FT社评：“超能侠”与中国软实力_时事

FT社评：“超能侠”与中国软实力

玩笑归玩笑，本文将提出一个严肃观点。中国政府希望以“超能侠为形象大使，在全球范围内提升本国文化的“软实力。在国影投资(National Film Capital)总裁王国伟看来，超能侠有助于反击“中国威胁论的影响。国影投资是一家有政府背景的电影投资基金，同时也是电影《超能侠》的主要投资方。

But Mr Wang should not get his hopes too high. Superheroes are most popular in their own domestic market. Captain America tapped into the patriotic mood of the second world war. The cover of the first comic, published in 1941, showed the protagonist punching Adolf Hitler in the jaw.

但王国伟不应期望过高。原因之一在于，超级英雄通常在他们的本国市场最受欢迎。例如“美国队长(Captain America)就融入了二战期间美国国内的爱国主义情绪。1941年出版的《美国队长》漫画第一期封面，刻画的是主人公挥拳猛击阿道夫·希特勒腮帮的情景。

Moreover, successful characters are almost never state-backed. The Ninety-Nine, a comic featuring a team of superheroes based on Islamic culture and religion, was actively encouraged by Barack Obama. The US president called them “the most innovative response to America’s expanding dialogue with the Muslim world. However, for all the good intentions, the characters failed to strike a chord with the public.