Eternal Hero: Difference between revisions

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''Part presence, part idea they say''

''As if the very force they describe has existed for eons''

''A dormant seed awaiting nourishment''

''A dormant seed awaiting nourishment''|[[DJ Shadow]], "Outsider Intro" }}

[[DJ Shadow]], "Outsider Intro" }}

Many cultures have the idea of an eternally recurring hero. Not a [[King in the Mountain]], just a hero who keeps coming back for more. Maybe it's one hero with multiple identities. Either they're immortal, or there's an element of returning from being [[Not Quite Dead|apparently dead]] or seeming way [[Old Master|too old]] to fight. The reason both are included is that this trope is as old as mythology, and in its early era the concepts of [[Immortality]], [[Back From the Dead|resurrection]], and [[Long Lived|absurd longevity]] were fairly ~~interchangable~~.

Many cultures have the idea of an eternally recurring hero. Not a [[King in the Mountain]], just a hero who keeps coming back for more. Maybe it's one hero with multiple identities. Either they're immortal, or there's an element of returning from being [[Not Quite Dead|apparently dead]] or seeming way [[Old Master|too old]] to fight. The reason both are included is that this trope is as old as mythology, and in its early era the concepts of [[Immortality]], [[Back From the Dead|resurrection]], and [[Long Lived|absurd longevity]] were fairly interchangeable.

A character could become an '''Eternal Hero''' for many reasons. Maybe, like the Irish legend ''Osinn in Tír Na nÓg'', the hero ends up in a time loop or Neverneverland that allows him to return to Earth centuries later without having aged. Maybe he's just unkillable. Sometimes, a deity or other force of nature embodies itself as this character whenever the world needs it. For the Norse, [[J. R. R. Tolkien|JRR Tolkien]] argues that it's Sigurd/Siegfried. For the Celts, it's the many permutations of Fionn and the Fianna and the Red Branch Knights.

[[Super-Trope]] for ''[[The Hero with a Thousand Faces]]'', the [[King in the Mountain]] and the [[Legacy Character]] as well as many [[Heroes|heroic archetypes]]. [[Sister Trope]] to [[Immortality]].

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== Comics ==

* Sometimes a superhero keeps coming back in different guises, even when apparently dead. For example, Hector Hall/Silver Scarab dies and becomes the Sandman, but in ''[[The Sandman]]: The Doll's House'' he is revealed to be a ghost who has been manipulated into taking on a persona that's ~~erstaz~~ version of Dream of the Endless. Dream returns from captivity and sends him on into the afterlife. Later, he returns as Dr Fate.

* Sometimes a superhero keeps coming back in different guises, even when apparently dead. For example, Hector Hall/Silver Scarab dies and becomes the Sandman, but in ''[[The Sandman]]: The Doll's House'' he is revealed to be a ghost who has been manipulated into taking on a persona that's ersatz version of Dream of the Endless. Dream returns from captivity and sends him on into the afterlife. Later, he returns as Dr Fate.

** ''[[The Sandman]]'' also provides an extreme example, where the death of one of the Endless automatically means the nearest suitable human turns into them.

* As of ''[[Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?]]'', Batman definitely counts as a multiversal version. The idea, manifestation, and embodiment of Batman is inevitable in any timeline. It's implied that all the Batmen in different universes have or will reincarnate into each other.

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* The [[Mega Crossover]] fanfic ''[[Undocumented Features]]'' contains a number of examples:

** About half of the [[Loads and Loads of Characters|huge cast]] are Detian, which means that they've taken the Omega-2 retrovirus which gave them [[The Ageless]] with a moderate [[Healing Factor]]. Began as heroes whose deeds included saving the [[Transformers|Autobots]] from destruction and leading a revolution on the planet [[Ninja High School|Zardon]]. They then were scattered by the [[Big Bad]]'s [[Batman Gambit]], and went into exile for 100 years. They came back and reconstituted the Wedge Defense Force in the 2380s, just in time to save the whole of the Perseus Arm of the galaxy from coming under the rule of the [[Bubblegum Crisis|GENOM corporation]].

** [[Revolutionary Girl Utena|Utena Tenjou]] is the Rose Prince of [[Magic Knight Rayearth|Cephiro]], a recurring office given to winners of the ~~rose~~ ~~duel~~ tournament. While the Pillar of Cephiro holds the world together and keeps it peaceful by will and prayer alone, the Rose Prince is a roving correction mechanism whose fate is to always be a champion for people in need. She plays a large role in the defeat of the [[Babylon 5|Earth Alliance and Psi Corps]]. I don't think she's actually immortal yet, but given her close relationship with the [[Norse Mythology|Aesir]], it's bound to happen eventually.

** [[Revolutionary Girl Utena|Utena Tenjou]] is the Rose Prince of [[Magic Knight Rayearth|Cephiro]], a recurring office given to winners of the Rose Duel tournament. While the Pillar of Cephiro holds the world together and keeps it peaceful by will and prayer alone, the Rose Prince is a roving correction mechanism whose fate is to always be a champion for people in need. She plays a large role in the defeat of the [[Babylon 5|Earth Alliance and Psi Corps]]. I don't think she's actually immortal yet, but given her close relationship with both the [[Norse Mythology|Aesir]] and the aforementioned Detians (and her [[Triang Relations|3-way marriage]] with two immortals), it's bound to happen eventually.