I’ve read a few reviews purposing that, if Jupiter Ascending were any other Hollywood film, Jupiter would’ve been relegated to the role of “love interest” while Caine Wise assumed the coveted role of Chosen One / MC. I think that’s true - but I also find it equally likely that, if this were the 90s, Stinger could’ve been the MC, considering what he represents.
Stinger is the boomer-era white male self-insert. He’s a cop AND ex-military, retired to a FARM in middle America where he works - just strugglin’ to get by. He has a teenage daughter and a room full'a guns “in the back.” He’s every character played by Bruce Willis, John Wayne, and Kevin Costner, all rolled into one. In the world of JA, he’s a father, a sheriff AND a cowboy–literally a cowboy, if you read bees as farm animals. Or if you read earthlings as farm animals. Either way.
Stinger’s role in the story is a somewhat conservative one. As an Aegis “space cop,” he is well-placed to introduce Jupiter to the status quo of space capitalism. Stinger is, by profession, a defender of the same laws which make Jupiter “Your Majesty” and everyone else “product.” Yet he takes no responsibility for the power structure he helps defend. “Technically, YOUR people killed the dinosaurs,” he retorts, even though Titus refers to “Marshals and Administrators” overseeing the harvests. Marshal is Stinger’s Aegis title. “Administators” may refer to the Legion Administrator, as mentioned by the Seals and Signets master in reference to Jupiter’s royal guard.
Legionnaires, Aegis Marshals, Hunters…all these roles are integral to maintaining the system of genetic immortality space capitalism. Caine defies authority and rejects his role; he does so outside the story (by biting an Entitled) and within the story (by deciding to date Jupiter instead of cashing in on the bounty on her head). Stinger, however, embraces his role; he DOES cash in Jupiter’s bounty, and he maintains a rank within an institution that enforces stratification of the social order. Stinger and the Aegis staff are responsible for the “harvests” on both an institutional and consumer level - they are even depicted actively using Regenex to heal Caine.
In spite of all this, Stinger is a likeable character. He’s a part of the team; he’s necessary for the success of the heroes. His knowledge, abilities, and resources come in handy to help them survive and achieve. He serves as a mentor to Caine and a protector to Jupiter. Most importantly, he is a good father to Kiza. I absolutely love how the fandom has honed in on this attribute of Stinger’s character, recasting him as “sad bee dad” (lol) - basically placing Kiza in primary focus and relegating Stinger to his function as “Kiza’s father.” This is a nice reversal of a gender-dynamic that, imo, has plagued fiction ever since “Grendel’s mother” never got a name. Female characters are often written without any development or motivation apart from the male characters they are relative to…they are mothers, daughters, sisters, wives, but not full human beings. Kiza gets all of two lines in JA, and yet her presence as a character is so felt that we can all kind of look at Stinger and say, “ah yes, there’s Kiza’s dad. What’s he up to now?”
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