META/PRECOGS: Something to Think About

[Andrew Perron]

On Sun, 31 Jan 2010 02:25:46 +0000 (UTC), Tom Russell wrote:

> I understand where you're coming from, Andrew.  In fact, I would argue
> that the superhero genre itself (as opposed to the Bronze Age/Post-
> modern anti-superhero genre) is about people making a difference, with
> or without powers.  Not dominating, but inspiring and discovering--
> it's why I think it's a primarily optimistic genre.

Oh, I definitely agree.  As I've said before, the ultimate moral of the
superhero genre is "One person can make a difference."  That's what a
superhero is - heck, that's what a *hero* is.  (To be fair, in a way,
that's what a villain is too.)

The hairs I'm splitting here are more about what *kind* of difference one
makes.

> (Which doesn't mean that the genre can't deal with unintended
> consequences or dark material-- darkness deepens and inspires.  But
> there's a world of difference between optimism and knee-jerk
> adolescent cynicism.)

Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, indeed.