The Comics Professor

My thoughts on Avengers: Endgame (Spoilers clearly marked)

Well that was something!

After rewatching Avengers: Infinity War Thursday night, I saw Avengers: Endgame Friday morning by myself—well, me and the hundred other people in the sold-out small theater, but you knew what I meant—and then again with my kids in a much larger (but still sold out) IMAX theater. I grouse a lot about the modern movie experience, what with the ubiquitous cellphones and incessant chattering, and I've been going to the movies less and less the last several years because of it, but this was an occasion that demanded and justified the full social experience. The Friday audience was quiet, applauding only at the end of the movie, but the Saturday crowd was into it, cheering at every character introduction and revelation throughout the entire film. As many comic book fans of a certain age have noted, we were ostracized for our hobby as kids (and perhaps even more so as adults), so it's immensely gratifying to arrive in the year 2019 where we can sit in a theater with several hundred people, only a fraction of whom have likely every read a comic book, and cheer together to the exploits of the heroes of our childhood (and adulthood).

What about the movie itself? Again, I'm afraid I don't have much to say that probably hasn't already been said, and if you're looking for dispassionate criticism and analysis, look elsewhere my friend. I'm writing as an unabashed fan here.

Avengers: Endgame is a magnificent film, filling every last one of its 181 minutes without a lull, with excellent pacing and balance between its many subplots and storylines, and hitting every last emotional note it needed to. I'm frankly astonished at the magnitude of this movie and how well it put a bow on the unprecedented 22-film story that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe—so well, in fact, that I had a distinct feeling of loss at the end, not just for any events in the film itself, but for this initial stage of the franchise itself.

There isn't much more I can say without giving away story details, so this is where I warn...

THERE BE SPOILERS AFTER THIS GLORIOUS GIF OF GONEMMENEMMENEMMENON!

(Did you remember that he said that in Infinity War? I have to admit I did not, until I rewatched it Thursday night, after which I felt really stupid for forgetting it. Of course you remembered it, because you're all very smart.)

Here are my thoughts, with varying significance and coherence, starting with the six original Avengers themselves.

Captain America. As you might guess, my favorite moments were those centered on Captain America, who received a fantastic send-off. Before he "retired," he managed to poke a little fun at his catchphrase "I can do this all day" as well as his fan-favorite rear end, and also wield the mighty Mjolnir (as he has several times in the comics), which brought perhaps the loudest round of cheers in the Saturday showing. (And I have to wonder how much Nick Spencer paid the Russos to have Cap say those two little words. They used it well, but geez guys, give us some warning next time!)

Most interesting, compared to the comics, was that Cap retired at all. A constant theme, which I highlight often at my The Virtues of Captain America blog as well as the book of the same name, is that he continually feels the contrasting pulls of duty and love (or "mission" versus "life") and reliably picks the former. As much as he feels he's done enough and deserves happiness, he always returns to the shield, without fail. Of course, given the realities of comic book publishing where established characters rarely change too much, this is understandable, but Evans's retirement gave the filmmakers the opportunity to have their Cap make the other choice—while leaving a world with a very capable successor in Sam Wilson. (This makes me wonder if the announced Disney streaming series featuring Falcon and the Winter Soldier was just a ruse, or if it was always meant to be about Sam as Cap and Bucky helping him.)

Iron Man. Despite the tremendous moments that Cap had in this film, the emotional center was definitely Tony Stark, which was appropriate given that it was Iron Man, as played by Robert Downey Jr., that got this entire party started in 2008. For the same reason, it made sense that he would die while dealing Thanos the final blow (or snap). (I like to think that, as he usually does in the comics, he uploaded a version of his consciousness into a computer so he can be the AI in a successor's armor, whether that successor is Pepper, which is doubtful, or someone like Riri Williams, Ironheart from the comics, who did have an AI version of Tony in her helmet for a while.)

Speaking of Pepper, it was amazing to see her in the armor, even if (as I suspect) just for this one time. We all knew it was coming after the earlier scene with little Morgan, but to actually see it... that elicited another huge cheer from the Saturday crowd (as did the collection of the MCU's incredible collection of female heroes protecting Peter and the gauntlet at the end). And seeing her fighting back-to-back with Tony... that, together with the stakes of the situation, made me forgive the fact that, as Rescue in the comics, Pepper's armor had no weaponry.

(And Tony's final words to his daughter, "I love you three thousand"... I'm tearing up again as I type it.)

Black Widow and Hawkeye. Black Widow made the ultimate sacrifice, of course, to Hawkeye's objections. (I'm sure he felt he should be the one to die, given the fact that he had racked up quite a few murders in the preceding five years, but would good ol' Frank have done the same thing?) But, I suspect she will be back, depending on how Cap "returned" the Soul Stone in his reverse-time-heist before getting hitched and living out his days as Married Old Man Steve. If the goal was to restore the original timelines, did he just give the stone back to the Red Skull—I really want to see that conversation—or did he just prevent Nat from sacrificing herself in the first place? And if he gave it back, could he somehow have saved Nat? (If only Evans didn't want to retire, I would ask for a streaming series on Cap's trips in the past to restore the Stones. Hear that, Feige?)

The Hulk. The newly chill Hulk was wonderful (calling back to Bruce's efforts at maintaining inner peace when Nat found him the first Avengers movie), especially with the kids who wanted their picture with him, with Scott when he saw he'd lost his taco, and especially when revisiting the Battle of New York and having to fake his old raging self. It also made his sadness and grief more apparent after losing Natasha, when he did show his anger a little more.

Thor. And of course, "the Odinson abides." This was the one part I think they took a little too far, though it provided some great laughs, especially with Rocket (who would imagined those two would make such a great pair, in both Infinity War and Engame), and a touching moment with his mother. I was sorry we didn't see him interact with Jane, though, which leads to my next comment...

Playing with time. What better way to pay tribute to the entire 22-film series than revisit some key scenes from the earlier films to the process of finding the Infinity Stones in the past? That was simply brilliant. Both times I saw it I tried to figure out which scenes which pulled from the earlier films, such as the famous shot of the six Avengers standing back-to-back in a circle during the Battle of New York, and which ones were new, such as the elevator scene in New York (calling back to Captain America: Winter Soldier even though it was set during Avengers) and the subsequent lobby scene with Alexander Pierce (also from Winter Soldier), which featured a key move from Loki (who managed to play an integral role despite dying early in Infinity War). I have to assume the quick shot of Jane Foster was old and Natalie Portman didn't shoot any new footage—otherwise, I think someone would have interacted with her. What's more, I found it very clever of the Russos to use the time travel device (plot device, that is) to bring in the Ancient One as well as the younger Howard Stark, Jarvis, and best of all, Peggy Carter.

There's so much more I could mention, such as the emotional reunion of Peter Parker with Tony Stark, the return of the Wakandans, Valkyrie on her magnificent flying steed, Janet van Dyne (!) at the end, and Captain Marvel's limited but effective role (my favorite scene of hers being when she met Peter, showing that she doesn't have to be fierce all the time). My one complaint: I wish they would have done more to show the return of half the life in the universe than Clint getting a call from his wife and Scott seeing more birds outside. I realize the movie was long enough as it is, but just a 30-second montage of people hugging returned loved ones around the world (and on other words) would have been nice to show the enormity of what our heroes accomplished (before Thanos arrived and blowed them up but good).

That ending. The funeral scene, with the slow pan over the entire cast of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was poignant in its intimacy as well as breathtaking in its scope, showing the scale of that universe with all the sub-franchises contained in it, and everyone paying tribute to the hero that started it all. as well as, I like to think, the actor—very much still alive—that played him so well.

That other ending. Even though, in spirit, the series began and ended with Tony Stark, as a Cap fan I appreciated that the final shot of the film showed Steve and Peggy dancing (I assume in the late 1940s), picking up not long after where they left off when Cap made the ultimate sacrifice himself in his first film. That gave the movie, which was incredibly heavy emotionally, an optimistic conclusion, showing that true love and lasting happiness is indeed possible... if you have Pym particles and a time machine. (If anyone knows where I can get these things, let me know!)

That other other ending. The cast credits, ending with tributes to the six that started it all, really drove home that this is the end of an era, even if it is also the beginning of a new one. It really hit me, especially on my second viewing, that this was the last time we'll see some of these characters on the big screen, and what they, along with everyone else involved in these films, have accomplished. Twenty-two interlinking movies in twelve years, most of them standing fairly well on their own and each mini-franchise possessing its own unique aesthetic, but all feeding to a large narrative... just like the Marvel Universe of the comics.

And that, perhaps more than even the faithful renditions of the characters and the Easter eggs for the diehards, is what makes the MCU gratifying to comics fans: The movies feel like the comics. With both, we can revel in the continuity of the large-scale narrative at the same time that we appreciate each individual story, scene, and line. Not all of the movies need to be equally good, and you don't have to like every character as much as your favorites, but you can still enjoy most if not all of the movies on their own and the series as a whole. (For my part, I regard all 22 movies as at least good, with most of them very good and a few of them excellent.)

What's even better than that? As I mentioned at the beginning, my childhood obsession is now a cultural phenomenon. And when an entire large theater erupts in cheers, five minutes into the movie, at the first appearance of Captain Marvel—a character introduced into the mainstream consciousness in her first movie just a few months ago—you know that something amazing has happened. I'm thrilled to have been there to experience it... and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Batman and Ethics — my new book coming next spring!

The news is out! As announced in the "Batman's Brain" panel at San Diego Comic-Con and in an interview with CGTN America, the superhero-and-philosophy book I've been teasing for the last few months is titled Batman and Ethics and will be published by Wiley Blackwell next spring!

Following the same approach I used in The Virtues of Captain America, Batman and Ethics breaks down the Dark Knight's moral code by looking at his actions and words over four decades of comics, from the early 1970s to 2011. By restricting myself to a period of (only) the comics in which I believe the character was portrayed fairly consistently, starting with Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams' legendary work and ending just before the New 52 relaunch, I try to show that Batman's moral behavior shows a deeply conflicted hero, one who tries to save lives and serve justice in several different ways but has trouble finding an acceptable balance between them—or even within any one goal. Instead, his actions and words reflect a mix of utilitarianism and deontology (with just a touch of virtue ethics) that reveals the value of each while demonstrating how difficult it is to pursue them at the same time.

The first half of the book covers the nature of his mission while the second half discusses what he will do—and will not do—to further it. In the process, I talk about issues such as:

1) Why does Batman refuse to kill even his most murderous villains even though that would contribute significantly to his self-professed goal of saving lives? (I discussed this in the first chapter of my 2008 co-edited book Batman and Philosophy, but I go much deeper into it here, including an extended ride on everyone's favorite trolley!)

2) How does Batman reconcile his widespread use of violence and torture with his mission—especially given that he often wields these tools against people who are not even suspected of committing crimes—and how do these actions compare with killing, which he refuses to do?

3) How does Batman choose which crimes to investigate or which criminals to pursue, and why does he give some a pass (such as a certain feline foe of whom he's famously fond)?

4) How can we explain Batman's often tenuous relationship with the Gotham City Police Department and his close friendship with Commissioner James Gordon—and how does all of this affect the pursuit and conduct of criminal justice in Gotham overall?

5) Why does Batman continue to train young boys to be his sidekicks when even he admits it's... problematic?

6) Is being Batman the best way Bruce Wayne can serve his mission of saving Gotham—and even if not, is it within his rights to do so? (And speaking of which, is it OK that he focuses so much on Gotham to the exclusion of the rest of the world?)

7) More generally, is Batman of value—to Gotham, to the world, and to Wayne himself?

Do these tough challenges suggest that Batman is any less of a hero or a good person? Not at all! If anything, it shows that he tries too hard to do too much along too many dimensions, setting himself up for failure to succeed at any one of them. But that's part of what makes Batman a fascinating character: he pushes himself harder than anyone can, holds himself to impossible standards, and beats himself up when he fails to live up to them.

It's also part of what him relatable, because most of us are morally conflicted in the same way. We all want to do what's good and we also want to do what's right, but we don't always have a clear idea what either of those means, much less how to settle conflicts between them. By looking at Batman's moral inconsistency, then, we might get a better picture of our own, and see how we might work on improving it.

Watch this space for more news about Batman and Ethics as the release date approaches!

Ta-Nehisi Coates and Leinil Francis Yu's Captain America #1: A great start that hits all the right notes, some of them new.

Marvel Comics nicely timed the release of the latest Captain America #1—by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Leinil Francis Yu, Gerry Alanguilan, Sunny Gho, and Joe Caramagna—for July 4th, and this is appropriate for so many reasons. The most obvious is that this is a new start for the Sentinel of Liberty, but it also fits the state he's in, struggling to reclaim the trust he lost during the entire Secret Empire episode when a version of Cap, altered by a sentient Cosmic Cube to believe himself to be a lifelong undercover Hydra agent, helped the fascist organization take over America with him as its figurehead. At the end of the story (which I discussed here), the Cube created a new version of Cap from her memories, who quickly defeated Hydra-Cap, went on a motorcycle tour of America (in Mark Waid's short run with Chris Samnee and Leonardo Romero), and now stars in his new run, where he has to come face-to-face with "his" recent past in a number of ways.

This book is everything I want for a launch of a new Cap title: a solid focus on his virtues and his patriotism in the context of fantastic superheroics, with plenty of room for his supporting cast. Coates provides Cap's ongoing internal narrative throughout the book while also doing a fine job of capturing the other characters' voices and motivations (chiefly Sharon Carter and Bucky Barnes). The art is simply breathtaking, with Yu turning in the work of his career, lightly but deftly fleshed out by Alanguilan, and endowed with a subdued palette by Gho, with a wealth of greens and browns to contrast with Cap's red, white, and blue. Caramagna, as always, letters in a way in keep the exposition, dialogue, and art clear, tying the entire effort together. (And we can't forgot the glorious by Alex Ross, shown above! Click to enlarge, and just gaze at it for a while.)

Captain America #700 reminds us who Steve Rogers is...

The final issue of Captain America by the now-classic team of Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, Matthew Wilson, and Joe Caramagna was, appropriately enough, the bonus-sized issue #700, and true to its anniversary status, it serves as a reaffirmation of who Steve Rogers is. In wrapping up their near-future storyline, the team puts Cap in an impossible situation, forces him to make a tough decision, and gives us one of the best Cap scenes in recent memory, all before setting him up for his next round of adventures from Waid and an all-star roster of artists (before a new #1 this summer from Ta-Nehisi Coates and Leinil Yu).

 

SPOILERS BELOW!!!

So who had "Brian Michael Bendis moves to DC Comics" in the pool? Anybody?

Some random thoughts on the jawdropping news — at least for readers of superhero comics — that superstar Marvel Comics writer Brian Michael Bendis has signed an exclusive contract with DC Comics...

Wow. I mean WOW. This is huge.

I count myself as a huge Bendis fan. Daredevil was the first Marvel book I read, and as I followed Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark's run I also went back to read all the Miller and Smith, and then all the Bendis, and loved it. Then came his Avengers in the run-up to Secret Invasion, which is my favorite Bendis event, especially the carefully laid groundwork leading into it and the support stories in the Avengers books that ran alongside the main series. Dark Avengers and Siege were fantastic, especially with his multilayered Norman Osborn, but his Avengers titles began to get tired for me soon after The Heroic Age began. I soon gleaned on to his X-Men books (which I almost never read) and Guardians of the Galaxy. After the Marvel Universe died (but didn't really OK never mind hey look Miles is here everybody yay), his Iron Man work was brilliant, especially in the recent developments with Riri Williams and Victor Von Doom, and of course I love Jessica Jones (in all her Bendis incarnations) and Miles Morales, his two best creations. (Didn't like Civil War II, but oh well.)

In short, he represented a lot of Marvel was to me for the last 10-12 years, and I will miss his voice there (even if it has become less pervasive in the last couple years as his big franchises wound down).

Two obvious questions going forward are:

What happens to his Marvel books? I assume he'll stay on Iron Man until #600 (when Tony Stark will presumably return), after which the book will go to a heavy hitter like Jason Aaron (my first choice). The inevitable Ironheart book will hopefully go in a new, emerging writer, as should happen also with the Miles Morales book. Jessica Jones is too connected with Bendis (and Michael Gaydos), though, so I don't see anyone taking that over, unless she's wrapped into a joint book with Luke Cage. Defenders could go on with someone else, but it never received Legacy renumbering, so I expect it will be cancelled (especially now that the show is a memory) or re-oriented more towards the rotating line-up of the classic book (at which point it will be renumbered). I would also nominate Mr. Aaron for that. (Or anything. That fella's great.)

What will he do at DC? The best guess is Batman, whether one or both of the existing books (in which I would expect Tom King to jump to Marvel full-time) or a newly created book. Bendis has often expressed his desire to write the character (which was his sole DC credit to this point), and it makes sense given his focus on street-level heroes at Marvel, but personally I don't see Bendis' voice fitting the Dark Knight. (But I imagine this was the lure that got him to jump ship.)

The best fit in my opinion would be a restored Legion of Super-Heroes book: huge team (like the Avengers or X-Men), an entire world for him to play in and develop (like X-Men and Guardians of the Galaxy), and so much dialogue to write. (I love his style of dialogue, which would work much better with Legion or Titans than Batman.)

My fantasy pick? Restore Green Arrow to his old, ornery glory and give him to Bendis. Call it Old Man Ollie if you want. (I really want my Ollie back, and I think Bendis would be great. The return of three-alarm chili!)

In general, I do have reservations. I don't think it's particularly novel to say that Bendis is an intrinsically "Marvel" writer, much like writer and penciller Jack Kirby was before he jumped ship to do New Gods and more at DC, and more recently when penciller John Romita Jr. moved to DC to draw Superman. Frankly, I wonder how the patented Bendis voice will fit at DC. (But then again, Kirby didn't do too bad!) Given my poor opinion of the state of DC at the moment, I'm inclined to welcome any shake-up. But I also wonder if the addition of such an "outside" voice, as talented and inventive as he is, would get DC even further off-track at a time when they need to find their center (as promised by Geoff John's Rebirth one-shot). I would prefer that they engage Mr. Johns to devote himself to focusing the line (rather than messing with what should never be touched), and find a corner of the DCU for Bendis to play in where he can indulge himself fully (as they did with Kirby). Again, I think the Legion would be perfect for this, or maybe a new or reimagined parallel Earth. (Earth-B, of course.)

What do you think?

A return to form: Waid and Samnee's Captain America #695 (and a bit of catching up)

A year and a half ago, Steve Rogers spoke those two words that changed the Marvel Universe and launched a secret empire... but more on that later. Suffice it to say our hero was not the same, until he was.

Today, with the release of Captain America #695—renumbered a la "Marvel Legacy" to include most of the previous issues of Captain America with the notable exception of the run of Steve Rogers: Captain America that featured the Hydra version—Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, Matt Wilson, and Joe Caramagna return the Sentinel of Liberty to his past glories.

The issue reads more like a re-introduction of the character and a reminder of what he stands for than the start of a new arc, and serves well as a standalone issue meant to re-assure loyal readers that this is the Steve Rogers we know and love. The story has its own sense of legacy as well, as Steve Rogers, fresh from his defeat of the false Cap, visits the site of a decade-old battle from the days soon after he was defrosted. Few remembered him then, but he is now well-known—and at least in this town he is celebrated, despite the recent experience with his doppelgänger. (One assumes the rest of the first arc will show him encountering a bit more caution and hostility from his fellow Americans, as should be the case.)

The fervor that we see surrounding Captain America in this town, and Steve's discomfort with it, reminds me of the "Cap-mania" from the beginning of Waid's "Heroes Return" run, and this is just one of the meaningful character touches in this issue. If you miss Cap saying typical Cap things, this issue will not disappoint, especially the sentiment expressed on the final two pages, always one of my favorite aspects of Captain America. It isn't just Waid's words that restore our faith in this Cap, but also Samnee and Wilson's depiction of him in his simple, classic, three-colored costume, along with Samnee's characteristic clean lines and Wilson's bold color choices. Back are the cavalier boots and the wings on his head, so his fellow Avengers can once again call him "Winghead." (Sometimes it's the little things that make comics great, after all.) No need for a combat helmet or chinstrap for this Cap, who recognizes the symbolism of simplicity and the confidence it inspires in those he's saving—as well as those he's inspiring to help others.

I look forward to seeing where Waid, Samnee, Wilson, and Caramagna go in exploring more of Captain America's trip through his country to help restore his name and legacy, but I appreciate that they took this first issue to simply celebrate who Captain America is and will always be.

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So... about the last year and a half...

I'm hesitant to talk about "Hydra-Cap" and Secret Empire, especially because it's over, and there's little reason to dredge up the past. (See also: Civil War II.) But I do have some thoughts, and I guess it's only appropriate given that my last post was on the occasion of the first issue of that story.

In that post, I defended what I thought Nick Spencer was trying to do. As the story progressed, I admired how he spun out the story little by little, even after the second issue abruptly revealed the secret behind Cap's transformation. Even after the storyline blew up into A Marvel Event, I appreciated how he seemed to go all in, pushing the premise as far as it could go, even having Hydra Cap lift Mjolnir, suggesting that he night be worthy in some sense even if he had evil ends. (Let me give a shout out to my friend Armond Boudreaux, who wrote a number of excellent posts about this storyline over at A Clash of Heroes.)

The Secret Empire series started exceptionally well, with an amazingly multilayered roll-out and perfect pacing in the first half, but then collapsed in the second half as the creators seemed to be pressured to come up with an ending that put all the pieces back in the box and restored Captain America to his former glory. (We all remember the assurances from Marvel Comics that everything would be fine and it would all be over soon, not exactly a sign of confidence.)

The final issue of the main series (Secret Empire #10) was when the creators dropped the ball. As I wrote about the first issue, I hoped that Spencer and the rest of his term were setting up "an epic redemption story":

And when Steve recovers from the brainwashing, false memories, hypnosis, or Cosmic Cube shenanigans, even though he shouldn't hold himself responsible, he will. He tortures himself much more than anyone else could when he is forced to compromise his principles, even if he could not control it, because he feels he should have been able to control it.

I'm not upset by this comic because I see it as Steve Rogers' greatest test ever, a test I'm confident he'll pass, but not without going through hell first. And that could be a truly amazing story.

But that isn't what happened. As we now know, Steve didn't battle back as I'd hoped, the essence of who he is overcoming Kobik's reprogramming to reassert his true character by sheer force of will. Instead, a new Steve Rogers formed out of Kobik's memories emerged to defeat Hydra-Cap, who is the Cap we see in the new comic. This familiar Cap didn't struggle to come back, unless we consider the version we saw in Kobik's dream-like memories, but that Cap was never corrupted in the first place. He bears no personal responsibility at all for what happened, although he will still have to work to get his good name back after it was usurped by the imposter.

In the end, there was no redemption story at all, and that is the greatest disappointment of all.

(To be fair, the Secret Empire: Omega issue that served as the story's aftermath was excellent, especially when Hydra Cap explained that he didn't force anything on the America people—instead, they handed him all the power he wanted, which made the real Steve Rogers question what the American people really want from their government and from him. Perfect, and perhaps Spencer's most spot-on political statement in the entire story.)

I like to think that, had Spencer kept the story within the pages of the two Captain America comics, it would have had a more satisfying resolution. Perhaps it got away from him when it was blown into an event and had to change to fit that model and get ready for Generations and Marvel Legacy. We'll probably never know, and... that's fine. As I said above, it's behind us. If nothing else, at its best the storyline was a fascinating reflection of the political situation we find ourselves in. Was the damage to a beloved character worth it? I don't think so, but I also think people will forget about it soon enough, and we'll think of it like we think of Teen Tony Stark, the Invisible Woman's 90s costume, or One More Day. (Unfortunately, we're still living with the last one.)

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Finally, while I've got you here—and it has been a while—let me say a few words about what I've been up to since I last posted.

The quick answer is I've been working on other things, some of them related to superheroes. This includes writing a chapter for Wonder Woman and Philosophy, available now, edited by Jacob Held; editing Doctor Strange and Philosophy (out in early 2018) and writing a chapter for it; and writing an entire book on a superhero and philosophy, which I'm currently doing final editing for (and is planned for release in 2019). All of this, plus my non-superhero writing and my day job, has kept me busy. (If it helps, I haven't blogged much on anything for a long time, other than my monthly-ish posts at Psychology Today.)

The longer answer has to do with my state of mind about current comics, which isn't entirely positive. I may have more to say about this in a later post, but I'm largely disenchanted with new comics, with rare exceptions such as Dan Slott, Mike Allred, and Laura Allred's recently-concluded run of Silver Surfer, which is one of the most satisfying and emotional reading experiences I've had in a long time. (The last issue, shown to the right, was so magnificent that I'm still thinking about it, and probably will for a long time.) But most of the comics I buy these days—usually about 50 a month—I'm just not enjoying, despite the craft and devotion being put into them. There is fantastic work being done, but the quarter of my monthly pull that blows me away doesn't make up for the three quarters that don't.

I've been thinking a lot lately about diving back into the past comics I love, whether Captain America, Batman, the Fantastic Four, or others, and blogging in a more systematic way about them, taking each issue or storyline and writing about what I love about it, whether there's something of philosophical interest there or not. Maybe I'll just geek out about how cool the art is, or how a moment made me laugh or cry. Maybe I'll even do a podcast about them, something like The Fantasticast or the Nerdsync podcast—not that I can do that any better than Stephen and Andrew or Scott do, but I'd do it my own way, whatever they may be. Just an idea I've been knocking around, something to get excited about.

And don't we all need that?

On Captain America: Steve Rogers #1: Why I'm optimistic (spoilers)

Wow, people haven't been this angry about a Captain America book since he was killed in 2007. And understandably so, because in today's Captain America: Steve Rogers #1, something even worse happens to the Sentinel of Liberty: he is revealed at the end of the comic to be a Hydra agent, and apparently has been so for some time.

Before I give my feelings on that, let me say the rest of the comic was fantastic. Steve back in action, Sharon Carter and Rick Jones guiding him from afar, Free Spirit and Jack Flag back at Cap's side... just wonderful. Steve back in action, being the hero, taking too many risks, and especially Steve and Sharon's loving and mutually admiring relationship, all depicted wonderfully in both Nick Spencer's dialogue and Jesus Saiz's artwork.

But, of course, that's not what the furor is about. In flashbacks, we see young Steve and his mother Sarah befriend a mysterious woman who lures them into a Hydra meeting, a seed which bears fruit in the final page reveal: Steve saying "Hail Hydra."

Shocking. Disturbing. Revolting. Antithetical to the character. An insult to his Jewish creators.

All this is true.

So why aren't I more upset?

Because I'm confident this WTF ending is setting up a storyline for the ages. Let me explain...

I read a lot about writing fiction—definitely more than I actually write fiction—and one of the most frequent tips to motivate your story is "torture your babies." In other words, imagine the worst thing you can do to your beloved main character and then make him or her face it.

One of my Twitter friends said Cap's main virtue is his integrity, without which he's nothing. I would agree: that's basically chapter 4 of my book.

So what's the worst thing you can do to Cap? Worse than killing him (which has been done... ahem... to death), worse perhaps than even killing his loved ones? Make him compromise his integrity. Make him into the opposite of what he is, an agent of tyranny instead of its tireless opponent.

That's how you really hurt him. Whoever did this to him in the story—the Red Skull, Baron Zemo, Doctor Faustus, Kobik the Cutest Cosmic Cube Evah, take your pick—knows that. And Nick Spencer, Jesus Saiz, and their editors Tom Breevort and Alanna Smith know that too. They're making Cap face his greatest internal threat yet: a danger to his own identity. The fact that this goes against everything Captain America stands for isn't a problem—it's the point.

And that's how you set up an epic redemption story, which is what I hope Spencer and Saiz are going to give us. And when Steve recovers from the brainwashing, false memories, hypnosis, or Cosmic Cube shenanigans, even though he shouldn't hold himself responsible, he will. He tortures himself much more than anyone else could when he is forced to compromise his principles, even if he could not control it, because he feels he should have been able to control it.

I'm not upset by this comic because I see it as Steve Rogers' greatest test ever, a test I'm confident he'll pass, but not without going through hell first. And that could be a truly amazing story.

New interviews and articles about Captain America: Civil War and my book, A Philosopher Reads Marvel Comics' Civil War

It's been an exciting couple of weeks around the release of Captain America: Civil War, with several articles, interviews, and a review of my book A Philosopher Reads... Marvel Comics' Civil War appearing online. I collect them all on the dedicated page for the book at profmdwhite.com, but I thought a Comics Professor blog update was called for as well.

1. I did two interviews about the movie, its relation to the comics, and the ethics and politics behind both:

"A Philosopher Watches... Captain America: Civil War," interview with Skye Cleary for the Blog of the APA (American Philosophical Association), May 10, 2016

"The Post-9/11 Ethics of Captain America: Civil War," interview with Katie Kilkenny for Pacific Standard, May 9, 2016

2. Michael Dudley of the University of Winnipeg reviewed my book for the Winnipeg Free Press on May 7, 2016 in "Civil discourse: Comics book series says plenty on liberty, security and morals," containing the immortal attribution, "something of a rock star in the world of comics." (I wish!)

3. Finally, I wrote two pieces based on my book and the Civil War comics (before the movie came out):

"What Can We Learn from Watching a Superhero Civil War?" Psychology Today blog, May 3, 2016

"Captain America: Civil War -- conflicted heroes and a clash of philosophies," The Guardian, April 21, 2016

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Even though it's "old news" by now, I'm also very happy with my chat with Scott Niswander for his Nerdsync podcast:

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As always, if you like any of this stuff, let me know on Twitter and check out my book, A Philosopher Reads... Marvel Comics' Civil War, available now!

My thoughts on Captain America: Civil War (No spoilers!)

OK, no surprise... I loved Captain America: Civil War. I was fairly certain I'd like it, of course, but it surpassed my expectations, which were well heightened by all the positive  comments from everyone who saw it before me. (And that seems to be everyone I know. I will have my revenge, mark my words.)

So here are some scatted thoughts, as usual... (If I had no shame I would title this post "7 Things I Loved about Captain America: Civil War... and 1 I Didn't," but with any luck Google will pick up on that anyway.)

1. The movie was very well paced, and I was never tempted to check the time, which is impressive for a 147-minute movie. There was a point at which I thought the movie could have been essentially finished, except there was a scene from the trailers that hadn't come up yet, but this was a minor lull.

2. Despite the inclusion of a dozen heroes, several of them appearing throughout the film, the Russo brothers did a great job keeping the focus most of the time on Cap and the main secondary characters, Falcon, Bucky, and Iron Man. There were times that it did feel like an Avengers movie—especially during the fight scene between the two teams, which was much longer (and better) than I expected—but these spots were occasional enough that the movie still felt like a Cap movie. (Although, to be fair, there was enough substantial Iron Man content that it almost could have been titled something stupid like Captain America v Iron Man. Like anyone would do that.)

3. The story itself was not as close to the comics version as I expected—and I didn't expect it to be very close at all—but I think the changes worked well within the context of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. For instance, as many people noted ahead of the film, not many of the heroes we've seen in the films have secret identities, so that aspect of the comics story wouldn't translate well to the film, and it was wisely left out. Nonetheless, the movie did touch of several iconic images and lines from the comics, which I found enormously gratifying (being rather fond of the comics, as you may have heard). Would I have loved more explicit discussion of the issues underlying the conflict? Of course, but I was satisfied with how much there was, and the dialogue on this front was concise and on target, hitting the most important points of the debate. (I expect to be talking more about that aspect of the film in the near future.)

4. The action scenes were simply incredible, both those with two characters as well as a dozen, and felt more visceral than Whedon's in the two Avengers films, even when all the heroes were onscreen at the same time. Maybe it was the Russo brothers' more subdued color palette, or the slight jerkiness of the camera (which, to be honest, became somewhat tiresome), but these scenes were more reminiscent of a war movie (appropriately enough) than a traditional superhero film. Kudos to everyone involved in these scenes, most of all the sound people—every time one of the heroes got hit, was thrown in a wall, or fell 50 feet to the ground, I flinched thanks to the combination of performance, cinematography, and especially the sound effects. (But at the same time, even when Cap and Iron Man went all out on each other, there was none of the senseless brutality we saw in that other superhero battle movie this year.)

5. Black Panther... ah, my king! He could have easily been the star of this movie if any of the other characters had let me down, and I am looking forward even more (if that were possible) to his solo film. Chadwick Boseman gave T'Challa a thoroughly regal demeanor, with the perfect combination of determination, class, and fierceness. The Panther's movements were magnificently graceful, especially the way he would land after a jump or being thrown. And even with his short time in the film, we saw his character experience growth.

6. I am a big fan of both Tobey Maguire's and Andrew Garfield's portrayals of Peter Parker/Spider-Man (though not necessarily of every film they were in), and Tom Holland's version adds yet another unique take on the character. He played a relatively small role in the movie, and didn't have much to do with the Civil War storyline itself (unlike in the comics, where he was a major player), but we see much more of him than I expected, in and out of costume.

7. The Stan Lee cameo was perfect. 'Nuff said.

If I have one criticism with the film, it's with the ending. I can't say much more without giving anything away, so I'll just say that I thought some things were left unresolved, but I trust the Russo brothers to be setting up their first Avengers film (which cannot come soon enough).

The ending notwithstanding, I thought the movie was exceptional. It was more of an action movie than a political one, but there was enough of the latter to make this fan of the comics story happy.

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As I mentioned, I have a number of interviews planned over the next week in which I'll speak to the ideological debates in the movie and the comics, so stay tuned, both here and on Twitter. And don't forget to check out my book, A Philosopher Reads...Marvel Comics' Civil War: Exploring the Moral Judgment of Captain America, Iron Man, and Spider-Man, available now!

Now available, in print and ebook: A Philosopher Reads Marvel Comics' Civil War

At long last, today is the release day for A Philosopher Reads... Marvel Comics' Civil War: Exploring the Moral Judgment of Captain America, Iron Man, and Spider-Man, published by Ockham Publishing in both paperback and ebook.

Comic book readers and moviegoers love to see superheroes fight, whether to protect innocent people from supervillains or to save the world from invaders from outer space. But superheroes also fight each other, and if we can look past the energy blasts and earth-shattering punches, we can find serious disagreements over principles and ethics. This was certainly the case when Captain America and Iron Man went head-to-head over liberty and security in Marvel Comics’ epic Civil War storyline, a fictional allegory to post-9/11 America (as well as the basis for the third Captain America film).

In his latest book, Mark D. White, author of The Virtues of Captain America and editor of Iron Man and Philosophy, carefully leads you through the ethical thinking of the three characters on the front lines of the Civil War:

Iron Man, who has taken charge of the US government’s efforts to register and train superheroes to enhance safety and security

Captain America, who leads the resistance against registration in the name of individual liberty and privacy

Spider-Man, who is torn between his two mentors and has a uniquely personal stake in the battle

In his characteristically light and humorous tone, White lays out the basic ethical foundations of each hero’s thinking and highlights the moral judgment each must use to put his ethics into action. He also explains how the Civil War affected the three heroes after the battle ended and how the experience continued to test them in very different ways as events in the Marvel Universe continued to unfold. Finally, he uses examples from Civil War to show how conflicting principles such as liberty and security must be balanced in the real world, lest both be lost.

Written in a style that will be easily accessible to those new to philosophy or superhero comics, A Philosopher Reads... Marvel Comics’ Civil War will be a fascinating read for diehard comics fans and philosophy buffs as well.

If you want to find out more about the book, there are several places to look (and listen):

• My podcast with Nerdsync, in which Scott Niswander and I covered many of the topics and issues in my book, the Civil War comics, and what we could surmise about the upcoming movie, and still only seemed to scratch the surface!

• The lectures I gave at Northwood University on the topic of superheroes, liberty, and security, the video of which can be found here (although the player can be very touchy with respect to browsers, with Internet Explorer and Edge working the best, and Firefox sometimes).
• Comics Worth Reading generously ran a brief excerpt from the book on their website (and The Philosopher's Magazine is planning on doing the same in an upcoming issue).
• Finally, Troy Powell (a contributor to The Avengers and Philosophy) interviewed me about the book for Graphic Policy.

I am available for interviews, podcasts, signings, or lectures—just contact me at [email protected].

If you read the book, please let me know what you think, either in the comments here; on Amazon, Goodreads, or elsewhere; or on Twitter (@profmdwhite) or email ([email protected]).