Heroes and Villains: Perspective

I have been a fan of comic books, Disney movies, and horror movies for as long as I can remember. One thing I have always enjoyed about these forms of entertainment is normal people rising to the occasion to defeat "evil." The ancient old telling of good vs. evil. However, even from a young age I have always had a deep respect for the protagonists. Many Halloweens I would dress up as Darth Vader or Two Face. I always wish cinematic entertainment would go deeper into the story of how "villains" became villains, rather than how our "heroes" came to conquer the evil that threatens them. I mean, when you discuss this topic of heroes, and villains and what the difference between them is. The answer to me seems simple, perspective. How you view the conflict and what side you relate more to. Honestly, I don't like to pick sides, I am not that kind of guy.

To quote a line from one of my favorite movies The Departed:

"They say you can be a cop or a robber. I say, when you're starring down the barrel of a loaded gun, what's the difference?"

I believe good and evil is relative and would like to provide some examples from my perspective on how to relate to some of my favorite "evil" doers.

Thanos: The Mad Titan

The most talked about new villain in recent memory is definitely the mad Titan himself, Thanos. The man who wants to erase half of all life. For me the best part of Avengers Infinity War was how they made it a point of view from Thanos. They told his story, and did a phenomenal job at making him relatable. So why is he a villain? Is it because he wants to decimate half of life? Why does he want this though? We learn his home planet Titan was on the verge of extinction, too many mouths not enough food. His plan was dispassionate random elimination of half the planet, rich and poor alike. Then we get to the question of when he gets the power of harnessing all six infinity stones, why not double resources? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but he knows that the nature of living creatures wouldn't change. If we had more resources, we just consume them faster. Ebony Maw, Thanos' right hand man, when he gives his declaration, he states that you are about to be pivotal in restoring balance to the universe. Half of the population will serve as a sacrifice, so the other half can prosper. The other half having a revelation that they no longer have to worry where their next meal comes from.

When Gamora and Thanos are having a talk about mortality and discussing his plan, Gamora states he killed half of her people and why he is wrong. Thanos replies, "Look at it now, it's a paradise. Children born know nothing but full bellies and clear skies."

Doctor Strange called Thanos' plan genocide. However, Thanos' plan is to take away the threat of having to kill each other for better land or food or any resource. Instead allow the supply and demand to even out. To bring balance to life.

Negan: The Saviours

I am going to just come out and say it, I love Negan! He is by far the most charismatic enthralling character in The Walking Dead. I get a lot of push on this. He killed Glenn and tortures people. So let me pose a question to you. If The Walking Dead started with Negan waking up in the hospital and we followed him all the way through, what would you know about Rick Grimes and his group? The only thing you would know about Rick is he lead a team to one of Negan's outposts and killed everyone. Technically, Negan killed Glenn because Darryl hit him after he introduced Abraham to Lucille. Which, that act was a retaliation for what they did in the outpost. He still maintains however, that they can live in harmony despite Rick killing a bunch of his guys. The Sanctuary was based around everyone having a purpose, and living as "normal" as possible. He protected other communities in exchange for half their resources. When people step out of line or don't show loyalty he holds them accountable. If we followed Negan throughout, and then get introduced to Rick he is just as, if not more, ruthless as Negan. Even Rick's son, Carl, made multiple attempts to convince Rick that the killing need to stop and it never did. Post apocalypse world is ruthless but Negan did always say everyone would be taken care of as long as they worked together.

Magneto: Mutant Rights Activist

Magneto is always going to be one of my favorite characters from both comics and cinema alike. As one of the strongest mutants in the Marvel Universe, he is always posed as a threat to humanity. Not to mutants, to humanity. As a World War II survivor he has had a front row seat to the worst that mankind has to offer. He is viewed as a villian because he wants to devastate mankind and allow mutants to take their place as rightful owners of the Earth. However, it is touched upon that his best friend in the whole world is Charles Xavier. They found mutants and tried to keep them from being judged and believed that mutants should not only be allowed to walk among humans, but be equal to them. Magneto watched as a boy as his parents were killed because they were "different." Needless to say he has some deep-seated anger. As he tries to gain equal rights for mutants, he sees what he has always known, humans fear what they don't understand. Time after time a mutant shows themself in the open he watches as humans try to capture, torture or kill them because they see them as a threat. How would you react to this situation? Magneto would like to have mutants and humans live in peace, but has never seen evidence that humans plan on accepting this. Human nature is to eradicate what they don't understand, and what poses a threat. Simply put, Magneto wants peace, but never truly believes mankind is capable. The constant debate between Charles and Eric is always that peace is impossible when one side will always fear the other. Mutants can provide great service to the world and mankind if we allowed them to, but the problem is we fear their power. In X-Men Apocalypse, Magneto is living in peace with a family and when an earthquake occurs one of his coworkers is about to be crushed by a metal boiler, but he stops it using his power and saves his life. What was his reward? They told on him. As a result, his wife and daughter end up getting killed as humans try to capture him. Magneto has tried to see the best in people, and always ends up disappointed.

In Conclusion:

Whether you agree with me or not is not my concern. I love heroes like Thor, Spider-Man, Batman, Doctor Strange and Wolverine. I love the conflict between heroes and villains. Actually some of my favorite characters are classified as "anti-heroes". How great is that? Heroes that don't care about what happens to anyone, but always end up killing the bad guys. Characters like Deadpool, The Punisher, Venom and Dexter are among my favorites. Horrific back stories, they kill people and generally don't care about the"greater good" but, they have hero in their description because they only take out "bad guys." We don't hesitate to call Thanos, Negan or Magneto villains, because they are dispassionate about who goes and who stays.

Behind every hero is a dark story, and a reluctance to do the right thing until they decide to do the right thing and help those that can't help themselves. Behind every villain is a tragic event that calluses them, and causes them to take a path that is deemed mad or evil. Killmonger, in Black Panther, was a Wakandan abandoned to see the world fall apart and watch the indifference of a country that could save the world if they wanted to. Black Manta watched his father die from an Atlantian conflict and watch them go back to their kingdom as if nothing happened. Zemo, from Captain America Civil War, killed people in order to break up the Avengers because the Avengers actions in Sakovia lead to his families death and he watched them go back to their daily lives. Maleficent cursed Aurora to get revenge for her father's actions of taking her wings to become king. Countless other examples I can think of as to why "villains" do what they do. Like I said, the difference between hero and villain is how you look at the situation.

I am calling for more of a light to be shown on our sworn enemies. I am all for the battle between good and evil, as it is entertaining and sells tickets but, I have always felt that the way people talk about villains is a result of some diluted morality that there is good and evil and good always needs to win! Sometimes the only difference is how the story is told. Sometimes there is no good and no evil. Merely people or mutants who have trusted in the faith that people can be good and live in peace, and winded up disappointed. Then there are their counterparts who have faith that man can be good, live in peace and, despite being disappointed, still try to defend "justice." All I know is I like to play devil's advocate and when someone says they do not like the protagonist because he is "evil" I will be there to show them that all that is, is their perception of the story. Besides, without villains we wouldn't need any heroes. Thank you!