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Message: <blockquote data-quote="roger semerad" data-source="post: 9640569" data-attributes="member: 6998612">I'll start off by saying, all genres are poorly defined, and any definition starts to break down the more you test it.  Trying to define a genre is an intellectual exercise for the fun of it, because clearly there are some common similarities between works in a genre.  Few are going to agree, and that's fine.  For instance, I see sci-fi and fantasy as the same genre.  One deals with the impossible and doesn't try to explain it, the other deals with the improbable and does try to explain it.  Both are speculative fiction that uses things and concepts that don't exist in our world; either for allegory or just to add excitement.  There, argue about that.  Anyway, here's my definition of the super-hero genre.Super-heroic fiction is fiction that contains super-heroes.  Super-heroes are either:#1 - Super-heroes are protagonists that appeared first, or more often, in comic books that are commonly agreed to be super-hero comics.or#2 - Super-heroes are exceptional ( beyond human abilities) protagonists that fight individual antagonists, or small groups of antagonists.  These antagonists are always depicted as the root of great problems in the world, and the defeat of them will directly make the world better.  Super-heroes do not fight systemic problems.That's still pretty broad, but that's how some genres are.  I personally agree more with #2.  I see Super-heroes as idealized fiction with personified problems.  You can have a wide range of styles, but it always boils down to making the world better by hitting the bad guy in the face.  Yes, this means that I do see the common fantasy adventuring party as a super-hero group.  It's the same style of story.  The Punisher is a super-hero if you agree with #1, Robocop is one if you agree with #2.</blockquote>

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