Discussion Film / ManOfSteel

Hello. I would like to discuss something regarding Kenny's antagonism of Clark early on in the film rather than instigate an Edit War.

The Bullying a Dragon trope is when someone knows fully well the person or thing they are about to antagonize is more powerful than them. However, the Mugging A Monster trope is when someone doesn't know that the person they are trying to antagonize is more powerful than them. The "bullies provoking Clark" scene has Kenny saying that he's heard about how strong Clark is and thus tries to provoke him into a fight, but Jonathan intervenes. Also, I don't think we should use Speculative Troping.

So, in this instance, which trope is more appropriate?

Edited by gjjones He/His/Him. No matter who you are, always Be Yourself. Hide / Show Replies

Pulled:

• Decon-Recon Switch: Clark's alien powers initially alienate him from the rest of the world, but he still becomes Superman, champion of Earth. Before he even puts on the suit he already uses his powers to help people.

Because, if I recall correctly, it sounds like the reconstruction happens before the deconstruction thanks to the Anachronic Order. Clark's helping people at the beginning of the movie; he saves people from the explosion in the beginning, before the real question is posited. And again at the end, he's saving them again. There's no real question as to whether he's going to choose to connect and save people.

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Do the prisonners in the Phantom zone suffer from And I Must Scream or are they unconscious?

Edited by 70.33.253.43 Hide / Show Replies

it just dawned on me the other day something kinda significant about the tshirts that Clark wears. In the scene in which Jonathan Kent is talking about the spaceship, he mentions that the thumb drive was analyzed at K-State (Kansas State University, mainly Agricultural focus with bioengineering and metallurgy in there too). In the scene leading up to the tornado, Clark is wearing a KU (University of Kansas, engineering, fine arts, and law focused college) Jayhawk (A flying hybrid bird with a Red, Blue, and Yellow color scheme, hmm, how significant is that?) tshirt. To the casual observer that could be seen as geographically pandering, up to the point where you realize that those two universities have a LONG standing rivalry as any native will attest. The implication of the that scene is that as Clark rebels against John he goes away from a farm based mindset and is putting the meaning of his division from his roots on his chest. Later before the skull pit swallowing scene, its a Kansas City Royals tshirt, This is a point of unity and almost universally loved by native Kansans, Im wondering what if any tropes this would be a symbol of. Seem profound enough to warrant adding?

Edited by 108.75.82.73

Should the part where Clark discovers 4 stasis pods on the downed exploration ship, with one empty, as Foreshadowing? I mean, since David S. Goyer is on record saying that the scene was intentionally left in and he wrote the tie-in prequel comic where we learn that this may be Kara Zor-El's pod...

Edited by 216.99.32.45 Hide / Show Replies

Is it Hilarious in Hindsight or a bizarre coincidence that Clark's alien and adoptive fathers previously portrayed Robin Hood? Also, Lawrence Fishburne (Morpheus from the Matrix) is the head of the Daily Planet, a newspaper that is usually pro-Superman. Since Superman is taken captive by the army, it can be assumed that General Swanwick is anti-Superman. Swanwick's actor played a military man in the Matrix very much at odds with Morpheus' idealistic view of Neo as hero and saviour of mankind. Coincidence? Actor allusion?

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I thought it'd be interesting if in a future film, the "virtual ghost" of the science officer from Zod's script became this space-fairing villain who collected knowledge of planets and destroyed them. And that Superman should give him a condescending nickname. Something with a B. Something that you'd use to insult a learned person. Bright-bulb, bookworm, brainy... ack, I don't know.

Edited by 69.172.221.2

I don't update much, so I thought I'd ask here first.

Nice Guy isn't listed as a trope, either on the main page or the character page, even though this is pretty much the core of Clark's characterization. Is it simply too obvious to mention?

I mean, whatever I may say about the writing or acting, when Clark gives people the "calm down, I'm not going to hurt you" look, I buy it hook line and sinker. It's a visceral, emotional reaction. Completely sold the character for me.

There's no Kryptonite in the film, but when Superman goes onto Zod's orbiting ship, he feels weak, collapses and coughs up blood and is told that the ship is emulating Krypton's atmosphere. Superman's time on Earth has made him weak to what remains of Krypton. It's not a glowing green rock, but it's sort-of close, right?

EDIT: On the awesome page, there's the line Jor El delivers to Zod - "My son is twice the man you are." I thought that he said, "twice the man you were," Because Jor respected Zod before he tried the military coup and Jor is saying that Kal has the potential to be even better than the once-hero of Krypton Zod was.

EDIT^2: I hard that in the movie itself and the trailer may have been different.

Edited by 70.33.253.42

In the movie, Superman faces a devastating invasion of Kryptionians on Earth. They make a worldwide open threat, and while the extent of the damage and casualties caused by Zod and his cronies are yet to be seen, the glimpses in the trailes make it a very serious attack. All of this pretty much on Superman's beginnings as a public superhero.

Am I crazy by seeing a problem with that? I mean, Superman appears, then the other Kryptonians appear causing destruction and death, all because Superman was here on our planet to being with. In the cartoon and comics he's faced somewhat similar scenarios, with the difference that he had been a Superhero for years and people knew that he was an awesome guy. Here, nobody knows him, there is absolutely no real reason why would anyone see him without fear and mistrust. I just don't see how can this movie be the origin of superman of a superhero. Perhaps in the movie it will make sense (I do hope so, I have my fingers crossed for MOS to deliver the awesome!), but I don't see how anybody would support him as earth's savior. I for once would not, giving the known circumstances.

Who knows, perhaps that will be the theme of the sequel, Superman desperately trying to make people trust him, and failing at it no matter what.

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