Why Everyone Should Spend Time in the Whedonverse

               

There’s this guy whose name is Joss Whedon.  He’ll be the first to tell you that he is flawed.  But the simple fact of the matter is that he gets pop culture and why it is so important.  He has many shows, movies, and characters that are pretty fantastic and I would encourage you all to go watch them.  If you already have done so, do it again.  Whether it is something as short-lived as Firefly, or something as massively successful as The Avengers, Mr. Whedon is able to put forth meaningful and thought provoking projects time and time again.  In my opinion, he’s pretty awesome.  Here are five quotes that show why.     

“Make it dark, make it grim, make it tough, but then, for the love of god, tell a joke.”

                This is a quote about Joss’ show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  It is also a central aspect to all of his writing.  I think this is a big reason for why he fits well into the Marvel universe so well.  The ability to balance true emotion with truly amusing quips and humor is an underrated yet critical skill.  That sense of humor is one the main things that allows us as the viewers to grow attached to the characters on screen.  It makes them human.  There aren’t many people who could put us through these intense and traumatic experiences on screen and cut it with a pun.  This contributes to the emotional roller coaster that sucks us in while we are watching.  We want to be entertained, sure.  But more importantly, we want to feel.  If a show or a movie is done well, we fully encase ourselves in that fictional world while we watch.  We are not watching people hang out together on screen.  We are sitting right there with them at The Bronze, because we are all friends.  We get to experience real feelings of pain, sadness, joy, and hilarity when we partake in our favorite show or film.  This is why we cry when someone we care about dies or why we can grin for days when those two finally get together. 

The world is dark.  It is grim.  It is tough.  But every once in a while, someone tells a joke and we get to laugh for a while.  Joss gets this.

I write to give myself strength.  I write to be the characters that I am not.  I write to explore all the things I’m afraid of.”

                The idea of fictional stories and characters carrying real world weight and meaning is further explored in this quote.  What Whedon realizes is that we are not able to be a superhero or a vampire slayer in real life.  We also will probably never be faced with a werewolf or a reaver.  We’ll never fly Thor or battle Chitauri in NYC.  Or can we?  Putting ourselves through those experiences will provide us with the same insight and newfound knowledge as the characters themselves.  If Tony Stark learns a lesson about self-sacrifice and making the team play, then all it takes is a little bit of critical thinking and application to also gain those same values.  The whole point of this blog is to point out that even fictional people living our fictional adventures can still have a lot to say about the real world.  Joss knows he is not as strong as the Hulk.  He isn’t as crazy as River and he’s not as noble as Steve Rogers.  He is terrified of monsters and all things that go bump in the night.  A great example of this is Cabin in the Woods.  His writing provided the opportunity to wait with baited breath as every infamous creature of horror appeared.   It’s terrifying and exciting and we get to experience all of it.

So if Joss comes across Spike in a dark alley, the odds of being able to stake him are pretty slim. 

Luckily, he has creativity and imagination.  And that’s just as good.  Those things let him – and subsequently us – explore all of those things in a very real and substantial manner, all from the comfort of our favorite chairs. 

“All worthy work is open to interpretations the author did not intend.  Art isn’t your pet, it’s your kid.  It grows up and talks back to you.”

I attended a panel at San Diego Comic Con last summer where the whole hour was spent letting people ask Joss questions about any of his work.  One brave soul walked up to the microphone and stated that he was a pastor.  He then asked if “Cabin in the Woods a commentary on the evangelical concept of substitutionary atonement?” 

Joss immediately responds with “gonna have to say no… because I don’t know what you just said!”  It was hilarious.  However, he then followed it up with a far deeper response.  He explained that if he is doing his job well as a writer, then everything should be open to interpretation.  Even if it is not the author’s original intent, the work can be read on many different levels, whether it is religiously, philosophically, mathematically, or anything else, people bring their own experiences and perspectives to art and they draw a wide variety of conclusions about themselves and the world around them.  This pastor watched the movie and made a personal connection to some of the major themes and values from his own life and work.  The final product is not something that only the author can draw meaning from and we are not limited to the author’s narrow view of what is being said.  Rather, both the viewers and the author can continually mature, develop, and evolve to gain new insights into what the artwork says or means to us.  It talks back.  Read a book or watch a movie a thousand times, and you can still find something new or important on your 1,001^st time.  And that’s fantastic.

“Why do you write strong female characters?”  “Because you’re still asking me that question.”

                This quote has become quite famous.  Joss always has completely awesome female characters.  Buffy, Faith, Willow, River, Zoe, Kaylee, Inara, Echo, and Natasha are just a few.  And this comes from his sadly uncommon belief that women are people too.  The entire concept of Buffy  came from his idea that a girl could walk down a dark alley, meet a monster, and kick its ass.  This idea that women can bring depth and empowerment to their characters is a stark contrast to the more common idea that they either are objectified sex symbols (think Megan Fox in Transformers) or they are nothing more than a romantic interest (think 99.999% of all rom coms).  Girls are meant to be rescued, right?  Well in this case, they usually do the rescuing. 

I am not saying that his view on feminism is perfect, and I don’t think he would either.  But it is really hard to deny that the way his writing and directing portrays female characters is empowering. 

Also, he realizes that the question of why would he want strong female characters is utterly moronic.  Why on earth would people need justification for portraying women that way?!  As long as people are curious about how a strong female could exist, we have a real problem.   

“Bottom line is, even if you see them coming, you’re not ready for the big moments.  No one asks for their life to change, not really.  But it does.  So, the big moments are gonna come, you can’t help that.  It’s what you do afterwards that count.  That’s when you find out who you are.”

                This is a quote from Buffy and it surrounds the death of a character.  You see, Joss Whedon is known for killing off characters that people have grown to love.  Any interview you see of him will have some variation of “why do you kill everyone?” involved in it.  He hates getting asked this question.  You see, Joss knows from personal experience that we are never truly prepared to lose a loved one.  We never know when life is going to throw a curve ball at us and the unexpected nature of those horribly sad events is a major part of life.  So that is how he portrays them on screen.  A lot of Joss’ characters do die (“I am a leaf on the wind…”), but in a weird way, that’s good.  Experiencing the pain of losing someone is a life lesson that everyone must learn at some point.  The more effectively we can learn that lesson, the better equipped we will be to respond in a healthy and functional way.  At that same Comic Con panel, Joss was trying to address the death of a character in Firefly and why it had happened.  He talked about how life does not give you fair warning and that the grief and emptiness that comes with loss is a very real thing that he feels is very important for people to experience.  He then ended with this statement.  “And the fact that you all give me so much s**t for it, must mean I’m doing something right.”  And that point is so critical.  We wouldn’t care if characters die that we have no attachment to.  But as all of the previous points have shown, we do care.  We form a connection with the characters and the lives they are living.  We find empowerment and freedom through them.  We cry with them and laugh with them.  We see them grow and mature and in turn they help us to grow and mature as well. 

                So, when one of those people dies, it’s not some character on a screen.  It’s not a fictional creation from someone’s mind.  It is someone we love.  And the realization that they are gone from this world we are immersed in hurts on a very real level.  The ability to capture those intense emotions is no small feat on the part of the actors and the writer. 

                So why should you watch Joss Whedon?  Because he recognizes the potency of this tool called popular culture and he uses it to try to teach us something.  He creates characters that we all want to be like and he says “well then be like them.”  He thinks the world is deeply flawed and he wants to depict that darkness accurately and meaningfully. 

And then he tells a joke.    

Let's Talk About Snape

Like any loyal fan, I found myself anxiously awaiting the release of the seventh and final Harry Potter book.  When July 21^st, 2007 finally rolled around, I was standing in line at a Borders after having spent the previous hours enjoying all of the fandom festivities that the store had set up.  One of these activities involved an employee offering you two stickers, of which you had to choose only one.  It could either read “Snape is GOOD” or “Snape is EVIL”.  Throughout the previous six books, the character of Severus Snape was intentionally mysterious and ominous.  No one was quite sure if he had truly switched his allegiances to that of Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix, or if he was still loyal to Lord Voldemort.  All of this conflict and speculation culminated in the finale of the sixth book when [SPOILERS] Snape kills Dumbledore.  And for the many months following the conclusion of the sixth book, people debated what all of this meant.  Was he good and this was all part of some bigger plan?  Or was he evil all along and we were fools for ever having trusted him?  GOOD? Or EVIL? 

Personally, I would argue that there should have been a third sticker.

You see, people ended up loving Snape by the end of the story.  He was catapulted to the level of hero within the span of one fabulous chapter.  However, I think it is important to realize that having a redemptive quality does not automatically erase a person’s wrongdoings.  In other words, it would be wrong to model one’s life and actions after Snape. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I think he is a fascinating, complex, and incredibly brave character.  I just don’t think he is an outright good person.  He is a pretty terrible person who ended up doing some good things. 

One example of this is how he treats many of his students.  There are seemingly countless examples of Snape intentionally harassing and insulting Harry and his friends in front of their peers.  He sets completely unattainable standards and then publicly belittles and attacks the kids with whom he has personal problems.  The very first day of class, he shames Harry for his lack of knowledge in regards to fairly advanced potion-making techniques and knowledge.  To put it simply, he is a jerk.

He dislikes many of his fellow teachers.  He personally outs Remus Lupin as a werewolf because of past issues from their days together at school.  He constantly mocks Sirius Black for his need to stay hidden instead of being an active agent of the Order.  Essentially, Severus Snape is a man who is holding a serious grudge for many years.  That grudge is the fact that the only woman he ever loved married someone else and was then murdered by the evil man he had chosen to follow. 

At a young age, Snape meets and falls in love with Lily Evans.  They go to school together and are close friends.  However, Lily eventually falls in love with and marries James Potter.  They go on to have a son named Harry.  A prophecy is then made that seems to involve Harry being the only person who could potentially defeat Lord Voldemort.  So Voldemort goes and kills James, Lily, and attempts to kill Harry.  We know all this. 

But we need to realize that this is why Snape treats Harry like such a childish bully.  Harry is not only the son of the woman he loves.  Harry is the reason that Lily is no longer here.  Harry is the embodiment of why Snape and Lily are not together on a number of levels.  Harry even looks like James, the man who Lily marries.  So every time Snape sees Harry, he sees the man who he lost to and the reason Lily is dead.  That drives him crazy with rage and hatred. 

Except for one instance.  I strongly believe that the chapter entitled “The Prince’s Tale” is the single best chapter in the entire series.  It is when we fully discover who Severus Snape is and why he behaves the way he does.  It uncovers how deeply Snape still loves Lily even after several years have passed.  This chapter is not meant as a justification for how Snape acts, but as an explanation.  It makes you empathize with Snape and understand Snape.  It shouldn’t make you like Snape or condone his actions.

I think it is interesting to realize that this whole chapter is started by Snape giving Harry the ability to view these memories.  It is his final act before death.  Snape’s black eyes meet Harry’s green eyes.  And those eyes are the only part of Harry’s appearance that give Snape positive memories and associations of Lily.  Snape literally dies fighting on the side of good.  He is prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice because he simply cannot be on the side that killed Lily.  And as he dies performing this completely selfless act, he is able to look into Lily’s eyes one more time and receive the comforting reminder of why he was willing to change.  The sacrificial bravery that he showed was in honor of Lily.

We cannot have a conversation about Severus without talking about his most famous quote:

“But this is touching, Severus,” said Dumbledore seriously. “Have you grown to care for the boy, after all?”
“For him?” shouted Snape. “Expecto Patronum!” From the tip of his wand burst the silver doe: She landed on the office floor, bounded once across the office, and soared out of the window. Dumbledore watched her fly away, and as her silvery glow faded he turned back to Snape, and his eyes were full of tears.
“After all this time?”
“Always,” said Snape. 

This is when it becomes clear that Snape’s only motivation has been to fight against those who caused the death of Lily Potter.  He still loves her.  But if we read it more closely, we see that this is a selfish motivation.  On one hand, it is romantic and poetic that the secret motivator of this seemingly evil man has been true love.  I love that.  However, I would argue that as romantic as that is, how can that be his only motivation?!  Good triumphing over evil is not why he is doing this.  It almost seems that he is only doing this for revenge.  If it were truly to honor Lily’s memory, then how has he not come to care for her son.  He has to know that Lily would have wanted that. 

So like the rest of Snape’s story and legacy, this ultimate memory is tainted and complex.  And that’s why it is so brilliantly written.  This character creation by J.K. Rowling is pure genius.  She is able to build this multi-layered character with an intriguing and emotionally weighted backstory who is both good and bad.  He’s human. 

He is a human who has been through many terrible and confusing traumas.  He is conflicted himself.  The fact that we are confused about his emotions and motivations is important because Snape himself is confused about those things quite often.  The one thing that he is certain of is that he loves Lily.  He will always love Lily.  That love is massive and humongously powerful.  But given how difficult it is to grasp what true love is and how it behaves, we are left with a broken man who is struggling to figure out what it means to do good.  It takes him a while, but at the end of the day, he is willing to die for the side of good. 

Think of it this way.  The one person who taught Snape what it meant to be a good person was Lily.  The fact that Snape lays down his life for the cause that Lily herself died fighting for means that he must have learned something.

I definitely think Snape deserves respect.  I even think that in a unique sense, he shows an amazing capacity for love.  My problem is that people often make him out to be a saint who we should have been rooting for from the beginning, and that is going too far.  The whole reason the character is so fantastic and beloved is that he isn’t perfect.   

So what sticker do I want?  I want one that says “Snape is COMPLICATED, BRAVE, and in LOVE with Lily. Always.”

Anakin and Luke: The Parallels of "Star Wars"

It may seem odd to compare the characters of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.  After all, they are the main protagonist and antagonist of the original Star Wars trilogy.  However, once we get past the initial impression of the characters, it becomes abundantly clear that there are quite a few key similarities.  In fact, one can draw several major parallels directly between the two trilogies.  There are stark lines connecting these two sagas and at the center of these respective stories are two young men. 

Similarities

              So, how much do Anakin and Luke really have in common?  Well, they are both young boys who are stuck on the dessert planet of Tatooine.  They hate working out in the hot sun and both dream of bigger and more important activities occurring amongst the stars.  They are both good-hearted people who wish to help those around them as well as the greater good in the galaxy.  Along with this idealistic approach comes a fair amount of naiveté about how the worlds work.  Anakin is an established pod racer by age 8.  Luke has set records doing the Beggars Canyon run with his friends in their landspeeders.  We can chalk this up to the abnormally high level of skill and reflexes both boys have due to their strong connection to the Force.  Essentially, this taste of power and success has left these boys starving for more action, adventure, and meaning to their lives.  This dream of running off and joining something bigger than themselves is realized when they are each introduced to a certain Jedi knight.

            Through a series of events, Luke meets Obi-Wan Kenobi, as does Anakin (as well as Qui-Gon Jinn).  In Luke’s case, this comes at the same time as the horrible murder of his aunt and uncle who have raised him since he was a baby.  Anakin on the other hand, is given the opportunity to escape his life as a slave, but at the cost of leaving his mother.  In the wake of these trying and traumatic times, both boys find a sense of calm and solace in the presence of their new Jedi companions. 

            It is these same Jedi who play a key role in the overall direction of these characters and their development.  The Jedi are able to sense the power and potential that these young men carry.  The Force is unusually strong with both of them and the Jedi are the first people that Luke and Anakin have met to fully recognize what potential that holds.  In short, both these people learn that they have the power to change the galaxy.

Although their stories start years apart, Luke and Anakin are heading down almost identical paths.  They are informed that there are two sides to the Force and that they must use their powers for good as the Jedi have for thousands of years.  If they do not, they will be doomed to be seduced by the Dark Side.  In other words, each force-sensitive being in the galaxy is eventually faced with a life-defining choice.  Will you join the Dark or the Light side?  Will you use your powers for good, or for evil? 

Anakin and Luke are both given this choice at pivotal moments of their lives.  These two farm boys from Tatooine have led eerily similar lives.  So how is it, that with all of their commonalities and likenesses, that they end up doing the exact opposite of one another?  To answer that, we must look beyond the areas where they are the same, and notice some key areas in which they are different.

Trauma

            Both Luke and Anakin are faced with their share of traumatic events.  Having said that, one could argue that the events of Anakin's life were more traumatic to him.  Let’s start by looking at Luke.  Luke is faced with the burnt corpses of his primary caregivers and that is enough to upset even the most stonehearted individual.  Although Luke was never a fan of Tatooine or his role on the moisture farm, he still cared for and loved his Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru.  Their passing certainly takes an emotional toll on Luke, but I think that he is somewhat prepared to move on (or as much as anyone could be) due to his deep desire to move on from that life.  He has wanted to leave for years.  Now that his last ties to this world are gone, he wants to get out of there as soon as possible.  It wouldn’t surprise me if part of him wanted to run away from the pain and sadness he was feeling.  Also, this murder at the hands of the Empire simply adds fuel to the already significant desire he has to join the Rebellion.  Now it’s become personal. 

            This is furthered when Luke suffers his next traumatic experience.  Obi-Wan has not only provided Luke with a picture of what awaits out there and the potentially massive role that Luke could play in this galactic space opera.  He has also given Luke information and insights about his father, Anakin Skywalker.  Luke learns that his father was not the mere spice freighter pilot that he was led to believe, but instead a powerful Jedi knight. 

            Unfortunately, Obi-Wan is ripped from Luke’s life almost as suddenly as he came into it.  Luke sees him cut down by the seemingly evil Darth Vader.  Despite their short time together, Luke has now been separated from arguably the most influential person in his life.  This gives him even more reason to become a Jedi and fight for good.  In short, Luke’s trauma drives him to do good.  It’s makes doing the right thing an obvious and logical choice.  I don’t want to minimize the level of suffering that Luke went through.  I’m just making the argument that it made his choices almost easy.  All of his hardship comes from a very tangible target in the form of the Galactic Empire.  As we will see, Anakin’s life and struggles are far more muddied.

            Anakin’s first major trauma is when he leaves his mom.  Most kids his age have trouble going to a week at summer camp, let alone leaving their moms for good.  He certainly hopes to come back at some point and free her, but he knows that there is no guarantee that this happens.  He is fully committing his life to the Jedi order and that requires true sacrifice.  Soon after he makes the decision to leave, he is faced with the Jedi Council.  When asked about missing his mother, he confesses that he does in fact have those feelings.  And he gets reprimanded for it.  This is going to be a key for Anakin’s story.  The people he respects more than anyone will never seem to fully understand or empathize with his feelings.  This leaves him confused and conflicted.  Is it truly that simple to forget your mother and your love for her?  Does it make me a bad person and an ineffective Jedi if I can’t? 

            This motherly theme is continued years later when Anakin finally is faced with the opportunity to go and free her from slavery.  He tracks her down just in time to have her die in his arms after she has been abused and tortured for months.  He wasn’t fast enough.  What good is all of this power he has if he cannot save the ones he loves?  As his feelings churn deep within him something becomes clear to him.  He is really angry.  He has loved two people in his whole life and one of them was just killed.  And that pisses him off.  Now, this seems reasonable to must of us.  Anger is a perfectly natural response to losing a loved one.  But Anakin has been told constantly for the last ten years that anger is a slippery slope that ends with the Dark Side.  Jedi don’t get angry.  So once again, those who Anakin looks to for advice and guidance are telling him that his feelings are wrong. 

            Anakin has heard all the warnings about anger, but in those moments he has a single thought that is all consuming.  The animals that killed my mother will pay.  And he slaughters them like animals.  And this is our first sign that Anakin is taking steps in a very different direction than Luke.  Rage and revenge are not Jedi traits.  What makes things worse is that Anakin knows this.  He eventually does calm down and now there is a sense of immense guilt piled on top of the already potent sadness and anger.  All Anakin has heard since he met Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon is that he is the one that is destined to be the ultimate Jedi.  So why does he keep doing these un-Jedi things?  Part of him truly believes that the code of the Jedi is correct.  Part of him truly believes that his mother was worth avenging.  And he is faced with a philosophical question that will define his whole life:  What happens when the Jedi code conflicts with my own beliefs and the wellbeing of those I love? 

            You see, there is one other person that Anakin loves in Padme, whom he marries contrary to the Jedi code.  Anakin is given another scenario where his emotions and duty to the Jedi are causing a significant internal struggle.  After Padme becomes pregnant with twins, Anakin has another vision, but now it is Padme dying instead of his mother.

            Anakin awakens with a start and immediately makes a promise to himself and to Padme.  He will not let her die.  He is far more powerful now than he was when his mother died and he will do whatever it takes to further develop his powers to where he can defy the most basic truth of the universe.  He will beat death. 

            This is not an easy task.  Soon he is faced with a harsh discovery.  The only person who can help him accomplish this is the dark lord of the Sith.  And now Anakin is faced with what many would argue is his ultimate choice.  Does he betray the Jedi and join the Sith to save Padme and his unborn children?  Or does he make the ultimate personal sacrifice for the greater good?  He chooses to honor his promise to Padme and break the promise he made to the Jedi order.  And he goes all in.  He personally kills several Jedi and even battles his mentor Obi-Wan.  And this battle is really important on an emotional level for Anakin because it is the physical embodiment of the ongoing conflict between himself and the Jedi.  And it is a battle he loses. 

Darth Vader is born.  Upon waking up from the medical procedure, Vader learns that Padme has died.  Palpatine then builds on Anakin’s already existing pile of pain and guilt by lying to him and saying that he is responsible for not only her death, but that the children have died as well.  Anakin has no reason to believe otherwise and screams in indignation.  How could this happen?  How could he have failed again?  We need to realize something.  In Anakin’s mind, he is responsible for the death of his mother, his wife, his children, his father figure, his friends, and all of the Jedi.  He has nothing left.  In my mind, Vader spends the coming years in utter self-loathing for failing to save those he loves and for all of the other lost lives for which he is responsible.  That is, until one fateful moment.

The Final Choice

And here we come to the final and most important parallel between Luke and Vader; the ultimate choice.  You see, most think that Anakin failed his ultimate choice when he tried to save Padme.  And he did fail at that choice.  But he is given a rare gift when he gets a second chance.

In the 6^th film, Luke is given a chance to kill Vader and join the Emperor.  However, as he stands over the beaten Vader and is about to kill him, he sees the mechanical hand that his father has.  Luke cut it off in the battle and seeing it now is a striking moment deep inside of himself.  He immediately sees what he will become if he does not gain control of his anger.  And where his father fell short, Luke rises to the occasion.

“Never.  I’ll never turn to the Dark Side.  You’ve failed your highness.  I am a Jedi, like my father before me.”  And this is when Anakin is given a chance to atone for his horrible failure earlier.  Because the Emperor mutters the words “so be it… Jedi” and begins to torture Luke.  Lightning bolts fly from Palpatine’s fingertips and Luke is rendered helpless.  He is writhing on the ground and begins to scream.  With his final moments, he looks to his father and begins to plead.  “Father.  Please.  Help me.” 

And Anakin does.  It is amazing to think that he is wearing a mask and we can still see the moment on his face when the ultimate realization comes crashing down.  Anakin did everything to save his family.  Whatever gets between Anakin and those he loves needs to be eliminated.  And right now, Vader is finally able to see that the Emperor was never able to help save his family, but just the opposite.  He is now the animal that is causing them harm.  And he slaughters that animal.  In an instant Anakin snaps back into his initial drive and does what is necessary and what is right.  Anakin sacrifices himself to save his son and kill the Emperor.  With this single act he achieves redemption and becomes the ultimate Jedi that returns balance to the Force, just like he was supposed to. 

Anakin and Luke are both subjected to the manipulations of the Emperor and the Dark Side.  And their responses are both a similarity and a difference.  At first, Anakin makes the wrong choice.  Luke on the other hand learns from his Father’s mistakes and makes the correct choice.  And in a poetic and wonderful turn of events, that choice allows Anakin to see the error of his ways and to finally join his son in the light; as a Jedi. 

Feel, Don't Conceal: Why Frozen is So Important

Having a Disney movie become a massive hit and a critical success is nothing new for the massive company.  Entire generations have been in love with these films since Snow White came out in 1937.  The impressive canon of films that have been released by Disney includes beloved stories ranging from Beauty and the Beast to Aladdin.  Clearly they are doing something right to have allowed them this level of success for the last 75+ years.  Young girls still love to dress up as Cinderella, Aurora, and Tiana for Halloween.  25 year olds are still debating if Jasmine or Belle is the better choice for personal favorite (I’ll give you a hint: it’s Jasmine).  “A Whole New World” is still played as a couple’s first dance at their wedding.  The point is that Disney and their fairy tale films carry the power and influence to influence a massive number of people.  They can literally shape how a child views love, life, and relationships.  Which brings us to the key of all this.  Simply put, Disney has an obligation to continually evolve, mature, and improve the messages they are sending.  Luckily for everyone, they are doing a wonderful job of this.  For proof of this, we need look no further than their most recent masterpiece (because that is exactly what it is) Frozen.

Frozen starts off with a familiar feel.  We are introduced to a magical princess, Elsa, and her sister Anna.  Due to the uncertain and unfamiliar characteristics of Elsa’s powers over snow, ice, and weather, her parents seek the council of the wise trolls who preach that control will be key to Elsa’s happiness.  How do her parents respond to this advice?  Well, they lock her in a castle and tell her to pretend these powers don’t exist.  “Conceal, don’t feel” becomes their motto every time Elsa comes to them with feelings of sadness or concern regarding her powers.  This approach is not exactly successful, unsurprisingly, and ends in Elsa losing control of her emotions and her powers, revealing her secret to her kingdom, and causing a frigid winter to fall upon the kingdom in the middle of summer. 

And from this, Disney provides one of their most important and meaningful messages to ever come from one of their movies.  The realization that emotions are not meant to be ignored is one that everyone must learn in life.  How often are children forced to feel embarrassment and confusion when experiencing emotions that are new to them?  Boys are told that they are not supposed to cry because it shows weakness.  Girls are reminded to only feel positive about themselves if they look and act certain ways.  Emotions are a natural part of being human and trying to push them down or ignore them is only going to lead to outbursts or explosions that end up hurting ourselves and those around us. 

We see this with Elsa.  At first, she feels a wonderful sense of catharsis and relief at having to no longer hide her powers.  Keep in mind that her powers are representative of any powerful emotion that people may experience and have felt the need to conceal.  And although there is a comforting release that comes in the form of the gorgeous song “Let It Go”, at the end of it Elsa is left completely isolated and alone.  These powers are not inherently bad.  Imagine the happiness and overall quality of life that could have been experienced by both Elsa and Anna if she and her parents had instead worked to develop the skills necessary to gain control over these powers.  It would have produced a far more functional, healthy, and beneficial relationship between Elsa and everyone around her.  Instead she is told to conceal, don’t feel, and just stay in your room.  Having trouble with this tough time?  Just put some gloves on.  We will all face difficult times, challenging feelings, and other obstacles throughout life.  Avoidance and hiding are not how we get through them.  We get through them with the help of our support systems and those we love.  We get through them through maturation, personal growth, and the counsel of those we respect and value. 

Children need to know that locking the door to their room will not make the problem go away and will not stop the feelings from having an internal effect.  All it will do is cause a build up of pressure and stress that will have to be let out somehow.  Odds are it won’t be as beautiful or graceful as an ice castle. 

Surprisingly, Frozen isn’t done here.  It stills has an equally important message to give.  Warning:  There may be SPOILERS ahead if you have not yet seen the movie.

Disney has been criticized in the past for providing inaccurate and unrealistic depictions of love and how it develops.  But then Tangled came out a few years ago and started laying the groundwork for a new approach to how young men and women should view themselves and relationships.  There is a wonderful and comical scene where Rapunzel and a room full of brutal marauders sing “I’ve Got a Dream” which is all about how we should not listen to societal norms or other stereotypes that tell us that our goals and hopes are not right for us.  If a Viking wants to be a concert pianist, who are we to tell him not to?  If a strong and independent woman wants to pursue her dream of travel and excitement, she should be able to do just that, even if she is told constantly that to do so in unrealistic and outside of her abilities.  Frankly, I wish Gunther luck with his interior design!  Slowly, we start to see Disney telling the boys and girls watching to pursue their dreams. 

However, there is another change that Tangled makes that is a little more subtle.  It is still a “classic” love story where the boy and girl meet and quickly find themselves attracted to one another.  However, unlike past tales that take place over three days and preach “love at first sight”, the main couple of Tangled wait two years to get married.  It is only mentioned once at the end of the movie, but it is a massively important development.

Frozen takes this as a stepping-stone and leaps off of it.  There are scenes where Disney literally mocks itself.  “Wait!  You are engaged to a man you just met today?”  and “You can’t marry a man you just met” are both direct quotes.  I fully admit to being a hopeless romantic who loves fairy tales.  Falling in love at first sight is something that I smile about.  But it simply isn’t realistic or healthy for a relationship as serious as marriage.  Taking time to gain a deeper understanding of a significant other is a really important step in a relationship.  Working through the obstacles and challenges that naturally arise in every couple’s time together is something that is used to build a really solid foundation on which a marriage can be successful.  In short, Disney is taking a genre mainstay of “love at first sight” and changing it to a more healthy and realistic depiction of how love looks.  That is something that is encouraging to see.  These princesses are maturing and their audience is better off because of it.

But wait, there’s more.  These storytellers wanted to take one more cliché and blow it up.  There comes a point in the story where Anna is going to die unless an act of true love occurs.  Naturally, this means true love’s first kiss!  I’ve seen Snow White and Sleeping Beauty!  Luckily, Anna has met the man she is going to marry in Hans.  They rush back to the palace and they are about to share the beautiful moment that will release her from the curse that is threatening her life.  And just like that, the world flips upside down.  Hans doesn’t love her at all, it is simply a plot to steal the throne.  I felt like the kid in Princess Bride who says “wait, that can’t be right!” 

Anna is left to die and Hans seems to have a clear path to the throne.  All that’s left is to kill Elsa.  Through a series of events Elsa is left vulnerable with Hans standing over her with his sword drawn.  With her last ounce of strength, Anna throws herself in front of her sister and away from the man who could fulfill the traditional Disney definition of love. 

In this story, true love exists between sisters.  And that is massively important.  Kids and adults alike are getting a very important lesson in love here.  In fact throughout the movie, there has been an emotional roller coaster due to the fact that love can lead to wonderful highs and painful lows.  Love can occur between any two people.  It doesn’t have to be Prince Charming standing over his fallen princess.  Love has countless forms that it can take and they are all incredibly powerful. 

Through some gorgeous animation, clever humor, and captivating storytelling, Disney has set itself on a path of challenging its viewers to think about some very important topics.  And I simply cannot wait to see what happens next.  The core theme of “love conquering all” is still present.  What’s different is that Disney and its viewers are now wrestling with how big and complex that idea really is. 

And that’s why Frozen is so important!  It’s the first real step Disney has taken to show that it is able to make positive adjustments for this new generation of films without sacrificing the colorful characters, fantastic songs, or brilliant stories that gave Disney its reputation. 

I love Disney.  I always have and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. 

Also, do you want to build a snowman?