BUTCHER not a butcher?

Here's an exchange on an old comic book starring an Indian. In a posting on Michael Sheyahshe's blog, I wrote:It's been a while since I've read BUTCHER. But I'd count him as a savage on the noble/savage continuum. Isn't he just a modern version of the relentless Indian warrior?Sheyahshe, the author of Native Americans in Comic Books, responded:True, there are some elements of savagery left with Butcher. He's not a perfect character by any means. However, his character does transcend this stereotype by being intelligent, insightful, calm, and even humorous at times.

The old notion of Savage never allowed for these things; the savage used only rage, vengeance, and blood thirst to fuel and propel the character, with little rational thought to anything other than violence. Thus, the character was incomplete and inhuman, that is, without a sense of humanity.

This is the distinct difference between the Butcher and the Savage. Of course, his name says it all: he is a killing machine, trained by experts all over the globe. So, there is some support for your argument. He is indeed a warrior. Thankfully, he is a different type than we have seen in most cases.Comment:  I don't agree that the stereotypical Indian savage "used only rage, vengeance, and blood thirst." In other words, that he was a mindless killing machine. A character like Magua or Injun Joe or John Rainbird in Stephen King's Firestarter could be "intelligent, insightful, calm, and even humorous at times." That doesn't mean they didn't qualify as savages.

To me, an Indian savage is someone who's primarily a savage, not wholly a savage. Someone who relies on brawn more than brains no matter how intelligent he is. Even if he's a complex character with many other traits, savagery is the main thing that defines him.

Therefore, I'm sticking with my claim that Butcher qualifies as a modern-day Indian savage. So do other intelligent Indian characters such as Scout, Ripclaw, and Warpath. If their primary role in a story is fighting and killing, they're savages.

For more on the subject, see Comic Books Featuring Indians.