I am so glad I had a boy child. Had I had say…a girl!…I would never have discovered the exquisite joy that is the cult of Spiderman. My son has been the web crawler’s biggest fan for a year or so. He has been collecting action figures of every character that ever appeared in a Spiderman comic. I think now he has about 40. The thing is I find that if I discover a particularly rare character in a shop, I’m bound to get even more excited than he does.This may not seem particularly remarkable to men, who are always ‘boys with toys’ at heart. But I’m sure women will think I’m a bit odd. Particularly women with daughters.
You see the thing I have discovered is that Marvel’s Spiderman comics are actually very funny. Peter Parker, Spiderman’s secret identity, is actually a pretty amusing guy. He likes to take the piss out of himself. And I like a man who can do that.
Spiderman comics started in 1963 I think and it must have been ahead of its time or perhaps it’s just more reflective of its time than I ever expected a comic to be. Tonight I was reading one of the comics to my son in bed and we discovered that Harry, Peter’s best friend, was on LSD! Thankfully three-year-olds are satisfied with the explanation that LSD means lovely soft donuts!!
My son’s favourite pastime is role-playing with all his action figures and Mum and Dad have to play their part. No matter that you’ve had a long day at the office and you’re trying to eat your dinner before collapsing in a heap. Oh no, you have to pick up that Green Goblin and do his evil laugh.
My son is so into the genre that we have action figures as portrayed in the more recent Spiderman movies, as well as the original comic ones. There’s the aforementioned GG but he’s not alone in the goblin stakes. There’s also the Hob Goblin and Demo Goblin. Other villains we have restrained in our huge plastic storage toy box include Dr Octopus, the Sandman, Mysterio, Rhino and Lizard, with the Incredible Hulk, Superman, Batman, Wolverine (X-men) and both Angel and Black Panther - from the Avengers - thrown in for good measure. That’s not to mention just about every Spiderman ever produced: big, small, in between, with aqua attachment, made of stretchable material etc etc and etc.
You can’t imagine how excited we were to see the release of a whole new line of Spiderman merchandise, called Spiderman Origins, in Target at Christmas (well, maybe you can…).
Of course there is no limit to how many ways a young boy can wear Spiderman. We have a Spiderman jacket, boxer shorts, undies, T-shirt, shorts and pyjamas, not to mention the watch and the specially made painting the boy’s Aunty had done for him in New York.
Yesterday’s Sydney Morning Herald had an interesting story about children who dress up as super heroes have a higher risk of injury. I quote from the Herald report:
The report, published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, said children playing dress-ups tended to overestimate their abilities and were more susceptible to fractures and cuts from falls.
It said adventurous play and risk-taking were an essential part of growing up, but called on parents to keep a closer eye on their children’s dress-up activities.
The British researchers studied injuries in five boys aged three to eight, who were wearing Superman or Spiderman costumes when they were hurt.
One boy broke two bones in his foot and sustained deep bruising on the right side of his body after he fell out of a window while pretending to be Spiderman. Other cases included three boys who had fractured bones “after initiating flight without having planned for landing strategies”, the report said.
The lead author, Lisa Munro-Davies from the emergency department of the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, said children had always taken risks, but superhero role models gave them unrealistic expectations.
“The children that we saw have all had to contemplate on their way to hospital that they do not in fact possess superpowers,” she said.
Neither the Children’s Hospital at Westmead nor the Sydney Children’s Hospital at Randwick had data on children taken to hospital after a superhero-related injury, but estimated the number would be small.
The head of psychology at the Sydney Children’s Hospital, James Donnelly, said role-play and dress-ups were a natural part of boys’ and girls’ development and often a way of coping with anxiety.
“If they are a superhero they don’t have to worry about things they don’t understand - and it’s also really fun.”
However, anecdotal reports to the Herald show that some Sydney child-care centres have moved to ban or limit superhero play to outdoors.
Fiona Pendergast hosts themed parties for children aged three to 12 and has overseen more than 100 superhero parties. “When they are in full character they really do become the superhero with arms and legs going everywhere,” she said.
While no one had been injured, her centre had laid cushioning beneath carpets to soften the impact of falls, and the male adult superhero hosts were told to wear padding as some of the boys could become rough, she said.
Most experts the Herald spoke to agreed parents should encourage their children to play dress-ups, but also to explain the dangers of superhero behaviour.
Guess we’d better install rubber floors!!!
PS. My son knows a little of the Spiderman theme song (from the 1967 TV series, would you believe). So I have taken the liberty of posting the words in full here. Must teach him the rest. Enjoy!!
Spiderman, Spiderman,
Does whatever a spider can,
Spins a web, any size,
Catches thieves just like flies.
Look out! Here comes the Spiderman.
Is he strong? Listen bud -
He’s got radioactive blood.
Can he swing from a thread?
Take a look overhead.
Hey there! There goes the Spiderman.
In the chill of the night,
At the scene of the crime,
Like a streak of light,
He arrives just in time!
Spiderman, Spiderman,
Friendly neighborhood Spiderman.
Wealth and fame, he’s ignored -
Action is his reward.
To him,
Life is a great big bang-up -
Wherever there’s a hang-up,
You’ll find the Spiderman!
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