Over the last several decades, comic book superheroes have multiplied and, in the process, become more complicated. In this cutting edge anthology an international roster of contributors offer original research and writing on the contemporary comic book superhero, with occasional journeys into the film and television variation. As superheroes and their stories have grown with the audiences that consume them, their formulas, conventions, and narrative worlds have altered to follow suit, injecting new, unpredictable and more challenging characterizations that engage ravenous readers who increasingly demand more.

Finding expression in comic books, television series and successful blockbuster films, the superhero has become part of everyday life. Exploring the superhero genre, its storytelling practices, its hero-types and its relationship with fans, this anthology fills a gap in research about the comic book superhero of the last 20 years.