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I agree with this completely.

I’m tired of people just using superheroes in a cynical manner. I’m especially tired of them being done as “deconstruction”.

I’m just irritated that people keep acting as if they’re too cool for superheroes. If they stopped being jaded, cynical, and “edgy” for five seconds, they’d see the wonder of them.

It’s why I haven’t gotten into The Boys (despite the show being better than the comic supposedly); it’s too meanspirited, cynical, and edgy for edginess’ sake.

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Thank you! For these very reasons, I find myself appreciating that great Superman story "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way?" more and more each year.

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I think you’d like Invincible if you gave that a shot.

That series does a great job of deconstructing superhero comics in a way that is clearly from the perspective of a fan, with an optimism around the human spirit.

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I started reading Invincible a while back but never got around to finishing it. I need to rectify that at some point.

You're right -- even though it uses the "evil Superman" trope, it's still about Mark trying to live up to the superhero ideal despite that. It's got characters we can root for.

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Yeah, it plays with tropes throughout the entire series - it feels more like homage in its approach, like it wants to feel like this is a celebration of superhero comics as opposed to an active critique.

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