The world we live in is filled with all kinds of people, from all walks of life. From genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropists like Tony Stark, to boys from Queens who are “Peter, by the way”, and to Asgardian princes who deny the throne because they’d rather be a good man than a great king.
Indeed, it is a great world. And it is filled with such extremities and acute emotional points, that one cannot help but wonder: “But have we not seen this all before?”
And one might just be right. From Aristophanes, who introduced the art of comedy to the spectators, and Sophocles, father of empathetic tragedies, to Shakespeare’s well-loved anti-heroes and Harold Pinter’s controversially ethical (and, sometimes, quite unethical) silences, we have been faced with such a vast exhibition of emotions, characters, relationships and situations, that we could easily claim to “Yes, we have seen it all before.”
And therein lies the beauty of the Marvel Cinematic Universe – for no character is quite the same as the next. Yes, Captain America and Spiderman both come from quite lonely, poor backgrounds in the suburbs of New York, but they each made their own choices, which led them down individual paths, which ultimately lead to… today. The same can be said for former assassins Natasha Romanov and Wade Wilson, worldly known as Black Widow and Deadpool. There are royalties, like Thor and T’Challa, who were both princes but their life choices couldn’t have been more antithetic. And what about Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. Scarlet Witch and Stephen Strange, a.k.a. Doctor Strange, a.k.a. Sorcerer Supreme, whose prowess in magic means they’ve both used it in distinct ways, with very particular intentions. Loki and Malekith both had plans to commit genocide, but their respective reasoning was diverse and yet distinct in nature. Sylvie and Kaecilius fought against hypocrisy and lies. And so on and so forth. As Captain America once said, “I can do this all day.”
There is something to be said about each and every one of these characters – these people that comprise a world so similar and yet so different to ours. The real world may not have real-life superheroes and sorcerers and such, but we do share the one thing that can bring any and all intelligent beings together: emotion. Emotion can drastically change our course of action in a matter of seconds. Therefore, it is no surprise that millions of people can relate to Marvel’s universe and its wide variety of characters, precisely because it is ruled by emotion.
How can anyone not relate to love for our family? Or hatred for our bullies? Romantic love? The sense of duty? The musts and mustn'ts? The does and don'ts? There are also lies and deception, manipulation, war, loss, divorce and major health issues that change one's life forever.
And then, there is art. There is beauty. There is love. There are little moments that make a big difference. Little lines that change everything and mean everything:
“With great power comes great responsibility.”
“No man can win every battle, but no man should fall without a struggle.”
“Part of the journey is the end.”
“You never know. You hope for the best and make do with what you get.”
It is, quite frankly, life itself. Real things, just painted with the colours of heroism and villainy… and a dash of editing magic.
And THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is the Marvel Cinematic Universe for you…!
Regina Nox, a big Marvel fan
The MCU We Have Come To Love
