Massless

(Updated...now with Correct Spelling and Improved Syntax!)

First, the news:
The Register: 'DeCSS' DVD descrambler ruled legal!

You can find the published opinion for the above ruling at The Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District website in .DOC and .PDF formats. (Thanks, Camille!)

Second...villains!
I've musing lately on the fetishization of the origin of villains as a theme in American pop culture. I just wanted to remind my future self that this has been popping up in movies and T.V. shows for a while and that, while recently appearing to me with increasing frequency, was not a result of the renewed interest (post-Sept. 11th) in exploring evil motives to prevent future evil outcomes.

Four examples from recent experience include:

Smallville: Bad T.V. show. But a good example. Super-villain Lex Luthor is a rich, ambitious teenager. Portrayed as sympathetic and funny, Luthor begins the series with a series of acts of charity whose negative impacts he either ignores or rationalizes...

Unbreakable: **Spoiler.** The entire movie is about Mr. Glass' identity crisis and his exploration of the existence of (and his subsequent definition as a) super-villain. Buffy, The Vampire Slayer: Willow: sidekick and Buffy-best-friend. And super-villain? A new narrative evolves as Willow's slow corruption by power is currently seen in her tendency to justify increasingly selfish and dishonorable actions. Episode One: Sure it's a terrible, terrible movie, which I can't mention without the obligatory vow of vengence for those two hours of my life lost forever, but Anakin Skywalker's transformation into the very embodiment of pop evil deserves mention.

And let me tell you, I am hooked everytime this device appears. I wonder why this narrative has been popping up? What are we exploring? Are we creating any new myths or archetypes? Are we these new narrative structures or old ones with a different flavor?

I mean, don't get me wrong, villains have always been cool. But why are we suddenly watching the villains become villains?