Which superpower would you have? It’s a common question asked and heard on the playground and as an ice breaker. It’s fun to imagine what it will be like to have a superpower. Plenty to choose from like the classics of strength, speed, invisibility and flight. Some modern ones like technokinesis and turning into various forms of monsters. Seeing these powers in display withing comic books, film, and games makes the story entertaining. It’s how its used by the character and extension the writer. Yet, while strength and flight may never go out of style, there is one that has. This power has been used by many writers and characters but each time, its value has been diluted. In the beginning, it may have had some innovation and glam. But since it seems to be a low hanging fruit, the magic is gone. This power offers an unlimited amount of authority to the user yet is drastically limited for reasons that are never explained. It is an overpowered superpower but there is no substance to it. The superpower in question is telekinesis.
The first thing that makes telekinesis such an underwhelming superpower is that it seems to be an easy way out for writers. Telekinesis is classic super power like super strength so of course it will be used. However, it seems to be the solution when a writer behind a movie, game or book is stuck. They can’t figure out what power to give a character. When that happens, that character will get telekinesis to call it a productive day. There are plenty of other original powers, or at least ones that are rarely used, that can be chosen but since telekinesis is such a simple superpower, it’s too easy so select it. That could open up a door to some questions to why a particular character has the power if looked at close enough. Ares in Wonder Woman had telekinesis. Ares is the god of war so one might think he will have super strength, speed, slight and the ability to conjure weapons. He was able to do that but it was all through telekinesis. In many iterations of the god of war, in comic and stories inspired by the myths, telekinesis is just something he doesn’t have. For being a god of war, one might think he wants to stack all talent on physical prowess not on something that exists in the psyche. It just adds up to being unimaginative in terms of the selection and the showcase of the power. The user, and by extension the writer, don’t really do anything creative with the power. With the near limitless capability with that type of power, it’s reduced to being a method to just throw junk at enemies. Especially when it’s reduced even more when the user doesn’t even have to move a finger or a hand. They could move it just by concentrating. Classic powers like super strength, flight, speed and durability are always attached to the point where it comes in a single package. But writers tend to add something to those characters to change things up be it lightning, a sword, heat vision, energy blasts, military training, a magical hammer, or a short temper. But telekinesis is a one trick pony. Nothing is added to it because it may come from a writer doing the minimum to give a character a common, and unoriginal power.
Plus, there’s nothing visually going on other than seeing a piece of debris flying through the air. There’s just this invisible force moving some trash around. Compared to something like pyrokinesis, super speed, laser vision, or even accelerated healing, telekinesis just lacks visual appeal. Lacks substance. Most cases it just looks, feels and seems hollow. There’s no spirit in it. Again, with that amount of limitless power, the user could throw an entire city at someone, crush an entire city, destroy a castle or place of power while the ruler is inside. Lift up then slam down an entire army. In that way, it could give some visual appeal, some cinematic energy to a superpower that is used to throw a pile of bricks at the attacker. But there’s nothing there to really see. No color. No trail of energy. Nothing like that. So that is a main factor to why it looks and feels empty. No spirit at all. Even with powers like super strength, there’s shockwaves that could be seen exploding off the contact point and then those same shockwaves destroy nearby areas. Telekinesis doesn’t even have something like that on its side. It’s a power that looks boring on screen. While fire could be of any color, have sound, movement on its on, telekinesis doesn’t have. While super speed could have sound, destructive tendencies, even visual appeal. Telekinesis doesn’t have that. Even having a mastery of a bow and arrow has more appeal since there’s trick arrow – audience is up to guess what the next arrow will be –, most of the time the user knows martial arts and has something with them to help close quarter combat along with the bow. What’s known about telekinesis is that something nearby the user will be thrown. Telekinesis provides a boring visual.
And with the power itself is one those that is simple but hilariously overpowered. Yet, the user limits it to just throwing a damn object. It’s a wildfire that is limited to a wick on a candle. This is a power that could end any fight by doing something that is rarely seen or underutilized by a telekinetic; control the enemy, not their surroundings! This power allows the user to move anything, including people, but it’s better, it’s more tactical to just throw a knife at a person instead of hurtling the person across the theme park. There’re no rules that are shared that set up these limits. No self-imposed, moral restrictions. No rules that state only inanimate objects are the only things that can be moved. Nothing. Whenever there’s telekinesis, it leaves it vulnerable for the question of; why isn’t the person moving the other person? It pokes holes in the superpower. Kind of takes away the credibility. Telekinesis provides the user a very easy and quick way to win the fight but they rather struggle to find things to throw. And even if the user does end things quick, there’s no stakes. No tension. No build. None of that either. So either way, telekinesis has no win.
Granted, there has been some steps to give it some substance. Scarlett Witch has the superpower and its guided by her energy. So there are set limits as well as a visual appeal. Characters like Magneto can get rid of the question of why isn’t the person moving the other person by having magnetism as their superpower. It still has the appeal of telekinesis but has understandable limits. However, there are more characters that have telekinesis that just fail the superpower. Too many characters that make the power look boring and that hurts the image of the superpower. Instead of refreshing it, setting a bar with it, users and writers just don’t do much more creative work to give an appeal to telekinesis. While other classic and simple superpowers have been elevated, changed, and portrayed with such raw power, telekinesis continues to be a bland, low hanging fruit.
