Superman’s ethics are a particular challenge to describe succinctly – which is why I haven’t attempted it until now on the site! And it is not because the character’s ethics are unusually complex, or involve relatively niche areas of normative ethics (aka, moral philosophy). In fact, the evolution of Superman’s …
Powers Ethics
The launch of Powers 25 by Dark Horse Comics in 2025 gave me the idea to catch up on the earlier series that I had missed during my time away from comics. And so, I sought out all the earlier runs by comics powerhouses’ Brian Michael Bendis by Michael Avon …
Doctor Strange of Asgard Ethics
Well said. With the launch this week of the latest ongoing Doctor Strange comics series – Doctor Strange Vol 8, 2025, by Derek Landy and Ivan Fiorelli – I thought I’d fill in the background of what had happened since my Doctor Strange Ethics overview from the start of this …
The Power Fantasy Ethics – Introduction
As I explained on my About Me post, I saw the superhero comics of my youth as explicit moral philosophy primers. Much of the conflict, to my eyes, was between the various heroes, or internal to a given hero – as they debated the “right” or “best” course of action. …
Jeff the Land Shark Ethics
I have long been a fan of the adorable Marvel character Jeff the Land Shark, created by Kelly Thompson and Daniele Di Nicuolo in 2019. Although initially appearing as a comedic sidekick to a number of West Coast Avengers (and later Deadpool), he became famous through his own adventures in …
Moral Thinking, Fast and Slow
In my last post, I looked at some of the strengths and criticisms of care ethics, and made a suggestion as to how to manage conflicts between people who prefer different moral judgements (that is, who apply different normative ethics theories). In this post, I would like to give an …
A.X.E.: Judgment Day Conclusion
I previously introduced A.X.E. Judgement Day – the major 2022 Marvel cross-over event – as an excellent example of ethics (moral philosophy) depicted through comic stories. The main series was written by Kieron Gillen, with art by Valerio Schiti, colors by Marte Gracia, letters by Clayton Cowles, and contributions by …
Moon Knight Ethics
Let me cut right to it. I know Khonshu is unworthy of my worship or anyone’s. I know he tried to take over the world. I know he deserves to be imprisoned wherever the Aesir are keeping him, off in Asgard. But unworthy or not, I am his fist. I …
Why be Moral?
Despite being at the heart of ethics, the question as to why one should behave morally is a surprisingly difficult one to answer. So difficult in fact that I have plenty of ethics texts that don’t even try to address it. Instead, they are happy to explain the types (and …