Carol Danvers helped reunite Julia Carpenter with her daughter. This is something I'd call unquestionably good. So why am I having a hard time giving her credit for it?
Part of it could be that she's the one who helped drag Julia off to prison in the first place. It's that she has to atone for her actione in the first place that's bothering me. If say, USAgent had been the one that arrested Julia and separated her from her daughter (because he would do that, no doubt), and then Carol decided to help Julia because she just felt bad for her, it would be a lot cleaner. Carol would just be a good person helping someone in need.
But I think the thing that really bothers me is that Carol is holding all the cards in this situation. She's a legally registered hero, supposedly the leader of the government's premiere super-team, while Julia is just another damn vigilante, refusing to follow the law. Julia has zero leverage here legally. There's nothing forcing Carol to do any of what she does, other than her own guilty conscience. It feels like we're supposed to see this and say 'Oh, isn't Carol such a good person, helping this down-on-her-luck mother recover her child.' Gotta admit, it would probably make great p.r. (Or maybe not. The government probably wouldn't want the public to know registered heroes are blatantly ignoring custody rulings to help prior fugitives, although maybe if you mentioned that the gesture convinced another hero to join the "right" side, and well, I'm getting sidetracked).
This really bugs me, because Carol is trying to make amends for something that the government and Tony Stark say she has no reason to feel bad about, and that should make me happy. And it sorta does. Seeing Julia hugging Rachel was one of the feel-good moments of my comics this week (though there wasn't much competition in the heartwarming category), and knowing that Carol helped make this happen makes me feel better about Carol as a hero. But there's still that nagging little part, telling me she wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place if she hadn't gone pro-reg.
It just occurred to me, maybe I'm thinking about the stunt Carol pulled on Jessica Drew and that's what's bugging me. Because it really isn't cool to lie to a friend about Captain America being alive, just so Iron Man can capture them for whatever his reason is (to stop the anonymous "them" from capturing the New Avengers first, personal glory, it's the law, he's just a jerk, etc.,)
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9 comments:
Oh, Carol is definietly feeling guilt, and loads of it. Which I suppose can be a good thing. It makes her character slightly redeemable, if she still has enough sanity left to admit that perhaps betraying your friends and throwing large numbers of them in prison is not necessarily a good thing.
Please, can somebody just kick Tony Stark in the face? Or the nads, I'm not particular.
Do you think that Carol's story arc is going to end with her deciding that being an "A-List" superhero isn't worth the compromises it entails and decides to join the resistance? I think that's just about the only way they can come to a reasonable end to the character arc they've had her on for the last few years. Either that or heroic sacrifice...or something completely stupid and out of character. Hmmmm....well, since this is Marvel, we're probably looking at option C.
I think part of it may be the lese-majestie of it all; Carol dispensing mercy from her high throne. If you don't think that Carol deserves to be on that high throne, if you feel that she did really asstastic things to get there, and continues to do so (the emotional savagery of the Cap's-body trap was just breathtaking), it just highlights how unjust everything is. So not very heartwarming.
It's sort of like how I feel about Tony Stark doing things like giving Matt Murdock a pass on registration because 'he's not worried about his level of training', or giving Sam Wilson Harlem to patrol as a 'personal favor'. I *should* see these as signs that he still has some humanity left, but instead it feels like he doesn't actually believe fanatically in his Plan. Which makes it feel like it is much more about getting himself into a position of ultimate power, not because he must hurt and kill his friends to save the world.
I can't get over Carol's betrayal of the original Spider-Woman. Jessica Drew saved her life and the two were supposed to be close friends.
No matter what your intentions may be, no matter what the law may be, you don't pull a stunt like that.
As of New Avengers #2, I consider the Carol Danvers I know and rooted for still out in space cruising with the Starjammers.
I don't know who this imposter is ...
sallyp: Well, between She-Hulk, Nova, and the Hulk, I'd say folks are lining up to grant your wish.
jason: I kind of think she'll get the A-list rating through media hype, and realize that she hasn't really earned it, and that she's not going to being one of Stark's running dogs. Your first option sounds better though.
laura: I think you've hit it on the head. Do Stark or Carol deserve to be handing out the favors like manna from heaven? I'd have to say no.
fortress keeper: Agreed. I haven't read a lot of comics detailing Jessica and Carol's friendship, but just based on the exchange they had in Ms. marvel #1 (sitting around in civilian guise, talking about their hopes, and mentioning things we'd never heard before) it seemed pretty clear to me they were good buds.
Which does make the whole "Cap's alive. Psych!" thing a real body blow.
It's interesting that Warbird and Jessica Drew are best friends, because it used to be that Warbird and Jessica Jones would be the ones hanging out in their civvies and having lunch together while they had Girlie Chats.
No, JJ wasn't a last-minute replacement for JD at all Brian, we believe you...
I guess maybe the guesture would mean more if Carol said she was flat out wrong and now had to make the best of the situation, instead of qualifying it with "you broke the law."
I'm not sure what Reed's getting at here: is Carol MEANT to be best of the best, or not? It's not as bad as Bendis' increasing misogyny over the past few years, but it seems like her own writer has the least faith in her.
Or am I tarring Reed by association?
due to the many spider -women in marvel ...way back in xmen around 164(uncanny seriers)carol went either lost her binary power or her body..i cant recall the brood had some ship that was alive and she took it over and it built her a new body..any who hahha 194--199 maybe they x-men stayed at spider womens house..and carol was always around them...spider woman poppe dup again around 202 by issue 205-206 they were fighting the brother hood of evil mutants now known as fredom force..again they attact the x-men at spider womens home....i cant recall that spider womens name tho...by 210 the mutant masacure hit by 232..the x-men fought the brood...the new ones with powers (watch out issue 246 carol pops up again in x-men and her and betsy have a lil chat about rouge..anyways
hahahah
to my point hahaha
i can recall carol bein super close to a spiderwomen like best friends close...i dont know thier entire history i just got into avengers when busiek lauched after hereos reborn..so i dont know all the history but it seems kinda shady that she would do that to a best friend..i could see her turning on a supe she dont know but a best friend? that was dirty on her part..
and i wonder to myself.pepole dont do that to friends in real life(well unless its jerry springer) but normaly they dont and it seems weird to have "marvels mighties" bein jerks to pepole who have not only a)saved the world but have served the world with no regard to themselves but to save lives../..it just seems sooo out of charecter..sometimes i wonder if the writers read the old comics or get an intern to give them facts to check...on a side b@tch i hate when new writers are all"oh yeah im a huge fan i stopped reading them in college" how are you a fan and havent read one in 5plus years..any who..that got me mad when reading avengers..i was like how could carol do this??
its like they are in the corprate worl of the 80s and they dont care who they step on to get to the top.
such a shame..i was rooting for carol to..now i secretly wish for her failure.
thier i go rambling again..i should get my own blog for these rants huh? hahaha
gabesummers
kelvingreen: Maybe Carol just really likes women that are named Jessica. Yes, I'm sure that's all it is.
dan coyle: The best I can figure is Carol is trying to be the Best of the Best, and not doing it in a very good manner.
gabesummers: That's one of things that's bugged me about all this too. These people have been skirting the edge of the law for years, and plenty of them have been friends during that time. NOW they decide they have to follow the law, and screw their friends if they don't go along?
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