5 Fictional Items That Could Improve Our Quality of Life

Fictional stories, especially fantasy and sci-fi, are overflowing with new inventions and devices to help move the story forward and make life easier for its characters. While there's often a focus on how we want fictional characters or worlds to be real, I think the special devices of fiction often get overlooked. I don't know about you, but I find myself often wishing I had some of these amazing creations in real life to make every day a little more palatable. Here are a few fictional items that I think could make our life even better if they were real.

Lembas bread

The Lord of the Rings

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When preparing for any road trip, one must make sure you have enough snacks packed to sustain your journey. If lembas bread existed in the real world, the process of packing for any journey, long or short, would become ten times more simple. Lembas is an elven bread gifted to the Fellowship before they departed Lothlorien, and it sustained them over the course of their entire journey. It doesn't spoil, which is a major plus, and it's very filling—according to Legolas, "one small bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man." Whether going on a trip to Mordor or just to the grocery store, lembas is a meal useful for any purpose.

Pro: More sustenance for far less space.
Con: As Frodo and Sam discovered, you may get tired of the taste after a while. If you supplement lembas with other things, however, you should be fine.
Conclusion: The benefit of this tasty treat far outweighs the bad.

Time-turner

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

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Who hasn't wished they had more time in the day? Whether you're crunching a deadline or just want more time to do the things you enjoy, sometimes it can feel like the days are all too short. Hermione encountered this same problem in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and she used a handy device called a time-turner to allow her to add more courses to her workload. Each time you turn, the time-turner gives you one extra hour, and you can stay in the past a maximum of five hours. (Though as of 2020 and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, two more time-turners have been invented with varying amounts of time, including forever if you wish.) The allure of adding more hours to the day is all too appealing. You can literally turn back the clock and even redo things if you wish. Whether used for studying, more leisure time, or changing the fate of the world, a time-turner could definitely come in handy in the Muggle realm.

Pros: More time, being able to rewrite history.

Cons: ...More time, being able to rewrite history. As Hermione proved, having more time can tend to be extremely overwhelming. And all you have to do is watch an episode of Doctor Who to know that messing with time is not always a good idea.

Conclusion: The time-turner could be a useful invention, but as with all magic and devices, it must be used wisely. Perhaps this sentiment would be a better way to live: "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us." Wait, wrong fandom, wrong wizard...

J.A.R.V.I.S. & Tony Stark's Computer

Marvel Cinematic Universe

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Computers have been one of the greatest inventions of the 21st century; however, like all things, they aren't exactly perfect. All computers crash, break, and freeze up. Except for one... Tony Stark's. I don't think I've turned on a Marvel movie without being incredibly jealous of Tony Stark's computer system. I mean, not only does it never freeze up or seem to have any problems whatsoever, but the way it functions is incredibly cool. Tony can control his computer with his body—how cool is that? He flings 3D computer projections around like it's nothing and controls it with just his voice. And speaking of voices—there's an aspect of his computer system who's a character in his own right: J.A.R.V.I.S., which stands for Just A Rather Very Intelligent System. J.A.R.V.I.S. listens to Tony, talks to him, sets reminders, and basically helps him keep his life on track. He's not just a computer, he's a friend. Who wouldn't want a computer just like that?

Pro: An amazing computer, a built-in organizational assistant, a constant companion.

Con: As we saw in Age of Ultron and countless movies before it, artificial intelligence isn't totally foolproof. Artificial intelligence can easily be controlled and manipulated and even turn evil on its own.

Conclusion: While they certainly have some downsides, computers and technology aren't going anywhere. I'd definitely like to have the best one out there. (Now, if this hypothetically became real, I would just need the hypothetical money to afford it...)

Transporter

Star Trek

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One of the biggest problems we all face in life is transportation—how do we get from here to there? Whether you're just trying to get to work each day or you want to travel all the way across the country, transportation is a challenge faced by everyone. We've managed to come up with our best solutions for the issue, but they're still not perfect. What if there was a better way? Gene Roddenberry certainly thought there was, and he integrated it into his show Star Trek with the transporter. Used as a plot device since the beginning of the show, the transporter has been integral to every Star Trek series. (It's also the origin of the popular yet non-verbatim phrase, "Beam me up, Scotty!") The transporter allows humans and objects to be "beamed over" long distances (about 16,000 miles) by temporarily converting matter into energy. Throughout Star Trek history it's been used in just about any scenario, and I think it could be applied just as easily in real life to get us to work, school, and anywhere in between. (Just make sure you don't have any transporter accidents along the way!)

Pro: You can get anywhere easily, as long as it's within 16,000 miles.
Con: The transporter isn't foolproof. There have been many transporter accidents, from combining two individuals to turning four characters into their child selves. These accidents are usually easily reversible, though, and the accidents are rare compared to the amount of successful transporter incidents.
Conclusion: The transporter's pros are far greater than its cons. Gene Roddenberry had the right idea—it's an extremely helpful way to get from point A to point B.

The Holodeck

Star Trek

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From the beginning of time, humans have sought an escape from the drudgery of reality by retreating into fictional worlds and scenarios. Most of the time we do this by retreating into fiction, but what if that fiction could become real? This is the question that the Holodeck on Star Trek brings to life. (A few notes: The holodeck is one of the more indulgent items on this list, but what is life without a little fun? It's also an item that seems increasingly close to fact rather than fiction, but we'll get to that in a bit.)

Formally known as a Holographic Environment Simulator, a holodeck is a room with the capability to simulate any scenario or situation that a person so desires. It's been used as a plot device since Star Trek: The Next Generation to bring to life various situations, fictional characters, and even historical characters. While it's often used to practice combat skills, it's also used for entertainment purposes, which is the main reason I'm including it in this article. If a holodeck existed, I think every single one of us would be recreating each of our favorite stories and fandoms. It would be an amazing way to bring our fandoms to life and make fiction almost real.

Pro: Making our favorite fictional characters and worlds real!
Cons: As Star Trek illustrated, there are some downsides. There have been instances of people getting way too involved in the holodeck and never wanting to leave, as well as certain holodeck characters gaining sentience.
Conclusion: As with all technology, the holodeck can go wrong. It seems we're on the fast track to holodeck-like platforms with virtual reality devices such as the Oculus Rift. As things like the holodeck become real, be sure to use them wisely and remember to poke your head out into reality once in a while.

What fictional item do you want to become real? Sound off in the comments!

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In Defense of Tony Stark

As we get closer to the approach of Captain America: Civil War, a movie which contains an epic and heartrending battle between two of my all-time favorite characters, I find myself feeling nervous. This movie has the ability to change the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as our perceptions of its characters, for all time.

The problem is that, with a movie of this nature which contains our heroes fighting against each other, one of those characters is perceived as the villain. I've seen plenty of support for Captain America's team, which is great. Please know that this post isn't meant to bash Steve Rogers in any way. I'm not anti-Steve or anti-Bucky. However, due to the fact that our team is pitted against each other, as well as Tony's questionable actions in Age of Ultron (creating a murderbot), Tony hasn't been getting as much love, and sometimes he's even referred to as a villain. I'd like to prove this isn't the case. Civil War is about two points of view and two characters that happen to clash. Neither of them are better than the other, but unfortunately, our beloved characters have had to choose sides. This is Tony's.

It's not hard for me to see why people find Tony Stark unlikable... at least not at first. In Iron Man, we see a highly immature playboy who really only wants to have a fun time. He sleeps around, drinks quite a bit, and parties. Often he does all three at once. He's also the head of Stark Industries, a company that manufactures weapons, which doesn't exactly lend itself to being perceived as the best kind of guy. But at the same time, he's also incredibly smart. This is supported by comic evidence that states that he graduated from MIT at age 17. Tony Stark is a self-described genius (among other things).

All of this changes when Tony is kidnapped by an extremist group who wants to use his knowledge to help them build a weapon. He's injured by one of his own missiles, and to keep the shrapnel from reaching his heart, his fellow captive Yinsen builds him his very first arc reactor. Yinsen himself changes Tony's life in other ways by becoming a friend to him and ultimately sacrificing himself so Tony could escape. This is one of the first moments we can see Tony really change. He's taken out of his comfort zone. He's lost someone, someone who cared about him, and that makes him look at life a little differently. When he returns, Tony is a different man. After going through hell, he returns and changes the purpose of Stark Industries: they will no longer manufacture weapons. He builds his suit, and one of his first missions as Iron Man is to defend Yinsen's home village. Tony's capture and thus meeting Yinsen were the catalyst to help Tony become a changed man and a better one.

Tony's change is not immediate. Over the course of Iron Man 2, he still regresses several times, and it's a slow process. But eventually, he learns to work as a team player, he learns how to conquer some of his inner demons, and he falls in love with Pepper Potts. While Pepper didn't change Tony singlehandedly, she's still one of the people who consistently keeps him grounded. The Avengers were also a huge part of his character development as they showed him he could have team members... and even friends.

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Speaking of the Avengers, one of the biggest turning points for Tony's character was during The Battle of New York. Throughout the movie, Steve insists that Tony isn't willing to make sacrifices.

“I’ve seen the footage. The only thing you really fight for is yourself. You’re not the guy to make the sacrifice play, to lay down on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you… you may not be a threat, but you better stop pretending to be a hero.” 

This culminates when the World Security Council decides to fire a nuke at Manhattan. In order to save the city, Tony flies the nuke up into an alien wormhole, something that could very well be considered a suicide mission. He laid his life down on the line willingly, and he very nearly almost lost it. This is when, in my opinion, Tony truly became one of the most heroic characters I've ever seen.

In Iron Man 3, we see him struggling with the aftereffects of that, complete with PTSD and panic attacks. I appreciate that the movie gave us a chance to see the realistic aftereffects that superheroes deal with from traumatic events. Tony did a good thing, and he saved Manhattan, but it still affected him one movie later (and even into Age of Ultron). I appreciated that your typical action flick delved into this sensitive topic.

Things start to go slightly awry in Age of Ultron when Tony and Bruce accidentally create an artificial intelligence that wants to conquer the world. Tony's actions were completely misguided, but his characterization in this film seemed to turn for the worse. Gone was the mature yet snarky hero we've come to know and love, and instead, we got a bitter, prideful man who made a joke about prima nocta (my irritation with this knows no bounds). He also didn't seem to grieve the loss of Jarvis, his closest--if not his best--friend. All of Tony's character development over three movies and six collective hours seemed to just disappear.

So, between his characterization in Age of Ultron and his undeniable flaws, it's no surprise to me that people considered Tony the villain in Age of Ultron and even Civil War. But Tony's past has proved to me time and time again that while Tony is flawed, he is a hero. Flawed heroes are hard to come by, and I personally believe that Tony Stark is one of the best.

My love for Tony has come from the fact that he is a wounded warrior. He struggled with the death of his parents, alcoholism, the pressures of carrying on his father's legacy, and finally, the kidnapping that resulted in shrapnel embedding itself in his heart. The location of Tony's injury was no coincidence and can in fact be interpreted as a metaphor.

"Here you have this character, who on the outside is invulnerable, I mean, just can't be touched, but inside is a wounded figure. Stan made it very much an in-your-face wound, you know, his heart was broken, you know, literally broken. But there's a metaphor going on there. And that's, I think, what made that character interesting." - Gerry Conway

I have seen Tony's broken heart time and time again over the past few years, and it speaks to my own heart about the challenges each of us face. Even if you are wounded, even if your heart is broken, you can still fight. You can still be a hero. And the things we think are our weaknesses can sometimes be our biggest strengths.

 "You know, I've got a cluster of shrapnel, trying every second to crawl its way into my heart." [points at the mini-arc reactor in his chest] "This stops it. This little circle of light. It's part of me now, not just armor. It's a... terrible privilege."

Tony Stark is our hilarious, snarky hero. His snark is just a part of him, and it's actually a coping mechanism disguising a broken man underneath--a broken man who is slowly learning to build himself up again. Personally, it's been a (sometimes terrible) privilege to watch him do so. Tony Stark is one of my favorite characters to grace my screen--not only because of what he does but because of who he is. He encourages me to keep fighting, to be grateful for my terrible privileges, and to be a hero not in spite of them but because of them.

As we go forth with Civil War, please remember Tony's growth. Remember he's not a bad person. Remember that the Civil War will hurt him, too.

Remember what a hero Tony is and has been over the past few years. And ultimately, remember that you can be a hero too, no matter how broken your heart may be.

What do you think about Tony Stark?

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My Conversion to the MCU Fandom: The 3 Characters That Won Me Over

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This is it, the week we have been waiting for since we first heard that Captain America: Civil War would be adapted to film. In celebration, The Fangirl Initiative is getting ready by sharing our thoughts, opinions, and theories on Civil War and the Marvel Fandom in general. Welcome to Civil War Week!  I am kicking things off by sharing why I, a once unlikely fan, first became a part of the Marvel Fandom. Strangely enough, the two figureheads of Civil War were a big part of that.

To begin my story, we need to head back about six or seven years to my high school Anatomy class. As a 17-year-old girl, I wasn't exactly what you would call comfortable with embracing my interests and passions. I had seen at least one adaptation of the Hulk and was pretty burnt out on The Dark Knight as it was the only movie anyone really wanted to watch in 2010. At this point, I, Anna Gensimore, was a self-professed hater of super hero movies (Aside from Spider-Man, but he's always been one of my favorites). A lot of the hype seemed silly to me but that was simply because I hadn't given them a chance yet.

1. Iron Man

Yes, this is from Iron Man 2, I just love this picture.

Some time around mid-April, my teacher had given up on teaching us anything else. While we worked on our study guides for our final exams, he played a bunch of movies, most of which I wouldn't have watched by my own choice. This included Iron Man. Despite my apprehension, I put down my pencil and stopped looking up anatomy terms. Tony Stark reminded me of the deeply flawed humanity buried beneath the super suits and extraordinary abilities. His sarcasm and bravado led me to realize what I'd missed before: the heart (or ARC reactor) of these films and the very real issues that they deal with. This only continued with the films that followed. The first time I saw The Avengers, and every time really, his kindness and respect toward Dr. Banner gives me the warm fuzzies. Science Bros is probably my favorite thing to come out of the Marvel fandom. Seeing Tony intentionally try to make him comfortable and feel cared for was a huge marker of his growth. Tony Stark's evolution as a character is an important one, and I would be sorely wrong to not credit him with helping me begin to see just how important the MCU is as a commentary on events in our time.  

2. Captain America

Dear Steve.

Tony Stark's brand of sass kindled a spark in my heart that would be fully ignited in the fall of 2011 when a group of friends went to see Captain America: The First Avenger at the local dollar theater. To begin with, I loved the aesthetic of the film. The World War II era has always been one of my favorites style and decor wise. I also really liked how The First Avenger handled propaganda and nationalism without too much cynicism.

Something about Cap as a character struck me deep; he was an ordinary person who became something greater. Not out of a desire to be more powerful or to earn his place in the world but for the right reasons.  Steve Rogers became Captain America simply because it was the only way he knew how to do things. From the moment he jumped on top of that grenade, Steve Rogers claimed a piece of my heart like the loyal Golden Retriever that he personifies fetching a stick. Captain America made me care about a superhero in ways I hadn't imagined possible. (I could write a novel about his loyalty to Bucky.) He's like the friend that gives you life advice as well as a kick in the pants when you need one. Everyone needs a Steve in their life, and I'm lucky to have one. 

The First Avenger left me in disbelief that I hadn't come to love this method of storytelling much sooner. 

3. Dr. Banner, AKA The Hulk

He's beauty, he's grace, he'll smash your face.

Before The Avengers, the Hulk really wasn't my favorite. Probably because of previous film adaptations and how pop culture has skewed the character in the past. Maybe it was nostalgia from his role as Matty Flamhaff in 13 Going on 30, but something told me to give Mark Ruffalo's Hulk a chance. The result was eventually me crying while reading the Planet Hulk comics in the middle of Books-a-Million. 

In The Avengers, we find the dear doctor providing medical care in an abandoned corner of the world. He feels plagued by what he's done as "The Other Guy" and has a desire to help others in any way possible. Considering he gained his other personality through committing an act of kindness in the first place, this makes total sense. Bruce Banner has been through a lot, but overall, he still believes in the goodness of humanity and its potential for redemption. He has a heart of gold despite his struggles, he is way too hard on himself, and he is actively discriminated against. Yes, I understand that the Hulk is dangerous, but the man underneath is so much more. Bruce Banner helped me recognize my own anxiety and reminded me even more of the beautiful complexity of humanity. Despite our downfalls, mistakes, and selfishness, we are, at our heart, good. 

This is one of the many reasons why I actually loved the HulkxWidow story line in Age of Ultron. I saw so much of myself and my Dear One in it as well as the simple audacity of hope. If we dare be optimistic, something beautiful can happen in pretty much any given situation. Idealism isn't a bad thing. I would love to see this pairing work out in the long run if things were to calm down a bit. They are both extremely independent people that work well together as a team. The pairing recognizes that two deeply flawed people, who know they are strong on their own and fully capable of functioning separately, need reminded of the beauty of loving someone into being their best self (whatever that comes to mean). 

In Closing

The MCU is in its heart a story about the human condition. Story lines and characters evolve with the times, but we are never left without a reminder of who we once were or a glimpse of the hope of what we will become. I fell in love with characters, not their superpowers (although those are pretty frigging cool). My love for characters doesn't stop here; if I wrote about every character from the MCU and comics that I care about...let's just say we'd be here for a while. So my advice to all of you who are undecided on the whole "superhero thing": watch a few phase one and two films, don't be afraid to cry, watch Civil War and probably cry a lot. Read the comics, embrace the richness of the story, and don't be afraid to be passionate. 

What character(s) made you get interested in the MCU or the comics? What was it about them that made you stop and think?

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