Friday, February 11, 2005
The Tick
I am waiting in anticipation of the complete series of the Tick cartoon. This cartoon really defined superheroes for my early young adult years as here was a guy who had no idea how to be a superhero, yet went out against every villain expecting to defeat them - regardless how rediculous the villain may seem.
We get to see other superheroes (many personalities stolen from movies from 1987-1994) of others trying to do the same thing while struggling with their personal lives. The Tick seems to counter this with only one personae and that is himself just as a superhero. His sidekick Arthur falls into the same traps that the other heroes do being human in a moth suit and wanting all the things that we want in our everyday lives.
The episode that to this day I can't get out of my head is when the Tick gets his battle cry. While at the coffee shop talking with the other heroes they tell him to think of the most fearsome thing he can and use it when he charges. Well the Tick sees his own reflection in a spoon and falls backwards in surprise, so that when he charges he raises his hand, points and yells at the top of his lungs "SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"
The Tick was also continually learning as at the end of each episode he would reflect on what he learned which was completely different from what the audience learned and secretly taught us 2 lessons. 1) The lesson that was to be learned through the plot and storyline and always 2) there is many perspectives and each of us will take somethng different out of a given situation. K now to get out of the metasocial attack and just admit I liked the Tick because it was goofy and mind numbing at the same time.
SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!
We get to see other superheroes (many personalities stolen from movies from 1987-1994) of others trying to do the same thing while struggling with their personal lives. The Tick seems to counter this with only one personae and that is himself just as a superhero. His sidekick Arthur falls into the same traps that the other heroes do being human in a moth suit and wanting all the things that we want in our everyday lives.
The episode that to this day I can't get out of my head is when the Tick gets his battle cry. While at the coffee shop talking with the other heroes they tell him to think of the most fearsome thing he can and use it when he charges. Well the Tick sees his own reflection in a spoon and falls backwards in surprise, so that when he charges he raises his hand, points and yells at the top of his lungs "SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"
The Tick was also continually learning as at the end of each episode he would reflect on what he learned which was completely different from what the audience learned and secretly taught us 2 lessons. 1) The lesson that was to be learned through the plot and storyline and always 2) there is many perspectives and each of us will take somethng different out of a given situation. K now to get out of the metasocial attack and just admit I liked the Tick because it was goofy and mind numbing at the same time.
SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Superheroes and expectations
The first comic I remember having was one of the Justice League of America. Universes of heroes were together celebrating their success at protecting the world when a group of super vilans (thats the rule you can't have a super hero without his counterpart) plotted on what it would take to take out the best superheroes and put them into stasis. Eventually the rest of the superheroes would be defeated too and the world would belong to the vilains. The names were big names for their time: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Latern, Black Canary, the Flash, Firestorm, Hawkman and Atom.
As a teen I collected Spider-man, Hulk, Daredevil, Superman, Batman, X-Force, X-Men, New Warriors, and Star Wars
Since then I've moved on to other comics: The Tick, Mystery Men, Freakazoid, and heroes who can laugh at themselves. What I have learned about being a hero from all of them is that there is responsibility with whatever you have been giving, sometimes good and bad becomes the choice of better and best, it may appear easier to go at it alone - yet there is no accounting for a good friend, and as much as you may want you cannot forget your past, but only make a new future.
As a teen I collected Spider-man, Hulk, Daredevil, Superman, Batman, X-Force, X-Men, New Warriors, and Star Wars
Since then I've moved on to other comics: The Tick, Mystery Men, Freakazoid, and heroes who can laugh at themselves. What I have learned about being a hero from all of them is that there is responsibility with whatever you have been giving, sometimes good and bad becomes the choice of better and best, it may appear easier to go at it alone - yet there is no accounting for a good friend, and as much as you may want you cannot forget your past, but only make a new future.
