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| 7 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1494682334017931100 |
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| 10 | [[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/TheMultiversity https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/earthxoverman2.png]]]] |
| 11 | |
| 12 | ->''"I tried so hard to be there for you. To serve you. I tried so hard to make sense of you and what you needed from me. I wanted to be there. I wanted to serve. But then it occurred to me. I asked myself the incredibly obvious question: why am I so much more than you? Why are you so small and I am so much more? I then realized that I am not your servant. I am your '''king'''."'' |
| 13 | -->-- '''[[SupermanSubstitute Supershock]]''', ''ComicBook/{{Powers}}'' |
| 14 | |
| 15 | {{Supervillain}}s usually don't care about who is superpowered and who is not. They just [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers use their abilities to commit crimes]] or TakeOverTheWorld for egotistical reasons. This guy, however, is specifically motivated to get power so those ''like him'' would rule, not just for himself. |
| 16 | |
| 17 | This is a bad guy with superpowers who believes that this gives them the right to rule over [[{{Muggles}} non-supers]]. The motives of such a villain may be that of a [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinist]] who believes superpowers to be the ultimate example of MightMakesRight, or someone who thinks non-supers should be ruled [[WellIntentionedExtremist "for their own good"]]. They [[FreudianExcuse might have been or seen others like them suffer prejudice]] for their powers by the ignorant, fearful, and/or jealous masses and decided [[TheDogBitesBack they don't need to take that lying down]]. They may even see supers as a nascent MasterRace on a [[SuperiorSpecies higher]] [[EvolutionaryLevels evolutionary level]] than non-supers or [[ANaziByAnyOtherName take after a certain group of racial imperialists]] when the author wants to make the implications especially transparent. May [[AGodAmI develop a literal god complex]] as well or come to think of themselves as an UltimateLifeForm. Obviously, this sort of villain is a manifestation of the idea that [[BewareTheSuperman the existence of individuals with superpowers is inherently bad for those who do not possess them]]. |
| 18 | |
| 19 | A SubTrope of FantasticRacism and BewareTheSuperman. The OppositeTrope of ProHumanTranshuman, a superpowered individual who considers themselves equal to {{Muggles}}. SisterTrope to TranshumanTreachery and ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers. Contrast MugglePower for the inverse of non-supers seeing themselves as superior to supers. See also SmugSuper, when someone with superpowers merely uses them to gloat. A SupermanSubstitute often goes this route when an author wants to deconstruct the Franchise/{{Superman}} archetype without incorporating the big blue boy scout himself. Pretty much guaranteed to be a VisionaryVillain. |
| 20 | |
| 21 | No relation to SubParSupremacist, who falls far below the standards of even the {{Muggles}} he claims to be better than. |
| 22 | |
| 23 | ---- |
| 24 | !!Examples: |
| 25 | |
| 26 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 27 | |
| 28 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 29 | * Some of the [[TelepathicSpacemen Newtypes]] from the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' franchise develop this attitude. |
| 30 | ** Paptimus Scirocco of ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam'' believes that "common people only hold back true genius" and plots to create some sort of Newtype matriarchy dictatorship. |
| 31 | ** Haman Kahn of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ'' sneers at ordinary people "whose souls are held down by gravity". |
| 32 | ** By the time of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamCharsCounterattack'', the eponymous BigBad and FallenHero Char Aznable has begun ranting about how "the people left on Earth do nothing but pollute it" and telling [[TheHero Amuro Ray]] to "give those ignorant people your so-called wisdom" when they duke it out in Londonion. |
| 33 | * ''Manga/JujutsuKaisen'': |
| 34 | ** Geto is introduced in ''0'' disparaging non-jujutsu sorcerer humans as "monkeys" he wishes to rid the world of. [[spoiler:Originally, Geto thought [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility the exact opposite]] -- that sorcerers were responsible for protecting other humans from curses -- but he became jaded in the face of human depravity. When someone points out curses are only created because humans can't contain their negative energy like sorcerers do, Geto decided the former's extinction was necessary for humanity to adapt.]] His team of sorcerers are mostly people who were scapegoated and persecuted by regular humans for their unusual abilities. |
| 35 | ** The main antagonists of the series are especially powerful sapient [[TheHeartless curses]] who want their kind to take over the Earth. Geto is allied with them, which is mysterious given his previously shown goals, [[spoiler:especially when he wanted to eliminate curses entirely]]. It turns out [[spoiler:the real Geto was DeadAllAlong, and the one impersonating him is an EvilutionaryBiologist]]. |
| 36 | * ''Manga/OnePiece'': Both Arlong and Hody Jones believe that [[FishPeople fishmen]] like them should rule over humans because they're stronger. Arlong is shown ruling a village of humans, while Jones fully intends on making every human subservient to fishmen, starting from terrorizing the 4-yearly meeting between national leaders in the verse to make the strength of fishmen known. |
| 37 | * Most of the villains in ''Anime/TigerAndBunny'' are militant NEXT, militant anti-NEXT, or one being manipulated by the other. [[spoiler:The BigBad is a subversion; he wanted to improve the public image of NEXT initially, but he did evil things when he stopped caring about that and went after more money and power.]] |
| 38 | [[/folder]] |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 41 | * ''ComicBook/TheAvengers'': The High Evolutionary is constantly fiddling with genetics in an attempt to breed a race superior to humanity. |
| 42 | * ''ComicBook/TheBoys'': |
| 43 | ** [[SupermanSubstitute Homelander]]'s plot to get out from under Vought's thumb involves seizing power and ruling over humanity. Complicated by the fact that [[spoiler:he was {{gasli|ghting}}t by his clone, Black Noir, into complete psychosis]], leading to his breakdown over being ordered around by a non-powered human. |
| 44 | ** In fact, most of the superpowered community seem to have this attitude, as the majority of them are amoral [[TheHedonist hedonists]] who [[NominalHero routinely abuse anyone and everyone they have the power to and think they could get away with]], [[spoiler:and it doesn't take much convincing for them to help Homelander assault UsefulNotes/WashingtonDC]]. With how the average Supe apparently sees humanity as nothing but an endless reservoir of victims, [[SociopathicHero Butcher]]'s FantasticRacism almost seems justified. |
| 45 | * ''ComicBook/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': In the Season 8 comics, rogue Slayer Simone Doffler sets up a terrorist cell of like-minded slayers. |
| 46 | * In ''ComicBook/DoomsdayClock'', Black Adam grows into one and decides to act on his beliefs while most of the Justice League is busy fighting Dr. Manhattan, leaving Wonder Woman as the only one who can stop him. |
| 47 | * ''ComicBook/DungeonTheEarlyYears'': A professor of magic started a complicated plot in which he mind-controlled important people around the city and fathered children with their bodies, granting him an army of brainwashed ChildSoldiers. He at first seemed to be on the WellIntentionedExtremist side (as Horus put it, "if you cannot make [[TheGoodKing kings into philosophers]], then [[ThePhilosopherKing philosophers should be kings]]") but [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist is really just an asshole who wanted to take over the city]] (his plan doubled as realizing his voyeurism kink to boot). One night, he ordered the children to kill their parents but was foiled at the last minute by a repentant Horus (who'd figured out his own son was among them) with a [[TheHero Hyacinthe]] and Marvin. Hyacinthe tells Horus to take every magician he can find and run before the city realizes what happened and call for a WitchHunt. |
| 48 | * ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'' himself is ([[DependingOnTheWriter sometimes]]) an example, as the "Banner" portion of his mind is typically portrayed as the side that drives him to save and protect humans. Absent of Banner, Hulk absolutely hates humans (and many other species, such as HumanAliens) and finds them puny and not worth his time. In the BadFuture of ''[[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulkFutureImperfect Future Imperfect]]'', this mentality eventually led to him becoming the Maestro, a superhuman despot. |
| 49 | * ''ComicBook/MsMarvel2014'' has Kaboom. "ComicBook/TheInhumans are coming. It's gonna be a brand new chapter in the whole history of planet Earth, and we are gonna answer to ourselves and no one else." Kamala, a fellow Inhuman, is furious that Kaboom is not only threatening regular humans but also putting other Inhumans in danger by making them look dangerous. |
| 50 | * ''ComicBook/{{Powers}}'' has a SupermanSubstitute named Supershock who gets to the point of being so disconnected from other sentient beings and fed up with humanity that he develops a god complex and decides it's time for him to impose/enforce his own personal order on the world. |
| 51 | * The UrExample and TropeCodifier is Mark Gruenwald's 1980s ''ComicBook/SquadronSupreme'' miniseries, in which the native superheroes of an AlternateUniverse to the main Franchise/MarvelUniverse (who happen to be Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica [[CaptainErsatz Captains Ersatz]]) decide that their power and enlightened morality entitle them to take over the USA and rule it as dictators for the citizens' own good. Things inevitably go horribly wrong. |
| 52 | * ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'': |
| 53 | ** Superman himself, while completely averting this in his mainstream incarnation, sometimes turns in this direction in dark alternate universes. Glaring examples include ''ComicBook/SupermanRedSon'', in which his capsule crashes in the 1920s USSR instead of the USA and he becomes a Communist dictator of a vastly expanded Warsaw Pact, and ''ComicBook/TheMultiversity: Mastermen'', in which his capsule crashes in 1930s German-occupied Czechaslovakia and he becomes a Nazi world dictator. Of course, since they still have the same personality as the normal Superman, both the Commie and Nazi versions of Supes ultimately become TheAtoner -- and the former was AffablyEvil at worst (though this arguably made things more creepy), patiently waiting for nations to join his communist utopia of their own free will, and genuinely wanting to protect humanity, particularly after Stalingrad goes the same way as Kandor... which is what lines to Lex Luthor bringing him down with a single ArmorPiercingQuestion: [[spoiler:"Why don't you just put the whole world in a bottle, Superman?"]] |
| 54 | ** In stories where Superman's people the Kryptonians are brought back for any length of time some of them are depicted as looking down on non-powered humans. It's the entire shtick of General Zod and his subordinates, and in the ''ComicBook/NewKrypton'' stories the most Zod-influenced Kryptonians look at humans as ants. |
| 55 | ** In ''ComicBook/SupergirlCosmicAdventuresInThe8thGrade'', most students and teachers in Stanhope Elementary gain powers due to a strange radioactive meteorite, and they become total "I'm better than you because I have powers" {{jerkass}}es right away. Students with no powers are put into a special class in order to prepare them for their future lives as cannon fodder or innocent casualties in the battles between super-powerful beings. Ironically, [[ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} the most powerful superhuman in the school]] is the one who doesn't adhere to that school of thought and is even pretending to be a normal human. |
| 56 | --->'''Linda Lee:''' Um... Ms. Bigglestone? Aren't we all equal and stuff? I mean, just because we're not super-powered doesn't mean we should be treated any differently...\ |
| 57 | '''Ms. Bigglestone:''' I'm sorry, but no. That is incorrect. Your fate, which I am here to ensure you embrace, is one of mediocrity and fear. As non-super-powered citizens, you may stand back and witness the majesty of your betters. Or, perhaps, become pawns in their super-powered contests. Either way, what you do is of little importance. |
| 58 | ** ''ComicBook/LastDaughterOfKrypton'': As much as Reign -- an alien turned into a sentient biological super-weapon via bioengineering -- is concerned, people with superhuman abilities should rule over the rest. |
| 59 | --->'''Reign:''' [[NotSoDifferentRemark We're not so different, you and I]]. We have the power of gods, and with it the right... the duty... to use that power. I thought that together we could conquer that pathetic planet and find the answers we both seek. |
| 60 | ** ''ComicBook/DarkKnightIIITheMasterRace'': The shrunken Kryptonian city of Kandor is revealed to have been taken over by a SuperSupremacist cult led by the genocidal Quar at some point in the past, and after tricking Supergirl and Ray Palmer into restoring himself and his followers to their normal size, Quar destroys Kandor with his new heat vision, killing any survivors, before setting out to conquer Earth. |
| 61 | ** Similarly, ''ComicBook/TheDarkKnightStrikesAgain'' ends with Superman apparently rejecting his past as a servant of humanity in the wake of the defeat of Lex Luthor and Brainiac, and now intends to rule them (benevolently) instead. He apparently changes his mind some time before the sequel, which instead ends with him retiring to Kansas to take up farming. |
| 62 | * ''ComicBook/XMen'': |
| 63 | ** The {{mutants}} usually have to deal with [[MugglePower persecution directed at themselves by humans]], but some mutants conversely believe that ''Homo Superior'' was designed to rule over regular humans. |
| 64 | ** Magneto, from [[DarkAndTroubledPast his experiences in a Nazi concentration camp]], believes that humans rightly fear mutants because mutants are their evolutionary replacements. DependingOnTheWriter, he believes that fear and prejudice are a product of their innate inferiority and that the inherent diversity within the mutant species would allow them to overcome said prejudices if freed from humanity's chains. He is [[DependingOnTheWriter (sometimes)]] unable to see the irony in how being a mutant supremacist makes him no better than a human supremacist. (But again, this depends on the writer.) At other times, he's just resigned himself to being the monster that mutants need to protect them. This places him in direct opposition to Professor Charles Xavier, who believes that humans and mutants can and should co-exist. |
| 65 | ** Magneto's [[ComicBook/UltimateXMen2001 Ultimate counterpart]] takes this to frightening extremes, outright believing that normal humans deserve to be exterminated (save for a couple kept in a zoo for conservationist purposes, of course). |
| 66 | ** Apocalypse is Magneto's philosophy taken to an even more frightening conclusion. Apocalypse not only believes that humans are obsolete, but also that there is no room for mutants who [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway lost the]] SuperpowerLottery and got BlessedWithSuck. To Apocalypse, [[TheSocialDarwinist survival of the fittest]] is all that matters, which means that there is no difference between a {{Muggle|s}} and a weaksauce mutant. Both equally deserve extinction. |
| 67 | ** Mystique remorselessly threw her prepubescent son Graydon Creed into the streets upon realizing that he was not going to develop into a mutant. She was also responsible for transforming the Brotherhood of Mutants from the stock comic book supervillain team it was under Magneto into the Super Supremacist form of a political activist group we know it as today. |
| 68 | ** As of ''ComicBook/XMen2019'', all of the X-Men seem to have tacitly taken up this belief -- or at least, a very passive[[note]]Though they are not above keeping even their worst criminals out of human justice systems now, they're at least not attacking humans outright yet[[/note]] and insular version of it -- with a clearly stated belief that they are set to become Earth's dominant species. They're only waiting around on their island state of Krakoa because they intend on simply waiting until mutants become the dominant species (as they will in the next 20 years or so). And all of this is overseen by Professor Xavier. There've been hints of this among certain X-Men before, but this is the first storyline that's had the team as a collective embrace this attitude. The in-universe justification for the attitude switch is, in a nutshell, that they '''tried''' the passive resistance and pursuit of integration approaches, and were met with repeated attempts at genocide. So now they're going to start being a bit more assertive about their rights, and if humanity doesn't like it, ''tough luck''. |
| 69 | *** It's hinted throughout the run that not all X-Men really hold to this belief, with a number of them uncomfortable with the over supremacism that many of their countrymen espouse, until ''Immortal X Men'' all but verifies it. [[spoiler: Indeed, Xavier reveals that he hates the fact that mutant supremacy has become the underlining philosophy of Krakoa, but after being convinced by Moira's bad futures that the alternative was genocide, he agreed to make a show of it, just to get the other founders (who were die hard supremacists) on board. He acknowledges that this only served to harm the mutant agenda in the long run, and turned humanity against them even more. Unfortunately, with the others dead, exiled, or having left Krakoa, it's really just Xavier fighting for ideals he doesn't even hold himself, because it's all that's really keeping Krakoa together.]] |
| 70 | [[/folder]] |
| 71 | |
| 72 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 73 | * In ''Fanfic/TheBoyInTheBook'', the Malfoys are Wizard Supremacists. |
| 74 | * ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'': |
| 75 | ** This series has the usual example of [[Literature/HarryPotter the Death Eaters]] (Voldemort is, as usual, more out for himself than anyone else), while Magneto is a [[ReformedButNotTamed (mostly)]] reformed example. It's also noted that even benevolently inclined magical people tend to assume a kind of paternalistic attitude towards {{Muggles}}, [[MugglesDoItBetter horribly underestimating what they're capable of]]. |
| 76 | ** [[spoiler: Nimue]], the BigBad of the side story ''Unfinished Business'', is a particularly extreme example of the magical type, as she believes that magical people are inherently superior to {{Muggles}} and should rule over them. There's also some paranoia at play here too, since having lived through witch burnings in the past, she's convinced that magical people will always be targets and should therefore fight back preemptively. |
| 77 | * In the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' {{drabble}} ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/2552534 Dalits]]'', the Air Nomads are depicted as having had a caste system where they either kicked out Non-benders or forced them to work for them. Pema is the grandchild of a Non-bending Air Nomad who was kicked out. Pema is also a part of a Non-bender Equal Rights movement herself, showing that there's still problems between Bender and Non-Benders. |
| 78 | * The Alpha-Werewolf who turned Max in ''Fanfic/FurAndPhotography'' was apparently trying to build an army before Max took him down, having sniffed her out for her potential as an alpha. |
| 79 | * ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'': [[EvilKnockoff Satan Girl]] firmly believes Kryptonians -- including Kryptonian clones as herself -- and Daxamites are virtually gods thanks to their powers, but they're held back by their pitiful morality. "Luckily", she doesn't have that problem. |
| 80 | -->''For Kryptonians and Daxamites were gods, off their homeworlds. They really were. What a pity their morality forced them not to realize that fact.'' |
| 81 | * {{Invoked|Trope}} in ''Fanfic/MyHeroPlaythrough'': Izuku's father briefly considered sending him to a boarding school for Quirkless children in order to spare him from being bullied by superhuman students. |
| 82 | * In ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'', some bloodliners believe that they're superior to humans and Pokémon alike and thus deserve to rule over both. The most prominent examples are the Bloodline King, who directs an organization with aims of world domination, and one of the Seven Brothers of Orre, whose endgame plan involves [[spoiler:siring ''hundreds'' of bloodliner children in order to fulfill an ancient prophecy, and one of them is none other than ''Ash Ketchum'']]. |
| 83 | * The Faithful from ''Fanfic/TheQueensMercy'' are a religious group of magical individuals that believe that all non-magical humans are lesser than them and therefore deserve to be killed and/or enslaved by them. This even includes humans who gain magic but were not born with it like Anna and Rapunzel. |
| 84 | * Downplayed in ''Fanfic/SuperVillainPrevention101'' with Cheetah. She calls Harley a "glorified cheerleader" and a "non-super" because she's a BadassNormal without powers. |
| 85 | * ''Fanfic/{{Switchblade}}'': The original Meta Liberation Army is actually a {{subver|tedTrope}}sion. Their enemies painted them to look like they believed that MightMakesRight, but they actually wanted equality not domination, to the point one of their generals, Fractal, was Quirkless. The modern Meta Liberation Army that merged with the League of Villains to become the Paranormal Liberation Front are a straight example, who genuinely believe those with strong Quirks deserve to stand at the top and do whatever they want. |
| 86 | * ''Fanfic/ThatGuyDestroysPsionics'': The BigBad is pretty much [[Characters/MarvelComicsMagneto Magneto]], but with PsychicPowers instead of being a mutant. Pity that he was facing [[GameBreaker Elsimore]]. |
| 87 | * {{Defied|Trope}} in ''Fanfic/TheVigilanteBossAndHisFailedRetirementPlan'' when Aizawa states that heroes don't look down on people they protect. |
| 88 | [[/folder]] |
| 89 | |
| 90 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 91 | * ''Franchise/TheIncredibles'': |
| 92 | ** {{Inverted|Trope}} by the BigBad's plan in the first ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1''. [[spoiler:Syndrome plans to sell all his inventions that make him equal to superheroes, so that "[[EveryoneIsASuper everyone will be super]]! And when everyone's super... no one will be."]] |
| 93 | ** In ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2'', [[spoiler:the Screenslaver forces mind-controlled supers [[FalseFlagOperation to claim to be this to make non-supers too afraid of them to allow superpowers to be used again]] because of a long-standing grudge against superheroes]]. |
| 94 | ** [[AllThereInTheManual Bonus features on the supers]] reveal that superhero Gamma Jack believed this. |
| 95 | [[/folder]] |
| 96 | |
| 97 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 98 | * PlayedForHorror in ''Film/{{Brightburn}}''. The VillainProtagonist Brandon Breyer is a sociopathic SupermanSubstitute who quickly gains a massive [[AGodAmI god complex]] following the discovery of his true nature as an alien. As a result, anyone who manages to piss him off receives a CruelAndUnusualDeath. |
| 99 | * ''Film/{{Chronicle}}'': Andrew and two of his friends gain superpowers from an alien object. Due to several tragedies in his life, [[SanitySlippage Andrew's sanity slowly degrades]] over the course of the film and he starts espousing [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinistic]] ideas by calling himself an "apex predator", and later goes on a rampage against {{Muggles}}. |
| 100 | * ''Film/{{Scanners}}'': The BigBad, Darryl Revok, is a terrorist cult leader and the result of a BizarreBabyBoom that produced telepathic children known as 'scanners'. His own plot is to reproduce this previous accident by design, then train the next generation to be his foot soldiers on the path to creating worldwide scanner supremacy. |
| 101 | * The Green Goblin/Norman Osborn in ''Film/SpiderMan1'' seems to fit this bill. "There are eight million people in this city. And those teeming masses exist for the sole purpose of lifting the few exceptional people onto their shoulders. [[WeCanRuleTogether You, me... we're exceptional]]." He still has this mindset upon his grand return in ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'', even trying to convince the other villains from this idea. It leads to Electro screwing the cure for his powers. |
| 102 | -->''"Strong enough to have it all... ''too weak to take it!''"'' |
| 103 | * ''Film/{{Upgrade}}'': Fisk believes that, as a cyborg implanted with a variety of implants and weapons, he is superior to regular humans and has no qualms with killing them indiscriminately. |
| 104 | * The ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'' has Magneto take up this attitude, as usual. In [[Film/XMen1 the first film]], he tries to forcibly mutate world leaders gathered at a summit so that they will have a vested interest in advancing mutants' rights, and in [[Film/X2XMenUnited the second]], he tries to force a mind-controlled Xavier to outright exterminate ''all'' non-mutant humans with Cerebro, and very nearly succeeds. |
| 105 | [[/folder]] |
| 106 | |
| 107 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 108 | * ''Literature/HarryPotter'': |
| 109 | ** Gellert Grindelwald planned a revolution in order to establish the wizards' power over the {{Muggle|s}} world. Even Dumbledore bought into these ideas for a while, though his motive was a personal one: his sister was tormented by a group of Muggle boys, which had tragic consequences for all his family, and he believed that this sort of regime is the only way to prevent such things from ever happening again. |
| 110 | ** Years later, Voldemort really only wants [[DespotismJustifiesTheMeans power for himself]], but draws most of his [[BlackShirt Death Eaters]] by preaching wizard superiority over muggles, and when they [[DayOfTheJackboot take over the Ministry of Magic from within]] in ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows The Deathly Hallows]]'', they basically turn it into a full-on fascist state. |
| 111 | ** Despite moral opposition to people like Grindelwald and Voldemort being the norm, [[TheFairFolk the vast majority of wizards are this to some degree]]. Even the "nice" wizards treat muggles with, at best, CondescendingCompassion, while others treat them with contempt, and others treat them as little better than animals, and practically all of them regard muggles with a mix of bewilderment and fear. When Harry questions the need for the {{Masquerade}}, Hagrid explains it's simply because [[ReedRichardsIsUseless they don't want to be expected to magically solve all the world's problems overnight]], with the implication that [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex they're afraid of what would happen if they refused]]. |
| 112 | * A subtler example than usual; the villains of ''Literature/TheInfected'', Alpha Team, don't seem to bear regular humanity any ill will or believe their power gives them the right to rule. But in a world that has skewed so far into MugglePower, a war between the Infected and normals is inevitable. So is their ultimate victory. So why not get it over and done with already? |
| 113 | * The ''Literature/{{Patternist}}'' novel ''Mind of My Mind'' shows the origin of the titular {{Psychic|Powers}}s. Once they organize, they casually make mind-controlled puppets out of the {{Muggles}} in their town, "programming" them to serve the Patternists' whims. One member inadvertently reduces his muggle girlfriend to an obedient EmptyShell over time by reflexively pushing any inconvenient thoughts out of her head and doesn't care at all. |
| 114 | * ''Literature/ThePerfectRun'': Augustus is very much this, being a SmugSuper with a [[AGodAmI god complex]] that believes that Genomes are superior to normal people and should rule over them because of it: |
| 115 | -->'''Augustus:''' ''[to Ryan]'' The likes of us stand above lesser men. They exist to serve us; we don't exist to serve them. It is our will that decides what is right from wrong. It is our destiny, our divine right, to remake the world as we wish. |
| 116 | * In ''Literature/TheReckonersTrilogy'', the super-powered epics have [[ApocalypseHow killed most of humanity]], taken over the world, and most remaining muggles live as their slaves. |
| 117 | * In ''Literature/SuperPowereds'', the Sons of Progress are Supers who believe that they are superior beings to those without powers and shouldn't serve them. They see Heroes as traitors to their own kind, policing Supers instead of ruling over humans. Naturally, they have no problems with using terrorist tactics. Even among the students, some espouse such beliefs, Rich being the most vocal one about it. [[spoiler:He doesn't graduate but only because he realizes he isn't cut out for the harsh realities of Hero work.]] |
| 118 | * In the ''Literature/XMenMutantEmpireTrilogy'', Magneto and his Acolytes have this attitude. Their plan is to establish Manhattan as a mutant-ruled city, with the remaining humans as an underclass. |
| 119 | [[/folder]] |
| 120 | |
| 121 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 122 | * ''Series/{{Alphas}}'': Red Flag/Stanton Parish, the main antagonist from season 1, believes that war between superhumans and normal humans is inevitable and that the superhumans deserve to win. It's more morally complex than usual, however, as it is finally revealed that he believes there would be NoPlaceForMeThere and his true intent is to convince the leader of the heroes, Dr. Rosen, to take over after he's exterminated the normal humans and rule as a genuinely benevolent leader. Rosen is not impressed. |
| 123 | * In the ''Series/{{Arrow}}'' episode of ''[[Recap/ArrowS6E8CrisisOnEarthXPart2 Crisis on Earth X]]'', Overgirl, Supergirl's Earth-X counterpart, says they rule by Meritocracy, where the strongest (her and her husband) rule the lesser. Presumably, The Fuehrer (Oliver's counterpart, Dark Arrow) rules due to being married to her, as well as his own abilities. |
| 124 | * ''Series/BabylonFive'': Many human telepaths secretly feel this way, largely because [[MutantDraftBoard the Psi Corps]] ingrains these beliefs into them from a young age. They believe that a war is coming between the telepaths and the "[[{{Muggles}} mundanes]]". They are also generally ''very'' displeased with any "mundane" who kills a telepath, even if that telepath was a rogue one. One such "mundane" got ThrownOutTheAirlock in hyperspace, and the telepath pushing the button treated it as both a rite of passage and a loss of her virginity. This ultimately culminated in the Telepath War, which the telepaths lost, resulting in the Earth Alliance creating the Psionic Monitoring Commission to hunt down the remaining Psi Corps members and to re-integrate telepaths back into mainstream society to avoid a repeat of this trope. |
| 125 | * ''Series/TheBoys2019'': |
| 126 | ** The show has, like the original comic book listed above, Homelander, who uses his powers to fuel a [[AGodAmI god complex]] -- he tells Starlight that "we're a different breed" and that she shouldn't be helping "these mud people". |
| 127 | ** Stormfront thinks her powers make her above people without them, coupled with [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain regular racism]]. She also plans on escalating a Supe arms race to create more Supes. [[spoiler:Oh, and did we mention that she is a ''literal'' Nazi as well?]] |
| 128 | ** Blue Hawk is a street-level hero who gets in hot water for PoliceBrutality in black neighborhoods. When A-Train is finally [[DirtyCoward allowed by]] Homelander to call him out on it, he justifies it by saying that they were both trained to "dominate totally". After being forced to give an OrderedApology, he gives a BackhandedApology that leads to the crowd shouting "Black Lives Matter" at him to which he responds "''[[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual Supe]]'' Lives Matter!" [[AngryWhiteMan before attacking them]] in "self-defense". |
| 129 | * ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': In Season 3, rogue Slayer Faith Lehane spouts some Super Supermacism towards Buffy when Faith tries to flee Sunnydale and deflect blame for her AccidentalMurder of Deputy Mayor Allan Finch, arguing that MightMakesRight in the process. |
| 130 | * ''Series/JessicaJones2015'': Kilgrave has shades of this, having stated multiple times that he and Jessica belong together because they are both superpowerful. |
| 131 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': Augments (almost) invariably believe themselves to be superior to regular humans and, as such, deserve to rule. ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' introduced a few [[ProHumanTranshuman exceptions]], like Dr. Julian Bashir. |
| 132 | * ''Series/StrangerThings'': Season 4 villain Vecna [[spoiler:(a.k.a. Henry Creel, a.k.a. One)]] espouses the belief that those like him [[spoiler:(psychics like himself and Eleven)]] have inherent value while humans do not. He's closer to [[ComicBook/XMen Apocalypse than Magneto]], however, since [[spoiler:he massacres ''all'' of the other special children save him and Eleven because they were not as "gifted" despite having psychic powers as well]]. |
| 133 | [[/folder]] |
| 134 | |
| 135 | [[folder:Multimedia Franchises]] |
| 136 | * ''Franchise/StarWars'': |
| 137 | ** This is the general attitude of the Sith, adepts of TheDarkSide of [[SentientCosmicForce the Force]]. This is perhaps most succinctly summed up by Desann, the BigBad of ''VideoGame/JediKnightIIJediOutcast'': |
| 138 | --->''"The Force is not a shield to protect the useless -- but is, in reality, a weapon to empower the worthy."'' |
| 139 | ** In ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'', in keeping with TheSocialDarwinist tenets of their ReligionOfEvil, Force-sensitives form the ruling class of [[TheEmpire the Sith Empire]] and can freely abuse {{muggles}} as much as they want with no repercussions. |
| 140 | ** ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' has plenty of cases where the attitude is not confined to Sith -- Sith are merely [[AtLeastIAdmitIt very open about it]]. Jedi versions of this usually involve some form of [[MetaphoricallyTrue half-truth]], keeping non-Force wielding allies LockedOutOfTheLoop, expressing a [[DemocracyIsBad suspicion of democracy]], and isolating themselves in enclaves and temples while their backyards burn. |
| 141 | ** The ''Legends'' novel ''Literature/OutboundFlight'' has Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth, a supremely haughty and arrogant SmugSuper who believes in the superiority of Force users, and Jedi in particular, and that this gives them the right to rule over any non-Force sensitive, up to and including the Chancellor. Unsurprisingly, these traits are shared by [[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy his insane clone over thirty years later]]. |
| 142 | [[/folder]] |
| 143 | |
| 144 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 145 | * ''TableTopGame/{{Aberrant}}'': Divis Mal and the rest of the Teragen believe this to different degrees. |
| 146 | ** Divis Mal believes that Novas aren't human, and should follow their own laws and customs if their isn't a Nova governing body to do so for them. |
| 147 | ** Some members of the Teragen focus more on the Supremacist part, believing that baselines should be either ruled over or just wiped out. |
| 148 | * Present in ''TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening'', although executed unusually (and not related to inheritance because magic is an EnlightenmentSuperpower). Two main groups of mages believe that mages are superior to [[{{Muggles}} Sleepers]]. The group who are more likely to be protagonists, the Silver Ladder, see their role as rightful rulers of the Sleepers as one of a guide and protector, essentially believing that while they're ''supposed'' to rule over the Sleepers, [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility with that authority comes great responsibility]]. They also try to turn more Sleepers into Awakened, as they believe everyone will Awaken one day. On the other hand, the antagonistic Seers of the Throne couldn't care less about responsibility; they see Sleepers as little more than sheep, fit only to be pawns of the Seers. Notably, where the Silver Ladder (and their more anarchist allies, the Free Council) believe that Awakening is the right of all humanity, the Seers believe that humanity is too irresponsible to Awaken unless their tyrannical god-kings deem a person worthy; thus, they work to keep the world just shitty enough that humanity is too taxed to see past the Lie, but not so oppressed that they feel the need to rebel on a spiritual level. |
| 149 | * This is one of the distinguishing traits of the Court of Tears from ''TabletopGame/PrincessTheHopeful''. While most Nobles believe it is their responsibility to lead the mortals, only Tears believes that it has the right to rule without the consent of the governed. |
| 150 | * [[JustTheFirstCitizen Citizen]] Dawn from ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'', which is the reason she is [[VigilanteMan Expatriette]]'s [[ItsPersonal Nemesis]]: Expatriette is Citizen Dawn's [[ArchnemesisDad daughter]], and a MuggleBornOfMages to boot. |
| 151 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': Some {{Space Marine}}s get into this mindset via MightMakesRight, being vastly superior to standard humans in every way and thus asking why they should fight and die for them. Falling to Chaos is not the inevitable outcome, but it's a common fate. |
| 152 | [[/folder]] |
| 153 | |
| 154 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 155 | * ''VideoGame/AzureStrikerGunvoltSeries'': |
| 156 | ** In ''VideoGame/AzureStrikerGunvolt'', [[spoiler:your commanding officer Asimov]] is revealed to be this, with him claiming that [[PsychicChildren Adepts]], himself included, shall rule over the world and KillAllHumans. Our hero -- an Adept himself -- disagrees with the idea. [[spoiler:Asimov]] came to this line of thinking after being used as a lab rat by [[MegaCorp Sumeragi]] and being treated by the head scientist as an abomination who shouldn't exist, [[spoiler:never mind that Asimov ''became'' an Adept due to Sumeragi's experiments]]. |
| 157 | ** In ''VideoGame/AzureStrikerGunvolt2'', [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans Eden]] is all for this, its inhabitants all Adepts who have suffered FantasticRacism for their powers and believe [[KillAllHumans humans must be eradicated]] in order to pave the course for a better world. Their leader [[spoiler:Zonda]] essentially admits that while [[spoiler:Asimov]] had the right idea, he was going about it the wrong way. |
| 158 | ** In ''VideoGame/LuminousAvengerIX'', the Sumeragi Institute of Human Evolution, which used to [[SuperhumanTrafficking oppress Adepts instead]], now embraces Adepts and has been very good at wiping out humans/"minos". That's not to say they've stopped oppressing Adepts, however, as Sumeragi [[MutantDraftBoard forcibly conscripts]] even Adepts who want nothing to do with killing minos into their ranks by threatening their lives or those close to them. Later it turns out this change of stance is because of [[spoiler:the aforementioned Asimov having taken over the organization, with the game itself taking place in a BadFuture where Asimov killed Gunvolt and Joule]]. |
| 159 | * Cole [=MacGrath=] (should the player choose [[KarmaMeter Evil Karma]]) from ''VideoGame/InFamous'' becomes corrupted by his conduit powers, developing a God complex and a MightMakesRight attitude over all of the "normals". In ''VideoGame/InFamous2'', the [[EarnYourBadEnding Evil]] [[AlignmentBasedEndings Ending]] has Cole deciding not to fire the RFI and joining with John/the Beast's plans, activating all Conduits at the expense of all other humans (sacrificing millions for only a few thousand). |
| 160 | * ''VideoGame/InjusticeGodsAmongUs'' and its continuation (and the comics set within [[Franchise/{{Injustice}} the universe]]) all showcase the tale of a Superman that becomes this after the Joker nukes Metropolis and makes him an important part of the plan to make it happen (which makes him kill Lois Lane and his unborn child) [[ForTheEvulz for the sake of "playing on easy mode" for once]]. As well, about half of the Justice League decides to jump on the fascist bandwagon right behind him, and they slide down the slippery slope like there's no tomorrow, starting with getting a hell of a lot (read "murderously") tougher on crime and ending [[spoiler:([[DownerEnding on the "Power" Ending]] of ''VideoGame/Injustice2'') with Superman turning all of Brainiac's collected worlds and technology into his own private army and Batman into a roboticized slave with plans to conquer the universe (and on his Ladder ending, '''[[MultiversalConqueror multiverse]]''') for the sake of his idea of order]]. |
| 161 | [[/folder]] |
| 162 | |
| 163 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 164 | * ''Webcomic/AngelDown'': [[spoiler:Ward]] becomes one of these after his FaceHeelTurn, believing that normal humans are incapable of effective self-rule and that Paladins should control the world. |
| 165 | * Claw in ''Webcomic/MobPsycho100'' is a NebulousEvilOrganisation of Espers who believe that their PsychicPowers [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers put them above other humans]]. Their goal is to [[TakeOverTheWorld overthrow the world government]] in favor of a world ruled by Espers, with their leader Toichirou Suzuki at the top. They act as {{foil}}s to HumbleHero Mob, who firmly subscribes to AGodIAmNot. In general, the Super Supremacist mindset is quite common among Espers, especially very powerful ones, but Toichirou is one of the few with the power to conquer the world almost single-handedly if not for [[BigGood Mob]] being in his way. Mob's mentor Reigen gives them a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech, declaring that [[PsychopathicManchild they're naive to think they can control the world when they haven't gone out to experience it themselves]]. The series carries AnAesop that whether you are a complete {{muggle|s}}, or possess some one-in-a-million talent, you can't expect to gain self-respect or the recognition of others if you're too lazy to work on improving yourself as a human being. |
| 166 | * In ''Webcomic/{{Morphe}}'', Amical is more than happy to kidnap {{Muggles}} and force them into terrifying death matches in the hope that a few of them will [[TraumaticSuperpowerAwakening Awaken]] as mages, murdering any who underperform. He makes it a spectator event. |
| 167 | * ''Webcomic/OnePunchMan'': |
| 168 | ** Choze claims to be from a clan of people who have practiced the greatest breeding program to create a superior race, and that they aim to rule the world because it's the natural order of things for a superior race such as themselves to rule over the inferior, weak and feeble races i.e everyone. [[ANaziByAnyOtherName Resembling the generic ideal of an 'Aryan Superman']], he's also a practitioner of the 'Fist of the Pure Blood Master Race' martial arts style. Upon becoming a monster, he decides that he is going to wipe out all of the 'inferior specimens' of humanity and only let the 'master race' survive, and one of his new attacks is even called 'Inferior Race Annihilation Shot'. |
| 169 | ** [[spoiler:ArcVillain Psykos was Fubuki's EvilFormerFriend who believed the duo's PsychicPowers put them above other humans. While Fubuki initially wanted to TakeOverTheWorld, Psykos crossed the line into MisanthropeSupreme and wanted to KillAllHumans, prompting Fubuki to have a HeelFaceTurn.]] |
| 170 | * ''Webcomic/YetAnotherFantasyGamerComic'': This is a common motivation for the BigBad [[MonsterOfTheWeek of the month]]. Usually, even the "bad guys" in the comic are {{Harmless Villain}}s at worst, but many if not most of the leaders of the various factions think their people should be in charge. Thus, on the rare occasion that one leader decides to actually do something about it, some combination of heroes, {{Hero Antagonist}}s, and {{Harmless Villain}}s end up working together to stop things from getting completely out of hand. |
| 171 | [[/folder]] |
| 172 | |
| 173 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 174 | * In ''Website/OrionsArm'', early "[[AIIsACrapshoot transapients]]" [[http://www.orionsarm.com/eg-article/49a7d33abf557 were split on what they thought the proper relationship between themselves and humans ought to be]]. Eventually, [[http://www.orionsarm.com/eg-article/464d2a24c11ef G.A.I.A.]] resolved the crisis by beating the lesser [=AIs=] at their own game and exiling everyone that refused to cooperate. By the modern day of the setting, all civilization is ruled over by the highest intelligences by virtue of their intelligence. "Equality" is quite simply impossible when the intelligence gap between two individual people can be greater than that between humans and bacteria. |
| 175 | * ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'': Part of the {{Backstory}} concerning the FantasticRacism seen in the series is that, when the first scientific understanding of [[{{Mutants}} mutation and mutant powers]] came to the public attention in the late 1950s and early 1960s, there was a large moral panic over the possibility of this, with mutants being portrayed as ANaziByAnyOtherName in several well-known books and films of the time. The fact that a number of mutant supervillains grabbed this VillainBall and ran with it didn't help calm public fears over this. |
| 176 | [[/folder]] |
| 177 | |
| 178 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 179 | * The ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' version of ComicBook/CaptainAtom is a [[DownplayedTrope more benign example]]: [[NobleBigot He'll gladly help innocent people without superpowers]], but openly thinks they're useless for any task worthy of a superhero and is especially dismissive toward BadassNormal Batman. So naturally, [[BreakTheHaughty Atom loses his powers for the episode]], gets them back, and... [[IgnoredEpiphany just takes it as more proof that non-powered humans are helpless]] (even though [[BroughtDownToBadass he saved the day without any powers]]). |
| 180 | * In ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn2019'', Kite-Man's parents, a [[AnIcePerson cryokinetic]] father and a {{flight}}-capable mother, openly believe that having superpowers makes a person superior, and are minor supervillains in their own right. As Kite-Man [[MuggleBornOfMages inherited no powers at all]], his parents use this as one of many excuses for [[AbusiveParents treating him like garbage]], to the point that even ''Poison Ivy'' is [[EvenEvilHasStandards repulsed by their attitude towards him]]. |
| 181 | * In ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'', [[spoiler:Foxtail]] is revealed to be an especially extreme example. Her [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinistic]] attitude doesn’t just cover civilians, she also perceives heroes who [[BadassNormal lack powers]] or [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway have weak ones]] as cannon fodder at best; [[spoiler:when Dr. Greymann finds out about her honor student conspiracy and objects to it, she fires him and bluntly says she was probably going to do it anyway because she believes [[BroughtDownToNormal him losing his powers]] has [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness rendered him useless]]]]. |
| 182 | [[/folder]] |
| 183 |
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