The alpha heroes of 1980s romances—ranch owners, corporate raiders, anyone played by Michael Douglas—tended to be emotionally constipated anti-feminists intent on dominating the opposite sex by using testosterone and wads of cash.
—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
10 June 2026
Pumpkin’s lonely holiday ritual is interrupted by the arrival of a savage gang of raiders at her doorstep led by Thalia (Sossamon).
When published in 1844, Dumas' novel, which evokes the adventures of musketeers Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artagnan — yes, there were actually four musketeers — became an overnight sensation.
—
Eleanor Beardsley,
NPR,
30 Mar. 2026
While the hero existed — as did Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, or at least musketeers with similar names — most of the actual stories are invented, either by the sensationalist biographer or Dumas himself.
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