BLOGS
I just read that Seth Green and Breckin Meyer, the comedy duo who delight millions on Robot Chicken (and delighted me, personally, as part of the boy band Du Jour in Josie and the Pussycats) are in talks to do a guest stint on Heroes as comic-book experts (probably of the nerdy variety) who instruct a hero in the ways of the superhero. While I enjoy both actors, the addition of comic book experts to the show seemed to me to be a step backwards into "meta" territory. In trying to find a way to write about it without coming across like a raving lunatic (not that I've succeeded in any of my other writing), I discussed it at length with our site director, and he actually managed to bring me around to his way of thinking. Here, in its entirety, is our debate.
ZACH: Can I talk about how I hate all of this "meta" bull? I turned off the show after the first episode, when I saw that Hiro (his name is "Hiro"!) would read a comic book about himself in the second episode. I guess there's nothing wrong with the heroes existing in a world that knows what superheroes are, but it just makes it all feel so dumb. It's like in a zombie movie, where a character says, "In zombie movies, they damage the brain!" Or in The Lost Boys, where they're like, "Vampires are real. See? This is a copy of Tomb of Dracula!" I hate it.
DAN: That was actually my favorite thing about The Lost Boys. Didn't Peter Parker read Superman comics in an early issue of Spider-Man, just like other teenagers of that time? Do you hate Peter Parker, Zach?
ZACH: What? Peter Parker never read Superman comics. You're lying.
DAN: I think Stan Lee's subtle point was that Peter Parker is "real" (and therefore has the same interests as his readers) while Superman is just a comic book. Spidey was "just like us!" decades before Us magazine came up with that conceit for celebrities.
ZACH: Stan Lee? Subtle? Now I know you're lying. If it's true, that Peter Parker thing bugs me. Nowadays, in the Marvel Universe, some comic books are "licensed" by the heroes they're about. So the Fantastic Four let someone write Fantastic Four comic books. Now, that makes sense. After all, why make up heroes when they exist?
DAN: But don't cops, doctors, lawyers, etc. all exist in a world in which there is popular fiction about their professions? Does the reality of cop fiction negate the reality of actual cops? And if a cop on a TV show is reading a novel about cops, is that meta or just depicting something that some cops do? Real mobsters actually do love The Godfather and Goodfellas, so when Tony Soprano watched them, was that meta or just an accurate reflection of certain facts?
ZACH: The twist is suspension of disbelief. There have always been criminals, and criminals are a fact of life. In Juice, Tupac Shakur watches White Heat, for God's sake! James Cagney inspires him to be a gangster psycho! I can see doctors doing the same thing, although I don't think I've ever seen a TV doctor reading a doctor book. (However, I did see Scrubs making fun of Grey's Anatomy.) But with superheroes, you're asking people to suspend their disbelief that superheroes can exist. Because they don't. And then, when you point out that people have been telling stories about them for years -- and not in a "Oh, the ancient myths are real!" kind of way -- it's basically saying, "This show that you're watching is also fiction, just like those comics."
DAN: I'm actually bothered by the opposite -- I hate seeing characters in situations that resemble popular fiction but don't acknowledge that popular fiction. Like when The X-Files investigated a killer who can move at superhuman speed, and no one mentioned the Flash. If I saw a guy who could do that, I would think of the Flash. Because the Flash exists as a fictional character in the world in which we live. So when a TV show or movie takes place in a world where such pop culture apparently doesn't exist, it makes it harder for me suspend my disbelief. A world without pop fiction ain't reality.
ZACH: ...
DAN: Time to catch up on some Heroes, bub.
Sponsored Links
Add a comment
MOST RECENT POSTS
Today's TWoP News: Friday, January 6, 2011
The Most Heinous Person on Reality TV This Week
Indie Snapshot: The Iron Lady, Pariah and A Separation
TWoP 10: Reality Franchises That Should Be Benched
Friday, January 6, 2012: Supernatural
Portlandia is 2 Broke Girls for the Discerning Viewer's Soul
Today's TWoP News: Thursday, January 5, 2012
Modern Family: The Best Lines From the Winter Premiere
BLOG ARCHIVES
The Telefile
January 2012
12 Entries
December 2011
49 Entries
November 2011
56 Entries
October 2011
74 Entries
September 2011
78 Entries
August 2011
61 Entries
July 2011
56 Entries
June 2011
57 Entries
May 2011
57 Entries
April 2011
78 Entries
March 2011
73 Entries
February 2011
57 Entries
January 2011
65 Entries
December 2010
39 Entries
November 2010
45 Entries
October 2010
46 Entries
September 2010
62 Entries
August 2010
55 Entries
July 2010
53 Entries
June 2010
65 Entries
May 2010
59 Entries
April 2010
57 Entries
March 2010
67 Entries
February 2010
53 Entries
January 2010
59 Entries
December 2009
32 Entries
November 2009
47 Entries
October 2009
65 Entries
September 2009
66 Entries
August 2009
58 Entries
July 2009
72 Entries
June 2009
71 Entries
May 2009
50 Entries
April 2009
57 Entries
March 2009
66 Entries
February 2009
52 Entries
January 2009
56 Entries
December 2008
51 Entries
November 2008
71 Entries
October 2008
88 Entries
September 2008
86 Entries
August 2008
120 Entries
July 2008
115 Entries
June 2008
90 Entries
May 2008
44 Entries
April 2008
30 Entries
March 2008
26 Entries
February 2008
30 Entries
January 2008
44 Entries
December 2007
31 Entries
November 2007
66 Entries