DeMarquis
(4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#3: Jun 21st 2020 at 3:31:43 PM
This isn't really a trope discussion. Just a writing idea I had....
...is it already a trope?
One Strip! One Strip!
DeMarquis
(4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#7: Jun 24th 2020 at 10:55:59 AM
If you're asking if it's a viable story element idea on its own, sure. Why wouldn't it be? And where would you go with it? In a darker story, I could see the tactic being used to beat the hero down until he's isolated and in disgrace before taking him out for good.
"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."
Parable
Since: Aug, 2009
Total posts: 8

It was a thought that just came to me when thinking of the trope of the villain attacking at the most inconvenient time for the hero, forcing them to choose between their civilian responsibilities and their heroic ones.
But the thought comes to me: what if the villain doing this isn't just a matter of really bad timing? What if they do it on purpose, as a form of psychological warfare.
They know the identity of the hero, but instead of attacking them through their family, or even using the usual methods, they go for a very indirect route of always staging their attacks when the hero has something important going on in their civilian life.
Got an important assignment for school? Oh no! City Hall is being attacked!
Need to get to your daughter's recital? All the banks in the city are being robbed at once!
Your wife threatening to divorce you if you don't sit down and talk about your relationship right this moment? Guess what? Captain Bad Guy is holding everyone everywhere hostage, and will only negotiate with his mortal nemesis Big Damn Hero! He better get there right away!
It would be a great way to get at the hero, and it wouldn't even seem obvious at first. Hell, they can even set up the attacks to waste as of the hero's time as possible in order to dig the knife in.
What do you guys think? I like it myself, and haven't heard of it being done as of yet.
One Strip! One Strip!