Squadron Supreme: The High Cost Of Utopia

Comments · 256

• AN

  @andrewb4999 · 11 months ago (edited)

  I find the idea of superheroes legitimately wanting to do good and make the world a better place but screwing it all up due to impotency/human-error/internal conflict/etc far more compelling than the standard “Superman but he’s just evil” concept we see so often in superhero deconstructions.

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• KI

  @kingbeauregard · 11 months ago

  I have many thoughts about the Gruenwald miniseries:<br><br>- Convicted felons were never forced to undergo the Behavior Modification. They were given the choice, and if they took it, their sentences would be immediately commuted and their records would be wiped clean. The Squadron Supreme was surprised at how few prisoners took the deal, but they didn&apos;t force any of them to undergo the procedure.<br><br>- The fact that they forced their superpowered enemies to undergo the process was a significant turning point in the story. That was the first time the Squadron Supreme agreed to use the B-Mod against people&apos;s will.<br><br>- One of the interesting points about the B-Modded villains is that some of them were actually happier to be altered, while others were not and were resentful. It&apos;s an interesting point of nuance. For example, Ape X discovered what it was like to have humans as friends who respected her for her (mostly Tom Thumb).<br><br>- Mark Gruenwald was not particularly into guns, but even so, he treated the taking away of guns as a violation of rights. So he wasn&apos;t saying &quot;the things I don&apos;t like are bad&quot;, he was trying to be even-handed about it. BTW, the Squadron Supreme supplied people with replacements for guns: force field generators for protection, and projectiles that law enforcement could use to trap people in bubbles.<br><br>- I felt the arguments for and against what the Squadron Supreme was doing, were pretty sophisticated. Certainly more nuanced than today, when debate consists of the Flash playing one-sided chess against Superman and making one-sided arguments while Superman says nothing. We get both sides in &quot;Squadron Supreme&quot;, and the heroes even try to remain true to their ideals while their actions creep into dictatorship. And in the end, they give up their project and return control to duly elected officials, because through it all, they remain heroes.<br><br>- &quot;Watchmen&quot; is more famous, which is a shame. &quot;Watchmen&quot; was more about deconstructing the genre, while &quot;Squadron Supreme&quot; was trying to remain true to the genre.

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• WH

  @whyherewhynow7418 · 11 months ago

  I think one of the most telling moments in Squadron Supreme, though a brief one, was when someone (I forget who) asked them if the &quot;brainwashing to be good&quot; machine was such a great thing, why didn&apos;t they use it on themselves.

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• JE

  @Jean-Paul-Lane-Valley · 6 months ago (edited)

  I love that the heroes in SS never act out of chatacter, at least regarding to what we get to know about them and their archetype. They managed to create an authoritarian superhero alternatuve universe without forcing their Superman to become an psychopath or a murderer for the sake of forcing their narrative. That&apos;s what, at least to me, brings SS above other similar stories like Injustice, which despite commiting character assassination to get the plot going, mostly just focus on interpersonal drama or showcasing a &quot;hero vs hero&quot; scenario.

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• TH

  @TheNickcone · 11 months ago

  Great choice. Gruenwald&apos;s maxi-series is a classic. I think it explores some really interesting questions, and the classic house style art contrasts well with the darker story and material. It&apos;s probably Gruenwalds masterpiece or close to it.

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• SH

  @ShaneLorrison666 · 11 months ago

  Mark Gruenwald’s Squadron Supreme is pretty awesome. &nbsp;I enjoyed his Captain America too.

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• MY

  @mysticalmonotreme · 11 months ago (edited)

  Something about Nuke being the first to die hit me particularly hard when I read it. Most likely because he is the Squadron&apos;s equivalent of DC&apos;s Firestorm. Both were the newest members of their respective teams (at the time, although Firestorm was forced to leave the JLA be the time of SS&apos;s release) and the youngest. Nuke, not being a composite being like his counterpart, never had the influence of someone like Martin Stein to temper his psychological instability. The first two issues demonstrated that Nuke was prone to violent outbursts, no doubt fueled by concerns for his parents conditions and later guilt over their deaths, and his death felt like the first domino that resulted in the Squadron&apos;s downfall at the end. Similarly, it reflects a loss of innocence for the team after the Silver and Bronze Ages.

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• SL

  @sleadaddy · 11 months ago

  I agree with you that Watchmen and Squadron Supreme are not very similar when looked at in the modern context - or really in any context beyond cape comics. However, at the time, they had a LOT in common. Both were among the very first (alongside Marvelman and a few others) to take the moral choices associated with being a costumed superhero seriously.

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• PA

  @patrickmoler8025 · 11 months ago

  I just found all 12 issues at a bookstore. Been looking forward to reading this one for a while.

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• M0

  @m0rris0n12 · 11 months ago

  Mark Gruenwald was such an influential writer at Marvel. And I’m not really sure if he gets the credit and respect he deserves. <br><br>He had an excellent run on Captain America. Introducing a lot of characters and concepts that have influenced other Marvel creators and the MCU as well. <br><br>His Quasar run was great at exploring the cosmic side of things and really made Quasar an effective and relatable hero. <br><br>Squadron Supreme showed he could use comic heroes and use them to tell stories that have relevance even in the current times. For unfortunate reasons. <br><br>It really is a shame he’s been gone so many decades now. I know there’s many more stories he could’ve told. But I definitely appreciate what he was able to make

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• AN

  @Anynom · 11 months ago

  Fun trivia in how if you find the first edition of the trade paperback, Gru&apos;s ashes are sprinkled into the ink.

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• KY

  @KyleX515 · 11 months ago

  Most awkward comic panel of the day award goes to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PkswtRw8fM&amp;t=136">2:16</a>

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