Opinion: The Man Who Was a Superhero

On Nov. 12 Stanley Martin Lieber, better known as Stan Lee, passed away at the age of 95 from pneumonia. Co-founder of Marvel Comics, Lee was born on Dec. 28, 1922, in Manhattan, where he first started pursuing his career as a writer.

According to Time, Lee started his career as a writer for Timely Publications and he used many pseudonyms to keep his identity a secret. In the 1970s he realized that he was fond of the pseudonym Stan Lee and that became his nickname throughout the comic and live action world.

When Lee started to transition into Marvel Comics, he was not only a writer but also the editor, publisher and promoter of his works. This is where he coined the Marvel method, which is a process he used to create his comics.

In the Marvel method, Lee would first work with an artist to create all of the scenes that he wanted within the comic. Then, he would add in the dialogue only after all of the scenes were already created, which was different from the way that typical comics were created at the time, according to comicbookhistorians.com.

This was not the only revolutionary change that Lee inspired in the comic book community. He also created many of the superheroes that are well known within the comic book and film industry, such as Iron Man, Thor, Spiderman, The Fantastic Four and Black Panther.

According to an article from the Huffington Post, the creation of Black Panther was another major accomplishment for Lee, because Black Panther was the first black superhero to be presented in the comic book industry. Not only did Lee create the first black superhero, but he also did it a crucial time period.

Since Black Panther was created in the 1960s, during a time when racial tensions were high, it signifies something important about Lee’s character. He was not afraid to create something controversial to make the point that he was against the racial oppression that he witnessed during that time period.

It is clear that Lee drew from his everyday life to inspire his work and that is one reason why the superheroes he created possessed more human characteristics than most superheroes. The superheroes of his time, such as Superman or Batman, held more godlike power and aloofness than the characters Lee created.

Lee’s characters faced everyday difficulties, were aware of social trends and most importantly possessed a sense of humor. With these humanizing characteristics, the superheroes were able to connect to others better and, therefore; were able to connect with the audience.

Lee also made the superheroes connect to one another. Before Lee became well known in the comic book industry, most writers thought that crossovers would lessen the impact of the story they were trying to tell.

Lee, on the other hand, thought differently and was able to unite the worlds of various superheroes together to create a more cohesive understanding of the comic world. It is this radical thinking that will forever be missed in the comic book and film industry. One can only hope that Marvel will continue to uphold the revolutionary techniques that Lee provided.