10 pop culture characters who accurately depict mental health issues

Marvel Studios’ AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR L to R: Star-Lord/Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and Nebula (Karen Gillan) Photo: Film Frame ©Marvel Studios 2018

Nebula

Nebula has had to unlearn a lot, particularly in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Thanks to the abuse Thanos inflicted on her, she never had a childhood, a childhood relationship with her sister, or a father. (Thanos never raised Nebula and Gamora, therefore, we refuse to say that he was ever their father.) The impact runs deep. When Gamora first tries to hug her in Guardians of the Galaxy, Nebula flinches and even clenches her fist in a defensive way. As painful as it is to watch her reactions to normal displays of admiration and affection, it’s a strong depiction of how some long-term survivors do react.

Like many fans, we have a lot of grievances with Avengers: Endgame, but we’ll give credit where we believe credit is due. Watching Nebula kill her past self is pretty awesome, especially since she finally accepts that she can do good and be a hero even despite Thanos’ lifelong attempts to brainwash her. Sure, we’re still upset that Nebula didn’t get the opportunity to seek revenge against Thanos not only for what he did to her, but what he also did to her sister. After all, Nebula can multitask. She can grow emotionally, cope with her lifetime of trauma, and be vengeful.

Nonetheless, the background in the MCU leads to her gradual arc with surviving abuse and recognizing that not everyone wants to hurt or kill her. We might not be able to relate with being physically and psychologically manipulated into becoming an intergalactic assassin; however, we can find common ground in Nebula’s trials of relearning practically everything about human interactions and healthy relationships and friendships.

Obviously, there are a lot of other pop culture characters who accurately depict mental health and don’t contribute to any negative stigmas. With all the upcoming productions and comic series, it’s difficult to keep track of ever positive depiction, so we’ll hopefully have an updated slideshow in the not-so-distant future. Who doesn’t want pop culture to continuously improve its representation?