Monday, June 5, 2017

More on colleges and superhumans

A follow-up to my earlier entry on the Massachusetts Intercollegiate Mecha League.

At least since Jack Kirby and Stan Lee created the X-Men, a secluded private school for young superbeings has been a staple of the Superhero genre. The X-Men are located in Westchester County, New York, an affluent area north of NYC.

As a college student in rural Iowa, I considered that the many small liberal arts colleges that dot the Midwest would make excellent fictional settings for superhero stories. The Midwest has many virtues for such stories - a combination of centrality, proximity to major cities like Chicago and Minneapolis. Fairly flat terrain allows for a proving ground of various genre elements like super-speed, exotic vehicles, and human flight. After all, Superman is originally from rural Kansas.

Writing about a college with either an overt or covert school-within-a-school for supers would be pretty fun, especially if it combines with the typical hi-jinx associated with normal teenagers and disaffected twenty-somethings. Perhaps Hero High fits the bill? Or maybe the sillier GURPS I.O.U?

Underground training facilities and research labs lurking beneath the prairie soil is a must!

No comments:

Post a Comment