The Superheroes From A Galaxy Far, Far Away

by Rix, Jem, & special guest Chuck

 

As kids, my friends and I loved comic book superheroes and their movies. Our favorite superheroes came from the Marvel Comics universe, home of the MCU’s legendary icons Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men. By contrast, only a small segment of my friends loved the DC Comics superheroes Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. But both groups of superhero lovers were fans of the intergalactic spectacle found in the sci-fi outer space adventures of the Star Trek and Star Wars universes.

 

When we entered adulthood, our love of Marvel/DC and Star Trek/Star Wars grew with us. But a cultural, socioeconomic and ideological rift grew between us superhero fanboys (Marvel/DC) and the outer space fanboys (Star Trek/Star Wars). This rift became the over-the-top battle between fanboys known as "The Superheroes v. Space Boyz." To complicate matters, rifts grew between members within both groups. It became an intra-franchise war: Marvel vs. DC, and Star Trek vs. Star Wars. Well, the Superheroes v. Space Boyz battle still rages on, and let me tell you, it’s a superhero-sized solar slugfest.

 

Faction 1: The Superheroes (MCU & DCU)

Core Ideology & Philosophy: "The Superheroes" are defined by Individual Might, Modern Myth, and Divine Right. Rather than exploring distant galaxies, superhero lore asks: What happens when gods walk among average mortals in recognizable cities?

• Marvel Cinematic Universe (The Relatable Humanists): MCU ideology focuses on flawed individuals thrust into extraordinary responsibility ("With great power comes..."). It champions teamwork, humor in the face of doom, and government oversight vs. personal liberty (e.g., Captain America: Civil War).

• DC Universe (The Mythic Gods): DC heroes (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman) operate as modern Greek gods—archetypal, imposing, and tragic. Their core theme is moral absolute vs. human flaw, asking whether humanity is worth saving at all.

The Subgroups & Internal Warring

• MCU Pop-Culture Mainstreamers: MCU fans generally favor lighthearted, interconnected storytelling, quip-heavy dialogue, and corporate polish. They value consistency and crossover payoff over auteur experimentation.

• The Snyderverse / DC Hardliners: The DC fanbase contains a fiercely loyal sub-faction devoted to director Zack Snyder’s dark, operatic, and deconstructive take on heroes. This group is intensely anti-establishment, highly defensive of their artistic vision, and frequently clashes with both Marvel fans and traditional DC fans who prefer a brighter, more hopeful Superman.

Political & Cultural Views: Superhero fandom often mirrors debates about power, state authority, and vigilantism:

• MCU fans generally trend culturally-centrist-to-progressive, comfortable with corporate-backed mass entertainment that weaves in soft social themes.

• DC’s darker factions often tilt toward rugged individualism, objectivism, or law-and-order moral absolutism (e.g., Batman as the billionaire vigilant force).

 

Faction 2: The Space Boyz (Star Trek & Star Wars)

Core Ideology & Philosophy: "The Space Boyz" are defined by Existential Scale and World-Building. They care less about individual savior figures and more about universe-spanning civilizations, grand mythologies, and the place of humanity among the stars. The Space Boyz even have a theme song: "Space Boys," an electronic dance track by Michael Bedford. Michael Bedford – Space Boys | Italo Disco Cover Version 2026

• Star Trek (The Technocratic Utopians): Rooted in Enlightenment ideals, scientific rationalism, and post-scarcity diplomacy. Their ideology believes humanity can overcome prejudice and greed through intellect, empathy, and institutional progress.

• Star Wars (The Mythic Spiritualists): Rooted in Joseph Campbell’s monomyth, Taoism/Manichaeism (The Force), and classic anti-authoritarian rebellion. Their ideology revolves around destiny, moral balance, and the struggle of individual agency against tyrannical systems (The Empire).

The Subgroups & Internal Warring

• The Trek Purists vs. Modern NuTrek Fans: Classic Trekkies value debate, ethics, and diplomacy (think Captain Picard’s speeches). They often view newer, action-heavy Star Trek shows as betraying Gene Roddenberry's cerebral, optimistic vision.

• The Star Wars Canon Traditionalists vs. Revisionists: The fanbase is notoriously fractured between those who revere George Lucas’s original vision/Expanded Universe and those who embrace newer, subversively paced stories like Andor or the sequel trilogy.

The Dark Side: Toxicity, Politics, and the "Holy Trinity" It’s known among the fandom that Star Wars fanboys can be uniquely hostile, sexist, and racist—but with an important caveat. The Star Wars fandom has become one of the primary battlegrounds of modern online culture wars, and here is why:

• Nostalgia as Sacred Dogma: For millions, Luke, Leia, and Han (the Holy Trinity) aren't just characters—they are childhood moral anchors. When the Disney sequel trilogy modified Luke’s hero arc or elevated new, diverse leads (Rey, Finn, Rose Tico), a vocal, reactionary subset of the fandom treated it as personal desecration.

• Targeted Harassment: Actresses like Kelly Marie Tran and Moses Ingram, as well as actor John Boyega, faced severe racist and sexist online abuse from organized fan groups.

• The Nostalgia Guard: If you criticize the "Holy Trinity," you aren't just critiquing a movie; you are poking a psychological reflex. The most defensive fans view any altering of the original trio’s legacy—or displacing them for newer, more diverse characters—as an attack on their personal youth and values.

Politically, while Star Trek fans lean historically progressive (embracing institutional cooperation and diversity), Star Wars fan politics split wildly: from left-leaning anti-fascists (viewing the Empire as a critique of imperialism) to right-leaning traditionalists who resist modern cultural shifts.

 

Perspective View of the Other Faction

• Space Boyz on Superheroes: Dismiss them as "shallow, spandex-clad CGI noise" lacking real world-building or philosophical substance. They see superhero plots as repetitive power fantasies that reset every few years.

• Superheroes on Space Boyz: View them as "pedantic, outdated, and pretentious." They see Star Trek and Star Wars as overly dogmatic legacy franchises bogged down by decades of confusing canon and slower-paced dialogue.

The central conflict between these two factions comes down to Where We Look for Hope:

• The Space Boyz look outward—to the future, to institutions, to the cosmos, and to systemic survival.

• The Superheroes look inward—to extraordinary individuals, secret identities, personal trauma, and savior figures who swoop in when systems fail.

 

To illustrate how toxic the Superheroes v. Space Boyz war has become, I’ve enlisted the help of my historian pal Chuck, aka Professor CdiG. Here’s a bit of humorously absurd fanboy historical fiction.

 

Professor CdiG is a noted historian and amateur sleuth. The Professor has been hired to be the technical advisor of Universal Studio’s new Murder She Wrote film in which Jamie Lee Curtis has been cast as Jessica Fletcher. It’s a week before Christmas when Chuck sits inside Universal’s commissary having lunch. He suddenly realizes that a frantic fanboy fracas is taking place outside the studio:

 

Professor CdiG popped an olive into his mouth, his earbuds buzzing with the soft hum of a podcast, completely oblivious to the stampede of costumed grips and frantic studio techs sprinting past the floor-to-ceiling glass of the Universal commissary.

            It was only when the baseline rattle of chatter in the dining hall died out completely that he pulled the plastic nubs from his ears. Every face in the room was tilted upward toward the wall-mounted flat screens displaying the noon news.

            He gestured to a clapperboard operator balancing a salad tray beside him. "Did the peppermint mocha machine break again?"

            "Riot at Gate 2," she muttered, not looking down. "It made cable news. The studio's entire December release slate is eating itself alive."

            On screen, a sweating reporter held a wind-muffled microphone while holiday-themed chaos unfolded behind him in high definition. Plastic lightsabers clattered against knockoff Vibranium shields, while foam-armored combatants tumbled into decorative, oversized plastic snow globes.

            "Folks, it is absolute holiday anarchy here," the reporter shouted over the din of screeching tires and blaring synthetic Christmas carols. "What began as a peaceful ideological debate over December box-office dominance has descended into open street warfare. The faction of Space Boyz—with a 'Z'—a tentative alliance between Star Wars and Star Trek loyalists, has engaged in direct physical combat with the Super-Saturated Coalition of the MCU and DCU!"

            The camera zoomed in on a man in a torn Federation uniform, bleeding lightly from his nostril while clutching a poster that read: MAKE LOGIC, NOT LORE. The reporter thrust the mic into his face. "Sir! Can you tell us what ignited this?"

            "Blasphemy!" the Trekkie rasped. "A guy in a screen-accurate Captain America suit called Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and 'Hans' Solo—and yes, he pronounced the 'H'—the 'unregulated warlords of the Outer Rim.' Naturally, the Star Wars Space Boyz lost their minds!"

            A nearby MCU fan, wearing a glowing ARC reactor taped over a tacky Christmas sweater, shoved his way into the shot. "They are warlords! They’re radicalized insurgency leaders ruining the holiday box office! Meanwhile, Starfleet is just military imperialism wrapped in a festive corduroy uniform!"

            "Military imperialism?!" a DC fan roared, lunging forward with a foam Batarang wrapped in tinsel. "What about Captain Janeway? She fractured the space-time continuum, ignored the Prime Directive three times before breakfast, and annihilated an entire timeline just to get her crew home in time for Christmas dinner! That’s not diplomacy, that’s temporal fascism!"

            "Oh, like Metropolis is any better?" the MCU fan shot back, turning on the DC supporter. "Your flagship hero is literally a god-like illegal alien who functions as a flying narrative deus ex machina! He’s the ultimate White Savior trope!"

            "Did you just call the Man of Steel an ethical hazard?!" the DC fan shrieked, swinging a hardbound holiday special comic like a hatchet. "Your whole cinematic universe is a corporate-sponsored military-industrial complex run by a billionaire in a tin suit!"

            The reporter turned back to the lens, his tie completely askew and a stray piece of garland stuck to his lapel. "There you have it. The coalition has completely fractured, and the brawl has now spilled off studio property, right into the streets of Hollywood’s downtown shopping district. A local shopping mall Santa and three of his head elves attempted to intervene with candy canes and were promptly body-slammed into a display of limited-edition ornaments. Unaffiliated holiday shoppers are getting pulled into the vortex."

            The camera panned to a confused man in a suit, his shirt torn open, wildly swinging a giant candy cane at nobody in particular. The reporter sprinted over. "Sir! Are you fighting for the sci-fi purists or the comic book loyalists?"

            "I was going to CVS!" the man screamed, his eyes wild. "A guy in a Chewbacca mask threw a scooter through a nativity scene, so I hit a guy dressed as Batman! Then Batman’s elf kicked my briefcase! I don't give a damn about space or superheroes! I just wanted my blood pressure medication!" He turned and threw a right hook at a passing Stormtrooper wearing a Santa hat.

            "Remarkable," the reporter said, ducking as a fiberglass Captain America shield skittered past his knees and sheared off a plastic reindeer’s antlers. "The conflict has abandoned all narrative coherence and achieved pure kinetic critical mass. Wait—listen!"

            The ground trembled. The camera whipped around to capture two olive-drab National Guard armored personnel carriers rolling down Lankershim Boulevard, their diesel engines roaring over the sound of breaking glass and blaring holiday music.

            "Tanks! Ladies and gentlemen, the Governor has mobilized the National Guard!" the reporter yelled, genuinely breathless now. "We have military hardware on the streets of North Hollywood during peak shopping season! It’s like a 1950s sci-fi B-movie come to life, but with higher production value and worse holiday dialogue! I'm Pierce Arrow, NBC News, returning you to the studio."

            In the quiet of the commissary, the clapperboard girl took a slow bite of her salad and shook her head. "Man," she sighed, watching a Guard soldier try to handcuff a man in a full-body Thanos suit wearing a mistletoe headband. "No wonder real aliens haven't made official contact with Earth people yet."

            Professor CdiG adjusted his glasses, leaned back, and dusted a bit of festive red-and-green sprinkle off his napkin. "Can you blame them? If extraterrestrials landed right now, they’d look at this, cancel their Christmas visits, and re-route the saucer straight to Mars. Earth isn't just high-maintenance—we’re a full-blown holiday clearance sale on sanity."

 

This coming December, the Marvel Cinematic Universe will release the superhero blockbuster Avengers: Doomsday. This movie will usher in the end of the MCU’s Infinity and Multiverse sagas. But currently, the 2.5-billion-dollar money-maker, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is the spark that ignites the MCU’s next superhero opus: The Mutant Saga.

 

The Mutant Saga promises to be a whole lot of fun for me. You see, I love the TV soap operas The Young and the Restless (Y&R) and The Bold and the Beautiful (B&B). I’m excited because the Mutant Saga is going to lean heavily into what Marvel Comics is famous for–superhero soap opera drama. So, if MCU’s Mutant Saga was a TV soap opera, I’d name it The Bold and the Restless (B&R). Here’s why. On each episode of B&R you must suspend belief and go with these shameless soap opera tropes:

• Who’s Been Sleeping In My Bed or Your Cheatin’ Heart: (Susan Storm, the Invisible Woman / Namor the Sub-Mariner)

• Who’s The Baby Momma/Daddy: (Jean Grey & her Clones / Cyclops)

• Oedipus Rex: Son covets thy father’s wife, grandson covets thy brother’s wife (Ultron / Ant-Man/ Wasp / Vision / Scarlet Witch / Wonder Man)

• Living In Sin: Swingers Daredevil and Black Widow living together in liberal San Francisco & sharing a bed–without the benefit of marriage!

• Love’s Got Me In Triangles: The Human Torch / Crystal / Quicksilver (brother of the Scarlet Witch) love triangle

• Teen Idol Angst: X-Men’s LGBTQ teenagers–OMG, they got issues!

The Mutant Saga promises to be dramatic soapy fun with lots of mental health anguish thrown in the mix.

 

Oh FYI, next year in January 2027, keep your eyes peeled for the Marvel Comics 5-issue cross over comic book event, Avengers v Jedi. If this comic crossover is a huge success (as I’m sure it will be), it will be turned into an MCU/Lucasfilm big budget blockbuster movie.

 

So, if your mental health is negatively impacted by a bombardment of mind-numbing family soap opera drama, contact any of the following folks for help:

• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender National Hotline: 1-888-843-4564 or help@LGBThotline.org

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988 or 1-800-273-8255 or 988lifeline.org

• SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or samhsa.gov

• NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline: Mon–Fri, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. ET | 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or info@nami.org

• Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741

• The Trevor Project (for LGBTQ+ support): Call 1-866-488-7386 or text START to 678-678

 

Recently I was asked if the criminal Michael Anderson, who I’ve written about frequently in this space, is a fictional character. I responded with, “I wish he was. Because if he were fiction all the over 200 real people he killed would be alive today.” So, Michael Anderson is quite nonfictional – thanks to his family.

 

In a mid-1970’s courtroom, the family of Michael Anderson lied to a judge. They told the judge Mr. Anderson killed his father in self-defense. That was a lie as Anderson had been premeditatedly planning to kill his father for 10 years. But the judge believed the family lie and Anderson was freed. Unfortunately, the family lie that saved Anderson, condemned more than 200+ innocent people to death, all murdered by Mr. Anderson. That’s over 200 people who’d be alive today if Anderson’s family had told the truth and Anderson had received the death penalty. His family paid for their lie though. To thank his family for keeping him out of prison, he murdered them all. So, if Anderson’s family had told the truth, they and 200+ others would be alive today too. I know it sounds cruel, but I feel that because of their lie, the Anderson family brought about their own demise.

 

President Trump also knows that Michael Anderson is quite real and alive–for now. The President is diligently working to reinstate the death penalty nationwide to execute violent 1st degree murderers like Michael Anderson. All my life I was an opponent of the death penalty. I thought it was cruel and inhumane. But now, thanks to the brutal, cruel and inhumane ways that Mr. Anderson murdered his victims that’s all changed. I now whole-heartily support the death penalty for violent murderers like Mr. Anderson. I’m going to do my part, via my Writer’s Block posts, to help President Trump with reinstating the death penalty nationwide. So, join President Trump (I am) in his quest to reinstate the death penalty. Here’s President Trump, in his own words, advocating the death penalty: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/restoring-the-death-penalty-and-protecting-public-safety/