With no summer film releases, printed graphic stories, etc -- did the ancients completely lack the equivalent of juvenile sci-fi entertainment? Apparently not, though lack of presses and mass distribution probably made it difficult for that specific target audience to procure the published material. Narrative-wise, there are parallels between then and today. Unlike the Watchers of Marvel Comics and their vow of non-interference with lesser beings, the non-canon Judeo-Christian version of the Watchers did interfere. And their later punishment seems to indicate they never reformed afterward by similarly formulating such Star Trek Prime Directives. And the equivalent of superheroes (archangels, God, etc) seem more of a deus ex machina dispatched at the last moment to dispatch the super-villains. That is, an interspersed storyline dealing with the developing personal problems and trials in the social lives of the superheroes may be absent. Though the life struggles of their pals (like Noah) may be better described.. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (video link) The Book of Enoch explained VIDEO EXCERPTS: The Book of Enoch is the ultimate example of spin-off literature. It's over 100 chapters, long thousands and thousands of words. But it's based off of a fairly obscure biblical character: Enoch. The Hebrew bible has very little to say about him. [...] Well, early Jews and Christians were rarely satisfied with such vague biblical passages. Which leads us to its spin-off, the Book of Enoch. This text was so popular for early Christians that even the New Testament cites it. The Epistle of Jude, the second to last book in the New Testament, directly references Enoch chapter 1, verse 9. But for a book that was so popular for ancient Jews and Christians, very few people today know about it. So what is the Book of Enoch, and what does it really say? [...] divine beings ... come down to earth to have sex with human women. Who then give birth to beings called Nephilim. [...] Enoch 7:3 says that the giants began to kill men and to devour them, and then kill all the beasts and drank their blood. Sounds kind of like a horror film. This section also describes the Watchers as devious angels skilled in evil supernatural arts. Which they then taught to humanity. [...] As the Watchers and Nephilim continue to devastate the Earth and pollute humans with evil knowledge, the story culminates in humanity crying out to God for help. In response, God dispatches his four archangels to set things right. He instructs one to warn Noah about the coming flood... (missing details below or in link at top) The Book of Enoch explained
It could be that the watchers aren't much different than anyone else, aside from mindset, understanding of the cosmos, and choices made while existing here. I've read parts of the book, namely the first 24 to 26 chapters. The punishments could be an on-going spiritual and emotional effect and mentality, held by them and others who take on similar traits as those written about in the book ... Maybe end of life scenarios and regret or newly developed conscience and super ego driven value systems the culprit behind the punishments. The growing part of development coupled with an understanding of consequence as it relates to the hunan psyche with after the fact realities of human condition caused by choices made seems plausible. I don't know, but shame, regret, guilt, and public opinion have an way of putting people through some hellish punishment ... Particularly looking backward as you rapidly approach end game. The mind is a terrible thing to waste and most at least understand and have a sense of justice. The watchers could allude to those who pay attention and use their findings for gain ... Whatever it may be. Magus, angels, Nephilim, kings, ...wise men - watchers, who are observant and find ways of manipulating the elements and people to their favor. Disastrous consequences play out often enough to obtain a guilt riddled end life mentality. I'd suggest this is true enough for enough people to place in the realms of truth and reality, minus the religious jargon and sci fi bent categorizations of fantasy. Descriptions of places sent poetic and fantastical, but this doesn't negate the possible existence of places described on earth, and punishments often enough inflicted by our residents .
The history of Christianity is the history of the delusional belief that the end of the world is about to happen any time now. Jesus certainly believed it. The apostles. Paul too. And the early Christians of the Roman empire. All thru the ages doomsday predictions by fanatical self-appointed prophets and allegorical scriptures have fed the masses with a mixture of panic and false hope of deliverance from this miserable world. Even today there are those who count on the salvation of God's chosen saints via an eminent and horrific apocalyptic intervention. Fervent anticipations of Armageddon, the Rapture and the Last Judgement still fuel the evangelistic ministeries of many Christian churches. "Repent and be saved you wayward sinners! The end is near!" For 2000 years this "viral meme" has infected cultures all over the world even in the face of continuous disappointment. Give it up already! We are here in this world now. We live and die here. Noone is coming to save us from ourselves.
Watcher (angel) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watcher_(angel) An overview of "watchers" in general. Widespread usage of the label found in both canonical and non-canonical Hebrew or Judean literature. Wasn't even aware of the The Book of Giants. Perhaps in the tradition of comic book and television series like Lucifer, Preacher and/or whatever... The entertainment industry could finally tap into this material. Just like Norse gods and godesses (i.e. Marvel's Thor, Loki, etc) they can recruit superheroes and super-villains from Biblical mythos, too. Especially the non-canonical books, which even segments of Abrahamic culture view as obnoxiously spurious. So far, graphic story publishers and Hollywood have not been struck down by lightning in the course of their initial forays. That includes the version of Jesus in South Park... Powers and Abilities: In "Super Best Friends", Jesus initially did not appear to have any special powers, simply tricking people with simple tricks, such as telling everyone to turn around, and then quickly replacing a jug of water with a jug of wine while their backs are turned. However, subsequently, in the same episode, he used his "master carpentry skills" to create a giant mold for the John Wilkes Booth statue, exhibiting superhuman work speeds. In The Spirit of Christmas: Jesus vs. Santa, Jesus was also able to fire energy blasts from his hands. His other power is that of resurrection; in "Fantastic Easter Special", he is killed multiple times and resurrects himself at will. This power is similar to Kenny's, but he is able to resurrect himself to any location he desires. Also in "Red Sleigh Down", Jesus was able to heal Santa's broken legs, suggesting he has the ability to fix broken bones. _
Enoch fits into a wider pattern of Late Second Temple literature that is increasingly esoteric and eschatological. This preceded Christianity by about a century, and persisted up through the Jewish Diaspora, in the context of political chaos and vulnerability among the Hebrews. Christianity was one of several sects that emerged from this cultural milieu, possibly as an offshoot of the Essenes sect. You have to keep in mind that the Second Temple was preceded by a period where the Hebrew leading clans were exiled or held captive by the Neobabylonian Empire, where their flavor of Early Judaism was radicalized by the traumatic experience-- this was when the henotheistic cult to Yahweh began to crystallize into monotheism, when the Torah was written down, etc. to preserve Hebrew culture in a strange land, with a lot of scholarly debate on why the Hebrews suffered such a calamity. When they returned home, they brought this new phase of the religion with them, which rapidly spread in Judaea. And even while they had returned to their homeland, their new priesthood-led political establishment was subject to foreign domination at varying degrees of autonomy or repression. To these priestly elites, the perception was that their world ended once (the exile), so what are they going to do when it happens again? So we get a rise in eschatology.
