Man of Steel answers insight commentary episode 15 you are my son understanding John and I will ask the obvious question start asking questions and answers welcome to Man of Steel answers insight commentary on your Man of Steel apologist Dr. awkward I cover a mosaic of topics for fans who love discussing the Man of Steel and the DC cinematic universe together will endeavor to answer the questions criticisms and controversies raised by Man of Steel and those excited by the anticipated DC cinematic universe in this episode we continue our scene by scene analysis by looking at the starship reveal I'll try my hand at music appreciation will break down the dialogue and will try to see things from Jonathan's point of view to empathize and evaluate his parenting stay tuned and let's try to understand Jonathan this podcast dives deep into Man of Steel to answer the critics and the confused the show is not meant to convert anybody but the celebrate a film that will lead us into the DC cinematic universe reasonable minds will differ but this is a show for fans who love to Man of Steel and who love to chew their food when we last left off Jonathan revealing the ship to Clark I said we needed a line by line break down but before we get to that let's just replay that scene and refresh your memory found in this usually goes to show up at our doorstep no one ever Using the chamber the consumer logistic Kansas the whatever is made from didn't even the religious on the periodic table is another where saying that it's not from this world Clark you are you have answers have answer to are we alone in the universe don't want to and I don't blame on be a huge burden is interesting when Clark and I believe that you are for recent changes that you're going through wonder is a blessing when it comes to support understand the human race or not? What are you kidding hundred for recent Clark with extraterrestrial life you to find out well great stuff before we dive into it did you catch that soft and gentle_the piano is just lightly conveying Clark's theme during the tender moments between a parent and child we've heard it before as Martha's soothing words comfort a distraught Clark and now we hear it again is Jonathan embraces his son now set up before I'm not really a music that I do appreciate film soundtracks scores in the art behind it and I love listening to analysis and the appreciation of such talent by those who are much well-versed in those matters than myself there's just something appealing about listen to an expert and along those lines let me just give my quick recommendation for the podcast Star Wars oxygen the music of John Williams presented by rebel force radio and hosted expertly by David Collins that is a fabulous podcast if you love analysis if you love music if you love Star Wars check it out so like I said I'm not a music guide but even I can recognize the soul of Clark's is appropriately Martha and Jonathan Kent Clark's theme which could almost be called are considered Kents theme plays in the after mentioned scenes as well as during Clark's homecoming when all the sound drops out of the tornado scene and it goes quiet this theme is surprised when Jonathan is talking to Clark after the bullies in the scene where Martha says nice suit son and in the Cemetery flashback to Clark wearing a Cape as a child so we see that this theme is tied to the Kents that solitary piano makes the music intimate as if were privy to Clark's private introspection Clark's vulnerability his soul his humility is gentleness compassion these things came from his adoptive parents and their integral to his theme and it's telling us that there onscreen presence makes them practically synonymous with this theme in the score emotionally and thematically blinking Clark and the Kents subconsciously so while Clark's theme is quiet and peaceful introspective and yearning it blends perfectly into Zimmer's Superman precursor theme the keys built into cords and in their backed by building percussion and then strings and finally we get that huge swell into the intrinsically American electric guitar the horns an all-out percussion and the orchestra for that ever reaching ever repeating never ending battle theme for a Superman I fully expect a crew Superman theme in Batman be Superman but what we got is still wonderfully evocative of reaching ever higher of flight home and that never-ending battle and of course of Superman doesn't brand Superman in the way that Williams is brilliant score does such clear-cut fashion but it almost presents us with the same kind of searching show but don't tell philosophy of the entire film to make you in a sense feel Superman without telling the way the Williams completely off track and musical appreciation definitely should be another show at one which I might need a special guest to address or comment on it I'd love to get some insight into what was or wasn't scored and why the use of contemporary and lyrical music and places instead of the orchestral music and so on but as long as I'm on this tangent and I can't resist let me play a short clip of how Zimmer connected to the Superman mythos and to the score of the film is on the iPhone I think it needs to Martha (fourth we what is actually meant something to develop a schedule stories love being a part of I have I don't even if I do hope you are you know… Of solo but what about in Germany unless the they also meaningless because of inertia and in the language show my children sound entirely different Mitsubishi the fatal major lysates of my so the thing about belonging and that is a part of Le Mans you know this is whether the Florida is a good film comes from Rico as I look at the Midwest and I see hard-working honest people, humble they don't have mentions that of victim get glorified… Made them to become – you you the real heroes of achievement tests feudalism in human history let's go celebrate notice is a welcome development himself in a reform is what will hold up a mirror to amazing as you I will go celebrate is the part of about the noise is you which so it has to be simple is really fine line between some simplistic victory stupid snap actually something for when I was great one of the things that I love about this film as you explore it's creative process is how it completely dispels the myth that Superman isn't relatable that's exactly how the filmmakers were able to approach this weather Zimmer as a foreigner or Boyer both as a stepfather or a new father and so on and so forth but that's another show just like the music is another show in the context of this show for this scene the main thing the music gives us insight into is how central the Kents are the Clark's identity they are his very soul the DNA of his character in the way Jor-El provided his biological DNA I know that it's a common interpretation that Jonathan served primarily to hold Clark back and that it was Jor-El the imparted the character of Superman onto Clark but I don't think that's a completely fair interpretation certainly Jor-El provides significant Superman like motivations and trappings in a series of nice speeches but character doesn't come from listening to a speech character comes from how you live your life on a daily basis how you prove yourself in the small the regular and ordinary not just those big dramatic tests Jonathan and Martha were with Clark for that and they are the backbone of his identity but rather than me making these cobranded unsubstantiated statements let's actually get to the material to get into our line by line analysis let's start with the first one found in this we found you in this beneath the barn covered in a tarp is something so different in design it would be difficult to have any illusions of it being anything other than an alien spacecraft or some piece of abstract art what I mean by that is there have been versions of callow's craft where it could be and were temporarily construed by the Kents to be space craft of earth origins whether the Russians Massiah or some other human source here Clark's vessel is decidedly alien down back Mrs. actually am this scene where we had young Clark Kent original content is introduced to the StarCraft for me filming this it was really crazy a be able to see how high-tech actually built listening now you might think it's limit CGI but it was all real and that was that was fate was actually there and from easier for the first time I thought that was just epic because it never than anything that high-tech for the starship when Jonathan goes to get the command key out of his little desk area that is really sprinkled look at because you might not notice the casinos by a lot quicker but this is actually where he does all of his research about Clark and about alien sightings in Angels ancient city busting through the years that he had Clark now we've been steeped in creative commentary thus far but how about a quick die Jette question occasionally I've heard it raised how could Jonathan possibly of managed to get the ship down into the barn without assistance well I don't think this one's too hard to put together you have to do a little bit of math but I promise will use again later so it will be worth it in 2013 Clark says he's 33 years old that means the Kents found Clark in 1980 Jonathan's marker indicates that he was born in 1951 and that means that he would be a strapping young 29-year-old farmer within equally young wife around that time Clark says that he was found in a field suggesting that Jonathan and Martha had the time and the isolation to hide the ship Col. Hardy says that the craft maxes out at 17,000 pounds which is a little bit odd phrasing but it suggests that the ship ways around 8 1/2 tons Jonathan says that his family has been farming for five generations and it is profoundly unlikely that they have just been subsistence farming by hand all that time they're going to have an agricultural tractor and that is easily going to have the towing capacity and potentially the lifting capacity with certain attachments to manipulate Clark's ship to between a young Jonathan a young Martha in the farming equipment is no question or issue about being able to move the ship into the barn right the
is usually government who show up at our doorstep know whenever We were sure that the government was going to show up on her doorstep but no one ever came will first let's answer this quick question why didn't the government, in 1980 unidentified flying objects were tracked by an alphabet soup of government agencies from the FAA to the CIA to strategic air command or air defense command you think someone with detect and investigate and then subsequently sees the ship right of course for that chain of events to occur we need that first step to happen callow ship has to be detected and there's good reason to understand and to expect that that wasn't and wouldn't be why because the ship was shielded we have to remember that Zide was highly motivated to find callow ship he believed that it contained the codecs Zide had the black zero's sensors at his disposal but nonetheless Zide couldn't find the ship without first interrogating cattle it is logical for the ship to be shielded from kryptonian sensors because presumably Jor-El built the ship and secrets of the ship could and did avoid kryptonian sensor technology and makes total sense that it would be undetectable to earth's sensory technology in 1980 additionally this would help explain why the kryptonian's didn't pay any particular special heed to the C-17 as it approached since his payload would not have shown up as anything as significant as Cal ship now in this line Jonathan indicates a certain degree of fear and skepticism of the government some critics say that those fears are never substantiated or justified and obviously I disagree I think that we can find some support for Jonathan's fears in the film itself but also for rely on a bit of basic history and common sense but before we go there tangentially and exterior to the film the suicide squad could completely vindicate Jonathan's position that the government is not to be trusted additionally there are rest of Lois Lane in their eagerness to use indiscriminate deadly force would also justify his position further however the one of the best ways to empathize with Jonathan it to take a quick walk through the relevant historical landmarks of his life so let's do a quick overview and review of Jonathan's life Jonathan was born in 1951 he finds and adopts Clark in 1980 at the age of 29 he reveals the ship to Clark in 1993 at the age of 42 and then he dies to give Clark in the world more time to be ready in 1997 at the age of 46 in order to understand Jonathan Kent we have to take a moment to be in his shoes and appreciate the time that he lived it in may be very easy to take the Internet for granted today but realized that Jonathan Kent is unlikely to have ever use the Internet as a part of his daily life there was a recent Super Bowl ad featuring footage from 1994 of Katie Couric and Bryant Gumbel being mystified by the Internet and the cipher that his email to play a part of that ad in the will come right back is is is is like that with the way the railroad I said case of those about but I've never had a anything back to hunting is what what you might like mail so those are famous educated Metropolitan worldly television journalists they were both born roughly around the same time as Jonathan and they were seemingly stumped by the Internet in 1994 in the heart of New York City this is after Jonathan has been raising Clark for 14 years in role Kansas I am not denigrating Jonathan's intelligence by any means has a profound insight into the scope of what Clark's secret means to the world at large he isn't a country bumpkin and he doesn't have his head in the sand but he also doesn't have the same access to information that we can so easily take for granted today the ubiquity of information that we enjoy today isn't something that Jonathan had access to that Jonathan is limited access to information would logically shape his views on the government and extraterrestrials the information that he could get would likely come from current events books television film and other people and that's assuming that a fifth generation farmer had the time education drive and so on to pursue all under the say it's a pretty fair speculation to guess that we watch more television than say Jonathan ever did nonetheless he was born right when UFOs and alien hysteria entered the American Zeitgeist the Roswell UFO incident allegedly occurred in 1947 spurred on by the 1950s atomic age interest in aliens would continue to swell will come back to that event for now let me posit the fact that skepticism about the government is completely in line with the era by the time Jonathan turned 18 the United States would be right in the middle of the Vietnam War during a roiling time of protests draft controversy high casualties being reported on the news and more the freedom of information act of 1966 would had started to kick in and bear fruit revealing what happens behind the closed doors of Washington bringing to light corruption scandal and illegal actions the FBI and Hoover's dirty laundry was aired this reached even to the highest office in the land we had Watergate and Nixon's resignation further disillusioning the public through the 1980s and the 90s there was a surge of antigovernment sentiment and skepticism fueled by a decade-long farm crisis in the Rust Belt soaring unemployment and resentment over the outsourcing of jobs people did not view the government as benevolent as they once did Jonathan's skepticism about how the authority might react to Clark was exactly what America thought at the time according to Gallup public trust in the government plummeted to 25% in 1980 when Clark was found in it was as low as 17% in 1994 individuals like Anita Hill and Gennifer Flowers became etched onto the national psyche it's in that climate in which a normal and relatable American is viewing government now let's consider popular culture surrounding extraterrestrials during Jonathan's life in the 1950s extraterrestrials tended to be hostile horrors we had the thing the war of the worlds court from the day that the Earth stood still and so on and so forth just before the Kents discover Clark we have films like the remake of invasion of the body snatchers and Ridley Scott's horror film alien when Clark is just two years old ET is a phenomenon the highest grossing film for the next 10 years until Jurassic Park and while that film portrays ET in a positive light the veracity of the government's pursuit of ET would only solidify Jonathan's fears as to how the world might react to Clark Clark's childhood in the 80s would've been filled with aliens predator they live and as we enter the 90s the men in Black comic book which would lead to the 1997 film in 1992 the alien autopsy was a television event and the X-Files made its debut in 1993 it is in this climate and this setting were Clark was caught by his classmates exhibiting paranormal powers and this is the reality in which Jonathan seeks to protect Clark with caution that lack of information helps us understand why Jonathan advises people to go to the overpass during the tornado scene if you didn't know already heading to an overpass during a tornado is generally inadvisable and the US weather service was actually upset with Man of Steel for perpetuating that myth however we have to acknowledge what them being upset about it means the reason that there upset is because to this day people believe that that is where you're supposed to go during the tornado so it is unrealistic for Jonathan to earnestly believe in something and act upon it as if it were true even if it isn't scientifically or statistically advised or sound he can't be blamed for his adoption of that misinformation because the incident occurs in 1997 and just six years before a trusted Kea said TV news report popularized by way of video the myth of overpass safety during a tornado that myth persists to this day I don't think that it was intentional on the part of the filmmakers but nonetheless these apologetics work to explain his advice even if it isn't what people should do it is what people actually do the scene is in that sense authentic if Jonathan had spent a lifetime doubting conventional wisdom he might have discovered differently but as a farmer and in every man it's entirely reasonable that he be inclined to believe the popular myth know whether the filmmakers had a duty to investigate and provide accurate information contrary to what the every man would do that's a separate an interesting question but behind the scope of this podcast so the
we've got is this was in the chamber this was in the chamber with you will cover Jor-El's intentions more thoroughly when we get to his reunion with Cal Al what the command key signifies is that Jor-El did intend to speak with Cal one day just not before Cal Al had been raised human and adopted their world and people as his own those intentions are doubtlessly encoded into the command key itself preventing it from doing anything with the ship I'm sure in the 13 years that Jonathan has been raising Clark and in the years following both Jonathan and Clark have tried inserting the command key into the ship and I'm sure nothing happened because nothing was intended to happen not until Clark brought the command key to the scout ship from Jonathan's perspective this object whatever it is has significance and importance as the only object in the chamber with Clark from our perspective it also highlights for us that there is something important and interesting about this command key and that we should keep our eyes on it the
is the consumer largest Kansas I took it to a metallurgist at Kansas State we already talked about Jonathan's limited access to information in an episode 13 we talked about how the walls were papered with Jonathan's attempt at investigating extraterrestrials on Clark's behalf this is a father who cares who's looking for answers to the questions that he knows his son is going to have he's going out of his way to address these things now a few bits of trivia that may arise from Jonathan mentioning Kansas state Kansas state does include a focus on agriculture bioengineering and metallurgy Kansas state is located in Manhattan Kansas and Jonathan may have taken the command key there because of convenience which would suggest that small bill is close to Manhattan or because of personal knowledge or connection to Kansas state suggesting the Jonathan may have attended or perhaps received a degree from Kansas state or he may have went there for their expertise in metallurgy if it is for geographical reasons we may be able to further play small bill only consider that later in the film Clark is wearing a University of Kansas shirt the University of Kansas is located in Lawrence Kansas and focuses on engineering fine arts and law even more interesting is that the University of Kansas is school colors are blue crimson and gold or blue red and yellow Superman's traditional colors it has been suggested that Clark wearing the University of Kansas shirt is a subtle indication of him trying to get away from his father's alma mater and their five generations of pharmacy soma
it says that whatever is made from believe in the exercise of periodic table is another where saying that it's not from this world Clark you are you he said whatever it was made from didn't even didn't even exist on the periodic table that's another way of saying that it's not from this world Clark and neither argue we can talk about materials being on or off the periodic table don't think the do it now or hear what I'd like to focus on is that these lines obviously take their cues from Superman earth one volume 1 written by J Michael Stravinsky often called JMS in Superman earth one volume 1 there is a sequence with the Kents are revealing to Clark his origins in the scene reads as follows this was all that we were able to rescue from the crash of afraid it's not much I have always told you that you were special that you had to be careful in hiding your gifts from the world but we didn't tell you the rest I had a friend of mine from my days in the Army send me a piece of this to a lab in New York they assumed that we had send them pieces of a meteor because the composition of the metal shavings is whether not from this world Clark they're not from earth you're not from earth so you can see the parallels between that scene in earth one and in the scene that were discussing now that Man of Steel takes many of its cues from earth one immediately following the scene there is a Clark is being bullied earth one also has a pretty's significant gets enemy type scene where Clark is a reluctant hero there is a strong military presence in earth one and an alien invasion results in the issuance of a ultimatum were Clark has to reveal himself and the cause catastrophic damage to draw them out and Clark's spaceship plays a key role in ending the enemy threat and it also ends with Clark joining the daily planet I enjoyed earth one but surprisingly I don't like it nearly as much as Man of Steel despite all these parallels and it's mainly for two reasons that one is that the villain doesn't really speak to me and the other reason is that in earth one Clark doesn't want to be Superman and within the realm of that story it's a sensible and logical approach but in Man of Steel Clark can't wait to help people he's chomping at the bit just waiting for his moment nonetheless earth one is still worthy of being checked out so it may be something you want to look into a specially since volume 3 I'd just drop it is one of the best-selling DC graphic novels so it may be something you want to check out just to have a full appreciation for one of the more popular works in the recent modern Superman mythos whether you like it or not that's completely up to you so don't worry about that another popular print comic from which Man of Steel draws many of its cues is a birthright written by Mark Waid as applied to this scene Jonathan's study and research into the extraterrestrial in Man of Steel was private but in birth right Martha Kent embraces it all and its accompanying lunacy you sort of have that X violation conspiratorial I want to believe poster as you might see in the X-Files an alien pastiche everywhere and not entirely sold on that particular idea because it feels a little vaguely discriminatory I recognize that it's done entirely in fun and for love but perhaps it's a little like saying you love a foreign culture and then you paper your walls with nothing but stereotypical portrayals of that culture that said it may serve as valuable camouflage for what they're doing I don't know that I don't really take a strong position on it haven't read birthright a while a maybe if I revisited I will revise my opinion but between the two earth one and birth rate personally my opinion is birthright is a better story for answering the wise and the house of Superman and then earth one so next we have a big line we have good answers. Answer to are we alone in the universe you're the answer sun you are the answer to are we alone in the universe it's a big question it's phrased big because Jonathan has been anticipating this day and this revelation to Clark so he's thought about these things he's run over these words in these ideas and his mind perhaps even rehearsed a little bit of it the import and the impact of what intelligent extraterrestrial life means is well beyond the scope of this episode this podcast and the film but Jonathan firmly believes that the information is going to change everything he says humanity's beliefs and their notions of what it means to be human what's interesting though is that Clark isn't merely proof that extraterrestrial life exists which in the minds of some could act as a challenge to certain religious precepts Clark's existence proves the intelligent life in the universe is remarkably similar to humanity on earth and that such similarity defies our current scientific understandings about the origins of life now we could continue to discuss the Fermi paradox in the Drake equation and other philosophical questions presented by extraterrestrials above that's not this podcast so heading onto the
it's don't want to be don't blame this on be a huge burden and I don't want to be and I don't blame you son it be a huge burden for anyone to bear now goes without saying that Clark doesn't want to be the fulcrum of these profound questions he wants what every kid wants he wants acceptance the longing normalcy and before this revelation has completely sunk in Clark is already feeling these things slip away how does Jonathan respond as he tell Clark to suck it up and get over it know Jonathan answers with compassion sympathy and protectiveness he empathizes with Clark by acknowledging his feelings but he doesn't sugarcoat it you know irrespective of how Clark feels and what he wants it doesn't change reality and Jonathan doesn't shy away from the truth he remains truthful and he knowledges the weight of the revelation as well but he hears Clark's feelings in out to an extent we can help our feelings that initial and instinctual flush of emotion when were provoked we may be up to channel her feelings and her actions afterwards but a good and wise parent doesn't tell he children to stuff down repress and ignore those initial feelings which can't be helped a good parent doesn't tell the child to pretend those feelings don't exist but instead they help the child to cope and deal with their emotions and a healthy way and that's exactly what Jonathan proceeds to do in the next few lines he begins to help Clark cope Jonathan never blames Clark for his feelings and emotions and will see that again in the bullying scene that emotional wholeness and transparency is part of the reason why Clark is a good person why he's phrased right and he's able to be genuine with Lois and be bold was Swan Lake and as far as I can tell Jonathan and Martha never lie to Clark now in some traditions that is in part because Clark super hearing allows him to act as a living lie detector but here we had no reason to believe that is anything but their character as people and his parents that cause them to be so truthful and honest so when Jonathan says just anyone Clark and I have to believe that you were used information but you're not just anyone Clark I have to believe that you were that you were sent here for reason now before we break down this line I just want to make a note about Costner's performance Costner repeats portions of his lines I hear he says that you were twice he doesn't hear he does in the preceding scene and he'll continue to do it he doesn't do a way that comes across as a starter instead the repetition makes the lines feel more improvisational and genuine it repeats the lines to give them more time and space weight and emotion and to make the words his own I suspect this is Costner bringing his touch to the table rather than lawyers explicit script only because he seems to be the only actor primarily using this rhythmic repetition technique rather than it showing up in the other characters as well now if it is in gory or script and the affectation is specific to Jonathan intentionally than I apologize for my erroneous attribution but for now I'm crediting Costner with the sincerity of his scenes so encapsulated in these lines are too powerful things that Jonathan is imparting onto Clark in order to help them cope with the burden of the answer first he's telling Clark that he special that Clark isn't just anyone yes it will be a huge burden but Jonathan is saying that Clark is up to the task and second he's instilling into Clark his hope and his belief in a purpose one of the central questions of identity is purpose why in what we live for how and why we spend our time and who we are can all come from our purpose in life having a purpose or reason motivates the actions towards that goal we can think of also to different examples where it takes work or effort or something that is a trial or difficulty which we undergo willingly because were trying to achieve a purpose a reason or a goal and here Jonathan doesn't know what that reason is that he has faith that it exists in the
of the stages that you're going through one do you think is a blessing all these changes that you're going through one day one day you're going to think of them as a blessing Jonathan acknowledges that Clark is undergoing changes it's easy to assume that he's referring to Clark's powers but the changes could be referring to puberty the Revelation of his origins so on and so forth if it does refer to the powers it's suggesting that Clark didn't grow up experiencing his full complement of powers and that is entirely consistent with him later discovering the ability to fly even if the potential was perhaps within himself at an earlier time refers to puberty what we've already discussed the bar mitzvah idea and episode 13 but even if Clark wasn't an alien from another planet with extraordinary powers coming-of-age is a significant time and period of change for anyone and if it refers to the origins Jonathan may be speaking about the adjustment to knowing his secret but Jonathan again comforts Clark by sharing his hope that Clark's present is for a future purpose steel isn't generally found in nature it's an alloy of Iran and carbon arising from smelted iron ore which is refined by heat and pressure to achieve the material with greater strength utility and character than its original parts the trials and tribulations that Clark must face only refine him into a Man of Steel capable of withstanding testing being strong holding up under pressure and so on so the
when it comes choice choice of wordlessly uncrowned and from the human race or know when that day comes you have to make a choice a choice whether to stand proud and from the human race or not the idea and theme of choice has risen again and again and highlights how good apparent Jonathan is Jonathan doesn't know the reason that Clark is on earth so he can give him that reason or purpose but he does give Clark into room reasons milestones and purposes to achieve on his way to his final purpose Jonathan has already urged hope in patients is Clark undergoes the trials of today in till they can be turned the blessings and here he's promising it as preparation for that great day that is coming Jonathan doesn't say that if that day comes he says when that day comes he's making Clark's trials immediately applicable to helping Clark make that eventual choice moreover he's placing the responsibility and the choice in Clark's hands Jonathan doesn't say you will stand proud instead he puts it as something that Clark is going to have to aspire for to be a man of character until that moment so that he can make that choice and be proud note that while Jonathan doesn't take the choice or responsibility away from Clark he phrases it in a way where the preferred outcome is clearly suggested Jonathan wants Clark to be proud before humanity Jonathan didn't say a choice of whether to protect your secret from humanity or not Jonathan's choice of phrasing delicately implies a desire and purpose for Clark and shows that it was always Jonathan's intention that one day Clark would stand proud before the world we will see the same kind of approach with Clark's biological father Jor-El when they speak later and is on for speaking about Jor-El imagine how happy Jor-El would be to know that Jonathan was the one to adopt and raise his son Jor-El hoped and dreamed of a child would not be constricted by societal expectations and who would be raised with great aspirations Jor-El risk so much on the belief that Cal needed to be raised have a choice to be free and to forge his own destiny and as a father Jonathan lives up to Jor-El's expectations Jonathan instills into Clark great aspirations and dreams but he doesn't dictate Clark's destiny he merely equips him to have a great one exactly as Jor-El had hoped site can't I just keep pretending on your son you are my son these lines are the heart of this scene and of their relationship even if you understand nothing else the audience has to take away this moment I know that I denigrated soundbites and slogans in episode 13 but if you have to sum it all up without thoughtful analysis then this is exactly the kind the soundbite that hits home and elegantly accomplishes its goals aside from the performances and the direction one of the reasons that this scene speaks so truthfully is because David Coyer was a stepfather himself and his writing of these father-son scenes were informed by his own relationship with his young stepchildren now as much as I have praised Jonathan's prior lines for the purpose and the intention behind them have to think about them from Clark's perspective he's a young 13-year-old boy who's afraid that his secret got out afraid of how different he is told that he's an alien and now his father's talking about someday revealing all of that before the whole world those are lofty and heady goals well beyond him as he is now Clark just wants to go back Clark is scared and he feels alienated enough to believe that he's only been pretending to be Jonathan son Jonathan immediately shuts that down he embraces him and if firms his son ship even the most dense viewer or hostile audience member has a hard time suggesting that Jonathan doesn't love Clark because of this moment no to that despite learning all this Clark wants to be Jonathan son he loves his father this dispelled any misplaced theories that Jonathan shamed or abused Clark by protecting his secret it's interesting that the only two characters that use the word love in the film are Jor-El and Zide Jor-El says that when he's explaining why he can come to earth with Cal and Zide presumes it when threatening the lives of the family and the train station love is something more proven and demonstrable by actions and attitudes than words much like character it tends to be proven through a course of continual commitment more so the grand gestures as I said before Jonathan and Martha were with Clark every day they had to overcome the challenges of raising an extraordinary child with different abilities special needs and under the constant fear that he would be taken away from them after he had become their son they had to learn to discipline a child who was stronger and more powerful than them they had to learn to speak to a child who might be up to discern if they were lying they had to learn to speak around a child who might be able to hear everything and anything they might say they had to teach a child to control abilities that they would never have senses that they couldn't experience and to show character and restraint with incredible power and despite all this they raised a good boy to the best of their ability with love and who love them back they were making it all up as they went along but they managed to teach Clark to focus his senses and they managed to raise a man with the character to willingly sacrifice himself for the sake of others Dr. you you you you are recent Clark but somewhere out there you've got another father to gave you another name and who sent you here for reason Clark now Clark's ability to picture the island on the ocean shows that he accepts the vision that was given to him by his parents now here Jonathan paints a picture of the future or Clark learns of his reason and his purpose for being sent to earth Jonathan instills a hope into Clark that one day he may meet or know that other father know his other name know his place in the universe and no others like himself and not be alone in that regard Johnson's hope is a matter of faith it's something that he doesn't know and can't be certain of but it isn't a blind faith without a rational basis from his perspective Clark's parents sent him alone to this world and that's not something people do lightly arbitrarily or without reason to Jonathan's hope that those reasons may one day come to light isn't a senseless belief Jonathan makes this entire moment about Clark because he doesn't say his unspoken fear that Clark's hope of finding his people could lead to the heartbreak of Clark of leaving him and Martha as good parents Clark's happiness comes before there's and then we come to the last line extraterrestrial life he volunteers and even if it takes you the rest of your life you owe it to yourself to find out what that reason is Jonathan releases and excuses Clark to find that happiness to pursue that hope for his own sake there is a jealous and protective part of every parent it doesn't want to let go of their kits to always hold on and always keep them for themselves but here Jonathan gives Clark a call to independence and maturity to actually do something for himself to search for the answers wherever they may take him and however long it may take Jonathan already foresees the possibility that this quest might take a lifetime however he blesses Clark to do that this commission could be construed as a curse the answers worked out there and Clark was damned to a lifetime of searching for the unanswerable with Jonathan believed hoped and had faith that Clark would learn the truth and it turns out the Jonathan was right Jonathan is a hopeful and optimistic figure he simply doesn't sugarcoat the endurance it may take to get the answers at this point Jonathan and Martha have been wrestling with Clark's secret alone for 13 years so it was important for him to express the Clark that this may be something for the long haul something that takes the rest of your life to the Clark does not expect immediate answers grow impatient or frustrated easily and that's one of the reasons I really love and appreciate the characterization in Man of Steel because Clark had to undergo such a long and lengthy crucible to become the hero that he is to me that is much more likely to forge someone the strong character of Superman than a more idyllic childhood or being preached at in a cave these lines make it clear that Jonathan had greater expectations for Clark's purpose in life however there is a clear difference between knowing that somebody has a great calling and saying that now is the time to do it we already discussed this and episode 13 but waiting is completely consistent with being a good parent training your 13-year-old to be a vigilante is not that would be to be frank insane yet it is amazing how many people condemn Jonathan for not training Clark to be a colorful costumed superhero in a world where that doesn't even exist as a concept when it is already insane in a universe where it does exist as a concept neatly hours even if your kid is destined to be a firefighter or a soldier you don't start putting them in the peril of actual fires or actual warfare no instead you do everything your power to ensure your child safety and then you may help to train them in general tools applicable to that destiny for example physical conditioning or self-discipline or bravery while Clark would not be in physical peril his danger is the exposure of his secret so it would be irresponsible parenting to jeopardize Clark's secret for the sake of training him to help people instead the Kents equipped Clark to focus his senses to restrain his power to have compassion for others and to keep his own secret they gave him the tools to be a hero the ability to keep his own secret allows him to remain a part of humanity to be connected to it and maintain his compassion for the world and his desire to help it now if we use the gospel is a parallel Jesus his adopted father Joseph was aware of his sons higher calling but he didn't push Jesus into it before he was ready instead he imparted what he could and what he knew why was Jesus a carpenter because Joseph was a carpenter why is Clark consider a farm boy because Jonathan was a farmer Jonathan taught Clark how to farm and through it he taught Clark the ethics and the values of a farmer a farmer has to make wise and prudent life-and-death decisions in the here and now for things that affect the distant future based on a mixture of hope and faith experience tradition and the wisdom of one's elders this drives maturity and decisiveness planning in deference humility and action you learn how important your individual actions are to the harvest the also learn humility in the face of nature time and the unexpected you must do your part to prepare and plant but have faith and hope that your efforts are going to be undone by the storm drought or the market you rely on actions over words because the harvest can be tricked outsmarted be gone wild or debated you learn patients believe in growth and understand error failure and trying again and out of this we can easily understand that a young but decisive mature proactive person of character who hopes to do good can arise naturally from a farm Hyatt Salix again you to talk about the found the Family found when and how that came about we were looking for a classic Midwestern follow we actually found it but it was in the wrong place was in the wrong landscape as we actually considered putting on the back of the truck and moving it but at the same time will we had found another without a farmhouse and so what we did was look at the found house that we found 30 miles south and three created completely in this beautiful farm in the right setting that had an empty space when the farmhouse itself about down so that important thing with the Kent family found the smallest establish in this perfect quintessential Midwestern American landscape and pod about is not only the farmhouse itself and getting that right and the time it takes to build that but to get the landscape to look right as well to follow was planting soybeans and so we had to persuade them instead to find: and we had to planet far enough ahead in the right cycle of of of the season so the call would be at the height we needed to be when we actually got to the sun now quickly for some larger context all of this that we've discussed was all a flashback so we know from the preceding seems that Clark doesn't have his answers yet Byrne says where the help they find you greenhorn suggesting that he doesn't have a history with the Debbie sue and that he's fishing means that he hasn't found is great calling because it's unlikely that he was sent to Earth to be a fisherman that he needs to take the disguise means that he isn't ready to stand proud before the human race yet but now all of Jonathan's hopes have been imparted to us the audience and having that context it makes Clark's frustrations in the next scene all the more human and relatable when he clearly isn't living out those hopes to go even further back we started the film on krypton where Jor-El conveyed almost a sense of royalty or nobility in a caped culture wearing ceremonial armor having the ear of the highest Council on the planet writing upon the flying steed and able to do battle this father sent Cal Al with all his hopes and his dreams and this father who seems unbridled and unrestrained readily ignoring societal convention bucking their beliefs and breaking the laws to do right we know all of that is pent-up in Clark's blood but having seen Jor-El be killed and krypton die we wonder if Jonathan's promise could ever come true and that's the set up for our next scene as we returned back to present day and that's were men and this episodes commentary until next time that answers the question does Superman came to be the way is what we get a life to be offered the chance to fill that role I'm having a bit of power in a way supermodel super dad pressure is much more about protecting the enemy from his own demise because if you see this is underwhelming out as bad as that will found out he's good judgment when you power everything wants to know what to he's alive why did you finally years suit and do the world is biomes the rear side you have the movie even though even my asking a lot of the proficient you have to tell mom that still in the movie are not reason in a bullying and bully at you know I feel like maybe I should go somewhere else or just hang up the rest that even all that may development those things are so pure having your which is endless and we left her mom about this you don't mean in that was a fun night as I think it otherworldly parents you know we this kid has to take out the trash has to monologue and by the way you know he's got edge to you know it's just a man's value is is is worth that starts with how you contribute your family others the arms him later it want every boy and girl as long as his earth you spending how they grow up that was an interview of Diane Lane and Kevin Costner with access Hollywood which gives us a little insight into how they approached their roles I love the idea of Jonathan spending time with his son fishing recreational fishing can be contemplative meditative and simply quality time outdoors it can teach patients careful control of one strength and it's a great father-son All-American activity in the children's book Man of Steel the early years we see an exclusive image of nine-year-old Clark holding a rod while Jonathan is beaming next to him holding up the bass that they've caught in the book below it is the picture we see in Martha's photo album of Clark holding up his metal at the science fair with Jonathan proudly behind him and the photos are captioned Clark and Jonathan share a special bond the deleted scene referenced by Costner in the interview places the scene at age 13 after Clark is bullied and I like the idea that it's an activity that they shared together Clark's entire life a time to bond and to talk that said I can understand cutting it from the film for a few reasons first Emmaus simply been cut for time in the film that's already running over two hours second as Costner points out it is ally and it does exclude Martha to retreat from reality and all of those things are human and forgivable but there is a certain pressure to air on the side of infallibility when given a choice when you're dealing with that Superman mythos I'm not saying that I agree with that but I can see the justification for cutting out things that are arguably unnecessary foibles third and finally it may have been cut as a concession to birthright as we discussed earlier Man of Steel does borrow cues from birth right and one of Mark Waid's innovations in that story was to suggest that Superman's conversion to killing stems from his ability to see life leaving undying creature and his aversion is so strong that wades Superman is a vegan in other words that Superman would never catch kill or eat a fish or any other animal even apart from birth rights explanation there are some detractors against fishing. So perhaps it's just another controversy dodged indeed in Man of Steel the only thing that we see Clark consumer is beer which in most but not all cases is the get so we don't know if beef bargain Jan or fish fillet is off the menu but this may go back to that tabula rasa idea we raised back in episode 12 until you're told otherwise you are free to interpret this aspect of Superman any way you please of course there is still more to get into with Clark's parenting and questions about Jonathan but we will revisit this topic again I hope you've enjoyed this episode aren't I think I've rambled on long enough Man of Steel answers insight commentary is a proud member of the Superman podcast network so here are some promos for the network shows that I suggest you check out if you want to extend your enjoyment of the Superman mythos got it together from the far reaches of beings that are assembled and that's what got dedicated to the bust greatest superhero is what he is Superman like featuring Superman: the DC comics crisis Superman podcast is Superman this you will podcast is Superman forever and about what you are you are you will podcast KL from Superman homepage.com is John Wilson really help you are leaving my present bat your retailer Michael they start to Sam result is the Mario is given by an highlighted I gave Younis and how has Gotti they because that what thanks so much soliciting I just love discussing the stuff been sticking with me hopefully you do genuinely grateful for each and every listener and hope you join us@ManofSteelofSteelanswers.com that way got a question you want answered insights you want to share commentary to make you can post in the comments for all your like-minded apologist to see where you can email me@mosaicofManofSteelofSteelanswers.com like what you heard please review the show in iTunes and drive this is Dr. awkward your DC cinematic universe apologist signing off CNX of answers