Page "Sidekick" Paragraph 23

The prevalence of so many adult male superheroes and their teenage " wards " caused some observers to look askance at the trend.

Psychologist Fredric Wertham decided that the phenomenon was a landmine of hidden and repressed Freudian issues, and that a sidekick's involvement in violent acts with his hero masked a sexual subtext.

In 1954, Wertham's book Seduction of the Innocent coincided with Congressional hearings on ( among other topics ) the negative influence of comic books.

For a time, superhero comics lost their popularity, and many teenage sidekicks faded into obscurity.

( Rick Veitch's graphic novel Brat Pack, and issues of Alan Moore's Top 10, directly address the seamy, exploitative, and potentially pedophilia-related aspects of the adult hero-teen sidekick relationship.