The Rambo Conundrum

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“Uhura: We are outgunned…outnumbered.
Kirk: So we come out shooting”
            Courtesy: STAR TREK: INTO THE DARKNESS (INTERNATIONAL TRAILER)
 
In the short span of time I call my life this is one of the few lines I have heard many a times. Every movie and every action novel which involves a protagonist fighting against an antagonist shall always have some line like this. This line would probably be located right near the climax of the novel or movie and would invariably see the protagonist come out of the tight situation guns blazing (at times literally!!)
But then has anyone ever wondered how unrealistic this line can be? I mean, I don’t deny the fact that when cornered people do tend to perform extraordinary acts of valor. But then when the situation looks so bleak and hopeless then how much could (or rather should) be the chance of coming out of the situation with flying colors? That, I believe is the million dollar question.
To answer this question let me take my readers through another quote of a very famous movie, Rambo: First Blood (a quote which has now been ripped off in a new Bollywood movie!!!)

“Trautman: You want a war you can't win?
Teasle: Are you telling me that 200 men against your boy is a no-win situation for us?
Trautman: You send that many don't forget one thing.
Teasle: What?
Trautman: A good supply of body bags.”




Now, right there one may say is another situation which in the real dirt and grime world of ours seems like a no-win situation. But then Rambo turns the whole thing on its head and comes out victorious, just like his mentor says.
Comparing with real life, we might say that this seems preposterous, especially seeing the kind of world we live in. But then in each of us there exists a small part that always wants to be able to do something like this. Every one of us has always wanted to be like John Rambo or Ethan Hunt, do things which everyone said were impossible, jump off tall buildings and shoot down the bad guys.
But then not all wishes come true and that’s when movies and novels like these come to our help. They give us a glimpse of what can be done by a rather simple individual (not so simple like us ordinary mortals, but who’s complaining). So one may say that these creations are all fictitious and do not resemble the real life in any way, but then we also have seen people accomplish impossible tasks like climbing the Everest or for someone like Helen Keller to become an author, activist and lecturer. It is possible for an ordinary individual like John Nash to overcome his mental illness and make extraordinary contributions to the world of mathematics. Even someone so small in age like Anne Frank could do something which even adults couldn't dream of... 



Thus, though it seems very improbable but the Rambo Conundrum (as I choose to call this act of defying reality as a tribute to the most original commando movie ever made) does exist in real life. 

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