Comic book stories told on TV shows and movies tend to follow a somewhat similar formula. Lately I’ve been binge watching old superhero shows (Daredevil, Punisher, and Luke Cage most recently) and there’s been a few tropes that have jumped out to me. There are the obvious ones such as the sense of responsibility to do what’s right and to help the people around them, the power and ability that allows them to do what others can’t, as well as a number of others. Some of these tropes are necessary and for the most part they’re a constant part of comic book movies and tv shows. That being said, there are some tropes that I don’t really like and feel are overused.
The “betrayal of trust” trope
A superhero’s secret identity is a highly treasured and sacred part of most superhero stories. These characters typically go to extreme lengths to protect their identity from the general public, their various enemies, and even the people close to them (at least at first). Usually this big reveal takes place after the main protagonist has started the process of becoming a hero. By this point this character has usually already been making a name for themself by fighting crime. Becoming a polarizing figure in their community, and building a cult following with their good deeds. At a certain point, for one reason or another, one or more of the protagonist’s friends find out that the protagonist is living a double life. In movies, the reveal is usually followed by a swift acceptance from the friend of the hero. An example of this is the MCU Spiderman movies. When Peter’s friend Ned found out about Peter being Spiderman, he was in awe, amazed that his close friend was a superhero. This is how I imagine it would be in most cases.
TV shows tend to handle this situation differently than movies because they have more time to draw out different stories. Most times the TV format is beneficial to character development and storytelling ability, however in this case it kind of hurts. An example of this is Daredevil. Daredevil is one of my favorite shows, but the way they handled Matt Murdock’s friends finding out about him being Daredevil was…..less than stellar. Instead of being in awe and amazed by the fact that his blind best friend was also a crime fighting ninja, it led to a storyline where Foggy (Matt Murdock’s best friend) was overly dramatic and unnecessarily distrusting of Matt. The show would go on to explore the idea that being a hero, prowling the streets at night, would negatively affect your interpersonal relationships as well as whatever your day job is, in a compelling and logical way. That being said, the initial reaction that set those stories in motion is lazy writing in my opinion and overused in TV comic book depictions.
The “useless cop” trope
Considering how cops are viewed in real life, this trope is actually a somewhat realistic depiction of how cops would act towards superheroes in the real world. Always getting in the way and somehow managing to be simultaneously arrogant and extremely, life threateningly incompetent. I guess if the cops on these shows were better at their job, the need for heroes wouldn’t exist. The dynamic between these protagonists and the cops is usually one of the lower points of the show. Really only existing to give the show a real world aesthetic despite the vigilantes with powers running around the city. This dynamic is usually in the periphery of the more interesting story that’s taking place between the protagonist and the villains of the story. The way this story plays out most times, there will be one good cop who takes a lot of swaying (a lot), but eventually comes around to the heroes side. The heroes have the desire to do things “by the book” despite the fact that the cops are actively working against them throughout the story and constantly getting in the protagonists’ way due to their incompetence. Oftentimes the cops are either corrupt or simply incapable of detaining the villains who are usually extremely capable and powerful characters. The protagonists have no reason to trust the cops, but they do because of their belief that acting within the “law” and the “system” is the righteous way to go about doing things even though they themselves work outside of the system, and the villains that they try to take down are too powerful to be within the system. Even though the cops display their incompetence on multiple occasions, the story’s narrative will still be that the protagonists should just stop and let the cops do their job. Until after a tragic event that finally allows the general public and the cops to see that they need the protagonists to help take down the villain. Overall this trope is outdated, overused, and makes the protagonists look bad. When the cops in the show are able to negatively impact the effectiveness of the protagonists, the incompetence of the cops also becomes the incompetence of the protagonist.
The “murder is wrong” trope
One universal belief in our society is that murder is wrong. This belief plays a big role in a lot of comic book stories. Writers use this as a way of differentiating between the hero and the villain in their stories very often. At certain points this is explored with great depth giving an extra layer to the ideology of the characters in the story. An example of this trope done well is in the movie Dark Knight, as well as Daredevil (the show, not that trash movie). The dynamic between the Joker and Batman is built on the extremely strong will of both these characters. Batman’s belief in justice serves as one of the core foundations of the character, while Joker’s belief in chaos and anarchy is one of the core foundations of his character. The two ideologies clash and spark several compelling moments throughout that film, and all of the stories involving the two characters. The same can be said for the relationship between Daredevil and the Punisher. Daredevil is catholic, and believes that murder is the worst atrocity that one can commit. Believing that no one should be in charge of who lives and who dies. The Punisher on the other hand, true to his name, kills, kills, and kills some more. Everybody dies, at least the people that get in his way. In his eyes, the only justice comes from him and his guns. Similar to Batman and the Joker, the ideologies of these two strong willed characters come to a head in compelling ways.
Here’s a dialogue between The Punisher and Daredevil perfectly depicting two conflicting ideologies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBWZVJEW8uo&t=25s
Addressing these characters stances on murder adds depth to the story and to the characters themselves. The main problem with this narrative is that it’s not always addressed in this way, which leaves logic gaps in the story. As mentioned before murder is considered wrong in our society, and the writers use that as a crutch for their stories at times. Instead of explaining the characters motive for or against killing, at times they will just write the characters to say “I don’t kill, I’m not a murderer,” or “if I kill character A, then I’m no better than they are.” In my opinion this is a very shallow explanation. An example of why is the show The Punisher. The Punisher is an antihero, but he is the main protagonist on his show. Despite the fact that he kills and has more bodies than anyone, the story is told in a way that allows this. At no point in the show did the fact that Frank Castle was going out and killing people make you think that he was the bad guy or morally corrupt. This is the case with other characters too, Thor has killed thousands, Wolverine cuts through people like butter, and Black Panther killed Killmonger with little hesitation. With the rise of shows starring antiheroes who kill while remaining the protagonists in their stories (starting with Tony Soprano from The Sopranos and Omar from The Wire), the idea of a superhero killing is no longer seen as inherently wrong. All murders aren’t the same, context matters. That being said, it’s up to the writers of the story to either create the context to where killing is ok, or put an in-depth lens on the protagonist’s ideology on why they’re against killing regardless of the context. Otherwise you leave the characters in a compromised position. Imagine if there was never an in-depth story arc highlighting why Batman was against killing and the inner turmoil he faces by not doing so? We would all think he was an idiot for letting the Joker run around causing havoc. Especially when we see that the Joker is dangerous, and Batman has the means and motive to take him out. When the writers don’t present their protagonist’s ideologies in an in-depth manner, we, the viewer, have to fill in the blanks. This compromises the character, and impairs the viewing experience. Beyond that it just gets redundant after a while. There’s only so many ways to tell that story.
As someone who loves superhero movies and tv shows, these tropes can be annoying at times, but the good generally outweighs the bad. That being said, I think that it would be beneficial to take a slightly different approach to the way some of these superhero stories are told.
Just some guy on the internet 