WHO NEEDS A SUPERHERO?: Finding Virtue, Vice, and What's Holy in the Comics

Brewer, a pastoral theologian who has been collecting comics for more than four decades, expresses an unpretentious love and understanding of comics as a window into spiritual reality. As a devoted fan, Brewer embraces the unambiguous heroism of the comics: Wonder Woman's passion for truth, Superman's Christ-like ethic of servanthood. He also appreciates the cautionary tales of flawed heroes: Batman's obsessive pursuit of revenge as justice, or Iron Man's isolating addictions to technology and alcohol. But Brewer can also go beyond the obvious by making unexpected connections. Thor's evolving understanding of his "secret identity" becomes a surprising parable for Christian identity, while Captain America and Wolverine represent alternative pictures of divine protection—the protective shield versus inner strength and healing. And in perhaps the book's most original intuition, Green Arrow combines the biblical metaphor of God as divine archer with quirky humor and an ironic preference for using weakness to overcome strength. Brewer's style has a distinctively pulpit flavor—several chapters evolved from sermons—and sometimes he stretches to connect superhero and biblical universes. Fans of the Hulk will feel he deserves a more sympathetic portrayal than as a stand-in for the essence of sin. But overall, Christian comic fans should appreciate Brewer as a genuine comics lover who communicates the gospel with a spirit of fun and adventure. (Oct.)