Self-Restraint: Difference between revisions

* One of the first superhuman villains [[Spider-Man]] fought (established via [[Retcon]] in ''[[Untold Tales of Spider-Man]]'') was David Lowell, called Sundown by the superhuman community. A [[Freak Lab Accident]] granted him powers on the cosmic scale, including super-strength (potentially rivaling the Hulk's), flight, durability, energy projection, instant healing abilities, the ability to grow to giant size (better than Hank Pym) and teleportation. But gaining these powers also sent him into a pain-induced rage that threatened to level New York. When Spidey showed up, nothing the hero could do could so much as scratch him. Then [[The Avengers]] , [[The Fantastic Four]], the [[X-Men]] and various other New York heroes showed up to help. Nothing ''they'' could muster could [[No Sell| so much as scratch him!]] ("He even stood up to Thor!" Peter relates to Mary Jane in a present-day story. "''To Thor!'' Can you imagine?") Eventually, a young girl who had admired him pleaded with him to stop, and in his rage, he turned an energy blast on her, only stopping when he saw who it was. [[My God, What Have I Done?| Who he had just injured.]] A later story details that he plead guilty, and while breaking out of jail for him would have been easier than most other villains who had, he would not, staying out of guilt until he was paroled, ten years later, [[The Atoner| still hating himself.]] Ironically, Spidey seemed far more willing to forgive than he was to forgive himself; while he redeemed himself, he scoffed at the idea of using his powers heroically, [[Refusal of the Call| feeling New York wouldn't accept an ex-con hero]].

* In one series of ''[[Underdog]]'' cartoons, the hero is framed for various crimes by a criminal gemcutter named Tap-Tap, who is working for the gangster Riff-Raff. Eventually he turns himself in, not to exonerate himself, but because Tap-Tap's disguise is ''so'' convincing, he even fools Underdog himself, who assumes he was sleepwalking. Although the hero could escape from jail any time, he does not, and the ruse is discovered when Riff-Raff does it for him, breaking him out because they needed him to cut a large diamond that Tap-Tap couldn't dent. Naturally, [[Stupid Crooks| this exposes the ruse]], and the real criminals end up in jail.

** In "Riddle U", the Riddler takes over Gotham University, providing electricity to the place by forcing students run on giant hamster wheels; Harley and Ivy capture him and subject him to his own medicine, using him to power the mall they use as a hideout. The next episode, Riddler shows he can escape easily, but decides to stay because Gotham is in a state of anarchy, and by staying, he gets fed, gets lots of exercise, and best of all, gets "free entertainment" watching Harley's gang squabble amongst themselves. In later episodes, this pays off for him, as the constant workouts turn turns him from a skinny non-action villain [[Took A Level In Badass| to a muscular powerhouse]] whom Harley stands no chance against in a fist-fight.

** In a later episode, Harley breaks ''into'' Arkham thinking it's the best way to let Ivy have a decent wedding while having a quiet place to sulk, figuring she could just escape later. {{spoiler| Unfortunately, Two-Face sees the perfect opportunity to use Harley as an [[Unwitting Pawn]].}}

* In a ''[[Popeye]]'' cartoon, cartoon, Olive becomes a police officer, and Popeye thinks such a job is too dangerous for her; he tries to protect her, but only messes up and hurts himself each time, eventually being arrested (by Olive, ironically) when he gets involved in a brawl. Then, however, [[Properly Paranoid| his hunch is proven right]] when a masher (not Bluto this time, oddly) tries to assault Olive; he hears her screams and, proving the jail could never hold him, breaks out, then rescues her.

== [[Real Life]] ==