Superheroes are symbols of hope for humanity. They represent the very best of us. They’re all that we’ve accomplished and all that we can become. Superheroes inspire the masses; they represent the eternal battle against the forces of evil; and they look really cool. All of this means that superheroes themselves need to come up with a symbol that represents them. A shorthand that can be used to signal that you’re nearby. An icon that can be used to instantly identify your work. If superheroes are powerful symbols, then they themselves need symbols that match that power. Let’s talk about your superhero insignia.
Let me set the scene. You’ve disappeared off the face of the Earth, because you’ve been thrown into a time vortex by what you thought was a friendly anthropomorphic turtle (it was in fact an unfriendly anthropomorphic tortoise). Your hometown quickly descends into chaos because the other 27 heroes who live in your town have decided to go on a superhero camping trip which is a thing of course. Your town is left to the devices of villains, and that tortoise (her name is Shellfire and she’ll burn you with hellfire.) But because you’ve made such a powerful impression on the populace, a small yet dedicated resistance movement has sprung up in your honor. Its members want to capitalize on the goodwill and strength that you represent. They begin leaving calling cards around town, both to show the bad guys that they can not reign unopposed, and to signal other civilians that the time has come to rise up. What can they put on these calling cards? A note, explaining who they are and what their intentions are? Of course not. In a hellish tortoise-ruled dystopia, nobody has time to read informational flyers. (Did I mention that Shellfire puts the “tort” in torture.) A drawing of you, their dear-departed superhero? That’s no good either, people can be difficult to draw and unless their’s a very talented artist already in the resistance, then you run the risk of people not getting who this index-card-sized drawing is of. They’ll use your insignia, and that’s just one of the reasons why it’s so valuable to have a good one. (Did I mention that if any of Shellfire’s goons step out of line, she’ll fire them?)
The best insignias are the perfect blend between simplistic and unique. Like we said, it needs to be easy enough to be sketched, spray painted, carved, or drawn with oil that you will then set on fire for an awesome visual. But you don’t want it to be so generic that people will have no idea what it represents. As we mentioned years ago, popular superhero symbols include animals or weather patterns. This is a really great way for symbol to mean absolutely nothing. You can’t just decide that all lightning is a representation of you. It makes your symbol lose any meaning. I guarantee you it’s not going to make villains think you’re nearby every time they see an electrical transformer or the Living Bitning. If you choose something so ubiquitous, you’re liable to accomplish nothing except making yourself forgettable. If you truly must choose a common symbol, because you’ve got literally nothing interesting about you except for your fascination with spiders, then please try to jazz it up a little. But don’t make it too jazzy, because again, it needs to be easily replicated by the masses. That’s obviously a very difficult tightrope to walk. You never want villains to have to stand around wondering if the burning bat symbol in front of their lair is your symbol or just a generic regular old burning bat shape. Anytime villains have to debate about anything, it’s really going to suck a lot of the gravitas out of your dramatic entrance. In my experience, villain debates cannot be stopped for anything, even the dramatic appearance of a bat-themed superhero.
Other popular insignia shapes are your superhero initials. A stylized “S” or “W” or “X” or “LMNO” can be easy to draw but instantly recognizable. Of course, you still run the risk of being confused for another superhero, there are only so many letters so odds are good that there’s another superhero nearby that your insignia technically could represent. I recommend spicing up your letter with something that is unique to you. Flames if you’re a fire guy. (Or if your vehicle is decked out with cool flames because you’ve got that need for speed.) A cool snowflake if you’re an ice guy. (Snowflakes are perfect for unique insignias. Even if you’ve got 37 ice users in your neighborhood you can guarantee that all of your insignias will be unique! It’s fractually amazing!) Another value of having your insignia be your initials is that it will help other superheroes remember which one you are. Having your initials emblazoned on your chest is the closest thing superheroes can get to having name tags and while it won’t tell other superheroes your whole name if they’ve never heard of you, it can get them part of the way or help jog their memory if they’ve met you but are having trouble placing you (because you aren’t cool).
Once you’ve settled on a cool insignia you need to make absolutely sure that people associate it with you. Slap that baby onto everything. Your costumes, your vehicles, your weapons, babies. Your insignia should be on everything you own. The holidays are coming up, why don’t you gift your mayor or police commissioner a ginormous spotlight that projects your insignia into the clouds so that people know that random clouds are under your domain and protection. (You might be wondering, “isn’t giving somebody else a giant spotlight with your insignia a terrible holiday gift?” But how about instead of wondering that you shut your stupid face and stop asking valid questions ya nerd.) Start sticking post-it notes with your insignia on it onto other superheroes’ backs so people think they’re part of your team. (Wait, couldn’t this potentially make people think that it’s their insignia and that you’re part of their team.) Hey, how about instead of wondering that you shut your stupid face and stop asking valid questions ya nerd. (Oh no, I’ve become the very thing I hate!) Cover your city and all of its populace with your beautiful new logo! Order all sorts of memorabilia with your symbol plastered on it and hand it out to people after you save them. Paint it onto government buildings and your favorite pizza store in the middle of the night. (BRAND IT ONTO THE FLESH OF CRIMINALS HAHAHAHA!!!!!) Dude, too far. Aside from the actual flesh of your enemies and right over any of your vital organs, anything is fair game.
Having a symbol is great branding. A unique symbol will set you apart from other heroes, and it allows people to identify with you without having to go through the grueling process of tattooing your face onto their body. Your symbol should strike fear into the hearts of criminals, and a sense of security in the hearts of the innocent. Designing your own symbol can be a fun outlet for self-expression, it can help people remember you, and it can assure people that you’re still the same hero they know and love when you change your look or need to wear alternate costumes. So what are you waiting for! Logo and get yourself a cool insignia!
