To say that the earth is filled with people of different races is a myth. Race, is a social construct, used mostly to dehumanize or perhaps enslave another culture. If you’re born on earth, you’re part of the human race. Skin color, the one obvious and superficial difference in the human race is another matter. And it should not be ignored. In the Valiant universe, Abram Adams is a black man, who’s grown up in Russia. He becomes a ‘cosmonaut’ and together with two others encounter a force that imbues them with special abilities. Both Abram and his partner Myshka, after surviving an alternate reality created by their former companion, have settled into a new hermitage existence with their young, powerful son. Of course he’s kidnapped and his parents set out into the cosmos to find him and find out why he was taken in the first place. Still, can there be a momentary pause to address the fact that a black man grew up in Russia? Why make Abram a dark-skinned African-American if it’s going to be ignored? What potential storylines are being closed off to the reader?
In the meantime factions in an off-world are battling over the baby, who is considered to be a savior. This is the more interesting story, not Abram, but the groups battling over his son. Matt Kindt is telling a story where the conflict emerges from different ideologies. The ones who believe in the preordained and the others who feel that destiny is a theory created to hold people back and not have them think for themselves. This makes Abram a minor character in his own narrative. He’s marginalized by others and is put into a position where he can’t make his own choices. Perhaps this is the way Kindt utilizes Abram’s skin color. As a minority his help is demanded with no reparations. And there is no guarantee that he’ll get his son back. His child is only important as a bargaining chip. Whether it be as someone to be bartered or a symbol, Abram’s child is not thought of as a human being. It’s also a commentary on servitude. At one point a droid has information that can be helpful. The reader comes to find out that he has been allowed to live by his masters. The posture of the droid, his tone are filled with contempt. It knows that its fellow droids have just been slaughtered. They seem to share a consciousness. But this is ignored by those who allowed it to live. This is the world that Abram comes to. In order to save his son, how will he and Myshka be able to leave with all these bubbling revolutions coming to a head?
In essence, the universe that Abram and Myshka have encountered could be considered a microcosm of a world hurdling towards extinction. Think the second installment of the original film series ‘Planet of the Apes.’ Kindt’s issue two of ‘Eternity’ is picking up steam. This promising storyline could have some thought-provoking commentary in regards to hierarchies society tends to create. Or, it can be the true intentions of fairytales, a warning to take the right path, be kind, and leave others to live their lives on their own terms.
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