Heroes, Mutants and Superheroes
Film and TV Industries Never Tire of Recycled Powers and Abilities
Oct 4, 2008
The NBC hit series "Heroes" is one of the great successes of recent years. It has found a large and loyal audience willing to stick with the show through a writer's strike and a long hiatus. The audience is also remarkably forgiving of the number of plot devices borrowed from other films, TV shows and comic books.
Heroes, Mutants and Superheroes
Heroes is a story of the adventures of characters who develop "abilities" because of genetic mutations. This is identical to what happened to the "mutants" in the X-Men franchise. Each one has a different power that they use for either good or evil. X-Men movies date back to 2000. X-Men comic books date back to 1963.
Heroes, X-Men and The 4400
Between 2004 and 2007, a science fiction series called "The 4400" ran on the USA Network. It was the story of 4400 people who were abducted then returned with strange new "abilities." Even the word applied to the special powers is the same used in Heroes. Each person could do something superhuman. As the series progressed they found a way to give regular people abilities. This is exactly the plot line Heroes is pursuing during their third season.
Powers and Abilities
Even the abilities and powers are recycled. Superheroes have been flying since Superman in 1932. Stories of telekinesis, mind reading and super strength are also generations old. All of these powers are featured on Heroes. The show also has a character who runs super fast like the Flash from DC Comics, another who spontaneously heals like Dr Kevin Burkhoff in The 4400 and one who absorbs other hero's powers like Rogue from the X-Men.
Superhero Film and TV
Many of the most fanatic fans are science fiction buffs. They are fully aware of the blatant rip offs but don't seem to mind. It could be because Heroes does the superpower genre justice. It takes a winning theme and improves upon it with compelling characters, impressive special effects and well written story lines. In essence, it takes ordinary superhero stories and makes them more super.
Superhero Stories
Perhaps it is the innate human desire to improve beyond his limits that draws audiences to superhero stories. Perhaps the ability to fantasize about having superpowers is stronger than the ability to care that the story has been heard many times before.
Heroes Characters
Perhaps it is the combination that gives Heroes its appeal. Heroes embodies familiar themes wrapped in a shiny new wrapper. It is both comforting and compelling.
