superheroes vs. the laws of physics

[XFanTim]

I don't expect comics to obey real-world physics. But if the real laws of physics applied in the Marvel Universe (or the DCU for that matter), which heroes would find themselves seriously screwed? I'm not looking for general stuff like "magic doesn't exist) or (there's no such thing as the Power Cosmic). I mean specific ways in which a particular character's powers just don't make physical sense. (Partially inspired by a topic that came up in another thread, but mostly inspired by the book "The Physics of Superheroes".)

Here are some examples:

Cyclops: For every force there's an equal and opposite force. The recoil force from his blasts would snap his neck.

Invisible Woman: If all light passes through her, none is absorbed by her eyes. Therefore, when she's invisible she would also be blind.

The Vision: Even if you're much less dense than air, you still can't pass through a solid barrier. (Otherwise, how would they keep the helium inside the balloon?)

Can you think of any other good ones in the same vein?

 

[Lackey]

Cyclops: there's no recoil from a laser, why would there be recoil from Cyclops's blast? There is only recoil from something that has mass.

Invisible Woman: she'd only have a problem if her retinas were invisible or if she blocked all light from reaching them. She creates a force field around herself that refracts light. She must be able to control the amount of light entering the forcefield while also blocking the light from exiting and reaching someone else's eyes allowing them to see her.

got nothing for the Vision

 

[HR-PUFF&STUFF]

if you want answers to these questions there are books.

 

[Lackey]

if you want answers to these questions there are books.

boring

 

[Venom.Symbiote]

Oh I have one. This has bugged me for quite a while. If Cap's shield absorbs impacts, then how can it ricochet off of anything when he throws it? Wouldn't it just hit, absorb the impact and fall to the ground?

 

[HR-PUFF&STUFF]

boring

i guess thats why there are so many "reading sucks" posters all over schools and malls and the like.

 

[Lackey]

i guess thats why there are so many "reading sucks" posters all over schools and malls and the like.

Yeah, the first time I came to these forums I expected to see a message that said "Discussion is pointless, go read a book instead"

 

[Lackey]

Oh I have one. This has bugged me for quite a while. If Cap's shield absorbs impacts, then how can it ricochet off of anything when he throws it? Wouldn't it just hit, absorb the impact and fall to the ground?

nice one

 

[Kotagg]

Lackey: The laser thing is a good point - and correct me if I'm wrong - but I think that Cyke's optic blasts have been determined to be kinetic in nature, meaning they're not so much "hot" lasers as they are physical intertia-based blasts. Thus, I think XFanTim's deduction is applicable.

How about superheroes punching each other? Many people have super strength and fight those without it, but do not kill them. For instance, Spiderman punches DocOc/Shocker/Chameleon/etc quite often in the face. Why does this punch not shatter his face and kill him, considering this is the same Spidey that lifts tons of weight?

And this one is semi-related, I guess: one of Rogue's issues with her powers is her inability to participate in intimate contact. Now of course I'm sure she means hugging, cuddling, and all that in addition, but I'm sure a noticeable part of it is the inability to copulate. That said, whatever happened to a condom? A specialized panythose/condom combination? The sensation and intimacy is still there for the most part.

 

[HR-PUFF&STUFF]

And this one is semi-related, I guess: one of Rogue's issues with her powers is her inability to participate in intimate contact. Now of course I'm sure she means hugging, cuddling, and all that in addition, but I'm sure a noticeable part of it is the inability to copulate. That said, whatever happened to a condom? A specialized panythose/condom combination? The sensation and intimacy is still there for the most part.

you mean like the body condoms in the naked gun movies?

 

[Kotagg]

HAHAHAHA!

Exactly.

 

[Danalys]

she could wear something gossimer thin. mmmm gossimer thin. also spider-man pulls his punches. he's all about the minimum force nessesary.

i think rogue just likes having emma watch when they do the whole mind sex thing. also i bet rogue could actually control her powers but intamacy issues are stopping her.

 

[XFanTim]

Cyclops: there's no recoil from a laser, why would there be recoil from Cyclops's blast? There is only recoil from something that has mass.

Light doesn't have mass, but it does carry momentum, and thus there can be recoil (which is basically just conservation of momentum). The recoil for most lasers you'll ever see is extremely small, but those lasers can't smash through a steel wall either. (Melting through a steel wall is another matter.) If Cyclops' blasts carry enough momentum to shatter steel, that same momentum should be felt by his head every time he fires them.

(Just so you know I'm not BSing you, this page on the official Nobel prize site mentions the recoil felt by atoms when they emit particles of light. Which is basically what happenes many times over in a laser. "The emitted photon also has a momentum, which gives the atom a certain small recoil velocity.")

I know Cyclops's blasts aren't really laser beams but rather some kind of made-up comic book energy, but if they carry impact they've still clearly got a momentum, so you'd expect conservation of momentum to be observed.

Invisible Woman: she'd only have a problem if her retinas were invisible or if she blocked all light from reaching them. She creates a force field around herself that refracts light. She must be able to control the amount of light entering the forcefield while also blocking the light from exiting and reaching someone else's eyes allowing them to see her.

I'll admit I'm not super clued-in to how Sue's power is supposed to work. But if she only prevents light from exiting, she'd be a solid black shape. (Think of a black hole). The fact that people can see straight through her seems to indicate the light somehow passes right through without interacting with her at all.

 

[XFanTim]

Oh I have one. This has bugged me for quite a while. If Cap's shield absorbs impacts, then how can it ricochet off of anything when he throws it? Wouldn't it just hit, absorb the impact and fall to the ground?

That's a really good point.

 

[XFanTim]

also i bet rogue could actually control her powers but intamacy issues are stopping her.

Hey, you'd have issues too if the first person you kissed ended up in a coma.

Heck, my fiancee once pretending to fall asleep to get some guy to quit kissing her (before she dated me), and from what I hear he still has issues.

 

[Danalys]

yep she has good reason to have issues.

 

[Danalys]

Oh I have one. This has bugged me for quite a while. If Cap's shield absorbs impacts, then how can it ricochet off of anything when he throws it? Wouldn't it just hit, absorb the impact and fall to the ground?

it could absorb impact straight on but reflect it at the edges. that's probably where the impact energy is channeled to anyway. it's sort of like tensile strength vs compression strength.

 

[The Question]

I know Cyclops's blasts aren't really laser beams but rather some kind of made-up comic book energy,

No they're not. They're E.M. radiation. The kind you find in solar rays.

I'll admit I'm not super clued-in to how Sue's power is supposed to work. But if she only prevents light from exiting, she'd be a solid black shape. (Think of a black hole). The fact that people can see straight through her seems to indicate the light somehow passes right through without interacting with her at all.

No, it doesn't. The light doesn't pass through her. Her force feilds refract the light around her.

 

[Varient]

Oh I have one. This has bugged me for quite a while. If Cap's shield absorbs impacts, then how can it ricochet off of anything when he throws it? Wouldn't it just hit, absorb the impact and fall to the ground?

they explain that as "flex".

The edges of the shield encounter an object and the shield acts as a spring. It flexes across its diameter before returning to it's static shape/form. This action allows it to bounce off of things.

 

[Varient]

No, it doesn't. The light doesn't pass through her. Her force feilds refract the light around her.

Beat me to it.

 

[Elijya]

you all should read Ruins. It's basicly "what if everything in the Marvel Universe went horribly horribly wrong?"

 

[XFanTim]

No they're not. They're E.M. radiation. The kind you find in solar rays.

I thought he was powered by solar rays, but the beams were some kind of energy that carries "force but no heat".

If they're visible EM radiation, then they're light by definition. (Whether laser light or otherwise.) But that doesn't seem to be the consistent with the "force but no heat" claim. An intense beam of light can certainly melt things.

No, it doesn't. The light doesn't pass through her. Her force feilds refract the light around her.

But it's still not being absorbed by her eyes, so what's the difference?

 

[XFanTim]

you all should read Ruins. It's basicly "what if everything in the Marvel Universe went horribly horribly wrong?"

Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[Elijya]

it's a rip on Alex Ross' Marvels written by Warren Ellis

 

[HR-PUFF&STUFF]

But it's still not being absorbed by her eyes, so what's the difference?

think of it has a 2-WAY MIRROR she can see out they can't see in.