Comments on: Losing Their Religion

By: Winter Wallaby

Winter Wallaby — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 03:47:00 +0000

The whole world would be totally different if it was a comic book world. The writers have to assume that the world is pretty much the same, but with superheroes/villains, because it would make things too different to figure out all the ways that the world would be different.

It’s pretty hard to imagine the economy functioning the way it does now when there are geniuses who can whip up amazing technologically breakthroughs in a couple of days. Or that the government would have the same role when the most important aspects of keeping its citizens safe were taken care of by vigilantes. And peole wouldn’t feel much of a sense of security or stability in a world where every couple of years aliens or supervillains either destroy a major city, or come seconds from destroying the world—that has to affect everyone’s psychology, and make society totally different.

By: Lessa

Lessa — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:38:41 +0000

Getting back to Bill’s original question of how can religion exist in a comic book world, I have to go with Keera’s explanation of illusion reality. Or possibly alternative reality. Just because a large portion of the western world believes in a large book with an old and a new section doesn’t make it any more viable than the Native American “myths” or the Austrailian Aboriginies “Dreaming” or the Druids. All peoples, all cultures, have some type of religion to explain what they don’t understand. The comic book worlds are their own realities, therefore how they handle religion is up to them.

BTW, Bill. I am enjoying Chickweeds take on God right now. I don’t find the smarmy little man any more disturbing than the big guy with the white beard sitting on his throne. I like the fact that the couple who used to be a priest and nun, i.e. His servants, are now really, really mad at Him for threatening their child.

By: Keera

Keera — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:37:03 +0000

Snorkack, that Superman scene reminds me of Luke Skywalker meeting himself in the cave in “The Empire Strikes Back”. Which reminded me that the discussion of what is reality, or how we trick ourselves with our beliefs, has been the subject of many stories.

By: Crumple-Horned Snorkack

Crumple-Horned Snorkack — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:29:03 +0000

There’s a Superman story in which he and Supergirl are visiting a star about to go nova, and something goes wrong and she gets knocked unconscious, and goes flying away faster than the speed of light. Supes goes after her, and just as he’s about to catch up a guy in a robe stops him, saying that no mortal is permitted to see what he would see if he were allowed to continue. Supergirl was not stopped because she is not conscious, so no problem. Supes tries to fight weird robe guy, to no effect whatever. Sometimes weird robe guy is immovable and solid. Other times Superman passes right through him and comes out at a right angle from how he approached. Weird robe guy never so much as moves.

Eventually, weird robe guy conjures up another Superman to fight the real one, saying that Superman can only defeat the fake when he sees it for what it is. Superman and the fake go at it for a few panels, and then Superman says “What, a maniac attacking for no reason and using force to get what he wants without thinking?!” Whereupon fake Superman vanishes.

Finally, Superman slumps his shoulders in defeat, and says “I’m just trying to get my cousin back.” Weird robe guy hands Supergirl over to him, saying “You had only to ask.”

It seems to me that such an experience would be humbling in any number of ways, and may well be sufficient to inspire in Superman a sense of the numinous.

By: Keera

Keera — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:17:13 +0000

Bill, there is what we each perceive as reality and then there’s what actually is. We have our individual realities (over 6 billion, currently, and counting) but we also have many collective illusions, taught us by our culture/family/religion/political party, so we don’t perceive that what we experience isn’t real or all there is. The claim is that this entire physical existence, including our bodies, is one big illusion and therefore, if we put our mind to it, we can reshape it/matter into anything we want. Or rather, anything we can believe.

By: Cidu Bill

Cidu Bill — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:36:43 +0000

But Keera, if it’s an existance we live in, doesn’t that legitimately make it our reality? How can we define it any other way?

By: Cidu Bill

Cidu Bill — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:33:42 +0000

Elliott, I don’t know whether the current Chickweed storyline is religious, sacrilegious, or merely an indication that Brooke has been smoking some of that chickweed. I’m sure I’m not the only person who finds it unpleasant on multiple levels.

By: Keera

Keera — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:30:06 +0000

Lessa, according to many Eastern philosophies and metaphysicians, what we call reality is itself a fiction. That is not something fundamentalists like to hear. I enjoy good science fiction/fantasy because it is the genre that can shake us out of our complacency and get us asking “what if”, but then I’m not worried about what will happen if the rules as I know them suddenly no longer apply.

By: Lessa

Lessa — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:22:39 +0000

CIDU Bill–point to you. I misunderstood. When I read/watch this fiction, it is always in the back of my mind that TPTB will bring the dead ones back at some point, especially if the character is popular and there is a huge outcry about their demise. That said, Congratulations Bill on starting a very interesting topic. It gets the rusty mind gears working.

Kamino Neko– also point to you. In my defense, it was a good 15 years ago that I read The Sandman. My memory isn’t what it used to be.

Religion is what you make of it. Many conservatives, evangelicals, and/or fundamentalists want nothing to do with fiction, let alone (gasp) comics. Fiction, of any kind, can make you think for yourself and question established beliefs. Look at the controversy over the Harry Potter series.

By: Keera

Keera — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:42:30 +0000

@Mark in Boston, I have only read “Hansel and Gretel” and that was years ago. It’s interesting (and a tad relieving to this deist) that other versions do have them doing something as common as praying.