If The Cape Fits...

"If you were a super hero, what super power would you want to have?"

A fun question to ask someone. Fellow Gentleman Jason Heat used to ask this question to any guest he had on-air in the WMUC University of Maryland Radio station.

Recently though, I found myself asking a similar sounding but far different question:

"If you were a super hero, what would your cause be?"

Anytime someone mentions superheroes, I think back to Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. No, not a comic or a graphic novel, but rather the famous novel from 1943. It was the first time I realized what it takes to actually be a superhero. The Fountainhead is about characters who are media moguls and architects - none of whom have super powers - but what they did posses were convictions far beyond the norm.

One thing I've learned from TheseGentlemen is that superheroes aren't just about cool super powers like flying, x-ray vision or super speed. What makes the traditional superhero characters of comics so incredible in the characteristics of their personalities.

I've been realizing that the most interesting characters in any story - whether it be film, literature, theatre or otherwise - are ones that represent ideals. Ideals are extreme perspectives; there's no compromise in ideals (unless the ideal is total compromise - a concept I believe to be bred from extreme collectivism and no individualism and will probably fail). Pitting extreme characters against each other is really pitting ideals against each other, and I find it to be much more interesting that way.

When these ideals came in the form of superheroes though, I wasn't able to see past the super powers. Who cares what Superman or Batman or Spiderman or the X-men actually stand for and represent when it's cool just to see them in action? It's not a direct parallel, but not until I read about lead character Howard Roark of The Fountainhead did I realize that it doesn't take super powers to be a superhero.

But I don't mean in the same sense that firefighters are heroes. Roark isn't a firefighter, and Roark doesn't save lives. Roark lives for himself, and he lives for it in the name of integrity, in the name of art, and in the name of what he believes in - the excellence and potential of man-kind.

It took me a long time to understand, but Roark is the superhero, the Superman of The Fountainhead - and Dominique is not just Lois Lane, she is the rest of us, those who try to live up to Roark and become the change we wish to see in the world.

So what does it take to be a superhero? Well, it appears I've already decided that supernatural powers doesn't have to be on the list. What seems to be more relevant is motivation, and a strong moral code. Secret identities, costumes and a high-tech works for kid stories, but I'm looking to make being a superhero a reality here. Fighting for something meaningful, and fighting for it with the right intentions might just be all it takes. What is that ideal? Is it a pure sense of responsibility? A hatred for crime or a true belief in the justice system? How about belief in humanitarian service? Or in the case of Roark, a belief in the integrity of self-expression?

What I learned is that one can live for ones-self and still live for an ideal. It has always seemed contradictory that one could live for ones-self and still be a superhero, but I'm realizing now that fighting for a cause can both serve society and be self-serving.

It's been almost a year since I read that book. I guess it's about time I started putting those lessons to practice. What's more, I think I've identified my answer to the question: "If you were a super hero, what would your cause be?" I'll tackle that in my next post.

A Really Cool Choice

Which would you pick?: Vice President or Secretary of State.

One has more prestige, one has more influence.
One stays in the District, one travels the world.

This was the choice awarded Joe Biden following the election, and what a choice to have to make. I'm curious as to what my choice would have been. What would your choice have been? Despite all the increases of power that Al Gore and Dick Cheney added, being VP is in the end a very limited position. Truth be told, Secretary of State is an unappreciated but far more influential position than Vice President. Not an easy choice, but definitely a win-win for anyone in that position.

Now, supposedly, Obama made this offer to Biden -- but apparently he always wanted Biden to be his running mate and always wanted Clinton to be his Secretary of State -- but did ask Biden if he was interested in being the other.

That Dr. Jill Biden had so much influence in the decision is interesting as well... and who else got the scoop on all of this, but OPRAH (#6 on my top list of really really rich people that could be Batman): READ ON.

Holiday Cheer

One Year in Four Colors - Gotham Central Book 1: In The Line Of Duty

So I've decided to write a review or analysis of every Graphic Novel I read in 2009. I'd try for every comic, but none of us have that kind of time.


*Spoiler Warning* should be considered general practice.




Gotham Central Book 1: In The Line of Duty
Writers: Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka
Artist: Michael Lark
Publisher: DC Comics

Gotham Central was an interesting book for a number of reasons, and the first being it's basic premise - a cop ensemble drama set firmly in the DCU. It's tag line was "In the shadow of the Bat," and it's utterly true. This is a comic based entirely around the best supporting cast in all of comics - Batman's. And not the famous ones either - Jim Gordon gets 2 pages, Robin and Oracle each have a panel, and Harvey Bullock is only mentioned by name. This is a book about the rank and file of the GCPD Major Crimes Unit (MCU) and it's a credit to how rich and developed Gotham City is that a book like this, where Renee Montoya is the closest thing to household name in the leads, even got a chance at existence. I actually think this book would have fared even better if it existed now, post One Year Later, because when it debuted things around Gotham were very different than the way most people think. Jim Gordon was no longer commisioner, having stepped down into a very non-permanent retirement, and perennial favorite Harvey Bullock was no longer with the force due to some shady dealings. Instead Commisioner Akins runs the GCPD and the cast is made up of Gotham stalwarts Renee Monyoya (Bullock's old partner) and Crispus Allen (her current partner), former Superman supporting character Maggie Sawyer, and a bunch of newly introduced detectives.

The format of the comic was different too. The cast was divided into two shifts - the day shift and night shift, with stories alternating between them. Brubaker stewarded the night shift while Rucka handled the day shift, and two would co-write the arcs where all the characters came together. It's a really interesting episodic device that allows for a real ensemble to develop, and a more comprehensive look at Gotham's finest. All of the action is capably handled by Michael Lark. Brubaker and Lark would remain a team, working right now on Marvel's Daredevil, where Rucka reunited the band for an arc as well. The dual shifts also led to a really episodic feel to the show, capitalizing on the Cop Drama phenomenom still sweeping the airwaves with untold amounts of CSI and Law and Order available at every hour of the day. At one point in time, the book was due for development as a WB series, but was shelved because of possible associations with the utter failure Birds of Prey and the risk of stealing some of the spotlight from the then upcoming Batman Begins feature.

But what Gotham Central really does for me is help illustrate exactly why I love the DCU so much, and more than any other fictional universe out there. Because the DC Universe is so fully fleshed out and well developed that when done right, I don't question that this down to earth, gritty police book can take place squarely in the same world as the sci-fi overtones of Superman or the magical horror of Swamp Thing. As a medium, the DCU is receptive of any genre you can put into it and still maintain it's sense of continuity and cohesion. Don't get me wrong, trying to make heads or tales of the history of the DC multiverse is a grauate level seminar in universal mechanics and inordinately fucked up, but it does provide a medium for any possible kind of story to be told and still feel like it belongs. Marvel does super-heroes great, and their characters overall may even have a broader appeal - but 9 times out of 10 when they try a horror, western, romance, or pure sci-fi set within the Marvel Universe it just doesn't feel right. In DC I can get horrow, sci-fi, crime drama, and good old fashioned overblown super-hero theatrics and it all feels perfectly at place.

And make no mistake about it, this is a Cop Comic in a world of Super-Heroes, not a Super-Hero comic with cops. It's a genuine look at how impotent a police department would feel with a real life urban vigilante protecting the populace better than they could ever hope to, complete with a public 'we need help' floodlight attached to the roof. These are real men and women dealing with a world often way over their heads. Michael Lark is NOT the best artist to draw someone like Mr. Freeze and make his costume look anything less than ridiculous, but I think that's kind of the point. There's something a little bit scary about just how awkward and out of place these garish costumed criminals look, and how dangerous they still are, that makes a villain like Two-Face, who's only 'costume' is a polytoned suit and severe facial disfigurement, pop even more.

And the characters are worthwhile and distinct. Like I said before, Batman has the best supporting cast in all of comics, and this book can go a long way to showing why. From the famous rogue's gallery that everyone knows, to the beat cops that suddenly come alive, to the very city herself, Gotham is teeming with character and characters. The book includes the first three storylines from the original monthly run -
-"In the Line of Duty" - the opening piece about a cop killed by one of Gotham's freaks and a grieving partner's quest to have the GCPD end it and not the Bat.
-"Motive" - A whodunnit murder mystery involving a kidnapped girl.
- and "Half a Life" - Where Renee Montoya's personal and professional lives get torn asunder by the most dangerous admirer one could imagine.

These are solid comics. Not utterly sensational or mind blowing, but well done genre pieces that fit alongside good episodic television. If you're already a fan of Batman, or like NYPD Blue, The Shield, or anything like it - give Gotham Central a look.

Top 5 rich people most likely to pull off being Batman.

Scott Maxwell, Jason Heat and I seemed to agree that of all the superheroes, Batman was reasonably the most believable because his story doesn't involve supernatural powers or aliens or anything of the sort. It got us to thinking about who in real life could reasonably actually pull off being Batman, and most importantly, why aren't they doing it.

So here you are, my Top 5 really rich people most likely to pull off being Batman:

#5 - BILL GATES. To me, Gates seems an unlikely Batman by normal personality standards. He's no ladies man, he doesn't have an intimidating figure, and his public persona is that of a nice philanthropist; very un-Batman-like. But the dude is a freakin genius, and with an incredible $58 billion to play around with, I think the 52-year-old could build a Batsuit and Batcave to withstand just about anything. "Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation" my ass. You wanna make a difference Bill? Go watch Batman Begins and get inspired.

#4 - SERGEY BRIN and LARRY PAGE. Our chance for a real Batman and Robin duo. They created Google and have a combined $37 billion in the bank. They're the perfect age - mid 30's - and are clearly very smart and business savvy. What's more, Brin is a University of Maryland alum. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing when it comes to being the dark knight and little robin, but a couple rich geniuses should be able to whip something together.


#3 - MICHAEL BLOOMBERG - What could be better than the
Mayor of Gotham being the great protector of Gotham? Almost nothing is the answer. He may be 66 years old, but he's still going strong. Bloomberg has a famous name, and an impressive $11.5 billion of self-made moolah. With money and power, I think not only could Bloomberg pull off a second identity, but should. If he really loved his city, he would. You want that third term Bloomsy? This one should win the voters over.

#2 - STEVE JOBS - The "iGod" is a modern marvel of entrepreneurship and probably the coolest tech superstar ever. No one could make Batman gadgets like Jobs could, and no one could create a cloud of mystery like this guy. This is a dude who helped start Apple, got kicked out, bought Pixar, made it amazing, sold it for $7 billion more than he bought it for, and then, and then, came back to re-kick start Apple by revolutionizing the tech industry with the Macbook, iPod and iPhone. He's a still-ripe 53 years old, and has a $5.4 billion dollar net worth. He's a success, he's a narcissistic jerk, and he's a tech genius. Maybe the only guy around who could stare the the Joker in the eye and scare him. Let's hope the iBatman is right around the corner to save the day.

#1 - RICHARD BRANSON - Of all the crazy, rich motherfuckers out there, British superstar Sir Richard Branson might be crazy enough to actually attempt being Batman, and maybe the most likely to succeed. Branson has one thing going over all the others on this list, and that's an itch for action and adventure:

In 1985 he attempted the fastest Atlantic Ocean crossing but failed when his boat capsized. Determined, like Batman, he tried again in 1986 and beat the record by two hours. In 1987 he flew across the Atlantic Ocean on the largest hot air balloon ever, and the first time it was ever attempted by balloon, reaching speeds of 130 mph... in a balloon! During the 1990's, he attempted to fly around the entire world by balloon.

That kind of adventure was just for fun though. He turned a small record business into the famous Virgin Megastores, launched airline Virgin America, and has recently moved closer to launching Virgin Galactic, a space flight airline for civilians. He's described as having a flamboyant and brash personality, and his $4.5 billion should be enough cash to cover the venture. In short, he's wild and willing to go all-out, and it wouldn't surprise me much if he tried to be a superhero.