What is it for a super-hero to represent America? Though the character created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby in 1941 may have been a way to capitalize on WWII patriotism, it has since been used to ask questions about what it really means to be patriotic and how America's ideals and its reality may conflict. We're of course talking about race, a theme explored by Sam Wilson, … [Read more...] about PMP#98: The Spirit of Captain America w/ Anthony LeBlanc
superhero media
PMP#85: What the WandaVision!? w/ Rolando Nieves
The long-awaited debut Disney+ Marvel superhero series is... a tribute to classic sit-coms? Mark, Erica, Brian, and guest Rolando from the Remakes, Reboots, and Revivals podcast try to figure out what kind of storytelling this really is, whether this experiment was successful, whether you have to be a Marvel die-hard (or old enough to have watched those sit-coms) to get it, and … [Read more...] about PMP#85: What the WandaVision!? w/ Rolando Nieves
PMP#76: Wonder Women (84 and Others) w/ Vi Burlew
The holiday film release season has passed us with only one real blockbuster, which is the return of Wonder Woman, and we likewise have a returning hero: Our college-going young guest from ep. 33 on heroine journeys has now grown into a grad student just studying comics and brings her deep WW knowledge to consider the new film in context with Erica, Mark, and … [Read more...] about PMP#76: Wonder Women (84 and Others) w/ Vi Burlew
PMP#63: Superhero Ethics (and The Boys) w/ Travis Smith
Is there no end to the seemingly endless fascination with superhero media? Mark, Erica, and Brian are joined by Travis, who teaches political philosophy at Concordia) to discuss. Travis sees their resonance as a matter of metaphor: How can we do more with the abilities we have? His book Superhero Ethics matches up heroes like Batman vs. Spider-Man for ethical comparison: Both … [Read more...] about PMP#63: Superhero Ethics (and The Boys) w/ Travis Smith