Looking at the virtues and vices of superheroes

The Waterbury, Conn., Republican-American -- where I worked right out of college -- chats with the Rev. H. Michael Brewer about his book, Who Needs A Superhero? Finding Virtue, Vice and What's Holy in the Comics:

"Brewer isn't trying to whitewash superheroes, and his book focuses as much on their weaknesses as their strengths. Iron Man, for example, dates lots of gorgeous women but is a loser in love because he's afraid to reveal his true self. Spiderman struggles with frequent failure in his everyday life.

"Brewer said the religious overtones of comic-book story lines sometimes are put there intentionally by the writers and artists, while at other times the messages are unintended."