Post originally by Defender at 2004-08-05 16:11:16
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Agreed. Very, very few superheroes have ever been seen as religious. I think the only contemporary comics characters I can think of with overtly religious tones were the Spectre and Zauriel, the former being a manifestation of the Wrath of God from the Old Testament, the latter being an angel from Heaven. Comics have traditionally shied away from religion, so it's natural that a line of entertainment stereotypically viewed as kiddie fair would have little to do with the existential stuff. Mutants & Masterminds, as a reflection of modern comics, follows suit.

Now I own just about every supplement and sourcebook for the line, and I have to say that if there is some kind of Conspiracy to portray people of faith as uber-baddies, I fail to see it. Yes, there are characters who have a kind of fundamentalist ouvre to them, but they tend to fall more in the category of Johnny Reb or the White Knight or the Iron Cross, who are racist fanatics and leftovers from the Civil War and World War II. I went intensively through both Freedom City and Crooks!, looking for something to unveil the horror of this unintentional slight, but could find nothing. In fact, the Reverend Madeline Dickenson is listed as a supporting cast character in Freedom City, and her description is both positive and respectful.

I can't speak for the reviewer, but I have to wonder if maybe the current sensitive times have colored her perspective a bit. It is, ultimately, just a game based on funnybooks after all. An incredibly cool and fun game, but still. We're all here to have fun, and read some cool RPG supplements. Sometimes they strike us good, sometimes not so good, but that's the great thing about being individuals. We all have our own opinion. This has been mine.

-Def.