It is possible to discern a great deal about a society from its heroic mythology. Just as the Ancient Greeks had tales of Hercules, Achilles and Theseus, late nineteenth-century America turned to mythologised stories of Wyatt Earp, Davy Crockett and Jesse James. In the twentieth century and into the twenty-first, contemporary Western culture found its heroic ideals embodied in comic-book heroes like Superman, Batman and Spider-Man. These icons authenticate and endorse prevailing social values and behaviours in texts that both reflect and influence the cultures in which they are produced. As Richard Slotkin observed, ‘The mythology of a nation is the intelligible mask of that enigma called the “national character”. Through myths the psychology and world view of our cultural ancestors are transmitted to modern descendants, in such a way and with such power that our perception of contemporary reality and our ability to function in the world are directly, often tragically affected’ (1973: 3). Slotkin's use of the term ‘tragically’ indicates an awareness of the power that mythology, in its disparate forms, has over society. In this chapter we consider perhaps the most explicit manifestations of contemporary mythology – the superhero film. Indeed, the first decade of the new millennium saw itself described as the ‘superhero decade’ due to the sheer number and influence of these narratives (Gray and Kaklamanidou 2011: 1).