Kicking off WonderCon was the Beastly Powers: Exploring Science, Magic, and Mythology in Comics and Pop Culture. Hosted by Lorran Garrison, the panel took a dive into how animals have inspired humans and how animal powers have been woven into our cultural fabric. Joining Lorran on the panel was John Jennings (professor and author/illustrator, Marvel, DC, Megascopeto), Lyn Pacificar (chief ritualist and shaman, Katuuran), Lea Anderson (columnist, Fangoria), Mary Pastrano (writer) and Alex Langley (Spider-Man Psychology: Untangling Webs).
Here are some highlights from the wide ranging panel:
Cultural Appreciation and Context
Every culture around the world has its own interesting myths and iconic beastly creatures. Writers have found a lot of inspiration in these, but as John pointed out, having the work contextualized by the community it represents is crucial to success. Whether it’s interviewing people from the community or sensitivity readers, making sure that it is right is important.
Remixing Past Stories
Lea Anderson led a particularly interesting portion of the panel in talking about Topsy and Bopsy, the two horrific twins from Lovecraft Country’s 8th episode (an episode of television I still have yet to finish because of how terrifying the two are). Much of their mythology is based as a refutation of characters such as Topsy from Uncle Tom’s Cabin and leaning into the tropes of how young Black women are treated and viewed.
A similar exploration is done by Pastrano in her book which is about the Manananggal, an iconic Fliipino monster (seriously read the description, it’s amazing). In her story, she uses a teenager going into puberty and turning into a monster (naturally) as a way to explore feminine rage, as well as indigenous people fighting against colonization.
Spider-Man
Perhaps most applicable to the panel topic, Spider-Man got an interesting examination. As the Spider-Man writer on the panel, Alex fielded a question on Beastly Transformations and what they reveal about characters. With Peter Parker, his transformation doesn’t turn him into a different person, but instead allows a more fuller realized Peter Parker to come forth.
They also dove into the moniker “friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man.” While Spider-Man, like other heroes, does incredible acts of valor, he’s known for his acts of heroism and kindness in his neighborhood, something that makes him aspirational to even more people. Beyond the mask, we can all embody him in ways that are much about our community. For as much as I’ve heard about or seen things involving that character, it like decontextualized the character for me.