Superman Vs the Elite

Rate PG-13

Catholic-ometer: 4 of 5

Enjoyability: 4.5 of 5

First, a word of warning.  This film is rated PG-13 for a reason.  Do -not- show it to young children.  Apart from the violence and sexual innuendos in the film, most children just wouldn't understand the message, and would probably find it too terrifying as well; especially near the end.

The history of the development of this story doesn't really take long to explain.  Back at the end of the 90s, and the start of the new millennium, a comic book was published (oddly by DC, under the Wildstorm imprint,) called "the Authority."  The series was essentially about a group of self-centered, gang-like, deeply amoral jerks with superpowers, who nonetheless fight crime and protect the Earth, but also take it upon themselves to act as judge, jury and executioner, even over whole governments.

The series became rather popular when it was first published, and in response, in March 2001, a comic book was published (Action Comics 775,) called "What's so Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way?"  In this comic, Superman does battle with a group called "The Elite;" who are very much like the Authority in most respects.  The comic's premise refuted (I think, quite successfully,) the ethical standpoint of the "Authority" books, and reaffirmed the reasons that Superman has always had for his devotion to truth and justice.  The book sold wonderfully, though it wasn't -universally- liked, largely because there are people out there who just don't like Superman, and never will, regardless of how well he's written.

I hate to say it, but I think a fair number of people will claim to dislike the movie for this reason alone.  Some people just don't like Superman, and they want him to lose, and suffer along the way.  Needless to say, I'm not convinced by this viewpoint, and I don't think I ever will be, though I admit, some of the Superman films have made it awfully hard to like him at times.

The premise of this movie is that the Elite; (a lizard-like woman named Menagerie who can produce powerful, destructive slugs/snakes/bugs from her body, an electric-powered tough guy named Coldcast, a drunken magician named Hat, and their leader; a powerful psychic called Manchester Black,) appear and assist Superman in stopping a rampaging monster.  However, Superman doesn't trust them, because they seem to enjoy hurting people, and soon, the elite set themselves up as judge, jury and executioner, claiming to act outside of, and above, any legal body.  This, of course, leads to a conflict between them and Superman, when they begin to murder people for their crimes.  However, he has a hard time fighting them, not just because of their power, but because the world at large seems to prefer the Elite, and enjoy watching them work.

Spoilers for the next paragraph.

Superman's solution is ultimately to pretend to adopt the philosophy of the Elite, and he defeats them, one by one, in a way that looks as if he were killing them ruthlessly.  When people react to this in horror, he reminds them that they're reacting that way because murder shouldn't be used as a weapon of justice; that a better way needs to be found, and that, after all, the old Superman's philosophy was the correct one.  He then reveals that it was all a trick, and that he didn't really kill anyone.

I certainly agree with Superman that murder is not a viable moral option in solving our problems.  Even if we're under attack, if we have the chance to disable our enemies without killing them, we should take it.  Killing is moral, only in instances where you are legitimately defending someone's life, and killing is the only way to do so.  Murder, however, is never justified; even in legitimate defense.

Superman gets some good lines in this movie, about how we can't just toss morality in the garbage because it's inconvenient, and how we need to all be working, not just for the crushing of evil, but for good.  These are all important moral lessons.

Sadly, such lessons often lose much of their force in the modern world, which has rejected all of the tried and true moral lists (such as the Ten Commandments,) and if you don't have a -list- of what's moral and what isn't, how can you tell when a person is being immoral?

It could also be said that there's something not quite kosher about Superman deceiving the people of the Earth about what he was really up to.  I wouldn't go so far as to say it was -immoral,- but it's a little awkward, for someone who claims to represent truth first.

On the whole, though, I enjoyed this movie, and I thought it was much needed, in this age of amoral selfishness and moral relativism.  It's just sad to see so many people treating it as just another chess piece in the hand of their opponent, rather than actually listening to what it says.

The Adventures of Tintin, Volume 6

By Georges Prosper Remi (Hergé)

Catholic-ometer: 3.5 of 5

Enjoyability: 4.5 of 5

Tintin is one of the finest comic series that I ever had the pleasure of reading as a boy, and not long ago, a seven-volume set was published, collecting the best and most memorable works about Tintin, though a few were left out (either because of overall poor quality art and controversy, such as the first two Tintin books,) or the last books, due to not being published in the lifetime of their author, and most likely not being entirely written by him either.  If you've got the books in this collection, you've got the cream of the crop, and the best that Tintin has to offer.

The collection is hardcover, and faithfully reprints the various Tintin works in their original, full-color form, although the book itself is smaller that the original printings, meaning that at times, the text is a bit difficult to read, due to the reduction in size that everything took in the transition.  It would, I think, be very hard for children to enjoy this collection, but as a budget choice for adults who want to re-experience their favorite childhood stories, it's good option overall.

Volume 6 contains three stories, and unfortunately, they're not the best of the lot, though none is horrible.  The first; "the Calculus Affair," is easily the best.  Professor Calculus is abducted by international agents after he makes a few breakthroughs in the use of sound as a weapon, and Tintin, Captain Haddock and Snowy go off in pursuit.  Adventures and hijinks ensue, and a good time is had by all.

The second story; the Red Sea Sharks, is probably the worst story in the volume, for a couple of reasons.  First is its treatment of the black passengers on the freighter "the Ramona."  They speak very limited english, and sound very much like the Indians from Peter Pan, or like Bizarro Superman in terms of the way they talk.  I suspect that this is just because Herge himself (or the translators, perhaps,) didn't know how real people would talk if they had a limited knowledge of the language that Tintin speaks (French in the original publications,) but it does come off as kind of corny.  Because of this, they also fail to understand the Captain's initial warnings to them, and seem a bit dim, as a result.  Still, this part could have been a great deal worse, since they -do- try to defend themselves when they feel they're being attacked, and one of them saves Captain Haddock from the knife of a slave-trader.  Tintin, in turn, saves many of them from being sold as slaves, and eventually exposes the slavery ring responsible for the travesty.  It's a bit uncomfortable to read, but not nearly as bad as it could be.

The second problem with this story is all the guest-stars from previous books.  Alcazar, Abdullah, Castafiore, Allan, etc, etc...  There's a point at which the fun of seeing a familiar face becomes more of a sales hook for the previous books than an integral part of the story.  Allan's role in particular was unnecessary, and could have been played by any generic sea captain in the region.  Too often, in this one, I just didn't feel that the guest stars added anything to the story.

The final story really only had one problem, that I can see; its continual reliance on dreams/visions to drive the plot.  Tintin is alerted to the fact that his friend is alive, and in danger by a dream, and later on, a Tibetan monk experiences multiple visions that assist Tintin in his quest, complete with spontaneous levitation and everything.  It got annoying to me.

In every other respect, the third story is positively magnificent; another tale of Tintin repeatedly putting his life on the line to save his friend, and really, isn't that where all the best stories come from?  Tintin's friend Chang is a Chinese boy who crash-lands in a plane, and everyone is sure he's dead; except for Tintin himself, so off we go on more adventures!

Though I enjoyed these stories as a kid, I found myself enjoying them even more as an adult.  Tintin's world is a refreshing one, in which American cultural imperialism hasn't yet crushed the individuality of independent national identities, and in which each nation has its own unique style and culture.  I find this to be one of the most appealing aspects of the books; their appreciation for international distinctiveness.  Though I think that there should only be one -religion- in the world, I find the idea of -cultural- diversity very appealing, and apparently, so did Herge.  I just wish that people would realize the grave threat that America and its mass media poses to that cultural diversity on a global scale.

PS238 Volume 2; To the Cafeteria... For Justice!

By Aaron Williams

Catholic-ometer: 3.5 of 5

Enjoyability: 5 of 5

I recently reviewed the first volume of PS238, and all of the general points that I made there apply to this second volume as well.  It's an enjoyable comic, fun and positive; about superhero children who go to a school for superpowered beings.  The concept has been done before, but unlike other comics that have approached this (most notably several "X-men" books,) this book embraces the old-school silliness of the Silver Age, without the poor writing quality that tended to come along with it.  The stories are enchanting, entertaining and fun, and never depressing or angsty, like the aforementioned X-men books.  Characters develop and change, and stories never become too dark to be enjoyable, even when bad things do sometimes happen.  In short, it gets nearly everything right, avoids the major missteps that comic books have made over the course of comic book history, and produces quite possibly the finest series of superhero comics ever released in America.  All that, plus you can read it with kids.

Again these comics are all in black and white, and they're supposed to be that way.  Also, most of them can be found online as part of Aaron Williams' internet webcomic of the same name, though a few (such as the introductions of Malphast, Angie and the Flea,) are only found in trade form.

Five issues of PS238 are collected in this volume, beginning with issue 6, which was the one that convinced me that I was in good hands reading this comic.  In issue 6, two new characters are introduced; "American Eagle" and "USA Patriot Act."  Each has basically the same kind of MO.  They walk around in bright, flag-themed outfits, spout over-the-top, patriotic rhetoric at every chance they get, and constantly fight with one another.  They're apparently being groomed by our nation's political parties, to replace another patriotic-themed superhero when he dies/retires.

This kind of premise sounds like a recipe for disaster, or might even threaten to turn PS238 into a politically-charged book, but to my amazement, Williams avoided doing this, showing both clever writing skills and greater maturity than most modern "entertainers."  Politics shouldn't be about who's on whose side.  It should be about the issues, and all of this so-called "comedy" that you see about politics in recent years has really done nothing but decrease the human ability to reason, while increasing faction-based devotion (which has no intellectual basis at all.)  I don't know if this was Williams' reason for framing the book as he did, but even after reading it several times, I'm still not entirely sure which party was supporting which Jr. Patriotic hero.  At one point, they say their favorite colors; blue and red, which might be a clue, but it's not overt enough to mean anything, and maybe it's better that way.  The political reality that this comic points to is simply that America is incredibly divided right now, while still doing its best to keep up appearances.  Any person of either party can look at this, and get some laughs, and by shifting the focus onto truly nonpartisan political humor, Williams showed that his interest was -entertainment,- not some ulterior motive of his own.  I think that's the reason why I loved issue 6 so much, and why I felt so safe in the hands of PS238 after reading it.

Issue 7 tells the story of Mister Extraordinary; the world's first superhero in the PS238 universe, and the problems that he and his family faced as a result of his powers.  In some ways, it's a tragic story, but Williams makes it work magnificently by focusing, not on the tragedy, but on the good that comes about in spite of the tragedy, and on the foiling of the plans of evildoers, which, in my view, is the best he could have done with a story like this one.  You don't feel depressed when you put it down, and really, that already makes it superior to the tragic tales told by other comic companies.

Issue 8 talks about the history of Project Rainmaker; the branch of the school that teaches those with non-combat-oriented powers, though many of them, I'm convinced, could be truly devastating if they put their minds to it.  Apparently, it was once a controversial government program, to try to learn the secrets of superpowers.  This is another tragic tale, after a fashion, but again, it's exciting, and a lot of fun to read.  I was very pleased with how it was handled.

In issue 9, "The Revenant" (a sort of Batman parody,) takes Tyler under his wing, and tries to teach him a little about how to fight crime without any special powers.  This one is just pure fun, though we see that Tyler is looking for more information on his teachers.

Finally, issue 10, in which Tyler, Angie and the alien Prospero are given a science project involving silly putty; a project that takes them back into outer space, and into deadly peril.  This issue is high-flying adventure at its finest.

Although no major story arcs are ended in Volume 2, a couple are started, and several new characters introduced.  The overall result is a volume that, by itself, is part-introduction, part-setup, part self-contained storylines, and just good, clean fun all along the way.  As fun, entertaining, secular comic books go, this is the measuring stick.  I loved it, and I hope you will too.

PS238 Volume 1; With Liberty and Recess For All

By Aaron Williams

Catholic-ometer: 3.5 of 5

Enjoyability: 5 of 5

The history of comic books can be traced in terms of "ages."  In the Golden Age, we saw the debuts of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the Justice Society, as well as a number of others.

In the Silver Age, a lot of the old superheroes were revamped with sci-fi and fantasy origins and truly bizarre storylines, which would have been perfect fun, if not for the generally-poor writing quality of the time.  When Spider-man's girlfriend; Gwen Stacy died, so did the Silver Age, unfortunately.

The Silver Age was followed by the Bronze Age, in which superhero comics did everything they could to address the key issues of the time.  Darker and grimmer storylines also tended to pop up every now and then until "The Dark Knight Returns" and "Watchmen" were published, and became intensely popular.  Unfortunately, rather than learning the lesson that well-written stories sell, publishers made the mistake of thinking that "dark storylines are popular now."

Thus was born the Dark Age of comics, in which all stories were either dark, grim and depressing, or a prelude to something that was.  It could be argued that this age has never really ended, since even in the modern age of comic books, writers and editors aren't shy about killing off characters for no reason, and writing mega-crossover storylines in which tons of characters die.

Each age of comics really seemed to make some serious mistakes.  The golden age had licensing problems, the silver age was badly-written, the bronze age more concerned with "relevance" than enjoyable storytelling, the dark age was -way- too dark, and certainly not something you can share with kids, and in the modern age, comic books are a mish-mash of all of these mistakes, plus the added problem that many writers and editors try to use them as a vehicle for their incorrect views of moral and political issues.

The reason why I bring all of this up is that in my time reading comics from various companies and various nations, only a few comic books ever managed to avoid making -any- of these mistakes, and only one of them was written and published in America; PS238.

PS238 began as a webcomic, and it can still be found online, if you need a sample to get you interested.  Basically, a group of kids with superpowers go to a school for superpowered children, and have adventures.  However, this is only the very basic premise.  It excels in many other areas.

For one thing, the children in this book act like real children.  They're not miniature adults, like Harry Potter, or parodies of children, like Bart Simpson.  If real kids had superpowers, they'd act a lot like this.

Secondly, the comic is enjoyable and positive, not unlike the Silver Age comics published long ago, and contains many bizarre storylines as well.  However, unlike those comics, it's also exceptionally well-written, and humorous.

The characters develop, not unlike manga characters.  They don't always remain exactly the same.  Tyler and Ron, for example, have been developing continually over the course of the comic, and Guardian Angel has also undergone plenty of growth since the comic began, though you may not see much of this in the early issues, where everyone is still being introduced.

What amazes me is how, even when the comic gets serious, and addresses tragic situations, which happened in the past, or are happening in the present, it never does so in a negative manner, and the reader is always left feeling that, in the end, things really didn't turn out so bad, even when they did.  Williams never -dwells- on tragic occurrences, even when he does narrate them, and I think that may be what makes his work so much superior to the typical fare from Marvel, or even DC these days.

However, the thing that will, I think, draw readers to this comic most is the simple fact that it's something that kids can read.  For the longest time, comic books have been struggling so hard to subvert the silver age, that they've become antisocial, mean-spirited, grim, and even immoral.  They contain not-infrequent cursing, blood and over-the-top violence, and even overt sex!  PS238 is none of these things.  It revels in the crisp, clean world of those old, superhero comics, then just writes the stories better, and has fun with them.

That's the long and short of it, really.  PS238 isn't just family-friendly.  It's -fun.-  It won't make you angst, like the X-men.  It won't make you upset, like a big, company crossover.  It won't make you feel hopeless, like so many comics nowadays do.  It's fun, and after all, isn't that the reason why comics were created to begin with?

These comics are all in black and white.  That's how they were drawn, and it's how they're being represented.  Also, most of the comics in these collected volumes are also available online as part of the webcomic.  I say -most,- because there are some special segments in these volumes, such as Miss Kyle's preparations for super-powered teachers, which are only present in collected form.  You won't miss much by reading the webcomic, but if you want the whole thing, this is the way to get it.  Besides, it's not so easy to read to your nieces off the internet.

This volume covers 6 issues of PS238; Issue 0 (a montage of character introductions and other preparations for the world of PS238,) Issue 1 (in which Ron, also known as Captain Clarinet, must do battle with his fear of flying,) Issue 2 (in which an alien child lands at PS238, and must find a way to integrate with the rest of the class,) Issue 3 (introducing Tyler; the main character of the comic, and the only student at PS238 who lacks any kind of special powers or technology,) Issue 4 (in which the students are stranded on the moon,) and Issue 5 (in which Tyler and some of the others decide to investigate the secret depths of their school, and find themselves pursued by what seems to be a ghost!)  All of these stories are delightful and fun.

There are, of course, magical characters in this story, but that's to be expected from a comic about all kinds of superheroes.  Because of this, I'm giving the first volume of PS238 the best grade that I ever give to anything that isn't overtly religious, and I fully expect to give its many follow-up volumes the same grade.  It's been a long time since we got to see superheroes having fun and fighting evil at the same time, and believe me; it's refreshing to see it again.

TTSNBSIM 3: "Let's Have a Round of Applause For Person X"

TTSNBSIM (Things That Should Never Be Said In Mass)

#3: "Let's Have a Round of Applause For Person X"

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This series is on the subject of things that I've heard said at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which should, in reality, never be said there.  Often, it's because these things are incorrect, but occasionally, it's simply because the remark, as stated, is not explained well enough, and will inevitably be misinterpreted.  In the latter case, the post will also contain an explanation of why this is, as well as proposed -alternatives,- which make the intended statement a bit more clear.

This one, however, is a bit harder to categorize, because it's not a matter of it being true or false.  It's just not appropriate.  To understand why, it's important to know just what goes on at the Mass.

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You see, at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Saints and Angels are all around invisibly, worshiping God.  The Holy Trinity and the Blessed Mother are present at each Mass, even though we can't see them, and perhaps most importantly, Jesus is made present there -physically- in the Holy Eucharist.  Every living person in the church is moved back through time, to the specific time and place of the crucifixion of Jesus, and while the sacrifice is taking place, Jesus is right there, being crucified.

Now, suppose you were the priest in such a position.  You're either looking directly at Jesus, or you're facing away from him (as many priests do in modern times.)  Jesus is hanging there on the cross, being mocked by the pharisees, guards, criminals and other passers-by, crowned with thorns, hands and feet impaled with nails, and his whole body covered with wounds caused by jagged bone fragments that were driven across his skin over and over by a leather whip during the scourging.

Really?  Is this really the best time and place to be applauding the performance of a human being, regardless of what they've done to deserve it?

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If you have an active parish life, and the laity is active in it, there will be times and places to announce congratulations to Marge for her work on the parish bake sale.  Perhaps even before, or after Mass would be acceptable, but not during, and certainly not right in the middle.  Some things are just more important than that.

TTSNBSIM 2: "Only Love Matters"

TTSNBSIM (Things That Should Never Be Said In Mass)

#2: "Only Love Matters"

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This series is on the subject of things that I've heard said at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which should, in reality, never be said there.  Often, it's because these things are incorrect, but occasionally, it's because the remark, as stated, is simply not explained well enough, and will inevitably be misinterpreted.  In the latter case, the post will also contain an explanation of why this is, as well as proposed -alternatives,- which make the intended statement a bit more clear.

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Here, we have a statement regarding love, and I just have to say, I think it's about time that Christians in general (and Catholics in particular) just gave up on the English word "love."  Why?  Because the word no longer means anything.  This one word can be used to mean any of the following.

1. Sex, or even anonymous, uncommitted sex.
2. Sexual attraction, as in the phrase "he loved her from the moment he first saw her."
3. The various methods and behaviors classified as "romance."
4. A state of being predisposed to romantic feelings and inclinations towards someone, as in the phrase "you can tell he's in love, even when she's not around."
5. A strong liking for something.  For example, when I say "I love popcorn," or "I love root beer."
6. Deep affection for a child or dependent.
7. Deep affection for a spouse or significant other.

Here's the problem.  When Jesus used the word "agape," and when the Church uses the word "caritas," none of these definitions is implied, intended or necessary.  The definition that we mean is...

8. A self-sacrificing behavior, done on behalf of someone else.

The "agape" of Jesus is not some selfish, romantic attraction, nor is it some petty, temporary affection for a person, rooted, most often, in a simple, good mood.  It's the rock solid commitment to give of oneself for the sake of others, and this is the same "agape," which God showed in creating the universe, even though he didn't need to.

Any statement about love is going to be a dangerous and easily-misinterpreted statement, for this reason alone; the word means something different to each person, and therefore means nothing.

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However, even if you've been taught the true meaning of "agape," the statement "Only Love Matters," is still false.  There is something else that matters; the truth.

A person may, for example, fully intend to sacrifice for someone else, and fully attempt to do so, but in his attempt, if he doesn't know the truth about how to help them, he may still do evil without realizing it.

For example; assisted suicide.  Assisted suicide derives all of its force, in the current culture, from the desire to help someone else not suffer so much.  If you sacrifice to get someone an assisted suicide, this might be considered agape; a self-sacrificing behavior, done on behalf of someone else.  However, because you don't know the truth, that assisted suicide is not helping them, the resulting action is evil, regardless of what you happen to think of it.

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Because the statement "only love matters" is false, there simply is no proper way to say it at Mass.  However, one might easily repeat the statement of Pope Benedict XVI on the subject.

"Only in truth does charity shine forth, only in truth can charity be authentically lived."
Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate," Section 3, Sentence 2.

TTSNBSIM 1: "Jesus Wants to Remain With us in Spirit"

TTSNBSIM (Things That Should Never Be Said In Mass)

#1: "Jesus Wants to Remain With us in Spirit"

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This is a new series I'm planning on the subject of things that I've heard said at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which should, in reality, never be said there.  Often, it's because these things are incorrect, but occasionally, it's because the remark, as stated, is just not explained well enough, and will inevitably be misinterpreted.  In the latter case, the post will also contain an explanation of why this is, as well as proposed -alternatives,- which make the intended statement a bit more clear.

In this case, we have something which is not incorrect.  Jesus -does- want to remain with us in Spirit.  This language, however, is misleading in three ways.

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1. Without further explanation, it seems to imply that "remaining with us in spirit" is rather like "being remembered" or perhaps "watching from far off," or even "thinking about us fondly."  This is the way the culture currently understands the term.  Too often, I've heard a living, human being say to another, living human being "I'll be with you in spirit."

To be with someone in spirit means that your spirit is actually with them, and this can't be done while our spirits remain in our bodies.  It's something the dead can do, and angels, and God, but it's not something that a living person can do, without some special grace or miracle.

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2. Even if you understand the term properly, to mean "Jesus wants his Spirit to be with us," most people would assume that this just means that Jesus is always spiritually nearby and watching.  However, the Spirit of God is a separate person of the Holy Trinity; namely, the Holy Spirit.  When we speak of the Spirit of Jesus, or the Spirit of God being with us, this means -exactly- the same thing as "the Holy Spirit was with us."  So, why not just -say- "the Holy Spirit?"

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3. Perhaps most gravely, saying that Jesus wants to be with us "in spirit" seems to imply that he doesn't want to be with us in other ways.  As Catholics, we know that this is not the case.  Jesus wants to be with us; not just spiritually, but -physically,- in the Holy Eucharist.  This is one of the worst implications that one could make at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, since it's there that the Eucharist Himself is consecrated.

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Therefore, instead of "Jesus wants to remain with us in spirit," it would be better, at Mass, to say one of the following things...

"Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit, so that he could always be with us."

"Jesus wants to be with us, both physically -and- spiritually."

"Jesus wants to be with us -fully.-"

All of these are correct as well, and each is harder to misinterpret.