Friday, September 16, 2011

DC, what are you doing to me?

I'm still home internet-less, but I had to pay a bit to mention this. The GLC preview is up. Check it out.

You did not just dream that.

That's a beheading, followed by cutting a woman in half, followed by the loss of a finger, followed by a reference to an infamous Leni Riefenstahl film.

For those of you who are new to the Internet and it's population of history snobs, Leni Riefenstahl was an early 20th Century pioneer who made inroads for women in the field of Evil. She did a Nazi propaganda film called "Triumph of the Will" which to this day is still inspiring horror of authoritarian power in film classes and museums.

It is probably not the best choice of titles for a book where the main heroes are fueled by willpower.

Not that it couldn't be done. With a delicate eye for history and a gentle handling of the subject--keeping in mind that there are still people alive who fell for this propaganda and there are still people alive who were persecuted by the makers and followers of this propaganda--you could use that title and not be horribly offensive. Provided it's meaningful, respectful, and subtle.

Thing is.. and I say this as someone who's enjoyed a lot of Green Lantern since Rebirth... This isn't a subtle franchise.

And I'd say the over the top violence in the opening scene justifies my pessimism here.

6 comments:

  1. I guess that I'm going to have to go over and actually check out the preview, which I usually try to avoid, at least when it comes to Green Lanterns.

    I'm a bit...torn. On the one hand, I love Peter Tomasi. On the other hand, that seems like a LOT of gore! And Nazis. Comic books LOVE Nazis! Especially dinosaur-riding Nazis! Yet...I hesitate to read too much into Tomasi's use of THAT title. If it is going to go into the Guardian's increasingly troubling approach to running the universe, then the use of that title may indeed be justified.

    I guess we'll just have to wait till next Wednesday.

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  2. Another HEIL point for DC!

    This issue also introduces John Stewart's new love interest: Y'Va Br'onn!

    I'm dreading the issue's shower scenes. They're gonna involve MORE than just a Hal Jordan slip-and-fall, aren't they?

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  3. But seriously: First the "White Power Rings", then "Ape-Controlled Africa", Now THIS?

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  4. I don't know if they are just so caught up in the moment, when it comes to pitching ideas, or if they really are that tone-deaf when it comes to actually thinking about how things can sound.

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  5. My God! Did they not think "Hey, why does that phrase sound familiar? Where do we know that from?" and Google it?

    (And if they used it deliberately, then WOW, that is a tacky and trivializing thing to do.)

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  6. "...inroads for women in the field of Evil." is probably the best thing i've read all day.

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