My apologies for the delay in getting this week’s column up. But our comments are up and running so let us know what you think of Why are we thinking about this? and chime in with your suggestions and beliefs on this week’s topics!
In Asterix the Gaul; how come Getafix doesn’t distribute the magic potion to all the other Gaulish villages?
In the classic French series Asterix the Gaul, all of Gaul has been conquered by Rome except for a tiny village which has held out against the invaders by themselves. How are they doing this? With the aids of endless legions and adavanced weaponry? Incredible tactics? No! It’s through the aid of their druid Getafix who brews a magic potion that gives the villagers superhuman strength and singlehandedly crush armies. Now, with such a potent potion, you would think that they could quickly distribute the potion amongst the other villages and start an uprising to push back the invaders, right? But no, instead they keep the secret of their magic potion for themselves and allow their fellow countrymen to suffer the oppression of the Roman empire. They even have the gall to brag about their potion to other people like the Belgians! Sure, you can claim that Getafix is afraid that others will misuse his recipe but that shouldn’t be enough of a reason to allow his entire country to suffer!
Do superheroes have health insurance?
Have you seen Spider-Man take a beating before? The man has been hit with everything from kitchen sinks and cosmic blasts to regular bullets . Superheroes are taking severe beatings constantly and need to get patched up. This brings up the issue of whether or not they have health insurance to check into the hospital or see a doctor to get patched up. You could argue that they probably just go see the Night Nurse, but it’s never outright stated that she’s the exclusive provider of health care to superheroes. And what if the Night Nurse isn’t available, do they still avoid getting treatment? I am fairly sure most heroes don’t know squat about treating gunshot wounds. Even heroes such as Daredevil who are wealthy enough to afford health insurance, maybe they can see some private doctors…but then won’t they wonder why these same guys keep on showing up on their doorstep all beat up and bloody?
Doc: Geez, this Murdock guy gets the crap beat out of him a lot! (Note: Yes, I know that in the Bendis run he was shown using his chi to heal himself, but I am damn sure he can’t ninja out a bullet)
David Diep is a News Editor for ComicBookDaily, an assistant manager at Big B Comics in Hamilton, Ontario and a renowned daydreamer which is how he comes up with these crazy ideas.
