Heroic Comedic Sociopath: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
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{{quote|'''Belkar:''' So, I did what I always do--murder people horribly--but because I killed the people everyone else wanted me to kill, I get presents instead of prison time?
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The Heroic Comedic Sociopath is a very ''special'' sort of comic relief who works toward a positive, morally affirming goal whilst being as evil as possible along the way. He differs from most [[Anti-Hero]] archetypes in that he's never ineffectual or angsty - he loves what he does for a living. His punishment, at worst, is that he may be on the receiving end of some [[Comedic Sociopathy]]. Far more often he's dealing out [[Comedic Sociopathy]] and [[Crosses the Line Twice|Crossing the Line Twice]] at such a rate that he quickly becomes a [[Ensemble Darkhorse|fan favorite]]. (Note that it is nearly always a ''he''; female Heroic Sociopaths are rare.)
A Heroic Comedic Sociopath can and will eat the souls of jaywalkers, swindle old ladies, detonate buildings, punt puppies into traffic, and steal candy from babies all in broad daylight with a hundred witnesses present, in the funniest way possible. The [[Karma Houdini]] is a natural part of his
At this point you may be wondering why actually good characters in the story put up with him. While he may be a monster in other circumstances, he's ''our'' monster. Sometimes the other heroes have protection from the Heroic Comedic Sociopath's
Compare [[Sociopathic Hero]], for when this kind of behavior is not [[Played for Laughs]]. See also [[Token Evil Teammate]]. Heroic Comedic Sociopaths are often, but not always, [[Nominal Hero
{{examples}}
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* [http://www.redmeat.com/redmeat/meatlocker/milkmandan.html Milkman Dan] from Max Cannon's ''[[Red Meat]]'', author-proclaimed "Booze-fueled paragon of pointless cruelty and wanton sadism". Especially noticeable in his repeated pestering of [[Bratty Half-Pint]] Karen.
* Sebastion O. from the comics of same name is a complete [[The Dandy|dandy]] and more interested in filling the void of a dull life (and getting revenge on the people who put him in Bedlam) than any form of kindness. Also one of his best friends is a pederast.
* Princess Lucinda, of her own comic and the second volume of ''[[Witch Girls Tales]]'', on those occasions when she's not being played as an outright [[Villain Protagonist]]. Yes, she actually ''is'' being played for laughs, despite what some might tell
* Hit Girl of ''[[Kick-Ass]]''.
* Several main characters of ''[[Sin City]]'' can come across as this, especially Marv: A lot of the quite horrible things he performs with his usual boyish enthusiasm seems to be played for (somewhat reluctant) laughs.
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== Films -- Live Action ==
* A good portion of protagonists from [[Quentin Tarantino]] films, such as The Bride from ''[[Kill Bill]] Vol. 1/2'' could qualify as this trope. And then there's ''[[Inglourious Basterds]]'', which is completely based around the trope.
* Chev Chelios from the ''[[Crank]]'' films, who may indeed suffer some hijinks but causes the majority of
* ''[[The Mask (film)|The Mask]]'' in his film and cartoon incarnations is an id-dominated maniac who is liable to act on everything that Stanley Ipkiss represses and it's all [[Played for Laughs]]. He also isn't actually that villainous when compared to the actual villains of said film and cartoon. His [[The Mask (comics)|comics incarnation]], meanwhile, is a pure-up [[Villain Protagonist]].
** It also helps that so many of the characters who get picked on by The Mask are [[Asshole Victim
** Among Stanley's most outrageous actions as The Mask:
*** Folding a balloon into a tommy gun and chasing off some (unarmed) muggers with it (by firing wildly into the air).
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* [[The Acts of Caine|Caine of Garthan Hold]] skirts the line of this. Well, maybe dances on it. Okay, he does a full soft-shoe number up and down with Broadway routines and a full stage orchestra in the background.
* Meursault in ''[[The Stranger]]'', if you go for the [[Alternate Character Interpretation]].
* [[The Jeeves|Jeeves]] of ''[[Jeeves and Wooster (novel)|Jeeves and Wooster]]'' constantly throws people--''especially'' his
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== Theater ==
* [[Cyrano De Bergerac]]: Deconstructed by Cyrano: Possessing severe [[Mommy Issues]] and a [[Martyrdom Culture|strange upbringing]], Cyrano's actions are a cry for acceptance from the rest of the world, delivered the only way his broken mind knows how. Cyrano is a rare example that is not a [[Karma Houdini]]. When Cyrano is sad, he bullies annoying people and picks up the occasional [[Sword Fight]]. When Cyrano is happy, he searches for various [[Asshole Victim
{{quote|'''Le Bret:''' Now you'll be calm, I hope?
'''Cyrano''' ''(beside himself for joy):'' Calm? I now calm?
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* ''[[Cox and Combes Washington]]'', albeit heavy on the sociopath and light on the heroic part.
** Well, he did save the children... but not the British children. In fact, at one point he goes to save the children from a burning school before he realises it's a ''British'' school and proceeds to push the building off a cliff.
* A common attribute of ''[[Protectors of the Plot Continuum]]'', especially those in the Department of Floaters, the Department of [[Mary Sue
* Sarge of ''[[Red vs. Blue]]''.
** ''"I love blood and violence! I've got a boner for murder!"''
* Mr. Popo from ''[[Dragon Ball Abridged]]''. He is able to control an ancient Namekian starship just by saying his name to
* Near the end of V3 of ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'', Dominica Shapiro [[Heel Realization|realizes that she has become this]] {{spoiler|just before she throws herself at the terrorists guns a-blazing in a bid to keep the escaping students safe, and to have some fun in the meanwhile.}}
* The "anti-walkthroughs" featured on [[IT-HE Software|it-he.org]] make the protagonists of the ''[[Ultima]]'' series, ''[[Thief]]'', ''[[Deus Ex]]'' and ''[[Elder Scrolls]]'' into these, partially for sake of [[Sequence Breaking]] and partially for the pure fun of [[Video Game Cruelty Potential]].
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