All language subtitles for HISTORY CHANNEL - Ancient Aliens (2014) - (S08E09 - Aliens and Superheroes) BD 1080p

NARRATOR: Super strength.

MAN: Here's a normal guy,
becomes incredibly powerful.

NARRATOR: Super speed.

SECOND MAN: He had
very advanced capabilities.

NARRATOR: And supernatural
abilities.

THIRD MAN: Suddenly he's a god
with godlike powers.

NARRATOR: Throughout history,

humans have told tales of beings
with incredible powers.

But could these ancient stories
that continue to be retold today

have extraterrestrial origins?

FOURTH MAN:
There's an intuitive knowing

that these stories are true,
that beings did come

from other planets
to save humankind.

NARRATOR: Millions of people
around the world believe

we have been visited in the past
by extraterrestrial beings.

What if it were true?

Did ancient aliens really help
to shape our history?

And if so, could there be
a connection

between aliens
and today's superheroes?

NARRATOR: X-ray vision...

incredible strength...

the power of flight.

These are just a few
of the superhuman abilities

of modern-day comic-book heroes.

But stories of beings
with extraordinary powers

have been told
throughout history,

dating all the way back
to ancient times.

The most famous are those
involving the Greek gods

known as the Olympians.

These powerful beings could
create earthquakes...

become invisible...

[Thunderclap]

And even harness lightning.

But there is an important
difference between

the Olympians and the fictional
superheroes of today.

The ancient Greeks believed
that the Olympians

were real.

A huge difference between
the ancient world

and the modern world is
we have developed

this very strict sense
of real and not real...

which really didn't matter
so much back then.

The ancients believed that
these heroes had been there,

that they were real people.

We're always looking
at mythology

as a basis for our storytelling.

A character like Wonder Woman

is immediately established
in Greek mythology.

She's built on the story
of the Amazons.

There's Hercules, there's Zeus.

The Olympian gods play
every aspect of who she is.

NARRATOR: Could it be
that today's superheroes

trace their origins back
to the ancient gods?

And if the people
who worshiped these gods

believed them to be real,
is it possible

they actually were?

Perhaps the answer can be found

by more closely
examining the stories

of gods and heroes
in the ancient world.

The Dictean cave
on the Greek island of Crete

is believed by some scholars
to fit the location

and description given by
the 8th-century B.C. poet Hesiod

for the childhood home of Zeus,

the leader of the Olympians.

Archaeologists have
found remains

of religious offerings here

that date back 4,000 years

to the exact period
when the stories

of the Olympians took place.

But could the ancient Greeks
have left these offerings

to a powerful being
they actually witnessed

with their own eyes?

MAN: We have these stories
of these gods

that had these supernatural,
magical powers.

Let's be honest.

Magical, supernatural powers
don't really exist,

so what was it
that was described?

In my opinion, it was people

who had access
to advanced technology.

MAN: There is an old saying

that one man's magic is
another man's engineering.

Magic is just some knowledge
we don't understand.

It is, therefore, super
or above our understanding.

It is transcendent.
That's what "super" implies.

NARRATOR: Ancient astronaut
theorists believe the notion

that our ancestors actually
witnessed advanced technology

is supported by the fact
that similar stories

of godlike beings can be found
on every continent.

Historian and author
Joseph Campbell found

that even cultures
that had never had contact

with the outside world developed
similar hero stories.

TSOUKALOS: So the fact
that we have all of these

similar hero stories
from all around the world,

from different types
of ancient cultures,

to me suggests
that they were visited

by the same teachers.

JONES: The myths came from
ancient oral culture.

We don't know when,
but you can see

almost identical gods
showing up in ancient India,

ancient Greece,
and ancient Norway.

So it was a long time ago

before these people
started to spread out.

WOMAN: The power of flight...

magical objects
which allowed a superhero

to always be victorious,

talismans that allow
the superhero to change

from an ordinary
human being to somebody

who can access
those magical powers.

Those are part of a number
of different stories

of superheroes that really
span time and culture.

NARRATOR: But what ancient
astronaut theorists find

most intriguing is
how remarkably similar

the tales of ancient heroes are

to the superhero
stories of today.

MAN: It's fascinating
to me when you look

at the Superman stories
and how Superman has come

from this other planet,

one that exploded.

He comes here with superpowers,
he can fly through the air,

and it's very much

like the ancient Sumerian
stories and Hindu stories

of these extraterrestrial gods
coming from other planets

to Earth in order to help us

and move our planet forward.

NARRATOR: Even the iconic "S"
on Superman's chest

seems to have been adapted
from legends told

thousands of years ago.

Heroes and gods
from ancient Greek,

Buddhist,
and Christian religions

are portrayed with symbols
near their heart.

MAN: In Christian art, you
will see Jesus wearing

a glowing robe
with a glowing heart.

So we see this correspondence
here of this imagery

of an archetypal figure

or a savior figure.

NARRATOR: Today,
almost every superhero

has an icon on his chest.

Could this be inspired

by some piece of technology
our ancestors witnessed

on an alien being,
like the Arc Reactor

on Iron Man's chest
that powers his suit?

And might these similarities
mean the stories of Superman,

Batman, and Spider-Man are based

on our ancestors' experiences
with extraterrestrials?

MAN: These are things
that are common and symbolic

throughout these stories,
and they, to me, imply

that we're talking
about similar figures

or figures that are here
for the same reason,

and that is
to advance us forward.

What we may be seeing is,
the reason why Superman

may resonate so much
with us is not just because

we've heard this story before
in other forms, but because

our ancient ancestors
actually experienced the story

in a very, very real way in
a very, very ancient time.

NARRATOR: Is it possible
that the reason we continue

to be fascinated by superheroes
today is that we're trying

to reconnect with similar beings
that lived among us

thousands of years ago?

MAN: It is possible
some deep part of us,

perhaps in our DNA
or genetic memory,

is remembering
that there was a time

in which the gods,
the extraterrestrials,

did interact with us,
and that may be because,

in the past, there were beings
who were more advanced

than we here on Earth were,
who were protecting us

from others who were
very dangerous and harmful.

HENRY: There's
an intuitive knowing

that these stories are true,

that these events
actually happened,

that beings did come
from other planets,

other worlds, to save humankind.

NARRATOR: Could our modern
stories of superheroes

really be inspired by encounters

that early humans had
with extraterrestrial beings?

Perhaps further clues
can be found

by examining mankind's
earliest stories,

in which superbeings waged war

not against humans,
but against supervillains.

NARRATOR: May 4, 2012.

"The Avengers" opens
in theaters across America.

This blockbuster film chronicles
six superheroes

who ban together to battle
extraterrestrial forces of evil.

Powerful superheroes
have been popular

in comic books and movies
for over half a century...

and nearly all have
one very dark

and forbidding feature
in common...

Supervillains.

JONES: The archnemesis
really defines the hero.

You can see how whatever is
most interesting or powerful

about the hero,
the best villains

are the opposite.

The archvillain is
psychologically very powerful

because there's an echo
of that archetype.

It's not just "me
versus danger and chaos,"

but sort of "us versus them."

NARRATOR: Stories of superheroes
fighting supervillains,

with the fate of the world
at stake, are common

across many different cultures
and time periods.

In the modern Avengers pantheon,

Thor does battle with
his evil adoptive brother Loki

to prevent Loki from taking
over the universe.

The story is inspired
by ancient Norse mythology,

where Thor engages
in a similar battle with Loki

and his children at Ragnarok.

The Greeks had their own
epic battle of the gods,

which they believed created
the world as we know it.

[Thunderclap]

[Men shouting]

NARRATOR: The Titanomachy was
a conflict between the Titans,

who ruled the world,

and an upstart group of gods
called the Olympians.

[Thunder]

Psychologists say these tales
of good facing off against evil

have always been popular

because they allow people
to project their hopes and fears

on the fictional characters
in make-believe worlds.

[Sword clangs]

But could there be another
reason that these stories

are told again and again
around the world?

CHILDRESS: Joseph Campbell
concluded that somehow

these hero myths had
pervaded all cultures...

and you have to wonder
if this isn't because

extraterrestrials
came here to our planet

and were heroes
all over the world,

and so the same story was
repeated over and over again.

NARRATOR: Is it possible that
some of our ancient hero myths

recount specific events

involving
extraterrestrial visitors

in the distant past?

Ancient astronaut theorists
say yes,

and as evidence,

cite a Sanskrit epic
that describes an enormous war

between gods that came
from the stars.

MAN: In old India,

we have clear descriptions in
the "Mahabharata"...

Which is the fifth book,
the so-called "Mausala Parva"...

A clear description
of a war in heaven.

TSOUKALOS: I mean, it reads
like modern-day science fiction,

this incredible battle
between the gods.

Gigantic cities were said
to have orbited the earth,

and when they came together
at the firmament, they were

battling each other.

The city Dvaraka was right at
the edge of the Arabian Sea.

Some of the explosion,
it split the city

and then the half of
the city fell in the sea.

VON DANIKEN: And it's described

how two of these cities
were destroyed,

cities on heaven, and for
the people on Earth,

it looked as if ten thousands
of little stars would fall down.

They are describing what are
extraterrestrial gods

with superpowers, with airships,

weapons, and it would seem
that these ancient,

epic stories are the same

as these superhero stories
that we're hearing today.

NARRATOR: Could it be
that modern stories

in which superheroes battle
archvillains for dominance

over the earth are actually
based on ancient wars

between extraterrestrial forces?

Perhaps further clues
can be found

in the Babylonian
and Sumerian origin myths.

According to
modern interpretations

of the cuneiform writing,
the "Enuma Elish" describes

a celestial battle
some 5,000 years ago

between two groups of gods
that may have actually resulted

in the destruction of a planet
in our solar system.

CHILDRESS: Sumerian texts
make mysterious references

to these other planets called
Marduk and Tiamat.

And within our solar system,

there was some destruction here
where one of them blew up,

and this would be
the theoretical planet

that was between Mars
and Jupiter.

Astronomers have often said that
there should be a planet there,

but instead, we have
the asteroid belt.

NARRATOR: Could the asteroid
belt that circles the sun

between Mars and Jupiter really
be the remnants of a planet

that existed
in the distant past...

a planet that was destroyed
in an alien war?

And if so, are these
ancient events echoed today

in the plots of modern
superhero stories?

CHILDRESS: In many ways,
these stories which are

so familiar to us in TV
and movies and comic books

are really coming to us
from these ancient Sumerian

and Hindu texts that are
thousands of years old.

WILCOCK: Good versus evil
is a longstanding theme

that we see in many
ancient cultures

in which supernatural
or extraterrestrial beings

are coming to our aid
and helping us

against the greatest evil
the world has ever known.

NARRATOR: Modern stories
have superheroes fighting

supervillains, based
on real extraterrestrial battles

that took place above the earth
thousands of years ago.

Could it be true?

Ancient astronaut theorists
believe the answer may be found

not with the stories
of the gods themselves,

but with their technology.

NARRATOR: Lem nos, Greece,

3000 B.C.

This island in the Aegean Sea

is said to be the home
of Hephaestus,

the Greek god of technology.

The son of Zeus and Hera,
king and queen of the gods,

Hephaestus grew up
on Mount Olympus,

but he was a small
and physically deformed child.

Unhappy with her son's
physical problems,

one Greek legend says Hera
threw him off the mountain.

MAGLIOCCO: He fell
for nine days and nine nights

and landed in the ocean.

There, he was rescued
by sea nymphs,

who took him
to the island of Lemnos.

Hephaestus became
the blacksmith of the gods,

and he set up his forge
on the island of Lemnos,

and volcanoes were said to be
entrances to his forge.

NARRATOR: Working underneath
an active volcano,

Hephaestus is said to have
forged magical objects.

He eventually created
the armor, weapons,

and other technology used by
the Greek gods and heroes.

Hephaestus is the god
of the great forge,

and he is the builder.

He creates the armor that is
impenetrable for Achilles.

He creates chariots.

MAN: Magical spears, magical
breastplates, and so forth,

which gave the gods all sorts
of miraculous powers.

He's even said
to have made the chariot

that the god Helios,
the god of the sun,

rode across the skies.

NARRATOR: Some myths describe
Hephaestus creating

even more fantastic devices,

including a bronze bull
that breathed fire

and is said to have had voices
coming out of its nostrils,

and a powerful robot named Talos

that defended
the island of Crete.

HENRY: He made all these
wondrous creations,

and when we look back at
those stories, we have to ask,

"Is it possible
that Hephaestus was"

"an extraterrestrial
being who brought"

"some advanced extraterrestrial
technology to Earth?"

TSOUKALOS: Our ancestors
had no experience

with advanced technology,
so they would have described

alien visitors as having
superhuman powers

because of their frame
of reference.

If they saw an extraterrestrial
with access

to incredible "powers" which are
due to advanced science,

they interpreted that
as witnessing God,

and that was never the case.

NARRATOR: Magical weapons
have been a key feature

of heroic myths
for thousands of years,

but they play
an even larger role

in the stories
of modern superheroes.

1939.

With new "Superman" comic books
flying off the shelves,

publishers rush
to develop more heroes

to satisfy the public's demand.

The one that makes
the biggest impression

is a hero of modern technology...

Batman.

Created by Bob Kane
and Bill Finger,

the Caped Crusader leaps
onto the comic-book page

and immediately into the
pantheon of pop-culture gods.

JONES: The idea of Batman is
that he is a normal person.

Nothing has given him
super strength,

but he's a normal person
who depends on his technology.

MAN: He has a utility belt with
all kinds of modern gadgets.

And he has a Batmobile
and he has a batcopter,

so he is a technological
superhero in that sense.

DiDIO: Batman for us is probably
one of the most identifiable

characters we have
with all of our fans,

with all of our audience
because he's a human.

He doesn't do something
that pushes the imagination

beyond something that we don't
believe people can actually do.

NARRATOR: In 1963,

the comics gave birth
to another iconic character

that is completely dependent
on science for his superpowers...

Iron Man.

YOUNG: In the Iron Man story,

there's this incredible suit
that can make him virtually

into a superman,
even though he's a mortal.

This is a great melding

of the human/machine interface.

This is how we use technology
to do extraordinary things.

NARRATOR: Are Batman
and Iron Man

modern representations

of what ancient astronaut
theorists believe

the ancient gods really were...

[Thunder]

Mortal beings with
advanced technology?

We see a similarity
with modern-day superheroes

and some of the ancient texts of
a god who wears a special ring

or holds a certain staff
and can magically become

a creature of flight
or can fly a magic carpet.

Many of the superheroes
that we have today are

just normal human beings,
but when they strap on

their technology... like Batman
in his super suit

or Iron Man and his
flying capabilities...

Well, these are just
normal mortals that are using

advanced technology and become
superhuman or godlike.

NARRATOR: Could modern-day
superheroes like Batman

and Iron Man be
the true realization

of what our ancestors were
describing when they wrote

about powerful gods and heroes?

Was Hercules' great strength
the result

of a robotic exoskeleton?

Could Hermes' power
of flight have been inspired

by something
like a modern jet pack

or gliding suit?

And could Zeus' lightning bolts
have used electrical coils

to generate extraordinarily
large voltages?

The ancient people simply used
the vernacular of the time

to express what they
were seeing,

and as far as they were
concerned, this could only be

the work of a supreme being.

NARRATOR: Superhumans using
advanced technology,

gods at war,

and extraterrestrials
coming from the heavens.

Could these ancient tales
really be evidence

of an otherworldly
presence on Earth?

Perhaps further clues
can be found

in the stories
of superheroes hiding

in plain sight.

NARRATOR: July 3, 2007.

After spending decades
as larger-than-life toys

and animated
television characters,

the Transformers hit
the big screen,

with the American premiere
of their first feature film.

The extraterrestrial storyline
is a familiar one.

The Transformers, in a way, are
like mechanical versions

of Superman.

They come from another planet...

they kind of adapt
to being here...

and then, as in a lot
of Superman stories,

the enemy is from that planet.

There's some evil that follows
them, that chases them down,

and so they're having
this ancient battle

from their homeland,
but they're having it here.

NARRATOR: Unlike Batman
or Iron Man,

the Transformers aren't
humanoids that use technology.

They actually are technology.

But the most remarkable power
the Transformers use

against their foes is one
of the most important

in all of heroic myth...

The ability to change
from ordinary beings

into superheroes
when evil threatens.

LoCICERO: It's the archetype
of metamorphosis

or transformation...

shape-shifting, if you will.

This comes down to us
from the ancient mythologies.

MAGLIOCCO: Shape-shifting allows
gods to interact with humans

in a way that they would not
otherwise be recognized.

In fact, oftentimes, the god
or goddess cannot appear

to the mortal
in their full splendor

because such a thing would
actually kill the mortal.

NARRATOR: Ancient astronaut
theorists suggest

that stories of gods living
anonymously among us

are common because
they describe a time

when extraterrestrials
did just that.

As evidence, they cite
an ancient story.

They believe there's
an uncanny resemblance

to the Transformers'
shape-shifting myth...

A story about
the Mayan god Kukulkan,

who is portrayed
both as a flying serpent

and a man.

TSOUKALOS: We have descriptions
of a winged serpent

that flew over
our ancestors' heads,

but at the same time, we also
know that Kukulkan

was also someone that gave
instructions to the people

in pretty much humanoid form.

So does that mean that Kukulkan
was, in fact, a shape-shifter?

NARRATOR: Ancient astronaut
theorists propose

another possibility.

They contend that perhaps
the ancient people,

being unfamiliar with
advanced technology,

witnessed an alien being
in a spacecraft.

TSOUKALOS: Imagine for a moment
a craft lands, a hatch opens,

and then the pilot walks out
and gives instruction.

There isn't really
a differentiation between

the machine and the person
coming out of it because

they didn't understand the
technological concept behind it.

The instructor then went
back into the craft

and took off.

All of a sudden,
Kukulkan becomes

this winged serpent
that flies across the sky.

NARRATOR: Is it possible
that this scenario

may have actually played out
in the distant past?

And if so, did it inspire
the shape-shifting myths

that humans have told
for millennia?

VON DANIKEN:
We have the same stories.

The core of the stories
worldwide

in most of the mythologies,
they are all linked together.

They had different names,
were different heroes,

different personalities,
but at the end, it was

all the same extraterrestrials
having contact

with the humans some thousands
and thousands of years ago.

[Thunderclap]

NARRATOR: But could there be
an even deeper meaning

behind the tales
of otherworldly heroes,

like the Transformers
and Kukulkan hiding among us?

Perhaps further clues
can be found

by examining the stories
of godlike beings

disguising themselves
as ordinary humans.

Superman hides his identity
by pretending to be

mild-mannered newspaper
reporter Clark Kent.

Wonder Woman disguises herself

as a nurse named Diana Prince.

And Spider-Man's alter ego
is Peter Parker.

JONES: Virtually every
really popular superhero has

a clear and recognizable
ordinary human identity.

It's an essential part of
the superhero archetype

that they be able to look
like us and feel like us

and live like us, but then
be able to explode

into their super-powered self.

WILCOCK: We have a deep
inner longing

to have that story retold,

perhaps through some sort
of genetic memory written

right into our DNA.

We seem to be remembering
on some deep level

a part of us
that can come in contact

with extraterrestrial
capabilities and actualize them,

as we ourselves reach the next
level of human evolution

or what may have been
a level that we had long ago

and was deliberately turned off
in our DNA for some reason.

NARRATOR: Is it really possible
that we tell stories

of superheroes disguised
as humans

because it is written
in our genetic memory,

that we have special abilities
hidden within ourselves?

And if so,
what could be the source

of those abilities?

WILCOCK: We may not have
originated on Earth.

We may have been seeded
on Earth by other humans

who are far older than we are

and who are far more genetically
advanced than we are.

Perhaps some part
of us remembers

that there is a way in which
we could be exposed

to certain technologies
that activate this dormant DNA

within us that propel us
to the next level

of what it means to be a live,
evolved human being.

NARRATOR: Could it be
that stories of superheroes

hiding among us are so popular

because extraterrestrials
have manipulated our DNA,

hiding extraordinary powers
deep inside all of us?

Perhaps the answer can be found

by exploring
the stories of heroes

whose powers are the result
of genetic mutation.

NARRATOR: New York City,

1962.

Marvel Comics editor Stan Lee

wants to create
a new breed of superhero.

One of the masterminds behind
the Fantastic Four

and the Avengers,

Lee invents a character
literally born

out of modern science...

Spider-Man.

Radiation was very much
in the news at the time,

and I figured, "Well, let's
let him get his power"

through radiation."

And I figured the spider would
bite Peter Parker on the hand.

Since the spider was
radioactive,

I assumed that his little
spider sting would insert

some radioactivity
into Peter's bloodstream.

Now, having radioactivity
in your blood,

especially if it was
spidery radioactivity,

that should give you some
of the qualities of a spider.

CHILDRESS: Spider-Man's
just a normal teenager

until he's bitten by
a radioactive spider.

Suddenly, he's a combination
of normal person,

but also a god
with godlike powers.

LEE: I thought, "He'll have"

the proportionate
strength of a spider."

In other words,
if a spider were as large

as a human being, that's
how strong the spider would be,

which made Peter Parker
very strong.

I also figured he could
stick to walls,

like a spider or any insect.

NARRATOR: Although exposure
to radiation

scrambles Spider-Man's
genetic material,

there's a precedent for it
in ancient mythology...

Genetic manipulation
through the mixing

of mortal and immortal blood.

Anjaneri, India.

Two miles outside
this small village,

in a cave surrounded by
forests and mountains

is where many believe one
of Hindu mythology's

greatest heroes was born...

Hanuman.

SHIMKHADA: Hanuman was part god

because his father was
the god of wind,

and his mother is
a mortal human being,

so then obviously he has
the qualities,

the power of wind god.

And he's able to fly

and he is able to multiply,
you know, his size,

so because of that,
he is definitely a demigod.

NARRATOR: Hanuman is
often depicted

as half man and half monkey,

which underlines
his mixed bloodline.

Is it possible that this is
a non-scientific way

of describing genetically
engineered superbeings,

as ancient astronaut
theorists contend?

CHILDRESS: One of the
common themes in ancient text

is ancient gods
or extraterrestrials coming here

and then manipulating our DNA

and changing us

into more superior beings.

[Heart beating]

NARRATOR: As evidence of
the genetic experiments

they believe took place
in the prehistoric past,

ancient astronaut theorists
cite depictions

of hybrid creatures found in
cultures around the world:

Winged horses in Assyrian
and Sumerian myths;

The elephant-headed deity
Ganesha in the Hindu pantheon;

And Khepri, the ancient
Egyptian god of the morning sun.

HENRY: The Egyptian deity Khepri
is shown as either a beetle

or as a human with
the head of a beetle,

and you have to ask, "What are
they trying to tell us here"

"about Khepri? Could he have
been half human, half insect?"

NARRATOR: Some ancient
astronaut theorists believe

the hybrids depicted by the
ancients may have actually been

the results of extraterrestrial
genetic experiments

in the distant past.

MARTELL: These things aren't
very far off from what we have

in our ancient tales
of creation.

In the Sumerian epic
of creation, we hear

about the Anunnaki
literally putting

their genetic marker
on us and creating us

in their image
and after their likeness.

NARRATOR: Could genetic
experiments long ago have been

part of an ancient alien effort
to create the human race?

WILCOCK: Some very strange
things happen in the course

of human evolution:
We go from Neanderthals,

with no apparent
missing link whatsoever,

and all of a sudden,
our brain size doubles,

our thumbs become more usable,

we can walk erect more easily.

There's a large number
of changes

that take place in
a very short time.

NARRATOR: Might the entire
human species have been created

by extraterrestrial genetic
experiments in the past?

And could our genetic memory
of this be the reason

we create genetically altered
superheroes today,

including mutants like the X-Men

and the Incredible Hulk,

and hybrids like Hawkman,

Animal Man, and Spider-Man?

WILCOCK: Is it possible
that when we are seeing

superhero movies, that on
some level we are remembering

having been changed before,

that perhaps we were like
the Neanderthals before,

and this already happened,

we already had some sort
of genetic upgrade

that brought us to the next
level of human evolution?

NARRATOR: Are modern comic-book
stories of hybrids and mutants

actually inspired by
an ancient alien intervention

thousands of years ago?

And might we create
these stories because we are

subconsciously aware
of something greater

within ourselves?

Ancient astronaut theorists
say yes and believe

that our own recent
technological advances

may be bringing us closer
to a reconnection

with our alien past.

NARRATOR:
Livingston, New Jersey...

May 2001.

Scientists at the Institute
for Reproductive Medicine

made headlines when they
revealed they had created

the world's first
genetically modified baby.

Using a process called
cytoplasmic transfer,

they implanted mitochondrial DNA
from a second mother

into an egg to make it
easier for it to bond

with sperm and form
a viable fetus.

When scientists performed
genetic tests

on the babies born out
of this process,

they detected genetic material
from a third parent.

WOMAN: The reason
the cytoplasmic transfer is

controversial is because
it's human manipulation

of the human germ cell line;
In other words,

the cell line that is passed
from parent to offspring.

We typically just inherit
our genetic material from both

of our parents, so there's
a direct line of descent.

With the introduction
of cytoplasmic transfer,

suddenly you have humans
manipulating that germ line,

that cell line
or DNA line passed on

from parent to offspring.

NARRATOR: If perfected,
genetic manipulation

could allow scientists
to introduce DNA

from an unlimited number
of people into a fetus.

This would allow them to rid
babies of genetic disease...

but it could also
theoretically let them tinker

with natural traits
to create superhumans

that are much faster,
stronger, and smarter

than those that have
come before.

FISHER: You are altering
the genetic future

of the human race, based on

your sort of current
preferences, let's say,

for a person's traits;
Sort of, into perpetuity,

affecting the genetic line
of descent in humans.

And so that's something very
different than had ever been

performed before, and that's
certainly controversial.

NARRATOR: The concept
of altering genes,

whether these genes are in food,

animals, or humans

has always created
a firestorm of protest.

In this case,
the controversy forced

an American moratorium
on cytoplasmic transfer.

Even so, scientists say
the technology

may eventually be developed
that will allow us to give

superpowers, including
amazing strength,

eyesight, and intelligence
to our children

while they're still in the womb.

HENRY: Today, more than ever,
we're capable of playing God.

We have incredible superpowers
at our fingertips

with genetic technology,
and you have to ask,

"Are we trying
to duplicate what we saw"

"the gods possessing
in the ancient world?"

"Are we hardwired
or programmed to develop"

"these technologies so that we
can equal our makers?"

NARRATOR: Do we yearn to become
like the advanced beings

that ancient astronaut theorists
believe created us

thousands of years ago?

And might this be why
superhero stories

continue to fascinate us?

MARTELL: I think the reason
why people like

these superhero stories
that literally go back

thousands of years is because
they're possibly explaining

our actual human origins.

Every culture around
the world talks about

an intervention event
where beings from the heavens

came down and gave us knowledge.

NARRATOR: If we really
are the product

of alien genetic
experimentation,

as ancient astronaut
theorists believe,

might our own DNA resemble that
of otherworldly beings?

And if so, are we becoming more
and more like our makers,

through our own
technological breakthroughs

and genetic advances?

CHILDRESS: In many ways,
our society has come

full-circle, where,
in ancient times,

we had extraterrestrials here
manipulating our DNA,

and now we're the ones
who are manipulating our own DNA

to also create a more
advanced human species.

WILCOCK: Who knows
what's possible?

It's a brave new world.
Everything changes.

And we have abilities that are
so different that it's as if

a quantum shift in human
evolution has taken place.

NARRATOR: Are ancient stories
of heroes and gods

with mythological powers
really based

on encounters
with extraterrestrials?

And might modern-day superheroes

be inspired by our desire
to reconnect

with these powerful beings?

Could characters
like Batman, Spider-Man,

and Superman be
the humans of tomorrow?

Perhaps, as our technology
continues to advance,

we are drawing closer
to coming face-to-face

with our alien ancestors.