Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The Muppets vs. Hollywood

I'm sure a lot of you have noticed a trend in modern Hollywood; some of you have even mocked it with me: the philosophy that dark and gritty equals better. Of course, as an incurable optimist and a firm believer in happy endings, this just doesn't fly with me... and guess what, it doesn't fly so well with the Muppets either.

Yes, they're back. All your favorite fuzzy and fozzy friends are making with the jokes and running wild all over Hollywood. Only there seems to be one small problem: no one knows who they are anymore. And of course that is the least of their worries, as Chris Cooper (maniacal laughter, maniacal laughter) wants to drill for oil (of course he does) under the lot of Muppet Studios. The only way for the Muppets to win back their land and place in the hearts of millions is to raise 10 million dollars before the drilling starts.

Through much metahumor, a tight script and the obvious charm of Kermit, Amy Adams and Jason Segel, the Muppets steal the show (as well as Jack Black) in order to win the day. Could there have been any doubt?

But there is a larger game afoot here. Jason Segel was one of the main proponents for bringing the Muppets back and see them "again the way I remember." His love for Jim Henson's characters is unmistakeable, and the writers and filmmakers made sure to create a film that strayed as far away from modern Hollywood tendencies as possible.

In fact, at the end of the day, that is what the new Muppet movie is all about... poking Hollywood in the eye... with happiness. Chris Cooper's Mr. Richman (yes, that's his name) even uses the "dark and gritty" speech in order to convince the Muppets that they are over. He has even gathered together his own edge, cynical version of the Muppets called "the Moopets," featuring Dave Grohl as a replacement for Animal.

But in the end, not only do the Muppets win, but they win by a long shot. They fill up all of Main Street in downtown LA with cheering fans, and through this they prove something... not only to Chris Cooper, but to Hollywood and the world: cynical and dark is not better. The movie theater I was in was packed with men, women and children of all ages... cheering and laughing and clapping at the finale. The Muppets are back at just the right time, when the general public is sick of Hollywood's shenanigans.

People love to laugh and cheer and love and be loved. Hollywood cannot change that. All the false information and advertising in the world cannot change that. Yes, people may come out by the millions to see Fincher's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo... the "feel bad movie of the year"... but as long as there is song and dance, as long as there is true love, as long as the Muppets are around, and as long as God is in His heaven... people will love happy endings.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

It Cometh...

There is something incredibly majestic about snow. And at the same time... something about it that is humble and scorned. The first snow of the winter is rarely a raging storm... more often it takes the form of a flurry or little puff of the winter that is to come. It is scorned... melts quickly and is soon purposefully forgotten by us human-folk. Weeks go by and most every falls into that position were they believe the snow never happened... it was all just a figment of our collective imagination.

Then Thanksgiving approaches, the snow readies its horses and chariot and rides as it has not ridden before. Suddenly the world is silent; it can say nothing in the face of such honor and splendor. Of course there are some desenters, but they are soon shushed by the onlooking crowd.

'Hush...' they seemm to say, 'the king cometh...'

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Beings Who Love

Love… love is the glue that holds the fabric of the universe together. It’s not like it’s a new concept. Even the evolutionists believe it… they can’t even create a world where love is not at its center; and every time they do they turn into psychopathic, mass-murdering lunatics.

One of my favorite TV shows of all time is Doctor Who. Super nerdy, I know, but my love of the show goes much deeper than its time traveling, sci-fi exterior. My love for the show stems from the warm beating hearts at its center; the fact that it is ultimately love, and love only that can conquer all the evils of the universe. The two most recent seasons, under the deft hand of Steven Moffat, demonstrate this perfectly.

From the way he writes the show, and from the things he simply presumes that the audience will take for granted, it is fairly easy to surmise that Moffat is an atheist. However, grace is common, even if belief in God is not, and Moffat cannot seem to help writing brilliant stories about fathers and sons and mothers and daughters and romantic couples and lovers who would sacrifice the entire universe for each other. Moffat seems to be a scientific wizard who is not only an atheist but a hopeless romantic.

I have often been criticized for the fact that I too am a hopeless romantic. It’s not logical, it’s not reasonable… but when I am loving someone or something other than myself… something outside of myself: that is when I am at my happiest. That is when I am most fulfilled. Even the atheists know this, and they cannot help but show it. Silly atheists.

On the flipside, there have been not times I have been lower than when I am filled with hate and rage. Those times when I suddenly think that I am the most important thing in the universe and that everyone should bow to my wishes and my wishes alone… that is when I feel most truly alone. That is when I am left with nothing but myself, and I realize that that is the very last person in the world I would want to be left alone with.

Alone, selfish and consumed with greed, humans destroy each other. War comes not from man being a true island, but from his myopic desire for what he thinks will make him happy at the expense of all others. Pain and suffering come from man THINKING that he is alone in the universe and that he is… God.

“God is not watching… for I am god.” The most dangerous thing in the universe that can be uttered… and yet we say it every day.

Question: Is God reasonable and logical and normal?

Answer: No… He decided to create an entire reality just to please Himself because he wanted more things to interact with. He was the very first being to ever think to Himself: “you know what we need? A really epic story.” And then he told one.

Question: Is God an island?

Answer: No. From the beginning of time and space… since BEFORE the dawn of time and space, He has been always and forever interacting with Himself. For He is three. And He is one. He is triune. And yes, that is mad. Completely daft and mad and insane. And that mad, daft, insane, loving, passionate, incredible being decided to tell a story with us in it. Not only that… but He decided to make us like Him.

Beings who love.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Happiness

"All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different
means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going
to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended
with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this
object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those
who hang themselves." -Blaise Pascal

Friday, November 11, 2011

Batman and the Kingship of Man

There are many interesting character relationships that are detailed in the pages of Batman comics, and nearly as many have been analyzed to death by modern philosophers, literary and pop culture critics. But I have yet to see a decent analysis of the relationship between Batman and Jim Gordon.

Anyone familiar with Batman comics and the lovely locale that they inhabit will know that calling Gotham City “not a good place” is an understatement of the highest caliber. Gotham City, itself influenced by New York City, has been described by comic book author Dennis O’Neil as “Manhattan below Fourteenth Street at eleven minutes past midnight on the coldest night in November." (See footnote 1) And it’s not just the weather that’s cold. Gotham City is home to some of the most dangerous criminals and brutes to ever inhabit the printed page. And against this oncoming hoard of scum and villainy stands the stalwart police commissioner James Gordon; the only straight cop in a world of corruption. That is, until Batman came along.

It is Gordon who is usually responsible for lighting the bat-signal, calling for the Caped Crusader’s help. The public comes to Jim Gordon, and Gordon in turn looks to Batman. While in many origin stories the alliance begins with much distrust on both sides, Batman and Gordon always seem to have some sort of conversation before any given story is over. Besides his trusty butler Alfred, Commissioner Gordon is just about he only friend that Batman has.

Now would probably be a good time to bring up the notion of human kingship, specifically that God created man in the beginning to be the ultimate ruler of the created universe and that God would in turn rule over him. (See footnote 2) This specifically harkens back to God’s mandate for man to populate the earth and take dominion over it. (Genesis 1:28-30 and again in Genesis 9:1-3) It is also generally accepted that man was to become a ruler of the earth had he not fallen, and this is made the case again since Christ (the Son and Crown Prince of the High Throne) came down to make intersession for and redeem his people. Since He came back for us and didn’t simply let us abstain from our throne, we are now once again “heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.” (Romans 8:17)

Back to Batman: I view Batman as a sort of imperfect Christ figure. As I put forth in my previous essay, he is imperfect because (among other things) he never truly triumphs over evil, but seemingly co-exists with it. But Batman is a sort of Christ figure nonetheless. This is particularly apparent in Christopher Nolan’s portrayal of Batman in the film The Dark Knight. In the film Batman defeats all sorts of evil, but in the end must run from the very people he swore to protect… taking the fall for the crimes that so many of Gotham’s citizen have committed themselves.

Nolan, widely held to be a nihilist due to his films like Following and Memento, portrays Batman as a scapegoat, a sacrificial lamb… but in a heroic way; and the film it self became at the time the second highest grossing movie of all time. This is what we call common grace at work, my friends. (See footnote 3) And not simply content to leave Batman as a willing sacrifice, Nolan realized that his story was not finished and ultimately decided to make a third Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises. (Are you seeing anymore Christ-like parallels here?) Nolan, a secular and a pagan, could not leave the hero in the dark; the nihilist could not end with nihilism. Strange, huh?

So if Batman is Jesus, then Commissioner Jim Gordon is Noah, he is Adam, he is David, he is Lot, he is us. Commissioner Gordon is the one righteous man in a sea of sin and iniquity. He strives to raise a faithful and good son, he stands up for the just, and condemns evil… no matter the price. He has been on the receiving end of both mockery and car bombs… and he simply could not do it anymore. Suddenly, without warning, and just in the nick of time comes Batman. A thief in the night, a righter of wrongs, a Knight… and Knight who takes on the Clown Prince of Crime (Prince of Darkness anyone?). He sacrifices himself to this end: to defeat evil for good, and to return to city of Gotham to the glory it once had and restore it to the good people who inhabit it.

If and when Batman won and was no longer needed, Bruce Wayne would return to his seat as king of Gotham. (Yes, I know that I am extending this metaphor pretty far.) And from his tower he would watch as Gordon and those whom he had put in positions of authority after disposing of the corrupt leaders took charge and ruled the city under him. They would have inherited Gotham after and long and bloody battle. They would have a newfound dominion over Gotham. A rule and dominion that Batman fully intended to give to them all along.





(1) O'Neil, Dennis. Afterword. Batman: Knightfall, A Novel. New York: Bantam Books, 1994. 344.

(2) For those of you who will upset by my choice of words, let me assure you that when I refer to “man” I am using it as John Frame and the entirety of the Scriptures us it: to refer to all humankind; male and female. I am not a feminist, but I do want them to read what I write. So let’s just call this clarification a compromise so that I don’t have to compromise. For a further and more exhaustive explanation, please see the preface to John Frame’s book The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God.

(3 )Reformed systematic theologian Louis Berkhof defined common grace this way: “[Common grace] curbs the destructive power of sin, maintains in a measure the moral order of the universe, thus making an orderly life possible, distributes in varying degrees gifts and talents among men, promotes the development of science and art, and showers untold blessings upon the children of men.” More simply put, this means that while not all people will be saved, all will retain some sort of common instinct of holiness and understanding of good that God placed in them… even if they choose to suppress it. For more awesome stuff that Berkhof said, check out his book called very simply: Systematic Theology.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Meanwhile...

So... yes, you may have noticed that I deactivated my Facebook account again... for like..... the third time in a year. I am making no promises this time. I may reactivate it within the week, I may not activate it again for a year. All I know is that my trips to the internet are much more peaceful and pleasant when I don't frequent Facebook. I've used a lot of metaphors to describe the infamous social networking site, as have many others... so I won't again. It's off for now, and that is that.

However, in other news, I am going to be keeping a better eye on this site as well as my Twitter (here). With Twitter I will be keeping you all up to date on my whereabouts as well as sharing bits like fun videos, and tasty bits of essays, quotes and Scripture.

On the blog the essays will be coming thick and fast. As I have said elsewhere, I am turning this whole Batman essay series into a thing, so the second should be following shortly. Soon to follow should be two essays titled "LOL! NERDS!" and "Baggage Sucks". I'll leave the rest up to your copious imaginations.

Till then!
JSTT

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Batman and Dualism

Like all superheroes, Batman has died time and time and time again. There have probably been as many funerals for the Dark Knight as there have been for the Man of Steel. Like all DC Comic’s heroes, however, he is always back and locking baddies in Arkham within the month.

But there is something very unique about Batman’s many funerals: the attendees. The Dark Knight’s entire rouge gallery is nearly always in attendance. Poison Ivy weeping quietly, propping up her head against Harley Quinn. Penguin looks absolutely devastated, and the Joker… the Joker looks the saddest of all… as if his best friend in the entire world has just passed away. What is going on here?

One of the central philosophies surrounding the Batman mythos is that the crime that pervades Gotham created him, and that he in turn is the reason that crime in Gotham continues. Hugo Strange even explicitly states in Arkham City that Batman is the reason that the criminals exist; the corruption in Gotham is his fault. (See footnote 1)

The Joker, however, is the main character to espouse this belief. The Clown Prince of Gotham truly is the antithesis of Batman. He is joyful where Batman is gloomy; he finds immense satisfaction in what he does while Batman is often conflicted and unsure of what he is supposed to do next. Their stories are often like a dark and intricate dance; the Joker initiating an event and daring the Dark Knight to chase him down and solve the mystery, right the wrong, save the citizen. Sometimes the Joker seems to do it simply for the pleasure of the crime, but more often than not, it becomes clear that he simply missed Batman and wanted to “hang out”… even if it is on his own terms and in his own twisted way.

In Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum there is even a sexual undertone to the Joker’s relationship with Batman, even though it is not reciprocated by Batman himself. The Joker wears high heals throughout this book, and occasionally makes quips about the fact that the person closest to Batman is a young boy (Batman’s sidekick Robin). In Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, the Joker even goes so far as to wear makeup.

As I said before, what on earth is going on? Dualism, my friends.

Josiah, what’s dualism? Well, to understand dualism we’re going to have to go back a bit… And by a bit, I mean a lot.

Dualism started with the Greeks, or at least the Greeks gave it its most prevalent form, in that good and evil coexist, always have coexisted and always will. Dualism does not necessitate the belief that good and evil will continue to coexist forever , but the most consistent dualists view both as co-eternal. A more common dualistic view is that of good and evil both existing at the beginning of things and then one triumphing over the other by the end of time. Examples include Norse mythology where chaos will ultimately triumph over good, and Platonism where the opposite is true.

This notion of dualism has even permeated the circles of Christian thought, where it is now incredibly hard to see a world where God existed and evil did not. (See footnote 2) Most Christians readily accept the fact that God and Christ will triumph over Satan and death at the end of time, but for most modern Christians, it is very hard to separate God from the world we live in. But as Christians we must accept that He is completely self-sufficient. He did not need us, but made us solely because He willed it and for His own joy.

The central philosophy of the modern Batman flies in the face of the idea that good can exist without evil. While it would probably be accurate to blame the Dark Knight’s eternal fight against crime on the comic industry’s need for continued sales, since Batman is one of DC Comic’s most popular characters, it does not negate the fact that he never triumphs. Batman is locked in an eternal struggle where he can not defeat his enemies and his enemies cannot defeat him. One or the other may die, but eventually Batman and the Joker will be back at it again with some new quarrel.

Paul Dini’s Arkahm City is the closest I have seen a Batman story come to closure. (WARNING, SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!) The story chronicles the story of Arkham Asylum after super villain Hugo Strange expands the madhouse to take up the entirety of Gotham’s northern island. Batman, while looking for Strange, and trying to shut down the Asylum expansion (which has become a liability for Gotham itself and its citizens), he is kidnapped by Joker, who infuses Batman with some of his blood. It turns out the Joker is dying of a chronic illness and with the blood transfusion he has given the disease to Batman as will. Batman scrambles to find the cure, running into many of his old enemies along the way. Eventually Batman is able to procure a treatment for the disease and takes it to Joker. The Joker, however, wants the cure all for himself and intends to leave Batman for dead. In the resulting scuffle, Joker destroys the last vial of half-drunk antidote, which would have been used to save his life.

The Joker realizes that he is finally finished, and laughs as Batman tells him that if had he not destroyed the vial, he actually would have healed the Joker. The final scene depicts Batman cradling the dead body of the Joker and carrying out of Arkham into an impending dawn.

While this story will probably not be accepted as the canonical death of the Joker, I like to view it as such, for it ends the dualism of Batman. Evil is finally defeated for good, yet Batman himself never caves to murder, and remains untainted as the compassionate defender of Gotham City.



(1) This was not always the case. The yin-yang relationship between Batman and the villains that he is continually fighting is a modern notion that began in the 70s and 80s when British writers like Grant Morrison and Alan Moore took over writing the adventures of the Dark Knight. They decided to take a rather pessimistic view of Batman as a sort of reaction to the happy-go-lucky tone of Batman comics in the 50s and 60s. I blame this on the pessimism of the period, not on the British, of course.

(2) This is dealt with in Saint Augustine’s theory of sin and evil as the absence of God. However, this is about Batman and dualism, not Augustine, so that will have to wait until another time.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Thor

I have this friend. I’mma call him Thor. Why, you ask? Because I could swear that his great-great-great-great-great-great-grandpappy was a Viking. While my friend’s beard and hair are always well kept and trimmed short, do not be fooled. He is a mass of furry Viking fury waiting to be unleashed, and is completely capable of growing a full, thick strawberry tinged facemask. His beard is not the only thing that is thick and tough however.

But Thor’s Viking ways are not limited to appearances. Let me expound with the example of drinking a smoothie. Actually, what I saw him drinking the other day would be more accurately described as a cross between a pina-colata and a frapacchino. He was drinking it out of one of those cups you usually put the Icees in at the 7-11. You know, the ones with the tops that look like shrunken versions of the roof of Wembly Stadium? Also, the cup was not made out of the hard processed and pressed cardboard/plastic alloy that is near indestructible; it was the same flimsy, clear plastic as the top that topped it.

Now, on to the preferred method of drinkablility: a straw is used in this mode of drinking, no surprise. But each sip is more of a slurp and is loud and long. After each straw-full of liquid goodness taken into the mouth, there follows three satisfied smacks. Not two, not five… three.

Finally he finished with a loud: “THHHHHHHHHHHLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPP!!!!!!!! NTAP! NTAP! NTAP!”

Just like that. Now, onto the ice. First, off comes the plastic top with a loud: “THOP!” He tilts the cup back, and let’s the rabid ice cubes attack his face in mass. Thor, however, is not a greedy man, and only takes about three or so. Crunching them happily, he replaces the top with an even louder: “POP!”

Sadly, he realizes that three ice cubes was simply not enough. He must have more. He must have more now. He goes through the exact same routine about 15 more times, each time only taking about three to four cubes into his mouth. Finally, the cubes are gone. Finally the others at the table may continue their conversation.

No… I lied. Onwards to “Drinking a Drink Out of a Disposable Cup, Part 3: THE DESTRUCTON OF THE CUP!!!!!”

This is a thought out and meticulous process, exacting as much pain and suffering on the piece of plastic hardware as possible. The top is the first to go. Digging his fingers in through the open roof of the cover, Thor slowly tears away strips of the screaming translucent shelter that had once held drink safe and protected. No more! The cup shall be conquered!

Eventually the plastic top is nothing but shreds of useless nothingness. The cup is crushed like an abused top hat, and Thor is grinning from ear to ear. He is victorious!

If it had been a Styrofoam cup, he would have eaten it.