For This Moment in History, I Prescribe Superhero Movies

…and fantasy books, historical dramas, and reflection.

Photo by Mateusz Wacławek on Unsplash

This has been a rough week (and month and year) for news. With regard to women’s rights, climate change, and the health of democracy, we’ve received significant setbacks. The era we grew up in, where we could take progress for granted, is gone. To understand how to respond to this current moment, we need to reach outside our own experience.

I’m coping by watching a lot of fantasy and action movies, because I guess world-ending stakes and mortal danger feel familiar now? I started with all the series and trilogies where I had gaps in my viewing — mainly, Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). World War II movies were my staple growing up, and I hadn’t watched the first Captain America movie (which is set during WWII) yet. That’s how my MCU rabbit hole began.

Man, I watch those villain characters differently now. When I first got into action movies as a teen, I found the concept of supervillains the least credible part of any story. These characters were clearly a flimsy plot contrivance to give the heroes something to do. But now I watch them monologue and cackle and think “Yeah, that checks out.”