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| NETFLIX: Marvel Daredevil Season 2 |
TWO BATCH
PENNY AND DIME" Frank Castle
So I spent the weekend watching the post title which is adapted from the Marvel comics (during my study breaks of course). And actor Jon Bernthals portrayal of the character Frank Castle aka "The Punisher" stood out for me.
He was so bad ass and I myself thought he did a great job at the role (Be warned though if you are planning on watching this TV programme, have a strong stomach and an open mind).
Anyway, I was wondering how come the protagonists or superheroes are mainly White? Sure we have a few black superheroes (token black guy/girl). But they are either part of a superhero team who are mainly white . We have "The Falcon" played by Anthony Mackie playing alongside Chris Evans "Captain America" (White guy). And soon to be part of the Marvel ensemble "The Black Panther" played by Chadwick Boseman.
Oh and we cannot forget Halle Berry who has played "Storm" from the X-Men (Ahem, clearing throat) and her pivotal performance in DC Comics "Cat Woman" which was a total disaster for her career and all potential cat owners (but that's another story).
If we use Stuart Halls idea of how stereotyping works by associating it with Marvel or DC media texts via mainstream media. Some people may see this as influential in shaping peoples perception of ethnic groups for particular roles in any media texts.
The main guy or hero has to be white, the gangsters (bad guys) got to be either Mexican or African American. Got to have a token black guy who is a good guy in a minor role (cop). The bikers got to be like long haired, scruffy looking, tattooed up, leather wearing, moustached or bearded white guys. The Ninjas got be Asian or wearing suits or know some form of martial arts.
And the TV show has to be shown every week at a particular time where the target audience is most likely going to veg out in front of the TV like clockwork. And we as the audience or reader of the text accept this idea of certain roles over time as part of the norm.
Correct me if I'm wrong, I believe maybe having the white superhero is so popular because that specific group of the target audience who turn up to movies with cash is mostly the white audience. Therefore historically the image of employment is associated with white people and black people are from low socioeconomic communities and perceived as either getting by.
You beat me to this topic! But basically in reference to Daredevil in particular, I just finished binge watching it last night and though I understand your trail of thought with this TV show in particular I'm going to have to disagree (not because I'm a diehard Marvel fan) but because of the Characters The Punisher & Kingspin. You're correct to identify that we have villians from almost every ethnic identity available, The Russian & Chinese, The Japanese & now the Irish. However, the reason I believe strongly that this isn't a Good "White man" vs. Bad exotic other is because of the following
ReplyDelete1. Kingspin i.e. Fisk is your next door neighbour all American boy turned bad who is the key reason behind the american mobsters to begin with. So essentially while we can get lost in seeing that racial diversity is solely limited to the villian, the greatest villain of all is the White american themselves
2. The Punisher shows us a glimpse of you White american who nor good nor bad but in some blurry in between, therefore the argument of all american "White men" being the hero is essentially not true.
3. The African American nurse & police officer who helps Daredevil are essentially the only true hearted "good people" left in Hell's Kitchen.
4. Matt Murdock's change from good to obscure, after closely watching when you analyze Matt's character you can't truly typecast him as your "Good white man", because what we begin to see is his change and willingness to let go of his own morals to defeat something he views is beyond his measure.
I will actually be posting about African-American characters in Marvel tonight so if you're interested do keep tuned because that's where I'll be breaking down Falcon, War machine, Black Panther and Spider man!
You make some very good valid points about racial profiling in character roles. However it depends how you view the Punisher. Maybe you could argue a difference in opinion in the way our values and mentality are based on our background, the way we were brought up, influences in our environment or how our perceptions have been shaped to see and act a certain way. I myself am actually a big DC fan, Batman rocks. But if had to Marvel it would definitely be the Punisher... What were we talking about again? Daredevil is like Batman and the Punisher is the version of the DC character the Red Hood. But the Punisher would definitely kick the Red Hoods butt. Be looking forward to reading your post, and partake in conversations in comic fandom.
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