THE HEROES WE NEED
THE CAPTAIN AMERICA FILMS ARE RENOWNED FOR HOLDING A MIRROR UP TO SOCIETY, ACTING AS PARABLES FOR THE MODERN WORLD. SURE ENOUGH, AS SOON AS STEVE ROGERS RETIRED THE SHIELD AND HUNG UP HIS STAR-SPANGLED BOOTS, THE WORLD MOVED INTO UNCHARTED, UNCERTAIN TERRITORY. NOW, ANTHONY MACKIE AND SEBASTIAN STAN FACE THE TASK OF CONTINUING A LEGACY THAT’S BEEN BUILT ON VALUES OF COURAGE AND RESPONSIBILITY. ADD MATESHIP TO THAT EQUATION AND YOU HAVE A PAIR OF COMIC BOOK HEROES UNIQUELY EQUIPPED TO MEET THE CHALLENGES OF OUR TIMES
Over the past decade I’ve felt a difference within myself. A change, a pull, a stirring. And as the Zoom call connects and my face pops up between Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan, my suspicions are confirmed: I’m a nerd.
Of course, I’m not alone. The slope to Marvel fandom is not only slippery, it’s one that’s claimed millions around the world in the last decade-and-a-half. It’s the original pandemic, a wave of nerd culture sweeping up millennial males, driven for the most part by the creative forces behind Marvel Studios. Over the course of 23 films, the Disney-owned studio has brought the comic book heroes of our childhood to the big screen, intricately weaving together a saga that culminated in 2019’s , the highest grossing film of all time. Beyond their box office clout, these films have had a
