Superhero Registration

*Originally published on 9/24/09


While Marvel's Civil War arc has finished, the release of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 has got me thinking about the issues raised in the comic. I haven't read it myself, I was considering it, but from the premise alone I could tell that it was going to be a heavy handed lambast against the Bush administration. I rolled my eyes and left it alone. Now, the original concept was supposed to have it present both sides as having a legitimate point. Even the writer, Mark Millar, says that Iron Man is right. However, editorial mandates and different writers turned Tony Stark into a schmuck in order to hammer in the idea that anti-registration was the right way to go.

Here's the thing, Tony has a legitimate point. I thought that when the story arc was first announced and I think that now. As it is now, the heroes in Marvel essentially answer only to themselves. For the most part, they hold themselves accountable when they screw up, but they act of their own volition and often end up causing a lot of damage in the process.

The idea of Superhero registration (to my understanding) was to essentially have them become employed by the government to become a sort of police type force. They had the option of working for SHIELD to earn salary and benefits.

Luke Cage compares it slavery, which makes no flippin' sense whatsoever. The heroes can talk about how they fight for the greater good, but they are still vigilantes. Making them civil servants in a sense would allow them to keep operating the same way they do, only with more accountability.

The main problem, from what I can gather, is that the heroes would have to reveal their identities to government officials. I know a hero's secret identity is a valuable asset, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that said information would be highly classified, making it very difficult for outside parties to obtain. Only a select few would know, which isn't that big a deal.

The act wasn't really asking much if you think about it. It's not like the heroes had to out themselves to the public, though Spider-Man did and that ended up biting him hard. If anything, it would help heroes. Mutants, as well as Spider-Man, get a lot of bad press. By making them part of the solution in crime fighting you would help ease people's fears. It would also help heroes in the sense that they could make a living doing what they do rather than have to worry about a day job and trying to balance the two things simultaneously.

The heroes supporting the act stated that it's an act of responsibility to support it. I agree. They wield quite a bit of power and it's only natural to try and ensure that the heroes use that power responsibly. Spider-Man knows that responsibility comes with it, and other characters point out that they have to be held accountable for the sort of activity they engage in.