Fear Itself

Justice League - The New Frontier (2008)

Fear comes in many shapes and forms. There is fear of the dark, fear of change, fear of an enemy, and fear of the unknown. After World War 2 America became a nation of fear, and it was led there by a Senator named Joseph McCarthy. Senator McCarthy came forward and claimed he could protect Americans from what they feared, and Americans gladly handed the reigns of power over to him. Americans trusted McCarthy to protect them, and to ferret out the enemies from within their midst.

Fear is a powerful weapon, and everyone faces it differently. When the man of steel was faced with fear, he succumbed to it and pledged his blind loyalty to the Government in order to better protect its citizens. When the amazing Amazon was confronted with fear, she taught victims to over come their fears, and made others fear her when she refused to bow to the government’s desires. When an Air Force pilot felt the engine of his plane sputter and die under enemy gunfire, he pulled his ejection seat and leapt blindly into enemy territory unafraid of what would happen to him.

Justice League, The New Frontieris an animated adaptation of the DC Comics graphic novel The New Frontierby artist and writer Darwin Cooke. The story is set in the DC Comics universe during the Cold War, when America was at a turning point in its cultural identity. The House Un-American Activities Commission sought out communists, Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus, Super Heroes went into hiding, and Ferris Aircraft led the charge into space.

Unbeknownst to the world, not only America is at a turning point; it is humanity that is at a turning point. An unimaginable evil known only as The Center has awakened from centuries long slumber in the aftermath of the atomic bomb. The Center is a beast that predates the dinosaurs, a beast with a life span so long, that it has only just now noticed the apes crawling on the surface of the planet. And The Center has declared that the human race is too dangerous to be allowed to continue as a species.

Blind to the threat it faces the American government covers up any occurrence that they cannot explain or control. Costumed super heroes are hunted down and captured in an effort to use their abilities to further the cause of America. Ferris Aircraft pushes it’s test pilot to the edge to land on Mars, and if necessary combat any hostile life forms found there. All the while The Center grows in power and slowly plots the destruction of humanity.

This is the second direct to DVD cartoon released by Warner Brothers with a PG-13 rating. Heroes die, monsters are blown into bloody pieces, and the story contains adult themes such as rape, death, and lynch mobs. Producers are now aware that adults enjoy super hero stories without them being sanitized for children, fast food collaborations and t-shirt sales. Perhaps this movie represents the dawn of a new age of super hero cartoons; an age where stories of power rings and shape shifting aliens can be of quality.

Fear is a powerful weapon, but its hold over a populous is tenuous at best. When one person stands before others and declares their willingness to fight an enemy, others will follow. When that one person is struck down, they become a rallying point, and even more flock to their cause. When that fear is overcome, enemies realize that they were fighting for the same cause all along put aside their differences and fight their mutual enemy. Sometimes, all it takes is one person of integrity to put aside fear and lead the charge into a bright new world of tomorrow.