However complicated (and contradictory) its politics might be, Luke Cage has its heart in the right place.
What is most striking about the series, watching it from beginning to end, is the enthusiasm with which the series embraces its superhero roots. In many ways, Luke Cage is a much more traditional and conventional superhero story than Daredevil or Jessica Jones. In fact, it is a much more conventional superhero story than Captain America: Civil War or Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice or Deadpool. It is almost certainly the most old-fashioned live action superhero story since Thor.
Luke Cage is a television series that understands the iconic power of superhero narratives, the appeal and resonance that such stories hold. It is a show that recognises the way that such stories elevate essential aspects of the American experience to mythic status. This is true of the genre in general, with its emphasis on rugged individualism outside conventional power structures. However, it is also true of specific heroes. What is Superman by a mythic tale of the immigrant experience? What is Spider-Man but the oft-referenced “little guy” filtered through teen life?
More than any other superhero adaptation in recent memory, Luke Cage fundamentally understands that and pitches its story squarely at mythologising certain aspects of the African American experience.
Filed under: Television | Tagged: luke cage, soliloquy of chaos | Leave a comment »
the m0vie blog 