In terms of pop culture, I know I am definitely going to be in the minority on this. But the growing popularity of super heroes, especially among adults, is troubling to me.
Aside from the fact that, without exception, you will find that super heroes uniformly align themselves with state power and law enforcement (something disquieting in its own right); there is something psychologically insidious about grown-ups becoming enamoured with god-like super beings whose adventures always portray humans as essentially bumbling, inadequate, and helpless. It is really reminiscent of Greek and Roman and Hindu mythology.
I can’t divorce this growing infatuation from the social, economic, and political reality in which it is taking place. We, the masses, are marginalised, and the elite classes DO wield overwhelming power. The billionaire class, like super heroes, align themselves with state power, while nevertheless, operating outside its authority. They have become, basically, mythic, and we have become bystanders to their dramas.
They have powers that are entirely unobtainable for us, as much as if they had been bitten by radioactive bugs, or been born as superhumanly endowed mutants, or had come to Earth from Krypton. The super rich are another species; a superior, indeed, a supreme species. And we are all just the rabble being either rescued or blown to pieces in their stories.
It seems to me that super hero movies, TV programs, graphic novels, and video games, all serve to subtly indoctrinate us to accept the prevailing class structure.
So yeah, to hell with super heroes.
