The Superhero Reader

by Worcester, Kent, Hatfield, Charles, Heer, Jeet

  The connection between “love” and superwomen can at first seem troublesome, as it evokes notions of heroines in the traditional sense—of fair maidens and damsels in need of rescue by the hero of the story. But superwomen are not heroines in the traditional sense. Love, as it’s used in stories about the female heroes described throughout this chapter, underscores three intertwined themes: redemption, collaboration, and compassion.

  Redemption comes through a personal quest to make amends for past wrongs, often with guidance from a partner or a community. This definition of redemption emphasizes the belief that there is an innate good in all of us and allows for second chances. And many superwomen believe that anyone can change and grow into a better person.

  In the original Wonder Woman series, this is seen as reformation, and in Buffy and Xena, it is seen as redemption. (The difference between reformation and redemption may seem subtle, but the nuance is crucial when evaluating the evolution of emotional complexity in depictions of superheroes in modern myth.) In the early Wonder Woman mythos, “Redemption” came through imprisonment and “love re-education.” Villainnesses were taken to Paradise Island’s sister oasis, Transformation Island (originally named Reform Island), a place where “bad” women were taught to be “good” women. Here, good is of course equated with loving—in keeping with Marston’s theories of the good and beautiful woman who should rule the world with her altruistic love.3 In the Buffyverse, the individual human or demon in question is provided with the agency to decide what kind of life to live and what kind of person they want to be. (And just about anyone who has met Buffy is indeed influenced by her compassionate example to better themselves.) Along with female power, redemption is one of the overriding themes of the Whedonverse. Writer/director Joss Whedon has said,

  Redemption has become one of the most important themes in my work. … I think as you make your way through life it’s hard to maintain a moral structure, and that difficulty and the process of coming out the other side of a dark, even psychological time [adolescence] is to me the most important part of adulthood. … I think to an extent every human being needs to be redeemed somewhat or at least needs to look at themselves and say, “I’ve made mistakes, I’m off course, I need to change.” Which is probably the hardest thing for a human being to do and maybe that’s why it interests me so.4

  Choosing to live by a love ethic, writes bell hooks, “ensures that relationships in our lives, including encounters with strangers, nurture our spiritual growth.”5 Though Xena strives for redemption by helping those in need, a love ethic does not come easily to her. Fortunately, Gabrielle’s stalwart morality helps bring Xena time and again to a place where she is capable of acting out of compassion. Indeed, hooks notes that “Those who choose to walk on love’s path are well served if they have a guide. That guide can enable us to overcome fear if we trust that they will not lead us astray or abandon us along the way.”6 Clearly Gabrielle is Xena’s guide on the path to redemption. Their mutual admiration is evident in their passionate praise of each other, as well as their sincere declarations of love and friendship, but it was Gabrielle’s understanding of right and wrong that informed nearly every step they took. In the series finale, Xena tells her life partner, “if there is a reason for our travels together—it’s because I had to learn from you, enough to find the final, the good, the right thing to do.”7

  Gabrielle had studied The Way of Love from a prophet named Eli (Timothy Omundson). In the Season 4 episode, appropriately titled “The Way,” he taught her that the only way to end the “cycle of violence that has ravaged the Earth for centuries” is through nonviolence—a practice that is antithetical to Xena’s warrior nature. In the same episode, the warrior princess learns from her own spiritual teacher, Krishna, that to fully tap into her strength she too must embrace “The Way”:

  Xena: The Way? I’ve heard about the way in Greece, Ch’in, Anatoli, and now India. I don’t get it. The way is not for people like me.

  Krishna: You’re wrong. You’re very close to the way now. However, missing it by the width of a hair is the same as missing it by the height of a mountain.

  Xena: I’m close? I don’t think so. I don’t have the patience of Gabrielle, the love of Eli, or the serenity of my mentor, Lao Ma. I’m just an angry, ass-kicking. …

  Krishna: Warrior.

  Xena: Yes, a warrior.8

  Xena learns that “The Way of the Warrior” is a path that is just as valid and necessary as Gabrielle’s, and though their paths are different, they walk them together.9 When Xena apologizes for a time when she feels she’s taken Gabrielle away from her truth, Gabrielle reconciles their ways of being. “Don’t be sorry,” she says, adding, “Xena, do you think I could have understood the power of selfless love if it weren’t for our friendship?”10

  Later, Gabrielle abandons the Way of Love for an even higher power. In “The Ides of March” (4.21), she dispenses with her pacifism when Xena is critically injured. With a violent rage rarely seen in her, Gabrielle destroys a troop of Roman soldiers attempting to finish off the paralyzed warrior princess. Though she is wounded, a horrified Xena feels responsible, thinking she has again caused Gabrielle to walk a spiritually false path: “I made you leave the way of love. It was my fault.” Gabrielle reminds her that she had a choice, “do nothing or save my friend.” With conviction she adds, “I chose the way of friendship.”11

  As Dana Hlusko rightly noted in an article for Whoosh!, compassion is the foundation for the Way of Friendship. She writes that with this concept Gabrielle designed a valid philosophy of life, one that was an even higher developed model than the Way of Love. Hlusko also points out that “These are not mutually exclusive ‘ways.’ They are tightly integrated in a service oriented, compassionate way of life.” Most profoundly she adds, “One cannot live the Way of Friendship if one cannot love.”12

  When we are introduced to Max Guevara of Dark Angel, she like Xena is more interested in self-preservation than in helping others. But like Spider-Man’s Peter Parker, who initially ignored his uncle’s advice that “with great power comes great responsibility,” a mistake that resulted in a death Peter could have prevented, so too will Max encounter a life-altering situation that her involvement could have averted. Her military training will cause her to be cautious, defiant even, but she’ll also realize that she not only has the power to make a difference, but, like all of us, the responsibility to do so.13

  As Lorna Jowett observed, in the beginning of the series,

  Max is recognizably the pragmatic, amoral thief who cares only for her own gain. … She initially assists Logan because “a friend of [hers] died on account of the villain of the week (Pilot), in other words, for personal, not political reasons.14

  But personal reasons are often the motivation for heroic acts. And for Max, especially as a transgenic—or symbolic—Other, the personal will become political.

  After Max’s initial break-in at Logan’s, he tracks her down, hoping to enlist her superhuman assistance. She can’t believe that he’s interested only in exposing corruption and not, like most everyone else in the post-Pulse States, after the almighty dollar. She asks, “What’s your shot in all this? I mean being a famous, underground, pirate cyber-journalist can’t be much of a payday.” Logan explains that his parents “were loaded,” he believes in making a difference, and uses his resources to do so. He encourages Max to use hers, but her response is that she’s more interested in riding her motorcycle than giving herself a headache over stuff she can’t do anything about. Logan reprimands her, lecturing, “You accept the way things are … you’re an active participant in making them worse.” A defensive Max responds with trademark sass, “Is the social studies class over for today?”15

  Logan wants Max to protect a key witness in a trial against a man named Sonrisa who had been replacing crucial medicine for war veterans with sugar pills and then selling the real deal for a marked-up price in Canada. The self-protective Max refuses, but when her friend
Theo dies as a result of the false treatment, and she catches a news report detailing the kidnapping of the witness’s daughter, as Logan is shot and his bodyguard killed, our hero steps up to the proverbial plate. Whether Max is driven by guilt or a desire for social justice is up in the air at this point. She saves Logan from a second assassination attempt and rescues the abducted child. She even executes a plan that takes down Sonrisa and his organization.

  Logan thinks that Max’s involvement means he’s cracked her “bioengineered military-issue armor plating [to find her] beating heart”—and perhaps her sense of social responsibility. But she’s wary, telling him she’s “not signing up to join the Logan Cale brigade for the defense of widows, small children, and lost animals.”16 He entices her with an offer of exchange—information on the whereabouts of her X-5 siblings (which his clandestine investigations have led him to be aware of) for help with legwork. He produces a file on her brother, Zack, and in the closing narrated voice-over, Max says,

  I knew it. I always knew Zack was out there somewhere, but you know, just my luck this guy Logan had to be the one to find him. Now he figures I’m going to go and do the right thing because I owe him. Like I even care.17

  Max does care and does do “the right thing.” But not because Logan tells her to. (Although more often than not the “right” thing will be determined, designated, and validated by Logan—who has no problem manipulating Max for his own agenda, no matter how socially conscious or righteous it may be.)18 Much of Max’s motivation comes from finding and protecting her family—initially the X-5s she escaped with and later the majority of transgenics bred by Manticore. But she’s also consistently faced with situations that allow her to heal the wounds of her own past by helping others move ahead in their lives. For instance, in “Flushed” (1.2), after a series of events lead to her arrest, she encounters Maria, a young woman being sexually abused by the prison’s warden. Max, who had lived with a foster family after her escape from Manticore, has long felt guilt over not protecting her foster sister from similar abuse—even when she could have done so with her training. But Manticore’s training also taught her that “You engage an adversary only if it is consistent with the overall strategic objective. Failing that, you will initiate a tactical withdrawal.”19 The child Max’s objective was self-preservation, doing whatever she could to resist recapture. But she regrets leaving without the abused girl and doesn’t make the same mistake twice—rescuing Maria and having Logan connect the young girl with a loving adoptive family. When Max thanks Logan, he reminds her, “You were the one who cared enough about this girl to go in and get her out. You did a good thing, Max.” She replies, “Better late than never.”20

  Max will continue to learn that the “objective”—as dictated by her military training—is the last thing that matters. People—good friends, friends, family, and the disenfranchised are what’re truly important.

  Notably, both Max and Buffy Summers reject patriarchal systems of behavior in favor of lived knowledge: experience, gut feelings, friendship, and context-based decision-making. When Max finally reunites with Zack, he chastises her for her emotional attachments. As Jowett observes, “Fairly early the show emphasizes that while staying in Seattle puts Max in danger of recapture by Manticore, over and over she chooses to remain with her various communities.” Zack believes Max has allowed her tactical judgment to be clouded by feelings and emotions that will ultimately cost her her freedom. But, like Buffy, her emotions give her power. And so do her friends.

  Collaboration with friends, family, or community is common to the female hero—not because she is incapable of succeeding on her own, but because she is more successful when she recognizes, encourages, and utilizes the talents of others. This support system is essential to the evolution of her spirit—which will ultimately make her a better warrior. Additionally, in stories about the female hero, the sidekick—who is traditionally of lesser power than the hero, generally in need of rescue, and often serves the narrative purpose of comic relief—is elevated to the role of hero themselves through collaborative contribution.21

  Xena was one of the first superwomen to be depicted as having complex and meaningful female friendships and as a participant in female communities. While Gabrielle is the single most important relationship in Xena’s life, the warrior princess has also been involved in several mentor/protégée relationships with other women (even more notable because the learning and teaching were reciprocal). These include Helen of Troy, whom in the series’s trademark rewriting of myth, Xena and Gabriele liberate and empower; Lao Ma, a Chinese philosopher and ghost writer for Lao Tzu; and M’Lia, a Gaelic slave who taught Xena “The Pinch.”22 The Amazons also serve as an extended family of sorts, particularly as Gabrielle was gifted with leadership of their nation. In the episode, “Is There a Doctor in the House?,” when the pair encounter Ephiny (Danielle Cormack), the Amazon who trained Gabrielle, in labor and alone in the middle of a battlefield, they protect and assist her and reassure her that her friends and family are there to support her.

  Ephiny: Family?

  Gabrielle: Hey—I’m your sister Amazon, remember? Xena and I will take care of you.23

  Sherrie A. Inness notes in Tough Girls: Women Warriors and Wonder Women in Popular Culture: “Friendships are rare for tough women because such relationships can undermine the cool, aloof attitude of the tough her … [but] Xena shows that toughness in women does not have to be antithetical to friendship.” The modern superwoman deviates from the Lone Wolf model of heroism by being able to be both independent and part of a community. “The result,” Inness writes, “is a new vision of toughness that emphasizes both her physical toughness and her connection to other women.”24 Here, the warrior princess demonstrates her priorities when she declares, “I’m gonna find a safe place for Ephiny to have her baby. And then I’m gonna stop this war.”25

  Xena populates her family with a variety of people, from Gabrielle and Joxer (Ted Raimi), to Ephiny and the other Amazons. It could even be argued that the gods, Ares (Kevin Smith) and Aphrodite (Alexandra Tydings), are part of her extended family.

  Chosen families also play a large part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly. Joss Whedon has noted that he is much more interested in the created family than in families of origin, and in telling stories in which the chosen family is depicted as being more lasting and loving.26 hooks also reflects on the value, and healing power, of such a family:

  If we do not experience love in our extended families of origin (which is the first site for community offered to us), the other place where children in particular have the opportunity to build community and know love is in friendship. Since we choose our friends, many of us, from childhood on into our adulthood, have looked to friends for the care, respect, knowledge and all-around nurturance of our growth that we did not find in the family.27

  She adds that “Many of us learn as children that friendship should never be seen as just as important as family ties. However, friendship is the place in which a great majority of us have our first glimpse of redemptive love and caring community.”28

  Nowhere in this series is this sentiment more poignantly put than in the Season 5 episode, “Family,” in which Willow’s girlfriend Tara Maclay—relative newbie to the tight-knit Scooby Gang—approaches her twentieth birthday. Willow’s excited for the impending celebration, but the rest of the Scoobies, who admittedly like Tara very much, have yet to get to know her.

  Unexpectedly, Tara’s father, brother, and cousin arrive in Sunnydale with the intention of taking her back home with them. They’ve let her attend some college, but maintain that now her duty is to care for the men of her family, rather than dabble in alternative lifestyles. Her proficiency in magic especially alarms them, as they claim that Maclay women turn “demon” on their twentieth birthday. Tara’s terrified that if the Scoobies find out about this they will reject her; to keep her secret, she casts a spell that makes them unable to see her demon side. Unfortunately,
the spell backfires when it renders the Scoobies unable to see any demons, and at the magic shop that Giles owns, they are attacked by what they believe is an invisible enemy.

  Buffy, of course, defeats the demons, and as Tara reverses the spell, she apologizes and begins to cry. The Maclays have arrived on the scene:

  Mr. Maclay: I don’t understand.

  Buffy: (arms folded, looking at Tara) I’m not sure I do either.

  Tara: I’m sorry. I’m s-s-sorry. (sniffling) I was, I was trying to hide. I didn’t want you to see what I am.

  Willow: Tara, what?

  Buffy: What do you mean, what you are?

  Mr. Maclay: Demon. The women in our family have demon in them. Her mother had it. That’s where the magic comes from. We came to take her home before … well, before things like … (points at a dead demon) this started happening.

  It’s obvious that Tara doesn’t want to leave and she and Willow are distraught. Buffy and Giles are disappointed in her seeming betrayal of their trust, but cautiously weigh the circumstances. Every one of the Scoobies has made a life-threatening mistake and been forgiven, protected, and loved.

  Mr. Maclay: You’re going to do what’s right, Tara. Now, I’m taking you out of here before somebody does get killed. The girl belongs with her family. I hope that’s clear to the rest of you.

  Buffy: It is. You want her, Mr. Maclay? You can go ahead and take her. You just gotta go through me.