Dex-chan lover
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2023
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- 377
I've been mulling over old projects recently, and I wonder of others' views on the "Superhero" Genre, and Superheroes and what they stand for. Just for fun.
This of course prompted me to do some heavy thinking on hero stories then and now, and I noted Something Alan Moore stated some time ago about regretting "Watchmen". Obviously, he made some money off of it, but he's said before about it and "Killing Joke" that he regrets making them because of their effect on Comics. He intended them to be satires, as V for Vendetta was a sort of joke, in being more of a Novel than a Comic "Everything a Comic shouldn't be" as is usually seen on the back of copies of the compiled series. Yet, Moore's hero satires grew into a prompt to deconstruct and explore darker rabbitholes in Heroism. And inspired thousands of Hero Satires, which continued to have an effect on Comics.
With that said, what I garnered from that was yet another re-evaluation of my processes. While I respect more, I can't say the effect was too bad, eventually the audience would mature, and while good stories needn't worry, newer stories would mature as well. Nevertheless, as he mentioned "Heroes are to be looked up to, hopeful". That's stuck with me of course. I glare at marvel and dc, see the films and comics and see... well... a great much muddling. there's hope but, enormous amounts of otherwise.
But I don't think that's a bad thing, in fact, while I'm still mad, I made a Dark Hero Story, I see it as a provocation. My Story focused upon evaluating the reasoning of a Mentally Ill Superhero being challenged by a Psychotic Vigilante, and their ideals tearing apart the city about them. It is an interesting story, but the story is a conflict, bearing little hope, and the hope found at its end is obviously muddled, and soured by the thousands of dead bodies needed to prove a point. Even when the point was second chances.
While I think that story could work, especially since I've been away from it for 3 years. I think it's more of a... More of an introduction to an idea, a question, a prompt. A presenting of odds to prove a point, a hopeful one. The Former Hero acted because he believed he did not deserve to exist, and must atone, and is set free when he realizes his parents would want him to live on. The New Hero acts because he knows how to fix things and wishes no one else to suffer as he did. The Former is a lot more troubled, though the latter is quieter about it, and is no less self-destructive, both explore altruism, but the former sees it as his only way while the latter knows there's an end.
I like the latter, because it feels less negative. nevertheless, I cannot simply take that world and change it, our world is only growing darker, but that doesn't mean he has to give up, and accept it. that's his whole reason for being who he is.
It's a difficult subject to reason out of course, which is why the newer version still has yet to get off the ground. I know the Newer Version has a chance to be narratively better, but the older one did some things I'm quite proud of and astonished by. A story must have a message though, and I want mine to be positive from here on out. Though I do recognize that in any story adversity, challenges, and provocations rear their heads. I simply want to display a stalwart and somewhat flawed individual, who is lost, yet is not. And I want to show that in a positive way, that shows humanity but also hope.
I understand most heroes are troubled minds of course, and they do exist in these genres, but I want my first hero to be troubled somewhat, but still hopeful enough to uplift others, and I want the message to be less muddled than what it was last time. Last time it was more of a Horror book than a Hero one, as described by the few who read it.
I know, Most don't think so deeply about these things, but I feel like they should be thought about. While my stories aren't intended for children at all, I still want it to be hopeful. And for certain that is possible!
So as said before, what do you think of Superheroes? Sure, this is an odd topic in some ways but series like MHA and whatnot exist in Manga, so it's not that odd.
Off-Topic, sometimes I find it kinda sad how the No-Killing rule is laughed at nowadays, or ridiculed. Which is why nowadays when I write heroes, I find fates worse than death for villains. My current most formed hero pretty much has the abilities of Josuke's Stand from JOJO 4. While it's satisfying to see villains ultimately end, I still feel like that's what they wanted. Okay that's enough!
My Thoughts: Heavy Ramblings
For like 6-7 years I worked on a Hero Story which was quite dark, incredibly so, I eventually stopped writing it because the more it grew the darker it became. Furthermore, there then grew an enormous amount of Dark Hero Stories in Media, as well as Hero Satires, until it grew incredibly maddening. Not the subgenre itself, but the fact that now something I spent years on was doing nothing different.This of course prompted me to do some heavy thinking on hero stories then and now, and I noted Something Alan Moore stated some time ago about regretting "Watchmen". Obviously, he made some money off of it, but he's said before about it and "Killing Joke" that he regrets making them because of their effect on Comics. He intended them to be satires, as V for Vendetta was a sort of joke, in being more of a Novel than a Comic "Everything a Comic shouldn't be" as is usually seen on the back of copies of the compiled series. Yet, Moore's hero satires grew into a prompt to deconstruct and explore darker rabbitholes in Heroism. And inspired thousands of Hero Satires, which continued to have an effect on Comics.
With that said, what I garnered from that was yet another re-evaluation of my processes. While I respect more, I can't say the effect was too bad, eventually the audience would mature, and while good stories needn't worry, newer stories would mature as well. Nevertheless, as he mentioned "Heroes are to be looked up to, hopeful". That's stuck with me of course. I glare at marvel and dc, see the films and comics and see... well... a great much muddling. there's hope but, enormous amounts of otherwise.
But I don't think that's a bad thing, in fact, while I'm still mad, I made a Dark Hero Story, I see it as a provocation. My Story focused upon evaluating the reasoning of a Mentally Ill Superhero being challenged by a Psychotic Vigilante, and their ideals tearing apart the city about them. It is an interesting story, but the story is a conflict, bearing little hope, and the hope found at its end is obviously muddled, and soured by the thousands of dead bodies needed to prove a point. Even when the point was second chances.
While I think that story could work, especially since I've been away from it for 3 years. I think it's more of a... More of an introduction to an idea, a question, a prompt. A presenting of odds to prove a point, a hopeful one. The Former Hero acted because he believed he did not deserve to exist, and must atone, and is set free when he realizes his parents would want him to live on. The New Hero acts because he knows how to fix things and wishes no one else to suffer as he did. The Former is a lot more troubled, though the latter is quieter about it, and is no less self-destructive, both explore altruism, but the former sees it as his only way while the latter knows there's an end.
I like the latter, because it feels less negative. nevertheless, I cannot simply take that world and change it, our world is only growing darker, but that doesn't mean he has to give up, and accept it. that's his whole reason for being who he is.
It's a difficult subject to reason out of course, which is why the newer version still has yet to get off the ground. I know the Newer Version has a chance to be narratively better, but the older one did some things I'm quite proud of and astonished by. A story must have a message though, and I want mine to be positive from here on out. Though I do recognize that in any story adversity, challenges, and provocations rear their heads. I simply want to display a stalwart and somewhat flawed individual, who is lost, yet is not. And I want to show that in a positive way, that shows humanity but also hope.
I understand most heroes are troubled minds of course, and they do exist in these genres, but I want my first hero to be troubled somewhat, but still hopeful enough to uplift others, and I want the message to be less muddled than what it was last time. Last time it was more of a Horror book than a Hero one, as described by the few who read it.
I know, Most don't think so deeply about these things, but I feel like they should be thought about. While my stories aren't intended for children at all, I still want it to be hopeful. And for certain that is possible!
So as said before, what do you think of Superheroes? Sure, this is an odd topic in some ways but series like MHA and whatnot exist in Manga, so it's not that odd.
Off-Topic, sometimes I find it kinda sad how the No-Killing rule is laughed at nowadays, or ridiculed. Which is why nowadays when I write heroes, I find fates worse than death for villains. My current most formed hero pretty much has the abilities of Josuke's Stand from JOJO 4. While it's satisfying to see villains ultimately end, I still feel like that's what they wanted. Okay that's enough!