The web serial Worm (Parahumans) has an excellent take on this.
The unwritten rules. Heros have to limit property damage, and not go lethal unless absolutely required. Villains, in turn, don’t go lethal on heros or civilians.
Both groups also respect each other’s secret identities, unless they out themselves. Heros because villains can get nasty if backed into a corner too badly. Villains because going after a cape’s family is a good way to get a kill order, and a heavy hitter involved.
In story there are also world ending threats. When one turns up, villains that are willing to help are out of bounds for retaliation. If they are willing to help, they are treated like any other cape.
End result, all the weird rules of heros and villains suddenly make logical sense. No-one wants to break the status quo.
It also leads to some funny encounters out of costume, or with new costumes.
I love webcomics. Your description of this sounds delightful. I am going to take some time to read the whole damn thing when i get a minute. For anyone who doesn’t want to do a websearch, this is what i found (please correct me if there’s a better link)
That’s the correct one.
There’s also an audiobook version. Though it’s fan read, so a bit less consistent than most listeners would expect.
does the fan Do The Voices?
It’s read by multiple fans, doing a chapter each. It’s been years since I listened to it however, so the details are now quite hazy.
I keep seeing people hype it up and the fan fiction around it but gods its so damn dry. I read like 20 chapters and it didn’t get better but all the hype and discussions makes me want to read it more
i mean different people love different things out of their fiction. some people need pretty images, some people need good worldbuilding, some people need compelling stories, some people need clever wordplay (go read P G Wodehouse i don’t care that it’s 100 years old he’s the best), some people need I’m going to stop making a list now but you get the idea. The fact that it didn’t grab you is not a flaw in the art itself, nor in you, it just means it didn’t grab you.
If you want, come back to it in five, ten years and try again. Maybe not twenty chapters try again, maybe five. That’s a deep dive and some serious dedication for something that didn’t grab you, so bravo. Sometimes we need new experiences to appreciate art better. I have a few favorite novels i read every few years and appreciate new and different things out of. Sometimes the same things differently.
It takes the author a while to find their groove and start establishing the storylines, rather than just the world building. I understand what you mean though. I think a lot of people like it for the world building aspects rather than the writing style.
I can’t remember how it breaks down chapter wise, but If you made it to the first endbringer fight, and don’t like it, it’s not your style.
Sounds like a different version whatever rules the Epstein class would have had to put in place.
I’m excited to check out that web serial though, it sounds excellent
It’s a dark gritty type sorry, before that became fashionable, with a lot of world building and explanation. You either love it or just can’t get into it.
In-story it’s the difference between a family bickering and fighting, Vs them suddenly fending off the text chain saw massacre.
Thanks I enjoy dark and gritty much of the time, sounds good.
I’m not sure if you can it find it but there is what would now be a podcast from the early aughts, called Tales From the Afternow by Sean Kennedy. I don’t know if anyone really knows about it outside of my area and it might be impossible to find, but it’s great at worldbuiiding too and the author is the one who narrates it.
There was comic a fan did for a single episode that you might be able to find. I think it was originally broadcast on RantRadio
Edit ooh found something!
Villain idea: guy who shorts stocks of insurance companies before destroying things they insure.
That’s literally the plot of ‘Casino Royale.’
Huh, so it is. I’d been thinking of using the idea for a Champions campaign for how an Iron Man knock off got his money.
Stock manipulation has been a thing for a long, long time.
Look at Mel Brooks’ ‘The Producers’
The plot there is to raise $20 million and use $50,000 to put on a play that closes the first night.
It’s springtime for Hitler in Germany
you’d need an indie studio for that.
See The Incredibles.
also the first half of Hancock
second half is weird though
Yeah what the hell happened there
I heard that the movie was two scripts from what were supposed to be two totally different movies stitched together. I’m inclined to believe it because it would explain a lot
I heard Vince Gilligan who was working on the script ditched Hancock half way to do Breaking Bad. I think the studio altered his script afterwards which is likely what lead to the weirdness.
I think the point they were trying to make was that black men should just listen to white people and dress the way they’re told to dress, talk the way they’re told to talk. White women should be with white men and it’s really bad if black men get involved with white women.
That’s what I got out of it anyway.
Why Should I.
Booh.
I Don’t Know That Film.
Not the only reason, but it does rank high among the perks.
Mostly to avoid hostage situations and revenge attacks.
And paternity
Or to avoid getting arrested for vigilantism
By whom?
Lex Luthor obviously
There was a 1950’s Superman where a guy convinces Superman that he has to buy insurance.
Back in the day, readers knew they wouldn’t actually kill Supes, so they had to come up with wilder and wilder story lines…
To be fair tho, nobody ever stuck explosives up Superman’s ass - that I’m aware of.
This was part of the Marvel Civil War comic storyline
Didn’t stop Mr. Incredible from getting sued…
It’s easier to get served when your name is on the building.
When superheroes get sued, they can just say “No”. What’s the police gonna do about it?
X-Men style sentinels?
Goddammit, Jared Leto ruined the skeletor meme for me too :<
Why would a superhero need to care about being sued? They are a superhero…
Most countries like to at least pretend universal rule of law is a thing. How much “collateral damage” each country would accept would depend on national culture and how much the super heroes accepted government oversight, but I don’t see any government tolerating the average comic book hero as they are portraited.
I wasn’t asking for permission from the local government.
Like how people get fines for things like feeding the homeless. A superhero can just say go fuck yourself to law enforcement.
Actually could be an interesting hero/villain idea. Lawful evil hero sucking the cocks of government and chaotic good villain feeding the poor.
A superhero can just say go fuck yourself to law enforcement.
At this point they would probably be seen as supervillains by most people, especially if they are routinely destroying half of the city they are “saving”.
Haven’t read the comics yet, but the show Invincible has an interesting deconstruction of this topic. When Mark comes on the scene, superheroes are popular and generally seen as virtuous.
Mark and his opponent are so much more powerful than any other heroes who came before and he’s unable to stop their battle from destroying huge chunks of a city and killing thousands.
The government understands his limits and the elevated stakes, but the people on the ground vilify Mark and he has to deal with his guilt and their hatred throughout the series.
Kill half the police force and military because they tried to stop you from saving children - Superman Israel edition.
It is a bit of an older troupe, 1970’s at least. Hero saves city, but few knew of the villains plot. Hero run out of town, and villain runs wild.
Limit testing the good Samaritan defence
