Who Wants to Be a Superhero?
Picture two stoners in a college dorm, blissing out over pizza and fritos.
One says to the other, “Dude, you know what would be a cool reality show? What if like, it was a reality show about people who want to leave reality.”
“Duuude, that’s deep,” his friend likely said. “Maybe they wanna be like, superheroes. With shiny costumes and wicked powers.”
“Totally. And you know who we get to run the show? Stan Lee, the comic book guy. And we’ll put him on a tv screen, on the tv screen. Like a play in a play, all Shakespearean and crap!”
As moronic as it sounds, this is the premise of the show. And in spite of the crackpot nature of the idea, the entire thing works brilliantly. Money isn’t the object here – or at least not the immediate object. The winner of the game will end up having their superhero character featured in one of Stan Lee’s comic books. Their alter-ego will be brought to life on paper and on the big screen. That’s the prize.
Like most reality tv shows, Who Wants to Be a Superhero? revolves around a series of challenges, after which players are eliminated from the game. Legendary comic book author, Stan Lee, throws obstacles at the players to test their superhero qualities. Are they honest? Are they noble? Are they brave? Are they able to maintain their secret identities?
But this is not Survivor. There are few elaborate set-ups involving keys and rope and bamboo cages. The tests are simple, but telling. Change into your costume without anyone noticing. Jump into a yard with trained attack dogs. Confront your fear of heights, and so on.
But neither is this show like Fear Factor. There’s always something just a little bit ‘put on’ about every scene, as real people struggle to bring their fantasy world to life. Stan Lee has the look of a zealot in his eye as he demands the players on his reality tv show become the superhero persona they’ve chosen. He calls them true believers.
And the transformation of average people into a comic book fantasy version of themselves is a spectacle at once beautiful and inane.
Every time Stan Lee acknowledges that they have mortal limitations, that they can’t really fly, you can see that they believe it a little less. They’ve got in their heads that they really can become comic book heroes if Stan has faith in them.
Sometimes, this makes you feel like you’re a voyeur with a front-row seat at a circus freak show; other times you know you’re watching something illuminating about human nature.
To be sure, there’s something hokey, hackneyed and amateurish about Who Wants to be a Superhero? when it comes to reality tv. But with heroes like the cheeky ex-stripper, Major Victory and his gleaming white teeth, it’s impossible to look away.
Then there’s Feedback, who looks like the love-child of Tron and Disco Dancer, who takes the whole thing so seriously he seems near a break down in every episode. And who can resist an overweight comic book superhero named Fat Mama, who rescues people in distress and forces them to eat donuts to keep their strength up?
If you haven’t seen it yet, set your TIVOs or mark it on your calendar. This silly romp is a well-needed antidote to the decidedly less noble cast of current events. And even if you’re not a fan of comic books, the unapologetic fan-fest nature of the whole thing will have you smiling.
