SuperVillain
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Contents |
Babble
Random House Unabridged Dictionary defines villain as "a cruelly malicious person who is involved in or devoted to wickedness or crime; scoundrel; or a character in a play, novel, or the like, who constitutes an important evil agency in the plot"
As such a SuperVillain is all that and a bag of chips. They may be simple situations all to common for heroes but the public has determined otherwise.
Meet Joe
Example Time. Joe the Hammer is a Villain in the eyes of Newbie City. However Joe is merely a man with a bit of Magic that summons a Hammer -that suspends (as far as the public is concerned) many of his moral ethics (It doesn't really)- to smash his foes. This smashing is often only hospitalization. Exacerbating this is that Joe being a normal man without Magical/Mental/Spiritual assistance must guess whether it is time to use the Hammer or not. Unlike Wolverine and thus more like Sabertooth he smashes when he sees fit. And the villains pay for their crimes in the infirmary. He doesn't like seeing Cops hurt, and thus is often hurdling breakneck to the scene - this bad driving is not helping his image. Joe's life is rife with Legal Troubles thus and not knowing how to handle the mess he often hides away with his police scanner. Not conducive of a good public image.
One day Joe is approached by a good cop who Hancock-like thinks Joe just needs some time away from it all. There's a Disaster... Joe pulls out the Hammer in the Prison -to save an inmate. Doesn't help he has to save a few cops from a good shiv session too and before you know it the media's heard... and is talking of his 'Slaughterer' tendancies coming out. Especially with the Film Footage.
And Joe goes from Anti-hero to SuperVillain in the eyes of the people even if he spends every second -after he busts out to go after other criminals who escaped at the same time- criminal catching. Be it his method, his lack of a 'heroic code' whatever... he's no Hancock... he's Maxwell with his Silver Hammer.
Meet Insanity
Of course then you also have The Joker... there's next to no -maybe be even NEGATIVE- silver lining there.
Mind Sting
Neither example helps right? Here's the part that'll break out your brain and play Frogger in the empty skull. A Villain... Super or not... Doesn't NEED a Hero (Again Super or Not). Whereas a Hero needs a Villain... and if a SuperHero the Villain should be a SuperVillain. A Hero needs someone to fight again to deal with and prove their mettle as a Hero and show the world they do good. Moreso with a SuperHero, who has to tread far more carefully lest they be seen as a bully, an anti-Hero or... like Joe above... a psychopath or sociopath.
A Villain needs only a challenge every so often. Public opinion be damned. Heck even if they OWN THE WORLD they often don't care about public opinion.
But Villains can be the foils of other Villains. You own the City... but the Mob runs the Underworld...
You're a Mob Don and you run the Underworld... but dammit The Corporation won't stop experimenting on your goons.
Are you the Hero? Nope. Not unless your moral outlook... or Society changes their view on you.
Like if Joe was absolutely necessary to stop a Doomsday clone... Suddenly Joe is a Hero. IF Joe keeps his nose clean. But once that threat is gone... Joe is just Maxwell to everyone once again. Hopefully he doesn't break anything when they turn on him.
