Classist, & Sexist; Frank Miller Wants to Write Captain America, for All the Wrong Reasons

“Again, I get back to Captain America, because I find him such a wonderful anachronism. And also, I feel that he features virtues that my country has either lost or misplaced for a very long time. Especially at a time when the country is so clearly threatened, a hero like that is outstanding. I remember telling people at Marvel, just a few days after 9/11, that I hoped they realized what they had there, because Captain America’s reaction to 9/11 would have been pretty direct.”  Frank Miler

Why Frank Miller wants to write Captain America is why he should not write Captain America.  Ed Brubaker set a high bar for Captain America and he did it by having Captain America question the government he represented.  Mark Millar’s use of Captain America in Civil War was brilliant putting him in the role of outlaw, because of his strong sense of personal liberty.  While Frank Miller’s resume is amazing, he is no longer the Frank Miller we identified with in the 80’s.  I base much of this statement on his response to Occupy Wall Street.  Please note I added the bold to emphasis certain points.

“The “Occupy” movement, whether displaying itself on Wall Street or in the streets of Oakland (which has, with unspeakable cowardice, embraced it) is anything but an exercise of our blessed First Amendment. “Occupy” is nothing but a pack of louts, thieves, and rapists, an unruly mob, fed by Woodstock-era nostalgia and putrid false righteousness. These clowns can do nothing but harm America….

Maybe, between bouts of self-pity and all the other tasty tidbits of narcissism you’ve been served up in your sheltered, comfy little worlds, you’ve heard terms like al-Qaeda and Islamicism.

 And this enemy of mine – not of yours, apparently – must be getting a dark chuckle, if not an outright horselaugh – out of your vain, childish, self-destructive spectacle.

In the name of decency, go home to your parents, you losers. Go back to your mommas’ basements and play with your Lords Of Warcraft…”

Or better yet, enlist for the real thing. Maybe our military could whip some of you into shape”

Frank Miller

Whether you agreed with Occupy Wall Street’s stance or politics, this statement is ignorant.  It among other things demonstrates an utter lack of understanding about the intent of the movement.  I could spend pages explaining how Miller’s thoughts are a poor summation of the beliefs and goals of Occupy Wall Street, but it’s not worth my time, or yours dear reader.

In Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns it is a mob that restores order to Gotham.  In Sin City his criminal protagonists expose the corruption of the higher ups.  Hell Reagan was clearly a villain in The Dark Knight Returns.  In Miller’s mind what separates the heroic reformed Mutants of Dark Knight Returns from Occupy Wall Street?  Is it their willingness to be violent?  I would like to ask Frank Miller how he squares these conflicting ideas in his mind.

Government Corruption was once a major theme of Miller’s writing.  Now he calls those who, “peacefully (to) assemble, and petition the Government for redress of grievances,” rapists.  This is not a man who should be writing Captain America, especially with his overall track record for female characters.   Forget Martha Washington, and Elektra how many of his creations are fully formed women, and how many are created to fulfill some male sexual desire?   It always bugged me that he uses Selina Kyle as a prostitute; he stated that the iconic image of Elektra impaled on her sai was meant to invoke the concept of rape. What percentage of the women in Sin City are either prostitutes or stripper?

If Frank Miller wants to make politically resonate comics, that reflect and encourage productive political discourse, that’s great.  If he wants to do this from a conservative/republican perspective super, there are more liberal authors than conservatives and it could allow a new perspective on certain themes.  However after the rank disaster of Holy War he needs to earn back the respect so many of us once had for him.  And the man who explicitly denies the first amendment to any group should not write Captain America.