‘Steel’ is Available on HBO Max…For Better or Worse

For reasons unknown, I have access to HBO Max. I was combing through the DC catalog and came across a gem in Black Hero History.The year was 1997 B.B. (“Before Blade”). Biggie had died, NASA’s Pathfinder had landed on Mars, and gas was $1.25. And Shaquille O’Neal was easily one of the most popular athletes in sports entertainment at the time. Rarely was there a commercial break that didn’t include Shaq Diesel selling something (not unlike now, come to think of it). So, it was inevitable that Hollywood would try to cash in. And whether we liked it or not, the result was two terrible films that need not be spoken of….and Steel. I’m supposed to explain here that Steel is loosely based on a DC Comics superhero created during the Death/Return of Superman saga. However, with the exception of the Superman emblem on Shaq’s arm, the source material is basically inconsequential to understanding the parts of this movie that actually make sense. O’Neal plays John Henry Irons, a military weapons designer who grows a conscience when his friend is inadvertently paralyzed by one of his inventions. When he goes home to his old neighborhood to live with his grandmother (played by Irma P. Hall, everyone’s grandmother throughout the 90s), he finds gang members using his weapons. So, he builds himself a suit of armor and a hammer to become the vigilante Steel. Now, at first glance, this sounds like a pretty decent sell for a good superhero romp on par with, at least, the first tier of pre-Iron Ma…