By Scott Hurd
“We can rebuild him. We have the technology!”
Kids in the ’70s heard these words opening each episode of “The Six Million Dollar Man”: a show about an astronaut named Steve who, through nuclear-powered bionics implanted after a tragic accident, had superhuman strength, speed and vision. He became a secret government agent, and the bad guys always got caught.
Today’s kids don’t know the Six Million Dollar Man, but they know another superhero with extraordinary powers, thanks to science: Marvel’s Captain America, a World War II GI also named Steve who, armored with an indestructible “vibranium” shield, was transformed into a bulked-up fighting machine by an experimental “super soldier serum.”
Technologically empowered characters like Captain America and the Six Million Dollar Man have been science fiction staples for decades. They haven’t all been named Steve, and they aren’t always the good guys. I’ve watched enough “Doctor Who” to know that Cybermen are not our friends.
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