Whedonesque : Comments on 7132 : On "Buffy," heroes act like heroes.

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July 05 2005

On "Buffy," heroes act like heroes. In his review of JLA: Classified #9, Ray Tate points out the decidely unheroic nature of current comics and cites events in "Buffy" as good examples of how heroes should behave. It's the last review on the page.

TheJoyofZeppo | BtVS | 20:44 CET | 9 comments total | tags: heroes, btvs, buffy, comic books

I agree with the writer's points. I like "dark" stories and I believe even heroes should be depicted as human...certainly Buffy made her share of mistakes, but when one has to question the ethical foundation of a character, he/she is no longer a "hero". I think a lot of this started with the Punisher and similar characters. When writers stray from the principles of free will and responsibility for one's behavior, feel-good violence and rationalization often take the place of moral behavior. I like stories that show that life is often composed of shades of grey, but heroes must remain...well, heroic!

Calledon | July 05, 23:31 CET

Punisher was never meant to be a hero. He's a anti-hero much like early Spike.

eddy | July 05, 23:53 CET

Spike wasn't an anti-hero early on. He was a villain.

Grounded | July 06, 00:03 CET

I think there are a lot of different ways to be a hero.

Bad Kitty | July 06, 00:24 CET

I think anyone who tries to do good and save people is a hero, but a flawed hero like Buffy or Angel is much more interesting than a perfect Clark Kent style hero.

Razor | July 06, 02:03 CET

I think anyone who tries to do good and save people is a hero, but a flawed hero like Buffy or Angel is much more interesting than a perfect Clark Kent style hero.

Would Jasmine qualify? :p

RogueScribner | July 06, 05:52 CET

How about Darth Vader at the end of 'Return of the Jedi'? Hero or not?

As for Clark Kent.. I wouldn't call him perfect. "Missing farm-boy member of The Village People" YES, but perfect? He's no Lex (or *hides behind sofa* Lionel), but the boy's had his fair share of naughty. His "Lost Summer" red kryptonite experience between seasons 2 and 3 of Smallville? Ouch. Bad Clark. *spanks him*

I think Clark's plenty the flawed hero. Like Buffy. Only less small.

Bad Kitty | July 06, 10:12 CET

By the way, for those that are "comics curious" (like me) Wikipedia is a great, easy source of info. For example, I wanted to know what the JLA: Classified series was about, and over here (next to last paragraph in the section) you can find out real quick.

TaraLivesOn | July 06, 18:09 CET

Darth Vader at the end of the Star Wars trilogy is definately a hero; in fact, he's also a hero in Revenge of the Sith, because he's doing the right thing from his point of view - trying to save Padme. It's only after her death that he is truly evil. In this way, he's like a lot of Whedon's characters.

Psuedopod | July 06, 23:31 CET

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