it's difficult to know about what to say hank the wank pym that mark millar hasn't already poked around at, other than 'good heavens that's a rubbish costume'. i think he's interesting, and more-or-less unique, in that he's a long-standing A-minus list supertype who's got more than one big-small/insect-themed costumed identity, and in fact has a whole wardrobe of them: giant-man, ant-man, yellowjacket, goliath, and dr. scarlet jumpsuit (are there others? that last look's twenty-plus years old now).
it'd be nice to have a book where he picks and chooses what he'll be battling evil in today, basing his look on perhaps his mood, or random impulses, or suitability for the job, and experimenting with combinations (giantjacket) and brave new original looks (big-hipster, ant-fucker).
i was going to talk about how he's probably the world's most famous two-dimensional spousal abuser, but i don't think that's really called for here. what has occurred to me, comparing his love of super-sartorial variety with his wife's famous fashion addiction, is the emphasis throughout the avengers on social status symbols (private jets, mansions, islands, servants - the core three are primarily empowered by their exclusive access to priceless fighting kit - quite odd for a superhero that, only green lantern otherwise really) and decidedly establishment-friendly characters. let's look at the origin. a bunch of very handsome upper-class types: the icon of the world's most proudly expensive military complex and embodiment of nationalistic zeal; a nordic god; a drinky drinky arms dealer/'industrialist' zillionaire (okay he wasn't drinky drinky at that stage, but); and a pair of overeducated new york socialites get together to beat up a geeky nuclear weapons designer who has outlived his profitability. the sports-team angle doesn't really work here, a posh golf club maybe, but it can certainly be made to fit with other units of social organisation: a court, an aristocracy, or perhaps a masonic lodge (as millar maybe hinted).
this fits quite nicely with the following schema:
avengers - rich upper classes
ff - middle class family (no butler for them, only labour saving gadgets)
x-men - social outcasts/underclass
those early bullpenners even gave us models of how the individual can interact with these established social codes:
spidey - immature individual, connected but subordinate to all groups
hulk - mature (i.e. self-directing) individual, connected but superior to all groups
and that's about as far as i got. |
