The Quarterback and The Cheerleader

Superman and Wonder Woman are now going to be a couple. Yeah. This is happening.

For some background, here's the gist of the situation. The DC universe was rebooted last year, and both Superman and Wonder Woman's stories were basically put back to square one. Previously, while Superman and Wonder Woman had some minor flirtation and hints of feelings, nothing really ever came of it. (They went on a date once when they first met. It was awkward.) Superman and Lois Lane were married in 1996 (in publication, not in-universe history), and he and Wonder Woman settled on being close friends and co-workers. (At times they've referred to each other as their "closest" or "dearest" friend, which was a little weird for Superman WHO WAS MARRIED AT THE TIME.)

Meanwhile, in alternate universe stories, Superman and Wonder Woman have frequently been a couple. Often times they have a son or daughter who then becomes the leader of a new generation of heroes in the future. But the only reason that was ever allowed to happen was because they were deliberately alternate universe stories with no impact on the "real" story.

Now, in this new rebooted universe, Superman is currently only in his mid-twenties, and although he's always had a bit of a thing for Lois Lane, they've never been together as of yet. Wonder Woman is now secretly a daughter of Zeus and the Amazon queen Hippolyta (making her a half-goddess and Hercules' half-sister, which is sort of cool), and although there've been references to her romantic relationship with her classic boyfriend Steve Trevor, he might be dead now.

As the announcement article from Entertainment Weekly reads:

The comic, which goes on sale Aug. 29, culminates months of flirty foreshadowing. Writer Geoff Johns hints that some event — possibly tragic — will impact every member of the Justice League, and cause Superman and Wonder Woman to seek solace in each other and move from super-powered colleagues to power couple. This is no one-issue stunt: “This is the new status quo,” says Johns, adding that the relationship will have a seismic impact on all the heroes and villains in the DC universe.


Immediately, comic fans went a little bonkers. Here were some of the responses that came about, just in my immediate circle of online friends:

"That's the straw that broke this camel's back. I'm done [with DC Comics]."

"...so this was the reason they needed to break up Supes and Lois? Really?"

"...this feels like the only reason that they wiped a relationship with 70+ years of backstory out of reality and it's more than a little annoying."

You might notice that most people were only upset about how it affected Superman; that's because most comics fans actually don't care that much about Wonder Woman (myself not included). It's a complicated thing. Anyway, this was my response:

_______


Here's the deal: I've spent quite a lot of time researching the Superman relationship dynamic. Why he loves Lois, why [his teenage sweetheart from Smallville] Lana Lang is important, how Wonder Woman might fit into it, etc. Superman is my favorite fictional character of all time, and his fairy-tale romance with Lois is very important to me. And I think this is awesome.

Something we need to get out of the way: we all know this isn't going to last. It's NOT. DC knows it and we know it. This is a sidestep. Superman isn't going to marry Wonder Woman and be with her permanently. For Superman's relationships, this is the equivalent of Superman Red/Blue, or any of the other changes in comics that lasted for a few months to a year or more, then quickly got reverted.
Grant Morrison [one of the biggest writers in comics] has written on a number of occasions that the Superman/Lois dynamic is essentially at the heart of the entire DCU; it's basically impossible for the DCU to go on for any prolonged time without going back to that romance. Just because Clark and Lois aren't together at this very moment in time in no way means that they won't be in the future.

As for the "they got rid of the Lois/Clark relationship specifically to do this" thing, I don't buy it. Sure, if you put this under the larger category of "throwing twists into the dynamic," then it fits. If he's going to be younger and single now, why not have some fun with the concept and get him together with Wonder Woman for a time? Do we actually expect that he remained entirely celibate and had no other girlfriends aside from Lana and Lois in his entire life? If this is the Superman story essentially started from the beginning, why is it a problem to not have him be with Lois immediately? And in any case, it's not as though a Supes/WW pairing doesn't actually make sense. They have a hell of a lot in common, both being inhuman immortal sometimes-alienated super-strong flying red-and-blue-clothed members of the Justice League that very specifically believe in the concepts of truth and justice to their very core. I've always said that Superman and Wonder Woman as a couple makes all the sense in the world, it's just not the way things are meant to be. (Lord of the Rings fans: Superman is Aragorn, Wonder Woman is Eowyn, Lois is Arwen.)

Oh, and as for that "relationship with 70+ years of backstory" thing, that's not how that works. Sure, that's as long as Lois Lane's existed, but it's not as though that same story extended through all 70 years. We had a universe-wide reboot in 1986, don't forget, which at the time set the Superman/Lois relationship back to square one as well. That's how these stories tend to work; they continue for a generation or more, then get retold. Meanwhile, those past stories still exist, effectively sealed off for all time like a capsule. Stories like Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow and Superman: The Wedding Album, huge moments in the Clark/Lois relationship, still exist. Just because the story of the new DCU says that things were "changed," that doesn't matter. No one can go back in time and literally get rid of stories that happened in the past.

As far as Superman and Wonder Woman are concerned, literally all their continuity has been wiped from existence, so this is the start of a new universe entirely for them. Why is that a problem? How is that terribly different from other mediums?
Major spoilers for The Dark Knight Rises:
If the next Batman movie doesn't have Bruce and Selina as a couple (cause, y'know, reboot), is anyone going to complain that they "broke up that relationship" so Bruce could be with Vicki Vale? No, because that's the way these things work in movies and everyone expects it. Comics frequently work the same way, just on a much longer timetable. So we should be happy that we got fifteen years of a married Superman and Lois, not complain that it's not the current story that's being told.

Personally, I actually think that this is extremely cool, both from the silly/fun fanboy angle of Supes and Wondy getting together as well as the fact that now this makes the Superman/Clark/Lois dynamic a hell of a lot more interesting. How is Lois supposed to compete with essentially a female Superman? Why is Superman going to choose to be with Lois (and he will) despite her technically being nowhere near as amazing as Wonder Woman? Yeah, it throws a speedbump in the road for Clark and Lois. But maybe that's a good thing. Do we really want their relationship to just smoothly jump into place with no tension whatsoever?

Sure, DC's going to market this as "the new status quo," but we all know what that means. It's the new status quo for about a year, then it goes back to being the classic thing again. Let's just let ourselves have fun with it while it lasts.

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Something I didn't actually mention much in that post because it wasn't relevant to the conversation at the time is that I actually think it's a good move for Wonder Woman. She's always had difficulties with romance, mostly because she doesn't have a romantic interest the way that Superman has Lois Lane. Yes, she has Steve Trevor, but he's nowhere near as important to her story as Lois is to Superman's.

Wonder Woman is, in many ways, a rather difficult character to put into a relationship simply because of who she is. In most versions of her story, she was raised by Amazons who told her all her life that men were corrupt. Furthermore, she believes so strongly in truth (I mean, she has a lasso for it), justice, and the desire to unselfishly help others that virtually no man on Earth can live up to her standards—no one except Superman, that is. Superman is the least-corruptible person in the world. If there were ever someone to disprove the Amazons' sexist belief that men are universally evil, Superman would be the one to do it.

Clark and Diana are also good company for one another, since they can relate to one another rather easily. Their moral beliefs are part of it, but they also both frequently feel alienated, being super-strong inhumans living in a world that either idolizes them or is wary of them, depending on the day of the week. Most men are either intimidated by Wonder Woman or treat her like a sex object, neither of which Superman would do. Superman is frequently treated like a god by women (see Superman: The Movie's horrible "Can You Read My Mind" scene); Wonder Woman wouldn't have that problem. She's literally half-goddess herself now; she'd treat him like a "normal" person.

On top of that, Superman and Wonder Woman actually do make sense from a purely practical standpoint. They don't need to worry about each other getting hurt, neither of them can die from aging (Wonder Woman never ages past age 29 or so, and as long as Superman's near a yellow sun he stays rejuvenated), and as it happens, Kryptonian and Amazon DNA are compatible while Kryptonian and human DNA are not. (because... magic? I dunno.) So they could presumably have a real family together.


So, all in all, while this is a slightly bizarre turn of events, I'm good with it. I'm actually really excited about it. It's gonna be a temporary thing, but it should be fun while it lasts. And hey, y'know what, maybe it'll turn out to be something amazing and actually continue on. Maybe this generation of comics will have Clark and Diana as the definitive romance of the DCU. Whatever's best, really.

Sci-Fi Music

FYI, I'm not gonna continue that superhero series thing; I think I kinda ended it with the last post.

Kinda random, but I figured I'd post my favorite bits of music from science fiction movies, TV, and games.


"Main Title" from Star Trek: First Contact
"Stargate: Atlantis Main Title" from Stargate: Atlantis
"The Doctor's Theme (Series 4)" from Doctor Who: Series 4
"I Am the Doctor" from Doctor Who: Series 5
"Amy in the TARDIS" from Doctor Who: Series 5
"Finish the Fight" from Halo 3
"Sacred Icon Suite 2" from Halo Legends
"A Future for the Krogan" from Mass Effect 3

Real Heroes

This isn't meant to continue the series of posts I said I'd write about various superheroes; this is a tangent. Though it does tie into Superman.

You're probably thinking that "real heroes" in this post's title refers to the oft-cited "real heroes:" firemen, police officers, paramedics, soldiers, etc. Not to say that those people aren't truly heroes, but this time I mean something perhaps less literal.

For as long as I can remember, I've always thought of Superman as an example. Mark Waid (the brilliant writer of such works as Superman: Birthright and Kingdom Come) said it best:

Here is a guy with the power of a god, someone who can rule the world starting today if he desires. Who can have anything his heart longs for and get away with positively any deed imaginable, all without one single threat of reprisal. But with the totality of time and space subject to his slightest whim... he chooses only to help others. That is Superman's greatest power. When presented with the opportunity, he takes action to make things better — and that's a power that lies within us all.

No, we don't have Superman's physical powers, but that's the entire point of Superman as a metaphor: he's meant to represent an ideal we can aspire to.
Unfortunately, there are some who aspire to other ideals.


So, as I'm sure everyone knows, there was a shooting in Colorado at a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises. The day after the shooting, Robert texted me:

"This is why I have never been comfortable with Joker impersonations."

At the time, I didn't know all the details. After doing some research, apparently this is how it went down.
The shooter concocted a freakishly intelligent plan. He rigged a timer in his apartment to set off loud music shortly before the movie so that the police would respond to a noise complaint and break into his home. His apartment was booby-trapped with a large amount of explosives. After the explosives went off (doubtlessly injuring or killing the officers there), the firemen and police would be diverted there, far away from the theater. If all had gone according to plan (and there was every reason it might have), the shooter would have been virtually free to slaughter everyone in the theater, and might have even escaped. As it went, apparently the police never went inside his house and set off the explosives, so they were plenty free to catch him—but only after he'd shot 70 people and killed 12. When the authorities found him, he'd dyed his hair like a clown and told authorities he was the Joker.

This guy is a legitimate wannabe super-villain. A literal psychopath murderer who took on the persona of a character that is almost-literally the embodiment of chaos. Now, he's not at the real-world level of a comic book villain. His plan didn't go off without a hitch, and he didn't even know enough to dye his hair the right color to match his supposed character inspiration (one of the reasons many suspect he's faking insanity in order to dodge normal sentencing). But the fact is that he literally is an example of how someone can take inspiration from a simple story and do extreme things with it.

Going back to Robert's point, this is why, in some ways, it's very much not funny when people obsess over villain characters, especially the more sinister ones like the Joker. There really are people as twisted and evil as that out there, and they shouldn't even playfully be imitated.


Earlier this week, I was in a conversation online with a friend of mine while discussing the teaser trailer for the new Superman movie, Man of Steel.

Keri: I personally think Superman is the most overrated superhero out there so I could care less about how much or little the trailer showed.
Aaron: ...Well, if you're judging based entirely on past movies then I can't blame you. But really, truly, Superman is the greatest superhero of all time, and I hope this new film can finally show that to everyone.
Keri: Past movies and comic books. He's too....perfect, and perfection is boring.
Aaron: He's not perfect; he just chooses to do the right thing, just like Batman chooses to never give up. He's not boring if you see the right stories where you really get in his head and understand that he's having to make the right choices in life just like we do.
Keri: Eh. He's not my superhero. I'm a Batman kinda girl.
Aaron: Let's see what you say when the movie's out.

To be clear: I don't mean to say that everyone needs to love Superman, or that Batman isn't still amazing. I love Batman. But what I found poignant is that there are people out there who feel that Superman "isn't interesting" because he's too perfect. In truth, Superman isn't technically perfect; he often struggles with doing the right thing. But the fact that he ultimately does the right thing in the end—rather than resorting to anger, vengeance, self-loathing, or unnecessary violence—is the very thing that makes him special. There are honestly very very few superheroes that do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing. Most fight the good fight because they either have a personal interest in the outcome (Iron Man, the X-Men) or because they're driven by guilt or anger over a past tragedy (Batman, Spider-Man). That doesn't mean they're not still heroes, but it does mean that they might sometimes be fighting for the wrong reason. Superman does what he does because, more than anything else, he cares about people. Out of nothing less than unconditional love for anyone and everyone, friend or stranger, Superman chooses to routinely give up personal gain and instead live a life of service to others.

One of the best Superman moments of all time. Click it.

If some idiot can be inspired by the Joker and perpetrate a massacre, we can (and should) do the exact opposite. Superman's brand of heroism is something that's applicable in real life. The "real heroes" I'm talking of are the people who every day, through their every action, do everything they can to do what's right rather than what's easy. Heroes aren't merely people who've been held up as such by others, but people who do the right thing because that belief in selfless action is what they've placed in their hearts.

Help one another. Love one another. Be kind, gracious, and humble, but fight (sometimes literally, if necessary) to uphold truth and justice. Apparently there truly are villains in the world. It's our job, then, to do all we can to follow in the example of heroes.

Fight as One

As usual, I've been spending a lot of time lately thinking about superheroes. Specifically, I've been noting what makes various superheroes great on an individual level. Today, I figured I'd talk about the Avengers.

The Avengers was created by Stan Lee under direction by Marvel to create a team-based book that could counter DC's Justice League of America. So, quite literally, the Avengers are a direct ripoff of the JLA.

However, if there's one thing that defines the Avengers on their own terms, it's the idea that they truly represent the idea of teamwork; of wildly different individuals putting aside their differences in order to help defend the Earth from evil.The opening titles of The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes sums it up pretty well.

Always we will fight as one

'Til the battle's won

With evil on the run

We never come undone

Assembled we are strong

Forever fight as one

That spirit of teamwork—that brothers-in-arms resolute determination to support one another and fight on—is what makes the Avengers' story one worth telling. Anyone who's ever been on a sports team, worked on a group-based school project, or even simply had a group of close friends can relate to that.

Wha?

I found out today that two friends of mine are dating (well, one's a friend and the other is a guy I sort of know). I just walked into a room at our weekly get-together and their hands were clasped together, romantic-style. Apparently they've been together for a month officially, a couple of months unofficially.

So, this irks me. I don't exactly mind them being together (I sort of predicted it); I just kind of wish I'd known earlier. It just kind of sucks being left out of the loop. I think (not 100% sure on this) that their secretly being together might have been a factor in why she had to cancel hanging-out plans with me a while back.

Oh well. I guess I'll get over it.

Nextbox

So there's a ton of new information leaking out about the successor to the Xbox 360. These are the things I hope the next Xbox improves upon, aside from the usual graphical upgrades and whatnot:

Blu-ray Drive
It's silly that something that's supposed to be the media center of the living room can't play the eminently rising home video format. As if that weren't enough, there are already games on the Xbox that take multiple DVD discs; clearly a storage upgrade is necessary.

Kinect
The Kinect sensor isn't sensitive enough. It's a cool idea, but it really needs more oomph behind its level of recognition before it can really be something incredible.

Smoother Interface
The most-used element of the 360's menu system is the guide menu. Unfortunately, the guide is a tad bit sluggish. It takes a second or two too long to bring up when pressed, and moving between sections of the menu (especially when dealing with friends lists and things of that nature) can vary in time taken. Since this is apparently mainly a hardware design issue, it can be solved with an upgrade. Essentially, it just needs to be snappier and less laggy.

Better Quality Hardware
The first 4 years of the 360's life cycle were plagued by the redring catastrophe, something no game system should ever have to deal with. It's totally unacceptable. Additionally, the system itself, apart from design flaws, was simply constructed out of cheap materials.
The controllers' D-pads barely work, and they can't seem to handle power consumption correctly. When a wireless 360 controller is below 1/3rd battery power, it will intermittently shut off for no reason, with no warning. It can easily be reconnected with no problem, but it takes several seconds. So, essentially, your controls just go dead for a long moment, and even afterward they're still in danger of doing so until you replace or recharge the batteries.
What's even more frustrating is that PS3 controllers, while inferior in design, are much better-made than the 360's. PS3 analog sticks and buttons are slightly more responsive and sensitive, and their battery usage is far, far better. PS3 controllers don't even come with an officially-made wired option; wireless is the standard. Futhermore, the system (A) gives you ample-yet-subtle warning when the batteries are getting low, and (B) keeps the controllers running until the last possible second, with no connection problems whatsoever.
So, overall, I just want a system that works and works well.

Changing

Things are changing for me.
This Fall, I'll be attending some university; don't know which one yet. I don't know if I've told anyone else, but I think I might want to go to LeTourneau University, which is around 3 hours West of here. Mostly, I think I might go there because I'm going to be changing my major from English to (possibly) aeronautical engineering. That'll be a really huge change; I'll need to live on/near campus, and therefore won't be living at home or near anyone I know for the majority of my time in school for the next 2-3 years. Longer, if I get my Masters' degree.

My beloved bible study group is (sort of) breaking up soon. The leader of the group is going to be taking a new full-time job and one of our other members will be out of state, so we won't have anyone to keep the same structure and all. Tonight we had a cookout/get-together dealie-thing, and I suggested that we just slightly reorganize the format of it so that we won't need just one person to be there every week. I suggested that we could use my house as a place to get together sometimes, and I'm sort of thinking that I might end up being the guy that actually ends up organizing the study week-to-week, even though I don't want to be the "leader." So I left our get-together tonight thinking "oh, hey, cool, we'll still be able to have our awesome group." Then I remembered that I'm likely leaving in the Fall.
Boooooooooooo.

Then it sort of hit me. I might be leaving everything behind. I'm not going far, exactly, but there's a lot of things I won't be able to do for the first time in years. I won't be able to go to my Saturday night family get-together dealie (which I've been to nearly every week since mid-2004), I can't exactly start dating anyone around here for the next few years, and... well, yeah. Things will just be odd. My entire life will likely be entirely different. Which is... a good thing? I think? I've sort of been hoping for this for a long, long time. But still...

I guess I should look at it more as an adventure. I'm starting a new life somewhere else. So... yay. I think.