And so we reach the end of "Ninja High School Week!" This is the last issue of the second volume of the series and, as is rapidly becoming cliche this week, I understood almost nothing. There were characters who had something to do with some of the other characters I've read about this week, and talk of destiny and stuff, but I got little of it. There were, however, a couple of North American-style superheroes in the issue, and it was interesting that, regardless of not knowing the specific characters, I recognized the story they were taking part in. It's the "superhero is taken over by villain and is eventually defeated by younger hero, possibly superhero's protege" story. I find this story to be a way of showing that the younger hero is worthy of taking on the older hero's mantle. Robin must fight a mind-controlled Batman, and in beating him demonstrates he will one day be a worth successor to Batman (which, for the record, he was in the Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin series). And, generally, this involves the younger hero not only demonstrating the skills they've learned from the mentor, but also that certain something that the older hero is somehow lacking, thus demonstrating how the protege will actually surpass the older hero in their embodiment of that hero, and of heroism.
But then, because it's comics, the younger hero almost never gets that opportunity. How long was Dick Grayson Batman? A drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things. He is still a character that labours in the shadow of his mentor, and perhaps that is what that character requires in order to be that character, that constant ideal to live up to. Without it, why are we drawn to this character?
Sometimes, though, it does happen and it produces something wonderful. When Wally West took over as the Flash, something really great was introduced into the DC universe, a new mythic element, in a way. For my money, West really was always a better Flash than Barry Allen, which is exactly the outcome that that rarely-realized story looks toward. The younger hero surpasses the elder. Or once surpassed, I suppose. I don't really know Wally's status in the DCU these days.
What does this have to do with Ninja High School? Nothing really. I'm not sure the outcome of the superhero story. And I'm not sure where this series continues. Usually on the GCD there's a listing of where the story continues, but there's nothing for this one. I'll have to do a bit of research. In the meantime, tomorrow I'll be starting a daily re-read of DC's really neat experiment Wednesday Comics. I've only read it once, when it first came out, so it'll be interesting to read it in a more sustained way.
To be continued.
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