Winter Rant

Dads of most comic book heroes end up dead. This is a pretty grim take, even for me. But once I started making a mental list, it was hard to not pen it down.

Consider…

Batman’s Dad (and Mom) die. That is his origin story.

Superman’s Dad (Jor-El) and adopted Dad (Jonathan Kent) die. That said, Pa Kent does not die in all universes – so that is a relief. I guess.

Spiderman’s father figure – Uncle Ben – dies. That is Spiderman’s origin story.

Black Panther’s Father dies – at least in the movie. I have not read those comics yet.

I have not seen the movie yet, but watching the trailers tells me that Shuri becomes the Black Panther after her brother dies. Also: even she lost a father.

Minato – Naruto’s Dad – dies while saving Naruto when he was born.

Stepping away from comics for a second – James Bond dies in “No Time To Die”, after learning that he had a daughter. Note that he himself grew up an orphan.

Iron Man’s Dad – dies.

Iron Man himself dies – once becoming a father himself.

Shazam grows up in a foster home. But not sure about his Dad dying.

Wonder Woman … did she have a dad?

Flash is a notable exception here – he loses his Mom; and his Dad ends up in prison.

Odin (Thor’s Dad) dies eventually. (And I just realized that if they can kill off Odin – the main God from the Norse mythology – then there is little hope for anyone else. He has a day of the week named after him. Yep! No hope.)

Black Widow was technically an orphan? But her adopted Dad lives. So that is a consolation.

Daredevil’s Dad passed away as part of Matt Murdock’s origin story.

…

The list is longer. I had to stop at some point.

The passing of a father figure seems to be a pivotal fragment of comic book stories. And I am not sure how I feel about it.

What is it about our culture and narratives that we want to kill off a protagonist’s parent … just to establish background? It feels harsh.

Heroes cannot develop character and discover themselves with their dads around?

Ouch! We need a better way of creating backgrounds and stories.

Ms. Marvel gives me hope! (Both her parents, and her grandmom are alive!)

– vijay, sipping tea.