Superhero Ethics

How do you honor the rights of all in a society where some people have great powers, and others do not? What responsibility is it fair to put on those with great power, if any? And can Jacob and Matthew record a podcast, and a caraoke song, while zooming down a highway? We took advantage of another long car trip to bring you a car talk episode, recorded on a phone in a car. We’ll be back in the st...

What made the Netflix MCU different from most other ways of telling superhero stories? What questions were raised by Daredevil S3 and Iron Fist S2? And what happens when Jacob and Matthew are actually supposed to talk Netflix MCU, instead of just constantly going there on tangents? Want to continue the discussion with us? Agree or disagree with what we talked about, or want to add your own thought...

Ep 65: The Angry Hero Is anger a righteous trait in a hero, or a dangerous one? Who gets to be angry, and who how does race and gender play into it? Where is the line between anger and hate, and what is the relationship between anger and power? Jacob and Matthew dive into these questions and more on this episode. Want to continue the discussion with us? Agree or disagree with what we talked about,...

Are the Sith the mustache twirling villains the initially appear to be, or is there a method to their madness? Where did the Jedi go wrong? Are emotions something to be held back, or fully embraced in a space wizard, and how did the Jedi and Sith codes inform each other? Jacob and Matthew jump into these questions, with the help of friend and fellow Star Wars Nerd Extraordinaire, Jonah Kellman. Jo...

Is Star Trek’s concept of the Prime Directive the only ethical way for one culture to act toward a less developed one? What are the rewards, and dangers, in intervening? And what do you do when someone builds an entire religion around you doing one nice thing? In this episode, Jacob and Matthew look at Mad Idolatry, the final episode of Season 1 of the Orville, and dig into the larger questions it...

Order or Chaos, or is that a false dichotomy? What are the dangers of one culture trying to guide and support the growth of another? Is Babylon 5 an allegory for the Cold War? In this episode, we take on these questions and more, as we look at the Vorlons and the Shadows from Babylon 5. There will be spoilers galore, but even if you have never seen the show, we will bring you up to speed so you ca...

Ep 61: 2018 Year in Review 2018 was one hell of a year, and Jacob and Matthew go deep on some of their favorite characters and questions from the year that was. We re-examine old questions, talk about what we learned this year, and what we are excited to see in 2019. You can download the episode with a right click  and clicking "save link as" or subscribe by searching for Superhero Ethics on Itune...

The Dark Knight and the Man of Steel. Why do we tell so many stories about the two of them together? How do their approaches to justice differ, and why does that matter? Do they work best as enemies, allies, or in their own worlds? Special guest Jessica Plummer joins Jacob and Matthew to discuss these questions and more! Jessica Plummer lives in New York and loves Superman very very much. You can...

Need something to listen to on the long car trip home? Want a distraction from talking to your racist uncle or having to hear about your cousin's new get rich quick scheme? We've got a podcast for you! Jacob and Matthew are pretty grateful for the newest season of Luke Cage, and on this episode we dive into why we liked the show and some of the questions it brought up. We talk about revenge, histo...

Is Superman a product of nature or nurture? This episode looks at the Red Son story, which imagines an alternative future in which Kal-El landed in the USSR, and grew up to fight for Truth, Justice, and the Communist Way. We ask how Superman would be changed by being raised in a different culture, and what that tells us about his core ideals, and ours.  This episode also features special guest, Je...

What can you learn from the no-win scenario? Is Star Fleet a military organization? And are those REALLY Ricardo Montalbán's pec muscles. Jacob & Matthew watched Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and then talked about the ethical questions it raised. Agree or disagree with what we talked about, or want to add your own thoughts? Let us know! We recently started a Superhero Ethics Facebook Group, whic...

Jacob and Matthew are just a little excited about the upcoming new season of Daredevil. They dive into some of the questions they hope to see explored in this new season, such as did time in prison change Wilson Fisk, why was Veronica such an important character, and will we see more of her, and why Matt’s faux death at the end of Defenders bothered us so much. Agree or disagree with what we talke...

Does a Superhero movie need a good fight scene? Jacob and Matthew look at the role of physical violence in the stories we love, asking questions of both the characters and the writers.  Can you tell a hero story without violence? Do our heroes too often resort to their fists? And why do so many heroes see fighting as flirtation? You can download the episode with a right click  and clicking "save l...

What better place to discuss the cross country antics of the Winchester Brothers than the open road? While driving cross country, Jacob and Matthew took some time to talk Supernatural, examining the moral value of different kinds of non-humans, the relationship between Sam and Dean, and their willingness to make any and all sacrifices to save each other. Our schedules haven’t allowed us the chance...

Jacob and Matthew explore the second season of Jessica Jones on a number of levels, looking at the decisions of both the characters and the writers. How should the law treat someone like Alissa? What responsibility does Jessica hold for her mother’s actions? How do we view Trish’s actions, and the writers' decisions to put so much conflict between her and Jessica? You can download the episode with...

This week, we take a step back from the things we are fans of, to talk about fandom itself. What rights or ownership do we as fans have over the properties we love? What is the interaction between media, and the fan-created things it inspires, such as fan fiction? And why do fan responses to media sometimes turn so horribly toxic? Agree or disagree with what we talked about, or want to add your ow...

This week we dive into questions from our listeners and fans! inspired by our friends at the MCUCast, we start with a lengthy discussion about Kingpin and The Punisher, what separates them and what makes them similar. Why do we cheer for one, and root for the other to be taken down, or do we? From there we dive into listener questions about Civil War, Cap, the portrayal of mental illness in genre...

Here it is, our 50th episode! All three hosts, Paul, Jacob, and Matthew, come together to re-examine some of our favorite questions and discussions from past episodes. We talk about the Joker, different ways of understanding violence, when heroes can or should kill, humorous vs. serious portrayals of heroes, and plan for the eventual ascension of our robot overlords. You can download the episode w...

What makes someone a hero? Does it matter if they choose their path is chosen, or it is assigned to them? Does a hero have to have something terrible happen to them, to inspire them to become heroic? And which villains come the closest to being heroes in their own right? To celebrate our 50th episode, we got all three hosts, Paul, Matthew, and Jacob, on the line to look back at some of our past di...

*** SPOILER WARNING *** Even our show notes have spoilers Is Cap’ right to claim “We don’t trade lives?” Could Thanos have been stopped if our heroes made different choices? What role does hubris play when heroes don’t want to make tough choices? And how much of an idiot was Peter Quill? In this episode, Jacob and Matthew dive deep into the questions that came out of Avengers: Infinity War, explor...

Should the heroes who enforce justice, also decide what is or isn’t just? Where are the lines between heroism, vigilantism, or just using your powers to do what you want? And does great power actually come with great responsibility, or is that too much to ask of people with powers? In this episode, Jacob and Matthew use Kingdom Come, a fantastic 1996 run of Superman comic books, as a jumping off p...

What is the responsibility of a filmmaker to stay true to a book? What is the problem with 'girl as prize' romance plotlines? And is it possible Jacob and Matthew enjoyed the movie of a book they are so critical of? This week, Jacob and Matthew throw down their quarters for a two player, two part, deep dive. They start out talking about the book and their hopes and concerns about the movie- than h...

In part 2 of our discussion with Author and Star Wars Geek Extraordinaire, Becky Allen, we dive into Rey’s Journey, explore Luke’s issues with the Jedi, and critique some of the critiques of the movie. You can find the first part of our discussion in our previous episode. Agree or disagree with what we talked about, or want to add your own thoughts? Let us know! You can find us on Twitter, Faceboo...

What is the narrative power of failure, and how is it used in The Last Jedi? What did we learn from Admiral Holdo and Po about power, and trusting leaders, and the role of gender in that? Author and Star Wars geek extrodinaire, Becky Allen, joins us again to discuss these questions and more. It turns out the three of us had a lot ot say on this topic, so this is only part 1, of a 2 part episiode!...

Should life always come before death? Should we favor the journey over the destination? And can there be an episode of Superhero Ethics without Matthew? In this episode, Jacob is joined by special guest Rob McKenzie for a discussion of The Way of Kings, book 1 in the Stormlight Archive, by Brandon Sanderson. In particular, they focus on the oaths of the Knights Radiant, discussing the ethical impl...