History IdiotBall / ComicBooks

* The absolutely ridiculous amount to which the population of the Marvel Universe has openly supported a fascist tyranny, proving themselves too dumb to live! Almost every superhero points out how ridiculous this is and presents concrete evidence of the rulers' crimes. THE ALL POPULATION'S RESPONSE: Making fun of the people who saved the world tens of thousands of times, with the government proving itself more and more incompetent and corrupt, labeling them as ridiculous, petty, and dumb, and then everything goes horribly wrong and it's proven that the superheroes were absolutely right all along, ''THEY BLAME THE SUPERHEROES FOR EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED AND CONTINUE SUPPORTING THE SUPERVILLAINS THAT CAUSED ALL THAT HORROR'' .

* At ''Comicbook/WonderWoman'' Volume 3, issue #40, someone apparently decided a good way to sell more copies would be to have Wonder Woman fight Comicbook/PowerGirl. While no doubt a topic many comic book fans have discussed, the problems with actually writing it are three fold. One, Wonder Woman is a much better fighter than Power Girl, [[{{sidekick}} who is to Superman]] what Comicbook/WonderGirl is to Wonder Woman. Two, Wonder Woman and Power Girl had been friends for years at this point with no known animosities. Three, any reason Power Girl would have to fight Wonder Woman would be gone after [[StoryBreakerPower the lasso of truth]] had been anywhere on her person in any kind of way for thirty seconds. Wonder Woman versus Comicbook/{{Superman}} worked before because after ''Comicbook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' Wonder Woman had been {{re tool}}ed as a rookie who didn't know Superman yet, but that ship had sailed two decades of real life publication time ago! Nonetheless their fight is padded for two issues by Kara getting the drop on Diana, an annoyed Diana limiting her retaliation instead of cutting loose, Diana questioning Kara without trying to catch her with the lasso, Kara causing collateral damage Diana [[BusFullOfInnocents must deal with]] and a beaten [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy loopy]] Diana dropping her [[WeaponGripFailure lasso when she remembers it]]. Nonetheless it ends with Power Girl [[AntiClimax getting stretched and bent into a pretzel]], metaphorically crying uncle once Wonder Woman [[IAmNotLeftHanded loses her patience]]. Even then Diana waits for a now compliant Kara to shake off her brainwashing instead of just using the lasso!
* The ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' storyline in ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''. He makes a [[DealWithTheDevil deal with the closest analogue to a devil Marvel possesses]] to save the life of his already elderly aunt, at the expense of not only his current marriage, but the entire history ''of'' that marriage? Parker supposedly went to all of his contacts that might have been able to help, but Aunt May was already brain dead, so they couldn't help, which still doesn't explain why no one stepped up beforehand.
* The biggest fan complaint regarding ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' was how no one could figure out the massive change in Spider-Man was Doctor Octopus taking over his body. Overnight, Spider-Man turns into an arrogant man who speaks in a scholarly manner without his usual wisecracks, relies on technology to a huge degree, fails to remember close allies (he punches the Black Cat without a second thought) and is brutal in fights to the point of killing someone. Yet the Avengers (who have handled countless examples of shapeshifters and mind control) just brush it off as him being stressed.
** Wolverine and Daredevil have fought with Spidey numerous times and have enhanced senses. Yet neither finds it that odd that Spider-Man suddenly has a totally different body language and is an indifferent jerk. And Captain America doesn't find it odd a man as famously moral as Spider-Man is suddenly so cold in a fight.
** Worse is how Aunt May and Mary Jane are totally taken in. It was shown that Aunt May once deduced the Chameleon was posing as Peter within ''seconds'' of meeting him as "what mother doesn't know her child? Because that's what I am to Peter." MJ knows about his secret identity and likewise has seen through imposters. Yet they too are fooled while Carlie Cooper is the only person who figures it out.
** It was even lampshaded when Peter got his body back and briefly acted like he was still Ock to the Black Cat. Peter then remarked "wow, I spent months talking like that and no one noticed?"
* There was a villain who blamed [[ComicBook/TheFlash Max Mercury]] for the death of his family, gained access to a time machine, and used it to try and destroy Max Mercury. He was temporarily incapacitated with horror when asked why he hadn't used it ''to save his family''.

* ''ComicBook/IdentityCrisis'' hinges on "[[Franchise/{{Batman}} The World's Greatest Detective]]" and countless others [[spoiler:not checking phone records of the deceased]].

* At ''Comicbook/WonderWoman'' Volume 3, issue #40, someone apparently decided a good way to sell more copies would be to have Wonder Woman fight Comicbook/PowerGirl. While do doubt a topic many comic book fans have discussed before, the problems with actually writing it are three fold. One, Wonder Woman is a much better fighter than Power Girl, [[{{sidekick}} who is to Superman]] what Comicbook/WonderGirl is to Wonder Woman. Two, Wonder Woman and Power Girl had been friends for years at this point with no known animosities. Three, any reason Power Girl would have to fight Wonder Woman would be gone after [[StoryBreakerPower the lasso of truth]] had been anywhere on her person in any kind of way for thirty seconds. Wonder Woman versus Comicbook/{{Superman}} worked before because after ''Comicbook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' Wonder Woman had been {{re tool}}ed as a rookie who didn't know Superman yet, but that ship had sailed after two decades of real life publication time! Nonetheless their fight manages to be padded for two issues by letting Kara get the drop on Diana, having an annoyed Diana only retaliate in kind instead of going all out, having Diana question Kara with words instead of trying to catch her with the lasso, having Kara cause collateral damage Diana [[BusFullOfInnocents must deal with]] and then having a beaten [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy loopy]] Diana drop her [[WeaponGripFailure lasso when she remembers it]]. Nonetheless it ends with Power Girl [[AntiClimax getting stretched and bent into a pretzel]], metaphorically crying uncle once Wonder Woman [[IAmNotLeftHanded loses her patience]].

* At ''Comicbook/WonderWoman'' Volume 3, issue #40, someone apparently decided a good way to sell more copies would be [[to have Wonder Woman fight Comicbook/PowerGirl. While do doubt a topic many comic book fans have discussed before, the problems with actually writing it are three fold. One, Wonder Woman is a much better fighter than Power Girl, [[{{sidekick}} who is to Superman]] what Comicbook/WonderGirl is to Wonder Woman. Two, Wonder Woman and Power Girl had been friends for years at this point with no known animosities. Three, any reason Power Girl would have to fight Wonder Woman would be gone after [[StoryBreakerPower the lasso of truth]] had been anywhere on her person in any kind of way for thirty seconds. Wonder Woman versus Comicbook/{{Superman}} worked before because after ''Comicbook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' Wonder Woman had been {{re tool}}ed as a rookie who didn't know Superman yet, but that ship had sailed after two decades of real life publication time! Nonetheless their fight manages to be padded for two issues by letting Kara get the drop on Diana, having an annoyed Diana only retaliate in kind instead of going all out, having Diana question Kara with words instead of trying to catch her with the lasso, having Kara cause collateral damage Diana [[BusFullOfInnocents must deal with]] and then having a beaten [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy loopy]] Diana drop her [[WeaponGripFailure lasso when she remembers it]]. Nonetheless it ends with Power Girl getting stretched and bent into a pretzel, metaphorically crying uncle once Wonder Woman [[IAmNotLeftHanded loses her patience]].

* At ''Comicbook/WonderWoman'' Volume 3, issue #40, someone apparently decided a good way to sell more copies would be [[to have Wonder Woman fight Comicbook/PowerGirl. While do doubt a topic many comic book fans have discussed before, the problems with actually writing it are three fold. One, Wonder Woman is a much better fighter than Power Girl, [[{{sidekick}} who is to Superman]] what Comicbook/WonderGirl is to Wonder Woman. Two, Wonder Woman and Power Girl had been friends for years at this point with no known animosities. Three, any reason Power Girl would have to fight Wonder Woman would be gone after [[StoryBreakerPower the lasso of truth]] had been anywhere on her person in any kind of way for thirty seconds. Wonder Woman versus Comicbook/{{Superman}} worked before because after ''Comicbook/CrisisOnInfinteEarths'' Wonder Woman had been ReTooled as a rookie who didn't know Superman yet, but that ship had sailed after two decades of real life publication time! Nonetheless their fight manages to be padded for two issues by letting Kara get the drop on Diana, having an annoyed Diana only retaliate in kind instead of going all out, having Diana question Kara with words instead of trying to catch her with the lasso, having Kara cause collateral damage Diana [[BusFullOfInnocents must deal with]] and then having a beaten [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy loopy]] Diana drop her [[WeaponGripFailure lasso when she remembers it]]. Nonetheless it ends with Power Girl getting stretched and bent into a pretzel, metaphorically crying uncle once Wonder Woman [[IAmNotLeftHanded loses her patience]].

** Worse is how Aunt May and Mary Jane are totally taken in. It was shown that Aunt May once deduced the Chameleon was posing as Peter within ''seconds'' of meeting him as "what mother doesn't know her child? Because that's what I am to Peter." MJ knows about his secret identity and likewise has seen through imposters. Yet they too are fooled while Charlie Cooper is the only person who figures it out.

** The first StoryArc had the changelings impersonate the Mane Six and prey upon their insecurities to trick them into a PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure, it takes them till next issue to realize this and make amends. Given that the Mane Six knew they were up against changelings, who's abilities for impersonation and deceit were well established to them, why it took this long to suspect anything...

** Finally, ''none'' of the characters have noticed or stopped to pay attention to Roy long enough to see he's been suffering from hallucinations of his former dealer goading him on, which then turn into hallucinations of Lian calling him a bad father. Dick should've realized something was off when Roy, getting high on heroin for the first time in years, goes through an incredibly vivid hallucination and nearly kills several people when heroin is not supposed to do that.

--> '''Doc Samson:''' The Hulk keeps telling you to leave him alone. Maybe you should do that.

** He did not point out his killing of his grand-father Bor was self-defense and he had no way to recognize him since Bor had been thought dead for thousands of years.

* Dark Avenger in ''ComicBook/{{Noob}}'' comic 9. His student Précieux gets randomly chosen as commander in a battleground subject to DecapitatedArmy and it quickly get established the Dark Avenger in the one truely calling the shots for the Coalition army. But what's this? Sparadrap, the Empire player that Dark Avenger has MistakenForBadass got killed early in the battle? Dark Avenger decides he must be planning something and goes to ambush him at the Empire's RespawnPoint. As he arrives at the RespawnPoint in question, Dark Avenger's guild master Roxana, who has been guarding it, is needed elsewhere and puts Dark Avenger in charge preventing the resurrection on Empire players. Realizing Dark Avenger took Roxana's place, Sparadrap gets taken over by his dismal player's much more competent brother who kills Dark Avenger and hence enables resurrection for the dead Empire players. Meanwhile, Précieux has lost control of the situation and is currently surrounded by a big fire.
* A major problem within ''ComicBook/CivilWarII'' is that everyone, especially [[ComicBook/MsMarvel Carol Danvers]] believes Ulysses' precog-based visions at face value, thus incidents that could easily be solved with a little bit of talking and waving it off is instead turned into Carol running at the person with the rest of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} at her side, ready to arrest anyone and everyone for just ''thinking'' of a crime. For example, the ''Power Man & Iron Fist'' tie-in has Carol confronting ComicBook/LukeCage with the belief that he was going to cause a jail break, mostly because ComicBook/IronFist was in there for a reason. He was only ''thinking'' of it idly and had no intention on doing anything that would get his best friend in trouble. The ensuing fight ends up causing the jailbreak and Cage gets injured in the process.

* PlayedForDrama in ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} from ''{{Franchise/Batman}}'' as [[Characters/CatwomanSelinaKyle Selina Kyle]] trust in her childhood friend Sylvia Sinclair had tragic consequences. Despite Selina being forced to leave Sylvia to be arrested in the past, with Sylvia spending 10 years in jail, Selina trusts Sylvia, thinking of her as her closest childhood friend. When Sylvia betrays Selina, she admits she did not think Sylvia would have a grudge against her. Her stupidity costs Selina her brother-in-law's life and her sister's sanity.

* PlayedForDrama in ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} from ''{{Franchise/Batman}}'' as her trust in her childhood friend Sylvia Sinclair had tragic consequences. Despite Selina being forced to leave Sylvia to be arrested in the past, with Sylvia spending 10 years in jail, Selina trusts Sylvia, thinking of her as her closest childhood friend. When Sylvia betrays Selina, she admits she did not think Sylvia would have a grudge against her. Her stupidity costs Selina her brother-in-law's life and her sister's sanity.

** Doctor Mid-Nite remains totally oblivious that Roy is stealing pain medication to handle the pain in his infected right arm.

* ComicBook/TroubleMarvelComics: May brags to Ben about how "fertile" the women of her family are and it's very easy for them to get pregnant. She says this while sleeping around with multiple men and on at least one occasion (likely more) not using protection. Guess what ends up happening.

** Speaking of ''Franchise/XMen'', one scene in ''ComicBook/{{Ultimatum}}'' has Professor X compare Magneto, a Holocaust survivor, to UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, right in front of him. Naturally, Magneto [[BerserkButton doesn't take it well]] [[spoiler:and kills Xavier via NeckSnap]].

* In ''Franchise/{{Transformers}} Total War'', Megatron ''finally'' admits that [[http://tfwiki.net/wiki/File:Megatrong2idiot.jpg this is the sole reason]] he has trusted Starscream for so long, and while Optimus is tempted to record and exploit this confession, [[EnemyMine it really isn't the time.]]

* [[PlayedForDrama Played For Drama]] in ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} from ''{{Franchise/Batman}}'' as her trust in her childhood friend Sylvia Sinclair had tragic consequences. Despite Selina being forced to leave Sylvia to be arrested in the past, with Sylvia spending 10 years in jail, Selina trusts Sylvia, thinking of her as her closest childhood friend. When Sylvia betrays Selina, she admits she did not think Sylvia would have a grudge against her. Her stupidity costs Selina her brother-in-law's life and her sister's sanity.

* The original ''ComicBook/ElfQuest'', while done very well, has a handful of obvious mistakes. In Issue#15, a ten thousand year old elf, Lord Voll, is shot by a crossbow bolt. He's assumed to be dead. However, they have a healer with the group, and given what Leetah has done in the past with battle wounds, she could easily heal Voll. It's apparently never thought of by the elves despite it being normally the first thing Leetah would do to someone who is severely injured. Instead, he's allowed to die. A couple of minutes later, the chief is stabbed by a spear and is dying. After he collapses, Leetah heals him.

* In ''Superman'' Vol. 2 #2, after Lex learns of a connection between Superman and Clark Kent, has a woman look into it who sends goons to tranquilize his parents and burglarize their house, then they kidnap Lana and rough her up, and gets Superman mad enough that he bursts into Lex's office, yet Lex manages to ward him off with a kryptonite ring and a monologue; he refuses to accept her conclusion that Superman is really Clark Kent, with the most idiotic reasoning you can think of.
** Eventually, Luthor did make the connection himself and didn't seem to refute it, sometime around 2000, for the record.

* The last issue of ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2015'' ends with master assassin Psylocke hunting down Magneto for getting a little too dirty with his DirtyBusiness and, despite the enormous power gap between them, actually managing to inflict a fatal wound on Mags. But rather than finish Magneto -- a man she ''knows'' has [[DeathIsCheap died and come back]] several times over -- she instead just opts to walk away and leave him to bleed out. Of course, moments after she leaves help arrives for Magneto in the form of the two omega-level mutants that are both healers and both feel indebted to him -- and both of whom Psylocke knows about.

* [[ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse Uncle Scrooge]] is usually portrayed as one of the smartest people in Duckburg, but there are two recurring situations where he tend to behave incredibly stupid: He is usually unable to see through the Beagle Boys' {{Paper Thin Disguise}}s, and he never has the common sense to be suspicious whenever he's offered something for free. In one decades-old story, both these idiot ball traits were combined: Scrooge needed a new butler, so one of the Beagle Boys applied for the position wearing a PaperThinDisguise and offering to pay Scrooge for the privilege of being his butler. It worked.

* [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]], ever since Odin died, has made some very stupid decisions. He became king and every decision he has made has led Asgard from bad to worse. First, there was the Reigning and trusting Loki, but this can be excused by having part of him split off. Since his return he placed the Asgardians on Earth without giving them guidance on how to interact with it, flew off to have adventures avoiding his kingly duties, did not point out his killing of his grand-father Bor was self-defense and he had no way to recognize him since Bor had been thought dead for thousands of years, using up the last of the omnipotent Odinpower to revive Sif instead of restoring said power leaving Asgard vulnerable, acting surprised when Osborn attacked during SIEGE, and now somehow moving the city of Asgard to Earth is the equivalent to moving the dimension so the entire cosmos is out of whack letting in interdimensional invaders. Balder has had his fair share too by not getting informed about what Doom was all about, not expecting retaliation for SIEGE, and exiling Thor in the first place. Oh, both also decided it was a good idea to once again trust Loki despite suspecting him being up to something and with the whole trying to kill them both and rule Asgard for the past thousand years. To be fair Balder has realized he has been an idiot and called himself out on it.
** Brash thinking is exactly what brought Thor on Earth first time: cultivating humanity cured him of his massive ego (the "Reigning" Thor, devoid of his human side, reverted quickly to a massive jerk, hinted to be no more worthy of Mjollnir until TheReasonYouSuckSpeech), but still may not be enough to turn Thor into a leader. Odin is a leader, Thor is a warrior. The two things rarely come into the same being.
** Lampshaded during ''ComicBook/FearItself'': [[spoiler: Odin himself chides Thor's heroic optimism in thinking he could save Earth and Asgard by simply charging at the Serpent and punching him really hard, but admires his selflessness and bravery, deciding to keep putting Asgard first anyways, but letting Thor know how proud he is]].

* The kids of ''ComicBook/AvengersArena'' have been playing hot potato with the IdiotBall since issue #1.
** One of the more glaring examples: #8 emphasizes that due to her TrainingFromHell, ComicBook/{{X 23}} is constantly [[SherlockScan studying her surroundings]] and [[AwesomenessByAnalysis determining the best way to kill everyone around her]]. So of course, [[spoiler: in #10 she [[LeeroyJenkins blindly charges into a fight with Apex]], who has control of a freaking ''Sentinel''. After having her ass kicked as quickly as one would expect, she then hands the ball off to Apex herself, who completely forgets about Laura's HealingFactor and fails to finish her off when she had the chance. This despite Laura arguably being the most dangerous of the kids ''in'' Murder World, and certainly one of the best-equipped and trained to survive in it.]]