LizzieMaine
Bartender
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I've often wondered about that. I don't watch superhero films by choice and have never bought a comic book so I'm out of that subculture but I am curious why this material is popular. I've seen a few superhero films, The Dark Knight and Iron Man and one or two others and I just found them heavy handed and lacking substance. Not terrible, but far from enjoyable to my taste. I find it very difficult to stay awake during special effects sequences since they are so implausible and bombastic. Maybe I lack the gene that allows me to suspend disbelief.
I read comics as a kid, in the days when "Hey Kids! Comics!" and spinner racks at the drug store were still a thing, but it wasn't so much for the fantasy element as it was an interest in figuring out how it was done -- I think comics were probably the first medium I learned to look at analytically rather than simply going along with the flow, and I look at comic book movies the same way. There was very little actual characterization in the comics I read growing up -- but that was the part that actually interested me the most. What, exactly, might possess a man born into wealth and privilege to dress up like a giant flying rodent and go after another man obsessed with the imagery of a circus clown, flightless waterfowl, or the number two?
The whole worldview of comics was so exaggerated and ridiculous that it couldn't bear being taken seriously, but still -- taking it as it was given, there had to be a reason why these characters did these things. The better comics creators understood this and tried to give their characters believable motives at least within the context of the story -- and I think that's still the key to making any superhero, science fiction, or fantasy story work. If the characters have believable motives, and react to situations in a recognizable, understandable way based on those motives, the rest of the bombast and nonsense doesn't really matter.
That's the main reason I don't care for "campy" takes on superhero stories. If the writer doesn't respect the characters and their motives enough to present them sincerely, why should I?