Rich Jack isn’t a villain in a superhero morality tale where his grand gestures, evil machinations, and incessant monologues make it clear that he’s the bad guy. Generally, he’s just kind of a jerk. However, his villainy lies in the subtlety, from the outward racism, classism, and bigotry, to his more quiet leveraging of his power over others. He’s not stronger or more capable than anybody in the entire story, but he has political/social/fiscal power and public attention, which is more than enough for this world.

In a sense, he has everything that Long John lost when his clothes got stolen, though he acted like he still had that kind of power. If anything, Rich Jack is a cautionary tale of letting that kind of empty strength get the best of you, and the entire story is partly about Long John learning what real strength is.

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