Problems of ongoing characters

[dr_hermes]

Ongoing characters offer recognition value, as the reader at the book store thinks, 'hey it's a Nero Wolfe book I haven't read,' or someone buys a ticket for 'the new Batman movie.' People tend to repeat pleasurable experiences even after a few misfires. But this has a drawback or two as well, one of which is the characters aging inconveniently as

Comments

[syon23]

Interesting post, Doc. Some comments

[dr_hermes]

It's a fascinating problem to contemplate. I'm not saying a man in good shape couldn't be a believable adventurer after thirty-five of course. Look at Charles Bronson doing bare-knuckle (and shirtless)boxing in HARD TIMES. He was in his early fifties and looked completely convincing. But usually action heroes are in that late twenties-early thirties span.

Edgar Rice Burroughs knew what he was doing. In TARZAN AND THE VALLEY OF GOLD, Fritz Leiber has the Apeman himself wonder about his extended vitality and how long it can last.

I have no problem with the sliding time-line, whatever it is... whether the Fantastic Four went into space ten years ago or Superman first appeared in costume ten years ago. But my real fondness is for literary heroes who age in an almost-normal fashion. James Bond gets worn down and weary by his career, Simon Templar starts off exuberant and wild but eventually settles down to become a semi-retired middle-aged man traveling the world.

[full_metal_ox]

Leiber also allowed his own Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser to age realistically; in THE KNIGHT AND KNAVE OF SWORDS, he even managed to work mid-life crises gracefully into a swashbuckling fantasy context.

[baronlaw]

At least Supes has being an alien going for him, Bruce Wayne's got no excuses for his apparent ability to defy time.

[dr_hermes]

One stumbling block to having Superman or Thor staying the same age is that their supporting cast does the same. This leads to stuff like the Justice Society getting shot with chronal energy or something, then having a few decades taken off their wrinkled carcasses by a rejuvenation serum or something. I seem to remember at some point the Fantastic Four got all elderly and decrepit as a storyline and when they got back to normal, they actually were younger than when they started.

Or you could do what Rex Stout tried. Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin just ignore the decades going by and pay them no mind.

[terry_mccombs]

The writers of Dr. Who came up with the ultimate answer to that problem, only it would be kind of hard to get away with that again

[dr_hermes]

I missed it! Really, I hardly have the TV on lately and don't have much idea what's going on. But someone at work mentioned a show with Sherlock Holmes running around today, and I knew what I had missed.

Seriously, I will make an effort to catch it. To me, sincerity and capturing the spirit is important, and an updated Holmes (if done well) would be okay with me. The Doyle stories are still sitting on my shelf, unharmed.

[syon23]

Via certain quasi-legal means, I've seen the whole series. I found it quite enjoyable, with most of the updating being well thought out. Perhaps the most extreme shift involved the characterization of Moriarty (If you catch the series, you'll know what I mean).I think that we would all certainly enjoy a review from the good doctor (hint).

[full_metal_ox]

There's an excellent reason that they might remind you of House and Wilson; Holmes and Watson were part of the inspiration for HOUSE, M.D. (although I see that the current BBC treatment has given the cane, and the bum leg occasioning it, to the Watson figure.)

What do you think of their version of the Savant-Cam? (I'm hoping that won't constitute too great a spoiler.)

[davisac1]

The legacy problem is why I explicitly support new and limited-run comics. I want fresh stories that go out gracefully and intentionally.

[terry_mccombs]

Cartoonist Berkeley Breathed, creator of Bill the Cat and Opus the Penguin said that he thought that no comic strip should last longer than seven years, and that no one could keep the same one going longer than that without going stale.

A bit extream, but he was good at this word and ended Bloom County after seven years, the ones he started after that didn't do as well.

[dr_hermes]

This brings to mind THE FAR SIDE and CALVIN AND HOBBES, of course, both retired when their creators felt that they had done their bit and coming up with first rate material would be increasingly difficult. As much as I would have liked a few more years of both, if it meant they have gone downhill and watered down the memories, folding the strips was for the best.