Rogers is just a weak guy who signed on to Super Solider program. There isn't much there...to explore. He's Joe Average. And yes, Joe Average wanting to be and becoming a super-hero is frigging hard to write well -- you can fall into Marty Stu territory far too easily.
But see, you're once again turning Steve into less than he is.See, Steve isn't Joe Average, that's your first mistake. Wolverine is Joe Average, he's the regular guy who's been through crap and behaves like an asshole about it.
Steve is the sick disabled kid from the poor background, growing up in a gay neighborhood who went through all kinds of crap, and instead of becoming an asshole, he became a protector. He became someone who wanted more than anything to help others. Who didn't want to give up, or give in to the darkness.
He's someone who was a good man, before he became physically strong.
He was so desperate to be more than his weakness, that he allowed a scientist to experiment on him, just so he could fight, just imagine how desperate you'd have to be for that.
Steve is the veteran, suffering from PTSD, who's so adjusted to life in a war situation, that he can't manage to readjust to a civilian life. Not because he likes war, but because being a soldier has become his 'normal'. Like a marine that keeps signing back up for new tours in active warzones, because it's less scary than having to go back to living a 'normal' life.
Steve isn't perfect, he's overly stubborn, inclined to get into fights, even if he doesn't have to. He's argumentative, self righteous at times. But in the end, he'll do the right thing, because it's the right thing, because he wants to help people, because it's what's best for others and not necessarily for himself. He's loyal, kind, sarcastic. And it's his loyalty that often gets him in trouble, because it's not always a good thing.
And the thing is, throughout it all, his greatest strength? It's not that he's physically strong. Or athletic.
His greatest power is his righteousness, just as it's his greatest weakness. He's so sure of his purpose, of his goal, that he can pull others in it with him, make them believe what he believes in. Make them stand up for something larger than themselves. It's what led to Civil War, because it was his belief that what he was doing was right, that led others to agree with him.
It's a risk he has to live with every day, knowing that others follow him, because they believe in him, and the responsibility that comes with that.
He's not a power fantasy, no more so than Cyclops is. He's our belief that we can be more than we are. And because he believes that we can be more, he makes other people reach for the sky. That's what's fascinating about Steve Rogers. And it would still be there, even if he never got the supersoldier syndrome, even if he were still the same weakling he used to be.
As can be proven by the fact that Bucky and Peggy followed him, even before he ever became Captain America.
What makes the Avengers so interesting, is that being an Avenger, was never about being the most powerful person out there. It's what sets them apart from DC teams like the Justice League. It's how they work together to become greater as a whole.
But then I've always preferred characters like Peter Parker, like Steve Rogers, like Scott McCall, like Duncan MacLeod, like... exactly because it's a lot harder to remain a good person, than it is to give in to the crappy world, and become an asshole. Because becoming an asshole is taking the easy way out.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2015-11-30 06:17 am (UTC)But see, you're once again turning Steve into less than he is.See, Steve isn't Joe Average, that's your first mistake. Wolverine is Joe Average, he's the regular guy who's been through crap and behaves like an asshole about it.
Steve is the sick disabled kid from the poor background, growing up in a gay neighborhood who went through all kinds of crap, and instead of becoming an asshole, he became a protector. He became someone who wanted more than anything to help others. Who didn't want to give up, or give in to the darkness.
He's someone who was a good man, before he became physically strong.
He was so desperate to be more than his weakness, that he allowed a scientist to experiment on him, just so he could fight, just imagine how desperate you'd have to be for that.
Steve is the veteran, suffering from PTSD, who's so adjusted to life in a war situation, that he can't manage to readjust to a civilian life. Not because he likes war, but because being a soldier has become his 'normal'. Like a marine that keeps signing back up for new tours in active warzones, because it's less scary than having to go back to living a 'normal' life.
Steve isn't perfect, he's overly stubborn, inclined to get into fights, even if he doesn't have to. He's argumentative, self righteous at times. But in the end, he'll do the right thing, because it's the right thing, because he wants to help people, because it's what's best for others and not necessarily for himself. He's loyal, kind, sarcastic. And it's his loyalty that often gets him in trouble, because it's not always a good thing.
And the thing is, throughout it all, his greatest strength? It's not that he's physically strong. Or athletic.
His greatest power is his righteousness, just as it's his greatest weakness. He's so sure of his purpose, of his goal, that he can pull others in it with him, make them believe what he believes in. Make them stand up for something larger than themselves. It's what led to Civil War, because it was his belief that what he was doing was right, that led others to agree with him.
It's a risk he has to live with every day, knowing that others follow him, because they believe in him, and the responsibility that comes with that.
He's not a power fantasy, no more so than Cyclops is. He's our belief that we can be more than we are. And because he believes that we can be more, he makes other people reach for the sky. That's what's fascinating about Steve Rogers. And it would still be there, even if he never got the supersoldier syndrome, even if he were still the same weakling he used to be.
As can be proven by the fact that Bucky and Peggy followed him, even before he ever became Captain America.
What makes the Avengers so interesting, is that being an Avenger, was never about being the most powerful person out there. It's what sets them apart from DC teams like the Justice League. It's how they work together to become greater as a whole.
They're not a family, like the X-men, they're an army unit, of a sorts. And because of that, bad writers often fall into cliché plots. But when written by people like Kurt Busiek, they're Amazing.
But then I've always preferred characters like Peter Parker, like Steve Rogers, like Scott McCall, like Duncan MacLeod, like... exactly because it's a lot harder to remain a good person, than it is to give in to the crappy world, and become an asshole. Because becoming an asshole is taking the easy way out.