The "Pretender" Phenomenon & Human Potential, Part 1

There are Pretenders among us.

Geniuses with the ability to become anyone they want to be.

In 1963, a corporation known as the Centre isolated a
young Pretender named Jarod and exploited his genius
for their research.

Then one day, their Pretender ran away...


From 1996-2000, these were the opening theme words for the belated NBC tv series The Pretender. This TV program chronicled the exploits of a genius named Jarod who was taken from his parents as a child. Over the course of four years, the adult Jarod remembered and sought answers to who he was and where he came from. Simultaneously, the viewing audience was granted a unique look inside the world of a storied mastermind who could assume any identity, any personality, any skill set he chose within a matter of hours or days. Literally! From doctor to race car driver to insurance salesman to astronaut, Jarod used his innate gifts honed at the Centre to defend the weak and defenseless, and to empower the powerless.

For one hour every Friday, Jarod so completely became a fake personality that he was able to convince everyone from a restaurant cook to an FBI section chief that he was who he claimed to be. His talent represented a kind of total immersion into the new identity's world and environment, a total immersion that has been thought on by psychologists and others who are pushing the boundaries of what we know about the human brain and its capability.

In other words, though actor Michael T. Weiss' Pretender may have been nothing more than a fantastic character, there is science behind the fiction. Further, there may in truth have been (or be) factual personalities behind the imaginary one. And it is these investigations, and those real personas, and what they all together could mean for further unlocking human potential, which is the subject of this meditation.

The Fictional Pretender and His Equals

Let's begin with a profile of The Pretender program's fictional representations of this extraordinary talent.

Profile 1: Jarod

Life's a gift.

-- Jarod

Jarod

As stated, Jarod is the series hero and its primary focus. His abilities as a true, natural Pretender are portrayed over and over and consist of two distinct but very different aspects. The first is broken down into two parts. Part A of aspect one is Jarod's unique ability to eidetically remember every detail he's exposed to. This, in effect, refers to Jarod's capability to photographically recall places, events, sounds, smells, etc, with near-total recollection as he chooses them necessary to complete his task. Part B of the first aspect is Jarod's fantastic working memory, which refers to his ability to hold multiple transitory (or temporary) pieces of information in his mind for later manipulation and use.

The second aspect is Jarod's ability to mimic the skill sets and personality types of any kind of profession or work environment he chooses to infiltrate. As in our introduction, this gives Jarod the ability to act and talk (and most importantly to assume the skills and mentality of) a doctor, engineer, teacher, lawyer, mobster, race car driver, professional chef, FBI agent, etc. He's even become an astronaut! And all of these skills are assumed without Jarod setting foot in a classroom or learning from a professor. Jarod learns the skills he requires to accomplish a "pretend" through a process of total immersion into his target environment by setting up what the series calls "simulations." In the TV program, a simulation is a recreation (whether whole or partial) of an environment into which a Pretender wishes to submerge himself. Jarod often used such simulations to teach himself what he needed to know about a place or situation in which he'd never been before so as to prepare himself for the numerous possibilities that would eventually arise from his interaction within said situation. Additionally, it was clear from the TV series that Jarod used his simulations to prepare for what could not be prepared for - that is, those unanticipated variables that arise as a result of the human equation in any circumstance. Though it was rare, Jarod did encounter what the Meditator calls sub-situations of the main situation for which he was not ready. And it was at such times that Jarod's ability to "pretend" was most effectively seen, for this amounted to his ability to think on his feet, rather than merely pre-anticipating and pre-planning for every event. These scenarios were most often observed when, at the end of most episodes, Jarod had to escape, unrehearsed, from the relentless pursuit of his main nemesis, Miss Parker.

As we come to learn, these functions of Jarod's brain are governed by a unique genetic sequence which allows him to access such amazing capabilities and naturally become the kind of person he is. Fundamentally, then, genetics (conjoined with training and certain psychological manipulative techniques) are also the basis for much of the other Pretenders' capabilities we see over the course of the TV program.

Jarod, as a character, is unique in other ways too. During his time outside The Centre we come to learn that, as a result of his deprived childhood, Jarod is deficient in certain fundamental "growing up" experiences. He's never eaten cotton candy, had a stick of chewing gum. He's never gone to a carnival, played with coloring books, or for that matter had a toy set. Through these experiences and so many more, the viewer comes to learn that Jarod's innocence and naivete is the rationale for his actions. And from these the viewer gets, in a way, to recreate his or her own childhood through Jarod's eyes. And this makes Jarod both a sympathetic  and empathetic character, not only to children, but to others who are not as strong and resilient as he. Further, they highlight Jarod's desire to defend the weak and abused as being motivated by his time at The Centre where he learned that the simulations he performed as a child were often used to bring harm and suffering to innocent people. Once he escaped captivity his every pretend was to "make amends" by using his great ability to balance the scales of justice for those who could not find it on their own, and to bring justice to those who deemed themselves so powerful or so cunning as to be above it. Moreover, Jarod's strong sense of morality, despite all efforts to relieve him of it at The Centre, make within him a courageous personality who does not succumb to using negative means to gain his ends. In each of his pretends, Jarod always takes the high ground of action, never disobeying or breaking the law, even to bring others under the heel of its justice or to win it for those whom he has decided to help.

Profile 2: Kyle, the sociopathic Pretender

I decide who lives or dies.

-- the childhood Kyle in a session with Mr. Raines

Shockingly, we come to learn that Kyle is Jarod's younger brother also kidnapped by The Centre when they were just children. Raised separately at the facility, Kyle's training takes a very divergent path from that of his brother. Abused and tortured by the deranged psychologist, Mr. Raines, Kyle is trained to use his Pretender talent for selfish, manipulative, and destructive ends. When we first meet Kyle, we learn that he has escaped from a maximum security prison and even while inside was using his ability of mimickry to "talk like a doctor, a lawyer," and even to get a prison guard a sizable amount of money on his tax return. Ultimately, however, Kyle is trying to find those responsible for his kidnapping and imprisonment at The Centre, and to punish those he believes responsible for his mistreatment while there. This leads Kyle to finding Jarod after the latter discovers him free and on the loose in the real world working as an assassin.

As a Pretender what is interesting about Kyle is in fact his sociopathic indoctrination by Mr. Raines. Kyle's abilities to pretend are quite similar to Jarod's. In fact, it could be argued that there is qualitatively very little (if any) difference in their overall talent. However, as a pupil/subject of Mr. Raines, Kyle is trained to leave behind all traces of morality and empathy and to exercise his talents to pretend with complete and cold objectivity. The series demonstrates this in flashbacks to Jarod and Kyle's time at The Centre when both young Pretenders are using their skills in various assorted joint simulations. Kyle chooses to ignore the moral implications of the simulations while Jarod chooses to incorporate, or at least raise the moral angles. The choice to ignore the moral angles makes Kyle a much more dangerous target because - unlike Jarod, who chooses not to exercise his great mental gifts to harm others - Kyle has no compulsion against destroying that which he deems unworthy of his sympathy. If he had remained alive and free, it seems quite clear that he could have indeed taken a very serious fight to The Centre and those whom he believed personally responsible for his torment while there. The unfortunate loss, however, of Kyle was a heart-wrenching blow to Jarod - who was in a constant search for clues and ties to his past - and, the Meditator believes, a blow to the series in that Kyle as a Pretender, especially one without moral and ethical boundaries, would have made a great counterbalance to Jarod in his quest to bring justice to The Centre, its creators and allies.

Profile 3: "The Chameleon" Pretender, Alex

We are introduced to Alex in the made-for-TV movie, "The Pretender, 2001." This is the third Pretender program in which a gifted personality other than Jarod and Kyle is portrayed. However, unlike Jarod, the Pretender whom we come to know only as Alex is another sociopath with a vendetta against The Centre and society as a whole. Unlike Jarod - who is trained as a child by Sydney - and Kyle - who is trained as a child by Mr. Raines - we do not know if Alex was kidnapped and imprisoned by The Centre as a boy nor by whom he was instructed while there. We do know that Alex attempted to escape The Centre with Jarod and a fourth Pretender named Edward many years later in adulthood. Alex's escaped failed and he was recaptured and thereafter tortured and then assigned to an organization called the Triumvirate, a superior group to The Centre with whom the latter has intricate ties. Alex first comes to Jarod's attention when a series of taunting messages arrives from a villain identifying himself only as the Chameleon. Within these messages are coded statements ultimately revealing the Chameleon's true identity. Of course, the Chameleon's purpose is for only Jarod to understand their real meaning: revenge for what he believes was his abandonment at The Centre during their escape attempt many years prior. However, simultaneously, a string of odd murders also occur that leave behind clues which lead Jarod to suspect that the Chameleon exhibits superior adaptive skills which suggest Pretender traits. He goes on the hunt for the Chameleon disguised as an FBI agent. However, the Chameleon fights back, attempting to frame Jarod by using his own Pretender skills as the bait and switch. Ultimately Jarod finds and confronts Alex as the Chameleon, but not before Alex manages to kill their fellow Pretender, Eddie Ballinger. The startling factor in Jarod's pursuit of Alex is not his chase and cornering of Alex, but in the revelation Alex makes at Jarod's almost successful apprehension just prior to Alex's "suicide" at a water plant. He tells Jarod that The Centre has not been chasing him all over the country just because he's their prize Pretender; it's much deeper than that. Further, Alex tells Jarod that he will not give him the answers. If Jarod really wants to know the answers to all the secrets then Mr. Parker is the one to seek out. Alex then falls to his "death" in a watery grave dozens of feet below. But his body is never recovered, leaving the viewer to wonder whether - in true Pretender fashion - if Alex actually escaped alive.

Profile 4: The sub-Pretender, Eddie Ballinger

From what we know, the Pretender named Edward (Eddie) was taken from his parents, just as Jarod, when he was a small boy. However, according to Mr. Raines, Eddie, unlike Jarod, Kyle, or Alex, was not a natural Pretender. He was a "sub-Pretender" who was trained in the Pretender talent, but possessing obvious gaps and flaws in his abilities to pretend. This made Eddie less important to the work of The Centre, and when he escaped, the corporation did not pursue his recapture as it did that of Jarod, Alex, and Kyle. Eddie went on to make a life for himself as an NSA agent and family man, free to interact with society as he chose. He continued this life until his untimely reunion with Jarod years later, which ultimately led to his death at the hands of fellow Pretender, "The Chameleon," Alex.

Profile 5: the savant, Angelo

Angelo is not a Pretender, but a supernormal empath, created by Mr. Raines, who is capable of "absorbing" other individuals' personalities and feelings. Angelo was Mr. Raines' failed attempt to artificially create a Pretender from a subject lacking the natural talent to become one. Angelo's subsequent creation as a savant empath, however, was accomplished by first breaking down his real personality via electroshock treatment and drugs and then by "rebirthing" a new personality in the shredded mind of the old one. This combination of torture and drug abuse on the part of Raines somehow brought to life a personality within Angelo that allows him to literally absorb the emotional state of mind of an individual simply by looking at a possession of the target subject- such as something they wrote, drew, or even a long-held personal possession, like a watch. Angelo has used this ability to help The Centre track Jarod's location several times, but also, unknown to Centre personnel, has used his talent to secretly assist Jarod in eluding Centre capture by misleading them.

Now that we've covered some of the special personalities that made up the fiction of The Pretender series, in our next look at this unique program, we shall turn our attention to the science behind the fiction in an effort to understand whether there is actually any reality to the show itself.

I believe the answers we find will indeed amaze us.


Until next time...



To the upward reach of man.

                       

The Leadership Principle: Starfleet's Finest in the Captain's Chair, Part 1

In the Star Trek sci-fi universe there have been five well-loved series. In each of those series, five iconic Starfleet captains have commanded the bridges of mighty Federation starships powered by the imagination of their viewers. With this meditation, I'd like to use three of those five captains as a means to explore what is commonly called "the leader principle." Here, we'll examine what it means to be a leader through the eyes of the legendary Captains Kirk, Picard, and Sisko, and how each of these men inspired their crews through dynamic personal leadership. Furthermore, we'll look at what this means in the real world, and how we might each benefit from a study of these classic leader types, fictional though they may be. 

So, fellow officer, take a seat in the captain's chair as we jump to warp speed and begin.

James Kirk

"I don't like to lose."

-- Admiral James T. Kirk

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Without question one of the most iconic science fiction heroes of all time is the legendary *first captain* of the Starship Enterprise, James Tiberius Kirk. Known as a man of action, Captain Kirk is a leader with presence who doesn't take no for an answer, and who doesn't suffer defeat gladly. As a young cadet, Kirk proved the latter by famously rigging Starfleet Academy graduates' most despised command test of all, the Kobayashi Maru, enabling him to become the only Academy superstar to ever beat "the no-win scenario," for as Kirk himself would say many years later, "I don't believe in a no-win scenario." 

How did he do it? "I changed the conditions of the test. I got a commendation for original thinking," he says to the inexperienced Lieutenant Saavik in The Wrath of Khan. Throughout the Original Series we see a Captain Kirk who time and again beats back death, beats back defeat, saving the day not only for (and with the help of) his gallant crew, but also for Starfleet's noble ideals, and the safety and security of the galaxy itself.

Yet even Captain Kirk is powerless to forever hold back the hand of fate. Twice in the original crew movie series James Kirk faces what for him become the ultimate losses in the form of the death of his most beloved friend, the Vulcan science officer, Mr. Spock, and the destruction of the one true "lady" in his life, the great Starship Enterprise herself.

"I Don't Like To Lose."

Yet even these "defeats" are not enough to break the man, the captain, the leader that is James Kirk, for, as Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy reminds him after the destruction of the Enterprise, Kirk always finds a means to "turn death into a fighting chance to live." He does it when the original Enterprise meets its end in The Search for Spock. And he does it when given the chance to return his best friend to life when it is discovered that Spock has been regenerated on the Genesis Planet.

What principles of leadership can we learn from Captain Kirk?

The greatest lesson I think Kirk shows us is that there is always a way out of a "no-win scenario." To find it takes courage, imagination, cunning, ingenuity, determination, and above all, the will to overcome. Captain Kirk demonstrated these traits repeatedly and in abundance during his Starfleet career, facing down many impossible scenarios - from military to diplomatic to scientific - and proving that the will to prevail shines brilliantly within the human spirit, and is capable of overcoming all obstacles if we are but willing to listen and heed it.

Of course there are many more leadership traits that we could examine with this heroic Starfleet commander. But our focus was to take his core traits and collapse in on a few key examples of how they make Kirk the man he is and why his example is worth emulating.

Jean-Luc Picard

"Make it so."

-- Captain Jean-Luc Picard
 

Following on the heels of his predecessor, the noble captain of the Starship Enterprise-D is our second model for consideration. Jean-Luc Picard is a renaissance man in the finest tradition of the term. Picard is a philosopher; amateur musician, painter, and actor; accomplished diplomat; skilled fencer; trained archaeologist; a student of history; an enthusiast of the natural sciences, particularly the astro and temporal sciences; and, of course, the highly respected and successful captain of the Federation flagship. He is a type of the best of the human species and of human potential which even the superbeing Q recognizes as true.

Picard exudes leadership by first demonstrating the best, and then demanding and subsequently expecting the best from his crew. He inspires his people to go out of their way for him because they recognize that they act in the name of the best Starfleet captain of the modern era. His example of thinking before action has led the Enterprise-D out of treacherous situations on multiple occasions. This is has been especially true in matters of interstellar standoffs where reflection, calm, considered judgment, and reason have prevented armed conflicts from ensuing - both military and political. And one of the greatest examples of Picard's ability to see the "big picture," to use his deep knowledge of the human condition to look down the long tunnel of history and avoid unwarranted bloodshed, is when fellow Starfleet captain Benjamin Maxwell unjustifiably attacks Cardassian territory to the end of preventing what he believes is a clandestine Cardassian military rearmament and future assault
upon the Federation. Picard prevents Maxwell from taking Starfleet and the Federation to war against the Cardassian Union without the firing of a single shot against neither the rogue Starfleet captain nor the Cardassian forces. Yet Picard does not idly dismiss the warnings of Benjamin Maxwell, nor the evidence - albeit specious at best - which he has produced to support his accusations. Picard goes on, in diplomatic, but firm, unadulterated language to warn the Cardassians that Starfleet will be on guard.

Yet a second example is the defection of Romulan admiral Alidar Jarok. Moving to investigate an alleged plot by the Romulan Empire to provoke war, the Enterprise is requested to determine if the supposed evidence of apparent defector Admiral Jarok is true. Picard rushes into the Romulan Neutral Zone on Starfleet Command's orders only to discover that the Romulans have staged the entire affair using the duped Admiral Jarok as an unwitting pawn in a devious machination to frame the Federation. Though Picard is in direct violation of the Federation peace treaty with the Romulans, and though the Enterprise is completely surrounded by enemy vessels and cut off from escape, Picard demonstrates the forethought and superior understanding of Romulan psychology to prepare for such possibility well before entering Romulan space. He again saves the Enterprise from destruction, Starfleet from an unwanted conflict, and the Federation from intergalactic humiliation by the cunning use of a brilliant tactical counterploy alongside the Federation's interstellar ally, the Klingon Empire.

Though we have focused on two military examples of Picard's leadership, the core trait that Subspace Meditator sees - which is in fact demonstrated well and beyond Picard's skills as a military commander - is his ability to think through a situation deeply before taking action; his ability to see multiple possibilities and multiple probabilities, and further, to deduce from these the best likely scenarios with which to guide his crew to the successful completion of their mission. Alternately said, Picard has a well-honed ability - derived from years of experience as a field officer - to foresee a myriad of options and collapse in on the few (or one) that will bring the Enterprise home.

Subspace Meditator believes that, more than any other trait Picard manifests in the TNG era, this trait is what distinguishes and separates him from his counterparts in the Star Trek universe.

And a superior trait it is to have indeed!

Benjamin Sisko

"There's only one order... We hold."

-- Captain Benjamin Sisko



Of course, longtime fans of Trek film and TV will know that Benjamin Lafayette Sisko is not the first nor last individual of African descent to be shown in Trek programming, so his presence in this regard is not unique. What is unique in that regard is that he is the first to be regularly shown in Star Trek episodic television. And this opportunity gave actor Avery Brooks a unique canvass upon which to paint Ben L. Sisko. Let's return to that fictional canvass and highlight some of those areas as well as the leadership style and core traits that make Sisko who he is, and not simply as the "black captain," but as an outstanding Starfleet officer.  

Family Man & Intimate Friend

Though it is known from other Trek lore that Starfleet does not discourage nor mandate its officers from having families, Ben Sisko is the only officer ever featured in its mythology to actively have one. All other episodic captains have been single. So Sisko's relationship to his son, Jake, is quite unique to explore from a storytelling point of view.

But let's back up.

father and son, Benjamin and Jake Sisko

Sisko is not simply a single father, but a widower. Having lost his wife at the climactic Battle of Wolf 359 in which Starfleet confronted the Borg invasion of Earth, led by the Borg-transformed Jean-Luc Picard, when the DS9 series opens, we find an emotionally lost Commander Sisko struggling to come to grips with Jennifer Sisko's death, a transfer to a recently abandoned Cardassian base far from Earth, and a very young teenage son whom he must now raise alone. For the first time in Trek history we are given the chance to see what Starfleet life is like for the married and attached individual. The heartwarming aspect of the father-son relationship across the seven years is how both come to terms with the severance of the husband-son roles neither will ever have or play in the life of their deceased loved one again. Benjamin and Jake learn ever-the-more to lean on each other, both imparting lessons to one another just as real parents and children do. What is most satisfying about this relationship to the Meditator is watching the boy Jake mature into a young man. And what assists this satisfaction best is to see it through his father's eyes. Whether teaching his son to cook his own meals, or about the "fairer sex," or giving him lessons in what true courage on the battlefield (and in life) means, or whether it is teaching Jake to know and be true to himself - no matter what others' expectations are, including his father's - this relationship brings out the best of what it means to be a dad, a mentor, a friend. It is especially heartwarming for those of us who have shared this bond with our fathers. And instructive to those of us who have not.



Jadzia Dax and Ben Sisko

The relationship of Captain Sisko to his son is only paralleled by the relationship to his Trill friend and mentor, Dax. We learn that the centuries-old symbiotic creature Dax is capable of assuming the host bodies of various individuals over the course of their lifetime. We also learn that the creature shares the experiences and memories of these persons, imparting to each new host the life lessons of the previous. As DS9 opens, we're introduced to the latest Dax host, Jadzia. Herself a trained scientist, the young Jadzia is recently bonded to her Trill symbiont, and reuniting with Sisko for first time in many years. She is pleased, as is he, to be joining her new superior officer in Starfleet's bold new venture to bring the recently-freed Bajoran star system into the Federation. She informs him that the previous Dax host, Curzon, has died, but that she shares his memories of a much younger and inexperienced Ben Sisko, and how Curzon mentored and shaped his worldview and future career. The relationship between Jadzia Dax and Sisko progresses over the next six years until Jadzia is sadly killed at the hand of Cardassian captain, Gul Dukat. What is fascinating, however, is that, before her premature death, Jadzia - in the form of her symbiont - continues to mentor the now much more seasoned Sisko. Yet, simultaneously, Sisko does his own mentoring of the young woman herself, returning the lessons in the form of experience she, as a being independent of her symbiont, has yet to have on her own. Across the breath of the series the contrast becomes quite satisfying as the viewer is given a glimpse of the extended family-friend relationship which the two have. 

Emissary to the Prophets

One of the most intriguing aspects of Ben Sisko is his special relationship to the Bajoran people themselves and to their deities, the Prophets. Known as the Emissary to the Prophets, Sisko is reluctantly introduced to the role Bajor will come to expect of him when he first arrives on DS9. As we learn, Sisko does not want it and is extremely reticent to assume the figure of religious icon to the deeply spiritual Bajorans. It is a part which Starfleet itself will always have difficulty accepting and which Sisko will continually struggle to balance between his life as an atheist human Starfleet officer and the need to strengthen the Federation's ties with the Bajoran people. Such a balance, though continually tested and uneasy, is achieved. And as DS9 continues, Sisko uses this special relationship, long ago foreseen and "prophesied" of by ancient Bajoran seers, to guide Bajor through some of it darkest hours. Sisko meets the Prophets on numerous occasions, joining them in the non-corporeal realm outside of time and space which they inhabit to consult with them, to receive guidance and instruction from them, and even to teach them on occasion what it means to be a creature that exists within time and space.

War Leader & Superb Strategist

Deep Space Nine became the focal point of the Federation Alliance's efforts to repel the Dominion invasion and occupation of the Alpha Quadrant during the Dominion War. On the front lines of this herculean effort was Ben Sisko himself. Tasked with planning and strategizing some of the fiercest engagements of the war, Captain Sisko led DS9 and Starfleet through the blood and horror of billions dead, but trillions liberated from the tyranny of the Changeling Founders' vision of order in the galaxy. The Dominion War was not an easy time for Sisko. Throughout this conflict the captain would not only see many of his crew killed, including Jadzia Dax, but his personal morality and principles as a human being and Starfleet officer would be put to the ultimate test more than once. He would see more conflict than he ever wanted and share in the pain, anguish, wrath, and sorrow of war all soldiers feel. Yet, leading his people through the conflagration, Sisko never lost touch with what it meant to be a man, a human being capable of seeing and feeling the human factor.


The Human Equation Not Forgotten

All of these roles serve to make Ben Sisko one of the most impressive characters and captains in Trek and Starfleet history. Indeed, it may be argued that he is the most unique persona to be conceived in the scope of the franchise. The above aspects of Sisko, Subspace Meditator believes, make him a much more well-rounded character, giving him an edge in observing, and applying, the human factor to all of his endeavors as a Starfleet officer. Sisko's humanity is never left behind, nor his mental and emotional state a mere afterthought. They are directly applied and demonstrated - indeed felt - whether in the loss of Jadzia Dax, the growing pains of his son, the struggles of the Bajoran people to rebuild after decades of slavery and occupation, or the triumphs and tragedies of the Dominion War. He is a complete man, making his leadership style an example of what it means to be a whole individual.

Special Profile: Kathryn Janeway

"Get this crew home."

-- Captain Janeway to Cmdr. Chakotay 



I wanted to include the captain of the Starship Voyager because one of the most unique aspects of Kathryn Janeway's appearance in Star Trek history - in my view at least - is, not that she's a woman, but that, of all the heroic captains portrayed in the five series, Janeway alone was a superbly skilled scientist and mathematician, in addition to being a Starfleet captain. This is depicted again and again in Star Trek: Voyager and is certainly impressive, for Janeway utilizes these skills on numerous occasions to keep pace with - and in fact surpass - her chief engineer, tactical officer, and many others whose scientific and technical skill our other Starfleet captains have merely relied upon to provide expertise.

As an aside, while her appearance as a female isn't unique for much the same reasons Sisko's isn't as a black officer, it would be remiss of us not to notice that, for the first time in Trek history, a female captain becomes regularly featured on the bridge of a Federation starship in the person of Captain Janeway, making her, just as Sisko, another Star Trek milestone.

It should also be noted that Janeway's epic seven-year struggle to return her crew to the Alpha Quadrant after Voyager is stranded in the distant and unexplored Delta Quadrant, makes her one of the most gallant and enduring Fleet officers to ever don the uniform. Janeway and Voyager are thrust into an unknown and dangerous space fraught with perils the likes of which no human eyes have ever seen before. And seventy thousand lightyears from home, she and her crew are the farthest any human vessel has ever traveled inside the Milky Way. In such conditions many would be tempted to give up, find the nearest habitable planet to settle on, and call it the next hundred years.

But Janeway does no such thing.

She pushes the Voyager and its crew to never settle for anything less than seeing Earth and the Alpha Quadrant again. The journey is not easy. Nor would Janeway, undaunted explorer she is, have it be. With none of the Federation's resources, none of Starfleet's armed might to back them up, Voyager does not set a direct, non-stop course for Earth, but takes many detours and assumes many missions, charting the Delta Quadrant, its uncounted species and dangers along the way.



USS Voyager's flight path for visual purposes. Far away in the vast reaches of space, Janeway never gives up.

Invincible Borg Fighter

Part of that legacy is Janeway's continued battles with the Borg Collective. Time and again assaulted by the ruthless and unmerciful will of the Borg to assimilate Voyager, Janeway adroitly, and with ever renewed vigor, finds new and innovative ways to confront and defeat them. But this is not only in terms of military strategy, for Janeway must also confront Borg cunning and maneuver in the person of the Borg Queen, she who is the Collective's central mind and governor. It is Janeway who defeats the Queen and takes from her the rescued assimilated human, Seven of Nine. Janeway who preempts Borg efforts to attack and defeat the superior Species 8472 while simultaneously preventing an invasion of the Milky Way galaxy by the aggressive race itself. It is Janeway who more than once thwarts the Borg Queen's efforts to assimilate weaker races, and who frees other assimilated drones from the grip of the Collective. And it is Janeway who destroys the Queen's entire transwarp hub complex, crippling the Borg's hyperspace routes throughout the entire the galaxy for decades.


"But You're a Mother to This Crew"

Q once called Janeway a mother to her crew, the woman who held Voyager's morale together through an array of impossible odds, keeping her people together as a family cast away on a stormy and tempest sea. And in some ways the Meditator can agree with Q's praise and his comparison, especially in observing the nurturing relationship between Janeway and Seven of Nine. But beyond such accolades, Janeway is a proven leader with the skill, the tenacity, the drive to succeed whatever the odds, and no matter how insurmountable they may seem. This drive places her in the best ranks with the elite of Starfleet's center chair commanders. Indeed, the Meditator says that USS Voyager's seven-year odyssey revealed Captain Janeway's strengths in a way that mere service in the Alpha Quadrant would never have. It raised the honorable captain's pedigree because it forced her to run faster, reach higher, strive harder, never quitting until the race was won. This is the finest of Starfleet tradition and Kathryn Janeway is in numerous ways an exception to advancing that tradition!

And this, the Meditator thinks, is the principle lesson to be learned from Janeway: that to be the best one must step out of the norm, the familiar, the comfortable. One must go beyond the acceptable and known, casting away fear, and sweeping boldly into what is unknown. If an individual can do this, is willing to do this, they can distinguish themselves in human history. Captain Janeway most certainly did!



In our next blog on the four captains, we shall compare and contrast their style of leadership and what we can continue to learn from these examples with respect to how each fit in with their era on the small screen.


Until next time...


To the upward reach of man.

------------------------------------



*I know that some of you hardcore Treksters will say that J.T. was not the very first captain of the original Enterprise. Chris Pike was. Some of you will even go back to Captain Robert April. Guess what, Trekkies? I know that! I'm a Trekkie too! But for the sake of argument and popular knowledge, I am listing James T. Kirk as the first acknowledged skipper of the Enterprise, OK?

**I did not include Captain Jonathan Archer in this analysis simply because I did not watch the show with the same frequency or intensity as I did that of the others. So I cannot be as readily insightful with respect to Archer's boat as I can with Kirk, Picard, Sisko, or Janeway. Sorry Enterprise fans.

The Sith, the Jedi, the Ancient Force Religion, & the Two Great Struggles of Human History, Part 3

The ideas expressed as part of this blog are my own and in no way represent the beliefs of Star Wars creator, George Lucas. Any coinciding opinions as to the relationships between Communism, Nazism, and Star Wars are incidental for I do not claim to know Mr. Lucas' thoughts on these matters.

In our last meditation we discussed two supreme examples of the struggle between good and evil, liberty and tyranny, and the darkness they heaped upon the world in the mid part of the 20th Century.

We will now turn attention to the lessons that can be gleaned from the Communist-Nazi advance upon Planet Earth and what and how Star Wars can help us to think about the real world with respect to them.

The Calculus of Power: Great Ambition, Great Power, Great Deception, Great Destruction



Great Ambition



A villain of history possessed of great ambition

The above subtitle's calculus isn't meant for sport, but for analysis. Many times in Star Wars, as in other great morality and human condition tales, those possessed of awesome power, or the potential to gain such, are generally more tempted (not less) by its acquisition. The Jedi and Sith are the most poignant examples in the SW universe. And these examples are culminated in the rise and ultimate tragic fall of Anakin Skywalker, he who was to bring balance to the Force.

 

But we get ahead. Naturally, any amateur student of history recognizes the picture to the right - that of leader of Nazi Germany, the Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler. I do not exaggerate when I call him a villain of history, for Adolf Hitler's ambition and leadership cast Germany into a living hell of destruction and infamy on the world stage. He brought what was once considered the most civilized and advanced nation on the European continent to devastation and laid it low in reputation and honor.  

 

Why?

 

The explanation, I believe, begins with the German people's humiliation at the end of WWI, and the consummating promises of the Nazi party once it had risen to power. So, on a greater level, Hitler's rise was facilitated, not by his showmanship or grandiloquent oration alone, but by a fusion of the German people's desperation and fear, and Hitler's own unbridled belief in himself as their savior. This megalomaniacal ambition is the first of our calculus and here deserves the reader's thinking, for the Jainist says that great ambition - unchecked by principle and by truth - leads to a lust for unbridled power. And it is to power that we will turn our attention next.

 

 

Great Power



A villain of history invested with great power

I have no doubt that you also recognize the face to our left. Josef Vissarionovich Jugashvili, aka Josef Stalin, was absolute ruler of the former Soviet Union for almost thirty years. His death brought with it an end to decades of Red Terror (at least under his rule), poverty, and uncounted suffering. The power of this man went unchallenged in his time, and was only brought to an end when he died an ignominious death in March 1953. What brought this man to the leadership of the Russian people and its satellites so as to invest both he and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which he cemented together, into being?

 

A host of factors can be examined - from Stalin's early "tutelage" under Vladimir Lenin and the Bolshevik "Reds," to his background work in the party then led by Lenin and Leon Trotsky, to ultimately his seizure of power at Lenin's death and Trotsky's forced exile and eventual assassination. However, though all of these factors played a role in Stalin's eventual rise to general secretary of the CCCP, what is of interest to us in our examination of the Calculus of Power, is Stalin's use of guile, cunning, deception, and maneuver to capture and remain in supreme power despite more than twenty years of failures as leader of the Russian people and the Soviet Union as a whole. From the Great Famines of 1932-1933 to the Great Purges of 1936-1939, the power of Josef Stalin to command the Soviet people was unparalleled. Using fear, intimidation, and murder, Stalin captured not only the obedience of Soviet citizens, but their hearts as well! This is no more poignantly demonstrated than when millions of Russian and Soviet citizens literally wept bitter tears upon the announcement of his death, an announcement that should have brought with it torrential waves of celebration and shouts of "Hoo-ray!"

 

Again, we see that it is not merely one man alone who takes his ambition and uses it to sow unto himself power of his own accord, but the social construct of those human beings around him, in both private company and public society, who invest within him their own desires, fears, and needs, then using the persona of his authority to gain for themselves the secret wishes of their hearts. Once this investment is made by such hungry, such needy, such desperate people, and once it is captured by the ambitious "Fuhrer," the ambitious "Leader," no amount of skulduggery, no amount of treachery is too low for such debased peoples to ignore.

 

Let us now return to our calculus within the fictional realm of Star Wars.

 

 

Great Deception 

 

"The goals of the grand plan [of the Sith] were

revenge and the reacquisition of galactic power."

 

 -- from the novel, "Darth Plagueis"

 

Count Dooku (Darth Tyranus), greatly deceived

The Serenno-born noble, Count Dooku, was once a revered knight of the Jedi Order. Strong in the Force, and hailed as one of the brotherhood's most noted lightsaber duelists second only to Yoda and Mace Windu themselves, he succumbed to the Dark Side after several fateful decisions by the Jedi Council left many of his fellow Jedi dead or themselves seduced by the Dark Side during the Clone Wars. Deceived by the influence of the concealed dark lord, Darth Sidious, Dooku left and betrayed the Jedi and the Galactic Republic further into the Clone Wars years through a series of political and military subterfuges designed by Chancellor Palpatine/Sidious to bring about the grand-ultimate plan of the Sith.

What is of interest to our discussion regarding Dooku is how his great affinity in the Force, and his great knowledge of both politics and power, were used by the wily Palpatine to trick him into his own demise and, ultimately, that of the Jedi and the Republic. Dooku's "beef" with the Jedi was the selling point used by Palpatine to lure the once-sterling knight into a web of, first, self-deception and pomposity, and, then, into a trap of mega-proportions which ensnared and then overthrew the Jedi Order and the entire Republic itself. Dooku was deceived, but not simply by Palpatine, but by his own arrogance - an arrogance that led him to believe that he, using the power of the Sith in the person of Palpatine, could transform first the Jedi and then the Republic into his own grand vision of order and justice. It was that arrogance, nurtured by Sidious, which led to the eventual destruction and death of the late Master Dooku.

The lesson to be gleaned from Dooku's fall is that deception - particularly self-deception concerning one's own perceived knowledge and insight - can be one's own worst enemy. The Biblical warning that, "Pride goes before a fall, and a haughty spirit before destruction," may be aptly applied to the late count. Further, we may also state that the idea of the ends justifying the means is a perverse and treacherous slope on which even the most learned and wise navigate at their own peril. Dooku learned this lesson in the most painful of ways.

 

And this leads us to the final variable in our Calculus of Power.





 

Great Destruction

Sith lord Darth Vader, greatly destroyed

In many ways, Anakin Skywalker, aka Darth Vader, is the sine qua non of our calculus, for it is he who embodied these qualities both separately and all at once. It is not necessary to tell the full tale of Darth Vader's rise, from his miraculous birth on Tatooine to his becoming a young Jedi padawan, forward into maturity, to his ultimate seduction by Palpatine and fall to the Dark Side.What is of note to us is how Anakin/Vader is, once again, used by the cunning Palpatine to accomplish the goals of the Sith. In a brilliant longterm strategy, Lord Sidious targeted a young and vulnerable Anakin, from early childhood through his very turbulent teen years and on into adulthood, for conversion to the Dark Side.

Throughout Episodes 1-3, we are introduced to an extremely powerful Force sensitive who will become known in Force prophecy as "the Chosen One." It is this lofty responsibility that Anakin Skywalker carries upon his shoulders for the rest of his life.

But life circumstances rend a canyon of conflict in the young Anakin - conflict that is seen by Palpatine early on. Unwillingly separated from his mother as boy, Anakin's loyalties and sense of duty are then always divided. Hot-tempered and impulsive, arrogant because of his abilities in the Force, the growing young Skywalker is not yoked in the ways of peace and serenity that so characterise the Jedi. And this is despite all efforts to train and root him in the Order's ancient precepts. It is these traits that Palpatine will use to tempt and then bring about Skywalker's fall as a grown man.

How?

By using a possible vision of the death of Anakin's secret spouse given to both himself and Anakin by the Force - Republic senator Padme Amidala.

Palpatine informs Anakin that only the power of the Dark Side can save Padme's life, that the Jedi are unwilling, and more, incapable of saving her. Only by joining his destiny as the Chosen One with Palpatine's as the master dark lord of the Sith can Anakin hope to preserve Padme from a premature death.

But once Palpatine is exposed to the Jedi as Darth Sidious, once his machinations for the galaxy are revealed, and the Jedi move to stop him, Anakin, in an act both of self-deceived hubris and desperation, protects Palpatine from destruction only to be told by the dark lord that he has no answers as to how to save Padme Amidala's life! This is the ultimate betrayal! for now, not only has Skywalker sworn fealty to Sidious, but he has, in the doing, murdered a Jedi master and become complicit in the destruction of the Jedi Order and the Republic.

In order, then, to seek the power he desires, Skywalker justifies his actions by going deeper into the morass that Palpatine has designed for him. He attacks the Jedi temple, massacring hundreds of Jedi, including children. He personally murders the leaders of the Trade Federation on Sidious' orders, paving the way for Sidious to take over the Republic - converting it into a starspanning Empire under his direct and supreme control. He attacks and fatally injures Padme Amidala, the very woman he loves and seeks to save. And, in the end, Skywalker, battles his former teacher and friend Obi-Wan Kenobi in a lightsaber fight to the death on the lava planet Mustafar.

Skywalker is hideously mutilated and scarred in the battle, defeated by Kenobi, yet left alive to suffer the fate which Skywalker had so haughtily prepared for himself.

Thus Darth Vader is born and slaved, of his own twisted lust for power, to the eternal service of Darth Sidious. And it is only by the struggles of his future son, Luke Skywalker, some thirty years later, that he is finally redeemed from this great fall.


Our Lessons?

What may we learn of the great struggles of history from this calculus within the Star Wars framework, and how may we apply them to the real world?

One lesson is that, as Lord Acton, once cleverly stated: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

Another is that power, in order to be as divested of abuse as possible, must be diffuse. That is, it must be divided into as many segments and spheres of authority as will appropriately permit its lawful and efficient performance. As the American Founding Father Thomas Jefferson recognized: "In questions of power let me hear no more of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution." To expound upon Jefferson, and to add in Acton then: most power, invested in the personages of a few individuals tends to consolidate corruption. And yet, all power, invested in the person of one individual alone will most certainly bring about despotism and tyranny. To avoid this situation, a people must compose laws consistent with their history, culture, and tradition which limit and bind the ambitious from capturing and holding power with impunity.

Yet a third lesson is that evil, whatever its form, must be vigorously opposed in order for life, and light, to prosper. It must be stood up to with, in the words of the great song, "A British Tar," 'an energetic fist' that is 'ready to resist a dictatorial word.'

And in the case of the Communist-Nazi advance upon Planet Earth, as in the case of the Sith advance upon the Jedi and the Galactic Republic, we have the examples of good vs. evil and liberty vs. tyranny that finally had to be opposed and overthrown so that human dignity and destiny could be realized.

So that truth could be the victor.

There are, of course, more lessons. But I will leave those, dear reader, for you to meditate on, as I have.

As always, we at Epoc Enuma SF test the notions of speculative fiction against the real world in hope of aiding you to see how these "far away" ideas apply to the living, breathing universe we inhabit, and how, in fact, they are not so far away after all.


Until next time...



To the upward reach of man.

 

 

 

 



"Man of Steel": The Upward Reach Continues

Two weeks after its debut, I got the chance to see the 2013 incarnation of "truth, justice, and the American Way." Man of Steel (MoS), in my opinion, was an entertaining and thought-provoking movie on multiple levels. The bottom line analysis: it was good. I liked it.

Now let's look deeper and I'll tell you why.


Action? Or Violence?

I have very few gripes with this movie. My chief "negative" was the excessive mega-violence of the last 30 minutes or so when Superman confronts his Kryptonian fellows after they come to Earth and are hell-bent on terraforming it into a second version of their destroyed homeworld, Krypton.

Naturally, Superman moves to stop them. And this precipitates an orgy of train-throwing, skyscraper-falling, and heat vision shooting that leaves tens, possibly hundreds of thousands of defenseless humans dead in its wake. And though this level of destruction is shown in the film, its true impact is not really dealt with. In fact, I believe that impact is sacrificed for the sake of more and more action. I indeed believe that MoS  crossed the border from action into violence, and mega-violence at that. Something that, perhaps, is not necessarily befitting a Superman film.

I make this contrast because in Superman II, once our hero realizes that he cannot fight the murderous General Zod and his compatriots inside a major metropolis without sacrificing countless numbers of lives, he retreats from the city to the Fortress of Solitude to continue the fight there, thus removing a major tactical advantage from Zod's hands.

In fact, observe that from the opening moments of the conflict, Superman is already strategically calculating this in his mind. However, in MoS we are treated to a superfight of superfights, where beings of incredible, near god-like powers exercise those powers with absolute disregard for the mortals who are either crushed like cockroaches beneath their feet, or made to suffer horribly as collateral damage in the wake of their fiery battles for absolute supremacy.

This observation - and we shall not tarry on it much longer - is somewhat subjective, for indeed many other staples of SF/Fantasy depict just such carnage. And indeed the MoS version of Superman does attempt to limit, if not outright prevent, this level of mega-death. So I am not entirely judgmental of what was portrayed on screen. I do, however, believe it could  have been toned down just a bit, and greater emphasis given to other, more worthy areas of the movie. And I will go into some of these as we further the review.

I will not discuss in this meditation certain parallels to 9/11/01 and the global violence it has unleashed throughout the world, its impact on the planet as a whole, or the greater sense of foreboding and uncertainty it has left in the human psyche. Nor will I discuss how modern films are taking advantage of that moment in portrayal after portrayal on the big and small screens.

I believe most of us are intelligent enough to sort out the implications of that assault on our collective humanity for ourselves. And I believe the parallels in MoS are evident for most of us to see.


Dialogue for the "English Language Challenged?"

My second gripe was the under-whelming nature of the dialogue. At several instances I felt that the writers were attempting to pander to those who simply are too ill-read to appreciate high English, or what some might call "the King's English." While I realize that Superman is not Shakespeare, and that we are not being treated to...say a screen adaptation of The Lord of the Rings by comparison, I still believe that the composition of dialogue in a film should be equal to, if not surpass, not only the expectation(s) for the film, but that it should rise to the level of the film's outlook on human events.

MoS failed to accomplish this and I quite frankly felt that I was being fed a mouthful of dumbed down dribble at several key moments, moments that should have risen to a higher standard. A few examples follow.

* The dialogue between the high council on Krypton.
* The conversation between General Zod and Jor-El in the council chamber.
* The battle dialogue between Zod and Kal-El in the superfight over the city.
* The dialogue between hologram Jor-El and Zod on Earth.
* The family conversation between Jor-El and wife Lara before parting from baby Kal-El.

There are more examples I could give, but I'll limit them to those above, for I think all of these key scenes should have left the viewer with an emotional high, an impact that could be delivered by the dialogue along with, or even without visual assistance. Let's take a look at one quick example of how this was accomplished in Superman II.

Observe the power and majesty of these character interactions delivered by two superbly trained and experienced thespians. But more, observe how the might of the dialogue itself allows the actors to power punch this masterful, and very critical scene, into the viewers' minds.

Perhaps my criticism of MoS's dialogue is simply a throwback to my expectations for commanding presence as given in the Superman II performances of Terence Stamp and the late Marlon Brando. But your writer believes it to be more. In Hollywood today there seems to be a trend toward what some in the industry are euphemistically referring to as "natural acting," where the high drama of the Shakespearean style is being put aside for characters that are not "larger than life," but are instead perceived as closer to reality. They act and speak more real, more closely to the everyday, average person.

The Jainist questions this objective. Is this so-called "natural acting" what we go to the movie house to see? I think not, particularly with respect to science fiction and fantasy dramas. If this trend is true, then the Jainist says: CEASE AND DESIST before you forever reduce the brainpower of mass humanity to mental mush! High drama requires high dialogue.

Just as an example, The Lord of the Rings is still the standard for dialogue set by any group of modern SF/Fantasy movies I've seen in a long time. It rose to the level of the King's English and did not relinquish this standard for the sake of dumbing down its message so that the mere simpletons among us could understand it. It raised the bar and asked the audience to come up to that bar. It did not lower the bar so that we as the audience could feel good about our lack of ability to appreciate it. And this was a good thing. MoS should have given us a similar, but not necessarily equal emotional high. Unfortunately it left the Jainist flat at several critical instances.


"So What Did You Like?"


While the above criticisms may appear harsh, there was much to be excited about in MoS. First, I must give credit to the performances of the actors in this story. Even though I believe the dialogue weak at certain instances, and the focus of the story overcompensatory in the area of action and spectacle, I truly enjoyed the characters as a whole.

This is especially true of Kevin Costner and Diane Lane's Jonathan and Martha Kent. Supplementarily I also appreciated Antje Traue's Faora, and Henry Cavill as the centerpiece of the story, the Man of Steel himself. Indeed, while taking nothing as a whole away from any of the actors (who all performed well given the material), here I am simply pointing to those actors whose characters touched me most.

And in that rubric let's focus specifically on those whom I believe the real "heart" of the film - Jonathan and Martha Kent. While we are not treated to the same discovery of the "god-child" by the more aged couple seen in the 1978 Superman movie, we are given a similar emotional depth. And in the memories of the older and wandering Kal-El, we see the core of where his training in what it means to be human comes from. This is especially true of Jonathan Kent. Pa Kent teaches the young boy Kal-El (Clark Kent) that he is special, that he is the answer to humanity's long-standing hope to encounter other intelligent life in the universe, and most importantly, that he was sent to Earth for a reason. Papa Kent teaches the boy to hold his power with care, and that mastery of great power means, above all else, the ability to master one's self, and to restrain the impulse to abuse superior ability.

It is this discipline and restraint that Kal-El carries well into adulthood and manifests continually throughout the movie, even up to the point of the film's climax - the prevention of General Zod's world engine from terraforming an already living and populated planet, and most especially, in the killing of Zod himself.

Further, Jonathan Kent teaches his adopted son that he must hide his powers until the world is ready to accept him. This hard lesson is taken to its ultimate conclusion when, on the plains of Kansas, a tornado sweeps away Jonathan Kent's life. And though the young Kal-El possesses the power to save Papa Kent from the devastating storm, he honors Jonathan Kent's final request that he sacrifice his own father's life in order to fulfill that idea. The agony of this choice remains with Kal-El, and is one of the focal points of MoS.

Equally, Martha Kent is shown as the boy Clark's heart and anchor. It is she who teaches the child Kal-El/Clark to focus his ability, to see the greater scope of reality, not as a burden for the enlightened, but as a gift to understand the larger truths and scope of existence. This is showcased when a very young Kal-El realizes he has the ability to see through solid objects, such as human skin. He can see a heartbeat, blood pumping, he can perceive sounds inaudible to the human ear, and at farther distances. Martha Kent's instruction for her son: focus only on what you want or need to see, hear, know - to understand - at any particular moment in time. The brilliance, yet subtle love, of this simple lesson is a manifestation of the love of a mother for her child, and in the context of the story, of Martha Kent's deep understanding of the consequences of Kal-El's burgeoning powers.

Quite honestly, your writer loved these moments (and would rather have seen more of this than flying trains) because they demonstrated the humanity and positive upbringing we have all come to associate with Superman. They demonstrated that great power need not be abusive or predatory against those with lesser power. Indeed, greater power demands greater discipline and greater empathy for those who are weaker.

Further, these core lessons given by Jonathan and Martha Kent add validity to the notion that the 1937-38 version of Superman which we have today was clearly infused with Judeo-Christian values. And they add credence to the Biblical injunction of training "up a child in the way that he should go." The man Clark/Kal-El/Superman obviously did not depart from them.



"And What of the Other Characters You Liked?"



the megalomaniacal General Zod

Let's start with the main antagonist in MoS, General Zod himself. Michael Shannon's portrayal of the man trusted with the defense of Krypton in my opinion was a good, if not great one. Honestly I was somewhat underwhelmed by this Zod, but not because of the actor. As before, I believe the dialogue was not handled appropriately by the writers. That being said, I do believe Shannon brought further depth of motivation and personality to the character than was seen in Superman II with Terence Stamp. And this is chiefly because the writers took the time to focus more on motivation and character complexity than the more one-dimensional obsequious self-importance and quest for vengeance of S2's Zod. This, again, is a reflection, mainly, of writing, both of dialogue and of the character direction that does not show up in dialogue. Zod in MoS represents, to me, a completion of the Zod begun in Superman II. I liked him and regard him as a villain to be respected on screen.



the villainous villainess, Faora

And now to everyone's favorite MoS femme fatale, Faora. I regard Faora as a shadow, or extension of Zod. She is not only Zod's right hand, but his sharpened sword. She is what he cannot necessarily be under enlightened scrutiny - one who enjoys slaughter, death, and combat merely for their own sake. She is a ruthless, cold-hearted warrior who indeed believes that "a good death is its own reward." There is no remorse for the lives she takes other than, perhaps, the lack of efficiency, and maybe even the lack of sufficient slaughter in her acts of violence. She believes that morality is a weakness, and that strength comes with the total disregard for empathy, kindness, or concern for her enemies. I think this was effectively demonstrated when she tried (and failed) to punch Lois Lane's head off during her escape from the Kryptonian prison ship.

Antje Traue's portrayal of this sadistic female was spot on. And further, Faora's absolute dedication to victory, and to Zod, regardless of the consequences, and regardless of whether victory is attainable, made Traue's depiction of the character all the more satisfying. Callousness is unattractive enough in a man. And a woman who manifests such despicability is even more enjoyable from a dramatic sense. A++ to Antje for allowing me to feel utter disgust but utter enjoyment for her character's hatred of anything good and decent! And this is what a superb villain should do in drama-- present to us a contrast of an ideal good by showing its opposite and opposing characteristic in the form of an ideal bad. And I gotta say that in some ways Faora was a better image of this than Zod. But perhaps that too was deliberate on the part of the filmmakers, for as I said, she is an image or extension of Zod's will.


The Man of Steel Himself



Let us of course not overlook the Man of Steel himself. Henry Cavill impressed me with his portrayal of Superman with respect to the humanity and compassion of the character. This is most especially true when considering his dealings with the United States military and even in the confronting of his fellow Kryptonians themselves. We have already dealt with Superman's killing of General Zod in the final battle sequences. Let's deal then with Kal-El's confronting of humanity when he ultimately reveals himself in the face of Zod's threat.

It is obvious that Superman voluntarily and willingly surrendered himself to the authority of the U.S. government in the form of its defensive structures, and subsequently, and implicitly, to the scrutiny and subjugation of humanity as a whole. Naturally, while Superman was able to defy human authority at any time, unlike Zod and his minions, Kal-El deliberately wished to show himself a friend to the human species despite his superior ability and understanding of the universe as a whole. This is consistent with the Superman that has been portrayed for the last 75 years, and in such framework worked well in the movie.

We also cannot overlook the obvious Christ symbology inherent in Superman's appearance on Earth. In at least two critical scenes we are given this symbolism. The first is when young Clark agonizes over when and how to introduce himself to the world in the wake of Zod's threat to annihilate Earth if Kal-El does not surrender himself. Clark goes to a Catholic church and, with the image of Christ Jesus behind him, confesses to the resident priest that he is the one Zod and the U.S. government are looking for.

Let's bypass my disappointment with the lack of in-depth screen time this actually got - again, in my opinion, this is another moment where substance was substituted for engrossing but overcompensated for action - and focus instead on its meaning.

The second obvious Christ analogy is when Kal-El departs the Kryptonian prison ship after holographic father Jor-El tells him: "You can save her. You can save them all," referring of course to Lois Lane's emergency ejection from the prison ship inside an escape pod, and the human race's impending doom if Zod has his way at terraforming the planet into a new Krypton. Kal-El departs the ship into the vacuum of space, arms outstretched, his legs straight and together in a more than obvious crucifixion-cross pose.

The meaning of both these scenes is quite clear: Clark/Kal-El is a savior for mankind. And though he is not necessarily the ultimate one in the Christian sense, he is a figure, a shadow of the savior sent from Heaven to guide mankind and show them the way to preserve what they are, and what they are meant to be as a creation and expression of the Deity's will and power in the universe.

I also must given Henry Cavill credit for his portrayal of Superman, not as the more mature individual we are treated to in the Christopher Reeve incarnations, but as a Superman less comfortable and less knowledgeable of his power. In several scenes we observe a younger Man of Steel still in varying phases of discovery with respect to his superabilities. The flying scene is especially peculiar to this. Superman begins by realizing his ability to "leap tall buildings in a single bound" by indeed bounding over dozens, even hundreds of whole miles at a time until finally taking to the air in sustained flight that ultimately sees him crash headlong into a mountain - obliterating the mountain incidentally! - yet not being in full control of this astonishing capability to defy gravity! Then the Man of Steel takes full possession of this feat and soars into the very vacuum of space itself!

We'll not tackle the physics of how a man can endure the rigors of space without a suit or other supporting means, but leave that to the suspension of disbelief necessary to make the Man of Steel the man of steel.

Finally, he returns to Earth, flying at supersonic, even hypersonic velocities across land and sea! The pure excitement of these feats is spectacularly acted by Mr. Cavill, causing the viewer to share in the wonder of what it must be like, even in the storehouse of imagination, to realize such greatness. Indeed, as kids are want to do, it makes one want to put on one's red bedsheets, step out onto the front porch, and soar off into the sky!

There are other moments which punctuate Henry Cavill's Superman, such as his defense of his mother after Zod attacks her home, his first sustained uses of heat vision, and so forth that demonstrate the depth of the latest reincarnation of this iconic figure.

Yet suffice it to say, we are given a Superman who is indeed worthy of the character, not a boiled down, dumbed down one who merely demonstrates the ability to exert muscular fortitude, but one who proves that muscle alone does not win battles or hearts.

Yes, this version of the Man of Steel does justice to the Superman mythos. And it lives up to the Superman ideal that we at Epoc Enuma also share...

...the upward reach of humankind.

It is a "go see."



Grade: 3.5 of 4 stars.







Until next time...

To the upward reach of man.