Who's your favorite superhero?
Everywhere you look, there are superheroes. And we love them all. So it makes perfect sense that authors Christine Bell, Ella Dane, Nico Rosso, Tamara Morgan and Adrien-Luc Sanders would write an anthology, Holding Out for a Hero, that features heroes who are super. Super strong. Super fast. Super hot. Here, the authors talk about their favorite superheroes and why … (And now I'm going to show my age by humming Bonnie Tyler's 1980s hit Holding Out for a Hero the rest of the day.)
CB: Very excited to be here today with Ella Dane, Nicco Rosso and Tamara Morgan to talk about Holding Out for a Hero, our superhero anthology! We thought we'd keep things fun and discuss what WE think makes for a most excellent superhero, and our favorites growing up. I'm not ashamed to say, while I loved Wonder Woman (I even used my mom's gold belt as a lasso and used to squeeze mah chubby little self into a leotard with a paper star taped on), my first, last, and only superhero love is 1980s cartoon Spider-Man. Oh, Spidey, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. 3: Uh, he can shoot WEBS from hands *pyew pyew* and then SWING from them. In case that's not enough for you, he has #2: SPIDEY SENSE. That's right, he knows s*** is about to go down before it even starts! *I'm pretty sure I have this, too, brought on by a traumatic event with a deer tick, but that's a story for another day* Then, he also has #3: Superhuman strength. Perfect for rescuing damsels in distress (because we all know, in spite of his sort of oddball persona, Peter Parker is a hit with the ladies).
The hero Ella and I wrote, Blade of Justice, is almost as cool as Spidey. Quick with a blade, super strong and able to fly, he can take out almost any villain with ease. His only problem is his partner, Scarlett Fever. She's a wild card with an attitude and she refuses to play it by the book, resulting in some serious sparks (and not just from her fingertips!).
Who's up next?!
TM: Even though I know there are authors (WHO SHALL REMAIN UNNAMED *coughChristinecough*) out there who believe that Batman isn't a real superhero, I staunchly maintain that he is my first, my one, and my only.
OK, so he doesn't have superpowers per se. And maybe he's just a rich boy with lots of great toys. But that's where his true heroism comes in. There are plenty of rich boys out there. Many of them have toys. Some of them probably look as good without their clothes as Christian Bale.
But how many of them dedicate their lives to doing good, pushing their bodies and their brains to the limit to defeat evil?
Yeah. That's what I thought.
Batman gets his gorgeous derriere up every morning and recommits to his lifestyle and his superhero identity. He spends his wealth furthering the betterment of Gotham City. And most important, he battles supervillains. Even though he doesn't have powers, most of his bad guys do. AND HE STILL WINS.
In Playing with Fire, my hero, Ian, struggles with this same concept. He wants to be a superhero more than anything in the world, but the stars just aren't aligning for him. Does that make him less than heroic? Does that mean he can't rule the world?
I don't think so. And, as it turns out, neither does his heroine. :)
NR: Sure, Spider-Man is interesting because of the powers given to him by the radioactive spider. And Batman's sense of justice is admirable. But what about a hero who really has something to overcome?
I remember being a kid, picking up one of my older brother's Daredevil comics and really being taken by this character's superpowers and will for justice. And he did all this while blind. The same accident that took his sight gave him a radar sense, yet he still couldn't see. But that didn't stop him from fighting crime throughout the city. How inspiring for a young boy to see Daredevil overcome a handicap like this, and succeed as a superhero, even earning the nickname, "The Man Without Fear."
Now, neither of my heroes in Ironheart have such an issue as blindness to fight through, but they each have to blaze a unique path to being a hero. Vince "The Anvil" is a veteran crime fighter who has left it all behind, while Kara "SnapDragon" is new to the game. Their brief fling in the past burned bright. Vince's skin may be impervious, but she left an indelible mark on his heart. And she had to question just how much her new powers had changed her. Now she's back in Vince's world and the sparks that flew before could turn into a full-blown inferno.
ED: Spider-Man, Batman, Daredevil (though, I'll admit Daredevil is all kinds of awesomesauce)... But wait? No love for Superman? There is only one superhero who can leap tall buildings in a single bound, is faster than a speeding bullet, and is more powerful than a locomotive, and that's my man with the big red S on his brawny chest. He's tall, dark and handsome, with that strong chiseled jaw and those gorgeous piercing blue eyes. But he's not all looks and mega hotness. Oh no, Mr. Clark Kent has real superpowers ... super hearing, X-ray vision, super strength, he can fly ... Dude can fly so fast he can reverse the earth's rotation and turn back time!
The superheroes Christine and I wrote for Scarlett Fever have a lot of Superman in them. They have super strength, they can fly, they have super hearing with the help of a handy-dandy USA implant, and they're also orphaned kids who grow into their powers by a certain age. Our heroes have a few little tricks of their own, however. Christine already touched on the Blade of Justice, but what about Scarlett Fever? She gets her name from more than just her fiery red hair, she is fire. And she even has a cool lasso a la Wonder Woman, except Scarlett's is actually a living fire whip. Now how cool is that? Just imagine what kind of trouble a girl who's ruled by her gut can get into with a fancy toy like that. *g*
What about you, readers? Who are your favorite superheroes and why?
To find out more about these authors, you can visit their websites: