6 Famous Superpowers – How You Thought They Worked Vs. How They Actually Work
While we all love and adore superheroes, it sometimes confuses us as to how little we know about their signature abilities. Here are a few examples to show how you know so little about some popular superpowers from comic books.
Cyclops’ Optic Blast Is Not Heat, It’s Pure Kinetic Energy
How People Think It Works: For years, Marvel fans thought that Scott Summers releases a beam of super-heated energy that can punch through anything. And he has no control over his optic blasts hence he wears visors.
How It Actually Works: Cyclops does not fire bright red heat rays from his eyes. His optic blasts are pure concussive beams of kinetic energy. It is like Scott is literally punching someone with his eyes. And he has no control over them because of a childhood neurological issue.
Superman Does Not Exactly Fly, He Manipulates Gravitational Forces
How People Think It Works: People saw Superman leap from one building to another. As years passed by, they believed Superman can straight up fly just by willing it. His power of flight is driven by his willpower, or so we thought.
How It Actually Works: Superman’s Kryptonian physiology allows him to control gravitons, tiny particles that generate and control gravity. By manipulating gravitons, Superman controls gravity and controls the direction of his trajectory.
Spider-Man Doesn’t Have Sticky Fingers, He Controls Electrostatic Forces
How People Think It Works: Spider-Man aka Peter Parker’s greatest ability as a hero was his ability to crawl on walls. Fans claimed that is because he has ‘sticky’ extremities on his limbs. Some even claimed he has tiny hair follicles that help him grab onto vertical surfaces.
How It Actually Works: Spider-Man’s altered physiology thanks to the spider-bite mutation allows him to control the forces between molecular boundaries. While electrons repel each other, Spider-Man does the opposite. His hands become an electrostatic magnet that can stick to anything.
The Hulk’s Transformation Is Not Due To Rage, It’s Due To A Surge In Adrenaline
How People Think It Works: You do not want him to get angry. That’s what we always say about Bruce Banner. For years, fans thought rage is the key to Bruce’s transformation into the Jade Giant.
How It Actually Works: Hulk is not driven by rage. It is the amount of adrenaline in Banner’s body that triggers the process. his strength is also not proportionate to how angry he is. The more adrenaline his body produces in any given situation, the stronger the Hulk becomes. Lust, nervousness, and fright are a few other emotions other than the rage that can trigger an adrenaline surge.
Deadpool’s Healing Factor Isn’t Triggered By Injury, His Cells Keep Constantly Regenerating
How People Think It Works: Deadpool is thought to be a more fun, happy-go-lucky version of Wolverine sans the Adamantium bones and claws. His healing factor works pretty much like Wolverines.
How It Actually Works: Deadpool’s healing factor is not a voluntary process that happens only when he is injured. The Merc with a Mouth’s cells is in a constant state of regeneration, even when he does not want them to. This is why it looks like he has the world’s worst skincare routine. The body cells have regenerated so much they are now akin to cancer cells.
Human Torch Doesn’t light Himself On Fire, He Literally Burns Calories
How People Think It Works: Johnny Storm says “Flame On!” and his entire body is engulfed in flame. He can use that fire to fly and manipulate it to attack his enemies.
How It Actually Works: Reed Richards helps explain how Johnny controls fire. While the human body converts food into adenosine triphosphate for energy, Johnny turns his food into a different, more explosive form of energy. This makes his body turn this energy into super-hot plasma and lo and behold – the Human Torch!!
