Growing Old In The Cape
There’s something I keep thinking about regarding superheroes in old age. Not mythology or legacy—just the practical question. What does Superman do at seventy? What happens to Flash when his knees give out? Russian artist Lesya Guseva answered it with these soft, colorful illustrations where she mixes the hyperviolent comic worlds with something gentler. Batman just wants to sleep. Supergirl and Wonder Woman feed pigeons. Captain America stands in the rain protecting Snow White.
What works about it—and what probably shouldn’t—is how casually she puts these universes together. The heavy comic mythologies and Disney softness just coexist in the same image like they’ve always belonged there. It’s funny, but also kind. These characters don’t have to carry their myths anymore. They get to exist in small moments, doing small things.
I keep coming back to the Ariel one, which doesn’t even have superheroes in it. Just Ariel with her grandchildren. But that’s the whole thing. Ariel is my superhero. That’s all it takes—showing up, getting old, not needing the costume to justify what you are.