Should the superhero be in love?

doweshowbellyad=0; Love lost: Spiderman and Mary Jane Watson in a still from Spider-Man 2. No one knows what drove the creators of Spiderman and Mary Jane Watson to twist the plot so the two would go their separate ways.
But the friendly neighbourhood web-slinger is now officially single. While he has bid adieu to the love of his life, there are others like Batman, Captain America and Power Man, whose lack of a regular love interest hasn’t stopped them from having a ‘sex’istence.The question then is, does a superhero need romance?
“Of course,” exclaims scriptwriter Atul Tiwari, “romance makes it exciting and complete. Life is boring without love. We wouldn’t want a sanyasi superhero.” Producer Rhamaa Shankar Aiyer doesn’t think so. “Romance in a superhero story is insignificant. We don’t read a comic or watch a superhero movie to see him wooing a lady. It’s all about the action. As far as our version of a superhero, Krrish, is considered, the romantic angle was the means to appease Indian audiences who need the routine song and dance in a movie,” she says.
Comic book buff Suchetan Kaashyap agrees with Rhamaa. “Superheroes are superhuman, more than human in every sense. And then a romantic angle suddenly makes them so human and vulnerable. Superheroes have to be made almost as dark and resolute as the villain. It is not acceptable for a superhero to be juggling the roles of an evil-slayer and a lovelorn Joe,” he says.
“In the ‘50s and ‘60s, comics were more family-oriented, reflecting the popular culture then,” says Pradeep Kumar, HR Manager with an ITES firm, who owns a huge personal collection of comic books. “Times have changed and the world is a lot grimmer today. So, the romantic relief is not really required,” he adds.
But, Atul believes that the fun and conflict of a superhero tale comes from the fact that, apart from his greater responsibilities to the society he serves, he is also able to handle his personal affairs.
“This too shall pass, and they’ll be back together soon enough. It’s not that they have fallen apart and divorced. The villain has just wiped out their memories of each other. So, I guess it’s reversible,” adds an optimistic Spiderman fan Tara Reddy.
Hansel Laxman, another avid follower of comic book heroes, agrees, describing the twist in the spidey-tale as ‘utter rubbish’. “This is just another ploy by the creators to sell more. First they kill Captain America, then this nonsense. Next Wolverine will be gay. I’m not impressed at all and think that these little love stories keep them realistic,” adds Hansel.