Ask Erik: Episode Twenty-Nine

Here at Ask Erik, we've spent a lot of time reading books and comics, watching movies and TV shows, and browsing through the Internet in the hopes of finding the answers to life's biggest mysteries.  When will they be able to make medications without side effects?  How do we find the perfect balance between the sense of identity of a person and the fact that we're all essentially skin wrapped around skeletons with some squishy organs on the inside?  How would a dreamcatcher know which dreams to "catch" anyway?  Do they have filters like my email?

Having instead amassed a vault of useless knowledge stored in his head, Erik instead tackles your questions and tries to find the answers you care about (or a reasonable facsimile).  Or, if you don't care, he'll at least try to make you laugh and forget you just wasted time you could spend doing anything else.

To Erik: What's the most badass moment you can think of?

Well, when I think of things that are "badass" or "bad ass" depending on your spelling, there are a few things that come to mind.  

For instance, I'm always a big fan of people suplexing trains.

Also, if I had to come up with a list of the moments where I felt the most energized watching something, I'd have to give high points to that time the Flash single-handedly defeated a threat that pretty much destroyed the rest of the Justice League.

Deciding that the best way to defeat a villain is to run around the world and punch him from the other side is just great.

There's badass (or "bad ass") moments in film I love, such as Die Hard, Serenity, The Matrix, and so many other action movies that it's almost a stereotype...

But when I think of a character overcoming what would be impossible odds for anybody else and standing tall afterward I think of Princess Projectra.

<insert sound of everybody who reads this going "WHO?" here>

It's no secret that one of my favorite titles of all time is the Legion of Superheroes.  The idea of a team of young people upholding the legacy of one of the greatest superheroes of all time in the 30th century is such a great idea that I touched on it before, and there are a bunch of great sacrifices, showdowns, and truly epic heroic moments contained within its pages...but the one that always stuck in my mind was the death of Karate Kid.

No, not Ralph Macchio.  

The guy he's fighting is called Nemesis Kid, which I'll admit is a pretty stupid name, but he makes up for it in that his super power is essentially "I have whatever power I need to beat you."  Seriously, that's his schtick.  If you're Superman, he gets the power to be made out of Kryptonite, or be as strong as two Supermen, or whatever he needs to beat him.  You're Wolverine?  He gets the power to turn off your healing factor, boil your adamantium, and then kick your teeth in for good measure.  You're an unarmed combatant with no real superpowers, just a lifetime of training like Karate Kid?  His superpower makes him a better martial artist than you.

So how do you defeat a guy who, by definition, cannot be defeated by your most powerful people and has just lead to the death of one of the most skilled hand to hand combatants in comic book history?

Well, if you're Princess Projectra, the leader of an entire planet of people, you start using your powers of illusion on him...which isn't effective because he gains the power to see through your illusion.

Which is all well and good, but look at that bottom left panel.  He just punched out the greatest martial artist ever...but now can just barely hit a girl with the force of a grumpy guy at a bar fight.  His entire power is tied up in keeping him safe from her illusion power, meaning he has no physical powers whatsoever.  This doesn't turn out well for him.

THAT is badass...not just that you killed the one guy that nobody else in the Legion could defeat, not just that you did it within view of where the charred remains of the man you loved are, not just that you punished the man who attempted to overthrow your rulership of your planet, but that afterwards you point out that you were fully justified because it's your planet so step off.

Turns out power isn't everything, just the willingness to reach out, take hold of the head of a psychopathic murderer who can destroy any of your friends, and twist.

THAT is what I think of when I think of "badass."

...well, that and Captain America standing in Thanos' grill after the guy single-handedly killed every other hero in existence and says "As long as one man stands against you, you'll never be able to claim victory."

Dude does not back down.