History Main / Ubermensch

* Judge Holden from CormacMcCarthy's ''BloodMeridian'' is a deconstruction of the concept, showing just how frightening an Ubermensch can be if acting as the antagonist of a story.

** And later, Simon grows to be like Kamina, and the role of the Last Man goes to Rossiu ([[GetAHoldOfYourselfMan and later is snapped out of it]]) and later the Anti-Spiral ([[NietzscheWannabe who didn't get snapped out of it]]). It also helps that Spiral Energy is basically the Will to Power, thus any powerful spiral/human with enough "[[MemeticMutation belief in the he that believes in himself]]" can reach Ubermensch-status.

** A rare heroic example is Batman. He has his own code and in most adaptations only [[ThouShaltNotKill one rule]]. ''Batman: Year One'' informs us that Gotham was once a place where law and order had given up (read: traditional morality has collapsed), and Batman has repeatedly recruited and mentored fledgling superheros (converting others to his ideals). By contrast, the Joker is a NietzscheWannabe. An agent of chaos even in more campy versions, he has no code, no purpose in society and no sense of hierarchy, so he'll kill just about anyone for no reason. Spending a month ''acquainted'' to him will drive you insane, if poor Harley is any indication. This is actually the key focus of Film/TheDarkKnightSaga.

* ''Anime/RingingBell'' has Wolf as the Ubermensch and the sheep as the Last Man. Chirin starts out as a member of the Last Man and tries to become Ubermensch under Wolf's tutelage. [[spoiler: He fails, and becomes a NietzscheWannabe instead]].

* John Kramer aka Jigsaw from the ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'' films. Despite suffering from brain cancer and being dissatisfied with the rest of society, he overcame his suicidal despair and created his own radical moral code focusing on the savouring of life, seeing modern civilization as making everyone waste themselves in hedonism and setting himself the goal of rejuvenating humanity's survival instincts. And his method is not nice, either, he tests his subjects' personal willpower by subjecting them to {{ironic hell}}s that require severe self-sacrifice to escape lest they die. While most people will see his method as murder despite his claims on the contrary, he is still able to influence the tortured survivors around him to his ideals, even beyond the grave, although Amanda became a NietzscheWannabe and Hoffman became a monster. It helps that his character is based on Gilles Deleuze's philosophy, which is a lot like Nietzsche's.

* Winston Smith in ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' is the Last Man in Europe, due to his primary motivation being hedonism with freedom and enlightenment added in, yet still doesn't carry enough Will to Power to stick to his individuality [[spoiler:and overcome {{Room 101}}]]. [[spoiler: Heck, he even chooses to love Big Brother because it's the greater of two pleasures, which is against the Ubermensch concept]]. But the actual "Ubermensch" in the book is disputed. Maybe it's Big Brother (who ironically is the God of the book), maybe it's the Party as a whole with their BlueAndOrangeMorality and their obsession with the Will To Power, but Inner Party member O'Brien in particular, as an individual, is less of a Ubermensch and more of a NietzscheWannabe, since he believes that the only vision of the future is "a boot stamping on a human face forever".
* The vampire artist Mikhail Efimov in Creator/OlegDivov 's ''Literature/NightWatcher'' has some pretensions about this, being a more literal version of NietzscheWannabe; he claims that "proper" vampires (the ones that drink blood and receive, among other things, dramatically enhanced senses - and, at least according to Mikhail, emotions and understanding), or the Nocturnals as he likes to call them, are so far above mere humans in every regard as to be justified in doing whatever they want to them, as human lives are so drab and pathetic compared to those of Nocturnals as to be "less than a parody". He also has some things to say about the worldview and way of life of perfect beings, which seems pretty close to this trope. Mikhail tries to position Igor Dolinsky, [[TheFettered a vampire that has successfully resisted his bloodthirst]], as the Last Man, but Dolinsky is quick to point out that the Nocturnals tend to degenerate into mindless animals within a few years if they even live that long; eventually Mikhail realizes that Igor is right and turns himself in for an experimental treatment, though he doesn't abandon his rhetoric to the end, [[ShutUpHannibal leading to]] [[BreakTheHaughty some humiliating moments]] at the hands of the local vampire hunters.

** For that matter, all three Reasons are representative of the trope: the Reason of Shijima (presented by Hikawa) is just the most [[NietzscheWannabe nihilistic one]] (naturally; the organization sponsoring it is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the Assembly of Nihilo]]. But the Reason of Musubi and the Reason of Yosuga also present their own revolutionary ideologies for the [[DarkMessiah Demifiend]] (the player character) to support.

* Emperor Mateus Palamecia in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII''. He is utterly convinced of his right to rule over all around him, and, being a SorcerousOverlord, has the power to back it up. The heroes ''killing him'' merely results in LikeABadassOutOfHell, [[spoiler: and the remake shows that the "light" half of his soul tried to overthrow the game's version of Heaven.]] In the crossover game ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'', he plans to overthrow the Gods and is insulted when Garland compares him to [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI Kefka]], who he dismisses as a "[[NietzscheWannabe gibbering nihilist]]".

* ''ComicBook/{{Miracleman}}'': MiraclemanHe was actually developed by an ex-Nazi scientist, as it happens.

* ''Comicbook/{{Miracleman}}'': MiraclemanHe was actually developed by an ex-[[MadScientist Nazi scientist]], as it happens.
* Magneto from ''Comicbook/{{X-Men}}'', as written by Chris Claremont. He actually describes himself as one in a supplemental story.

In 1883, FriedrichNietzsche published a book called ''Also Sprach Zarathustra'' in which he elaborated his ethical ideal, the ''Übermensch.'' The name came from the concept about ordinary humanity believing there would be no morals or reasons to live if there was no Other to define morality and reason. Transcending this illusion makes one an "over-man".

* Raskolnikov from FyodorDostoevsky's ''Literature/CrimeAndPunishment'' is a VillainProtagonist who wants to be an Ubermensch, and spends most of the book wondering if he is one or not. It is perhaps worth noting that the novel was published before ''Also sprach Zarathustra'' and that Raskolnikov considers Napoleon to be the archetypical Ubermensch, showing that the idea at the very least predates Nietzsche.

* ''Literature/TheBible'': {{Alternative Character Interpretation}}s of Satan also include the Ubermensch archetype. One such Satan is the Satan from ''ParadiseLost''. After all, tis better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven. Probably.

* Gabe from ''NextToNormal'' has an inhuman charisma, makes his own rules and pretty much gets what he wants [[spoiler: despite, or because of being, DeadAllAlong]]. Natalie is pretty much The Last Man no matter what she does. ''[[{{Lampshade Hanging}} Superboy And The Invisible Girl]]'', indeed.

'''Echo''': Right, new superior people, with a little [[NaziGermany German]] thrown in. [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong What could possibly go wrong?]]

* ''Anime/ChirinNoSuzu'' has Wolf as the Ubermensch and the sheep as the Last Man. Chirin starts out as a member of the Last Man and tries to become Ubermensch under Wolf's tutelage. [[spoiler: He fails, and becomes a NietzscheWannabe instead]].

[[folder:Film]]

* ''Anime/KillLaKill'': Most of the main cast reject the norms of society to pursue their own ambition, each in their own original way. Even when they are following others, they are, in doing so, following themselves. Matoi Ryuuko will stand up to absolutely anyone and lives by her own code. So does Kiryuuin Stasuki, who'll unabashedly do whatever it takes to achieve her ambition, and look awesome while doing it. Kiryuuin Ragyo makes long speeches about embracing sin being the defining trait of humanity. Gamagoori Ira embraces conventional rules and codes with absolute passion even when no-one else will. The Mankanshoku do whatever the hell they want at any time without shame or inhibition, with special mention to Mankanshoku Mako, who lives in her own planet. While some of these characters can be manipulated or bribed or charmed into Last-Man-ity, there's always another character whose personal strength and charisma inspires them to be faithful to themselves.

* John Kramer aka Jigsaw from the ''Film/{{Saw}}'' films. Despite suffering from brain cancer and being dissatisfied with the rest of society, he overcame his suicidal despair and created his own radical moral code focusing on the savouring of life, seeing modern civilization as making everyone waste themselves in hedonism and setting himself the goal of rejuvenating humanity's survival instincts. And his method is not nice, either, he tests his subjects' personal willpower by subjecting them to {{ironic hell}}s that require severe self-sacrifice to escape lest they die. While most people will see his method as murder despite his claims on the contrary, he is still able to influence the tortured survivors around him to his ideals, even beyond the grave, although Amanda became a NietzscheWannabe and Hoffman became a monster. It helps that his character is based on Gilles Deleuze's philosophy, which is a lot like Nietzsche's.

* The ''GlobalGuardiansPBEMUniverse'' had two notable examples:

* Dexter from ''Series/{{Dexter}}'' evolves into one of these by necessity. He can't obey normal laws of morality because of his "dark passenger," so he must follow his unique "Laws of Harry," which place him above the likes of common murderers, who live by no code at all. Furthermore, the "Laws of Harry" were handed down from his adoptive father, but he has learned that he needs to evolve them and make them his own. The interesting thing about Dexter, he actually regresses as an overman. As the show progresses he becomes more attached to the people around him, and more concerned with normal social problems.
* Khan Noonien Singh from ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. And of course TheMovie ''Wrath of Khan''. From TheOtherWiki: Professor William J. Devlin and coauthor Shai Biderman examined Khan's character compared to the Ubermensch and found that Khan's blind pursuit of revenge is in fact against Nietzsche's ideals of transcendence and self-creation of a meaningful life. Instead, the authors offer Spock's self-sacrifice in The Wrath of Khan as a better example of the Ubermensch.

* Whedon also plays with this in the final episode of the Alpha arc in season 1 of ''{{Dollhouse}}''
-->'''Echo''': "We're not gods!"
-->'''Alpha''': "Fine, Ubermensch. Nietzsche predicted our rise. Perfected, objective, something new."
-->'''Echo''': "Right, new superior people, with a little [[NaziGermany German]] thrown in. [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong What could possibly go wrong?]]"

* John Kramer aka Jigsaw from the ''Film/{{Saw}}'' films. Despite suffering from brain cancer and being dissatisfied with the rest of society, he overcame his suicidal despair and created his own radical moral code focusing on the savouring of life, seeing modern civilization as making everyone waste themselves in hedonism and setting himself the goal of rejuvenating humanity's survival instincts. And his method is not nice, either, he tests his subjects' personal willpower by subjecting them to {{ironic hell}}s that require severe self-sacrifice to escape lest they die. While most people will see his method as murder despite his claims on the contrary, he is still able to influence the tortured survivors around him to his ideals, even beyond the grave, although Amanda became a NietzscheWannabe and Hoffman became a CompleteMonster. It helps that his character is based on Gilles Deleuze's philosophy, which is a lot like Nietzsche's.

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in MarilynManson's ConceptAlbum ''Antichrist Superstar''. The story is told from the perspective of Wormboy, part of the servant caste of a world ruled over by morally and physically superior beings - the {{Ubermensch}}ian TheBeautifulElite. He sets out to overthrow their stifling plutocracy and exercise his will to power (in the classic Nietzschean sense), but becomes increasingly disenfranchised with the mindless, adoring masses, who merely transfer their adoration from them to him, instead. Passing the DespairEventHorizon, he [[AboveGoodAndEvil sheds his outdated morality]] but does not replace it with a new moral framework, evolving into the titular [[TitleDrop Antichrist Superstar]] - also known as [[OmnicidalManiac The Disintegrator]]. Concluding that people do not deserve to be liberated, he spirals into nihilism, using his newfound power to usher in [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the apocalypse]]. The album finishes with a ''serious'' DownerEnding, the desolate CompleteMonster anthem "Man That You Fear".

* Alexei from ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'' can count, as witnessed before his [[spoiler:VillainousBreakdown, he mentions that his goal was to [[WellIntentionedExtremist free humanity from the grip of the Entelexia]] and [[VisionaryVillain build the world anew,]] though he crossed the MoralEventHorizon one too many times in the pursuit of his goal, crossing the line into [[CompleteMonster complete monstrosity]]]].

* In ''Anime/KillLaKill'', Satsuki Kiryuin dismisses society's rules like morality and modesty as foolishness that would limit her potential and stand in the way of her schemes for world domination.

* Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog is another heroic example. A number of his {{Image Song}}s and ''[[VideoGame/SonicStorybookSeries Sonic and the Black Knight]]'' make references to how he doesn't care about what's right or wrong and will always fight for what he believes in. And although he does show genuine concern in helping others and his friends, he primarily goes up against Eggman for the fun of it.

* Omar Little from ''Series/TheWire'', a criminal who preys only on other criminals in strict adherence to his own personal "code". Also a BadassLongcoat who happens to be gay.
** He is also the only character in that series who makes it a point not to swear, and his use of language is idiosyncratic only to himself. There are very slight hints during Bird's trial that he may have been inspired to adopt that personality during middle school, although the prequels show him displaying the same traits at a very young age.

* In GrahamMcNeill's ''Warhammer 40000'' ''Literature/HorusHeresy'' novel ''False Gods'', Magnus the Red is determined to study the warp and gain power, because

* [[MadArtist Reiner Grossvogel]] from ThomasLigotti's novella ''Literature/TheShadowTheDarkness'' is a relentless deconstruction of this trope. [[TheUnfettered In as few words as possible, he does exactly what he must as an "efficient organism."]] [[BlueAndOrangeMorality There is no other priority.]]

* Link, specifically in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', is more this than a Knight of Faith, per ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime''. Termina is a world consumed by {{Wangst}} and nihlism because [[spoiler: the moon is crashing into Termina in three days]]. His status as {{Heroic Mime}} drives him to always act, never succumbing to fear or sadness. Link rejects the hopelessness of the herd, in order to save them through sheer force of will. The nature of his task and [[spoiler: his ability to control time]] put him [[AboveGoodAndEvil Above Good And Evil]]; ergo rendering all his actions just, even at their most selfish, because his selfishness benefits all. Including the time [[spoiler: in one timeline when he doomed a man to die in a child's body without the love of his fiance by taking the fiance's love letter and giving it to a man in need of toilet paper for a piece of heart; [[IDidWhatIHadToDo what a dick]]]]. After curing everyone of their hopelessness through his actions, he literally [[spoiler: kills a god]] to change the world's fate and allow people to make their own future. [[FriedrichNietzsche Friedrich Nietzsche]] would be proud.

** ''AtlasShrugged'' features John Galt. The Last Man would be Robert Stadler, who allows his research and good name to be appropriated by StrawmanPolitical interests.

* [[{{The Draka}} The Draka]] tend to fall somewhere between a nation of real Übermenschen and a nation of [[{{Nietzsche Wannabe}} Nietzsche Wannabes]], with a good bit of [[{{Oscar Wilde}} Oscar Wilde]]-inspired decadence thrown in. In the [[{{Alternate History}} Drakaverse timeline]], both Nietzsche and Wilde relocated to the colony of Drakia in its formative years. It is implied that some native Drakan philosophers took Nietzsche's ideas of the Übermensch and the Will to Power and ran with them, forging them into the basis for the shared Drakan culture built around absolute dominance of "lesser" peoples (i.e. everyone else).

** AleisterCrowley describes himself as of the Aeon of Horus, one who rejects the old laws and wants to create a new world with new laws. He refers to most of the other characters, mostly the Christians, as being of the Aeon of Osiris, saying they are stuck in the old laws and unable to advance like him.

* David Wingrove's ''ChungKuo'' has Howard deVore, who wants to destroy the empire so that history can continue and the übermensch can appear. Either naturally or by design.

** Lampshaded in ''BerserkAbridged'', where Griffith talks to Guts about the idea of the Nietzsche Superman. Guts ends up confusing it for Necromancer.

* Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog is another heroic example. A number of his {{Image Song}}s and ''[[VideoGame/SonicStorybookSeries SonicAndTheBlackKnight]]'' make references to how he doesn't care about what's right or wrong and will always fight for what he believes in. And although he does show genuine concern in helping others and his friends, he primarily goes up against Eggman for the fun of it.

* AleisterCrowley from ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex''. He describes himself as of the Aeon of Horus, one who rejects the old laws and wants to create a new world with new laws. He refers to most of the other characters, mostly the Christians, as being of the Aeon of Osiris, saying they are stuck in the old laws and unable to advance like him. [[/folder]]