An odd trend in comic books and television is the idea of
normal people hanging out with super heroes. Or if not super heroes, then
individuals that are at the very least more skilled and powerful and able to
survive the outlandish scenarios the group gets into on a weekly basis. And yet
these “normal” individuals are so beloved that it is hard to imagine the
stories without them.
Part of what inspired this entry is the TV show Teen Wolf.
Among a group of werewolves and werewolf hunters there stands one particular
individual, Stiles Stilinski. Stiles is the best friend of Scott McCall, the
titular Teen Wolf of the show. While Scott has enhanced healing and strength,
along with many other abilities that comes with his werewolfism, Stiles has no
abilities at all. And yet most of the time it is Stiles who jumps head first
into danger with absolutely no thought of the consequences. More than that, he
usually is the one who drags the powered and skilled individuals into danger to
begin with.
While Stiles was the inspiration for this blog, he is merely
the latest in a long line of such characters. In truth, the origin of the
normal character can be traced to none other than Superman’s pal (seriously, he
had his own comic book titled that) Jimmy Olsen. Jimmy is a photographer for
The Daily Planet (originally The Daily Star) who is the prototypical average
guy. Just an average guy, he kind of tags along on Superman’s adventures like a
groupie. Jimmy Olsen is so often thrown into peril that he receives a special
signal watch from Superman, to alert the hero whenever he is in trouble. Not
even Lois has a signal watch, because we can assume that Lois knows how to get
herself out of a jam and does not constantly need to be saved by Superman,
despite the many depictions of her in just that situation.
Carrying on the proud tradition of Jimmy Olsen is the
character of Xander Harris from the show Buffy The Vampire Slayer. By the end
of the series, Xander is literally the only normal person in the group. Buffy
is the Slayer, Willow is a Witch, Giles is a Watcher, Oz is a Werewolf, Spike
and Angel are both vampires, even Xander’s girlfriend Anya is a former demon.
Xander somehow ends up being the only normal individual in a group of
supernaturally powered superhumans. And unlike Jimmy Olsen, Xander is
completely aware of his place in the group (actually comparing himself to Jimmy
Olsen once) and often complains about how he is constantly getting caught up in
the otherworldly craziness the rest of his friends are involved in (he was once
Dracula’s “Monkey boy” to which he said he would no longer be).
Sometimes it’s hard to understand why the normal person
hangs around with the super powered ones. Usually it seems that the normal one
sticks with the group because they were friends with them prior to becoming a
super group. Stiles and Scott were best friends long before Scott became a
werewolf; Xander had a crush on Buffy the moment he saw her without knowing she
was the Slayer. However a lot of times the normal one is just a fan. Like Jimmy
Olsen. And like two of the oddest normal guys, Marvin and Wendy from Challenge
of the Super Friends. These two have no powers, no special skills, and appear
to be merely fans of super heroes and are allowed to hangout in the Hall of
Justice. Despite the fact that the headquarters of the Justice League must be a
huge target for constant attacks, the Justice League allows two teenagers to
just hang out. Robin may also be a teenager but at least he has weapons and
training. Marvin has a blanket that he wrapped around his neck like a cape. I
can only assume Marvin and Wendy are part of some sort of Super Hero
Make-A-Wish Foundation and these two are suffering from a terminal disease. I
can’t explain Wonder Mutt.
Heroes die. Superman has died. Buffy died twice. Batman has
had three Robins die on him. Super powered people get into rough situations and
there is always the potential that they may not make it out alive. It is almost
irresponsible for these heroes to allow normal people to hang around them. For
their own good, the heroes should insist that non-powered people stay away from
them. Or else the blood is on their hands as much as the villains.
An odd trend in comic books and television is the idea of
normal people hanging out with super heroes. Or if not super heroes, then
individuals that are at the very least more skilled and powerful and able to
survive the outlandish scenarios the group gets into on a weekly basis. And yet
these “normal” individuals are so beloved that it is hard to imagine the
stories without them.
Part of what inspired this entry is the TV show Teen Wolf.
Among a group of werewolves and werewolf hunters there stands one particular
individual, Stiles Stilinski. Stiles is the best friend of Scott McCall, the
titular Teen Wolf of the show. While Scott has enhanced healing and strength,
along with many other abilities that comes with his werewolfism, Stiles has no
abilities at all. And yet most of the time it is Stiles who jumps head first
into danger with absolutely no thought of the consequences. More than that, he
usually is the one who drags the powered and skilled individuals into danger to
begin with.
While Stiles was the inspiration for this blog, he is merely
the latest in a long line of such characters. In truth, the origin of the
normal character can be traced to none other than Superman’s pal (seriously, he
had his own comic book titled that) Jimmy Olsen. Jimmy is a photographer for
The Daily Planet (originally The Daily Star) who is the prototypical average
guy. Just an average guy, he kind of tags along on Superman’s adventures like a
groupie. Jimmy Olsen is so often thrown into peril that he receives a special
signal watch from Superman, to alert the hero whenever he is in trouble. Not
even Lois has a signal watch, because we can assume that Lois knows how to get
herself out of a jam and does not constantly need to be saved by Superman,
despite the many depictions of her in just that situation.
Carrying on the proud tradition of Jimmy Olsen is the
character of Xander Harris from the show Buffy The Vampire Slayer. By the end
of the series, Xander is literally the only normal person in the group. Buffy
is the Slayer, Willow is a Witch, Giles is a Watcher, Oz is a Werewolf, Spike
and Angel are both vampires, even Xander’s girlfriend Anya is a former demon.
Xander somehow ends up being the only normal individual in a group of
supernaturally powered superhumans. And unlike Jimmy Olsen, Xander is
completely aware of his place in the group (actually comparing himself to Jimmy
Olsen once) and often complains about how he is constantly getting caught up in
the otherworldly craziness the rest of his friends are involved in (he was once
Dracula’s “Monkey boy” to which he said he would no longer be). 
Sometimes it’s hard to understand why the normal person
hangs around with the super powered ones. Usually it seems that the normal one
sticks with the group because they were friends with them prior to becoming a
super group. Stiles and Scott were best friends long before Scott became a
werewolf; Xander had a crush on Buffy the moment he saw her without knowing she
was the Slayer. However a lot of times the normal one is just a fan. Like Jimmy
Olsen. And like two of the oddest normal guys, Marvin and Wendy from Challenge
of the Super Friends. These two have no powers, no special skills, and appear
to be merely fans of super heroes and are allowed to hangout in the Hall of
Justice. Despite the fact that the headquarters of the Justice League must be a
huge target for constant attacks, the Justice League allows two teenagers to
just hang out. Robin may also be a teenager but at least he has weapons and
training. Marvin has a blanket that he wrapped around his neck like a cape. I
can only assume Marvin and Wendy are part of some sort of Super Hero
Make-A-Wish Foundation and these two are suffering from a terminal disease. I
can’t explain Wonder Mutt.
Heroes die. Superman has died. Buffy died twice. Batman has
had three Robins die on him. Super powered people get into rough situations and
there is always the potential that they may not make it out alive. It is almost
irresponsible for these heroes to allow normal people to hang around them. For
their own good, the heroes should insist that non-powered people stay away from
them. Or else the blood is on their hands as much as the villains.
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