The Inevitibility of my Geekiness

So those of you who know me might be inclined to ask themselves "Why Spider-man?" Well, there are many reasons, but I will give only a few, or however many I feel like typing out at the moment. First of all, his powers. He's super strong, which is cool. Extremely flexible and balanced, which leads to some really cool and different looking poses, as well as just being cool. His agility, combined with his speed, also comes in handy for keeping him in the game against foes he has no chance against.
But his greatest power is the ability to stick on walls. That was completely unique when he was created, and frankly, it has only been copied (and not very successfully) since then. If I could pick one power, that is the one I would take. The spider-sense is nice, being warned of impending danger and all, but really, it's much cooler to be able to walk on walls. You'd never have to worry about crowded sidewalks again. The best part of it all is that it is purely natural for him, just like it is natural for a spider to crawl across the ceiling of your house. When he stands on the ceiling so he is eye to eye with someone, only he is upside down, that is so awesome. Plus it gives him a sweet psychological advantage. He's used to it and competely able to cope, but even the most hardened criminal is thrown slightly off balance when dealing with someone who is casually standing upside down on their ceiling, staring them straight in the eye. It's awesome.
Next, the full mask. Creepy, mysterious, and an actual GOOD DISGUISE. Seriously, who wouldn't recognise me if I threw on some spandex and put on a pair of glasses, or took them off, whatever the case may be. I wear different clothes all the time, yet people seem able to recognise me. Weird. The half mask that covers the hair and eyes (and often nose) is not a bad compromise, but even that seems to be pushing it a little at times. At least the full face mask will muffle the voice. For the sports fans among you, think of it this way. If you never saw him in an interview, you would never know what Patrick Roy really looked like because he spent his entire career with his face covered by a mask. The most you could say is that he had eyes, and you could maybe say the colour, depending on how good your TV is. Yet everyone recognised Wayne Gretzky, or Mario LeMieux, or Bobby Orr, because their face was showing. Sorry, I've dwelled long enough.
Next up is his character. I think that Spider-Man has something to teach everyone about character and perseverence. The situations that he gets himself into and out of are amazing, and it is not just about the power. I know that he is fictional, but sometimes fiction can be valuable in teaching. The thing about Spidey is that he is not doing what he does for any sort of personal reasons, yet it is not completely big picture noble either. Early in his career he messed up (his uncle died because he didn't act - the comic and the movie are both exactly the same in the spirit of that, though it was presented slightly differently between the two), and ever since then he has been acting so that no one else's uncle/father/mother/grandma/etc will die because he did not act. Even when it is not safe or smart, he keeps trying. Even when he should lose, he keeps trying. Even when he stands no chance of winning, he keeps trying. Again, because it is fiction, he usually succeeds, even when the same real life situation (if such a thing were possible) would see him failing miserably. But here's the thing. His success is almost entirely limited to his fights with his supervillains. Being Spider-man completely ruins his social life. He is constantly standing people up, his school grades suffer, his family thinks he is lazy and irresponsible, but he keeps doing what he is doing, to help people who hate him because he does not want any one to experience what he experienced.
Finally, at least for now, is his wit. It is mostly a defense mechanism, something he does to cover his fright, and to keep others off balance. I can identify with that. There are times when I myself (and I know this will be hard to believe) am a bit of a smart aleck. Often, when I'm in a stressful situation I turn to humour to make sure I'm protected from the negative vibes that might be flying around. And there are other times where I'm just a funny guy. The same with Spidey. He is a bit of a clown at heart, at least when they are doing him right he is. In my mind, the best Spider-Man stories are the ones where he is lipping off left right and center even as he is avoiding punches that will disintigrate concrete. It's just something that amuses me.
Anyhoo, that's a bit of why I like Spider-man.
Toodles
Darrell