We Have A Dangerous Superhero Obsession

[Music]

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who is your favorite superhero

there are so many to choose from that it

can be tough to pick just one but for

millions of people the answer is

undoubtedly Black Panther

portrayed on the big screen by the

Beloved Chadwick Boseman black panther

was an instant Global phenomenon

millions of moviegoers the world over

flooded into theaters some more than

once to escape into the colorful

afrofuturist nation of wakanda and watch

the daring exploits of King t'challa it

was at the time the most successful solo

superhero movie to ever be released

beating out Classics like Christopher

Nolan's The Dark Knight

today it remains one of the most

celebrated cinematic achievements in the

entire Marvel franchise

it's undeniable we love the king of

wakanda so much so that I'm sure many of

us have found ourselves wishing that

both he and the nation of wakanda were

real

how exciting would it be to live in a

world where superheroes actually existed

Were a Rich and Powerful African nation

possessed technology light years ahead

of anything currently available

sorry to burst your bubble but

the reality would likely be much

different than anything depicted in the

MCU we love t'challa because we see his

journey we go with him from his lowest

point when he loses his father to him

becoming King trekking down a group of

international arms dealers and battling

his long-lost cousin Eric killmonger for

the heart of his Nation

but how would you feel if a foreign King

you've never heard of suddenly revealed

that he had superhuman abilities and

more than that that his country

controlled greater technology and more

wealth than any other Nation on the

planet

would you still love black panther then

the question is more complicated than a

simple yes or no especially given the

complex issues of race colonialism and

cultural identity surrounding wakanda

black panther tackled these issues head

on offering audiences a candid

examination of some of History's

Greatest injustices

the central conflict of The Narrative

itself deals with the tensions created

by the specters of racism and

colonization

at the start of the film The wakandans

are adamant about maintaining their

isolationist politics believing it to be

the best way of protecting their Nation

from the chaos of the outside world

however this view is challenged by the

arrival of killmonger who seeks to upend

the status quo

after defeating t'challa in ritual

combat and assuming control of the

throne killmonger delivers a speech to

the Tribal Council in which he recounts

the struggles of black Americans and

asks pointedly where was wakanda

according to Marvel lore while the rest

of the African continent was swallowed

whole by Europe during the age of

Imperialism

wakanda stood idly by it was watched as

neighbor after neighbor fell to foreign

Invaders and did nothing as entire

populations were enslaved and their land

plundered for its resources

wakanda continued to hide in the shadows

as further injustices were committed

against black communities and the form

of policies like segregation and

apartheid and offered no assistance when

it came to overthrowing these repressive

systems

while it's likely that many black people

around the world would welcome the

sudden entrance of a hyper-advanced

African nation onto the world stage

others might share and kill Monger

sentiments and harbor varying degrees of

resentment

this could make for some awkward

political situations especially

regionally

wakanda's fast fortune and technological

Supremacy would immediately position

itself as the head of the African Union

dramatically reorienting the continent's

balance of power to say nothing of the

rest of the planet

African leaders might demand that

wakanda share its advanced technology or

even its wealth to make up for historic

failures those not of African descent

would probably be suspicious and maybe

even fearful of the sudden change to the

existing geopolitical order even more so

after learning that the country in

question is led by a king with

superhuman abilities the nature of which

would likely remain a highly guarded

Secret

a massive PR campaign would have to be

launched to try and portray t'challa as

a magnanimous and peaceful ruler but

undoubtedly the idea of literal god king

leading the world's most technologically

sophisticated military would be too much

for many people to accept

critics would be quick to point out the

lack of democratic representation in

wakanda as well as the obvious problems

of having a hereditary monarchy

sure t'challa may be a benevolent leader

but what about the next guy what would

happen if for example a long-lost

relative who didn't share into Charles

humanitarian worldview somehow took

control of the country

it wouldn't be too hard to imagine a

scenario where a conquest-driven warrior

king sought to expand wakanda's borders

t'challa and in fact the entire nation

of wakanda will become a highly divisive

topic both among world leaders and

individual citizens in a similar way to

Nations like Saudi Arabia and Russia

Today

this could lead not to just

anti-wakandan protests but possible

assassination attempts as both

disgruntled governments and fearful

citizens aimed to remove this new threat

this exact scenario serves as a premise

for the Amazon series the boys a

superhero parody in which a band of

Vigilantes attempts to take down an

Avengers style group called The Seven

the seven are tyrannical and corrupt

team of superhumans who use their powers

to serve their own selfish desires while

enriching their corporate benefactor

Vaught International

their exploits consistently lead to the

injury and death of innocent bystanders

but this collateral damage is covered up

by volume which markets the group as

saviors of humanity the Seven's

recklessness fuels public resentment and

a ragtag assembly of super powerless

Vigilantes known as the boy's form to

try and assassinate them

the boys is representative of a very

real fear ordinary citizens have of the

ultra powerful

it's safe to assume that most people

will be suspicious of an elite group of

individuals with genuine superhuman

abilities it's important to remember

that t'challa isn't alone in the Marvel

Universe there's a whole ensemble of

characters ranging from certified good

guy Captain America to the genocidal

Thanos

so if black panther exists so should the

others

what this comes a whole slew of new

Problems by their very nature

superhumans create an imbalance in

society there's them people capable of

flying faster than fighter jets or

chucking cars like there were wiffle

balls and then there's the rest of us

barely able to make it through our

morning commute

this inequality of ability would lead to

widespread feelings of fear and

resentment Chief among people's worries

would be the belief that these

individuals might use their powers to

establish a new social and political

order

to help prevent this we'd likely see the

formation of anti-superhuman

organizations these factions would push

for legislation that might help level

the playing field or at least establish

a legal framework to protect ordinary

citizens

Marvel's 2016 film Captain America Civil

War uses this idea as the central

conflict of its plot following the

disastrous Fallout from Avengers The Age

of Ultron the United Nations attempts to

reign in Captain America Iron Man and

the rest of the crew in the form of the

sokovia Accords this legislation places

The Avengers family under the control of

the when and effectively ends any form

of independent autonomy this leads to a

rift in the group as have support the

independent oversight while the rest

believe it to be a potentially dangerous

obstruction

the film concludes with the sokovia

Accord still in place and half the team

being forced into hiding

Civil War explores the anxiety felt by

many people regarding the recent rise of

powerful extra governmental

organizations what do we do in entities

like The Avengers impose their will on a

country and its citizens who is

responsible for the repercussions when

the Hulk accidentally takes down an

entire skyscraper it's not a question

with easy answers but the sokovia

Accords are an example of how real-life

governments might attempt to create

safeguards against potential

catastrophes caused by superhumans

it also clearly displays the impulse of

international leaders to try and control

this power as they would with biological

weapons or nuclear technology which of

course would not stop merely at

legislation

in a world with superheroes militaries

governments and even private entities

would attempt to either recruit or

manufacture armies of their own

super-powered soldiers entire Industries

could develop in the rush to create the

next Hulk or Captain America sadly the

sudden rush for superhuman superiority

would trigger a new Global arms race as

geopolitical Rivals seek to fill their

ranks with the strongest smartest and

deadliest individuals that science can

create

it would be the Cold War all over again

but this time with superpowers instead

of nuclear power

it's honestly a terrifying notion and

one that we may soon be forced to

contend with advances in gene therapy

Robotics and other cutting-edge fields

have begun to open the door to a new

world of female enhancement in the next

few decades we may become capable of

giving individuals abilities previously

reserved for the realm of fiction

superhero stories May one day be viewed

not as far out fantasies but instead

foretellings of our very own real future

the problem with these kinds of

Technologies is that they rewrite the

rules of what is possible societies

operate based on the assumption that

human beings have certain limitations if

these limitations are surpassed it'll

Force us to reevaluate how our

civilization functions on a fundamental

level

it might benefit us then to try and

understand why exactly we're so obsessed

with superheroes in the first place

while modern incarnations stem largely

from the realm of 20th century science

fiction the idea of powerful Champions

battling monsters and saving innocence

dates back to the very beginning of

human history

the Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the

oldest surviving pieces of recorded

literature and is basically a superhero

story it tells of a legendary King with

super strength prophetic abilities and

unparalleled fighting skills who goes on

a series of quests that culminate in the

search for immortality

over the course of his adventures

Gilgamesh slays demons travels to the

underworld and undergoes a series of

Trials It ultimately fails in his goal

of learning the secrets of eternal life

though initially despondent his defeat

leads him to accept his human

limitations and instead learn what it

means to live a good life

the story is a template for the epics

that filled ancient literature

gilgamesh's character provided direct

inspiration for the demigod Hercules and

heavily influenced the Greek poet Homer

whose work is filled with seemingly

superhuman protagonists

these early Heroes were created to serve

as models of their society's virtues

instilling the values of Bravery

fortitude and honor in the citizens

and just like the superheroes of today

these characters weren't perfect rather

each had tragic flaws that routinely led

to disaster for themselves and those

around them their strength wasn't in

being able to perform astounding Feats

or slight countless enemies but in their

ability to face their flaws and learn

from them

in fact the archetypal plot structure of

these stories known as the hero's

journey provides a clear formula for

personal growth

by leaving a place of comfort encounter

ing obstacles and confronting our

weaknesses we're able to change for the

better and hopefully return as a more

complete version of ourselves

at the end of black panther t'challa is

able to reconcile his political beliefs

with that of his cousin although he

rejects killmongers call it a wage war

against former Colonial oppressors

he realizes that wakanda's period of

isolationism must come to an end Heroes

like Black Panther and Gilgamesh serve

as role models were meant to look to for

inspiration they represent the best in

us and provide examples of how we might

overcome difficulties in our own lives

we love superhero stories because they

give us hope that we too are capable of

great deeds and because they serve as a

reminder that every single one of us has

the ability to change the world

so what if black panther was real

we may never know but what I do know is

that you don't need superpowers to be a

superhero

dozens of people throughout history

have proven that time and time again

wakanda forever

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