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Does the Secret Identity mean that the idea of a Superhero is built on a lie?

Well, yes.

The Superhero “hides his light under a bushel” and does not show the world his true face. Perhaps they do it out of fear of reprisal, going back to the Pimpernel. Perhaps they do it for a sense of privacy, a place where they can go and not have to be “on” all the time, like Superman. And yes, perhaps they do it to protect themselves from the consequences of their actions, as is often assumed about every “masked vigilante”. If the stories of Superheroes are “Myths of Power”, it is probably a good thing that they don;t have easy answers, that some of the consequences make us feel uncomfortable, so that we will keep striving to improve. (It torture OK as long as it is “for a good cause”? And as long as it is “Jack Bauer” that does it, not us?)

But ultimately it is about fear and loss. Finding the “Hero Within” is hard enough. Being willing to present that innermost self to the world at large is even harder. And what happens when we do reach that hidden potential, and take hold of our power? Nietzche’s Ubermensch was not the super-fascist of popular culture, but rather a Man that had “Gone Over”, had trancended the world of ordinary mean for something greater. But beyond being “Beyond Good and Evil”, the key was that the Over-Man no longer concerned himself with the lives of ordinary men, he was above that.

How many of us would want to be Superman if it meant being the only person like us? If it meant giving up everything you have now, all your friends and family, to dive into a brave new world with none of our security blankets intact? It is a leap of faith larger than the tallest building.

Is the Hollywood Celebrity who puts on a wig and glasses to go shopping at the corner store “lying”? Or the King who dresses like a peasant so that he can walk amongst his subjects without preconception? Sure they are! But can you blame them? Ultimately the “wish fulfillment” of the Superhero is not having the power to do anything you want, but also the power to have a normal life at the same time.

The watershed moment for Superheroes in the public consciousness was Superman. But it was not the fact that he had super powers that did this. (Though it undoubtedly helped.) Rather it was the fact that people thought Clark Kent didn’t. On the surface he appeared just like everyone else, perhaps less so. But deep down inside he had the power to do anything he wanted. The opinions of other people did not define him, because he knew the truth about himself.

It is that “Hero within”, the goal of the “Hero’s Journey” to overuse the phrase, that is the “Superhero”. The hero who could be you, the hero you could be.

See, this is what I mean. The question “Is ‘Leverage’ a superhero story?” may seem like a Twitter to you, but by asking the question there you limit the pool of responses.

We have a man who was driven by the loss of his family to bring justice through extra-legal means to those who cannot get it any other way. He has collected around him the world’s greatest hacker, acrobat, and fighter. And he loves a woman who wants to do good things, but whose only real talent lies in a less savory path. The only thing that keeps Leverage from being a Bat-morphism is that Hutton has feet of clay, as evidenced by his drinking. (He is ultimately the hero, and will rise to the challenge, but rarely does Batman mope. And when he does, he’s not Batman.)

But ultimately I have to disagree that Leverage is a Superhero story. Yes, vigilante activities towards pro-social ends. Yes, abilities far beyond those of normal men, if only normal abilities taken to cartoonish extremes. Yes, disguises. But it’s that last one that does it. They may put on a disguise, but they do not live on. They do not compartmentalize the person who exists in society with the person who acts outside of it. Admittedly it’s only because – as far as we see – they live outside of society as well. Perhaps if in the second season they move to the suburbs and take on “secret identities” that they have to hide from their neighbors, it would become a Superhero story, like Chuck.

As it stands, Leverage is a Robin Hood story: A good man is taken out of society through no act of his own, and rather than become a criminal he uses his outlaw status to bring order and justice to the society that rejected him.

Put that in your Twitter and smoke it.

BEAU

And, as much as I love Leverage – it’s the A-Team all over again! – I have to admit: If they got rid of all the other characters and retitled it “The Hardison And Elliott Hour,” I’d love it even more.

Frakes also directed the wedding episode, and even made a cameo in an earlier episode–might’ve been “The Snow Job”–as a guy sitting next to Timothy Hutton in a waiting room noticing Hutton’s apparent talking to himself (as he was issuing orders to the team through their communication system.) Frakes didn’t have any lines, but did the confused/annoyed expression real well.

I’m enjoying LEVERAGE quite a bit. There’s a lot of good stuff in each episode, but not every episode manages to pull all its good elements together to make a perfect show. But there’s a lot of good stuff in the mix. Plus, TNT has pretty clearly been airing episodes out of order, which isn’t doing the show any favors as some character arcs (particularly the Nate/Sophie relationship) are a little wonky.

Still, it’s a good, fun caper show at a time where we all need a good, fun caper, so I’ll keep tuning in!

Didn’t you have some thoughts on Tim Hutton’s character as Batman, David? I wish you’d share them.

There is something to be said about begining your day on an up note, but it doesn;t work when that up note comes at 12:01 am…

Thanks for keeping the word out on LEVERAGE.

Beau