History Main / EscapistCharacter

* ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'': This incarnation of Frank Castle is particularly popular among people who hate criminals, ''especially'' among those who believe that any criminal is deserving of death.

* ''[ComicBook/{{Shazam}}'': Captain Marvel took up the WishFulfillment a notch by taking Billy Batson, a boy within the age range of the target demographic, and giving him the ability to transform into a superhero very much like [[ComicBook/{{Superman}} the one kids were into at the time]]. Unfortunately, the courts agreed with DC that it was a little too similar (which interestingly ended up with them in the same universe).

* ''Manhua/ThirteenDotCartoons'' was incredibly popular in Hong Kong in the '60s and '70s, but mainly among a much lower economic class than its Fiction500 protagonist. Its audience could never afford [[UnlimitedWardrobe the fancy clothes she wears]] or [[InfiniteSupplies all the things she buys]]. Plus, since she's a [[TheDitz dimwit]], readers got to feel good about themselves even as they wished they were someone else. Notably, after the growth of Hong Kong's economy there no longer seems to be as much of a market for the series.

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': Spider-Man straddles the line between ThisLoserIsYou and an Escapist Character pretty much constantly. No matter how much his life ends up sucking (HeroWithBadPublicity, dead parents and uncle, "rocky" love-life pre-MJ, ComicBook/OneMoreDay) he's a superhero who gets to [[BuildingSwing web-sling]] from skyscrapers and [[TheSnarkKnight he always has a quip ready]]. There's also something very appealing about an [[TheEveryman everyman]] amongst so many other powerful superheroes (even more so when you consider how most Marvel Universe characters are everymen already).

* The titular protagonist from Herge's ''[[Franchise/{{Tintin}} The Adventures of Tintin]]'' series could possibly qualify as one of these; he's a successful journalist embarking on incredible adventures accompanied by a medley of unusual comrades. Not only that, but Herge himself admitted that Tintin's [[TheEveryMan limited personality]] was a means of enabling readers to [[AudienceSurrogate assume Tintin's position]] and experience such great adventures, and that writing the books provided him Wish Fulfillment, having initially conceived Tintin as an idealized version of himself.
* Archie from ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'' is a huge ChickMagnet with girls always falling into his lap, despite him not really doing anything. He also is a musician, is on the football team, lives in a pretty scenic town, has a lot of friends, and is above-average looking (bar his EarlyInstallmentCharacterDesignDifference).
* ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} fulfills the female power fantasy function in the ''Batman'' comics. Barbara Gordon is a beautiful, learned and mature woman and kickass fighter who owns a cool bike and all kind of fantastic toys for fighting crime.
* ComicBook/{{Batman}}. Creator/GrantMorrison actually talked about this and claims that for all the talk about how much of a fantasy Superman is, Batman is even more so:

* ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica.'' Scrawny 4F artist from Brooklyn becomes a A1 SuperSoldier and [[TheCape the embodiment of all that is good and right]] about [[{{Eagleland}} America]].
* [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]] took up the WishFulfillment a notch by taking Billy Batson, a boy within the age range of the target demographic, and giving him the ability to transform into a superhero very much like [[ComicBook/{{Superman}} the one kids were into at the time]]. Unfortunately, the courts agreed with DC that it was a little too similar (which interestingly ended up with them in the same universe).
* This is part of the reason why ''ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}'' saw a sudden burst in popularity after the release of the film adaptations of his comics. He achieves SuccessThroughInsanity via an large arsenal of guns, swords and other tools, he treats the FourthWall like it's nothing and can beat up those he doesn't like with little-to-no consequences.
* Scrooge [=McDuck=] in the ''ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse'' is super rich and a Cool Old Guy, things keep going his way despite his cruelty to his nephews, and yet it's entertaining to see him mop the floor with his enemies.
* [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHercules Hercules]] is male power fantasy to a ''tee''. He's a [[ManlyMan manly]] HandsomeLech who ReallyGetsAround and solves nearly every problem he encounters through AttackAttackAttack. He has thus been most guys' personal fantasy made manifest for [[OlderThanFeudalism the last couple millennia]].
* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': The Hulk is a mix between ThisLoserIsYou and this. Most people can relate to feeling like poor, downtrodden Bruce Banner at least once in their life and he can provide wish fulfillment by turning into an unstoppable rage monster that can curbstomp almost anything that pisses him off. Less so in later storylines, as his Hulk persona wrecked his personal and professional life.

* The titular ''ComicBook/JohnnyTheHomicidalManiac'' is this to more misanthropic readers of comics. Sure, his life is pure misery and he hates everyone and everything around him (including himself), but [[ThisLoserIsYou all of us feel like that sometimes]]. Not all of us can blow off steam by going on a sadistic killing spree and get away with it.
* ''ComicBook/RichieRich'', without a doubt, can be considered one of these. Who WOULDN'T want to be the richest kid in the world, who literally has everything, and yet somehow remains the embodiment of sweetness?
* ComicBook/SheHulk, the Hulk's cousin and DistaffCounterpart is a straighter example. She's a brilliant lawyer who also happens to be a superhuman AmazonianBeauty.
* ComicBook/SpiderMan straddles the line between ThisLoserIsYou and an Escapist Character pretty much constantly. No matter how much his life ends up sucking (HeroWithBadPublicity, dead parents and uncle, "rocky" love-life pre-MJ, ComicBook/OneMoreDay) he's a superhero who gets to [[BuildingSwing web-sling]] from skyscrapers and [[TheSnarkKnight he always has a quip ready]]. There's also something very appealing about an [[TheEveryman everyman]] amongst so many other powerful superheroes (even more so when you consider how most Marvel Universe characters are everymen already).

* ComicBook/SquirrelGirl embodies the lighter and more wonderous side of comics. Notably, a ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006'' tie-in featured Doreen lamenting that UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks had led to comics losing sight of their escapist elements.
* ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} was also created in the Silver Age as a power fantasy for young female readers: a cute, kind-hearted 15-year-old girl who is powerful enough to make anything, including but not limited to move planets, outrace light, shrug bullets -and nukes- off, fly, breathe in space and travel to other planets and time periods under her own power to live all kind of adventures (such like taming and riding a dinosaur).
* ComicBook/{{Superman}}. He's the Man of ''Tomorrow (i.e. he was supposed to be what ordinary people might dream of someday becoming), TheCape, ''the'' IdealHero, and TheParagon whom everyone looks up to, as well as an [[SuperpowerLottery immensely powerful]] FlyingBrick who put most of the ComicBook/JusticeLeague to shame. And the name of his city, "Metropolis", comes from the Greek and Latin roots for "[[TheCity city,]]" so Clark Kent is basically Everyman, Everywhere.
* Deconstructed InUniverse in ''ComicBook/TotallyAwesomeHulk''. Amadeus Cho is an AudienceSurrogate for all those who would savor the power and invincibility of the Hulk, unlike Bruce Banner. However, as the recurring dream sequences symbolize, he isn't quite as in control as he believes, and being the Hulk comes [[ComesGreatResponsibility comes with a lot of responsibility]] that a kid may not be mature enough to handle.
* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman'' was explicitly created to be a female power fantasy: she's as powerful as any man, without losing any of her femininity.

* ComicBook/XMen:
** ComicBook/KittyPryde started out as the team's NaiveNewcomer, and grew up to be a badass [[GratuitousNinja ninja]] [[TeenGenius genius]] with a [[TeamPet pet]] [[RecycledINSPACE space]] [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragon]] and lots of friends on earth and out of it. The fandom rejoiced of course, for they watched every step of this journey from Everygirl to Super-Special Heroine and wished they could be her (or "be ''with'' her").
** ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}. So. Very. Much. After a while, [[WolverinePublicity it simply became a running joke with a Lampshade on his head much of the time.]]
** ComicBook/{{Storm|MarvelComics}} is almost as blatant a one of these as Kitty, being one of the [[SuperpowerLottery most powerful members of the team]], [[PhysicalGod worshipped as a goddess]], [[PowerLossMakesYouStrong having mad fighty and thiefy skills]], and being heart-stoppingly gorgeous. Sometimes this got carried so far that even for teenage dreamers, it became something of a running joke. For example, the infamous scene where a depowered Ororo somehow manages to defeat ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} in a Danger Room contest, using rules which he more-or-less ''could not lose'' under. She manages to dodge energy blasts moving at the speed of light, more-or-less, and it was so blatant that even many of the fanboys ended up saying 'what?' Even Creator/ChrisClaremont, who wrote the Storm/Cyclops fight, seemed to realize it was a bit silly, as 50 issues later he [[RetCon retconned]] it by claiming that Cyclops was being psychically influenced at the time [[spoiler: by Madeline, who wanted him to lose so he would retire and come live with her instead.]]
** ComicBook/{{Psylocke}} is popular with many fans precisely because she's both sexy ''and'' has it all. Betsy is filthy rich, a literal supermodel, becomes increasingly powerful as time goes on, a master ninja, assassin, secret agent, adventurer and pilot, and of course, is quite possibly ''the'' most sexy woman in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse. Is it any wonder fans often want to be her, or rather, be ''with'' her?
** ComicBook/{{Colossus}} is an unusual example in the superhero genre, as while many superheroes exist to serve as a power fantasy, Colossus's main purpose over the years has evolved into being a Romance fantasy. A Hunk with Chronic Hero Syndrome and Incorruptible Pure Pureness, Colossus could have stepped whole and breathing from the most wholesome books of the Romance Novel genre. Most of what he does and who he is is defined by his love relationships, another trademark of the romance novel love interest. The character ended up so much into this that was ''Reductio ad absurdum'' in Film/Deadpool2.

* ''Manga/OutlawStar'': Gene Starwind is almost certifiably the epitome of this trope: [[{{Hunk}} Hot, muscular guy]] with lots of {{Shirtless Scene}}s? Check. Awesome fighting skills? Check. Lecherous pervert who still scores booty all the time with various incredibly hot women? Check. Spends cash like popcorn yet never runs out because some bounty is always available for collection? Check. Has a highly sought after CoolSpaceship? Check. Commands a BadassCrew that is mostly female, follows his insane orders without much questioning and adores him? Check. Has a MagicalGirlfriend that loves him dearly and heals all his injuries via IntimateHealing? Check. Wields a one of a kind HandCannon that is also a WaveMotionGun? Check. Always leaves the bad guys [[SayMyName screaming in frustration]]? Check. Can act as an obnoxious, irresponsible ManChild all the time and get away with it without breaking a sweat? DOUBLE CHECK. Yes, you totally want to be him. And if not: BITE HIM!

* Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog. He's fast, powerful, and incredibly acrobatic and has several powerful transformations. He’s also often [[FamedInStory world-famous]] and very often written as being a ChickMagnet. Who wouldn't want to be him? His rebellious attitude towards authority and his laidback, casual demeanor only help to further allow the player to project themselves on the Blue Blur. Shadow counts too.

* Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog. He's fast, powerful, and incredibly acrobatic and has several powerful transformations. He’s also often [[FamedInStory world-famous]] and very often written as being a [[ChickMagnet]]. Who wouldn't want to be him? His rebellious attitude towards authority and his laidback, casual demeanor only help to further allow the player to project themselves on the Blue Blur. Shadow counts too.

* Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog. He's fast, powerful, and incredibly acrobatic and has several transformations. Who wouldn't want to be him? His rebellious attitude towards authority and his laidback, casual demeanor only help to further allow the player to project themselves on the Blue Blur. Shadow counts too.
** Shadow may be even more obvious in fact. He's almost as strong as Knuckles, as fast as Sonic thanks to his [[RollerbladeGood jet rollerblades]], uses guns, cars, cursing and can choose whichever side he wants be on at any given moment. He's immortal, very intelligent, and pretty much has magical/super powers along with several transformations. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking And he kicked Silver in the back of the head.]]

** Light Yagami. His villainous nature, [[HoYay perceived]] [[EvilIsSexy sexuality]], fan [[OneTrueThreesome fixations]], and the fact that [[EvilIsCool evil rocks]] doesn't hurt either. Besides, the power to get rid in a few seconds of every evil people (or those deemed to be so) and avenge injustice and prevarication is really tempting.

* The protagonists of the mainline ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'' games. The ClosedCircle setting means they get to hang out with quirky, fun-loving teenagers all day without adult supervision ([[VisualNovel/Danganronpa2GoodbyeDespair one time on a beautiful tropical island, too!]]) -- especially in the bonus modes where the killing game never happens, so there's no tragedy or anguish. They have a lot of cute girls to flirt with, and invariably find a love interest... although [[spoiler:whether said love interest will actually survive until the end of the game varies]]. They get to show off their smarts during class trials, and in the end, bring down the BigBad with their unbreakable heroic spirit.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'': In the 20th century, Phillip J. Fry was your typical down-on-his-luck {{Idiot|Hero}} ManChild who would never amount to anything. 1000 years into TheFuture, and he's landed a steady job traveling the cosmos, interacting with all sorts of crazy aliens and robots, and has even been instrumental in [[SaveTheWorld saving the world]] a few times.

* ''Manga/DragonBall'' has Son Goku. He is an AllLovingHero who is TheAce and HopeBringer among his friends and the universe at large. He is consider one of the strongest beings in the universe, regularly defeats super-powered aliens, androids, demons, and even gods, and can learn about any technique by just seeing it once. The fact that he was born weak and gained his strength through good old-fashioned hard work on top of being extremely talented endear him to a lot of people, which is part of why he is seen as a better main character than his son, who much more down to Earth. There's reason why he became a FountainOfExpies to many modern day {{Shonen}} [[StockShonenHero protagonists]] and often compared to Franchise/{{Superman}}.

* Franchise/{{Batman}}. Creator/GrantMorrison actually talked about this and claims that for all the talk about how much of a fantasy Superman is, Batman is even more so:

* [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]] took up the WishFulfillment a notch by taking Billy Batson, a boy within the age range of the target demographic, and giving him the ability to transform into a superhero very much like [[Franchise/{{Superman}} the one kids were into at the time]]. Unfortunately, the courts agreed with DC that it was a little too similar (which interestingly ended up with them in the same universe).

* Franchise/{{Superman}}. He's the Man of ''Tomorrow (i.e. he was supposed to be what ordinary people might dream of someday becoming), TheCape, ''the'' IdealHero, and TheParagon whom everyone looks up to, as well as an [[SuperpowerLottery immensely powerful]] FlyingBrick who put most of the Franchise/JusticeLeague to shame. And the name of his city, "Metropolis", comes from the Greek and Latin roots for "[[TheCity city,]]" so Clark Kent is basically Everyman, Everywhere.

* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' was explicitly created to be a female power fantasy: she's as powerful as any man, without losing any of her femininity.

* ''ComicBook/BlackPanther'': The strong, wise, and noble king of an extremely technologically advanced African nation untouched by the evils of colonization, and one of the smartest men in the Marvel Universe.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world on grand adventures with his TrueCompanions, defeating deadly, notorious pirates, saving entire kingdoms, and [[ChaoticGood rebelling against a corrupt government to follow his dreams]], becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. Many story arcs end with Luffy and his crew celebrating victories with massive parties, inviting all the friends and people they've helped to join in, and with Luffy being the MagneticHero that he is, it usually ends up spanning an entire ''island''.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world on grand adventures with his TrueCompanions, fighting and defeating deadly, notorious pirates, and [[ChaoticGood rebelling against a corrupt government to follow his dreams]], becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world, going on grand adventures with [[TrueCompanions a loyal crew of ragtag misfits]], fighting and defeating deadly, notorious pirates, and [[ChaoticGood rebelling against a corrupt government to follow his dreams]], becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world, going on grand adventures with [[TrueCompanions a loyal crew of ragtag misfits]], fighting and defeating deadly, notorious pirates, and [[ChaoticGood rebelling against the government to follow his dreams]], becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world, going on grand adventures with a loyal crew of ragtag misfits, fighting and defeating deadly, notorious pirates, and [[ChaoticGood rebelling against the government to follow his dreams]], becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities who sails around the world, going on grand adventures with a loyal crew of ragtag misfits, fights and defeats deadly and notorious pirates, and rebels against the government to follow his dreams, becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in his quest to become ''King'' of the Pirates. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* Monkey D. Luffy from ''Manga/OnePiece''; an eccentric and carefree pirate adventurer with strange and extraordinary elastic abilities, who sails around the world with a loyal crew of ragtag misfits, fights and defeats deadly and notorious pirates, and rebels against the government to follow his dreams, becoming one of the world's most famous pirates in the process. He and his crew have saved several kingdoms along the way too.

* [[Creator/PaulReubens Pee-wee Herman]] definitely qualifies as one of these. Living in perpetual childhood, he lives a fanciful life, constantly surrounded by toys and nifty gadgets, and, no matter the setting, always gets to have amazing adventures, and things can go his way in the end no matter what. This is amplified in ''Series/PeeWeesPlayhouse'', where he gets to hang out in a CoolHouse with a faithful, friendly group of wacky characters, including a genie who can grant any wish he desires and a self-describing example of the WorldsMostBeautifulWoman. During [[https://youtu.be/S3fh6WHh7Es?si=9VYOoiuCzE800Xno an in-character interview as the character]], Creator/PaulReubens stated that he thought he offered viewers "some sort of escape, y'know, back to childhood, maybe."

* This is part of the reason why ''ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}'' saw a burst in popularity after the release of the film adaptations of his comics. He achieves SuccessThroughInsanity via an large arsenal of guns, swords and other tools, he treats the FourthWall like it's nothing and can beat up those he doesn't like with little-to-no consequences.

* Marty [=McFly=] of ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' fame is, like Peter Parker, somewhere between "everyman" and "cool guy you want to hang out with". He's good at playing guitar, skateboarding, hoverboarding, wooing ladies, escaping by the skin of his teeth, and video games -- pretty much everything an [[TheEighties Eighties]] kid or teenager would love. Plus, his best friend is a mad scientist who invents time travel, allowing both to have exciting adventures in past and future. Shame about his [[{{Squick}} mother]], though.

** Lara Croft was probably the first video game character {{gamer girl}}s could project themselves onto. While it's debatable how twisted the character became since her first game to being mainly exploited for sex appeal, the fact remains she's an educated, badass, world traveling explorer and ass kicker extraordinary who is never portrayed as a victim and always in control of the situation. "She was Indiana Jones, but witty, measured, sophisticated. She shot first and asked questions later. She screamed only when seconds from death. She never, ever needed saving."

** D.Va, a 19-years-old South Korean GamerGirl who is an undefeated ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' pro, being conscripted by her nation's military in order to fight off giant robots that invaded her country, never losing optimism despite the horrors she went through and in fact streams her battles to lift her people's spirits and in battle, likes to pepper gaming jargon in battles, and also doubles as a celebrity.