History UnbuiltTrope / ComicBooks

* ComicBook/LoisLane's modern portrayal as an intrepid, competent DamselOutOfDistress is often thought to be the result of cultural changes in the 60s and 70s. In reality, however, it's a return to her [[MediaNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] characterization. She actually ''started'' as a tough, intelligent IntrepidReporter before the advent of MediaNotes/TheComicsCode caused her to suffer {{chickification}} during MediaNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks. That's right: probably the original superhero female LoveInterest was a [[ActionGirl kickass go-getter]] all the way back in the 1930s.

* UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks, at times, was significantly darker than UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks and more mature than UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks:

** If you tell someone there's a comic book where the Human Torch is burning someone's arm to the bone on the cover, they'll probably think "what have comics come to these days?" or "man, they'd do anything to be edgy in [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks the 90s]]." What they probably wouldn't think is "it's amazing what they put on comic book covers before there were rules about what you could put on comic book covers." Unless they've seen [[http://www.editions-deesse.com/imagesL/HumanTorch12.jpg the issue in question]].

* ComicBook/{{Azrael}} from ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'' was one of the first examples, and probably the most famous, of the AntiHeroSubstitute, taking over from Bruce Wayne when Wayne was temporarily paralyzed. He's depicted as a violent, mentally unstable sociopath and egotist who's doing more harm than good with his brutal and militaristic methods of crime fighting. By the end of the arc he's become the BigBad whom the original Batman must put down before his extremism destroys Gotham. WordOfGod confirms that the entire arc was preplanned to demonstrate to over-excited [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Dark Age]] fanboys that a totally ruthless and brutal Batman was a bad idea. The fact that we have a full trope page for AntiHeroSubstitute should tell you about how well the message went over.

* ''ComicBook/{{Vampirella}}'', featuring a hot, near-naked, mostly heroic vampire babe, sometimes gets the credit of being the first "BadGirlComic", decades before the genre properly began. Although Vampirella was often a DamselInDistress, something no Bad Girl would put up with... she didn't really start to fit the mold until after her character was resurrected by Harris Comics during UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks.

* [[ComicBook/RedHulk Thunderbolt Ross]] is the TropeCodifier for the unhinged anti-superhero GeneralRipper character. However, in early strips Ross was depicted as more of a HeroAntagonist who was wrong about Bruce Banner, but ''sincerely'' wrong; and as ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk was more of an out-of-control beast than an AntiHero in those days, his position was somewhat understandable as a person who didn't have all the facts. This was due to UsefulNotes/TheComicsCode, which prevented authority figures like generals being depicted negatively.

* ComicBook/LoisLane's modern portrayal as an intrepid, competent DamselOutOfDistress is often thought to be the result of cultural changes in the 60s and 70s. In reality, however, it's a return to her [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] characterization. She actually ''started'' as a tough, intelligent IntrepidReporter before the advent of UsefulNotes/TheComicsCode caused her to suffer {{chickification}} during UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks. That's right: probably the original superhero female LoveInterest was a [[ActionGirl kickass go-getter]] all the way back in the 1930s.

** Many deconstructive takes on superhero stories written after ''Watchmen'' (including a few outright inspired by it) often attempt to deconstruct the genre by depicting superheroes as [[SuperZeroes dimwitted, delusional and/or incompetent]], often with the implication that costumed crimefighters would look [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome absolutely ridiculous]] if they really existed. While such characters ''do'' exist in ''Watchmen'' (most notably Captain Metropolis and Dollar Bill), they play a surprisingly minor role in the narrative: Captain Metropolis is a supporting character who only plays a key role in the book's backstory, while Dollar Bill is a PosthumousCharacter who was killed decades before the start of the story. On the whole, most of the non-superpowered characters in ''Watchmen'' (e.g. Rorschach, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre, the Comedian, etc.) are shown to be reasonably successful at fighting crime with gadgets and martial arts, with the story operating under the default assumption that becoming a costumed crimefighter is at least a ''plausible'' pursuit within its fictional setting. As a deconstruction of superhero stories, the book is far more concerned with the '''morality''' and '''philosophy''' of the genre than its practicality. Its overriding thesis isn't so much that superheroes wouldn't work in the real world--it's more that the superhero genre is based on a horribly [[BlackAndWhiteMorality simplistic view of morality]] with [[BlackAndWhiteInsanity disturbing reactionary undertones]], and it inevitably breaks down when confronted with the moral complexities of the real world. Even compared to its many imitators, its critique of the genre can cut surprisingly deep by today's standards. This forms the basis of the aforementioned Captain Metropolis' character as he is an effective crimefighter and leader but has an extremely naive view of heroism, believing that heroes can lead radical social change. That's not even getting into his [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero questionable views]] and desire to push back against progressivism.

* ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'' is seen as one of the comics that brought back idealistic heroes and rejected [[NinetiesAntiHero edgy violent vigilantes]], yet the comic portrays Superman's side as also flawed. For starters, the world has changed and Supes legitimately doesn't understand it due to his years of isolation. The 90s heroes also raise some valid points, mainly [[CardboardPrison how villains used to escape constantly from jail]] and how some of them, like the Joker, truly deserved to die, and the story ended with almost all metahumans dead and the remaining superheroes joining society. This makes the plot less BlackAndWhiteMorality and more BlackAndGreyMorality, since it makes sure to state that the old heroes were also flawed, but weren't as much as the new generation.

* ''Franchise/XMen'' was one of the first comic books ever to make use of a MassEmpoweringEvent to justify numerous characters developing superhuman abilities at the same time. In later years, this trope would become a popular method of setting up a superhero series without needing to give every character their own unique SuperheroOrigin (indeed, Creator/StanLee admitted that he came up with the premise because he was sick of having to come up with an origin for every new character, and felt that the typical FreakLabAccident often felt [[ContrivedCoincidence too coincidental to take seriously]]). But ''X-Men'' doesn't '''just''' use it as a convenient excuse to give lots of characters cool superpowers: it also examines the social and political ramifications of dozens of people suddenly developing volatile and dangerous abilities, delving deep into the FantasticRacism and government paranoia that inevitably results--which is now the most well-known thing about the series. If it had been written today, it would probably be seen as a deconstruction of the trope that it helped pioneer.

*** If you are used to modern portrayals of Doctor Manhattan as a near-omnipotent figure able to rewrite reality, you might be surprised to see that the original was powerful, but definitely limited, and a main point of the setting was that he was the ''only'' super-powered being. It's even explicitly pointed out that, even with all his powers, Doctor Manhattan would ''not'' be able to stop all the missiles if the Cold War ever heated up, and the ones he misses would be enough to cause a nuclear holocaust. Manhattan himself is aware of this and his powers of precognition have made him that no one, not even he, has free will and dismisses the prospect of humanity being wiped out as being utterly trivial to the wider universe.

*** If you are used to modern portrayals of Doctor Manhattan as a near-omnipotent figure able to rewrite reality, you might be surprised to see that the original was powerful, but definitely limited, and a main point of the setting was that he was the ''only'' super-powered being. It's even explicitly pointed out that, even with all his powers, Doctor Manhattan would ''not'' be able to stop all the missiles if the Cold War ever heated up, and the ones he misses would be enough to cause a nuclear holocaust.
** Many deconstructive takes on superhero stories written after ''Watchmen'' (including a few outright inspired by it) often attempt to deconstruct the genre by depicting superheroes as [[SuperZeroes dimwitted, delusional and/or incompetent]], often with the implication that costumed crimefighters would look [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome absolutely ridiculous]] if they really existed. While such characters ''do'' exist in ''Watchmen'' (most notably Captain Metropolis and Dollar Bill), they play a surprisingly minor role in the narrative: Captain Metropolis is a supporting character who only plays a key role in the book's backstory, while Dollar Bill is a PosthumousCharacter who was killed decades before the start of the story. On the whole, most of the non-superpowered characters in ''Watchmen'' (e.g. Rorschach, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre, the Comedian, etc.) are shown to be reasonably successful at fighting crime with gadgets and martial arts, with the story operating under the default assumption that becoming a costumed crimefighter is at least a ''plausible'' pursuit within its fictional setting. As a deconstruction of superhero stories, the book is far more concerned with the '''morality''' and '''philosophy''' of the genre than its practicality. Its overriding thesis isn't so much that superheroes wouldn't work in the real world--it's more that the superhero genre is based on a horribly [[BlackAndWhiteMorality simplistic view of morality]] with [[BlackAndWhiteInsanity disturbing reactionary undertones]], and it inevitably breaks down when confronted with the moral complexities of the real world. Even compared to its many imitators, its critique of the genre can cut surprisingly deep by today's standards.

* The ''ComicBook/SuicideSquad'' is one of the most famous cases of AnyoneCanDie in comic book history, were the team is composed of CListFodder supervillains who can casually die in any mision without slowing down the team, and are employed precisely [[WeHaveReserves because of how expendable they are.]] Must be a shocker when you read Jon Ostrander's [[MyRealDaddy classic run]] and find out that the team actually is composed mostly of superheroes or decent people: The team included the likes of ComicBook/{{Vixen}}, [[ComicBook/ShadeTheChangingMan the Ditko-era Shade]], ComicBook/BlackOrchid, Nemesis, Oracle (She actually debuted here) and Nightshade, who are all classical superheroes, and are helped by the likes of Katana or Speedy in some missions. Heck, about half of the villains in the Squad (Bronze Tiger, Deadshot, Punch and Jewelee, the Atom...) are pretty decent people, unlike the current {{Villain Protagonist}}s. Also, the team's casualties weren't nearly as bad as today's standards: You'd be surprised to find that it's not weird for the team to partake on various missions without a single casualty, and the one time only Rick Flag survived it was his DespairEventHorizon and Amanda Waller was actually horrified (She was actually a JerkWithAHeartOfGold who wasn't afraid to fight the government and felt guilt for each death of the team, odd right?).

* ''ComicBook/TheDarkKnightReturns''... it's remembered today as ''the'' bedrock of modern DarkerAndEdgier Batman, featuring not only a WretchedHive setting where villains actually kill people (already, as mentioned, present in the Golden Age) but Batman himself as a humorless, sadistic brute who views even his closest allies with thinly-veiled contempt. For all that, it plays a lot of Silver Age silliness surprisingly straight, most notably in the Joker's GadgeteerGenius arsenal (Sentient [[ActionBomb exploding]] Kewpie dolls? MindControl lipstick?!) and ComicBook/{{Superman}} healing himself by draining solar energy from a sunflower field.

* Creator/RobLiefeld comics often (always) involve NinetiesAntiHeroes dropping down to an enemy base and getting into violent arguments with each other during the mission. Funny, then, that the first issue of ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood}}'' featured a "hero" doing just that - and accidentally killing his ally with a superpowered punch, before quickly [[FaceHeelTurn turning heel]] to give the main characters someone to hunt down. If that had happened in a later issue, or in a parody, it'd have been a subversion.

** When the CCA lost its teeth in UsefulNotes/TheSeventies and Ross did just become a paranoid lunatic with a murderous grudge against his daughter's boyfriend, he actually faced realistic consequences for his behaviour, unlike later depictions or characters he inspired who get an endless supply of resources and political cover no matter what crazy thing they do. It became increasingly obvious that Ross was genuinely, seriously mentally ill, suffering multiple nervous breakdowns; he was dishonourably discharged from the military after teaming up with supervillains to kill the Hulk, who was a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers at the time; almost committed suicide and ended up as a broken, pathetic, borderline-insane homeless drifter. He eventually showed up to Bruce and Betty's wedding with a gun and shot an innocent bystander, then had another breakdown when Betty [[CallingTheOldManOut angrily disowned]] him and was committed to an asylum.

** When the CCA lost its teeth in UsefulNotes/TheSeventies and Ross did just become a paranoiac with a murderous grudge against his daughter's boyfriend, he actually faced realistic consequences for his behaviour, unlike later depictions or characters he inspired who get an endless supply of resources and political cover no matter what crazy thing they do. It became increasingly obvious that Ross was genuinely, legitimately mentally ill, suffering multiple nervous breakdowns; he was dishonourably discharged from the military after teaming up with supervillains to kill the Hulk, who was a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers at the time; almost committed suicide and ended up as a broken, pathetic, borderline-insane homeless drifter. He eventually showed up to Bruce and Betty's wedding with a gun and shot an innocent bystander, then had another breakdown when Betty [[CallingTheOldManOut angrily disowned]] him and was committed to an asylum.

* [[ComicBook/RedHulk Thunderbolt Ross]] is the TropeCodifier for the deranged anti-superhero GeneralRipper character. However, in early strips Ross was depicted as more of a HeroAntagonist who was wrong about Bruce Banner, but ''sincerely'' wrong; and as ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk was more of an out-of-control beast than an AntiHero in those days, his position was somewhat understandable as a person who didn't have all the facts. This was due to UsefulNotes/TheComicsCode, which prevented authority figures like generals being depicted negatively.
** When the CCA lost its teeth in UsefulNotes/TheSeventies and Ross did just become a paranoiac with a murderous grudge against his daughter's boyfriend, he actually faced realistic consequences for his behaviour, unlike later depictions or characters he inspired who get an endless supply of resources and political cover no matter what crazy thing they do. It became increasingly obvious that Ross was genuinely, legitimately mentally ill, suffering multiple nervous breakdowns; he was dishonourably discharged from the military after teaming up with supervillains to kill the Hulk, who was a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers at the time; almost committed suicide and ended up as a broken, pathetic, borderline-insane homeless drifter. He eventually showed up to Bruce and betty's wedding with a gun and shot an innocent bystander, then had another breakdown when Betty [[CallingTheOldManOut angrily disowned]] him and was committed to an asylum.