Will a new, major Superhero ever be created again ?

[A beaker full of death]

The problem is the writing. Writers in the Golden Age, and Stan Lee in the Golden and, more so, Silver, Age, were literate and well versed in mythology, history, literature, philosophy and the craft of storytelling. That's the reason their characters had staying power, and that's the reason the stories they wrote keep getting re-told. The problem is most --most, not all-- modern comic writers are none of those things, and like Hollywood, don't understand that it wasn't the size of the explosions that made those original stories so memorable.

So will there be great superheroes again? Only when we start valuing liberal arts educations again.

 

[darthraidr]

Princess Powerful

 

[Nardpuncher]

Like somebody said a few posts up, I forgot that Hellboy is pretty good.

 

[M'rk son of Mogh]

and failing miserably

Someone should send Marvel a memo, Superman was cool back in the 50s or maybe cool way back in the old Golden Age of comics. After that he stopped being cool and people wanted to move onto meat and bones comics like Batman and X-Men

The Silver Age was terrible age for Superman comics
I don't see why Marvel is trying to go back to it and mix this ridiculous era with a Saw movie

Marvel has gone off a cliff
People will move onto the next Anime or the next Watchmen or whatever if Marvel does not get its house back in order

I think JMS could have put some sanity back into Marvel when he started writing Thor but the dumbass beancounters at Marvel sacked him

Hyperbole, quite obviously, yours.
JMS was not sacked (and he wouldn't be changing the company status quo simply by writing one of their lower a-status characters, it didn't work with Spidey), Marvel is heading anywhere in tone BUT a Saw movie these days ("Heroic Age") And the only cliff Marvel is heading towards is the one that the rest of the comic community is unfortunately following, as that's what the pack does with the "leader".

 

[23skidoo]

So, to all experts out there, are there chances of a new Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman etc etc emerging in the future ?
Is there the talent that can create something new and is there the market to embrace and make it grow to legendary proportions as the years pass ?

It all depends on the marketing. Any of the superheroes today could become legendary down the line if the right cards are played. Certainly we've seen one case recently where a longstanding, but niche-market superhero, Iron Man, became a mainstream success thanks to a movie (certainly he'd been around for years but he was never in the same leagues as Superman or SpiderMan until Robert Downey Jr got his hands on him). Green Lantern has the potential to get bigger if the movie pans out. And so far it looks as if the new Human Target TV series -- which maybe 1 in 1000 viewers knows is based on a comic book -- looks to be an old-fashioned hit.

And there are a few troubling cases where the opposite is threatening to happen. If they don't get Wonder Woman back out in the mainstream all she'll be remembered for by the mainstream is a 35-year-old TV series with Lynda Carter running around in a swimsuit.

The problem is Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman created such strong archetypes that no matter what people try, they end up creating little more than variations of the three. Spawn? Batman with a bit of Spectre. Tom Strong? Superman. Even the Watchmen superheroes, though in that case it's because Alan Moore originally planned to use established characters like Blue Beetle and Captain Atom and DC wouldn't let him.

It's like trying to come up with an original SF movie plot. It may not be impossible, but man it's tough and there's no guarantee the public will accept it. And with today's comic market being more or less a niche now (rare is the day I see comics on an actual honest-to-God corner store newsstand anymore - except Archies), and the fact so many young readers prefer manga (I've been to a few shops where standard comics are considered secondary now to the manga books) - and manga is not generally considered a superhero field ... it's going to be challenge for anyone to create an iconic superhero from scratch these days.

That said, I am getting a kick out of Barack the Barbarian...

Alex

 

[CaptainCanada]

The problem is the writing. Writers in the Golden Age, and Stan Lee in the Golden and, more so, Silver, Age, were literate and well versed in mythology, history, literature, philosophy and the craft of storytelling. That's the reason their characters had staying power, and that's the reason the stories they wrote keep getting re-told. The problem is most --most, not all-- modern comic writers are none of those things, and like Hollywood, don't understand that it wasn't the size of the explosions that made those original stories so memorable.

That's uh, rather questionable.

Regarding the OP, that's rather complicated. The characters listed are fairly exceptional in terms of popularity; it took them a long time to get there. Within comics themselves, particularly the two main comics companies, there's a fairly well-established character hierarchy in place. It's really hard to develop a new character who isn't in the same nice as a more popular preexisting one. There's already a Superman, for example.

 

[Checkmate]

"Major" superheroes require at least a generation or two of exposure before they become "major." There's not going to be an overnight sensation that rivals the likes of Superman, Batman or Spider-Man. The latter of which being one of the newest "major" superheroes who -- surprise surprise -- required some seasoning before he reached that status.

They all also started out as crap but eventually became something great after, again, a generation of two of constant exposure and development.

Notice a trend yet?

Ask again in 50 years.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

For what it's worth, Marvel is trying like hell now with The Sentry.

Nah, Deadpool. They're pushing the hell out of Deadpool, and I'm expecting the backlash from oversaturation to hit in about three months.

 

[Nowhere Man]

Once I puplish my comic book i;m working on there will be.

 

[SalvorHardin]

"Major" superheroes require at least a generation or two of exposure before they become "major." There's not going to be an overnight sensation that rivals the likes of Superman, Batman or Spider-Man. The latter of which being one of the newest "major" superheroes who -- surprise surprise -- required some seasoning before he reached that status.

They all also started out as crap but eventually became something great after, again, a generation of two of constant exposure and development.

Notice a trend yet?

I don't know... did you notice a trend in my op ?

are there chances of a new Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman etc etc emerging in the future ?

Is there the talent that can create something new and is there the market to embrace and make it grow to legendary proportions as the years pass ?

Not once did I claim a legend would/could be born overnight.

I merely asked for predictions & insight by folks who know the comic book market & industry.
Thanks to the folks who have provided useful answers by the way.

 

[Reverend]

Does Buffy count as a superhero?