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Post by dans on Aug 7, 2023 17:33:02 GMT
Many golden age superheroes were supposed to be invulnerable to gunfire - and yet they were often knocked out, usually by cowardly blows to the back of the head... often with nothing more than a fist. I get that unbreakable skin will not necessarily protect one from impact damage, but most of the time, the bullets didn't even cause them to flinch. I would expect that if a man can be knocked out by hitting him in the head, even if his skin is unbreakable, that a bullet hitting him in the head would knock him out as well, and a bullet hitting him in the chest would at least cause him to stumble. According to a quick web search, a bullet impact is approximately 4+ times more powerful than an impact with a fist...
Any thoughts on how to explain this? Invulnerable only on the front half of the body? Able to brace himself if he sees an impact coming? Or maybe it was the location - even when invulnerable, the head is more easily affected by impact? Or maybe their powers somehow magically reinforced their costumes, so the costumes allowed them to turn bullets but the blows to the head hit unprotected skin?
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Post by DocQuantum on Aug 7, 2023 22:37:41 GMT
Golden age stories are so inconsistent in this regard, aren't they?
I can only assume that some heroes' "invulnerability" must have been intentional in nature. So, if they knew they would need it, their body would unconsciously brace for the blow and become strong enough to meet nearly any impact.
On the other hand, if they were taken unawares from behind by a blackjack or even a well-placed fist, the invulnerability wouldn't kick in. I'm sure there are holes large enough to drive a truck through with this theory.
Another thought is that super-powers could simply be inconsistent by their very nature for multiple reasons, sort of like Supergirl's on-and-off powers from the early '70s, and couldn't be relied upon with 100% certainty.
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Post by johnreiter902 on Aug 7, 2023 23:18:22 GMT
Well,as I understand it, the reason you loose consciousness when you are hit on the head is because your brain strikes against the inside of your skull. Physics suggests that, regardless of whether or not your skin and bone are indestructible, if you are unable to brace yourself or roll with the blow the shockwave will still be carried into your brain.
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Post by redsycorax on Aug 8, 2023 0:30:47 GMT
Perhaps their abilities could be more accurately described as selective impermeability, which would allow for apparent invulnerability to bullets or swords around their chest area and limbs, but an... achilles head? As for Supergirl's abilities, I chalked that down to awful writing standards. I recall one Supergirl story where the villainess Starfire sprinkled her with gold kryptonite flakes, which should have permanently removed her abilities, but didn't, presumably because the writer was under the misimpression that like green and red K, its effects on Kryptonians were only temporary. That's simply bad research and sloppy writing.
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