Dystopian Present

Well, this must be what it would be like to live on Venus. Yellow clouds of poisonous air obscuring the view from my windows, and being unable to step outside my habitat without a spacesuit.

Yesterday evening, I was very angry...very, very angry. Angry about the state of things in my country, in my world. Angry about how they got this way, angry about the ignorant, selfish people that have caused so much of this, angry even at my own culpability for not doing more, for not actively working against the ignorance and selfishness.

I proceeded to stay up late and drink heavily and did NOT write the rant I meticulously plotted in my head, most all of which was aimed and belittling and insulting people. Not very constructive that.

Anger isn't just a coping mechanism (we tend to get angry to feel like we are in control, to stave off our fear of helplessness)...it is a tool, given to us by our Creator. Used properly, it helps us to transform ourselves, bringing focus to our will, spurring us to do the hard work that ends up being needed when we have procrastinated in doing what should have been done all along.

And it's only by changing ourselves for the better that we can change our world for the better.

Not that most of us are willing to do that. Heck, many of us lack the capability for it (as with all skills, it's something that requires practice, and atrophies from disuse). But as I look outside my window this morning, I force myself to repeat a mantra in my mind:

Things can always get worse. Things can always get worse. Things can always get worse.

There is nothing more true or more sure in this world. Suffering will continue to increase the longer we allow suffering to continue. Because of ignorance. Because of selfishness. Because of our lack of love.

Sorry if that's a downer. 

By the way: Happy birthday, AB. Hope you're doing well, wherever you are, my brother.

Jessica Jones

The problem with comic books is that it's a business...an industry. I mean, there may be more wrong with it than that, but (to me) that is the main issue.

Not that being a business is ALL bad; there's more than a few good things that come out of being a part of a big, greased-up machine. But as with film, and certain other media (yeah, I might as well throw tabletop RPGs into the mix), there're certain large pitfalls associated with being "big business." Being beholden to that almighty dollar, to shareholders, to the need to make a profit. It's not necessarily greed (this isn't another anti-capitalism post...at least, that's not my intent). But folks get accustomed to a certain lifestyle, you know.

For example, Spider-Man has been featured in more than 1000 comics. That's featured mind you...as in, his name is part of the titles. After more than 50 years of fighting crime, you'd think the old man would give it a rest. Most baby-boomers his age have retired by now...and I doubt any of them could boast of the physical beating he's taken over his career. I don't care if he has the strength of a 167 pound spider...he has had his ass handed to him every issue or three. Regardless of whether he's winning the fights or not, that shit takes a toll.

But even if it doesn't (and it doesn't...he's a comic book character after all), how many stories can you really tell over six decades and multiple titles (Spectacular Spider-Man, Amazing Spider-Man, Web of Spider-Man, etc.)? Sooner or later, you're pumping a dry-well. You're recycling the same stories, the same issues, the same drama. You're fighting the same Green Goblin for the upteenth time, it's just Green Goblin II or Green Goblin III or the Hobgoblin. You're dealing with the same Doc Octopus of Doctor Doom you've thwarted on numerous occasions (and yet the guy never seems to get the hint). You've broken up and gotten back together with the same girl so many times it's like...I don't know. I had a neurotic relationship with a girl I met in college that was "on-again-off-again" but that craziness only lasted a couple-three years. You hit age 25 and (so long as you don't have a kid together by then), you wise up and grow the fuck up. It might seem like it takes twenty years, but it doesn't really.

But none of that is really Peter Parker's fault. The problem is one of "the biz:" Spider-Man sells comics. The objective of any business is to make money. Money is made (in that industry) by selling comics. Therefore, the Powers That Be require their artists and writers to continuously pump out Spider-Man comics, by whatever means necessary.

Art be damned. I mean it...comic books are a capital-A "ART form." They've got writing, they've got illustration. They've got pacing and layout and plotting and dialogue and all those things that require artistry (not scientific method) to achieve greatness. But all that "art" is secondary to the need to sell copy. Make an Avengers. Make a West Coast Avengers. Make a New Avengers. Diversify the brand and build on what's already popular. THAT takes priority in a business (going with the proven commodity) over trying to do something new and original. R&D is the money-suck of any business...you never know if the brainstorm is actually going to payoff (and, heck, it probably doesn't most of the time), and you've still got to pay the wages of your employees. You've still got to answer to the shareholders. 'Art be damned...we own the Spider-Man IP!'

So, I'd guess more than a few people have never heard of Jessica Jones. In the scheme of the Marvel universe she's a fairly minor character (though she is part of their "main" universe), and a recent addition (created in 2001). Yes she's had her own title...twice (Alias and The Pulse), but they lasted a grand total of 28 and 14 issues respectively (with The Pulse ending in 2006). I've never read a single issue of either...the only reason I know anything about her is that she's married to Luke Cage.

[I was researching Cage for something a few years back...probably a superhero RPG...and I found out he had somehow gotten hitched and wanted to know who the hell would marry Luke Cage. Thank goodness for the internet, huh?]

THIS image is not what the show is about.

And while I've read all the background and story arcs (on-line) for the character's series, none of it was really enough to interest me. It's not that I'm more interested in Spider-Man or something...he's bored the shit out of me for years as well (truth is I haven't been a regular purchaser/collector of comics for decades). I just wasn't intrigued enough by what I read to want to take the time and spend the money on some new, fire-and-forget, minor character comic series. I used to dig on Dazzler, but I never bought her graphic novel, either.

So now we have this Jessica Jones show on Ye Old Netflix, and the only reason I'm watching it is (in descending order of importance):

1. Because of the interconnectedness of the Marvel Netflix series (Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist...the main one I'm waiting for...all living in the mean streets of New York) I'm afraid I might miss something if I don't catch ALL the series.
2. I'd feel like a real shit-heel not watching the one superhero offering of Marvel that features a female protagonist. Seriously. Black Widow is bit character. And Shield Agents aren't "super heroes" in my book.
3. The strength of the Daredevil series (and other Netflix originals...House of Cards, Unbreakable Kimmie, Orange is the New Black) gave me faith the show would be at least interesting.

[see that Marvel? There was a time when people picked up the new Marvel hero mag based on the strength of earlier offerings. All those "classic" titles that are into the 800s and higher were NEW once upon a time. Have a little faith (and quality control) and re-learn what you've forgotten]

[or not, whatever. It's your business, after all, not mine]

So I started watching Jessica Jones (for those reasons) and I'm nine episodes in (just watched two tonight), and the show is great. Probably better than Daredevil (I'm still irritated by that cheesy ninja fight towards the end of the season), though I am partial to old DD. But the story in Jessica Jones is excellent, the acting is top notch, the writing and pacing are great, and the whole of the show is compelling. I watched two episodes tonight (five in the last couple days), and I had to force myself to stop so that I could write a blog post before (hopefully) hitting the hay.

But as I wrote in my last post, it can be difficult (mm..."challenging") to watch. The creators seem to really be striving to put the "tense" into "intense." I actually started watching the series a few months back, and am only just now returning to it. It's...well, it will probably push some buttons for you (and not very nice ones)...but that's a good thing, in my opinion. I mean, not if the show is absolutely hateful...and this one isn't. Hateful I mean. There's enough humanity and decency found within the characters (in a non-cheesy, non-preachy way) to balance the negativity.

And some of it's pretty negative...you get that in any story involving private investigators, of course; especially when the P.I.s biz starts getting mixed up with their friends and relations. But Jones is just such a fuck-up in so many ways...even when she's being super-smart and ballsy and tough and clever, she's STILL putting her foot in it. Digging her own hole. She's a friggin train wreck.

She's the jaded nihilist with the heart of gold. She's too much of a realist to be a hero, but has too many scruples (or guilt) to be a rank opportunist. She's a walking bucket of shame with a fifth of whiskey.

It's so anti-heroic, Jones (played exceptionally by Krysten Ritter) is on the verge of redefining what the hell it means to be an "anti-hero." She shuffles around town in her hoody and combat boots, basically making an ass of herself at all times. She shows that even a Class A badass can end up looking like a Class A clown if you keep the "tough guy" image going long enough. So many non-heroic images...getting thrown out of a bar, too drunk to stand. There's a great scene in which she climbs the Brooklyn Bridge (for no reason other than character exposition/development) where the camera is doing the "point-up-the-dress" view, and all you're treated to is a woman in rather unflattering jeans climbing a ladder. There's her completely wrecking people's lives while trying to "do the right thing." It's not Jones trying to be a "hero;" she just has too much morality not to try.

"A drink needs me. I don't."

And she has absolutely no time or give-a-shit for other folks' baggage or self-pity. She just tells it like it is. The murderer whose talking about his abusive childhood: "You're going to blame your shit on poor parenting?" She's constantly telling people to grow up...even though she is light-years away from maturity herself.

But it's good writing; none of this feels like it's just set-up for one-liners. And just as often she's getting sharp retorts thrown back in her face. Or being told off in no uncertain terms. Most often by people she cares about and whose opinions matter to her (thus making the "sting" harder). It's abusive. But it's self-inflicted. It's depressing...but there's hope. I mean, she's a superhero, dammit...she's got superpowers and we're talking about Marvel, so of course there's hope. And we all hope she'll pull through.

Because there are a lot of people counting on ol' Jessica Jones. In the comic book world, people count on their heroes. Eventually. After they realize (in the words of one character) that "they're up there, and we're down here, and we just need to get the hell out of their way." The way God and Stan Lee intended, I suppose.

It's a very good show. It also has nearly bupkis to do with the story arcs of the Jessica Jones comic series (either one) besides her origin story and her abuse at the hands of the Purple Man. In fact, the show is soooo street level, I really wonder how they're going to handle the Luke Cage and (especially) the Iron Fist series. On the Kenneth Hite "blue (weirdness) scale" this one's cranked pretty darn low...not much room for other dimensional realms and flaming chi punches. Just like you won't find Stilt-Man or even "radar sense" in the Daredevil series, the super powers found in Jessica Jones are either rationally explained, or else relegated to the land of Not-Relevant-Enough-For-Exposition. Like Daredevil, this one's an origin story without the origin story. No one cares about how Ms. Jones got her super powers (well, not much anyway)...we care about what she does with them. In this series we're seeing an origin of sorts...not how she became superhuman, but how she became a hero.

And that's a far more interesting story to watch.

[EDIT: Comments on this post may contain *SPOILERS*. Read at your own risk, but feel free to comment]

Street Level Heroes

This is more about TV.

I'm writing this Friday night around 11pm; the house is quiet, the kids are asleep, the wife's out of town. I plan on putting on a little Netflix (Jessica Jones) and catching an episode or two, but I wanted to blog a couple things while I'm thinking about it...even though I don't plan on posting this for a couple days.

I received a notification from Netflix that the new season of Daredevil is coming out March 18th. Readers of this blog know how much I dig the man in the red suit. The main question, of course, is will the second season be as good as the first? Well, it's going to introduce Elektra, and the first episode (per IMDB) has Daredevil facing off against Frank Castle (AKA the Punisher) so comic fans should be prepared to totally geek out. For me, I have to say that the highlight of watching the trailer was actually seeing Murdoch and Foggy interact...as I blogged before, Elden Henson is a breath of fresh air; I forgot how good the chemistry between these actors is, and I found myself (emotionally) moved in just a few second clip. Rosario Dawson again makes an appearance, based on the series trailer, and Deborah Woll (Karen Page) gets 2nd billing in every episode, so I assume she remains prominent, despite the introduction of ex-flame Elektra.

Not Greek.

Elektra appears to retain her Greek-ish heritage (last name "Natchios") but will be played by Elodie Yung, a French woman of mixed French and Cambodian ancestry. Which I find fascinating for all sorts of reasons. It won't be the first time a non-Greek person will have played the popular anti-hero (see Jennifer Garner), but I wonder about the insistence of keeping a character's ethnic identity. I suppose I'm just being picky.

Or am I? There's been quite a brouhaha over the casting of Finn Jones to play Danny Rand in the upcoming Iron Fist series...appears more than a few people were hoping that Marvel and Netflix would take a step outside comic book cannon and cast an Asian-American in the role (you can do your own Google search for "Iron Fist controversy"...you'll find several articles). I mean, he IS a martial arts master, right?

Oh, boy.

Not Asian.

I can understand why Iron Fist is a troublesome character. He's got the whole "cultural appropriation" thing going on, plus you know, the "white guy reigns supreme" thing (kicking the ass of Asian martial artists as he takes on the championship mantle from the mystical Asian kingdom dimension). Of course, even making him Asian is problematic because, well, then you get the whole stereotype of "all Asians know karate" thing. Look, I grew up in Seattle and had a lot of friends of Asian ancestry...not a single one did martial arts, and many of them (especially my Filipino buddies) absolutely HATED that stereotype.

Come to think of it, in all the years I practiced martial arts (about a decade of tae kwon do and hwa rang do plus a single, abbreviated foray into chung moo do) all the practitioners I knew were caucasian. Hell, I only ever met one instructor that was Korean, and she'd only started practicing because she was married to her (caucasian) husband who was an instructor and had met her in Korea.

[I did work with a man of mixed Hawaiian and Japanese ancestry who taught aikido, but all the folks I knew who studied aikido...four guys and a girl...were white]

But that's the Seattle experience, and we have a legacy left from Bruce Lee who lived there and ran a school for a number of years before going to Hong Kong to make movies.

Not even American.

So Iron Fist is a problematic figure. The thing is (*sigh*) I LOVE Iron Fist. I've been waiting with bated breath for his series since it was announced years ago. When I was a kid playing Marvel Superheroes, my character was based on Iron Fist (his look, not his powers). The recent series for the character, the "Living Weapon" stuff, is great. I really dug the whole Daredevil-Iron Fist switcheroo (which made perfect sense when you think about it). I love his relationship with Luke Cage...the black-white buddy thing. I love his off-again-on-again relationship with Misty Knight (probably my second favorite female superhero after Batgirl...it's the cyborg thing). I love that he's stupid about a lot of things. I love that he's smart about things that are truly important. I love that he got rid of his wealth rather than sitting on it (like Bruce Wayne or Oliver Queen). I love that he runs a tiny dojo for inner city kids. He is a very urban superhero (like Cage, like Misty)...he reminds me of real people I've known...good people who are involved with their community and who don't allow themselves to be stereotyped by what they do, regardless of the color of their skin.

For me, the problem isn't that Iron Fist is a white dude. The problem is there's an under-representation of Asian and Asian-American superheroes. Well, male ones anyway...there've been several prominent females, and even some re-skins (if you'll pardon the pun), like the Wasp in Marvel's Ultimate imprint. But male heroes? In Marvel (with which I'm more familiar) you've got Sunfire and Shang-Chi and in DC you've got...what? Samurai from the Super-Friends?

As far as I know, Shang-Chi is the only one who ever had his own title: Master of Kung-Fu. Now there's a walking Asian stereotype for you! Shang-Chi was first published in 1973 (before Iron Fist) and his series ran into the mid-1980s. I mean, if folks really want to see an Asian martial artist superhero, that's the guy you want to bring to the screen...but no one wants to see that. We've got plenty of Hong Kong action films with Asian actors doing martial arts already.

Black Panther?

How about if we make Black Panther Malaysian instead of African? As I wrote before, in a cursory study of diversity in the Marvel universe (among prominent superheroes), black males are over-represented considering their percentage of the American population. And having a black dude named "Black Panther" is right on the same level as having a Chinese guy known as "the Master of Kung-Fu." Black panthers (the animal) are common in the equatorial rain forests of Malaysia (per Ye Old Wikipedia) as well as southwestern China and Nepal. I know Marvel plans on coming out with a Black Panther film...why not cast it with Malaysian actor Zahiril Adzim (the kick-boxer in the critically acclaimed drama Bunohan)? Wouldn't that be a better choice than the (often sad-sack) karate-dude Iron Fist?

[haha. Just joking...I know they've already cast Chadwick Boseman who was great as Jackie Robinson in 42]

The point is, there are a lot of better options for re-imagining characters as non-white heroes than the guy with the dragon tattoo on his chest. Dr. Strange would have been a fine choice (a third generation Asian-American who travels to Tibet and faces culture shock?). Daniel Dae Kim would have made a great Hawkeye (leader of the West Coast Avengers). Probably not Tony Stark (looking at his origin story), but certainly Rhodey/War Machine. Ghost Rider. Any of the X-Men when you think about it (maybe not Thunder Bird). Ant-Man (though I really did enjoy Paul Rudd as Scott Lang). Any of the Fantastic Four could have been east Asian (though having orange rocky skin kind of renders the whole ethnicity thing moot). Spider-Man (isn't he due for a new reboot anyway?).

Yes, I know I'm irritating people on both sides. The point is, it ain't the 1960s. Filmmakers aren't making real CANNON stories anyway...people are driving Teslas and using cell phones and the internet. You don't need to go with "cannon" for race if the rest of the story is getting a facelift. But Iron Fist is a poor choice for a re-skin, in my not-so-humble opinion. Have him get his ass kicked by Asian martial artists if the cultural appropriation thing is too galling for you, and then have his bacon saved by Luke and Misty and Colleen. Heck, that's always been the real strength of his character: his friends and teammates.

[by the way, why does Wolverine get a pass on the cultural appropriation thing?]

*glug*glug*glug*

Ugh, still haven't talked about Jessica Jones. She really deserves her own post, but I really just want to go watch an episode. Okay, let me just (briefly) say this: Jessica Jones is a good show. It is a HARD show to watch...there's quite a bit of button-pushing that goes on in it: issues like racism and severe abuse and substance dependency and mental illness and other unsavories. It's quite a bit more intense than watching Daredevil beat up human traffickers, and it brings up all sorts of "icky" feelings. But it's well done, and the cast is terrific, especially the leads (Krysten Ritter and Mike Colter as Luke Cage). Ritter especially...she's just so unapologetic as a train wreck of a superhero that you can't help but root for her. And David Tennant as the Purple Man is really slimy...unlike Donofrio's Kingpin, there is absolutely no sympathy for this particular psychopath.

Yeah, Jessica Jones really needs its own post.

Alcoholics really shouldn't date bar owners.

I will say that, with regard to issues of strength, Ms. Jones seems to be right on par with my calculations. In doing my research into superheroes' weights the other day, I came across this article taking Marvel to task for making women who were too skinny for their height and build (kind of a "Barbie doll" syndrome for comics). I haven't researched that, as most of the characters the author cites are superhero women who don't possess "superhuman strength" (the subject of my research), but after reading it, I was wondering how Jones would hold up.

Turns out pretty well. Her official stats have her listed as 5'7", 124# which isn't all that far off from the measurements of the actor who plays the character (5'9", 127#). By my calcs, a super-strong character of 124# with "good" (13-15) physical strength has a Carry/Throw of 3.2 tons. Marvel doesn't list an official limit to Jessica's strength, though it notes that she is able to throw a two-ton police car with ease. Looks about right to me.

[plus, her full strength punch is enough to kill a normal human (oops! spoiler!). That's the same whether you can bench six tons or sixty, folks]

Okay, that's enough superhero talk for one night. Later, folks.

Batgirl

Love the Docs.

Last fall, I started writing a blog post about Batgirl, but it got bogged down, especially after an over-long preamble about comic book heroes in general. I'm going to try this again, because I've had superheroes on the mind lately (um, the last 48 hours), but...well, we'll see how it goes.

For me (and for a lot of folks) Batgirl means Barbara Gordon. Ye Old Wikipedia tells me that she was one of the most popular characters during the Silver Age of comics and was ranked #17 on IGN's "Top 100 Comic Book Heroes" list of 2011...one of only four women to crack the top 20.

[the others? Cat Woman at #20 (hero?), Jean Grey at #13, and Wonder Woman at #5. If we ranked male and female superheroes on separate lists, that would put Babs Gordon at #3 overall...equal par with Spider-Man for the male side]

Trying to come up with my own such lists are extremely difficult (edit edit pages and pages of text)...but after spending much more time than I probably should have and coming up with 20 heroes of each sex (a Top 40 of spandex-clad classics), Batgirl is the clear favorite for the #1 spot in on the "Ladies List," and comes in somewhere around #6 overall (both lists combined). She is, quite clearly, my favorite super heroine of all time...something I wasn't even aware of until recently. Heck, she may not have even been in the running until I started really checking out the whole "Batgirl" concept with my son the last couple-three years. Even ignoring all that Oracle/Birds of Prey stuff that's given her an extra boost in popularity the last quarter century, Batgirl is extremely interesting conceptually...different from most any superhero out there (well, if you're looking at "big namers" from the Big Two comic companies).

First off, she's one of the few modern day heroes not possessed of actual "superpowers." Batgirl is a throwback crime fighter in the pulp tradition, despite being created a quarter century later than most of her comparable male counterparts (Batman, Green Arrow, Spirit, The Shadow, etc.). While there are plenty of "non-powered" humans found within the ranks of modern superheroes, most of these possess science-fiction gadgetry (Iron Man, Hawkeye, Vindicator, etc.) or training in fantasy-level skills (Dr. Strange, Elektra, Iron Fist, etc.). Batgirl has a few "themed" gadgets, but aside from some of the more campier items of her TV years (a laser compact capable of "destroying anything"), the pre-Oracle Batgirl was pretty low-tech when it came to the stuff in her utility belt. She's an old school detective in the same vein as Batman.

However, unlike Batman, or most non-powered superheroes, Batgirl's character isn't motivated by any sort of past tragedy. Heroes like Batman, or Punisher, or Elektra all have some sort of dark violent thing that has happened to them, causing them to "don the mask" and punish evil-doers, a violent sort of "self-therapy." Such tragedy isn't necessary for heroes gifted with powers beyond mortal ken, but even so it's often included in their origin stories (see Spider-Man, Dr. Strange, Daredevil, etc.) to drive home the importance of using their powers responsibly. But for the non-powered hero, tragedy is important to push the character into a life outside the norm, to justify becoming Green Arrow or Iron Man or the Huntress instead of simply living the life of a billionaire playboy/playgirl.

This formula doesn't apply to Barbara Gordon's character. Her only "tragedy" is being a product of her time...the highly intelligent daughter of a cop at a time (the 1960s) when women were underrepresented and mostly absent from the ranks of law enforcement.

[to be clear, there were female police officers by the 1960's. The first female police detective in the United States appears to have been Alice B. Clements of the Chicago P.D.. She was promoted to detective in 1913, seven years before the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote in this country. After her retirement, however, uniformed women officers were few and far between, not even allowed to walk beats in Chicago till the 1970s]

Alice Clements. Yes, she was a real person.

Instead of tragedy, Gordon's motivations appear to be partly duty (using her skills to make the world a better place) and partly thrill-seeking. Over time, the "duty" part gets the upper hand, and the mature Barbara Gordon becomes a U.S. Congressman and (eventually) retires from crime-fighting, hanging up the cape and allowing other heroes their day. This is yet another thing that distinguishes her from most other superheroes: her transition to maturity and a self-awareness of her own mortality (not to mention the difference she found she could make doing things other than "patrolling the streets").

Couldn't just let her retire
 with dignity, could you?

'Course popular heroes can never stay retired/dead/crippled, right? Comic companies have to sell comics and known commodities have more draw (and sell more copy) than the new unknown, yeah? *sigh*

[low-hanging fruit. yay]

I started thinking about Batgirl (back in October-November) mainly because I was watching and digging on the new Flash TV show and considering how well these WB folks could do something like Batgirl, drawing on the combined experience of both Flash and Arrow. It wouldn't have to include Batman at all, just focus on this interesting character who's somehow got herself into the vigilante business...not because she learned some sort of zen archery/salmon ladder shtick on an island, but because...well, just because. I mean, she's Phoenix Jones with a better rogues gallery (and probably better gadgets) living in an alternate universe where godlike beings (Superman, Wonder Woman, etc.) walk among the mere mortals. What's the mental thought process that leads one into that particular pickle? She must be a little cracked in the head, right? But without all the negative, tragic-past baggage you find in Batman or Luke Cage or Jessica Jones. Someone with the fun side of the "new" Barry Allen...but without the powers. Now, THAT would be a show I'd like to see.

As for gaming (the thing that brought me back to this 7-month old blog topic)...Batgirl is the type of superhero who really works best in a granular level RPG, like Heroes Unlimited. Games like MSH or Supers! or (God forbid) Mutants & Masterminds are a bit too far above her pay grade in terms of scale. Oh, I'm sure there's a write-up for the character in Green Ronin's DC-licensed version of M&M, but O So Ugly I don't even want to contemplate the stat block. I'm thinking of maybe, just maybe, returning to a Very Old (& Dusty) project that I was working on...back before I started worrying about things like being "innovative" or "subversive" in my design process. Something a little B/Xish (class and level based) without actually being B/X. I do have a street-level game on the design table, but that's all about being angry...and Batgirl's not really an angry person. There's quite a bit of the "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" to her. I wonder if I have it in me to write a fun game..while still keeping things gritty and granular with bullets that make you bleed.

[by "fun" I really mean "light-hearted." I hope my games are somewhat fun to play!]

Maybe. That's what I'm thinking anyway...something that inverts the scale problems one finds in games like MSH and DC/Blood of Heroes, without being as fiddly as M&M and without being as hit-or-miss as Heroes Unlimited. Something with the right amount of crunch, while allowing for comic book tropes (super punches not disintegrating folks, for example), and with consequences for failure that are rough without "canceling the series" of a character. That's a tall order...but I'm thinking about it.

Inspired by Babs

O By The Way...

Finished the Daredevil series round about Tuesday or Wednesday of last week. Great, great series and very pleased with the overall product and story arc. Well worth the watch, and makes me excited for the other scheduled MCU series to come.

Oh, yeah...and it inspired me to write a new game. Been working on it the last five days or so (actually writing text). Just so you know.
; )

If you don't recognize these folks, I can't help you.