just like the Incredibles are the Fantastic Four (only with the Flash instead of the Human Torch, but Jak-Jak is clearly Franklin Richards from the FF – especially with the reveal at the end).

Frozone is clearly Iceman of the X-men (or maybe the Golden age Jack Frost) – he even uses his ice powers the same way, with the ice bridges for travel.

Cyclops gay???? After marrying ultra-hot babe Jean Grey and then cheating on her with super-ultra hot Emma Frost and people think he’s gay????

What?

~bob

Mistake. Not because it’s a bad movie — I enjoyed all of the parts I got to see. However, the PG rating was well merited. Despite the fact that my in-laws both vouched for its watchability by little kids and the fact that several of Jaymie’s peers have seen the film and not been upset by it, both of my daughters asked if we could leave the theater about a half-hour before the end.

All of which goes to show that kids have to learn to watch the kinds of violence and action that we take for granted in films. My children have always been sensitive to on-screen action and violence, and consequently have little experience with it. Not that that’s a bad thing, but I have to learn not to trust the judgment of others when deciding what may or may not be appropriate viewing for my children.

I’m looking forward to the video release.

I agree that it was probably the idea of forced homogeneity that was being cast as evil rather than the idea that if someone else is more then I am less. As you say, the movie didn’t explore it in any detail, so it is pretty hard to support any particular interpretation for the horror that the family showed at the idea of everyone being “super”.

You brought the perfection and sameness issue up in the last paragraph of your post, which I happen to see no basis for in scripture. :)

I see your point about the villian’s plan, and the pinacle of it being the giving everyone superpowers. Obviously I took it in a different way. I don’t think that the idea was explored in any real depth by the movie and there certainly isn’t much to grab onto there.

I disagree with you about perfection and sameness by the way, but I just don’t think its germane to this discussion.

I think that you need to flesh out the villian’s plan a bit more. First he intends to eliminate all “natural” superheros by means of deception. Then he plans to become the only superhero through technology, which he developed and is arguably his “talent”. Finally, once he is done being a hero he will disseminate his technology so that his position of being uniquely special is cemented in history. I think that we can agree that this is an evil and selfish plan.

The Incredibles would not have been diminished if Syndrome had choosen to simply be a good superhero using his talents and technology. I think that the arguement being made is that people should not feel that they have to hide their lamp under a bushel, right?

As for the more gospel centered discussion, my arguement is that I don’t see the scriptural basis for equality, especially if equality means sameness. I don’t think that perfection implies equality. I do agree that there is nothing to suggest that any righteous being is worse off is another righteous being achieves something. In fact quite the opposite. God grows in glory as His children do.

As far as this relates to the movie, again, the superheros didn’t feel dimished by the fact that there were other superheros. They just wanted to be able to live up to their own potential. They didn’t want to be rulers over the normal folk, rather they wanted to serve them. I fail to see what is wrong with that.

btw, Thanks for responding this time!