This past week, I watched two different reincarnations of the Superman myth; Smallville and The Adventures of Lois and Clark. The Adventures of Lois and Clark is more about the relationship between Lois and Clark, evolving from being co-workers to be a married couple (before the series was canceled). But, the season I watched was Season 1, which focus more on the who and what of Superman (ex. his past and what is doing on Earth).
Meanwhile, Smallville is another part of the Superman myth where the show focus more of the young life of Clark Kent. At the beginning of the series, Clark Kent begins to realize that he isn't quite human and that he has superhuman abilities (that he must learn to control and hide from people like his ex-friend Lex Luthor). But, as the series progresses, Clark Kent learns that he had a purpose in why he came to Earth. This purpose (revealed at the end of Season 2) was in order to serve his father's purpose that he set out for Clark. In the current season of Smallville, we see that Clark Kent still struggle with his destiny (aka his father's purpose) as he tries to separate his mission from the ones he love.
One of the things that I realize from being in the class and during the readings is how similar Superman is to the story of Jesus Christ. For example, like Jesus Christ, Clark Kent had a purpose when he was sent to Earth in order to the save the world from evil (In all the Superman reincarnations, it's from Kryptonite-inflected humans to monsters that were created as experiments to destroy Superman (ex. Doomsday)). Also, the characters of Smallville/The Adventure of Lois and Clark are somewhat of a metaphor to the characters in the story of Jesus. For example, the character Doomsday could represent the Jews and Romans who persecuted Jesus Christ (If no one knows what is Doomsday, it's basically a monster that was created by General Zod in order to kill Clark Kent because Doomsday would be stronger then Superman under the yellow sun). Although in the show Smallville, Doomsday is unsuccessful in killing Clark Kent (see the Season 8 finale.), a prime example that good will always triumph over evil. But, in the comics, Doomsday was able to kill Clark Kent/Superman (which was a big event for the comic in the 90s). But like Christ, Superman was able to be "resurrected" (in a weirder way then Christ) within the Fortress of Solitude (aka his command base).
Overall, the story of Superman (as seen in Smallville and The Adventures of Lois and Clark) resembles that of the story of Jesus Christ.
-- Amy Braun (who is sorry if this blog post is too geeky)
Questions:
1) Based on the artifact post, what other superhero myths that have some sort of a similarity with any stories in the Bible? Explain how this superhero myth shares this Bible story.
2) Do you think that Smallville and The Adventures of Lois and Clark represents the kingdom or for the empire? Explain your reasoning.
Thanks, Amy. We embrace geeky-ness. :)
ReplyDeleteA couple of questions...
-If Superman is not Christ, but is a human superhero, how is he different from Christ? What are his flaws and limitations?
-What is the "good news" in the world of Superman? Or, put another way, if Christ saves us unto a liberated new way of life that has real implications for how we live here and now, what is Superman saving people for? Does Superman have a vision for a flourishing humanity?
One of the flaws/differences that Superman that he has is a weakness to a rock named Kryptonite. If Superman is near Kryptonite, his powers are stripped away and he could die from it (It's a great tool that Lex Luthor uses a lot). Thus, limiting him from saving the world due to a rock from his native planet.
ReplyDeleteAs for Superman's "good news", he is trying to save people from aliens like Doomsday and clones of his home planets' people who want to rule the world (due to the yellow sun). Also, from Lex Luthor, who is visioned to be a supreme dictator in some versions of the future. He is trying to envision a future for the earth that has peace and good, not evil and oppression.