RIP Stan Lee

The world of entertainment lost one of its greatest minds today, and the world lost one of its most profound imaginations. Stan Lee, the mastermind behind Marvel comics, has passed away at age 95.

Stan Lee is well-known the world over as the creator of timeless characters such as Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Incredible Hulk, and the X-Men, among many, many others. His characters and worlds brought joy to countless lives over the years, due in no small part to the depth and human understanding Stan Lee weaved into his stories.

Although his creations ranged from superhuman to cosmic beings, Stan Lee didn’t rely solely on epic feats of strength for his characters, but grounded them with human reliability that many people in the comic book industry seem blind to, even today (the less said about what more contemporary comic writers have done with his characters in works such as Marvel Zombies, the better). While many comic artists strive to be “cool” and “edgy,” Stan Lee knew it was most important to make his characters human, no matter how outlandish their powers or outward appearance might be.

A forward-thinking storyteller, Stan Lee was often described as having “a heart of gold and balls of steel.” He made characters who were flawed, and who taught readers it was okay to be different. The fact that famous creation, Spider-Man, is depicted as a nerd who was regularly bullied in school is a testament to how ahead of the game Stan Lee was, seeing as movies and other mediums have only started catching up in making such characters in more recent years. Stan Lee wrote stories that appealed to people of all backgrounds, that captured the imagination, and made even the biggest outcasts feel at home.

Despite being a comic book writer, Stan Lee’s influence has reached out to seemingly all forms of media. The world of cinema is now dominated by Stan Lee’s creations, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe in particular being the highest-grossing film franchise in history. And let’s not forget that, over the years, Stan Lee became the “King of the Cameos,” appearing in virtually every movie based on his characters in Hitchcock fashion. He even ended up having cameos in films unrelated to his works in more recent years.

Stan Lee has left a nearly unparalleled legacy in the world of entertainment. One that will continue to delight and inspire countless people forever more.

Excelsior!

Author: themancalledscott

Born of cold and winter air and mountain rain combining, the man called Scott is an ancient sorcerer from a long-forgotten realm. He’s more machine now than man, twisted and evil. Or, you know, he could just be some guy who loves video games, animations and cinema who just wanted to write about such things. View all posts by themancalledscott