A Tale of Two Wonderboys
"Wonderboy,” by Tenacious D is an epic tale of heroes, a nemesis, a hydra, and the power of rock. Tenacious D, known for expressing such power as a means of kicking ass go so far as to use it literally to defeat the devil in guitar duels, or more subtly, “to move you.” Their music often gets explicit and describes their sexual prowess, even on tame subjects, like the self-promotion of their musical skill. To date, Tenacious D has released three albums and a movie over 11 years. This song, which comes from the D’s first album, sounds like a superhero tale. It incorporates code names of the sort that might protect a secret identity and using super powers with modern sounding names. The director of the music video, Spike Jonze, took a different direction. Mr. Jonze takes the lyrics' superhero content and turns it into…show more content… The hydra, a monster fought in Greek mythology, is the only lyrical indication that this song does not take place in current or future times. It comes so late in the song that the audience has likely already developed a modern mental image, and while a hydra may seem anachronistically out of place, this would not be the first time modern-day superheroes have faced off against legendary monsters. The battle scene in the video is preceded by a moment of knightly prayer before a sword and a journey through jagged mountains in foul weather. Our heroes overcome this trial to reach the mouth of the cave, lit internally by fire. Wonderboy cautiously enters the cave, slashes his sword (but not mind bullets) in scenes of heavy action with camera shake and quick flashes between scenes. He emerges from a now dark cave with the lyrics implying the hydra is defeated, and collapses to the ground impaled on his own sword as a tragic hero while the lyrics express