Sun of Zartha/Why I wrote this story

The purpose of The Sun of Zartha

"The Sun of Zartha" (MIB3) is a work of speculative science "fan fiction" intended to be a hypothetical canonical sequel to the 2002 Columbia Pictures film "Men In Black II" (MIBII), directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and starring Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, and Rosario Dawson.

MIB3 is designed and written to further develop the ideas - and characters - shown in MIBII (or MIIB). It is the story of Agent Jay's transformation from a human secret agent into a godlike alien king.

The inspiration for MIB3 was the viewing of MIIB in the summer of 2004 on HBO (I missed the chance to see the film when it was playing in theaters), and especially the final few scenes of the film where Laura Vasquez is revealed to be the Light of Zartha, and leaves Earth, causing both her and Agent Jay tremendous sadness. I don't like sad, unresolved endings in films. The ending was clearly designed to leave the possibility of an official sequel open, but as of the end of 2004 a "Men In Black III" was only the subject of many unsubstantiated rumors around Hollywood.

Since there was a very real possibility a "Men In Black III" might never be made, I thought it would be a good idea to write a piece of fan fiction and post it online, giving readers a look at what I think a good sequel to MIIB should be. I also wrote a brief treatment for possible submission to film industry people.

The question was: How can this couple be reunited? Some of the ideas considered were having Jay go to Zartha on a mission and end up "saving" Laura, but what different would that be from any other sci-fi movie, or many romantic comedies?

The decision was made to elevate MIB3 to the level of epic "space opera" and create a new mythology that would solidly connect Jay to Laura and to the planet Zartha: why not make Agent Jay a being of Zarthan descent himself, and have it so that he and Laura's marriage was actually intended and planned from the beginning?

After doing some research as to the kinds of thematic elements and screenplay structure moviegoers preferred nowadays, some new characters were created, most notably Queen Angelique, the biological mother of Agent Jay and the queen of Zartha, ruling the planet in an MIB-imposed exile status. Queen Angelique, or Angie, provides the element of family and mentorship which aligns with the Joseph Campbell "hero's journey" structure which has become a standard format for screenwriting.

In MIB3, Zartha is established and further developed as a kingdom run by the family of Agent Jay, naturally a family living on Earth as African-American. The mythology surrounding the origin of Jay's family has to be complex and be somewhat accurate historically. The family was established by means of marriage between African village women and an extraterrestrial visitor, Lord T'ola'an.

The events of Laura's going to Zartha are made into the catalyst of Jay's eventual reunion with her: his mother speaks to him telepathically and calls him to action; confirmation is provided when Agent Kay and MIB director Zed disclose Jay's true identity to him in a closed-door meeting. Jay is shocked, stunned and angry at his superiors for hiding his identity for so long, but he is also elated at the chance to be with Laura.

Jay's family on Earth is based in New Orleans (the story writing began in the early spring of 2005 before the events of Hurricane Katrina). New Orleans was chosen because it seemed an exotic city with a large Black population, known the world over for the melding of African and European culture and folkways. If aliens could blend into New York City as was the case with the MIB films, they could also most certainly blend into a city as "magical" and "mysterious" as New Orleans.

The story centers around Jay's coming to terms with his alien identity, and learning that life on Zartha, while a vast improvement on Earth, is not as idyllic as it seems at first. There is elitism and racial division between the tribes of Zartha, leading to serious internal political turmoil that threatens the security of Earth, and Jay has to find a way to deal with this turmoil and unite the tribes, while at the same time getting to know a mother he hasn't seen since the age of seven, and of course developing his romantic relationship with Laura. In addition, he learns that his mentor, Agent Kay, had a romantic affair in the '60s with his mom, so there is the clear possibility that Kay is in reality his father (or at least his half-father), which is somewhat distressing for him to realize.

Jay relies on his old patterns developed in MIB as well as the NYPD and a stint in the Air Force. He is a detective by training and tries to rationalize and think through every move. What Jay needs to do is allow his feelings and emotions to guide him, as the women who run Zartha implore him to do. This is a hard transition for Jay, and despite several "dreams" and other methods of communicating the ancient wisdom of "Light", he keeps falling back on his logic, wondering if the task of being king is too much for him, but when Serleena, the evil Kylothian villain of MIBII reappears on the scene and kidnaps Laura, he is forced to grow into the "sun god" persona in order to save Laura - as well as Zartha and Earth.

By relying on the vast metaphysical powers that have been awakened in him, and by also accepting the support of his mother and his family in the royal court, Jay is able to negotiate a rescue for Laura from Serleena and save the Earth from destruction (but after a colorful battle in the middle of Times Square, where beams of light shoot out from fists). The story then goes to another pivotal point as Jay and Laura are married and installed as King and Queen of Zartha in a meaningful yet relatively simple ceremony.

What does Jay learn? He learns that he is worthy to be King of Zartha. The loneliness and abject isolation he so acutely felt in MIBII has effectively ended. He learns that with the love, companionship and support of Laura and his mother, he can achieve anything he wishes. He can be more than just a secret agent fighting the "scum of the universe"; rather, he can be a force for peace and goodwill throughout the universe, and save and enhance the lives of millions on many planets, not just a subway car full of blasé New Yorkers.

MIB3 can be a springboard for many other tales of Jay, Laura, the families of Zartha and their relationships to MIB and the exopolitical structure in the universe.