The late great pop icon Michael Jackson and his music serve as a perfect example of fantasy-theme criticism. Michael played the roles of many alter egos in his music videos. Although he was said to be a very shy and timid man in person, he often played the hero or the guy that ultimately got the girl in his videos, like in "Smooth Criminal" and "The Way You Make Me Feel." In my favorite video by him, "Remember the Time", he and all of his background dancers were dressed in traditional Egyptian clothing and he was a magical stranger that wooed the Egyptian Queen (Iman) right in front of her husband the king (Eddie Murphy). In the extended version of the "Bad" video, he plays a guy named Darryl who has left behind his gang banging friends to go to a prestigious prep school but is returning home for the winter break. His friends soon see that he has changed but he proves to them that he is still bad, and dons the black leather outfit and does his whole dance routine in a subway station. Finally, in his most popular video, "Thriller", after being cornered by a crowd of zombies, Jackson also turns into a zombie and chases his girlfriend through the streets and into an abandoned house where she wakes up finding that everything was all a dream.
Michael Jackson was very creative and didn't just use his vides as a way to entertain audiences. Almost all of his songs and videos sent very powerful messages directed towards the media and the endless rumors about him, and also positive messages about people getting involved in helping the planet and becoming aware of what is going on in the world.
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