Hello friend, hey, lately I've been watching your videos and I really loved them, I would like you to make a video analyzing Lord Shen, I really love your content.
Hey thanks a lot I really appreciate it! I'm glad you're liking the videos that's great to hear. That's an interesting request but I'll definitely add it to the list for you!
This was a fantastic video!! A deeper dive into each of the time periods you mentioned would be truly appreciated and wonderful! I would not mind an hour devoted to Classical Greece or the Medieval period. But how about an exploration on the concept of the hero and its values outside the Western Canon- ancient India (The Ramayana & Bhagavagita), ancient Mesopotamia (Gilgamesh) Sumerian & Akkadian mythology, ancient China and Africa. What do these hero myths say about the values of those cultures and how have those values have been transformed to the modern era- Kaiju/Manga/Anime heroes of current Asian culture. Is there a direct line between the Manga stories of today with the myths of Japan from the Bronze Age? I would love an exploration of this. Thank you for this amazing discussion!
Hey thanks so much I really appreciate it and glad you enjoyed the video! Honestly you read my mind I'd love to explore especially how the concept differs across different cultures. All the ones you listed I'd find super interesting to talk about. Honestly it's a shame because I feel like people aren't as interested in these kinds of videos on the differences across history and cultures, but I find it interesting and I appreciate your feedback greatly so I'll try and make some time in the future.
Cheers man appreciate it! Sadly I've been really busy recently so I've been doing every 2 weeks instead of weekly, but hopefully I can get back to weekly in the future.
A very interesting topic and you've done an excellent deep dive on it! I do like the modern darker heroes and anti heroes! But i like your conclusion about the human spirit and society
I feel like the overflow of modern cynicism regarding heroism is actually one of the major reasons why the Anime My Hero Academia was so successful. People were so hungry for genuinely heroic figures and they found them in Deku and All Might.
@@lostandfound2893 It’s funny to me that Zack’s edginess for the DCEU wasn’t just depressing but it also created a lot of problems for the plot. For instance Batman kills people in that universe so why on Earth was Jared Leto’s Joker still alive?
Great subject and analysis! I would add that my ideal hero would have to be incorruptible, as well as have a strong intellect and physical strength. I can't think of anyone in real life, but Darrow in the book Red Rising represents all of this, wish I could bring him to life! 😂😂
18:11 you think with this behaviour is definitely villainous because this is how he repays Arthur after everything, what about Robin Hood and Zorro as they’re heroes that work against the law and the reluctant heroes like Spider-Man,Hulk,X-Men and the Thing from the Fantastic four where they never asked for power? How about Beowulf where does he fit in all of this? How about a video on the Archenemy trope?
Very true, but I guess it's the fall of a hero rather than becoming an outright villain. You raise some good points about the other types of heroes, to be honest I realised while recording this it's difficult to cover every archetype so I was trying to give the broad strokes across each time period. Beowulf is a very interesting story. Funnily enough I originally spoke about it in this video but I ended up cutting it. I basically see it as a bridge between classical heroic ideals and the newer Christian virtues. It's a blend of both those eras. I would like to do more videos about villains in the future so I may talk about the arch enemy trope!
As i see it in short, the modern age is defined by a need to not only question our place in the world, not only in the universe, but as the only fully rational existence, thus far, in the universe. So if every individual has the capacity for great and good deeds, every individual is also subject to the worst of deeds as well. People are no longer set apart by a divine birth or a marked set of principles to be upheld at all costs. They are judged on how well they understand the human condition and the state of every being in it. This causes cynicism, as the many ideas of early civilizations are called into question through yet more scientific discovery. It also causes a feeling of disillusionment at the memory of the shattered romanticism of the 20th century. If the age-old heroes were anything like humans, they HAD to have gone through the same evils and falls as ordinary people. Thus, people test everything, applying every kind of virtue to every and any hero of any kind, while also giving them the same faults as any person. The world has become so large through interconnectedness that every hero is simply a product of where they live, not of what they stand for.
Really well put. I think you said it perfectly. In a way it saddens to me to see people in general become increasingly more jaded, I like the quote from Fight Club where Tyler Durden says we are the middle children of history, without any great purpose (paraphrasing).
Interesting study, but I think you missed one aspect. Whether I can express it coherently is another question. To give the extremes, in the Medieval period, the guidelines came from the top, didactic, if you like, but in the Modern Era (machines), it was increasingly dictated by what sold, i.e., what resonated with the audience. To a degree the editor and publisher define that, but no longer entirely. The earlier periods, at least to us, seem like escapism - perhaps I can not escape mucking the pigs, but I can dream, can't I? But the more recent we go, the more it seems like guidance to make sense of the world around us. To put it another way, we dream of being Lancelot, even though we know we cannot become him, but see ourselves in modern heroes. In that sense, superman represents escapism and Thelma and Louise, who I believe are called anti-heroes, as reality. You might consider sticking with superheroes like Tarzan and Conan in this post instead of diverting to anti-heroes. I understand, Robinson Crusoe is distracting as he bridges the gap.
This is very insightful thanks for writing it up. I have to admit I didn't think about that, but I completely agree with what you said and it's very interesting to think about, and how it's influenced storytelling over time.
After the fall of Rome, the barbarian kings/rulers (Visogothic, Gallic, Alan, Anglo-Saxon) who emerged needed to keep their kingdoms together. How do you do that? How do you keep your Nobles in check? How do you keep your mercenary knights from rampaging non-stop? You need propaganda to keep the population from falling apart (just like today) and with the help of the Christian church you formulate and keep alive the ideal of the loyal, noble, chivalrous Knight. With the rise of the merchant class and industrialization (and higher literacy rate among the people) the people themselves had to re-create the idealic hero to help them cope with the changing society. Robinson Crusoe is an everyman who has to fall back to his innate intelligence and strength to survive, not different than our era's Indiana Jones/Bruce Wayne/James Bond. I see no difference.
@@juniorjames7076 Both Lancelot and Crusoe are heroes, Lancelot belongs to the superhero subclass and Crusoe to the everyman subclass. No one could repeat Lancelot's feats; anyone could have repeated Crusoe's, if they wanted to. Comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges. If superheroes had disappeared in the Modern Age, then one could say it was an evolution. But superheroes did not disappear and so the study should cover only superheroes since that was the original topic. Only when you get into something like Spiderman do you cross the line between the two genres. What did evolve was how those stories came into existence and the reason for their popularity. And a study showing how one of these two evolutions affects the superhero genre would be interesting.
Hello friend, hey, lately I've been watching your videos and I really loved them, I would like you to make a video analyzing Lord Shen, I really love your content.
Hey thanks a lot I really appreciate it! I'm glad you're liking the videos that's great to hear. That's an interesting request but I'll definitely add it to the list for you!
@MediaRetrospective-sb2pt thanks bro
This was a fantastic video!! A deeper dive into each of the time periods you mentioned would be truly appreciated and wonderful! I would not mind an hour devoted to Classical Greece or the Medieval period. But how about an exploration on the concept of the hero and its values outside the Western Canon- ancient India (The Ramayana & Bhagavagita), ancient Mesopotamia (Gilgamesh) Sumerian & Akkadian mythology, ancient China and Africa. What do these hero myths say about the values of those cultures and how have those values have been transformed to the modern era- Kaiju/Manga/Anime heroes of current Asian culture. Is there a direct line between the Manga stories of today with the myths of Japan from the Bronze Age? I would love an exploration of this. Thank you for this amazing discussion!
I would love that as well but people don't seem to want to watch the longer videos
Hey thanks so much I really appreciate it and glad you enjoyed the video! Honestly you read my mind I'd love to explore especially how the concept differs across different cultures. All the ones you listed I'd find super interesting to talk about.
Honestly it's a shame because I feel like people aren't as interested in these kinds of videos on the differences across history and cultures, but I find it interesting and I appreciate your feedback greatly so I'll try and make some time in the future.
Very interesting, haven't seen this subject covered anywhere else
Thanks appreciate it!
Good stuff, mate. Missed your posts
Cheers man appreciate it! Sadly I've been really busy recently so I've been doing every 2 weeks instead of weekly, but hopefully I can get back to weekly in the future.
Missed your posts
Thank you appreciate it! I'm trying to get back to weekly uploads but until things quieten down it'll probably be fortnightly for a bit sadly.
A very interesting topic and you've done an excellent deep dive on it! I do like the modern darker heroes and anti heroes! But i like your conclusion about the human spirit and society
Thanks glad you liked it! It's been a topic I've been thinking about for a while.
Great video to watch
Thanks! Glad you liked it.
I feel like the overflow of modern cynicism regarding heroism is actually one of the major reasons why the Anime My Hero Academia was so successful. People were so hungry for genuinely heroic figures and they found them in Deku and All Might.
I'm sick of everything needing to be depressing and grey. The Zack Snyder DC universe is horrible, we need more clear cut stories.
I agree. It's interesting to see the enduring nature of comics and superheroes despite the growing sense of cynicism in society.
@@lostandfound2893 It’s funny to me that Zack’s edginess for the DCEU wasn’t just depressing but it also created a lot of problems for the plot.
For instance Batman kills people in that universe so why on Earth was Jared Leto’s Joker still alive?
Great subject and analysis! I would add that my ideal hero would have to be incorruptible, as well as have a strong intellect and physical strength. I can't think of anyone in real life, but Darrow in the book Red Rising represents all of this, wish I could bring him to life! 😂😂
Thank you! Incorruptible is an interesting one I agree with you, and I'm also a big fan of Red Rising!
18:11 you think with this behaviour is definitely villainous because this is how he repays Arthur after everything, what about Robin Hood and Zorro as they’re heroes that work against the law and the reluctant heroes like Spider-Man,Hulk,X-Men and the Thing from the Fantastic four where they never asked for power?
How about Beowulf where does he fit in all of this?
How about a video on the Archenemy trope?
Very true, but I guess it's the fall of a hero rather than becoming an outright villain. You raise some good points about the other types of heroes, to be honest I realised while recording this it's difficult to cover every archetype so I was trying to give the broad strokes across each time period.
Beowulf is a very interesting story. Funnily enough I originally spoke about it in this video but I ended up cutting it. I basically see it as a bridge between classical heroic ideals and the newer Christian virtues. It's a blend of both those eras.
I would like to do more videos about villains in the future so I may talk about the arch enemy trope!
As i see it in short, the modern age is defined by a need to not only question our place in the world, not only in the universe, but as the only fully rational existence, thus far, in the universe. So if every individual has the capacity for great and good deeds, every individual is also subject to the worst of deeds as well. People are no longer set apart by a divine birth or a marked set of principles to be upheld at all costs. They are judged on how well they understand the human condition and the state of every being in it. This causes cynicism, as the many ideas of early civilizations are called into question through yet more scientific discovery. It also causes a feeling of disillusionment at the memory of the shattered romanticism of the 20th century. If the age-old heroes were anything like humans, they HAD to have gone through the same evils and falls as ordinary people. Thus, people test everything, applying every kind of virtue to every and any hero of any kind, while also giving them the same faults as any person. The world has become so large through interconnectedness that every hero is simply a product of where they live, not of what they stand for.
Really well put. I think you said it perfectly. In a way it saddens to me to see people in general become increasingly more jaded, I like the quote from Fight Club where Tyler Durden says we are the middle children of history, without any great purpose (paraphrasing).
Interesting study, but I think you missed one aspect. Whether I can express it coherently is another question. To give the extremes, in the Medieval period, the guidelines came from the top, didactic, if you like, but in the Modern Era (machines), it was increasingly dictated by what sold, i.e., what resonated with the audience. To a degree the editor and publisher define that, but no longer entirely. The earlier periods, at least to us, seem like escapism - perhaps I can not escape mucking the pigs, but I can dream, can't I? But the more recent we go, the more it seems like guidance to make sense of the world around us. To put it another way, we dream of being Lancelot, even though we know we cannot become him, but see ourselves in modern heroes. In that sense, superman represents escapism and Thelma and Louise, who I believe are called anti-heroes, as reality.
You might consider sticking with superheroes like Tarzan and Conan in this post instead of diverting to anti-heroes. I understand, Robinson Crusoe is distracting as he bridges the gap.
This is very insightful thanks for writing it up. I have to admit I didn't think about that, but I completely agree with what you said and it's very interesting to think about, and how it's influenced storytelling over time.
@@MediaRetrospective-sb2pt Glad I could help.
After the fall of Rome, the barbarian kings/rulers (Visogothic, Gallic, Alan, Anglo-Saxon) who emerged needed to keep their kingdoms together. How do you do that? How do you keep your Nobles in check? How do you keep your mercenary knights from rampaging non-stop? You need propaganda to keep the population from falling apart (just like today) and with the help of the Christian church you formulate and keep alive the ideal of the loyal, noble, chivalrous Knight. With the rise of the merchant class and industrialization (and higher literacy rate among the people) the people themselves had to re-create the idealic hero to help them cope with the changing society. Robinson Crusoe is an everyman who has to fall back to his innate intelligence and strength to survive, not different than our era's Indiana Jones/Bruce Wayne/James Bond. I see no difference.
@@juniorjames7076 Both Lancelot and Crusoe are heroes, Lancelot belongs to the superhero subclass and Crusoe to the everyman subclass. No one could repeat Lancelot's feats; anyone could have repeated Crusoe's, if they wanted to. Comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges. If superheroes had disappeared in the Modern Age, then one could say it was an evolution. But superheroes did not disappear and so the study should cover only superheroes since that was the original topic. Only when you get into something like Spiderman do you cross the line between the two genres. What did evolve was how those stories came into existence and the reason for their popularity. And a study showing how one of these two evolutions affects the superhero genre would be interesting.
I want my Superman to be Superman not edgy Superman
100%, I'd love to see him get more mainstream love. I'm getting sick of all the dark and brooding takes on heroes.