Tam notes the politics at play in comic books.
Looking back I realize that Spiderman and Daredevil were bigtime bleeding heart liberals despite being anonymous vigilantes who dispensed rough justice outside of the law.
In one storyline Daredevil decides he’s had enough of Punisher’s violent, vigilante ways so Daredevil … (wait for the delicious irony) shoots Punisher and sends him to jail, where he’s targeted for murder by everyone he’s ever put away.
Never mind that Daredevil never felt the need to shoot any actual bad guys. Never mind that Daredevil dropped Bullseye to his intended death to avenge Elektra’s murder. Daredevil was indignant enough about Punisher’s marginally-more vigilante, slightly-more violent methods to pop a cap in his ass.
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Even in my childhood, comics writers suffered from the most acute degree of liberal/progressive guilt, while also showing their contempt for ordered society. That trend continues to this day. Virtually all superheroes operate outside the law, which is portrayed as not being able to cope with crime. Only the spandexed vigilante can keep society safe. Yet, the superhero feels no compunction against using his abilities against ordinary citizens whose lawful activities offend him. It’s the same sort of elitism that one finds in many films.
Tony Stark comes out of the gate as a classic Jerk with a Heart of Gold – http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/JerkWithAHeartOfGold
Since his character also has a somewhat conservative bent, one wonders how Marvel can conscience making him a hero. Oh wait, they really don’t in Civil War. But so far the movie franchise treats Iron Man as a hero.
Does anybody write comic stories that play the hero role straight anymore? Are there any conservative heroes in current comics?
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