What makes a superhero a superhero? It’s a difficult term to define as, while the majority of comic book heroes sport at least one superhuman ability of some kind, many don a cape or a cowl to fight crime without the aid of any sort of powers.
But then, what constitutes a superpower? Not to sound like Lemony Snicket, but ‘superpower’ is a word that here means ‘any enhanced ability, be it derived from accident, experimentation or mutation.’ We would also count cybernetic enhancements and super-serums as superpowers. The same goes for a powerful item that bestows powers on the user, like Green Lantern’s Power Ring or Thor’s hammer.
So, who are these mighty men and women who only use their wits, peak fitness or technological prowess to suit up and save the day? Obviously, the first two that jump to mind in this category are DC’s Batman and Marvel’s Iron Man. Let’s forget about those guys for a minute, though, and take a look at some other heroes who don’t let their lack of powers stop them from being super.