They Would’ve Killed Him
On Superman, Krypto, parents, and the people who can't see a hero when he's right in front of them
Yes, this is kind of a spoiler alert. But not a big one.
The new Superman movie opens with the dog, Krypto, saving him. And no, that’s not the theme of the movie… but then again, maybe it is. Because later, Superman saves Krypto, too.
Love runs both ways.
What circles through this movie (one of the themes, anyway) — beautifully, powerfully — is the role of parents. The kind who raise you. The kind who shape you. The kind who love you into who you’re supposed to be.
There are Superman’s birth parents on Krypton. We don’t really know if they were good people. We don’t have to. Because we do know Jonathon and Martha Kent — the Kansas couple who found a baby in a crashed spaceship and raised him as their own. Who taught him decency, humility, restraint, courage.
They didn’t just save a life. They built a hero.
It’s subtle, but central: this story is about nurturing outsiders. Aliens. Strangers. The vulnerable. It’s about what kind of world we create — or destroy — when someone different crashes into our orbit.
And honestly? I can’t help but ask:
If the someone from the MAGA crowd had found baby Superman… what would they have done?
Would they have wrapped him in a blanket?
Would they have shielded him from suspicion, from ICE, from Fox News, from a thousand panicked headlines?
Would they have raised him to love this country and try to save it?
Hell no.
They would've shot him. Buried the wreckage. Called it a Chinese invasion. Tucker Carlson would've gone live that night warning about “space-based replacement theory.”
That’s the sickness.
The very people who wrap themselves in capes and flags would’ve murdered a scared child from another world — just because he didn’t have the right papers—or even if he did have the right papers. Even if he looked like them. Even if he was them.
But Jonathon and Martha didn’t do that.
They raised him. They loved him.
In Real Life
You might never know when you need your parents as an adult—but chances are, you will, if you haven’t already countless times.
One of my favorites, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did—and of course, he’s still one of my favorites. Check out his blog, he has a lot to offer.
OK, stay with me.
Let’s go back to the future: Game 1 of the 1985 NBA Finals — Kareem plays terrible, and the Celtics blow the Lakers off the court, humiliate them in the Boston Garden. And Jabbar was crucified after the game:
Many commentators suggested that Kareem's performance indicated his career was nearing its end (he would play four more years). His struggles against the Celtic’s Robert Parish in particular fueled this narrative.
Celtics Disrespect: Celtics legend Red Auerbach openly downplayed Abdul-Jabbar's influence and suggested double-teaming him wasn't necessary, further intensifying the criticism.
Underwhelming Stats: Abdul-Jabbar scored only 12 points and grabbed just 3 rebounds in only 22 minutes of play.
Ahead of Game 2 of the Finals, the six-time MVP realized he needed a morale boost; he ask Lakers’ coach Riley if his father could join him with the players and coaches on the team bus.
"It made an impression on all of us," Magic Johnson said of the moment. "Pat was a stickler for rules — no outsiders on the bus — and it sent a powerful message when he made that exception. It was all about family."
Riley agreed, and Kareem scored 30, leading the Lakers to a win in Game 2, a win in the series, and ultimately, he was named the Finals MVP. Because he knew what he needed.
Back to the Movie
Superman — in one of the movie’s more emotional moments — returns to Smallville. Back to Kansas. Back to his parents. Because when the world is on fire, you reach for the people who loved you into being.
That’s what the movie gets.
That’s what MAGA never will.
Because they don't do compassion.
They don't do nurturing.
They don't do helping strangers.
They take everything pure — kindness, courage, decency, love — and twist it into a threat. Then call it “woke” or “propaganda” or “DEI.”
They watched a movie about hope and a hero, and somehow saw an attack.
But that’s what they do best.
They twist the good into something to hate.
They look at Superman in this movie and see a problem.
They look at Krypto and see a distraction.
A quick side—our president doesn’t have a dog. What else do we need to know about him?
They look at love, at help, at sacrifice — and sneer.
I Can Hear Them Screaming Now
If a MAGA reads this, and I hope they will, they’ll holler, call me names, yell “woke,” and a bunch of other things I don’t need to repeat. You’ve heard it all before. All that does is prove my point.
The movie is wonderful and I highly recommend it. If you love dogs, you’ll really love it. Not because it’s perfect. But because it has heart.
Because it believes in the idea that someone raised with love — even someone from a dying world, an alien, or an immigrant — could still choose to save ours.
MAGA would’ve killed him. And they would have shot the dog.
Jonathon and Martha Kent raised a hero.
Beautiful description of the message behind the movie. You nailed it!