The Relatability of Men from Space as Opposed to Those Who Dress as Bats

As two of, if not “the two,” most popular superheroes Batman and Superman are often pitted against each other.  In fact, two years from now a light-hearted feel-good movie will be released based on that very concept.  When fans discuss the faults and virtues of these two titans there is one trait that is usually at the center of the conversation: relatability.  Generally speaking, Batman is seen as more relatable because he is just an ordinary human struggling to make his way in the world with no super powers to help him while Superman freeze breaths and super speeds his way through life with no obstacles in his way.  For some reason this viewpoint never really made sense to me.

I have watched a few documentaries about superheroes and had several conversations about them, but I have never heard the idea of Batman's relatability go any deeper than the fact that he is not an extraterrestrial.  I don’t think I have ever met anyone who has anything in common with Batman.  I’ve known people who have two jobs, but neither of those jobs has ever been billionaire playboy or masked vigilante.  On the other hand, I have met many journalists, even some outside of the four years I spent studying journalism in college.  It may not be the most normal job in the world but I’m certain that journalists are much more common than billionaires.  Take the cast of NewsRadio for instance. 

That’s one news director, one news producer, one researcher, two anchors, one secretary, one handyman, and one billionaire.  That adds up to a ratio of 5 journalism professionals to one billionaire, and if sitcoms aren't an accurate representation of the American public I don't know what is.

What’s more, Clark Kent’s job at the Daily Planet, like many work environments, is where he meets nearly everyone in his social circle, all of whom he has pretty normal relationships with.  It’s where he meets his best friend Jimmy Olsen, who is fun to pal around with but doesn't expect any kind of emotional commitment.  His boss, Perry White, is demanding but respected by most of his staff.   Bruce Wayne met most of his closest friends by either adopting them or being adopted by them, and the closest thing he has to a boss is the incorporeal concept of justice.

Bruce Wayne has never had a healthy romantic relationship in his life.  His most consistent paramour is a criminal, the antithesis of everything he believes in.  Clark Kent has had two love interests in 75 years, Lana Lang and Lois Lane, neither of which is included in the “Villains” section at the bottom of his Wikipedia page.  Lana is his high school sweetheart until the two split up because their lives are going in different directions.  Clark goes on to marry Lois, and the two love and support each other until reboot do them part.

There are all kinds of family structures in the world, but I think it’s safe to say that butler, Batman, and a handful of wards is pretty out there.  The Kents aren't exactly a nuclear family either, but Clark usually has at least one parent and a cousin.  His father is terse but loving and his mother is concerned about the amount of meat on his bones, which is never enough.  If anyone in the Kent house ever called anyone else master they were probably mocking the extravagant life style that they couldn't even imagine, or maybe there was an issue from Krypto's point of view.

Wanna see me catch my tail?  Wanna see me 

do it a... wait a minute, I got this.  I swear, I can do this.

At this point I've nearly convinced myself that Superman is too normal.  Superman isn't normal, though.  He is literally inhuman, but in some ways he is almost too human.  He wants to fit in, but he doesn't want to lose sight of what makes him unique.  Sometimes he wears his differentness on the outside, in bright primary colors and other times he hides it under a tie and collar.  Sometimes he wants to be alone but it doesn't mean he loves his family and friends any less.  He loves them with all his heart and desperately wants to be loved in return, but is afraid to show his true self to anyone but a select few who he holds closest.  The words don't always come easy, whether he's writing a story or flirting with Lois.  There's no guidebook to being both the most powerful person on Earth and the weird guy at the office.  Superman is just doing the best he can.  A lot of that applies to Batman as well, and maybe there are a lot of people who relate to him, but it probably isn't just because he lacks the ability to shoot fire from his eyes.