- [Scott] How are you doing you wonderful nerds?
Scott here.
Have you seen that Deadpool 2 teaser
that came out a few weeks back?
I know a lot of you guys have
and it makes me really excited for the sequel.
And since you guys are always asking me
to make a Deadpool video,
I decided that today is the day
that I slack off and give that opportunity
to someone else who wants to do it.
So yes, we have another guest video today
from Mr. C's Comics,
who wants to talk about Deadpool
and his secret link back to Shakespeare.
It's really interesting.
I'd love to know your thoughts about it.
But first let me talk to you guys
about a company called the Snupps.
Snupps is of course in the best place to collect,
organize and share the things that you own and you cherish.
You know we love comic books here,
you want to give them a nice home.
You can of course organize your collections
on virtual shelves,
which can be public or private
if you want to keep it all to yourself
or show it off to of the world.
And if you want to take it a little bit further than that,
you can even join groups
like the comic book group that I'm a part of.
Guys, go check it out.
There'll be links in the description.
You can use those links down there
to check out all the stuff
that I've been collecting over there.
All of my shelves and my groups and everything like that,
and I'd love to see what you guys are collecting too.
Let me in on that.
Let me, let me, let me see what you got going on.
Snupps is of course available on iOS and Android
and it's also just a website that you can go to for free.
So, check it out.
But for now I present to you
an analysis of Deadpool and Shakespeare.
Enjoy.
- Wade Wilson, Puck from Midsummer Night's Dream,
Feste the Clown.
What do they have in common?
Let's find out.
Deadpool is a fun character but he's not for everyone.
He happens to be my favorite
and it's because of more than just his
yellow speech bubbles and gorgeous complexion.
Having read Deadpool for many years,
I've come to realize that he embodies
a few traits of Shakespearean character
I come across in the classroom.
Most notably of course is the fact
that he often addresses the reader directly,
showing awareness of the fact that he's in a comic book.
Different writers treat this differently
but it's a staple of his character.
However beyond that,
his place in the Marvel Universe
can effectively be compared to characters like Puck
from Midsummer Night's Dream.
As well as Feste, the licensed fool from Twelfth Night.
Let's get the most known quality out of the way first
and tackle Wade Wilson's treatment
of that beloved 4th wall.
- 4th wall break inside a 4th wall break.
That's like,
16 walls.
- Alright, so it seems important to clarify
some of the language around a character's treatment
of good old wall number four.
Commonly, we'll see something
like a shared cultural reference
or even a full-blown talked to the camera type of thing
and it all gets labeled as breaking the 4th wall.
Technically though, there are different levels of this.
A character can lean on the 4th wall
and that will often entail something like
a shared reference to a real-world thing
or a joke that focuses on the fictional world
being fictional.
By doing this,
we're seeing things that would
fall under the label of medium awareness.
Literally, this is when a character shows
that they are aware of the medium
in which they've been placed.
Wade is aware that he's in a comic book
even if he doesn't address the reader directly.
Of course however,
there are moments when the Merc with a Mouth
just straight up talks to us,
knowing full well that he's just part of a story.
Many of you already know
that he's not the only comic book character that does this,
but he's certainly the most notable
and it's really part of the Deadpool brand at this point.
He's mouthy, he's funny, he's violent
and he'll pull a Ferris Bueller on you without hesitation.
A lot of this stuff is actually covered
along with other characters acting this way
in a couple of older NerdSync videos
like comics going meta and She-Hulk in the 4th wall.
Scott covers more ground
in terms of characters than I do here,
so take a look there if you haven't seen them yet.
So, what precedent is there
for going Miley Cyrus on the 4th wall?
Well, I'm not the first guy to point this out,
but our buddy Billy Shakes had a penchant
for writing self-awareness into his place.
One of my favorite examples is the play
A Midsummer Night's Dream.
After a couple hours of fantastical revelry,
our favorite sprite Puck ends the play
with a plea directly to the audience.
- [Puck] If we shadows have offended, think but this,
and all is mended, that you have but slumber'd here
while these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme, no more yielding but a dream,
gentles, do not reprehend:
if you pardon, we will mend.
- So what we see here is Puck
offering some advice to theater goers.
If anything in the play offended you,
simply remember it as a dream.
Moreover, the viewers are asked for their hands in applause
if they'd be friends and enjoyed the show.
The final speech in the epilogue
is indeed made to the audience.
And Puck is showing clear awareness
that the audience is that of a theater,
not just passers-by within the fictional world of the story.
In making the final speech,
the 4th wall is effectively broken.
So in turning our attention to another play,
we can see that the similarities between Deadpool
and the characters of Shakespeare stretch a bit further.
In the play Twelfth Night, were met with a fool named Feste,
whose job it is to just go around and make witty comments,
joke about people and generally crack wise
to everyone he sees.
Now the fool is a stock character
and has been used in theater and film for a very long time.
Taken from the actual profession of a jester.
A fool is the protoform
of what many people these days understand
as the comic relief.
The comic relief character has of course
been portrayed in many ways.
Including within characters
that contribute additional layers to the stock character,
enabling it to be a deep, meaningful piece of the story.
However, there is a crucial element
to this character archetype that should be known
before we go deeper into Feste or Deadpool.
And that is the fool as a character
that is usually not affected by the ending of a story.
Now you may be asking, "Why does that even matter?"
Well, the fool as far as Shakespeare is concerned
is a tool through which a writer
can make criticisms and commentaries of his audience
think that people are shallow, dumb, materialistic.
Give the fool a joke or two that points this stuff out
and they'll go, "Oh yeah, this is the kind of stuff"
"that made The Simpsons and Family Guy
"so critically acclaimed."
Now, getting back to our focus.
Feste is treated a bit differently than the stock fool.
In Twelfth Night,
he exists outside of the typical character.
He's nothing like anyone else in the play
and is also outside the norms of the setting of Illyria.
He just kind of pops in and out to watch and comment
on the regular inhabitants.
To me this is pretty much Deadpool's cameos
in most other comic series.
Sure, Deadpool is involved in the plot,
but when you account for his healing factor
and the fact that he'll never be gone,
he just pops in, comments on what he observes
and then pops back out.
Commentary made, readers thoughts and chuckles activated
and his job is complete.
The comparative view of Feste and Deadpool
doesn't end there though.
Things get a bit more existential.
Keep in mind that Wade Wilson can't die.
Between the healing factor and the curse,
he grows back or more or less stays the same age.
Now I'm ignoring the narrative of Deadpool 2099,
because I see that as a standalone story.
I'm sticking to standard Deadpool here.
Both Shakespeare's Feste and Deadpool live in a space
where they have practically no mobility.
They can't grow or change,
they're caught in this place with their own identity,
and while they help others, sometimes,
move on with their lives, they can't move on with theirs.
Now, Feste doesn't ever seem to really care about this.
He gets some cash here and there
and he's all the happier for it.
However, Deadpool gets put through the wringer
time and time again, only to bounce back to home base.
Became an X-Men, not for long.
People thought you were a hero, well, not anymore.
Have a family that loves you.
Nope, you're garbage.
Funny garbage, but still garbage.
Insightful, witty, self-aware garbage, but still garbage.
Responsible for helping take down Hydra Captain America.
Nah!
Have some demolished building.
Deadpool is Marvel's perpetual fool.
He comes in and out and his main function
is to entertain the readers.
Show the characters what they're doing right or wrong
and then usher in the ending of the story
while he lives on without resolution.
It's a bit depressing but definitely worth studying.
And with that, I'd again like to thank everyone at NerdSync
for having me as a guest.
It's a great honor and I'm so glad to be welcomed
into such a cool community.
If you like what I do,
feel free to come and find me at my channel.
Take care everyone
- [Scott] Thank you to Mr. C's Comics
for helping out with this video.
Let me know you guys' thoughts in the comments down below
and I'll respond to some of them
in Monday's comment response video.
And of course there will be links to his channel
if you want to see more of his work
down in the description below
and also at the end of this video.
And hey, if you're new to the channel,
we make thoughtful and educational videos
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Let's make it happen, guys.
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My favorite nerds on the internet.
As always, I'm gonna give a huge thanks to our patrons,
especially Cristoffer Lange,
Keaten Lampert, Elizabeth Moncel
and the rest of the wonderful nerds,
who helped us keep this show going
over at patreon.com/NerdSync.
You guys are the best.
Click or tap right here to watch one of Mr. C's videos.
I recommend this one about Secret Empire.
It was the first one that I saw of his
and I really enjoyed it,
really got me hooked on his channel.
Check it out.
Also, you can click right down here for something
YouTube's mysterious algorithm, things you'll enjoy.
I'm running out of time because these end cards are short.
Anyway, my name is Scott,
reminding you to read between the panels
and grow smarter through comics.
See ya.