Superhero Contract Law, Part One
23rd December 2010
Some superheroes like Batman and Iron Man are independently wealthy. Some, like Wolverine, seem content with a fairly rough and tumble lifestyle. But what about your everyday, working superheroes, the ones that have to take jobs on the side to make ends meet? Some, like Spiderman, may work a normal job held by their alter egos. Sometimes, though, superheroes take jobs that explicitly require the use of their powers. For example, in one alternate continuity, Colossus worked as a construction worker, a job for which his super strength was no doubt very useful.
But these are comic book superheroes, which we know are prone to losing their powers for a variety of reasons. What happens if a superpowered individual contracts around his or her powers and then loses them? Or what if Metropolis is attacked by a supervillain and our hero is called away to deal with it? The answer depends on whether the promised work is now impossible to perform.