As one of the quintessential comic book superheroes, almost every character has, at some point, been compared to Batman. However, few have received as direct a comparison as MODOK, who was just likened to the Caped Crusader by the writers of his own series.
MODOK: Head Games is a recently-finished mini-series from Marvel Comics written by Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum, who are also behind the MODOK Hulu series. While the four-issue series features plenty of comedic moments, it’s also surprisingly heartfelt at times, providing an in-depth look at the psyche behind the major Avengers villain. Granted, a character who is literally a gigantic floating head can be hard to take seriously, but the story has an element of self-awareness that lets readers know the creative team is just as aware of that as they are. However, while some may see this mixed dramatic-comedic approach as inconsistent, the writers provide a very direct, stalwart defense for MODOK in the last page of the final issue by invoking the Dark Knight.
On paper, MODOK and Batman seem about as different as two characters can get, and Blum and Oswalt say as much in their sendoff to Head Games. “MODOK is a lot like Batman,” they say. "This is a statement that’s probably never been uttered by a single human being on the planet, but hear us out.” The two writers go on to describe how flexible a character Batman is – just as comfortable in a cheesy, Saturday morning cartoon as he is in a gritty graphic novel like Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. They argue that MODOK has the same type of elasticity, having been portrayed as both a genuinely threatening villain and a complete joke. For Blum and Oswalt, this isn’t inconsistency; its versatility, and that speaks to the strength of the characters.
Oswalt and Blum raise good points about the similarities between Batman and MODOK in terms of their flexibility. Part of the reason a character like Batman can appeal to all ages is because he fits in so many different styles, and the same can be true of MODOK. Sure, MODOK has a ridiculous origin story and an even weirder appearance, but when you think about it, it’s also pretty strange for a man to dress up like a bat to fight crime. Comic books inherently have an element of whimsy regardless of how gritty the story is, but that’s part of the charm of the medium. Nowadays, with comic book characters growing in popularity across all forms of media, their overall versatility has never been more apparent.
Batman and MODOK are two characters that few would think to compare, but upon examination, both exemplify the same, core aspect of why comic books appeal to so many people. The characters actually mature with their audience, giving readers stories they can continue to enjoy even as their tastes change and evolve, and that's a truly amazing accomplishment.
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