100+ Definitions 25

Invincible #25

Low-Frequency Listener (L-FL): The comic opens with Mark Grayson (Invincible’s alter ego) buying comics at his comic shop and then leaving to help Rex Splode fight a race of octopus aliens.  After the battle, Rex discovers his girlfriend Dupli-Kate is fooling around with the Immortal.  Mark works on school work in his dorm room and goes with William (his best friend and roommate) to check with the Dean about the disappearance of their friend Rick Sheridan whom they haven’t seen for a week.  Mark and William discover that their old high school principal is now the dean of the college. Mark then visits his mom for lunch.  During lunch, Science Dog (the star of Mark’s favorite comic-book character) appears at Mark’s house.  Science Dog reveals that his appearance is a disguise for an insectoid-alien that has traveled to Earth to ask Invincible for help in defending their planet, which is located in an uncharted section of space. Mark agrees to help the aliens even though it will take him away from Earth for almost two weeks and despite the strong protestations of Cecil.  The journey to the alien’s home world takes at six days.  When he reaches the alien world, Mark discovers that his father is the leader  of the planet.

Invincible #25 (I#25): These events suggest a definition that a superhero is a powerful individual who goes against authority to act in a just manner and honor the requests for aid from any supplicant, no matter if that that action has any immediate benefit to the individual or his/her social group.

L-FL: In his essay, “Making the World a Better Place,” Jeph Loeb, writer of many comics and television shows, notes that “superheroes are people with powers and abilities beyond those of mortal men.”  In regards to some consequence of superhero stories, Loeb writes that “superheroes inspire people.”  Loeb concludes his essay with the comment, “The time needed to think about the human condition is often slipping away.  What superhero stories do, when they’re told well, is make us slow down and think about the situations that we’re in and the people that we’re affecting—at least, the best stories do.  This is why, more than ever, it’s a time for heroes.  If we take that pause and really look at our lives and seek to be both inspired and inspirational—and a little less self-absorbed—we can make the world a much better place than it currently is.  At least, I hope we can.”

I#25: Well, hey, thanks for hogging the majority of the space in this posting.  I’m looking like some laconic comic book, but you’re looking well.