December 20, 2005
Week 34 - Impossible Dreams 15
Episode 2
Lamont sits on a couch in the den. A stack of very old comic books rests on a coffee table in front of him, along with the photo of his wife. A flame rages in the fireplace. Lamont thumbs through one of the comics and shakes his head. After a few moments, Powell steps in. "Um... Lucy asked me to check on you."
Lamont holds up the comic. "Do you see this, my boy?"
"That's... that's Batman number four! From like... 1940." Lamont folds back the first few pages and hands it to Powell. "Be.. be careful, Mr. Lamont. This is a major collector's item!"
"Look at it! Just look at that picture at the top. There are at least five gangsters in that room, all shooting at Batman. And yet, he's able to charge right at them, without the slightest injury."
"I... I think it's supposed to be that... he distracts them with his cape... and he moves too fast..."
"My boy, those are machine guns! Do you see the streams of bullets, flying in all directions? There is no way anyone could survive such an onslaught!"
"Um... I don't really..."
Lamont snatches the comic book back from Powell and stares at it. "All a lie!" He spits into the pages.
"Mr. Lamont! That thing must be worth ten thousand dollars!"
Lamont struggles to his feet and slowly walks across the room. Then he tosses the comic book into the fire place.
"Mr. Lamont! Are you nuts? How could you do that?"
Lamont steps back to the pile on the coffee table. He grabs an issue of Superman from the early 1950's. "Look at this! Look at him flying! Not even flying, just hovering there! What holds him up? What's his source of power? The energy from our yellow sun? What does that mean? It's ridiculous, it violates every law of physics! I'm an engineer! How could I have believed this nonsense?" He tosses it into the flames.
"Mr. Lamont, stop! These things are so rare... they're art, they're history. You can't destroy them, it's a desecration!" Powell picks up the stack and shields it in his arms.
Lamont yanks it from him. "Deranged fantasies and lies!" He throws the entire pile onto the fire.
Powell watches as the colorful pages blacken and disintegrate.