The contrast between comic Robert Reynolds versus the MCUās Bob Reynolds very interesting. In the comics you have a married man with schizophrenia, agoraphobia and generalized anxiety disorder who gained his powers on accident while trying self medicate his schizophrenia via getting high. In the movies you have a bipolar guy who went abroad in search of drugs (presumably for the same reason as his comic counterpart) only to be tricked into a study where heās administered a serum that led to him miraculously gaining powers.
In both instances, with Robertās powers comes an amplification / personification of his mental illness. However, Sentry/the Void represent different things between the comics and MCU.
In the comics, Sentry is everything people want to see from Robert. A savior, a golden boy and a perfectly well adjusted individual with no illness in sight. His wife even refers to Sentry as Robertās lingerie. On the flip side, the Void is everything no one wants to see from Robert, his mental illness, his flaws and his problems. Both together make Robert Reynolds who he is, a mentally ill man with the power to either save or destroy the world. A man who has 3 sides to him, and only 1 side people want to see and accept: Sentry.
MCU Bob Reynolds, on the other hand, is a metaphor for bipolar, at least in my eyes as someone who also has bipolar. He has episodes of highs and lows, in his own words and according to his files he experiences delusions of grandeur and depression. Apply those to Sentry and the Void and you get Sentry as a representation of mania and the Void as major depression. Both sides of Bob, Sentry and the Void, are portrayals of mental illness. They just happen to be on one end of the extreme. Once again the power to either save or destroy the world is entrusted to Bob, whoās stuck between his own two worlds and extremes.
The two metaphors explore different aspects of mental illness. Robert is faced with hiding and silently battling a major aspect of himself, the Void, in the comics. In the movies Bob finds himself between two distinct states of mind, one where he is above everyone else and one where he is rock bottom. In both cases he also has a history of drug abuse which led to him developing his powers in the first place.
My personal thoughts on the two metaphors is that I prefer the comic one (I was personally moved by it more), but I was pleasantly surprised while watching the movie because I never expected Bob to be depicted as (possibly) having bipolar since I have bipolar myself. My best friend even texted me that Bob reminded her of me because the way he describes his illness is exactly how I describe mine. I hope in future appearances his character is delved into more because Sentry is such an interesting character to me. Unfortunately his writing isnāt always the best, but in his original two runs his character truly spoke to me and I implore everyone to read them.
Specifically I want more discussion around Bobās drug abuse and self medicating for mental illness, like he did in the comics. I saw a family member of mine become dependent on drugs for the longest time before receiving her bipolar diagnosis, and more awareness needs to be shed on how many drug abuse issues stem from self medication. Similarly, I also hope they include Bobās mental disorders from the comics such as schizophrenia and agoraphobia. I know some people enjoy the lack of specification on what disorder Bob has but I personally believe you can still relate to him even if he has a different disorder than you. I also think itās a good opportunity to once again shed light on things like schizophrenia and agoraphobia.
