So, in case you guys haven’t seen the trailer for Brightburn, the upcoming James Gunn sci-fi/horror flick, here’s the rundown. It’s basically “evil Superman.” No, they never say the name Superman in the trailer. But the story is about a little boy who lands on Earth, is raised by a kindly couple in the countryside, exhibits powers as he grows up, and wears a red cape. Except here, he kills people instead of saving them.
Now, I’ll admit, I’m intrigued by this idea. We haven’t seen many horror-themed superhero movies. I think the closest we’ve ever come is with the Blade and Hellboy franchises. (Thank you, Guillermo, for both.) But those were definitely more action-oriented. This, a movie that leans hard into the horror element could be something very interesting. So I will definitely be watching it when it comes out.
At the same time, though, I have to ask if this is really necessary. Seriously. “What If Superman turned evil?” is a storyline that’s been done a thousand times in comics, movies, and video games. There’s Injustice: Gods Among Us, the episode “Injustice For All” from the Justice League Animated Series, and the graphic novel Superman: Red Son. All of these imagine Superman using his powers to subjugate the Earth. Hell, Man Of Steel, which is supposed to be a mainstream, commercial film targeted at mass audiences, envisions him as a careless, mopey, grim asshole, who murders his opponents, and causes billions of dollars in collateral damage. At this point, I feel like we’ve had more “evil Superman” stories than good ones.
This begs the question; why? Why do writers like telling stories about a Superman who’s bad? Well, part of it might come from the fact that people have convinced themselves that he’s not an interesting character. They’ve internalized the notion that, because he’s a good person who does the right thing, simply because it’s the right thing to do, that means he’s boring. I mean, where’s the conflict, right? Well, the truth is, there’s plenty of things one can do. You just need to be creative. And many writers have been. There are tons of critically-acclaimed, highly successful Superman stories, where he is a good person, and that’s that. Don’t believe me? Well then check out “What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice & The American Way?,” “Good Night Moon,” “Last Son Of Krypton,” “Kingdom Come,” “All-Star Superman,” “Up, Up & Away,” and “Superman: American Alien.” All these stories maintain Superman’s essential optimism and goodness and are highly engaging. So the “boring” argument doesn’t hold up if you think about it too hard. Which makes me wonder why so many people are convinced by it.
But there may be another, more pernicious reason for people’s inability to accept a wholly good character. And it relates to xenophobia. Superman, being an alien, is the ultimate immigrant. And America, despite being built by immigrants, has always mistrusted them. Just look at the Alien & Sedition Acts, the Chinese Exclusion Act, Japanese American Internment, The Muslim Ban, Trump’s Border Wall, and a million other examples I could list, but won’t. Basically, America is scared of the person who comes from afar to make a better life for themselves. They can’t be good. They have to be plotting something. Why else would they come here? And whether we like to think about it or not, that mentality creeps into our fiction as well. There’s a reason why “alien invasion” is such a popular genre. It allows audiences to indulge their own xenophobic fantasies without feeling the guilt of discriminating against an actual race, religion, or ethnicity. And I’m convinced that part of the reason why so many writers never want to write about a purely good Superman is that they, on some level, don’t believe in purely good immigrants. Which is messed up. Maybe I’m reaching here, but it’s something I’ve thought about in the past, and something that I think could be kind of dangerous if it continues to be a trend.
liusviews 