These are dark times, there is no denying.”
I could hear these words from (slain) Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour over and over again as I read Noelle Capili’s tweets satirizing the world of Harry Potter with the so-called Marcos apologist logic found on the internet, on every post, every day.
Purposely deceiving those whose primary sources are memes and shared posts, as well as those lazy enough to be critical about what they see on Facebook, an army behind the keyboard exists to whitewash a dark era.
Other Filipinos have turned to humor to air out their frustrations on social media— trolling the internet trolls by using their own battle cries against them. Others are more escapist, turning to fiction to forget the current social reality.
But what if your favorite fictional worlds are suddenly plunged into a havoc that is parallel to what our country suffers? Imagine your favorite narratives being revised to let villains suddenly resurface as the new heroes.
Inspired by the online posts of Capili (Harry Potter) and Patrick Agaloos (Hunger Games), Super reimagines fiction with apologist tendencies:
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is called out by the public for making a stand against a dark wizard whose tyrannical rule the young Potter was never quite under, thus nullifying his opinion. It simply didn’t matter if his opinion was based on books on historical magic and other references, or the fact that the rest of his family were victims of Voldemort. Didn’t live in that dark era? How could you have known the truth then, Potter?
The VVS (Victorious Voldemort Supporters) are also keen to say that Dumbledore’s Army is just a group of privileged, inutile, temperamental brats who have too much time in their hands. These young wizards are told to put their wands away and bury their heads back to their spellbooks.
Solid purist wizards (mostly from Slytherin) tell Squibs, Mudbloods and those who try to protect them to stop using Hogwart’s facilities and the Ministry of Magic’s infrastructures that their pureblood forefathers have designed and built (some infrastructures are deemed cursed, and others rest on the graves of slaves).
Even the media is not spared, the Daily Prophet is being ridiculed for its biased reports against Voldemort, and are said to be evidently pro-Dumbledore. Even in the magical world, the most prestigious of newspapers would have slanderous writers (or columnists) like Rita Skeeter, maliciously manipulating stories just for pizzazz, and somehow they manage to be the “majority’s” favorite and “most credible” source of news.
The Hunger Games
Imagine the “majority” telling Katniss Everdeen to move on from the deaths of Rue, Finnick and even Prim. The people of Panem say that these people courted death because of their rebellious tendencies.
Panem has completely forgotten why a revolution was needed as they looked back to the time of President Snow, when infrastructure was grand. During his term, The Capitol’s elite also lived so lavishly—with avant-garde everyday clothes and jewelry made for monarchs, an accepting culture toward plastic surgery, as well as wasteful eating habits—a lifestyle that the rest of contemporary Panem (and its ambitious leaders) dream of.
The people next started to miss the presence of the Peacekeepers. Eventually, they would be justifying the Hunger Games, wanting the deadly competition back because it represented a more “stable” dystopian state.
They no longer cared if their tributes survived, as the common man’s chance of being in the Hunger Games was so slim anyway. The “majority” argued that the people of the Hunger Games era were disciplined and the economy, in terms of agriculture and production, was systematic with the division of the districts.
May the odds be in your favor, Panem.
Marvel
Even in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, most adults thought that the new generation is too young to either understand or make a stand. Spider-Man was even reported to be forced into joining the Civil War between Captain America and Iron Man, who have been arguing about the Sokovian Accords.
The public has repeatedly told the web-slinger not to get involved in the fight of these two superhero leaders that stretches out to past decades— in the years he wasn’t even born yet.
The resentment of people against the Avengers has also fostered the public’s openness to the leadership and ideals of Hydra, arguing that the superheroes, along with S.H.I.E.L.D, have kept them long in the dark about the intergalactic (as well as multidimensional) threats that Earth faces.
Hydra’s newly founded cult has been living up to the mythological creature it was named after—when you cut off one head, two more will take its place.
Star Wars
Those in the dark side of the Force are trying to ease the public’s resistance. They are trying to convince the people that the surviving Jedi have gone into hiding after abusing the Force. The ruins of the Galactic Empire and the instability that they are now living in are caused by the unbalance in the Force.
The Sith swear they will put balance back into the universe, and they have become the people’s new hope. There is tension in the galaxy, as the people are divided among supporters and the opposition.
The planets that are in favor of the dark side propagate the same information: That the building of a Death Star for the fourth time promotes public safety rather than being a defensive threat (blowing up Alderaan was then intended to keep the universe at peace, never mind a whole planet with millions of civilians suddenly wiped out from space, and the real threat was The Resistance); Order 66 was also necessary to obliterate the Jedi’s greed for power.
But Naboo stands vigilantly in opposition—the planet refuses to move on, to forget—never again allowing the galaxy to be ruled by fear, intimidation and tyranny. They raise their voices amid the millions supporting the dark side, and they will not stop even when their voices are drowned in cheers and applause.
Because they know that is exactly how liberty dies—with thunderous applause.