromagnetism Manipulation. Statics powers, Wayne told me, were meant to be an extension of his geeky personality and the kinds of science fair projects he enjoyed working on. In "Godstorm: Hercules Payne", a spin-off of. The idea that black superheroes are given electrical powers because it lets them be taken out easily is an interesting one, but I'm not sure I'm convinced that's where it comes from. TVTropes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. The superhero images represent the hope that someone can and will stand up to do the right thing, and that the human being has the potential to amaze. Marvel: Cloak, Mach 4, Nick Fury, Bishop, Patriot, Black Panther, Celia Reyes, Maggot, Two different Captain Americas, Falcon, Luke Cage, Misty Knight, War Machine, Blade, Brother Voodoo DC: Cyborg, Green Lantern, Mr. It may not display this or other websites correctly. ", wherein Miles is the literal god of thunder (and all of Norse mythology stereotypically echoes African-American culture). Jupiter's Legacy is the latest superhero show to come to a streaming service following The Boys and Invincible on Amazon and Disney+'s The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Super Powers In addition to the powers of flight, super strength, and super speed, The Utopian. The earliest black superheroes such as Black Panther and Luke Cage crossed the comic book colour line with their technology and super strength, but over the years, electrokinesis has seemingly become to go-to power black characters are most often assigned. 8 Electro Is The Electric-Powered Foe Of Spider-Man Who Threatens The Web-Slinger. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.phectricBlackGuy, http://variety.com/2014/tv/people-ne71-1201307918/, http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Buster-Jones/, All users, both new and returning, are expected to follow. Scan this QR code to download the app now. Statics powers, Wayne told me, were meant to be an extension of his geeky personality and the kinds of science fair projects he enjoyed working on. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Of them, none are as known or important as Johnny Blaze. Here's a rundown of eleven superheroes of color who send sparks flying. Thor has all of Asgard. I think maybe some of it is that these kinds of heroes are usually physically vulnerable. Unless they consciously go out of their way to do otherwise, itll continue; I think the solution is to have more quality writers that arent white than trying to convince an artist to change their art for your sake. var d = document, Wakanda was depicted as a peculiar mix of futuristic . Privacy Policy. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. The only difference would be who gets paid., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9SiRNibD14. and our Marsha Bradley from from the same comic is also a woman of color with electricity based powers who goes by the alias Lightning Lady. Why does the date of Easter change every year. While its heartening to hear directly from a writer about how much thought they personally put into crafting a characters identity, the point still stands that black heroes with electrical powers are an established trope. Its that sort of solid characterisation and fleshing out of a personality, Wayne told me, thats the key making sure that a character doesnt become reduced to a two-dimensional stereotype. He was a member of the Heroes for Hire, the Defenders, the New Avengers, and the Thunderbolts. Humans experience different degrees of empathy. For more information, please see our Let's not forget missing limbs and/or cybernetic parts. But theres also something about them all that feels derivative at best and stereotypical at worst, considering that the vast majority of the most popular black superhero characters were created by white men. Powers: Superhuman strength, speed, agility, X-Ray vision, heat vision, flight. 100 Years Of Stan Lee: How The Comic Book King Challenged Prejudice, In DCs New Black Lightning Comic, Jefferson Pierce Is A Hero Reimagined For A New Era. Its also reached the point where some people online mistakenly call Static Static Shock as a superhero name. But why? Will Banning TikTok Solve Privacy Issues? | Future Tech, Simone Giertz on Project Failures | Gizmodo Talks. There was some question as to whether Static shock had the rights to use Black Lightning, so when Black Lightning appears in the cartoon he's called Soul Power. And for the latter, its likely also an easy/affordable special effect. Black Panther, comic strip superhero created for Marvel Comics by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. While Volts powers are a playful jab at superhero comics as a whole, they do raise a number of questions about what it means exactly when creators choose to turn black characters into walking, talking batteries. Sure, Superman (well, most versions) can shrug off lightning, but generally, electrically-powered heroes are considered among the more powerful superheroes for a reason. Interestingly enough, the CW's newest series stars just one of several black. Introduced in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (May 1975), Ororo Munroe has gone on to become one of the most popular Black superheroes. As a mutant, her powers include various weather-control abilities. People who have this power can alter their appearance in subtle ways, such as changing their hair, eye, and skin color. Black Lightning wouldnt defeat a villain the same way that Static would, Wayne said. Heres a list of major Black superheroes who have primary or secondary electrical powers, or whose name/heroic identity ties into such somehow. However, Storm summoning lightning has become a popular go-to by writers and artists, when they need to show her attacking powerful foes. Superman uses empathy to understand the frightened face of a Metropolis citizen, realize they're in danger, and feel enough sympathy to come to their rescue. Storm (Marvel) - black, wather control powers (uses electricity frequently). If this is your first visit, be sure to June 15, 2022 . For years, Ive been pondering one of superhero comics odder traits: the relatively high number of Black superheroes that have electrical (or electricity-themed) superpowers.
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