After 55 Years, The MCU's Villains Still Follow The Golden Rule Stan Lee Insisted Should Never Be Broken; ScreenRant, December 24, 2024

 Ben Gibbons, ScreenRant; After 55 Years, The MCU's Villains Still Follow The Golden Rule Stan Lee Insisted Should Never Be Broken

"And all of these villains having some degree of nuance actually stems back to a rule set up by the father of modern Marvel Comics, Stan Lee. One of Stan's greatest contributions to the world, beyond his incredible characters, was the regular Soapbox columns he would include in the comics, where he would wax philosophical and share his personal ideas and values with the world. And in one such Soapbox column from March 1969, Stan shared this sentiment about the essence of heroes and villains:

"One of the things we try to demonstrate in our yarns is that nobody is all good, or all bad. Even a shoddy super-villain can have a redeeming trait, just as any howlin’ hero might have his nutty hang-ups. One of the greatest barriers to real peace and justice in this troubled world is the feeling that everyone on the other side of the ideological fence is a “bad guy”. We don’t know if you’re a far-out radical, or Mr. Establishment himself — if you’re a black militant or a white liberal — if you’re a pantin’ protest marcher or a jolly John Bircher — but, whatever you are, don’t get bogged down by kindergarten labels! It’s time we learned how fruitless it is to think in terms of us and them — of black and white. Maybe, just maybe, the other side isn’t all bad. Maybe your own point of view isn’t the only one that’s divinely inspired. Maybe we’ll never find true understanding until we listen to the other guy; and until we realize that we can never march across the Rainbow Bridge to true Nirvana — unless we do it side-by-side!""

REVIEW: Image Comics' Public Domain #1; CBR, June 20, 2022

 SERGIO PEREIRA, CBR; REVIEW: Image Comics' Public Domain #1

"The prolific creator continues to blend humor and drama in Public Domain #1, the first installment of a new series from Image Comics, where he works to take on creators' rights.

The first issue introduces Syd Dallas, a comic book artist responsible for The Domain, the biggest superhero around. Sadly, no one knows that Syd created the character because Singular Comics owns the publishing rights. And his former collaborator, Jerry Jasper, is more than happy to take the credit for it. Syd's children, Miles and David, struggle to understand why their father hasn't fought harder to gain what is rightfully his. However, a chance encounter at the premiere of Eminent Domain, the latest film in the franchise, may change everything for Syd."

‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ is a superheroic meditation on how to be a good person; Washington Post, July 10, 2017

Alyssa Rosenberg, Washington Post; ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ is a superheroic meditation on how to be a good person

[Kip Currier: Spoiler-Free Comment: I saw Spider-Man: Homecoming this weekend and it's great--for all of the reasons (and more) that Alyssa Rosenberg identifies in her column today. The film doesn't actually quote the oft-quoted Spider-Man touchstone "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility", but you feel its invisible presence throughout the film's narrative arc.]

"This column discusses the plot, and ethical dilemmas, of “Spider-Man: Homecoming.”

“Spider-Man: Homecoming,” which zipped into theaters last weekend, is almost everything a summer blockbuster should be: It’s very funny without using humor as an excuse to be less than emotionally accessible; its super-sized throw-downs are anchored in real, human-scale conflicts; its world is richly populated with characters who aren’t solely defined by their powers or lack thereof; and it resists the urge to revisit the most famous story beats associated with its title character’s origin story. All of these elements made “Spider-Man” only the second blockbuster this year I’m eager to rewatch as soon as possible. And another element has left me thinking of it with more than mere amusement: “Spider-Man: Homecoming” is at its most poignant when it’s concerned with how to be a good person — often, specifically, a good man."