Yes and no. The IST has always been -- for me -- something like Starfleet: part military, part civilian, and which part is in ascendance depends on the needs of the moment.
It is as military as it has to be in order to fulfill its mission as a peace-keeping and enforcement force. It is as civilian as it has to be in order to fulfill its other mission of being ambassadors -- of the world, to the world. The balance is a hard one to strike, and is different in different embassies, depending on the nation and culture around them. In most of North America and Europe, it tilts considerably to the civilian side. Other places, not so much. This is one reason each team has effectively two leaders -- the field commander for military operations, and the team admin for all other functions. A well-run embassy/team can turn on a dime and go from grim special-ops anti-terrorist action to sparkles-n-flowers P.R. with kids in minutes, without whiplash.
As for the nature of the Academ(y/ies), my concept is closer to Rob's than Mark's, but partakes of both. The Academy is a service offered by the IST, and its coursework for supers is not structured so much to produce metahuman soldiers as to produce well-balanced metahumans comfortable and skilled with their powers, who may be inclined to join the IST afterward, but are in no way required to. It's a bit more military-style than Xavier's school, but not by much. It's more like, um, a boarding school with combat training to the level you're comfortable with. Hogwarts with decent Defense classes.
I do like the idea of AA teaching ethics in her retirement; I'm definitely going to throw that in.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
It is as military as it has to be in order to fulfill its mission as a peace-keeping and enforcement force. It is as civilian as it has to be in order to fulfill its other mission of being ambassadors -- of the world, to the world. The balance is a hard one to strike, and is different in different embassies, depending on the nation and culture around them. In most of North America and Europe, it tilts considerably to the civilian side. Other places, not so much. This is one reason each team has effectively two leaders -- the field commander for military operations, and the team admin for all other functions. A well-run embassy/team can turn on a dime and go from grim special-ops anti-terrorist action to sparkles-n-flowers P.R. with kids in minutes, without whiplash.
As for the nature of the Academ(y/ies), my concept is closer to Rob's than Mark's, but partakes of both. The Academy is a service offered by the IST, and its coursework for supers is not structured so much to produce metahuman soldiers as to produce well-balanced metahumans comfortable and skilled with their powers, who may be inclined to join the IST afterward, but are in no way required to. It's a bit more military-style than Xavier's school, but not by much. It's more like, um, a boarding school with combat training to the level you're comfortable with. Hogwarts with decent Defense classes.
I do like the idea of AA teaching ethics in her retirement; I'm definitely going to throw that in.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.