From the ancient epics all the way to our current cinematic blockbusters, heroes have stood as the central paragons of all that is right in the world to conquer what is not. But of course, as humanity has grown in complexity beyond the worship of mere individuals to uphold our society, and seemingly every corporation involved with comic book adaptation is determined to mar their source material beyond repair, the very word “hero” has taken on a deeply complex and sometimes crass connotation. However, the true purpose of a hero — to protect and to provoke greatness in those around them — will not be lost to the ages of epics they originated from and for how essential they are for art.
For these articles, the writers have been tasked with writing from the perspective of their chosen hero — to “be the hero” of their article. For some, that means writing directly from the first-person voice of the protagonist. For others, they write from an amalgamation of their chosen figures. For even more, the line between them and their protagonist is blurred so thoroughly the story comes from the writer. No matter the case, these writers have explored every aspect of what makes a hero and every way one can be a hero. Spoiler alert: Anyone can.
‘Deenie,’ my crooked spine and why Judy Blume is my hero
Rebecca Smith
‘Megamind’ and the (Anti)Hero's Journey
Hannah Carapellotti
Tragedy aids triumph: How two Legend of Zelda games explore one hero
James Johnston
I'm Lego Batman: The hero you need and deserve
Sabriya Imami
Your heroes are human
Mina Tobya
How the Spider-Verse saved me
Saarthak Johri