1. Okay, so after the short discussion in the
comments section of my post on Friday, I may have to reconsider what I thought was the universal knowledge of the character of Superman. However, at the very
least, most people should be able to look at a guy in a red cape and blue tights and recognize him as the corporate symbol of "Superman," even if they know absolutely nothing about the character. You know, much in the same way people see Mickey Mouse...they know he represents Disney, but any details of his personality or adventures or relationships with other characters are long since supplanted by his primary existence as a corporate trademark.
I hate to think of Superman heading in that same direction, but perhaps someday Superman will only be known as a generic representation of "a super guy" -- Luthor, Lois, the Daily Planet, all forgotten except by the 30,000 people who buy his comics each month.
Not a day goes by when I don't see Superman's "S" emblem as a (probably unlicensed) decal on the rear window or bumper of a car...I wonder if there's a percentage of people with these stickers who have no idea who Superman is.
1a. I wonder, when the first Tim Burton
Batman movie came out, how many people were surprised to find out that Batman's origin involved the death of his parents? I don't believe it was ever explicitly stated on the 1960s TV show, which is how most people knew the character.
How many people thought the filmmakers got David Banner's name wrong ("What? 'Bruce?' Who's that?") in the recent
Hulk movie?
When I saw the
Lord of the Rings movie in the theatre, after the film was over, someone sitting behind me expressed astonishment that the story was going to continue into a second movie. So, really, I guess I shouldn't assume that certain bits of knowledge are known by everyone.
2. Last night's
Justice League Unlimited was the long-awaited episode written by
Warren Ellis, and it was worth the wait. Ellis delivered what the people wanted...a gaggle of super-heroes and a whole lot of mayhem, with a smattering of amusing dialogue that probably annoyed some overly-serious superhero fan somewhere. Not me, though...with Atom's complaint of being "tired and old," and Batman somewhat sarcastically noting that he was in need of help since he couldn't fly, there were some honestly-earned grins along with the action.
It was also nice to see an alien spaceship that looked...really
alien, for once. Plus, we finally got to see the Shining Knight in action! Given that it seems like 75% of the members of the Justice League either a) fly and punch, or b) fly and shoot energy beams out of their hands, focusing on the member that's carrying a sword and riding a flying horse brings some welcome variety. The characters whose sole powers appear to be the ability to shoot guns (Nemesis and the Vigilante) show up as well.
Overall, a fun episode...one of the few to actually take full advantage of the large cast of characters.
3.
H doesn't like the new Swamp Thing series. That's (sniff) that's okay...it's fine, really, you don't have to like it. (sniff)
