Superman vs. Time

In the last century two new art forms- videogames and comic books- emerged, and major companies based around these mediums sprang up including DC, Marvel, and Nintendo; supported by passionate creators, numerous innovative characters were created, and the public quickly fell in love with them. However, decades after establishing themselves and their main properties, all three of these companies have come to rely on these older characters. Resulting from using these characters for decades, is a substantial quantity of lore and innovations at best or stagnation at worst.

             At best you end up with games like Super Mario Sunshine, or comics like Superman: What’s so Funny about Truth, Justice, and the American Way. Both incredibly enjoyable examples of their respective mediums went above and beyond the simple format they’re famous for; Superman wasn’t simply saving Lois Lane or punching Lex Luthor, and Mario wasn’t just rescuing Princess Peach and jumping on Bowser. Instead both men are tasked with a more personal mission. Superman must justify his non killing methods in a world with an increasing number of anti-heroes while Mario must prove he’s innocent of the crimes he’s been framed for by a mysterious look alike. Breaking from the formula they’re known for both stories step into new waters as they explore new concepts.

            As previously stated What’s So Funny about Truth, Justice, and The American Way looks at the methodology of Superman. Challenged by the methods of a new group of anti-heroes called the Elite in a world that has grown up from the more idealistic world of decades past, the decades Superman grew up and thrived in, the story questions through this challenge of ideals if Superman is a dated idea in today’s world and if we’re allowed to have such black and white morality. By examining his non-lethal methods, the story uses decades of Superman mythos to create a new insightful story that looks not just at the character’s history but how we have grown as a society; it looks at how society’s views of justice has changed by contrasting the methodology of the old- Superman- with the methods of the new- the Elite. Thus, not only does What’s So Funny build upon decades of Superman lore and expand upon it with new themes and characters, but also provides an insightful story.

Meanwhile Super Mario Sunshine although not as in depth story wise, also explores Mario’s mythos and expands upon the established world in a refreshing and enjoyable way. Sunshine’s major improvement out shine previous games primarily due to a change of scenery and the implementation of FLUDD. Delfino plaza isn’t simply a fresh breath of air from the familiar environment of Mushroom kingdom, but an immensely enjoyable and massive playground filled with secrets. Furthermore, the addition of FLUDD adds to Mario’s formula without drastically changing it; Mario still run, jumps, and ground pounds enemies into submission but now he can jump higher and hover, knock back enemies, and solve puzzles all thanks to FLUDD. As a result gameplay is kept the same at its core, but expanded upon in a fun and creative way. Hence, it would seem that Sunshine primarily adds just a new location and gameplay. However, it also expands upon the relationship between Bowser Jr. and Princess Peach, and by extension Bowser’s relationship with Peach. The creation of Bowser Jr., not only adds a new villain but brings into question the numerous of kidnappings central to Mario lore.

            But What’s So Funny about Truth, Justice, and the American Way and Super Mario Sunshine are what happens at the best of times.

            At the worst of times you get stagnation. Stagnation leads to simpler games and stories. Knowing that the formula of Mario merely running and jumping his way to Bowser’s castle or Superman saving Lois from the maniacal hands of the monthly villain will sell, companies willingly produce simple games and comics unwilling to be innovative. These moments of stagnation where nothing is changed aren’t by themselves a recipe for disaster; stagnation simply leads to blandness. Failing to add anything new after numerous installments or issues like the New Super Mario Bros. series ranging from, Wii to 2 to Wiiu or the New 52 Superman series- both of which add nothing creative to their basic formula- is starting to become a more common trend. Games like Super Mario Galaxy and comics like New 52 Wonder Woman deny this trend of stagnation; however, there is undeniable lack of development.

This is where the similarities between DC and Nintendo ultimately. DC unable could deny the stagnation that’d begun in their own company, decided to reboot most of their comic titles as part of what they call the New 52, an act Nintendo can’t and shouldn’t do. The New 52had the right idea in mind; DC wanted to tell new stories- 52 new stories, which leads to the name New 52- yet the execution has been lackluster. Rather than telling new and exciting stories the new 52 simply retells DC’s older stories with only slight twist; the lore that made stories like What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way so interesting is thrown away, and thus part of what made many modern comics so interesting has been lost. Therefore the New 52 would theoretically be great for new readers who haven’t heard these stories before, yet DC’s executives have created a hostile working environment that has driven away most of the better writers and artists leaving only the most dedicated or flexible of staff, and unfortunately a slew of writers who simply can’t write cohesive and interesting stories. Thus the New 52 would be great for new readers if it wasn’t for the most part written averagely.

Ultimately the new 52 has its gems; titles like Wonder Woman which has both a dedicated and skilled writing team who use the reboot to its fullest to establish the title’s heroine in an innovative and fascinating way. It embodies what the New 52 set out to do; it denies the trend of stagnation. But just like real gems, great titles are hard to find, and perhaps that’s due to what the creative teams have become. Modern comic writers who writer for Marvel or DC are essentially fan boys writing fan fiction. Having grown up loving these comic character, they now write the stories they’ve always wanted to. Geoff Johns is a perfect example of this. When Johns was younger he read comics and even sent in letter’s to DC about the comics he loved; one such letter contains his theory about the identity of Superboy who he bet was a clone of Lex Luthor and Superman; much to young Johns’ dismay his theory wasn’t true. Skip to years later once he has a job writing for DC; Johns changes Superboys origin to fit his fan theory from when he was a boy. He made his fan fiction a reality. That’s what he does for a living; he writes fan fiction. Truth be told he writes really good fan fiction, but that’s everyone’s job at DC. They’re all writing fan fiction. That’s where the problem lies; these writers who grew up loving these characters want them to be same characters the writers grew up with. Johns not only changed Superboy’s origin to fit his childhood belief, but also excused Green Lantern of murder by blaming Green Lantern’s actions on being possessed by a cosmic entity we’d never seen or heard of before; such changes were made simply due to John’s inability to let a character he grew up with no longer be a hero. He wouldn’t allow for change. DC and Marvel can’t change and thus will remain stagnant due to their writer’s unwillingness to allow it.

However, comics published by companies other than DC and Marvel are far from stagnant. Unfortunately over looked by most people, the comics produced by numerous smaller publishers including Dark Horse and Image are some of the best comics released by the industry. The writers and artist are less limited by executive meddling allowing for innovative art forms and stories in which anything can happen. The obvious example of an indie comic with unlimited story potential is the Walking Dead where any of the main cast could die at a moment’s notice. But it isn’t the only example. Hellboy, Chew, Manhattan Projects, Saga, and Mind MGMT contain some of the most interesting and memorable stories to come from the comic industry in recent years. These indie titles include everything from a Lovecraftian world of supernatural delight to a comical yet intriguing detective story to a reinterpretation of history’s greatest scientist to a gorgeous love story spanning across the galaxy. These aren’t just super heroes stories. They’re far more diverse. They’re far less limited. They’re not stagnant.