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Post By killer shrike keeps the Theme Week rolling along Wed Jul 21, 2004 at 10:53:34 am EDT |
Subject
"Why is Mr. Epitome a member of the Lair Legion?" | |
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There are two ways to answer the question.
From a story standpoint, I think Epitome fills (again) two roles common in team books: the-fly-in-the-ointment and the-grumpy-bruiser. His personality, ideology, and shady dealings with the Grey Eminence make him someone often at odds with the LL, and someone who legitimately can’t be trusted. Second, for the moment at least, he can also fill the traditional strong guy role, at least until Hatman or FFF come back.
In terms of personal motivation for joining the Lair Legion, it’s been established Mr. Epitome thinks he can guide the team towards what he thinks is the right direction. This ties in to what the character was designed to be: a representation of American Power.
The two characters he’s based on, Superman and Captain America, are symbols, but they are supposed to personify the American Dream, a nebulous, inoffensive term that most people native to the US or otherwise wouldn’t object too.
Mr. Epitome, however, symbolizes a definite facet of American ideology, one that’s very reactionary and authoritative. He believes he knows what’s best for the world, and that’s preserving the status quo. The character goes one step further, often working for corrupt forces that conspire to run America. I did that basically to parody all the cabals in fiction, from X-Files to Planetary, that serve as adversaries for the more free-thinking “good guys.” I’ve deliberately made the Grey Eminence less blood-thirsty than those other conspiracy groups, just to make it harder to hate him and to show him as having some actual competence.
So Epitome joined (or at least agreed to be drafted) into the Lair Legion to protect his employer, because he knows if it came to a battle his side would ultimately lose, and without the organization running things the world would be at the mercy of those unhappy with the status quo, a.k.a. “the forces of evil.”
That’s not to say he dislikes the team, or even being on it. Mr. Epitome is smart enough to know they serve an important purpose: combating paranormal threats he can’t even comprehend at times. He just wishes they would concentrate on saving the world and leave the running of it to those who know better.
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