The 99:Beginnings - Islamic Superheroes

Article first published as The 99: Beginnings - Islamic Superheroes on Technorati.

The 99, Teshkeel Comics's effort to create a Muslim superhero comic book series modeled on those long a staple of western pop culture, is the brainchild of Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, a Kuwaiti psychologist and business man educated in the west. His story—the development of the idea and his efforts to make that idea a reality, his successes and his setbacks—is the subject of the documentary Wham! Bam! Islam! to be aired on the season opener of PBS's Independent Lens, Thursday, Oct. 13^th at 10 o'clock.

Al-Mutawa's idea was to create a comic that would present the positive values of Islam. The members of The 99 were each to represent one of the 99 attributes of Allah. Each attribute would endow the hero or heroine with a super power, which they would use to fight against evil. The 99: Beginnings is a special issue devoted to the introduction of all the 99's members and the group's back story.

The heroes come from countries all over the world and they range in age from sub-teens through to the early 20's. Some examples: Jabbar the Powerful, whose power is supernatural strength, is 19 and grew up in Saudi Arabia. Wakila the Guardian, whose power is the ability to turn discrimination back on the offender, is a ten year old girl from Bhutan. Darr the Afflictor is a 22 year old from the U.S.A. who is in a wheel chair as a result of an accident his family had with a drunk driver. His power is the ability of inflict or absorb pain. Most of the issue is spent on these introductions. It shows them dealing with the initial recognition that they have an unusual power. It really doesn't show them in action in a full blown narrative.

What there is in the way of story comes from the group's leader, Dr. Ramzi Razem. He describes his own early fascination with the Noor stones which are the sources of the powers. As a young boy, he was taken on a trip to Andalusia where he heard stories of the Caliphate of Cordoba and Seville's great centers of learning and culture, especially the Husn Al-Ma'rifa, the fortress of knowledge where the stones became part of its golden dome. The explanation of how the stones got their powers and how they came to the fortress, its eventual destruction and the stones' dispersal over the world is intertwined with the introductions of the various heroes. It is this legendary tale that is by far the most interesting and exciting part of the issue.

The comic itself is drawn much in the style of the western models. This is intentional. The Independent Lens documentary introduces some of the Marvel Comics veterans that Al-Mutawa hired to being his vision to fruition. Visually there is little to distinguish The 99 from Superman and his ilk. It is in the positive representation of Islamic values through this team of engaging, young multi-cultural heroes that the series aims to distinguish itself.

TV Review: Independent Lens - Wham! Bam! Islam!

Article first published as TV Review: Independent Lens - Wham! Bam! Islam! on Blogcritics.

PBS's award winning Independent Lens series opens its tenth season on October 13^th at 10PM with Wham! Bam! Islam!, a documentary about a Kuwaiti psychologist and entrepreneur educated at the Columbia Business School who beieved he had a way to help reinforce positive traditional Islamic values in youngsters around the world. What Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa had in mind was a Western style superhero comic book in which a team of superheroes, gathered together from all over the world, each exemplifying one of the 99 attributes of Allah, would join in a struggle against the forces of evil. His aims were both practical and idealistic. The 99, the title he gave his comic, he hoped would create a successful financial venture while providing positive role models for Muslim youth.

The film, directed by Emmy Nominated documentarian Issac Solataroff, follows Al-Mutawa as he pitches his idea and raises seven million dollars from investors around the world to start up his company. He attracts a creative team that includes a number of ex-Marvel comic veterans to complement the local Muslim staff. They are especially careful to make certain that nothing in the content of the comic violates any of the tenets of Islam; this in the light of some of the violent reaction of Muslims across the world after the publication of offensive cartoons in the Danish press. Al-Mutawa acknowledges that while he too found the cartoons offensive, he nonetheless believed in freedom of speech. Still he understood that even unintentional offensive material in his comic would defeat both his purposes.

Careful consideration had to be given to the costumes of the superheroes. The tight spandex, standard uniform for their Western brothers and sisters, wouldn't do for the Muslim sensibility. They had to consider whether the women would wear burkhas or veils. They had to be very careful about how they dealt with the application of the divine attributes to human characters. They had to think about the representation of Holy places. While some might consider this censorship, it is clear that this kind of self censorship is no different from what goes on in the West, even with its freedom of the press. Both financially and idealistically, it would have made little sense to antagonize the very audience you were trying to impress.

In a world where tensions between Muslims and the West seem to dominate the headlines daily, Wham! Bam! Islam! is the kind of film that just might help to create the kind of atmosphere that would encourage greater understanding between the different cultures. Not only does it illustrate how Western popular cultural tropes might not be all that alien to other cultures, but it also demonstrates that central values—tolerance, compassion, understanding—are common to all true believers in all religions. As one of the Bahraini investors in the company's recapitalization points out, it is hard to beat an investment that will bring in a profit and do some social good at the same time.

The story of The 99's initial successes, near catastrophes and eventual rebirth makes for fascinating viewing. Reactions from the comic's readers vary from eager children thrilled with the characters to college students debating the comic's orthodoxy, from the Saudis' unwillingness to license the book for the kingdom to a break dancer's rant about stultifying traditions. Through it all the dominating figure is the man with a vision, a man unwilling to give up on his goal even when things seem to be falling apart around him. Naif Al-Mutawa may not be a superhero, but as far as this documentary goes, he is hero enough.