Holy Shit, mutants. I can’t believe the cynicism in this thread when what we are watching is a space opera unfold in real time.
Dennis is a life long fuckup that got by on grit and determination in one of the several gladiator sports where, in his home universe, one could make a a very good living. He didn’t often score, he was dismal at free-shots, and he was undersized for his position. Yet, he excelled personally in getting to the ball and was part of some legendary teams, including the one with The Godlike Michael.
Kim is the son of a whacko. Not just any whacko, but one who was raised by a whacko that happened to be king of his universe. Imagine yourself as Kim: born into this timeline as the heir of all of the power and privileged of not just one, but TWO whacko kings, masters of all they see. These prior kings seemed to have cared for precious little, both letting their population starve and killing rivals at will. Except, they have some things they idealize, one of which is The Godlike Michael and his gladiator sport.
Now, to be sure, Dennis has gotten himself high as a rainbow for many, many years. But, can you say that’s unusual for those who were the first child out of 47. Let alone the first of 47 who grew up without much in the world where some people despised him for his looks. He might have been content to have a nice comfortable job, but every day since he made the top tier of his gladiator sport, this man has pinched himself to prove he’s in a dream, so he never wakes up. And after he pinched, maybe he smoked a lil’ something.
Now, Dennis goes on to have a storybook career, makes the hall of fame, and retires as a many-time champion. Most people would be content with that. Then again, most people do not have biographies titled Bad As I Want To Be. For a time, Dennis is content, but then his inherent badassness makes him restless.
In his restlessness, Dennis watches as the ultimate level of leadership within all habitable space fighting. One of the world leaders fighting is Kim, who is threatening the people of Dennis’s universive with a great and ancient weapon of fire. So great, it’s hotter than the fires of a star. So ancient, it hasn’t been used in combat in the lifetime of either of Dennis or Kim.
As Dennis learns of this threat to his homeland, he also learns that the issuer of this threat, Kim, thinks of him as a god. Now, during all of his drugged escapades, Dennis has heard of Cargo Cults before. And he begins to think, is this the cult I’ve been looking for, all my life?
Am I Jayne, the Hero of Canton?
…
tl:dr maybe Kim sees Dennis as a god and so Dennis is trying his best Loki impersonation for the home team
ps- for another great exercise in fiction, imagine the above portrayed as an internal state department conversation. You know they’d be all like, “Let’s just send Godlike Michael, they’ll pack the warheads in his return suitcases.”
