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Spoiler: Superheroes are Silly



Hey Scott,

I don't know if you've heard the hubbub recently with screen writer David Goyer. For one, he made some disparaging remarks about She-Hulk, stating that she was created basically to give The Hulk someone to bone. Which is crazy on multiple levels (including that she's his cousin). Secondly, he said he hates the Martian Manunter because the whole concept of him is goofy. Chris Sims wrote about recently, here: http://comicsalliance.com/um-actually-man-of-steel-writer-david-goyers-remarks-on-green-porn-star-she-hulk-and-other-nasty-business/

Anyway, spinning off of the Martian Manhunter business, I was inspired to write about it on my blog. Basically? The superhero genre is and has always been inherently goofy or silly. Even Superman or Batman (he dresses up as a BAT!) are silly if you put too much thought into them. Except that's part of what makes the superhero genre so great. If you want to see me discuss the matter further, I welcome you and your readers to have a look at what I wrote:


It could create some good discussion, since I know something similar splits wrestling fans, as well. There are plenty of ridiculousness things about wrestling that we accept and many others that we hate or call WrestleCrap. Some wish wrestling was devoid of gimmicks and just focus on the wrestling. Others welcome and embrace the silliness that's always been a part of the business. The same goes for the superhero genre, I'd say.

Thanks,

Nick Piers

Well, it could be argued that John Byrne kind of fetishizes She-Hulk in his run, but that's a totally different topic.  And Red She Hulk is Betty Ross, so she literally IS someone Hulk can bone.  

Comments

  1. Shit, I pasted the same link twice. The second link is supposed to go to my blog:

    http://nickpiers.wordpress.com/2014/05/23/spoiler-superheroes-are-silly/

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  2. Apparently Goyer was taken massively out of context on the She Hulk thing. Shocking to see on the internet, I know.


    And I don't get the backlash to his MM comments. They're are plenty of characters I think are stupid and silly. We have to like every single one now?

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  3. Think the reaction is that the guy writing Wonder Woman for the big screen dares to think of women in sexualized terms.

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  4. What's the bigger sin right now? Hating Gambit or liking Gambit?

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  5. Believe it or not, my computer is Michaels and Jericho on the ladder from that match. I just changed it like two days ago lol
    I would go ***** even with the Cade bullshit.

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  6. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 12:49 PM

    Man, Superman v Batman: Dawn of Justice (I so hate this title by the way) is going to be a fucking trainwreck of epic proportions!

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  7. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 12:50 PM

    I'm a Gambit fan but I'm not in the comic book community even though I read them more than the average folk so I have no idea who I'm supposed to like or hate.

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  8. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 12:51 PM

    Well, when you think one of the main characters in the movie you are making next is stupid, that's not exactly good.

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  9. I doubt he writes Justice League, he isn't writing Batman vs Superman

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  10. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:00 PM

    He's announced as writing the screenplay for Justice League and he came up with the story for Batman V(no S) Superman.

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  11. Screw you Goyer,I enjoyed the first two Blade filme and the MOS,but you're acting like a petulant child.

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  12. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:15 PM

    Oh come on, be nice, the guy is working at neck breaking speed for us.

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  13. Gambit is like an embarrassing high school photograph - he's like a giant pile of everything that people thought looked REALLY cool at the time, but just looks dumb as hell now.

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  14. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:17 PM

    Awww, I didn't know I was supposed to hate GAmbit. Damn, nobody tells me anything!

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  15. He was re-written on BvS and JL is a long ways away, like I said I doubt he writes it.

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  16. I can't honestly say I've ever read anything with him in it - I kinda hate the X-Men in general. I like some/most of the characters, but they operate in their own little pocket of the Marvel universe where nothing makes any goddamn sense. Cyclops' father is a space pirate. I rest my case.

    But yeah, I DO think Gambit looks like a doofus.

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  17. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:24 PM

    Fair enough but I still say Dawn of Justice is going to be a trainwreck.

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  18. Oh, totally. I expected ASM2 to be a trainwreck too, and oh dear lord was it ever. I still saw it on opening day. I'm expecting Days of Future Past to be a complete mess, still seeing tonight it as soon as my brother gets off from work. Most comic fans are weird like that.

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  19. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:44 PM

    Huh, Iron Man might be in Guardians of the Galaxy, COOL

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  20. Magoonie NOT Teddy BelmontMay 23, 2014 at 1:47 PM

    Oh yeah, I know how that is, I'm a Star Wars fan as well (big shock) and I kept showing up on opening night every movie. I actually think Days of Future Past is going to be good, we'll see though. I'll probably go see it later next week.

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  21. Superheroes are goofy as shit when you take them off the comic page or cartoon cel. This is why its such an accomplishment when someone is able to make a decent film out of them. I'm still at a loss for how Christopher Nolan made Batman so serious, dark and "realistic" (as realistic as it could be, anyway). Thinking about it for more than 10 seconds usually ruins it for me.

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  22. I'm about 15 years removed from any meaningful comic book reading, but I always hated Gambit.

    So I'm either ahead of the curve, or still doing my own thing. One or the other.

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  23. My buddy and I were big Gambit fans during the cartoon run. Not sure if that counts.

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  24. The Kevin Kelly retro shows are my favorite PTB episodes. I've been waiting for the next installment for some time.

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  25. Superhero comics are silly, and at their best when they embrace it (a lot of modern comics do that, eschewing the '90s Grittiness in favour of "man, how messed up ARE our lives?"), but of course Goyer has said it in the most "Ha-ha, you people are LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSERSS!!!" way that made him an instant pariah.

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  26. what, you don't like masks that reveal both your hair AND your face?

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  27. She-Hulk was created so that they would have the rights to a female hulk.

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  28. Martian Manhunter, though, is pretty popular. As Sims pointed out, J'ohn appeared on Justice League, Smallville, and Young Justice. He's a mainstay within the League's history. True, his popularity isn't on par with household names like the rest of the League, but he's still popular among many.

    The other thing is that Goyer seems to be against most of the goofiness of superheroes. Which is ridiculous, since - as I said in my article - the genre as a whole is inherently goofy. It's better to just embrace it - like the Marvel movies have - rather than fight to make them serious, grim/dark, and "realistic."

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  29. How bad?
    - Batman and Robin trainwreck?
    - Green Lantern trainwreck?
    - Or.......so trainwreck-y that it'll be the new definition of the term? "Yeah, I know the film sucks, but at least it didn't 'Dawn of Justice'".

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  30. Which is really the whole thing about superheroes as a whole. Any kind of real scrutiny reveals how little sense a lot of it makes.

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  31. All mainstream female super heroes were created as boning fantasies.

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  32. When Gambit was huge, he had a 4 comic mini-series. I actually bought part 4, and the storyline was a big pile of "meh". Rogue being in it didn't help.

    Of course, I remember overhearing a comic book store manager talking about his solo shot with another group of mutants ("Gambit and the...X-Ternals", I believe?), and he said they barely moved off the shelves.

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  33. Jef Vinson (Homewreckers Inc™)May 23, 2014 at 2:45 PM

    Dude who created Wonder Woman had weird fetishes.

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  34. Jef Vinson (Homewreckers Inc™)May 23, 2014 at 2:46 PM

    First two Blades were fantastic.

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  35. Jef Vinson (Homewreckers Inc™)May 23, 2014 at 2:46 PM

    Gambit is good, but not good enough to have his own title.

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  36. I don't imagine a case where it reaches Batman and Robin levels of terribleness. It's definitely got high expectations because it's Batman and Superman on the same screen and it's coming off the heels of the Dark Knight trilogy. I do not envy anyone involved in that movie.

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  37. Jef Vinson (Homewreckers Inc™)May 23, 2014 at 2:47 PM

    If he ain't trying to bone Rogue the no one cares.

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  38. Jef Vinson (Homewreckers Inc™)May 23, 2014 at 2:51 PM

    I just saw the X-Men flick. They might as well call it Wolverine featuring the X Men.

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  39. People's expectations are so low that I think it will be considered a pleasant surprise if the movie is just OK. and if Ben Affleck doesn't fall on his face in every scene. And they'll still do a Justice League movie no matter how bad SvB is.

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  40. He's the CM Punk of the X-Men.

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  41. No kidding. All I can remember is a site where it showed all the instances of Wonder Woman being tied up. It was similar to the "Superdickery" site.

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  42. Just had a picture of CM Punk cosplaying as Gambit. Somehow, it fits!

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