Super-heroes and Us……

Super-heroes and Us……

Upon watching Iron Man 2, I would disagree with the critics who termed it as just a high drama sequence with no heart. To be frank, it sure was quite more entertaining than the first part itself, with more action and stunts and the ever larger-than life figure of Tony Stark. The impressive and stalwart image of Iron Man, depicted with a pinch of humor and satire on human race, in fact was quite a refreshing change.

Iron-man is a far-cry from the other human super-hero’s such as Batman or Spiderman or Hulk. Now one has to give liberty here to the fact that the genesis of Iron man was the necessity of Tony Stark’s survival. For Peter Parker it was a curse or a boon, gifted without choice. For Bruce Banner it was an accident. On the other hand, for Bruce Wayne, Batman was a mask, a get-away from the harsh reality of his parents’ death. What unites them all is their desire to fight for justice and upholding the same. But it stops right there as the four choose different approaches there-on.

In the lone battles of Spiderman or Hulk or Batman, the fragility of human nature is often made visible. Their constant battle with own desires, own fears and defeats is very akin and close to our everyday battles with ourselves. Who amongst us has not felt the burden of responsibilities, the urge to drop everything and completely shun the barriers and codes of conduct imposed on us by society? They are the bleeding heroes.

Now, here is where, Tony Stark stands out. The man is not only narcissistic but also arrogant and loud, largely due to the fact that his other-self, i.e., that Iron Man is not a get-away or an accident. It is a choice, made in order to live, survive which is valued by him immensely. His grand presentation of self, is nothing but a representation of his strong belief in himself and his decisions.
Iron Man personifies those among us who stick by their choice with all strength, knowing and understanding well why they are doing what are doing. They are not slaves to co-incidence or fate, but are the fate-makers, the real heroes. To quote the antagonist in Iron Man 2, Ian Vanko, “You make the God’s bleed, and people will not believe in them’, aptly captures it all. People can sympathize with their likes but they admire and hate at the same breathe those who are larger-than life.