Deadpool and Wolverine: Why do some people prefer antiheroes to superheroes?

According to 26-year-old comics fan Chelsea-Lee Nolan from Kent, they are simply “more human”.

“Nobody is wholly good or wholly evil, so the idea of an antihero is quite nice,” she says.

It is in these grey areas that Ms Nolan can see “elements” of herself.

“I’m not overly perfect and I don’t aim to be,” she adds. “The idea of a hero who makes no mistakes is unrelatable.”

For writer and performer Reece Connolly, 30, who lives in London, antiheroes are simply more realistic.

“They move towards a moral right, but they make mistakes, they have regrets, bad habits and quirks of character,” Mr Connolly explains.

In the comic book Deadpool (2008), Issue 45, a group of trafficked women call him a “good man” after he rescues them, but the mercenary quickly rejects it, saying: “Well… okay, yeah – maybe sometimes parts of me are good but there are, like other parts of me that’re, umm…”

His reluctance to be called “good” is a recognition of his flaws.

The “Merc with a Mouth”, as Deadpool calls himself, is loud, murderous and maddening – everything a superhero isn’t.