Okay, what's he talking about this time?Welcome one, welcome all, to a new segment here on Jacob's Latter. So, I figure that if I'm gonna be talking about tropes occasionally here, I might as well bring up and talk about what makes something tick. It is my belief that certain tropes and topics are popular because they resonate with a certain part of the populace, and that we can--conscously or otherwise--relate to the fantastical worlds shown to us in our favorite bodies of work Before anyone asks, no I didn't do any research beforehand, but I'd like to think of these segments as sort of my own, personal take on the matter. I'm sure that many people have brought up and talked about the topics I've discussed. Given the ubiquity of the superhero genre in today's world, it would surprise me at all. That being said, if I can think of some decent examples, I'll add links. But without further ado, let's get things started. Alter and EgoLet's start off with a classic of the Superhero Genre: the alter ego. This is, of course, the obvious one. The idea that you can be a completely different person depending on the crowd you associate with. And, by extension, trying to balance two very different parts of your life. You see this with the classics of the superhero world, such as Superman, Batman, etc., etc.. Who are you? This is something that Alan Moore deconstructs thoroughly in many of his works. Rorschach, Judge Dredd and V aren't truly defined by who's behind the mask, but by it. We only see one of the aforementioned characters out of their mask, and even then we get the feeling that they're removing his own identity. When Rorschach is unmasked, he says "my face, give it back." Not "my mask, give it back," but "my face." These people aren't people, but ideas, tropes, beliefs. Worm, consequently, goes in the other direction. Instead of being ideas or tropes or whathaveyou, at the end of the day, behind the masks and hokey costumes, these are people with genuine issues and lives and shit. Many of the interludes are dedicated to showing how, beneath their masks, most of the heroe's/villains are just people who are trying to deal with the madness of balancing normal life and being a hero/villain. In fact, I’d argue that one of the major tropes of superhero genre is trying to balance the various “masks” we wear on a day to day basis. Ask any punk or metal fan in the professional sphere and they’ll tell you that they act very differently in the office as opposed to how they act in a mosh pit. For most heroes, being a hero is almost an obligation, sort of like volunteer work where you wear spandex (in essence, the best kind). This, incidentally, is why some of the most relatable superheroes are teenagers. They’re just starting to figure out who they are, all the while still trying to stay normal for those who need them to stay who they are (their parents, for example). Think of how much of a kerfuffle Peter Parker’s life is, having to switch between being a student, a photographer, a boyfriend and Spiderman. We also have Khamalah Khan, the new Miss Marvel. Not only is there Khamalah the teenager and Miss Marvel the superhero, but also Khamalah the Irani-American/Muslim. Which just adds so many layers to the mix. This is, of course, a classic sense of tension, but is also symbolic of how chaotic modern life can be. The average American most likely has to balance their identity as an employee/employer, in a religious community and whatever hobbies they have. This isn’t even getting into those who are police officers, military men, veterens, queer somehow, with youth groups, in clubs and the list can go on. How separate do you want to keep your various lives. Do you drag loved ones from one world into another? Or do you do your damndest to keep those two parts of your life separate. This brings me back to the likes of V, Judge Dredd and Rorschach. As I mentioned earlier, these are people who define themselves solely on their mission, and who don’t think of themselves as Johnny come lately who wants to help out here or there, but as someone with a mission. They have one identity and that identity is the mask. Same goes with the Punisher, who doesn't even bother with a mask, and, to a degree, Batman. Batman acts like Bruce Wayne as a cover for the Bat, and the Punisher doesn’t even bother hiding who he is. They, like the others, live for taking down bad guys. They don’t enjoy it. But they got to, not unlike the Alan Moore examples. And I think that makes them kind of scary. People who we really shouldn’t want to emulate, root for maybe, but not relate to. If someone is solely defined by one mission, one identity, how healthy can they be mentally. This, of course, was what Moore was getting at, and is, to some extent, explored in the likes of Batman and Punisher proper. Being different.There's also the idea of being an outsider, of being different and how different makes you special, something that, in it's own way, is a very American trope of the superhero genre. This is something that's prevalent in both Marvel and DC. Why do you think there are so many alien superheroes in DC comics (Starfire, Icon, Martian Manhunter, Hawkman, the list could go on)?Aside from the fact that DC gobbled up their competition like Galactus. Moving on, being from somewhere else, inherently, makes you unique, and in your own way, powerful. I’d argue that this is part of the reason why Superman has survived, whereas his inspiration, John Carter, has floundered into obscurity and desperate attempts to ride Pirates of the Carribean’s coattails. Superman is an outsider who came to this planet and both became better and made it better because of it. John Carter, on the other hand, is, in spite of how much I do like the stories, is kinda, sorta a ginormous imperialist circlejerk. (Disclaimer: like the Tales of HP Lovecraft, I'd totally recommend the Barsoom Saga for whoever's interested in that old school kind of Buck Rogers/Flash Gordan type of swashbuckling space fare) On the Marvel side, you have all of the Mutants, people who were inherently born different, which could be taken for a metaphor for those fighting for civil rights in any era. It’s liberating to know that being born different, isn’t necessarily a bad and that, when you get right down to it. There's also Daredevil, a man who's very disability, in it's own way, is the thing that allows him to kick so much extraordinary ass. It’s a powerful notion to turn the concept of a Of course, being different, isn't always a good thing. The theme of difference being a double edged sword is a much more prevalent theme in Marvel where mutants are called things like "muties" or "gene-queers" (subtle, writers, real subtle). That's not even getting into how having powers can kinda suck on a day to day basis. Cyclops can't take his sunglasses off lest he fry anyone staring at him, and poor Rogue can't touch someone without taking their memories and possibly causing irreversible harm. Getting more into X-men, I think it’s telling that the most remembered mutants are the ones who’s different both in universe and out of it, and who're different both for good and bad. You’ve got the aforementioned Cyclops and Rogue, who, don’t have the best of grips on their powers and need slight handicaps to keep them under wraps. You’ve also got Nightcrawler and Beast, who look like a demon out of hell and a monster out of a horror movie respectively. Yet Nightcrawler’s a devout Catholic, and a genuine gentle soul who pities the people who look at him so. He’d rather look the way he does than be the sort to judge someone based on how they look. And then there’s Beast, who’s probably the most intelligent of the classic X-Men staple. When he isn’t quoting Isaac Newton, he’s quoting Shakespeare. While he may look like a blue gorilla, he’s more likely to be experimenting with stuff than screaming like a monster. And then you have arguably the most powerful—and most in control of her powers--Storm. Ororo Munroe is a black woman, two minorities who’ve had it the roughest over the centuries. And yet, she has control over the weather itself, something that, quite arguably, puts her on the same level of badassery as the Might Thor. Now I’m a white guy, but I can appreciate that a Black Woman with the ability to kick considerable ass is something that the comics world (and several other spheres of nerddom) needs more of in this world. And, lastly, there’s everyone’s favorite: Wolverine. It took me a bit of a while to figure out what it was that was so cool about Wolverine. I think it comes down to two things: he’s the ultimate outsider, and he’s the ultimate survivor. While, yeah, being able to slice people with claws that extend from his body is pretty badass, he’s always an outsider, never really relating to people due to a combination of his own immortality, his rough personality and the fact that a sleazy organization mind-fucked him and injected liquid hot metal into his body. I wouldn’t be surprised if he resembled the Vietnam veterans of the 80s and 70s who didn’t have anywhere they could call their own or anyone who they could relate to. And then you have his famed healing factor. It is this very ability that led to him being a puppet of the Weapon X program. He can take pain certainly, but if not for that, then he wouldn't have been had poked and prodded like a frog cadaver in a high school anatomy class. Getting back on topic, that's not even getting into the likes of the Hulk, Legion and Phoenix, all of whom can barely control their own powers (though I do intend to talk about psychic power and how it resembles . Being different can be a curse, but used in the right way, it can be a gift as well. In essence, difference can be great and it can be horrible. Whether you decide to let being different differentiate you from your fellow man is entirely up to you Trauma And then there's the idea of trauma how it shapes us. Have you ever noticed how every superhero this side of arm-fall-off boy has dead parents? Yeah, no, trauma can change and shape us into something else. Everything from Batman devoting himself to learning as much to kick as much ass as physically possible to the Punisher deciding to start a one man war against street crime when his wife and child(ren) were caught in the crossfires of a gang hit, to Peter Parker doing his darndest to do what he refused to do when uncle Ben kicked the bucket. Hell, you could even argue that it wasn't the spider bite that turned Peter Parker into Spiderman, but the death of his uncle. Peter was, for all intents and purposes, happy to exploit the ever loving hell out of his newfound abilities, right up until he didn't stop the prick who took out his good uncle. We also have examples like Green Arrow and Iron Man. They were rich playboy dousch bags before they took what the Dead Kennedys refer to as a "Holiday in Campodia." They thought they knew how the world worked right up until the point where their world got flipped-turned upside down. Tony was an arms dealer who thought that he was fighting for the good guys right up until he had to make his own pacemaker from a box of scraps in the middle of the desert while having the reality of his business transactions slam him in the face. And then there's the entirety of the Worm universe. In this universe, you get super powers when you go through trauma. And their powers tend to be a reaction to whatever trauma they'd gone through*. In fact, they're even called trigger events*. Yeah, just let that sink in. An entire universe filled to the brim with people who's powers most likely reminded them of whatever fucked up circumstance led them to have superpowers the moment they use their powers. It's telling that there are two characters who, physically, have not allowed themselves to age beyond the point when they acquired their powers. Even the Fantastic Four aren't immune to this. They got their powers in a traumatic accident.If there's one good side to the 2015 Fant4stic, it's that we really get a sense for how messed up it must feel to suddenly have your body so drastically altered they did. Lord knows how many heros and villains origins are based in the misuse of mutigenic/radioactive that results in radically altered body chemistry. The Flash, Static Shock, Cyborg, Luke Cage and even Spiderman have all had some sort of drastic alteration to their body's physiological makeup. Power and ResponsibilityCome on, you knew that this was coming. This is the big one, the one that anyone who's watched the 2002 Spiderman knows. The idea that having power means that you've gotta do something with it, whether it's good or bad. This was the idea that was being hinted at in all of my other sections. This is the big one. Now I know what you're thinking. "How is this aplicable to us?" I'd argue that all of us are powerful in our own way. And we can either use this power to be a positive, or a negative force in this world. After all, I'd argue that it isn't the power that necessarily makes someone bad, but the way they use it. Something that comics explore in great detail. I mean, think about it. Aside from some of the wackos in Batman's Rogues galaries, and Galactus, can you think of any powered supervillains who's powers inherently make them bad--assuming you can think of some more obscure supervillains. This is also why most superheroes with superpowers have at least one villain who has equal or greater powers to their own--see General Zod, Bizarro, Black Adam, Sinestro, Baron Mordo, Venom, Malefic, Sabertooth, Black Fire, Iron Monger, Black Fire, Reverse Flash (all of them), Yellow Jacket (from the movie, anyway), Ocean Master. These are people who have been given great power by fate and use them to take advantage of others. And then there's the endless number and millionaires, both good and evil, who are also superheroes. Bruce Wayne, Oliver Queen, Danny Rand, Norman Osborn, Tony Stark, Lex Luthor, they're all real stand-ins for those with power in the way of money and how they use that "power" to help others through things like philanthropy or what have you. Some use their wealth to help others, others use it to destroy their enemies or increase their own power. Without getting into it too much, you could even argue that this is the equivalent to modern philanthropists/modern day robber barons. John Browne, the owner of BP, vs. Elon Musk. Bill Gates in the 90s vs. modern day Bill Gates. Each are exceptionally privileged and each use that privilege to either help or exploit their fellow man. Hell, it could even be argued that everyday Superheroes are the equivalent of normal people with the ability to help out others. Getting back to the X-Men, you, of course, have the classic sentiment that the X-Men are the MLK to the Brotherhood’s Malcolm X (ironically enough). Social movements are inherently powerful in their fight to be taken seriously, whether they be based on race or gender. And in such a position, you can either take on the role of trying to fight for a better future and live in harmony with the majority or be the one who advocates violence against others. This is, of course, why Magneto and his Brotherhood are the X-Men's foes. They've takent the gifts fate had given them and used them for evil. Instead of standing for a better future, they fight fire with fire. They fight for a better future for mutant-kind, as opposed to a world of compromise. We also have heroes who are associated with darkness or "scary" powers. Deadman, Raven, Trauma, Rogue, Toxin, Ghost Rider, Hellboy, and Etrigan. All of these are people who have powers perfect for tormenting and ruining people--and several of whom are actually dark beings or somehow related to demons--however they're ultimately forces for good. It's not who you're born to, or the source of your power, so long as that power is put to good use. And then there's Taylor Hebert, the primary protagonist of Worm. She has the ability to control bugs. And while this could definitely be a nasty ability in it's own right, she tries her best to help others, in spite of a combination of circumstance and her own inherent abilities. While you could definitely make a good case for her losing her way early on, what with joining a group of super villains, she tries her hardest to be a good person even at her lowest. She doesn't like people killing others and out of the four people she kills over the course of Worm, two she kills in a genuine moment of rage and anger. In conclusionThe superhero genre, at least in my book, represents everything that people are capable of, both good and bad. Whether it's because you're just, or because you're privileged, or because life has taught you some harsh lessons, you, in your own way, have power. How you use that power is entirely up to you. Now that I've gotten that cliche out of the way, I think that will do it for now. I know that this wasn't exactly the most... academic piece on Super Heroes and super powers, but I'd like to think that it's certainly something. And besides, it could be worse. I could be doing some top ten b.s. Or clickbait. Now that's what I call an abuse of power. Incidentally, if you're interested in learning more about superheroe's, or even if you'd like to waste a couple of hours, there's this great site/app called comixology. Think of it as a kindle app for comics. You can get anything from golden age fisticuff filled classics, to the modern day stuff. Incidentally, if you're one you're one of the few people who saw my "Someone Should Totally Adapt Saga" post, you can buy collections of Saga on there for half of how much you'd have to pay for a physical copy of Amazon (and lord knows how much less than comicbook shops or your local Barnes and Noble charge). Also, if you're interested in reading up on Worm, here's the link if you're interested. Yeah, there isn't a kindle version, but trust me. Around arc 8 that won't matter in the slightest.
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Okay, what is he talking about?I'm not sure most kids born before 1997 could ever really *get* just how much of a furvor the Harry Potter books created. You've got to understand, it was big. Like so big, that there were products being made for it waaaaay before it was even made into a movie. Do you have any idea how rare of an occurence that is? These days, if you wanted some homestuck artwork or memorabilia or whatever, you just have to go onto Devientart. But back then? Yeah, no, I don't even think there were LotR actions figures before the movies came around. And yet I still remember finding fracking troll boogers glue at Amazing Savings--the local kitsch shop--a product based on a single, solitary scene from the first HP. Yeah, it was impossible to escape. It was to books what Star Wars was to movies, what the Simpsons was to television and what Watchemen was to comics. Massive like you wouldn't believe, so much so that they made everything from to board games to the aforementioned glue and even address books based off of those books. Not in a million years could any book *hope* to emulate Harry Potter's success, in spite of how hard Ms. Meyer may have tried to convince herself otherwise. With all of that in mind, is it any wonder that the fandom has persisted to this day? Now with anything popular, there inevitably comes the copy cats, i.e. folks who try to leach off the success of a different franchise. I'm sure we all remember the Twilight knockoffs--although I''ll admit that I do kinda wanna see "Warm Bodies"-- and that's not even getting into the the likes of Maze Runner and various other books series in the "post apocalyptic young adult genre". However, whenever something as ginormous as say Star Wars, Harry Potter, Watchmen or the Simpsons comes around, it'll mean that people become exponentially more willing to take risks, meaning an explosion of genuinely inventive and clever bodies of work--see the deluge of space operas and unique animated series in the wake of Star Wars and the Simpsons respective. And so, the late 90s gave us some of the most unique young adult fiction, and not just graspers for the harry potter throne. Book series like the Series of Unfortunate Events books, the Spiderwick chronicles, Darren Shan Chronicles (aka the Circe du Freak books), and the Percy Jackson books were all released in the young adult boom of a post-HP world and were all blasts of creativity and ingenuity. But I'm not here to talk about those books. I'm here to talk about a book that may have been the biggest book, and in third place when it came to the being top dog in the creative kid's books list (HP and SoUE being the first and second of the two): Artemis Fowl. A book with such ridiculously, awesomely hokey premise that it had to be read to be believed. I think the best way to think of it would be if Jimmy Newtron used his immense genius not to go on hokey adventures, but to extort and pall aroudn with fairies. And believe it or not, but it did in fact work. In fact there were even talks of a movie in the works. And it only get's more ridiculous from there. Over a recent reread, I think the scene that sticks out for me, if only because I'd completely forgotten about it was when Butler--yes, that's his name--Artemis's special forces trained bodyguard gets a giant piece of shit lobbed at him by a dwarf with enough force to force him back. Disclaimer TimeNow before I continue, I suppose I should mention that, yes, there have been talks of a movie adaptation in the works for decades. In fact, I do recall seeing something on the back of the first book saying that the film was coming along soon (although I'm too lazy to hunt for it in the endless pit that its the books I don't want to look at in my basement). But you know what, all we’ve heard is vaguely defined promises, and to be frank, this is my blog and I’ll cry if I want to. Okay, with that out of the way, let’s get this gravy train rolling, so to speak. Okay, so why should I be interested?So, as I mentioned, the setting of this series is… rather ridiculous, and not only that but it’s also played rather straight, which may come as a surprise from the description I gave. It’s even sillier when you take into account the fact that most, if not all, of what’s discussed is played completely and utterly straight, up to, and including, the fact that the People, as they’re called here, have a culture that is nearly identical to humans, up to and including, military ranks (although if you wanted to be a major nerd, you could argue that, in that universe, we copied military ranks off of them). But yeah, this is a crazy, cyberpunky universe ripe for the exploring, filled to the brim with megalomaniacal sprites, entire family lines devoted to protecting the Fowls from danger, and dwarves with the ability to tunnel underground like a fucking sandworm (and yes, he does shit out dirt like worms). This is a wild, crazy universe that's the kind of stupid awesome that has to be read to be believed. That being said, Colfer does manage to make it work. In most examples like this, there’s usually some human character who’s supposed to be an audience stand in, someone who’s just as oblivious as they are. Artemis Fowl doesn't bother with this. While, yes, the books do lampshade the idea that fairies are real when Artemis reveals his grand plan to ransom Holly for some fairy gold, Artemis isn't thrust head first into the zany, crazy world of fairies. Instead, Colfer decides to simply make fairy culture similar enough enough to our own that it's a non-issue. They have military ranks, computers, and even sexism. It almost makes you wonder why fairies like Holly dislike the "mud men," considering the only difference between the fairies and the humans is a general disregard for our own planet and our height. And the characters actually aren’t that bad in retrospect. There’s a sense that there’s tension between Artemis and Butler’s sense of honor and goodness. While Arti isn’t exactly the perfect young man, he isn’t evil. If anything, he felt like he needs to be properly “evil.” This added an interesting layer to the books. After all, Arti was simply looking to be a part of the family business. Or that may be Eon not wanting to encourage the whole “dealing in drugs and prostitution” thing. Holly's also rather interesting in that she's a little prejudiced towards humans, but herself deals with sexism. Which isn't to say they're not the kind of cheesy awesome you'd see outside of a particularly cheesy comic book or a tokusatsu series. I think the stand-out scene has to be when we're introduced to Butler’s where Arti lists off the various weapons that Butler has on his person at any given moment like Santa Clause mixed with Nick Cage’s character from Lord of War. Yeah, it went over my head as a kid, but so did the logic behind Indiana Jones finding the Holy Grail before the Nazis could, despite the krauts digging in the wrong place. Not that we're asking, but how would you make the reboot.To be honest, I get the feeling that the transition from book to movie has been so tricky because, while the book is definitely for kids, there's some very adult content present within the book, and I don't just mean undertones either.
The beautiful thing about a book is that you can be as brutal as you damned well like without having to get too graphic. But on TV, there’s no way in hell that sort of thing would slide, at least not when aimed at younger viewers. Keep in mind that, in the original Hunger Games book, we have examples of bugs murder, messed up hallucination scenes straight out of a PKD novel and an entire class of servants who'd had their tongues removed. For how supposedly "gritty" the Hunger Games movie was, it kind of wasn't. Katniss didn't really look like someone who showered once a year tops and most of the violence is cut away from at the last minute. The Artimas Fowl books suffer from this as well. The shit example for example. Do you have any idea how much work would have to go into a giant turd flying at someone like a cannon ball, whether the studio was using practical or computer generated effects. And then there's going into how gory the book could be at times. At one point, the fairies let a fucking troll into Fowl mansion which literally tears Butler wide open (he get's better). For anyone who's seen the Hunger Games movies, they can tell you that the only thing those puppies had more of than discretion shots was shakey cam. Also, these are books about the son of a criminal mastermind, and if there's one thing that stuff for kids have a harder time conveying than swearing, it's how criminal enterprises are run. As for how I think the film should pan out, well, I think that these puppies should be movie length, even if they do something like the Benedict Cucumberbatch Sherlock series where it's over an hour and a half long.. While this may be a kiss of death for some book adaptations, I’d argue that the Artemis Fowl books are nice and short enough that they can be made movie length without too much fuss. I’d also suggest going for practical effects as much as humanly possible. Now, I know that this might not be the easiest given the outlandish setting, not to mention the impulse of most movie directors to pump enough CG into most movies these days that they end up looking like videogame cut scenes. I’d also recommend cutting back on the flying turd scene. And while I'm sure somewhere out there an Fowl fan is crying fowl--pun totally intended--I just... don't really think it'll work. If only because it's the sort of thing you'd see in a bad Adam Sandler movie than the sort of thing found in a crime caper involving cyberpunk Fairies and the world's scariest person. As for actors, I’m thinking at least one of the kids from Stranger Things, probably the one who was abducted, should play Artemis. As for who should play Holly Short, I was thinking someone on the lighter side of African American, and yes, I know how… sleazy that makes me sound, but she’s described as having olive colored skin, so take that as you will. As for Butler… that’s a tricky one. Initially, they were going to get Jean Reno to play the guy, but given the fact that the guy is probably older than some of the fairies in the book by this point, I’d personally not recommend it. So, I’d probably go with someone a little younger, but who is still built like a brick shit house. Tom Hardy, possibly, although personally I’d like someone with a bit of girth to them, if that makes any sense. Like Vincent D’nofrio as Fisk in the Daredevil Netflix series. Also, as tempting is it would undoubtedly be to have R Lee Emery play Root, I’d say it’d be a better idea to go with someone like Ving Rhames. While Ermey has made a career out of playing uber hardass drill sergeant, having him play one here would be stretching it just a bit. Instead, I think it best to give it to some… well, may not new blood, but blood that isn’t older than that tuna salad in the back of my fridge. Oh, on the topic of ethnic minorities, can we not have the Goblins in this version? Different races representing real life human races not played for cultural irony has never, ever ended well in the realm of Science fiction and fantasy (I’m looking at you, Star Wars prequels). That being said, if Hollywood wanted to do more of a “soft adaptation” like, say “Preacher” or “V for Vendetta,” that could possibly work. Afterall, as long as they capture the wacky, quirky, cyberpunk caper-esque nature of the original series, I’d be down. |
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AuthorHello all and Welcome to Jacob's Latter. Here I will be giving my opinions on everything from movies, video games and books to my general outlook on the world. Archives
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