Author Archives: Lily Fanburg '23

Flash Gordon- Movie about War

Flash Gordon the comic book first appeared in the 1930s. There were TV shows in 1954, 1979, 1982, and more, along with the 1980 film that for whatever reason was a large part of my childhood. Having not watched the movie since I was 12, there were several interesting tropes and representations I recognized in my recent most viewing. Since the original character and the film itself come from different decades, I noticed many historical influences in the movie.

The first substantial note would be the red and gold emperor, who is ruthless and all powerful. His subjects are seen with one hand raised calling “Hail Ming Hail.” The red sun reminded me of the Japanese flag, and the signal of supporters seemed reminiscent of Nazi German. Once connecting the villain of the story to the axis powers of World War II, the scene of placing Flash into a gas chamber for his execution took on different meaning. Even though Flash may be a perfect example of Aryan youth, tall blonde athlete, he has gone against the emperor and therefore must die. There is also a secret police force in the film that could be representative of the Gestapo.

The other possible representation of these secret police would be the KGB. Produced during the Cold War, the red and gold could also be that of the Soviet Flag. The theme song, “he’s for every one of us/ stand for every one of us” resembles Cold War propaganda against the red threat of Russia, urging people to stand for their country and fight with them.

Ender’s Shadow (Green Hand Book)

This book was recommended by a classmate who was also choosing books at that time. Ender’s Shadow is a companion novel to Ender’s Game, which I have read and very much enjoyed. I was interested to see how Orson Scott Card would rewrite a story from a different perspective.

The book is about earth’s response to an alien invasion of B.E.M. The strategy is to train young gifted children in battle and command. This book follows a child named Bean through his journey as an orphan on the streets to being an officer in the final battle against the Formics.

It is an Alien Invasion story with political elements, specifically Russia and China as dominant world powers. It also includes space exploration and technological advancements like controlled genetic mutation. The author describes the two companion novels as a type of parallax. I read the companion novel Ender’s Game first, and there is a similar structure that explains certain parts of the book that aren’t necessarily missing without the companion but definitely enhanced when read together. I greatly enjoyed the book and would recommend it to others.

Card, Orson Scott. Ender’s Shadow. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 1999.  Awards: New York Times Bestseller (Fiction, 1999), SF Site Reader’s Choice (1999), Alex Awards (2000), ALA Best Books for Young Adults (2000), Geffen Award (Best Translated Science Fiction Book, 2001), ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults (2004).