Forget the fictional Spiderman. New York City has its own real brand of superheroes. Just like in the upcoming movie Kick-Ass, about average citizens-turned-crimefighters, the Big Apple is apparently rife with caped crusaders. They include a leather-clad martial-arts expert who fights drug dealers, a masked do-gooder who feeds the homeless and a couple of relationship counselors who call themselves the “Transformational Warriors.” Twenty-five-year-old Chris Pollak’s alter ago, “Dark Guardian,” has been patrolling city streets for seven years now in an attempt to rid them of drug peddlers. A 33-year-old identified only as “The Phantom Zero” raises money for charities and donates to the homeless, and Arjuna Ladino, 42, and Shanti Owen, 50, wear spandex and pride themselves on saving the planet from bad relationships. Ok, so not all of their “superpowers” involve life or death, but at least they’re trying to make a difference!
