In which I make a quick note on my frustration with the current Cap sl.
Today while on a run I zoned out thinking thinky thoughts and I pinpointed what it is about this Steve Rogers storyline leading up to Secret Empire I truly despise the most.
See, as a child I was pretty geeky: band geek, drama geek, brainiac smart. No really--the guys serenaded me one day changing the lyrics to that song Maniac to be about me being a Brainiac. Anyway, this current phenomena where being a geek rules and conventions are everywhere? I haven't been overly ecstatic about. I have seen too many geeks become mean, become entitled, ruin the experience of our various fan loves for others because their views were different. To be frank, this hurts. I thought we were better than that. I had hoped that remembering what it was like being bullied would make people see that we can all be different and respect those differences. Instead, I see too many instances where the oppressed became the oppressors, the bullied the new bullies. The cycle of violence continues with new violators. It is an age old story. I don't think this is what we were supposed to learn.
This seems to be one of the exact things that Steve Rogers was there to teach us about. Captain America is Marvel's Superman. He is a small man made big by his perseverance and the strength of his beliefs (with a little help from those Vita-Rays). His goodness is unparalleled even in spite of the bullies trying to tear him down. He knows that sometimes you had to punch a bully in the nose to teach him the truth about his ways, but also knew not to resort to further violence. He stood up for all and he learned from being bullied, bringing that knowledge of what it felt like to not be among the strong with him in all he did.
I have seen so many people who once they have gotten a chance to bully have done so, which shows just how remarkable and inspiring Steve Rogers is. It may be that Nick Spencer feels we have taken Steve for granted, forgetting how easy it would be for Steve to be evil if he wasn't the man he is. I'm sure Spencer will even end the story somehow so that it isn't actually OUR Steve (like a split personality take on that TOS episode, or some other random thing that we will be able to explain as "not really Steve" ) but something that he will shoulder none the less as a failure on his part and give him his darkness.
But I can't help feeling that now is when we need Steve being himself most--when the wolves are at the door and we need to channel that goodness which has made Steve the man he has been pretty much without fail for the last SEVENTY FIVE YEARS. But then again, maybe this is exactly what we need--to learn how to see the heroes in ourselves by seeing the humanity in our heroes.
See, as a child I was pretty geeky: band geek, drama geek, brainiac smart. No really--the guys serenaded me one day changing the lyrics to that song Maniac to be about me being a Brainiac. Anyway, this current phenomena where being a geek rules and conventions are everywhere? I haven't been overly ecstatic about. I have seen too many geeks become mean, become entitled, ruin the experience of our various fan loves for others because their views were different. To be frank, this hurts. I thought we were better than that. I had hoped that remembering what it was like being bullied would make people see that we can all be different and respect those differences. Instead, I see too many instances where the oppressed became the oppressors, the bullied the new bullies. The cycle of violence continues with new violators. It is an age old story. I don't think this is what we were supposed to learn.
This seems to be one of the exact things that Steve Rogers was there to teach us about. Captain America is Marvel's Superman. He is a small man made big by his perseverance and the strength of his beliefs (with a little help from those Vita-Rays). His goodness is unparalleled even in spite of the bullies trying to tear him down. He knows that sometimes you had to punch a bully in the nose to teach him the truth about his ways, but also knew not to resort to further violence. He stood up for all and he learned from being bullied, bringing that knowledge of what it felt like to not be among the strong with him in all he did.
I have seen so many people who once they have gotten a chance to bully have done so, which shows just how remarkable and inspiring Steve Rogers is. It may be that Nick Spencer feels we have taken Steve for granted, forgetting how easy it would be for Steve to be evil if he wasn't the man he is. I'm sure Spencer will even end the story somehow so that it isn't actually OUR Steve (like a split personality take on that TOS episode, or some other random thing that we will be able to explain as "not really Steve" ) but something that he will shoulder none the less as a failure on his part and give him his darkness.
But I can't help feeling that now is when we need Steve being himself most--when the wolves are at the door and we need to channel that goodness which has made Steve the man he has been pretty much without fail for the last SEVENTY FIVE YEARS. But then again, maybe this is exactly what we need--to learn how to see the heroes in ourselves by seeing the humanity in our heroes.
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