As long as I am talking about things that annoy me in Science Fiction lately, it is the laziness of the "Multiverse." This is the idea that different universes are close to one another which we, or superheroes, can cross.
It is an exciting idea that turns the movie into a zero-stakes game. So, this particular hero is killed, but they still live on somewhere else. Then, who really cares if they are dead or not? Because they are Schrodinger's Cat of heroes. In this type of reality, we ALL are either alive, dead, or never even born.
Some stories try to up the stakes by saying that the hero saves or loses all the timelines. Loki, Dr. Strange, and a raft of books use this device. I hate to break it to you, but in a Multiverse these protagonists always win. But kids, there will be another reality where they lose. So again, who cares?
Some of these stories are interesting and fun to watch or read but ultimately have zero real stakes.
And yet, they are very popular. Probably because we like to think that somewhere there is a version of us rocking life.
No comments:
Post a Comment