{"id":7647,"date":"2025-09-10T12:19:25","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T17:19:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/?p=7647"},"modified":"2026-04-27T21:34:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T02:34:19","slug":"a-x-e-judgment-day-conclusion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/10\/a-x-e-judgment-day-conclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"A.X.E.: Judgment Day Conclusion"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>People of Earth. Listen. You are bickering children. This planet is ruined. You have acted with unrelenting unkindness to one another. You leave me no option. This is your Judgment Day. You have 24 hours to justify yourselves. You will be judged individually. You will be judged as a collective. If there is more that is just than wicked, you will live. But if you are found lacking, there will be no tomorrow. <\/p>\n<span hidden class=\"__iawmlf-post-loop-links\" data-iawmlf-links=\"[{&quot;id&quot;:17,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Kieron_Gillen&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/web-wp.archive.org\\\/web\\\/20260515195604\\\/https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Kieron_Gillen&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:03:11&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:200}],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:03:11&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:200},&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;},{&quot;id&quot;:432,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/marvel.fandom.com\\\/wiki\\\/Valerio_Schiti&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:null,&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;},{&quot;id&quot;:433,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/marvel.fandom.com\\\/wiki\\\/Marte_Gracia&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/web-wp.archive.org\\\/web\\\/20251116070021\\\/https:\\\/\\\/marvel.fandom.com\\\/wiki\\\/Marte_Gracia&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:38:36&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:403}],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 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23:37:25&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:403},&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;},{&quot;id&quot;:434,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Mark_Russell_(writer)#References&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/web-wp.archive.org\\\/web\\\/20260506183641\\\/https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Mark_Russell_(writer)&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:38:42&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:200}],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 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23:39:23&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:403},&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;},{&quot;id&quot;:449,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Jesus&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:null,&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;},{&quot;id&quot;:387,&quot;href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Agape&quot;,&quot;archived_href&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/web-wp.archive.org\\\/web\\\/20260508103643\\\/https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/Agape&quot;,&quot;redirect_href&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;checks&quot;:[{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:35:53&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:200}],&quot;broken&quot;:false,&quot;last_checked&quot;:{&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-05-24 23:35:53&quot;,&quot;http_code&quot;:200},&quot;process&quot;:&quot;done&quot;}]\"><\/span>\n\n\n<p>See? You <em>ARE<\/em> all important. Every single one of you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Progenitor, A.X.E.: Judgment Day, 2022, by Kieron Gillen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>I previously <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2955\">introduced<\/a> A.X.E. Judgement Day &#8211; the major 2022 Marvel cross-over event &#8211; as an excellent example of ethics (moral philosophy) depicted through comic stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main series was written by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kieron_Gillen\">Kieron Gillen<\/a>, with art by <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Valerio_Schiti\">Valerio Schiti<\/a>, colors by <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Marte_Gracia\">Marte Gracia<\/a>, letters by <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Clayton_Cowles\">Clayton Cowles<\/a>, and contributions by many other creators in the tie-in side stories. I featured one of these tie-ins &#8211; <em>Avengers<\/em> Vol 8, issue #60, 2022, written by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mark_Russell_(writer)#References\">Mark Russell<\/a> &#8211; in my recent <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/15\/why-be-moral\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"7144\">Why be Moral?<\/a> post. I now want to wrap up this event by presenting the series&#8217; conclusion and describing the ethics depicted along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are wondering why I am only getting to this now, well, I&#8217;ve only been writing this blog since the start of this year (2025), and I needed time to go through all the main Marvel characters and sort out their normative ethics first. I then came up with a couple of hypotheses &#8211; which we can now test together to see how I did (methods and results are presented below). See, you are all important. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As an aside, the conclusion to this event in the main series by Gillen and team strikes me as one of the most explicitly Christian parables that I have ever found in comics. I will come back to this religious significance at the end, after reviewing the ethics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Please see my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2955\">introductory post<\/a> for a full background and introduction to the event. Simply put, a revived Celestial &#8211; an ancient cosmic race that seeded and nurtured life on many planets, including Earth &#8211; is deciding the fate of humanity, by its own moral standards. From the closing pages of <em>A.X.E.: Judgment Day<\/em> Vol 1, issue #2, 2022, by Gillen and Schiti:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/f1142ae4-edc9-42d8-a41c-546a9e0634b8.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>I cannot say enough for the creative team here &#8211; beyond Gillen&#8217;s excellent scripting and story, Schiti&#8217;s artwork, Gracia&#8217;s colors, and Cowles letters are outstanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I describe the <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/marvel\/#origin\">origin of the Multiverse<\/a> &#8211; and the Celestials &#8211; on my background Marvel page. They were originally created by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jack_Kirby\">Jack Kirby<\/a> in 1976, and updated by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Al_Ewing\">Al Ewing<\/a> in his <em>Ultimates 2<\/em> Vol 2 series in 2017. Briefly, the original universal consciousness (basically, God, but known as the <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/First_Firmament_(First_Cosmos)\">First Firmament<\/a>) created two cosmic beings that in turn created their own life-forms: <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Aspirants\">Aspirants<\/a> who worshiped the First Firmament and sought its approval in all things, and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Celestials\">Celestials<\/a> who &#8220;wanted their creations to evolve &#8230; and for the universe to evolve with them. To know <strong>growth<\/strong> and <strong>change<\/strong> and <strong>mortality<\/strong>&#8220;, to quote Ewing in issue #6 of his series above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I presented a couple of the popular online theories about how the Progenitor apparently makes its judgments in my A.X.E.: Judgment Day <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2955\">introduction<\/a> &#8211; and why I think they don&#8217;t work. I also intimated that I believe the answer to the moral decision-making process the Progenitor is using can be understood through <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/#normative\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"2554\">normative ethics<\/a>. I&#8217;ll get into specifics below (and even do that fun little experiment!), but let me give you the broad-strokes of what I think is going on with these cosmic beings: Aspirants reflect <em>deontology<\/em> (duty-based ethics, <em>doing right<\/em>), and Celestials are an interesting blend of <em>virtue ethics<\/em> (character-based ethics, <em>being better<\/em>) and <em>consequentialism<\/em> (outcomes-based ethics, <em>doing good<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These latter two things &#8211; <em>being better<\/em> and <em>doing good<\/em> &#8211; are hardly mutually exclusive. But the ways (human) philosophers have often thought about them have typically been to characterize them separately. I have already discussed the <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/27\/x-men-ethics-professor-x-charles-xavier\/#utilitarian\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"4309\">benefits<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/x-men-ethics-charles-xaviers-redemption\/#utilitarian\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"4719\">drawbacks<\/a> of the most common form of consequentialism, <em>utilitarianism<\/em>. So, I thought this would be a good opportunity to do the same kind of pros\/cons ethics analysis for virtue ethics before showing how the Progenitor could be making its specific judgments of the various Marvel characters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As always, if you would like to know more about the terms I&#8217;m using on this site, please follow the links throughout or check out my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/\">Ethics 101<\/a> page or <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/27\/glossary\/\">Glossary<\/a> post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"virtue\">Virtue ethics &#8211; who is good for?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>Virtue ethics is a very old branch of moral philosophy, having been independently developed in classical times in ancient Greece (<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Aristotle\">Aristotle<\/a>), China (<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Confucius\">Confucius<\/a>) and India (Siddhartha, aka <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Buddha\">the Buddha<\/a>), several centuries Before the Common Era (BCE). Despite that, it largely fell by the wayside during the western Enlightenment period when modern <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/#normative\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"2554\">normative ethics<\/a> (as moral philosophy is now called) was being developed. These later philosophical thinkers typically split morality according to types of <em>acts<\/em> &#8211; specifically, into a dichotomy between <em>deontological<\/em> (duty-based) and <em>consequentialism<\/em> (outcomes-based). It is frankly only since the 1970s that virtue ethics has drawn serious academic scrutiny and study again in the West, with the development of some novel forms (like <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/#care\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"2554\">care ethics<\/a>, which I have discussed in various posts).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although I have presented both the ancient Greek and Chinese forms of classical virtue ethics on this site, I have generally led with the <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/05\/thor-ethics\/#virtue\">eudaimonic version<\/a> originally developed by Aristotle (and also used by the <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/05\/absolute-wonder-woman-ethics\/#stoicism\">Stoics<\/a>). It is the most popular form in the West today &#8211; but see my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/15\/fantastic-four-ethics\/#ethics\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"6391\">Fantastic Four<\/a> overview for an example of Confucian family virtue ethics. I&#8217;ve yet to do a detailed post on <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Buddhism\">Buddhism<\/a>. While its focus on cultivating character through the development of virtues is consistent with the others, its overarching goal is slightly different &#8211; namely, the elimination of <em>suffering<\/em>. Needless to say, suffering seems to be pretty endemic among comic superheroes! But I have a non-superhero series that I&#8217;m itching to profile, and will get into this more soon. (<em><strong>UPDATE<\/strong>: See my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/23\/fml-comix-ethics\/#buddhism\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"7884\">FML comix post<\/a> for more about Buddhism<\/em>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Aristotelian virtue ethics focuses on achieving <em><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eudaimonia\">eudaimonia<\/a><\/em>, which can be understood as personal flourishing, generalized well-being, or more simply: happiness. This is a very self-directed form of virtue ethics, as you might imagine. And please note, I am <em>always <\/em>referring to the modern form of Aristotelian virtue ethics here (sometimes called neo-Aristotelian) given that some of his ideas haven&#8217;t stood up well (e.g., the lack of rights for women and slaves).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the common criticisms of Aristotelian virtue ethics is that it doesn&#8217;t provide specific actionable guidance on what to <em>do<\/em> in every case &#8211; unlike deontology or consequentialism. But I feel that criticism is misplaced. The list of modern virtues to practice (and more especially vices to avoid!) is much longer than any deontological set of rules ever proposed, and it doesn&#8217;t require you to somehow reverse-engineer the best outcome from an infinite array of possibilities (as in consequentialism). The lack of specificity about absolute action isn&#8217;t actually a bad thing in virtue ethics, as it allows you consider the particulars of different situations and their relative effects on individuals (i.e., it&#8217;s not a bug, it&#8217;s a feature!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Virtue ethics is also criticized for being self-centered (at least in the classic Aristotelian and Stoic forms). Indeed, this is also where both Confucianism and Buddhism depart from the classical Greek virtue ethics framing, as it can lead people to being too selfishly concerned with their own characters. This in turn can result in vainly focusing inward on obsessive self-improvement or perfectionism &#8211; instead of looking outward to others. But while it is true that people learn to practice virtues by initially emulating others, the goal is to make them an integral part of who you are. Ultimately, if people do things because they think it will cultivate virtues (or worse, make them look good!), then they have gotten virtue ethics wrong &#8211; to be virtuous is to act <em>from<\/em> virtue, not because of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A third criticism of Aristotelian virtue ethics specifically is that it is not complete onto itself &#8211; that is, there are external factors that influence eudaimonic outcomes. Aristotle believed that things somewhat outside your control &#8211; like health, wealth, and recognition by others &#8211; affect your ultimate happiness. Some professional philosophers don&#8217;t like that, as they believe a normative ethics framework should be all-encompassing. And for them, I will refer you back to the <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/05\/absolute-wonder-woman-ethics\/#stoicism\">Stoics<\/a>, who believed that the practice of an even more limited number of virtues was enough to lead to eudaimonia, regardless of external considerations. Again, I actually consider this an advantage of Aristotelian virtue ethics &#8211; it forces you to acknowledge the practical reality of your environment (and luck!) in the practice of being virtuous. I don&#8217;t like absolutes &#8211; if there was a perfect self-enclosed system that guaranteed happiness at the end, everyone would follow it. And to date, every ethics theory has its share of detractors and specific criticisms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What does this have to do with A.X.E.: Judgment Day? Well, it stands to reason that the revived Progenitor&#8217;s process for judging people would have elements of both virtue ethics and consequentialism &#8211; and significantly, both their positive and negative aspects. But how exactly to combine them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"virtueconsequentialism\">Applying virtue ethics to A.X.E.: Judgment Day<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>To me, there were two obvious ways that Gillen and company could have gone about integrating virtue ethics and consequentialism &#8211; one that is straight-forward, and one that is more complicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;ll start with the more complicated one &#8211; which is coming up with a virtue ethics framework that is <em>customized<\/em> to the Celestials. This bespoke theory would have to be one that is ultimately not just about the personal virtue and the growth of <em>individuals<\/em>, but rather the larger virtue and growth of the <em>species<\/em>. And that brings with it shades of consequentialism&#8217;s doing good &#8211; such as utilitarianism, with its focus on the greatest good of the greatest number. Of course, it is unknown what the growth-focused alien Celestials would think is &#8220;good&#8221; in this context. But what happens if you take virtue ethics (which at happens at the individual level) and apply it to consequentialism&#8217;s grand scale (population level)? There is a hybrid approach that could fit &#8211; it is known in philosophical circles as <em>virtue consequentialism<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Virtue consequentialism is a type of <em>indirect<\/em> consequentialism, which holds that the moral quality of something is dependent on the consequences of something else (hence, indirect). In this case, rather than virtue <em>being<\/em> the <em>good <\/em>(as in classic Aristotelian virtue ethics above), virtues could be a <em>means<\/em> to achieving the <em>good<\/em>. In this consequentialist framing, virtue is now the instrument that allows you to achieve a good outcome. Basically, this reverses the thinking around virtues, and makes them subservient to consequentialism&#8217;s good. Hence why this is called virtue <em>consequentialism<\/em> (and not the other way around) &#8211; it is ultimately a form of consequentialism as it is really the <em>good<\/em> that is the most valuable part of the equation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But this reminds me of the problem with <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Richard_Brandt\">Richard Brandt<\/a>&#8216;s <em><a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/27\/x-men-ethics-professor-x-charles-xavier\/#rule\">rule utilitarianism<\/a><\/em> which I presented in another post. It was similarly developed to bring some of the better aspects of deontology into consequentialism. But it only brings in some of the strengths of deontology while still maintaining all the criticisms inherent to both theories. So these hybrid theories can sometimes be more trouble than they are worth (i.e., you now have double the trouble without twice the benefits!). In the case of virtue consequentialism, it feels like making virtues a means-to-an-end goes <em>against<\/em> the entire idea of what of a virtue is or should be &#8211; in other words, you have basically confirmed that second criticism of virtue ethics that I described above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, I am unaware of a consequentialist version of virtue ethics, so this virtue consequentialism will have to do as one possible option. In terms of the A.X.E.: Judgment Day event, this would mean that the Progenitor could have some absolute internal standard of &#8220;good&#8221; (without necessarily disclosing exactly what that was), and having people get there through the pursuit of specific communally good virtues. It would take some creative work to come up with the ultimate good and the specific virtues &#8211; and apply it consistently across all characters &#8211; but this is one valid possibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The other simpler option is to just have the Progenitor judge each <em>individual <\/em>according to standard virtue ethics, but then collectively judge all of <em>humanity<\/em> by the consequentialist math of maximizing the greater good. That would mean that if more individuals are virtuous than not, humanity gets to live (otherwise, boom!). Of course, destruction of the earth would be massively unfair to all the virtuous individuals who pass &#8230; but that is kinda the problem with consequentialism, isn&#8217;t it? (i.e., the greater good of whom, exactly, and who gets to decide it?).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It seems to me that this latter point is exactly what Gillen was getting at with his opening announcement by the Progenitor &#8211; effectively highlighting a key criticism of utilitarian thinking: it all comes down to a cold mathematical analysis that doesn&#8217;t consider real people&#8217;s feelings. I&#8217;ve always loved Al Ewing&#8217;s depiction of this, from <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/x-men-ethics-charles-xaviers-redemption\/#utilitarian\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"4719\">a scene in his <em>X-Men: Red<\/em> Vol 2<\/a>, where Storm is rebuking the unapologetically utilitarian Professor X: &#8220;The greatest good for the greatest number. Life as mathematics. As if there is no mathematician deciding who plays the remainder in their cold equations &#8230;&#8221; (<em>X-Men: Red<\/em> Vol 2, issue #11, 2022). I note that Ewing and Gillen have long been close collaborators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Consider the reaction of the superheroes and high priests of the Eternals to the Progenitor&#8217;s pronouncement, from the opening pages of <em>A.X.E.: Judgment Day<\/em> Vol 1, issue #3, 2022, by Gillen and Schiti:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/6ddf0aa9-9bf4-435f-b0e1-3f329b015ec8.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>I will come back to these panels a bit later, when we look at the individual judgments. But simply based on the premise and what we know about Celestials, either option is equally valid: either the Progenitor could judge everyone by some custom virtue consequentialism standards, or it could judge individuals separately by existing virtue ethics standards &#8211; and then add them up by consequentialist ones. Which option did Gillen&#8217;s Progenitor choose?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Putting my theories to the test<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>I thought it would be fun to set this up as dueling hypotheses, to see if we could figure out which of the two methods (if either) was being used by the Progenitor for the judgments in the comics (I know, I know, I must be fun at parties :). We can test both hypotheses by looking at the pass\/fail outcomes of each of the major Marvel superheroes according to their normative ethics (using my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/#superhero\">superhero normative ethics<\/a> scale, in this case).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some caveats before we begin. I&#8217;m only describing the primary and secondary (if present) normative ethics for each character &#8211; many characters show features of all three, of course (just like we do!). Also, my normative ethics assessments are my opinions &#8211; others could come up with different relative weightings for the characters, depending on the background stories they emphasize or how they interpret them. And of course, only a subset of all the character judgments were explicitly revealed in this event &#8211; and some of those happened in stories not written by Gillen (but were presumably following his directions, although it&#8217;s hard to know how rigorously that was enforced editorially).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, time to get my predictions out front first &#8211; how would this actually look?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the Progenitor used some sort of virtue consequentialism, I would expect many of the primary virtue ethics superheroes to do well (V and V\/c especially, less so for V\/d) &#8211; but only if their virtuous efforts actually led to better outcomes (by some unstated yardstick). Primary consequentialist superheroes would likely do even better &#8211; but again, only if they showed some signs of virtues along with those good outcomes (so, C\/v would do the best, C could do ok, and less so again for C\/d). Finally, deontological heroes would do poorly regardless of outcomes because they were following deontological processes, which the Celestials seem to abhor. Again, recall that the Celestials were set up as the moral opposite for the very deontological Aspirants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If instead we go for the simpler option &#8211; judge everyone by virtue standards individually, with the Progenitor wrapping things up consequentially at the end &#8211; then the results would also be much more straight-forward. All the virtue ethics superheroes would do well (V, V\/c, and V\/d), along with many of the C\/v consequentialists. But many of the rest of the consequentialists (C and C\/d), and likely most of the deontological heroes, would fail (although some D\/v might make it if they had a lot of secondary virtues).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Enough preamble, let&#8217;s see the results and how everything matches up in the order I&#8217;ve listed above (green for pass, red for fail &#8211; character images taken from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marvel.com\/unlimited\">Marvel Unlimited<\/a> site):<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/42795cf2-7960-4205-abd2-2f80ec84fbc1.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/2dd4c646-4f21-4e51-8ca0-48a6b3601d16.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/73190d03-45da-414f-914c-d42a18b7d49d.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/ec8b9ace-2a15-42da-953b-5d6272eda82f.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/32eac62d-5a2e-4426-a251-81444f055d17.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/4b3e88e5-7733-47ee-ba62-fc1b99303a2b.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Ok, that <u>very<\/u> closely matches my prediction for the second <em>simplified scenario<\/em> &#8211; individuals seem to be judged by virtue ethics standards, with deontologists and consequentialists not doing well unless they show a lot of virtues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Note that correlation never implies causation &#8211; it could be that Gillen and company were using some completely different metric, which just happens to line up with my normative ethics assignments and proposed decision-making theory. You never know &#8230; but I am actually (pleasantly) surprised to see such a tight concordance with my simplified scenario hypothesis and the judgments!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are a few specific cases where it is worth considering the results in more detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s start with the married couple, Cyclops (passed) and Jean Grey (failed). Although I rated Cyclops as a C\/d and Jean as a C\/v, Cyclops certainly exhibits a lot of virtues. My rating scale looks over a long period in the comics, and I&#8217;ve felt he has had a lot of deontological traits over the years. But his virtues have been growing considerably in recent years, and I can see him moving into the C\/v camp eventually (thanks especially to the care ethics he displays in <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jed_MacKay\">Jed MacKay<\/a>&#8216;s current <em>X-Men<\/em> Vol 7 run, 2024-present).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jean on the other hand is &#8220;difficult&#8221;, in the Progenitor&#8217;s words. Consider these panels from <em>A.X.E.: X-Men<\/em> Vol 1, issue #1, 2022, by Gillen and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Francesco_Mobili\">Francesco Mobili<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/1dcd0e92-abb1-477b-9be3-0b4f58e40eba.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Jean is a &#8220;sometimes saint&#8221; and &#8220;sometimes bully&#8221; according to the Progenitor, and she can never make up for her past (that is, her virtuous failing) because she <em>remains<\/em> tied to the Phoenix &#8211; &#8220;now and forever&#8221;. This is preventing her virtuous growth. Cyclops on the other hand is growing &#8211; and according to the Progenitor, he demonstrates one of the original core virtues: &#8220;bravery&#8221;. So he passes the virtue ethics test, and Jean fails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another judgment that caused a lot of discussion online was the failure of Captain America. Here I think it&#8217;s critical to remember those introductory lines from the panel on the page right before his judgment in issue #3 of the main series, by Gillen and Schiti. From the earlier panel:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Once more, he seeks to inspire. He thinks himself a leader, one who sets the drumbeat for the world \u2026<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>And now the next page &#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/fafbf81e-1d80-48ed-a76e-976a15b86c0e.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:696px;height:auto\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>It is easy to (mis)read that as Cap being failed for seemingly consequentialist reasons (i.e., the &#8220;worse every day&#8221; comment right before the thumbs-down). In fact, that was my first thought (using a virtue consequentialism lens). But consider the <em>opening words<\/em> &#8211; the Progenitor may actually be faulting Cap for seeing himself as a leader, and &#8220;setting the drumbeat&#8221; for the world. Throughout this series, the Progenitor repeatedly refers to Cap impersonally and disparagingly as &#8220;the man in the flag&#8221;. This implies that the Progenitor has a problem with Cap&#8217;s value system &#8211; he equates Cap with the state of America (and the world) because <em>Cap has himself chosen<\/em> to fly that country&#8217;s flag as his persona emblem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As I describe in my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/08\/captain-america-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"3317\">Captain America<\/a> overview, I feel Cap&#8217;s moral core is far more deontological than virtue ethics-driven. I expect some will disagree with me on this point, but it sounds like Gillen&#8217;s Progenitor agrees! Note the language: the Progenitor tells Cap <em>&#8220;You <strong>are<\/strong> a failure&#8221;<\/em> (my emphasis), not <em>&#8220;You have failed&#8221;<\/em>. If the Progenitor had used that latter phrasing, you could naturally infer it as a consequence to the previous sentence about the state of the word. But think back to those earlier statements on the previous page &#8211; it seems Cap is not being failed for what he has <em>done<\/em> (consequentialism), but rather for who he <em>is<\/em> (virtue ethics). Specifically, his failure to grow as a virtuous person, and his choice to remain instead a static duty-bound symbol (taking on more than he is responsible for at that).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Note that none of this means Cap is a bad person! I have a lot of sympathy for the character and his struggles. And Gillen appears to as well, given how thoughtfully he wrote Cap&#8217;s significant role in this series (I particularly like all his scenes with Jada, right up to the end). It seems to me that Gillen really gets who Captain America is and what he is all about. Remember, it is the Progenitor who is using an unfair metric here to judge everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For those online who thought they understood Cap&#8217;s judgement (in terms of his raging &#8220;self doubt&#8221;, apparently), they were then mystified by the passing of Peter Parker&#8217;s Spider-Man (who is <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/15\/spider-man-peter-parker-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"3456\">actually neurotic<\/a>!). From <em>Amazing Spider-Man<\/em> Vol 6, issue #10, 2022, by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Zeb_Wells\">Zeb Wells<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Nick_Dragotta\">Nick Dragotta<\/a>. Here, the Progenitor appears to Peter as his dead first love, Gwen Stacy, who was murdered by Norman Osborn:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/e1ed8b91-0439-4a81-87ee-4eca14af9e9a.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/1e2a727d-4f60-4280-bf98-347a5b7b9dda.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>I find it an insightful comment that his heart shines so brightly that it not only &#8220;blinds&#8221; him to who he is, but it &#8220;baffles&#8221; those around him. Again, I had expected my V\/d <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/15\/spider-man-peter-parker-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"3456\">normative ethics assessment<\/a> of Peter to be controversial &#8211; I see his moral core as primarily virtue ethics, and only secondarily deontological (a lot of folks online seem to see him primarily in deontological terms). But again, it seems the Progenitor agrees with me. Peter is not out trying to save the universe or be the leader of the world &#8211; here, he only wants to help one man <em>be better <\/em>(and in the process, be better himself).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peter isn&#8217;t the only one who passes for his &#8220;heart&#8221; (and virtue ethics). Consider these three passes in <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kelly_Thompson\">Kelly Thompson<\/a>&#8216;s Captain Marvel run &#8211; from <em>Captain Marvel<\/em> Vol 10, issue #42, 2022, by Thompson and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Andrea_Di_Vito\">Andrea Di Vito<\/a> (in each case, the Progenitor appears as that person&#8217;s most important role model):<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/84d290c5-0689-4e05-93aa-6b3ae91a5438.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>I don&#8217;t think Carol&#8217;s passing was really in doubt at this point in Thompson&#8217;s run &#8211; she had turned Carol into a <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/03\/captain-marvel-carol-danvers-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"3536\">clear V\/c in my analysis<\/a>, from both a classical Aristotelian sense as well as a modern care ethics one. However, the earlier Civil War II consequentialist version of Carol would have failed, in my view. I do like the under-the-breath (&#8220;Oh, thank God&#8221;) above, as it shows the humility of the character &#8211; a classic virtue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The one I was curious about was her half-sister, Lauri-Ell, who took over the Universal Weapon (&#8220;a weapon with a complex and dark history&#8221;) from Ronan the Accuser. The Accusers were always a very deontological bunch, but Lauri-Ell has grown from her close association with Carol. Apparently, the Progenitor agrees:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/e020fb10-5a6e-4cd9-bbad-e24fea7c74f3.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Again, her &#8220;heart&#8221; is true, and she &#8220;seeks out the best of things&#8221; &#8211; just like a virtue ethicist. Their care ethics moment together reminiscing about their mother is also quite touching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The last panel&#8217;s unspoken thumbs-up for Carol&#8217;s Flerken cat Chewie was cute. Chewie had spent the day attending to those in her building in need of aid or comfort (whether she likes them or not). If that isn&#8217;t care ethics in action, I don&#8217;t know what is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Probably no one in the Marvel pantheon of heroes embodies classical virtue ethics more than Thor. From the main series, issue #4, by Gillen and Schiti:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/f012776f-3122-4914-ac84-a865f0171224.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;ve read my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/05\/thor-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"5403\">Thor ethics<\/a> overview, you&#8217;ll know I have some reservations about letting Mjolnir decide who is worthy. But if we are to take the Progenitor at his word here, Thor passes for being independently acknowledged as virtuous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In case I haven&#8217;t convinced you yet, maybe this final example from Carol&#8217;s fellow Avenger (and fellow V\/c), Hawkeye. From <em>Avengers<\/em> Vol 8, issue #60, 2022, by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mark_Russell_(writer)#References\">Mark Russell<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Greg_Land\">Greg Land<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/6c9c7b04-caf5-4b19-840c-de09d18610af.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:814px;height:auto\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>As I observed in my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/15\/why-be-moral\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"7144\">Why be Moral?<\/a> post, Russell knows his ethics well. He gives the clearest explanation in this tie-in comic that both deontology and consequentialism get a fail by the Progenitor, and only virtue ethics gets a pass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As an aside, I find it deeply ironic that only the Progenitor gets to be consequentialist while everyone else has to be virtuous. But that sets up the actual ending to this event, which drives this point all the way home &#8211; it is unethical for the Progenitor to behave this way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Perhaps not surprisingly, more of humanity fail than pass the Progenitor&#8217;s judgments in the first day of this event. So the Progenitor carries out his threat and seeks to end the Earth. It is stymied in its initial attempt by the remaining heroes (and the Machine itself that powers the Earth). But the heroes realize the judgments are continuing, so there may be a chance to get it to change its mind. But as each minute ticks by, more and more are dying around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They have a chance to kill the Progenitor, but Ajax (the High Priest of the Eternals) stops Jean Grey from taking it. From issue #6, by Gillen and Schiti:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/c94e835f-1c93-4637-bb9f-dcdd2e765ed1.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:761px;height:auto\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Tony (who passed by the way &#8211; for his personal growth) realizes there is a better way, to try and get the Progenitor to undo everything it has done. Eventually, as the situation continues to worsen with the majority of humanity wiped out, Jean runs out of patience and tries (very consequentially!) to cut their losses and just kill it:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/0e66546c-fc41-4fe5-8396-572dc3518ada.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>And this is when the Eternal Sersi makes a fateful decision: to tell the world the truth about the Eternals&#8217; immortality.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/9a9f092d-cb38-4496-9eb8-e41265e75c28.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Sersi has always been one of the most consequentialist of the Eternals. What she says above is quite true &#8211; she has known this secret for some time, kept it hidden, and manipulated the others who knew to keep their silence. All because she knew the consequences of it getting out would be bad for the Eternals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not surprisingly, the surviving humans don&#8217;t take this revelation well. The Progenitor listens for their collective thoughts for humanity&#8217;s judgment:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/812f126f-f370-4b07-a48b-5fec3d4c253b.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Eventually, they manage to convince the Progenitor that it too is flawed and mistaken &#8211; and that if it goes through with this, it will be a failure. So in the end, it agrees to reverse its actions and put things back as they were before it started killing everyone &#8211; even though that may destroy it in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In its dying moments, it asks its High Priest, Ajax, who helped revive it, a key question &#8211; and makes a final request:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/cc48ed0b-e916-447c-9e02-137783c2a871.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Note the religious symbolism as her god reaches out to touch her (i.e., Michelangelo&#8217;s Creation of Adam). I&#8217;ll come back to this at the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And if there were still any doubt &#8211; its final ask is classical virtue ethics: <strong><em>be better<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">And the winner is &#8230;<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>Any way you slice it, the Progenitor was never going to be successful in its judgment process &#8211; using consequentialism to<em> judge<\/em> the survival of all of humanity is manifestly unethical. Which I presume was Gillen&#8217;s point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In hindsight, I also realize now that I should have proposed that the flawed Progenitor would use the simpler option of individual virtue ethics judgments combined with a consequentialist overall decision. I initially thought it would use a bespoke version of virtue consequentialism &#8211; customized to the Celestials (unstated) overall consequentialist view. That latter option &#8211; while superficially seeming simple &#8211; would in fact be a lot more complicated to develop and apply consistently to all the Marvel heroes. And so, I fell prey to a common <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/ethics-101\/#bias\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"2554\">failure of logical thinking<\/a> &#8211; in my enthusiasm to pursue a complex option, I forgot Occam&#8217;s razor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>[Soapbox rant mode enabled]<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"occam\">As an aside, I find the famous maxim of 14th century <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/William_of_Ockham\">William of Ockham<\/a> (or Occam) is often misunderstood. For example, I just popped &#8220;Occam&#8217;s razor&#8221; into google, and this is what I got from its unavoidable top &#8220;AI overviews&#8221; answer:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/b8e1cee1-1c22-4e21-840b-3112d4ef220b.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>I am not surprised to see this. But there are two problems here &#8211; first, it equates Occam&#8217;s razor with the ancient principle or law of parsimony (&#8220;<em>lex parsimoniae<\/em>&#8221; in Latin), and then it misstates that principle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To be fair, it is common even in established references texts (although regrettable in my view) that these two maxims get conflated. They are inextricably linked, but the principle of parsimony is more the <em>what<\/em>, and the Occam&#8217;s razor is more the <em>why<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This becomes clearer when we look at the correct phrasing of the principle of parsimony in proper reference texts. It is unfortunately common today to see online or in books the principle expressed as the simplest solution is usually &#8220;best&#8221;, or &#8220;correct&#8221;, or &#8220;right&#8221; (or worse still that the simplest solution is &#8220;more likely&#8221;). But those words are all too strong &#8211; the more accurate phrasing is to say the &#8220;simplest solution is &#8216;to be preferred'&#8221; (see for example the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Occams-razor\">Encyclopedia Britannica<\/a>). And that should raise a question for you: <em>why &#8216;preferred&#8217;?<\/em> That is where Occam&#8217;s razor actually comes in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I am a big supporter of the open-access, volunteer-controlled Wikipedia &#8211; indeed, I link to it frequently here. The <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Occam%27s_razor\">Wikipedia entry<\/a> for Occam&#8217;s razor has what you need to know, but it is a bit complicated in how it is put together. For example, it unfortunately starts off in its opening paragraph with a much later Latin phrasing for Occam&#8217;s razor (quote Wikipedia: &#8220;frequently cited as <em>Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem<\/em>, which translates as &#8216;Entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity&#8217;, although Occam never used these exact words.&#8221;). It is odd to me to start with the later 17th century phrasing, but the above is a technically true statement &#8211; Occam never said that, but it is frequently <em>cited<\/em> that way today (and the third paragraph on Wikipedia provides the source for that later quote).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wikipedia does eventually provide the <u>actual phrasing<\/u> Occam did use (unfortunately only in its ninth paragraph): &#8220;<em>Numquam ponenda est pluralitas sine necessitate<\/em> (&#8216;Plurality must never be posited without necessity&#8217;), which occurs in his theological work &#8230;&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Note that those two statements are not exactly the same thing &#8211; the key word here is <em>ponenda<\/em> in the original phrasing, which means &#8220;to be posited&#8221; (i.e., to presume something or to assume it as fact when proposing an argument). This gets to the whole reason why this is called a &#8220;razor&#8221; in the first place &#8211; it shaves away the fuzzy thinking people are inclined towards and leaves just the smooth logic behind it.<strong> In <em>logical<\/em> terms, Occam&#8217;s razor is a reminder that you are <em>not justified<\/em> in making more assumptions than you absolutely need to.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The second paragraph in Wikipedia actually does a very good job in explaining how these two closely related concepts work in modern day language, avoiding all the Latin and the name labels:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>This philosophical razor advocates that when presented with competing hypotheses about the same prediction and both hypotheses have equal explanatory power, one should prefer the hypothesis that requires the fewest assumptions, and that this is not meant to be a way of choosing between hypotheses that make different predictions. Similarly, in science, Occam&#8217;s razor is used as an abductive heuristic in the development of theoretical models rather than as a rigorous arbiter between candidate models.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>This captures a key point: Occam was not a philosophical gambler giving you the odds! The simplest solution is to be preferred <em>because<\/em> you cannot logically assume more steps than you need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I am not sure why this has gotten so muddled over the years, but I have a theory: I can&#8217;t help but note that the formal mathematical study of probability also emerged in the 17th century (by folks very much concerned with games of chance). I can&#8217;t help but wonder if the subtly distorted Latin phrasing of Occam&#8217;s razor in the 17th century was not a coincidence &#8211; and eventually led to our modern (incorrect) probabilistic description of the razor and principle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What this means here is that the boo-boo in my thinking was NOT that the simpler solution was more &#8220;likely&#8221; to be chosen by Gillen and collaborators for the Progenitor (although it probably was given how much more work my alternative model would have been for them!). No, I was wrong to have <em>preferred<\/em> thinking through a complicated customized version of virtue consequentialism when the more straightforward combination of existing standard virtue ethics followed by standard consequentialism was available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>[Soapbox rant mode disabled]<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"religion\">Christian parable<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>As much fun as I have had exploring the ethics behind this series (and you can probably tell I really have!), there&#8217;s another angle to look at it that I don&#8217;t see discussed much online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the happy resolution and restoration of humanity at the end of issue #6, the Eternals notice that Sersi and Ajax are missing. She-who-was-Ajax (and was literally touched by the Progenitor) soon shows up and explains why Sersi is not coming back: &#8220;It [the Progenitor] removed its own judgment&#8221; &#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/780e07e4-1815-4c83-b213-f87b992c385b.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The now-dead Progenitor continues to narrate for a couple of pages, pointing out that while it was not worthy, the combined presence that is Ajax-Celestia will work to &#8220;become a god worthy of the name&#8221; &#8211; and her &#8220;heretical followers have an endless, thankless penance to serve you&#8221;. It also reminds the reader that judgment is ongoing. Every day could be the day humanity is judged for its cumulative mistakes, with the Earth being doomed. &#8220;Act accordingly. Every day is judgment day&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It&#8217;s interesting that the presumption is always that the Earth will be doomed when judgment day comes. I saw a reference online that Gillen was thinking of humanity&#8217;s inability to come together to fight the threat of climate change when he developed this story. That our inability to take collective action may effectively doom the planet, and lead to our extinction as a species &#8211; which certainly tracks with this ending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But I can&#8217;t help note that Sersi becoming a martyr for the Eternals &#8211; the first true death since the Eternals were created, eons ago &#8211; has obvious religious overtones. As does the &#8220;heretical&#8221; followers of Ajax-Celestia&#8217;s &#8220;new church&#8221; founded on that martyrdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There was an epilogue story, <em>A.X.E.: Judgment Day Omega<\/em> Vol 1, issue #1, 2022, by Gillen and <a href=\"https:\/\/marvel.fandom.com\/wiki\/Guiu_Vilanova\">Guiu Vilanova<\/a>, that explores this new church in more detail. With a prominent giant-sized statue of the &#8220;miracle&#8221; of its flawed martyr, Sersi:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/d3831461-8db0-4ff5-be46-8800f4eb64ef.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>What Ajax-Celestia is referring to are the three principles that all Eternals are bound by (previously created by Gillen in his Eternals series, and described in my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2955\">Introductory post<\/a>). Ironically for very consequentialist\/virtue ethics-focused Celestial gods, they imposed three very deontological rules on their creations. Ajax-Celestia recognizes these (correctly) as not serving as a proper core of their &#8220;philosophy&#8221;, but as limitations imposed on them. She heretically plans to modify them (and already has, by adding a fourth one based on Judgment Day).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">My heresy: The principles are not enough.<br>I cannot free us from them, not yet.<br>One day, I will. We can work to get there together.<br>Until then, join me.<br>ABOVE ALL,<br>BE PRINCIPLED.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>So, Ajax-Celestia&#8217;s people are a bunch of heretics following a new god, with a martyr from among them who committed a miracle and then died for their sins. Sound like anyone we know?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I also can&#8217;t help but note that the teachings of this new church seem to be proposing a virtue ethics\/consequentialist philosophy that is very much at odds with the deontological philosophy they come from. New versus Old Testament, anyone?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I explained in my recent <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/05\/absolute-wonder-woman-ethics\/#situational\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"6969\">Absolute Wonder Woman<\/a> ethics posts how the philosophy attributed to <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jesus\">Jesus Christ<\/a> in the New Testament is very much at odds with the deontological stories told in the Old Testament. In the mid-20th century, a consequentialist ethics theory was developed based on a modern interpretation of those teachings: <em>situational ethics<\/em>. Please see the link above for an explanation of how a consequentialist theory can be developed around the highest form of love that Jesus preached (known as <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Agape\">agape<\/a> in the original Greek). And as I further described in my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/29\/moon-knight-ethics\/#situational\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"7241\">Moon Knight<\/a> ethics post, I have found many of those Gospel stories to also display a clear virtue ethics perspective as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is a bit on the nose to me how this is the beginning of a new religion for the Eternals that is directly modeled on the historical precedent of Christianity being formed out of Judaism. The Eternals were (and remain) their gods&#8217; chosen ones (with eternal life, to boot), but there is a new heretical sect that have split off (recall Jesus was a Jewish rabbi after all) with an explicitly different moral view that involves reframing their canonical texts (restating and adding a new principle for the Eternals &#8211; just like the original Torah was reorganized and reframed in the Old Testament).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I still marvel (pardon the pun!) that such a detailed and thoughtful consideration of normative ethics and religion was presented in a major cross-over event of one the main superhero comic companies. And with a very engaging and entertaining action-adventure story, all done with outstanding visuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A hearty well done to all involved with this event!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The last word &#8230; for now<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>I can&#8217;t resist one more panel &#8211; the judgment of Daredevil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As I describe in my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/daredevil-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2897\">Daredevil<\/a> ethics overview, he is a very deontological and religious (Catholic) character, with some interesting psychodynamic elements thrown in. His judgment by the Progenitor is not a surprise to me, but the single panel is still a doozy! From issue #4, by Gillen and Schiti:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/hosting.photobucket.com\/7f94707c-da1b-49ed-9987-8c1a46606668\/8e347049-f427-40ef-8d46-130049d19048.jpg\" alt=\"\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Can you spot the shadow the Progenitor is casting on the upturned Daredevil? And the description of its appearance &#8211; wearing &#8220;a crown of thorns&#8221;. The Progenitor is not exactly being subtle here &#8211; he is appearing as a crucified Jesus Christ, condemning Daredevil. Yes, Daredevil has violated his deontological moral code over and over &#8230; but is it just me, or is the point here perhaps that Daredevil took the wrong moral lesson from Jesus Christ? While the New Testatment can certainly be read in very consequentialist and virtue ethics <em>philosophical <\/em>terms, that is not necessarily how all (most?) Christian <em>religions<\/em> practice it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I don&#8217;t know if Gillen is planning to return to Marvel any time soon, but I would LOVE to see what he would do with Ol&#8217; Hornhead!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>P.S.: And of course, I do plan on reviewing the ethics in Gillen&#8217;s outstanding current series, <em>The Power Fantasy<\/em>. Stay tuned for that one! (<em><strong>UPDATE<\/strong>: my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/25\/the-power-fantasy-ethics-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"8922\">Introduction post<\/a> to TPF is now up<\/em>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>See my <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/27\/glossary\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"5118\">Glossary<\/a> post for a list of the key philosophical concepts and related links on this site.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Further Reading<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"622\" data-src=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AXE_Judgement_Day-1024x622.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2958 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AXE_Judgement_Day-1024x622.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AXE_Judgement_Day-300x182.jpg 300w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AXE_Judgement_Day-768x466.jpg 768w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AXE_Judgement_Day.jpg 1120w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 1024px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 1024\/622;\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For more: <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/28\/axe-judgment-day-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2955\">A.X.E.: Judgment Day Introduction<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/25\/the-power-fantasy-ethics-introduction\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"622\" data-src=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251123_105918-1024x622.jpg\" alt=\"Covers of The Power Fantasy Vol 1, 2025, issues #1 (fourth printing), #2 (second printing), #5, art by Caspar Wijngaard\" class=\"wp-image-9232 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251123_105918-1024x622.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251123_105918-300x182.jpg 300w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251123_105918-768x466.jpg 768w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251123_105918.jpg 1120w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 1024px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 1024\/622;\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For more Kieron Gillen: <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/25\/the-power-fantasy-ethics-introduction\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"8922\">The Power Fantasy Introduction<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/23\/fml-comix-ethics\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"622\" data-src=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250923_130715-1024x622.jpg\" alt=\"Covers of FML #1 (Alvaro Martinez Bueno Variant), #2 (Gene Ha Variant), and #6 (David L\u00f3pez)\" class=\"wp-image-8080 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250923_130715-1024x622.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250923_130715-300x182.jpg 300w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250923_130715-768x466.jpg 768w, https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250923_130715.jpg 1120w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 1024px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 1024\/622;\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For more virtue ethics: <a href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/23\/fml-comix-ethics\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"7884\">FML comix<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I previously introduced A.X.E. Judgement Day &#8211; the major 2022 Marvel cross-over event &#8211; as an excellent example of ethics (moral philosophy) depicted through comic stories. The main series was written by Kieron Gillen, with art by Valerio Schiti, colors by Marte Gracia, letters by Clayton Cowles, and contributions by &#8230; <\/p>\n<div><a class=\"more-link bs-book_btn\" href=\"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/10\/a-x-e-judgment-day-conclusion\/\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[1,38],"tags":[41,40,50,42],"class_list":["post-7647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avengers","category-x-men","tag-consequentialism","tag-deontology","tag-marvel","tag-virtue"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7647","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7647"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7647\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11267,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7647\/revisions\/11267"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7647"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7647"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comicphilosophy.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7647"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}