My First Super Hero Moment
Oh, be still my heart- Robert Downey Junior is such a babe. We went and saw Iron Man last night, and I am over the moon for RDJ as genius scientist turned robot super hero Tony Stark. Multiple rehab stints were good to RDJ- he looks amazing and is in surprisingly awesome shape. I wasn't anticipating that. He also still has that saucy, mischievous charm to him that turns knees to melted butter. Yum yum.
The movie itself dragged in some spots, but for the most part I enjoyed it a lot. Good back story, pretty accurate, and just enough action to WOW me WITHOUT overdoing it (which tends to happen a lot with the super hero flicks).
I'm not quick to throw up a thumbs up in regards to super hero movies- and this is because I am very picky about my super hero movies and somewhat protective of the story lines behind the characters. Too many films have tarnished too many great super heroes and made them into jokes. Most of the movies are terrible.
But every once and awhile, gems like Batman Begins or Spiderman or X-Men and now Iron Man will come out and knock my socks off.
I am a comic nerd- I love that stuff. My brother and I used to collect Marvel comic cards- and I still have all of mine in plastic sleeves in a binder with my book collection, carefully categorized from heroes to villains to teams to weapons to...well, you get the picture.
I've always had a thing for the super hero/villain concept because I think we all have a side to ourselves that could be super hero-like (and super villain-like too, but that's a whole different blog). We all have our strong assets that make us SUPER, and if we learn how to harness them and channel them affectively, there should never be a reason to ever doubt ourselves or what we are capable of doing.
I like to think that I have my own super powers, and I think we should all remember to tap into the source of our greatest strengths as much as we can.
Growing up getting picked on and harassed by assholes, and going through spells where I felt like an outcast by even by my own friends, where I was forced to make new friends after being ditched on and off by "best friends" (you know how some of that mean junior high/high school shit can go), I became drawn to super hero comics and their stories and their characters- especially the female heroines who kicked ass and took names.
Although they were obviously fictional characters, I admired their strength and ability to overcome adversity and not tolerate anyone's shit- especially from men.
I remember one time walking home from school in the 6th grade, carrying my violin and backpack. Two dickwad guys in their black leather jackets and black Nirvana shirts and Doc Martin boots were following me close behind, calling me a "Chink bitch" and "loser gook" and things along that line.
At first I was scared and just tried to ignore them- but as they got closer I felt my face collecting heat and blood rushing up my neck- then I lost it. It happened so fast that I don't even think that I thought about what I was doing, it was just a knee jerk reaction.
I dropped my violin, screamed, "LEAVE ME ALONE!" and did a spinning back kick, which landed perfectly on the balls of one of the guys. He dropped to his knees while his friend laughed at him, and I grabbed my stuff and hurried along my way. They didn't follow me and never bothered me again.
The spinning back kick wasn't random- my dad had my brother and I in karate classes for several years so I knew what I was doing- but that was the first time I remember realizing that I was capable of sticking up for myself and that I had the ability and power to come to my own rescue if I needed it.
It didn't always work out that way in the years to come. I still got harassed and called names from time to time, but after that day in the 6th grade I felt stronger deep down inside because I always looked back to that day and was confident in my own ability to defend myself. It reminded me that I wasn't just some meek little Asian girl who could be walked all over, and I wasn't the easy target that I was commonly mistaken for by meathead guys to pick on.
Maybe this is why I feel so protective of "the underdog," and get so viciously angry when I hear people spouting out racist and prejudice things about minorities. I can't change the world, but I do have a voice and I know how to use it!
We all have a some super hero in us!
