Gimme A Hero

The Green Lantern, Transformers, Thor, Captain America, X-Men. What do they have in common? They all feature Superheroes! It must be the summer of heroes, because all these films are being released in theatres within a matter of 3 months.

So you’d think that it would be men flocking to the theatres to enjoy 2 hours of explosions, fight sequences, and general non-stop action. But men aren’t the only ones who can enjoy a good ol’ superhero flick. You can’t forget the eye candy! Fit Hollywood hotties fighting to protect the innocent is the new modern day knights tale. Just look at who stars as this summer’s heroes: Ryan Reynolds (Need I say more. If you need confirmation, watch Blade Trinity), James McAvoy (loved him in Wanted and Atonement), and Chris Evans. These masked heroes can melt a gals heart in a matter of seconds.

So why is it that so many of us ladies seem to fall head over heels for them? I asked a few of my friends for their opinions and here’s what I learned. The fact that the heroes are usually disguised only ups their attractiveness level. This is because they work hard to protect citizens without needing to take credit. They’re humble, sweet, and down to Earth. When in Iron Man 2 Robert Downey Jr’s identity is exposed, he seemed to become much more arrogant, and his hotness level plummeted. The mask also adds a layer of mystery. The audience is invited to learn the identity of the hero, while the rest of the characters are left in the dark. We then become part of their mysterious life, and this can definitely be attractive to many women.

And then of course, there’s always the knight in shining armor. From Disney movies, to fairytales, to storybooks, the knight saves the princess story has been presented to us in an endless number of forms. Maybe it’s a longing for the lost days of chivalrous males who open doors, politely but passionate court us (cat calls do not count), and look out for the well being of others. Its not to say these men don’t exist now, but the superheroes in films seem to emobody all the qualities we long for in our real lives. Though of course, we’d never really want to date Batman or Superman. I mean, Batman is always getting arrested, and if you’ve seen any Spiderman movie you’ll know that Mary Jane almost gets killed 10 times each movie because of her relationship with Peter Parker/Spiderman.  So maybe things are not so glamorous after all. Things clearly aren’t perfect in paradise. Batman clearly has a pretty bad temper, Peter Parker embraces his dark side in Spiderman 3, in X-Men people are constantly betraying each other or fighting over their relationships. So even superheroes aren’t perfect! Maybe we’re just so eager to overlook all masked men’s faults in order to believe in the existence of perfection, romance, and imagination?

What do you guys think? Do you find yourself attracted to superheroes?

Just for fun here's the trailer for X-Men First Class. Opera music makes everything more epic.