Comics
aren't you glad it doesn't say Harry Potter?
The aforementioned meta
Preface:
I was reading all sorts of fun essays on comic books recently and it got me thinking. See all of these essays are about the big and older names: Superman, X-men, Batman, Spiderman, Fantastic 4, Justice League, Wonder Woman ect. So I started thinking about the metaphors and meaning behind some of the newer characters, the characters created in the 90s and 00s.
Superboy, the next generation
We've heard about how Superman is the immigrant, the alien come to our shores in a time need whose internal conflict is how much like us to become. Superboy is the natural follow up. He is the second generation born and raised here on Earth. At the start of his solo title Superboy is appropriately rootless. By not taking a human name he is choosing to completely embrace his heritage without being able to fully engage in it (ie: using TTK and glasses to imitate Superman's powers). He doesn't belong completely to either culture. This makes Hawaii a perfect backdrop for his story. Hawaii is part of the fifty states in America and inundated with main stream American culture and values while
at the same time trying to keep it's native culture alive.
The Superboy narrative changes slightly over his story arch when it is revealed that his human DNA comes not from some scientist but from Lex Luthor. Around this time Superboy is given a human name (Conner Kent) and set down in America's heartland. Conner's metaphor shifts from the story of a second generation immigrant to a person of mixed heritage. Now his internal struggle is not about his heritage vs. his homeland it is about which heritage does he want to belong to. This is why it the change of human donors is important. Lex is Superman's equal and so his weight in Superboy's choices is equal. Through out the Teen Titan's run Superboy struggles with the question which side of me do I want to embrace.
Again location plays a role in illuminating the character. This part of Superboy's story is set in Smallville, Kansas, the best and most American valued small town in the world. We see two location with in Smallville: Superman's home, and the high school. In Superman's home Superboy is often shown feeling awkward and like an imposition, and the Kents, while they seem to like him, don't seem entirely sure what to do with him. He is not wholly Superman and can't neatly fit into Superman's home. But if we see Superman as the alien (immigrant), Smallville High stands for the human (American) side. Superboy is equally as isolated and uncomfortable in this environment. He doesn't completely fit in anywhere. I think it is important to mention that in Titans of Tomorrow when we see a Superboy who chooses to embrace his Luthor side he is shown at home in Smallville.
Impulse 'R us
Impulse is probably a lot of us (certainly he is myself). He is the quintessential generation Y, our bad points (a detached video game junky overdosed on instant gratification) and our good ones (communicative, educated and has 500 friends on facebook). But he is not just the representation of a generation he is also the future of the communication age and our fears and dreams of what that future holds.
Impulse's very abridged back-story goes something like this: he is from the future where he lived in a virtual world before he was brought back to the past to save him from growing up too fast. Here in we have our fears that with all the easy access to media and the increasing amounts of sex and violence with in easy reach of children through it our children are being forced to, well, grow up too fast. We look back to the past for the bygone days when children could just be children.
Part of Impulse's character conflicts through out his run on Impulse and into Teen Titans is distinguishing reality from video games. This represents our dreams of technology so good it can be mistaken for real, how many commercials have we seen for HDTV that claim to be so real you won't be able to tell the difference. But it is also our fears about losing touch with the important things in life. After all with in the virtual world Impulse doesn't know family, friendship, or even value of his own life. This also reflects back onto the current debate about violence in video games and how it effects those who play.
Impulse as a speedster again plays the role of representing an age. He is, again, us, watching four channels with his picture in picture TV, talking on the phone, IMing 5 friends, and surfing the web all at once. He is the internet, downloading information at the speed of light, accumulating useless facts in the Wikipedia of his brain. Everything about him as a character reflects on us and the world we live in now.
The aforementioned meta
Preface:
I was reading all sorts of fun essays on comic books recently and it got me thinking. See all of these essays are about the big and older names: Superman, X-men, Batman, Spiderman, Fantastic 4, Justice League, Wonder Woman ect. So I started thinking about the metaphors and meaning behind some of the newer characters, the characters created in the 90s and 00s.
Superboy, the next generation
We've heard about how Superman is the immigrant, the alien come to our shores in a time need whose internal conflict is how much like us to become. Superboy is the natural follow up. He is the second generation born and raised here on Earth. At the start of his solo title Superboy is appropriately rootless. By not taking a human name he is choosing to completely embrace his heritage without being able to fully engage in it (ie: using TTK and glasses to imitate Superman's powers). He doesn't belong completely to either culture. This makes Hawaii a perfect backdrop for his story. Hawaii is part of the fifty states in America and inundated with main stream American culture and values while
at the same time trying to keep it's native culture alive.
The Superboy narrative changes slightly over his story arch when it is revealed that his human DNA comes not from some scientist but from Lex Luthor. Around this time Superboy is given a human name (Conner Kent) and set down in America's heartland. Conner's metaphor shifts from the story of a second generation immigrant to a person of mixed heritage. Now his internal struggle is not about his heritage vs. his homeland it is about which heritage does he want to belong to. This is why it the change of human donors is important. Lex is Superman's equal and so his weight in Superboy's choices is equal. Through out the Teen Titan's run Superboy struggles with the question which side of me do I want to embrace.
Again location plays a role in illuminating the character. This part of Superboy's story is set in Smallville, Kansas, the best and most American valued small town in the world. We see two location with in Smallville: Superman's home, and the high school. In Superman's home Superboy is often shown feeling awkward and like an imposition, and the Kents, while they seem to like him, don't seem entirely sure what to do with him. He is not wholly Superman and can't neatly fit into Superman's home. But if we see Superman as the alien (immigrant), Smallville High stands for the human (American) side. Superboy is equally as isolated and uncomfortable in this environment. He doesn't completely fit in anywhere. I think it is important to mention that in Titans of Tomorrow when we see a Superboy who chooses to embrace his Luthor side he is shown at home in Smallville.
Impulse 'R us
Impulse is probably a lot of us (certainly he is myself). He is the quintessential generation Y, our bad points (a detached video game junky overdosed on instant gratification) and our good ones (communicative, educated and has 500 friends on facebook). But he is not just the representation of a generation he is also the future of the communication age and our fears and dreams of what that future holds.
Impulse's very abridged back-story goes something like this: he is from the future where he lived in a virtual world before he was brought back to the past to save him from growing up too fast. Here in we have our fears that with all the easy access to media and the increasing amounts of sex and violence with in easy reach of children through it our children are being forced to, well, grow up too fast. We look back to the past for the bygone days when children could just be children.
Part of Impulse's character conflicts through out his run on Impulse and into Teen Titans is distinguishing reality from video games. This represents our dreams of technology so good it can be mistaken for real, how many commercials have we seen for HDTV that claim to be so real you won't be able to tell the difference. But it is also our fears about losing touch with the important things in life. After all with in the virtual world Impulse doesn't know family, friendship, or even value of his own life. This also reflects back onto the current debate about violence in video games and how it effects those who play.
Impulse as a speedster again plays the role of representing an age. He is, again, us, watching four channels with his picture in picture TV, talking on the phone, IMing 5 friends, and surfing the web all at once. He is the internet, downloading information at the speed of light, accumulating useless facts in the Wikipedia of his brain. Everything about him as a character reflects on us and the world we live in now.