Real life Superheroes have been a subject in the news media for some time now, gradually picking up steam and gaining attention (and in some cases notoriety) for their well intentioned interpretation of comic book culture by living out the philosophies of our favorite caped crusaders on city streets around the world. But this latest strange case sees not two real life superheroes, but rather a duo of never-do-wells who invaded a home in Manchester and stabbed a cocker spaniel. The injury was not fatal, but we are left questioning if this is the reverse side of the good done by those who wish only to do good in the world – and wear a costume while doing it.
The intruders in this case were two men wearing masks and improvised capes made from trash can protectors who gained unauthorized entry to the home of one woman at 10:40 on Sunday night. The owner of the house had just stepped outside for a cigarette, but when she returned she noticed two men attacking the family’s cocker spaniel with a screwdriver. Terrified, the woman retreated, but when the burglars saw her there they retreated, allowing her a chance to see the bizarre trash can liners they had draped around their shoulders. Police later reported to the BBC news that they did not believe it was a personal attack and that the woman’s home had been picked likely at random in an effort to steal her belongings. Obviously, the woman was deeply disturbed by the events, and the fact that her cocker spaniel was not seriously injured did not erase the fact that an extremely strange pair had broken into her home.
So we’re left asking the question, why were they wearing such strange outfits? And could this be the criminal’s response to the increasing appearance of real life superheroes? Could masked crusaders for good and equally masked monsters of society one day battle it out in a real life battlefield that smashes every conception we have of law and order and leaves only a wasteland of props mixed in with real life weapons? In a world where justice doesn’t always prevail automatically, and there is no known deus ex machina guaranteeing good will always win out over evil, the prospect has a disturbing ring to it.
But real life superheroes have for years stated that their mission is the improvement of society through peaceful intervention – often taking up pet causes themselves to clean up their communities of more than crime. Many are ecological advocates, such as Captain Ozone or various others who have set up their own version of the neighborhood watch.
But there is one factor to this that suggests real life superheroics and real life supervillainy may one day become an issue. As technology improves and is gradually integrated into our human form through bionics, could we one day run across people who have dedicated their entire lives to transforming their human form into one possessing what we today would consider superpowers? Perhaps then we will be forced to take the masks and capes a bit more seriously – whether they be worn by heroes or villains.