When we think of the Superhero, we think of the Adonis like figure, cloaked in a billowing cape, wearing nothing but spandex and a heroic smile. We see a mighty force willing to protect us from our enemies and uphold our American values. Of course heroes like that were from at least 60 years ago. Now heroes are all about personal strife and suffering, the more anguish in the hero’s life, the better. Why is that the case now? out of all the things heroes could become, they become bellhops for their own emotional baggage? I understand the desire to make a character appear human, to allow for the reader to identify with them on some level but this is just sad. heroes shouldn’t be whiny, mopey boy scouts and girls scouts. Heroes should be tough, they should be nasty, they should be the raddest and baddest babe or dude around! If this sounds like your idea of a hero, then you are a die hard fan of the anti-hero. character described as above, have been very popular since the late seventies and eighties. images of muscle bound men and women looking like they stepped out of a Conan movie, only with more guns and swords. The anti-hero was used as a device in comics to challenge the hero into upholding their own moral code, as opposed to the anti-hero who commonly operated without a set code. Anti-heroes came in all shapes and sizes. Many were designed as big and bulky to epitomize their strength and power. Others were mysterious loners ho would sneer at the hero whenever a good deed was done by the hero. Many anti-heroes were created to be polar opposites of their more paragon rivals (Shadow the Hedgehog, Sauske, Vegeta, Catwoman, etc.) appearing as color swapped versions of the heroes. But that isn’t to say that anti-heroes are just slightly more edgy duplicates of other heroes. Many are heroes themselves but function in ways that are not as heroic looking as their allies. The anti-hero is able to do what the hero can’t, be the one to step over the edge in order to preserve their idea of peace much to the shock or frustration of the main hero. But why do anti-heroes exist? Is it perhaps a way for the author to remind the readers that not all heroes are good people? Regardless,anti-heroes are one of the more popular heroes due to their brash nature, brutish power and willingness to break the rules. Characters like Deadpool, Wolverine, Batman, Spawn, Lobo and Red Hood are excellent anti-heroes. But one of the best examples of Anti-heroism is the Ghost Rider. Ghost rider is a personal favorite of mine and one of the best examples of rebel behavior. A man who sold his soul tot the devil to save his step father who dies anyway. so the devil takes the soul and bonds him to the spirit of vengeance to serve as his puppet. But the man breaks free of his master and now uses the power he has gained to thwart the devil at every turn.
As seen here, there is not just one Ghost Rider, testament to the folly of man and his willingness to trust the devil. This ties into the truth about the anti-hero, that they may be mean and rougher than most heroes, but they also have regrets that make them human and like the rest of us. So why do readers and other people like anti-heroes so much? Many people find that Anti-hero’s own stories are more compelling than that of the hero’s and that they like seeing someone take charge instead of just letting the police handle the criminals. Personally, I find that people like anti-heroes because, while they like to see the hero save the day, people want to see the villain punished more. http://www.bleedingcool.com/2016/10/09/jeph-loeb-talks-potential-ghost-rider-solo-series/ with a show like Ghost Rider, you would definitely see bad guys getting beat up, but you would also get the satisfaction of seeing dark characters open themselves up to be seen as the heroes they truly are. True, anti-heroes are often violent and take things to far, but sometimes, you just want to see the bad guy get punched in the face.