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SFU Thesis Template Files “To Fight the Battles We Never Could”: The Militarization of Marvel’s Cinematic Superheroes by Brett Pardy B.A., The University of the Fraser Valley, 2013 Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the School of Communication Faculty of Communication, Art, and Technology Brett Pardy 2016 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Summer 2016 Approval Name: Brett Pardy Degree: Master of Arts Title: “To Fight the Battles We Never Could”: The Militarization of Marvel’s Cinematic Superheroes Examining Committee: Chair: Frederik Lesage Assistant Professor Zoë Druick Senior Supervisor Associate Professor Adel Iskander Supervisor Assistant Professor Michael Ma External Examiner Faculty Member Department of Criminology Kwantlen Polytechnic University Date Defended/Approved: June 16, 2016 ii Abstract The Marvel comics film adaptations have been some of the most successful Hollywood products of the post 9/11 period, bringing formerly obscure cultural texts into the mainstream. Through an analysis of the adaptation process of Marvel Entertainment’s superhero franchise from comics to film, I argue that a hegemonic American model of militarization has been used by Hollywood as a discursive formation with which to transform niche properties into mass market products. I consider the locations of narrative ambiguities in two key comics texts, The Ultimates (2002-2007) and The New Avengers (2005-2012), as well as in the film The Avengers (2012), and demonstrate the significant reorientation of the film franchise towards the American military’s “War on Terror”. While Marvel had attempted to produce film adaptations for decades, only under the new “militainment” discursive formation was it finally successful. Using a framework of genre, myth, and intertextuality I argue that superheroes are malleable icons, known largely by the public by their image and perhaps general character traits rather than their narratives. Militainment is introduced through a discourse of realism provided by Marvel Studios as an indicator that the property is not just for children. Ultimately, this results in shifting superhero ethics towards the goals of the American military and a concomitant militarization of mainstream popular culture. Keywords: hegemony; Marvel; militainment; superheroes; Hollywood iii Acknowledgements I would like the thank the following people for helping me throughout my Master’s degree: My senior supervisor, Zoë Druick, for her support, advice, excellent communication, and guidance in shaping my research, and for introducing me to the militainment concept. My second reader, Adel Iskander, for his enthusiasm, insightful comments, and ability to provide concise summations (and for suggesting the reversal of a key quote in the text). My examiner, Michael Ma, for his thorough questions and editorial recommendations. My parents, for their endless support. My brother, Luke, for his insights. Grace Tsurumaru, whose wonderful film course during my first semester in university set me down the road of studying film. Geoffrey Spurling and Eric Spalding, from whom I learned so much that allowed me to make the next step to a Master’s degree. Greg Costello, for inviting me to see these films and for the discussions that sparked the initial interest in this topic. Courtney Szto, who has been a tremendous guide on how to be a graduate student. Tiiu Vaartnou and Tahmina Inoyatova, for their support and encouragement. The School of Communication, for funding and teaching assistant opportunities. The Communication graduate students, for creating a fascinating learning environment. The students in the classes I’ve been a teaching assistant with, for making that aspect of graduate school a wonderful and motivating experience. iv Table of Contents Approval .......................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................ v Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1. Genre, Hegemony, and the Post 9/11 Superhero .................................. 6 1.1. Introduction .......................................................................................................... 6 1.2. Genre .................................................................................................................. 6 1.2.1. Defining the Superhero Genre ............................................................................. 7 1.3. Social Theories of Genre ..................................................................................... 9 1.4. Adaptation Theory ............................................................................................. 12 1.5. Hegemony Theory ............................................................................................. 16 1.6. Militainment as Discursive Formation................................................................. 22 1.7. Militainment as Realism ..................................................................................... 24 1.8. Faultlines ........................................................................................................... 26 1.9. Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 28 Chapter 2. The Retellings of the Avengers 2.1. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 29 2.2 Historical Background ........................................................................................ 29 2.2.1. The Superhero Genre ........................................................................................ 29 2.2.2. Marvel Comics ................................................................................................... 31 2.2.3. “War on Terror” Superheroes ............................................................................ 34 2.2.4. Marvel’s Ultimate Universe: The Link Between Comics and Film. ...................... 37 2.2.5. Marvel Studios ................................................................................................... 38 2.3. Militarization and the Avengers .......................................................................... 40 2.3.1. The Ultimates: Satire and/or Militainment? ........................................................ 41 2.3.2. The New Avengers: Secrets and Lies ................................................................ 49 2.3.3. The Avengers: Military Blockbuster ................................................................... 54 2.4. Faultlines ........................................................................................................... 59 2.5. Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 61 Chapter 3. The Significance of Militarization 3.1. Introduction ........................................................................................................ 64 3.2. Hollywood Militarization ..................................................................................... 64 3.3. Militainment as Discursive Formation................................................................. 66 3.3.1. Militainment: Superheroes Path to "Realism" ..................................................... 69 3.4. The Fidelity Discourse Mask .............................................................................. 71 3.5. The Implications of Military Violence .................................................................. 76 3.5.1. Superhero Violence ........................................................................................... 77 3.5.2. Military Violence ................................................................................................ 80 v 3.6. Limitations ......................................................................................................... 84 3.7. Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 84 References ................................................................................................................ 88 vi Introduction Nick Fury, head of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division (S.H.I.E.L.D) tells his team of assembled superheroes: There was an idea… called the Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we [the military organization of S.H.I.E.L.D] never could. This speech, heard in The Avengers (Joss Whedon, 2012) brings together the various heroes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to be the eponymous team. The Avengers was the most successful of the many superhero films since 2000, grossing $1.52 billion, the third highest total of all time. This level of financial success is a significant leap from the characters’ origins in comic books, a medium where even the most popular series’ sales are around
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