Post by michaelpaciocco on Oct 23, 2010 20:04:42 GMT -8
OK, the rules are simple: Pick a character and several of his/her canon romantic match-ups Discuss all of the viable candidates you choose, and give pros and cons for all contenders before justifying your choice of OTP. Make sure to include more than one contender to make it interesting.
Example below.
Character: Captain America (Steve Rogers)
Interest #1: Sharon Carter/Agent 13
Why her? Mark Waid describes her as the Cap equivalent to Gwen Stacy. She's resourceful, tough, and she can relate to Cap's issues of identity, and the conflicts of duty to yourself and to others. They cut through each other's bullshit, and given that we are dealing with a superhero and superspy, they have an uncanny ability to show brutal and direct honesty with one another.
Why not? the Pre-Waid version of the character had minimal personality, and the post-Waid was a mishmash of 90s anti-superhero cynical strawwoman that served only to be knocked down with how super-awesome Cap was (Seriously, look at Project Rebirth TPB - the entire story arc is her saying how lame and naive he is, followed immediately by Cap displaying why he isn't. It's a really lazy gimmick). Even now, she's not even defined by her own character, but by her relationship with Steve, and by her spy-girl status. Not bad, but it's not much of a personality.
Interest #2: Diamondback (Rachel Leighton)
Why her? If Sharon=Gwen Stacy, then Diamondback is clearly the Black Cat equivalent, albeit with some notable distinctions. She wasn't quite as overtly sexualized as Black Cat, nor was her criminality ever as set in stone for the character. Her commitment to the Serpent Society was always portrayed as purely mercenary. Her attraction to Cap was portrayed as an evolution from infatuation to a real relationship that showed a lot of potential. She was inspired to do better and become better by Cap's example (hardly the first or the last), and it made their partnership an interesting dynamic as she became better while he gained a degree of grounding and perhaps added a few shades of grey to his vision.
Why not? Unfortunately, it's hard not to see her position in the relationship as one of co-dependency. It'd be hard not to be when she's a gimmick-based recovering villainess/anti-heroine and he's CAPTAIN AMERICA.
Interest #3: Bernie Rosenthal
Why her? Completing the Cap/Spidey metaphor, we have the closest thing to a Mary Jane analogue in Cap's history (and the irony that this character was created by Roger Stern and John Byrne should not be lost on anyone here). She's the "grounding" character who was inspired to better herself by Cap's example. Except that instead of becoming a superhero like Diamondback, the Falcon, or Jack Flag, she went to law school to help others and fulfill her own American Dream. It's also very important to note that while the other two contenders identify with Captain America, Bernie identifies with Steve Rogers, as that's how she got to know him, giving her an understanding of the man instead of the living legend.
Why not? It can and should be argued that if there's one character in the Marvel Universe who has no civilian life, it's Captain America. For all intents and purposes, Steve gave up any personal life when they hit the switch on the Vita Rays. I think it's ironic that while someone like Spider-Man should idolize Cap, I think Peter Parker would be absolutely horrified by the fact that in order to succeed at the level Cap has, he's given up any real chance to have a life as Steve Rogers. Peter's all about balancing his two lives, and Cap has always thrown Steve Rogers' life into the woodchipper. So, in this regard, Steve would always be sacrificing that life outside superheroing to commit to his costumed ID, which would not help.
OTP Selection?
Despite what I said, I'm still going to go and say it's Bernie Rosenthal.
She's interesting, has a life outside that of the costumed one (which would give Steve some much needed and rarely provided civilian perspective), and I happen to like the whole grounding she provides.
Your turn,
Michael
Example below.
Character: Captain America (Steve Rogers)
Interest #1: Sharon Carter/Agent 13
Why her? Mark Waid describes her as the Cap equivalent to Gwen Stacy. She's resourceful, tough, and she can relate to Cap's issues of identity, and the conflicts of duty to yourself and to others. They cut through each other's bullshit, and given that we are dealing with a superhero and superspy, they have an uncanny ability to show brutal and direct honesty with one another.
Why not? the Pre-Waid version of the character had minimal personality, and the post-Waid was a mishmash of 90s anti-superhero cynical strawwoman that served only to be knocked down with how super-awesome Cap was (Seriously, look at Project Rebirth TPB - the entire story arc is her saying how lame and naive he is, followed immediately by Cap displaying why he isn't. It's a really lazy gimmick). Even now, she's not even defined by her own character, but by her relationship with Steve, and by her spy-girl status. Not bad, but it's not much of a personality.
Interest #2: Diamondback (Rachel Leighton)
Why her? If Sharon=Gwen Stacy, then Diamondback is clearly the Black Cat equivalent, albeit with some notable distinctions. She wasn't quite as overtly sexualized as Black Cat, nor was her criminality ever as set in stone for the character. Her commitment to the Serpent Society was always portrayed as purely mercenary. Her attraction to Cap was portrayed as an evolution from infatuation to a real relationship that showed a lot of potential. She was inspired to do better and become better by Cap's example (hardly the first or the last), and it made their partnership an interesting dynamic as she became better while he gained a degree of grounding and perhaps added a few shades of grey to his vision.
Why not? Unfortunately, it's hard not to see her position in the relationship as one of co-dependency. It'd be hard not to be when she's a gimmick-based recovering villainess/anti-heroine and he's CAPTAIN AMERICA.
Interest #3: Bernie Rosenthal
Why her? Completing the Cap/Spidey metaphor, we have the closest thing to a Mary Jane analogue in Cap's history (and the irony that this character was created by Roger Stern and John Byrne should not be lost on anyone here). She's the "grounding" character who was inspired to better herself by Cap's example. Except that instead of becoming a superhero like Diamondback, the Falcon, or Jack Flag, she went to law school to help others and fulfill her own American Dream. It's also very important to note that while the other two contenders identify with Captain America, Bernie identifies with Steve Rogers, as that's how she got to know him, giving her an understanding of the man instead of the living legend.
Why not? It can and should be argued that if there's one character in the Marvel Universe who has no civilian life, it's Captain America. For all intents and purposes, Steve gave up any personal life when they hit the switch on the Vita Rays. I think it's ironic that while someone like Spider-Man should idolize Cap, I think Peter Parker would be absolutely horrified by the fact that in order to succeed at the level Cap has, he's given up any real chance to have a life as Steve Rogers. Peter's all about balancing his two lives, and Cap has always thrown Steve Rogers' life into the woodchipper. So, in this regard, Steve would always be sacrificing that life outside superheroing to commit to his costumed ID, which would not help.
OTP Selection?
Despite what I said, I'm still going to go and say it's Bernie Rosenthal.
She's interesting, has a life outside that of the costumed one (which would give Steve some much needed and rarely provided civilian perspective), and I happen to like the whole grounding she provides.
Your turn,
Michael
