Characterization Marches On/Comic Books: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}} |
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Examples of [[ |
Examples of [[Characterization Marches On]] in [[Comic Books]] include: |
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==DC== |
==DC== |
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* It's kind of a shock to see how Guy Gardner of the [[Green Lantern]] Corps was originally a pretty mellow character before (in a convoluted series of events) he received brain damage that manifested itself in the form of the arrogant, violent, unstable, and often childish personality that the character is best known for. Likewise, those who are most familiar with the DCAU version of John Stewart may be surprised at how, well, funky he is in his early comics appearances. |
* It's kind of a shock to see how Guy Gardner of the [[Green Lantern]] Corps was originally a pretty mellow character before (in a convoluted series of events) he received brain damage that manifested itself in the form of the arrogant, violent, unstable, and often childish personality that the character is best known for. Likewise, those who are most familiar with the DCAU version of John Stewart may be surprised at how, well, funky he is in his early comics appearances. |
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** DC has since tried to sweep this under the rug by [[ |
** DC has since tried to sweep this under the rug by [[retcon]]ning the brain damage thing altogether. More recent flashbacks imply that Guy has always been, as he puts it, "the crazy one." |
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* Renee Montoya's sexuality is a defining character trait for her under [[Greg Rucka]], but when she was originally created for ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'' the plan ([[All There in the Manual|According to background info in the series bible]]) was that she was intended to be driven in her own fight on crime by the memory of her dead ''husband''. It was not until ''[[Gotham Central]]'' that she was outed as a lesbian, which would become an integral part of an award-winning arc of that series and several [[52|follow]] [[The Question|up]] comics. The same source also says that she would butt heads with Batman over his methods, whereas in almost all her appearances Renee admires him and understands why he acts outside the law. |
* Renee Montoya's sexuality is a defining character trait for her under [[Greg Rucka]], but when she was originally created for ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'' the plan ([[All There in the Manual|According to background info in the series bible]]) was that she was intended to be driven in her own fight on crime by the memory of her dead ''husband''. It was not until ''[[Gotham Central]]'' that she was outed as a lesbian, which would become an integral part of an award-winning arc of that series and several [[52|follow]] [[The Question|up]] comics. The same source also says that she would butt heads with Batman over his methods, whereas in almost all her appearances Renee admires him and understands why he acts outside the law. |
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* Gwen Stacy from ''[[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'' was much different initially than later portrayed. Her characterization changes are quite startling when you consider it, from a college-aged [[Alpha Bitch]] to [[Betty and Veronica|the Veronica and then the Betty]] in the ongoing [[Love Triangle]] before winding up Spider-Man's [[Purity Sue|very sweet girlfriend]], and then, well, [[I Let Gwen Stacy Die|you know...]] |
* Gwen Stacy from ''[[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'' was much different initially than later portrayed. Her characterization changes are quite startling when you consider it, from a college-aged [[Alpha Bitch]] to [[Betty and Veronica|the Veronica and then the Betty]] in the ongoing [[Love Triangle]] before winding up Spider-Man's [[Purity Sue|very sweet girlfriend]], and then, well, [[I Let Gwen Stacy Die|you know...]] |
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** Another example from ''[[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'' |
** Another example from ''[[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]''—in his earliest appearances the Green Goblin was a [[Smug Snake]] who kept [[Karma Houdini|getting away after his plans failed]] and whose [[The Faceless|face we never saw.]] Then he was unmasked as [[Norman Osborn]] shortly after successfully learning Spider-Man's own identity, spent some time as a [[Jekyll and Hyde]], Killed Gwen Stacy, got posthumously upgraded into the [[Big Bad]], and was turned into a [[Magnificent Bastard]] upon his [[Back from the Dead|resurrection]], where he has more or less stayed, with the <s>occasional</s> foray into [[Complete Monster]], ever since. In short, a major change due to being a [[Breakout Villain]]. |
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** Aunt May is another example. In the beginning, she was a sweet, extremely old and extremely frail old lady but, er, [[Cloudcuckoolander|somewhat senile and detached from reality]]. That she allowed herself to be charmed by Doctor Octopus and unshakingly saw Mary Jane Watson as a suitable partner and future wife for Peter was portrayed as evidence for this. Then in the late 1970s she became more involved in the real world, e. g. joining the Gray Panthers, a bypass operation removed her recurrent health problems, and by all appearances she actually became younger. During Roger Stern's run her reasons for continuing matchmaking also was revealed as much more canny than previously imagined; she commented to Peter that he and MJ had more in common than he knew (foreshadowing the origin story Stern and his then-wife had cooked up, but which was mostly revealed by Tom DeFalco later on). This change of Aunt May from a passive character who constantly needed to be saved or aided by Peter and others was very much appreciated by the fans. |
** Aunt May is another example. In the beginning, she was a sweet, extremely old and extremely frail old lady but, er, [[Cloudcuckoolander|somewhat senile and detached from reality]]. That she allowed herself to be charmed by Doctor Octopus and unshakingly saw Mary Jane Watson as a suitable partner and future wife for Peter was portrayed as evidence for this. Then in the late 1970s she became more involved in the real world, e. g. joining the Gray Panthers, a bypass operation removed her recurrent health problems, and by all appearances she actually became younger. During Roger Stern's run her reasons for continuing matchmaking also was revealed as much more canny than previously imagined; she commented to Peter that he and MJ had more in common than he knew (foreshadowing the origin story Stern and his then-wife had cooked up, but which was mostly revealed by Tom DeFalco later on). This change of Aunt May from a passive character who constantly needed to be saved or aided by Peter and others was very much appreciated by the fans. |
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*** And in ''[[Epic Mickey]]'', this goes [[Up to Eleven]] as the Phantom Blot has become [[Eldritch Abomination|something else altogether]]. |
*** And in ''[[Epic Mickey]]'', this goes [[Up to Eleven]] as the Phantom Blot has become [[Eldritch Abomination|something else altogether]]. |
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* Speaking of [[Disney]], [[Scrooge McDuck]]. In the his earlier appearances, [[Carl Barks]] depicted Scrooge as quite an immoral individual-there was the infamous robber baron flashback in "Voodoo Hoodoo", and in "The Magic Hourglass", another early Scrooge story, Scrooge sics a bad of hired thugs on [[Donald Duck|Donald]] and is willing to leave his nephews to die of thirst in the desert to attain his goals. When Barks began to use Scrooge as a hero in his own right, he began depicting Scrooge as a greedy, tightfisted old miser, but one who [[Screw the Money, I Have Rules|followed his own code of honor.]] This is the depiction most fans remember, and the one that shows up in [[DuckTales]] and the works of [[Don Rosa]]. |
* Speaking of [[Disney]], [[Scrooge McDuck]]. In the his earlier appearances, [[Carl Barks]] depicted Scrooge as quite an immoral individual-there was the infamous robber baron flashback in "Voodoo Hoodoo", and in "The Magic Hourglass", another early Scrooge story, Scrooge sics a bad of hired thugs on [[Donald Duck|Donald]] and is willing to leave his nephews to die of thirst in the desert to attain his goals. When Barks began to use Scrooge as a hero in his own right, he began depicting Scrooge as a greedy, tightfisted old miser, but one who [[Screw the Money, I Have Rules|followed his own code of honor.]] This is the depiction most fans remember, and the one that shows up in [[DuckTales (1987)]] and the works of [[Don Rosa]]. |
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** Speaking of "Voodoo Hoodoo", [[Don Rosa]] managed to explain it in terms of Scrooge's new characterization near the end of ''[[The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck]]''. Rather than being indicative of how Scrooge normally is, it's written as [[My Greatest Failure|his biggest mistake]], and the reason he starts out the present day as an embittered old duck, estranged from his family. |
** Speaking of "Voodoo Hoodoo", [[Don Rosa]] managed to explain it in terms of Scrooge's new characterization near the end of ''[[The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck]]''. Rather than being indicative of how Scrooge normally is, it's written as [[My Greatest Failure|his biggest mistake]], and the reason he starts out the present day as an embittered old duck, estranged from his family. |
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*** The [[Retcon]] still doesn't quite work in relation to the original story, though: in "Voodoo Hoodoo" Scrooge doesn't express a hint of regret, and finds the entire zombie debacle rather amusing. [[Values Dissonance|And no-one so much as suggests that the old Voodoo priest Foola Zoola should be given his stolen, sacred lands back.]] |
*** The [[Retcon]] still doesn't quite work in relation to the original story, though: in "Voodoo Hoodoo" Scrooge doesn't express a hint of regret, and finds the entire zombie debacle rather amusing. [[Values Dissonance|And no-one so much as suggests that the old Voodoo priest Foola Zoola should be given his stolen, sacred lands back.]] |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Characterization Marches On]] |
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[[Category:Comic Books]] |
[[Category:Comic Books]] |
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