![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/reallifesuperheroesarchive.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/10\/blackbirdwatches.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Brian Jacobson<\/p><\/div> He calls himself the Watchman. Armed with a flashlight, pepper spray and a cell phone, he spends his weekend evenings hunting out suspicious activity in Riverwest.<\/p><\/div> Mark Metcalf of Third Digest blogs about Tea Krulos and the Riverwest Real Life Superheroes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5832,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[200,205,330,914,1304,1593,1703,2048,2074,2181,2393,2548,2606,2706,2795],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5831"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5831\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rlsh.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nOriginally posted:http:\/\/thirdcoastdigest.com\/2010\/10\/podcast-mad-as-hell\/<\/a>
\nBy Mark Metcalf<\/a>
\nThe children (and now, adults) of Generations X and Y spent their formative years deeply immersed in a culture of fantasy. Between comic books and Saturday morning cartoons, the cultural fascination with super heroes \u2014 specifically those who, underneath the masks and capes, are just average people \u2014 grows with each new generation.
\nBut America\u2019s love, and in some ways, yen for a hero is nothing new. In fact, those well-known characters of fantasy were all borne out of a collective desire to have control when the world seems to be going down the toilet. When senseless crime is on the rise and the people and institutions put in place to protect us can barely keep an adequate staff on the payroll.
\n<\/a>
\nIn pop culture, people have found hope in fictional Everyday-Joe-cum-caped-crusader stories since the early days of Spider-Man. But in real life\u2013 and right here in Milwaukee \u2014 there are a few among us who have taken the concept and run with it.
\nSeveral years ago, Tea Krulos caught wind of a real-life superhero movement happening right here in the Midwest and, as he learned, beyond. Though apprehensive, Krulos immersed himself in their world, interviewing as many people as possible and traveling as far as Vancouver and as near as his own backyard of Riverwest to learn more.
\nLocal author Tea Krulos.
\nWhat he found was a diverse group of people, fed up with the state of their own neighborhoods and cities who decided to do something about it\u2026 mask, cape and all.
\nYou can learn more about Tea\u2019s book\u00a0Heroes in the Night<\/em> here<\/a>, and more about his research\u00a0here<\/a>. Be my hero and subscribe to\u00a0Backstage with Mark Metcalf<\/em> through\u00a0iTunes.<\/a>
\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"