Children of Comic Book Heroes

[Navarre]

I haven't specifically mentioned Wally but I wonder about him in the same way I do the other super-powered parents.

[Armaan]

The thing about child raising in comics is, aside from the jerks, when you have a child, it kinda takes over your whole life. It changes your whole life. Irreversibly. 
For mothers, their whole life is bonded with their child. For fathers... well, they just start seeing the whole world in a different way, trying to protect this beautiful little human/meta/alien/mutant/plant/extradimensional infant... and for superheroes, who've seen how dangerous the world can get... they'll never look at things the same way again.

No comics can change their characters as much as parenthood changes the perspective of a real human being, in my opinion. They don't let their characters grow that much. I don't think anyone is ready for that, not the fans or the writers. They're not ready or able or willing to grow their characters up that much.

So the kids are aged fast so the characters aren't really parents, just caretakers of younger kids, like Superman to Superboy and Batman to the Robins.

Superhero families? Totally separate genre. I've read a few fantastic four issues, they were more comics about a family than superheroes. Same thing for a couple of random Wally West issues I could get my hands on. They'd need a separate kinda title for superhero parenting. You read secret six for badass villainy, you read Tiny Titans to feel like a kid again, you read Marvel MAX for hardcore stuff... And you read you give a superhero a real kid and give them a family.

If you can't do that, the system they've set up for kids right now, perfectly fine. Although I think they're kinda doing a lot better at DC as far as kids go...

[Gaumer]

Armaan (hmmm, I can't shorten your name...its just too awesome) makes some good points.

How exciting would it be to see the Hulk changing diapers or Johnny Storm buying some formula on the way back from a slugfest with Dr. Doom? Not very. As fun and rewarding as being a parent is its not very exciting story-telling...unless its a comedy. Wait, is that just my family?   and that would get pretty old pretty quick or not done properly with the sort of humor coming out of most books that lean that direction. It would be tacky and I don't need Deadpool being the Al Bundy of the Marvel U. If you don't get the Al Bundy reference, I feel sorry for you; Google and Netflix FTW


It would be bad enough to be tied down to a wife who didn't understand the super-hero lifestyle. Getting the "Pick me up some tampons" phone call while Galactus is invading just isn't a very cool thing to happen to a super-hero.

Is it realistic? Hells yea. But it just wouldn't be fun reading.

The latest FF Annual addressed some of the stuff we are talking about in this thread.

[Web.Metz]

I have a question.

When you think is the appropriate time for a child born from a 'super' to manifest powers?

A newly super baby has...problems.
A newly super toddler doesn't know better.
A newly super kid is teachable.
A newly super teen wants to be in control of his own life.
A newly super adult often is in for a shock of his life, but has life experience to deal with it.

[Gaumer]

I always hated the mutants 'puberty' rule that they decided to break every damned time they felt like it.

If its a natural power, like not an accident or something like that (although a baby in a nuclear blast and being a hulky baby could be fun) from birth is the best.

[Navarre]

It would be more interesting to see a child born with an ability and see how that affect that child's development. We don't see that too often.

[Web.Metz]

It would be more interesting to see a child born with an ability and see how that affect that child's development. We don't see that too often.

The mundane wife of the Super Strong hero had a particularly difficult child birth.

[Navarre]

There are some cases, yes. Usually it is resolved early on or the child is removed from either its parents or their powers. Clark Kent is a notable exception.

But it would be interesting to see how non-powered characters deal with a baby who exhibits some sort of super ability.

[Armaan]

Haha, Gaumer, my superpower is that I am unnicknamable.

I'd like to read that Fantastic Four issue - they are still the best family comic out there, even though DC is doing a better job of raising its children. I mean, legacies - new Green Lanterns, new Flashes, new Batman... from kids they're now old enough to take on the mantles of their mentors. When did THAT happen in the Marvel U?

[Navarre]

Bucky?

I agree, DC does better at this.

[Gaumer]

Mentors? Not really, but Daken, Wolverine's son, has been a fun addition for me. Although we never saw Wolvie changing diapers or bottle feeding Daken.


I usually nickname by shortening and adding a 'y' or 'ey'. ex. Navvy; Metzy; Sabby; Rifty;

'Army' for Armann just isn't as cool (albeit pretty cool) than 'Armaan' itself.

[Web.Metz]

I like Naamra as Armaan's nickname. Makes him seem like a Godzilla monster.

There is a reason Daken was not raised by Logan, it was because he was stolen from his mother's womb.

[Navarre]

But it does go back to the fact that young children appear more often in DC. Red Arrow and Flash's kids come to mind. The only ones that jump at me in Marvel are Luke Cage's baby and the Scarlet Witch's twins yet the only one I can recall who got a great deal of panel time and has super-powers is Franklin Richards.

[Armaan]

Oh, wait... Wanda's kids are alive??
Oh wow.
I have GOT to wikipedia this.

And yeah, try as you will. Nicknames won't stick.

Yeah, Bucky was a good mantle taking over thing. But I still haven't seen why he deserves the legend of the name. And Daken and Skaar? Kids all growed up out of nowhere to do a "I hate my DAD!" thingie.
Franklin Richards is a good thing, kinda... He got powers, he got no powers, he got powers, he only got powers in sixty alternate futures, presents and pasts. Oh, and now his little sister is superintelligent and SHE has kinda skipped out on all the growing up too.

[Navarre]

Franklin has been done pretty well. I am with you on the adult kids from nowhere. It conveniently passes over much of the point of my original post because we have bypassed the level of parental responsibility that comes with babies and youths over young adults.