Awhile ago I wrote about whether or not superheroes should have day jobs. If you are interested, you can check it out here, but I argued that given their extracurricular activities, was it really a good idea for them to have a job. But, since being a superhero doesn’t pay (for the most part), the need for a paying career is necessary. Now, I’m only looking at jobs that would help someone be a hero, not help them make money. So, what are the best jobs you could have if you were a superhero? Take a look and see for yourself.
5. So the fifth best job you could hold down if you were balancing a career with superheroing is a private investigator. While detectives generally do not have the access to the benefits a cop has (you will see later), they do get to set their own hours. Being able to work on your own schedule is definitely a plus, as is working close to the streets. Another benefit of being a PI instead of a cop is having contacts that are more willing to talk to you. The seedy underbelly of a city may not be as willing to talk to a cop as they would be as someone who they thought was like them, it’s why Batman keeps Matches Malone as an identity.
Jamie Madrox, better known as the Multiple Man, uses his abilities and status in X-Factor Investigations to investigate cases that the police are incapable, or have dismissed as unimportant. His status as someone to go to when things get weird serves him well as a private detective. So while detectives aren’t afforded near the inside access those who work in the police department are, they do have some benefits that police officers don’t have.
4. Matt Murdock has proved for years that being a lawyer is a career that greatly benefits his role as Daredevil (except when his dual identity is exposed). Murdock is definitely a special case in that he can tell when someone is lying by being able to read changes in their body, but being a lawyer is still beneficial. He has access to cases and criminals that may otherwise go unpunished if he wasn’t able to read guilt on someone and then followup later as Daredevil.
She-Hulk, or Jennifer Walters, is one instance where being a superhero has actually benefited her career. While being a highly skilled criminal defense lawyer, she is also a superheroine and has parlayed that celebrity into representing high profile clients such as Michael Morbius, Speedball, and even the demigod Hercules. Even though she did not use her profession to further her superhero career, there can be no denying that being a lawyer has it’s advantages when trying to fight crime.
3. I cannot for the life of me figure out why more characters don’t go into some form of police work. It seems right up the alley for heroes, especially those of the vigilante variety. You have access to crime scenes, police reports, evidence, and suspects. I know Barry Allen worked as a forensic scientist for the police department, and Dick Grayson was a beat cop while he lived in Blüdhaven and those seem like perfect opportunities.
Barry’s access to evidence and police reports would make catching criminals that much easier. Grayson’s training as Nightwing would make him more than a match for any criminal that may attempt to harm him or any other officer. Being a cop is also a great excuse for any finger prints that may wind up in a crime scene (but any superhero worth his salt is going to wear gloves).
2. Working in a newsroom for a newspaper is the second best career you could hope to have to aid your alter ego. I say a newspaper because I thought about folding a TV station into this as well, but decided against it. In the newspaper biz (yea I said biz, I’m cool) if you’re sent out on assignment it’s usually to cover a story like Clark Kent, or to snap some pictures, like Peter Parker. Being that you are usually alone, it’s easy to show up on scene ready to help out.
I didn’t add working at a TV station because while you will get the news about any incidents quickly, it’s not the kind of job where you can arrive on the scene in spandex. What makes working at a newspaper great is you are alone when on assignment, for the most part, but if you are sent to a scene for a TV station a cameraman is definitely going to go with you. There’s a reason why Clark Kent has worked at the Daily Planet for decades, it works. It keeps him instantly informed of any disaster that happens, and gives him an excuse to jet off at a moments notice.
1. Of the course the best possible job you could have it being the CEO of your own company. I mean, it seems to work out pretty well for Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark. Look, it should be no surprise that having big piles of money AND access to cutting edge technology is going to help you out when being a superhero. But, I think it should be pointed out that managing a company can be tough work. How many corporate takeovers have both Wayne and Stark had to stave off over the years? How many employees rely on them for their livelihoods? It can be a high pressure job.
Now I know that being the owner of a multi-million or billion dollar company is not something that just happens. In the case of both men, they inherited the company from their fathers, but helped turn the companies into the Fortune 500 companies they are. But, there is no denying that it is the most attractive option for a career to help you be a superhero.
So what do you think? Are there any better jobs out there that would help superheroes out that I left off the list? Was I completely off the mark with any of the ones I did list? I’m sure I left out some examples of characters so leave me a comment below and let me know.
I think all the ones you mentioned are probably about the best. I’m happy to see Madrox get props!
I got some others but little to mature content to put up here. So warning http://chance-sparknchance.blogspot.com/2012/05/so-lot-of-people-out-there-have-jobs.html
Madrox is a great character, one of my favorite mutants. If I could add him into everything I write, I would.
Vic Sage had a good investigtive reporting career at a TV station. Manhunter (Kate Spencer) actually specialized as a meta human attorney.
Finally, for a super speedster, a delivery service would be good.
Agreed. Vic Sage/The Question really made the T.V. reporter/crime fighting work very well. I don’t think any other character has done that quite as well.
