There are not enough monsters to fight.
No villainous curly mustaches
twirled in anticipation of evil deeds to come.
There is a dearth of maniacal laughter
and black cloaks dashing darkly
through the night.
There are not enough arch enemies
for all the heroes out there.

We have vanquished too many.
Too little of what had been labeled “bad”
Is still labeled “current.”
We have conquered so much
and left so few for future generations.

It’s for the good,
I guess.
This means the world is better
and we are closer to peace
or justice
or… something.
With villains diminished
maybe we don’t need heroes
or maybe
we need to name something new
to kill.