Note: So, as you may have noticed, I’m not reviewing a book today. That’s because I’ve decided to mix things up a little. From now on, I’ll be using Mondays to review/discuss all sorts of media—books, music, movies, TV shows (basically anything I feel like).
Warning: THIS POST WILL
SPOIL EVERYTHING.
If you haven’t seen the show, it’s only 43 minutes, and you can watch it right here because I’m nice and I’ve provided the link for you. And, just as further warning, there are three mildly inappropriate bits. If you are concerned about this, all you need to do is mute or skip from 24:22-25:08, 28:20-28:34, and 31:32-31:38. DOCTOR HORRIBLE’S SING-ALONG BLOG is unrated, but factoring in violence, innuendo, and language, I’d give it a mild PG-13. And if you’re like me and you’re wondering if it’s legal for this to be online, trust me, in this case it really is fine. When Joss Whedon and his gang released this video, they released it directly to YouTube, so there’s nothing to worry about. Problem solved. [Translation: Joss Whedon might possibly be my hero.]
If you haven’t seen the show, it’s only 43 minutes, and you can watch it right here because I’m nice and I’ve provided the link for you. And, just as further warning, there are three mildly inappropriate bits. If you are concerned about this, all you need to do is mute or skip from 24:22-25:08, 28:20-28:34, and 31:32-31:38. DOCTOR HORRIBLE’S SING-ALONG BLOG is unrated, but factoring in violence, innuendo, and language, I’d give it a mild PG-13. And if you’re like me and you’re wondering if it’s legal for this to be online, trust me, in this case it really is fine. When Joss Whedon and his gang released this video, they released it directly to YouTube, so there’s nothing to worry about. Problem solved. [Translation: Joss Whedon might possibly be my hero.]
Okay, now that
we’re done with the really long disclaimer, let’s get down to the fun stuff.
But if you haven’t seen the show already, I highly recommend that you do so
before you read any further. Seriously, I’m not sure this post will make sense
if you haven’t watched the show. And it’s a really good show, even if the title is a little weird.
That said, the
major question I had at the end of DOCTOR HORRIBLE’S SING-ALONG BLOG was,
“Which one’s the villain?”
Let’s start
with our main character, Doctor Horrible (aka, Billy Buddy). With his penchant
for petty theft and his eagerness to become part of the Evil League of Evil, it
seems pretty obvious that he would be our prime candidate. Beyond that strike
against his character, he has a few other things going against him. Like your
average creep, he follows Penny on her date with his nemesis, Captain Hammer.
And when Hammer pushes Billy past his breaking point, Billy decides to murder the Captain. Seems clear-cut, huh?
And when Hammer pushes Billy past his breaking point, Billy decides to murder the Captain. Seems clear-cut, huh?
But wait.
Doctor Horrible
does not fit your average, two-dimensional, villain mold. Oh no. Despite his
evil laugh and his mad genius goggles, he also has a good heart and an
interesting (if not entirely spot-on) moral compass. And fortunately, since
he’s the main character, we get a unique look into his perspective and the
motivations that drive him.
So let’s take a peek at some of the things that might make him “the good guy”. Before Captain Hammer rubs his relationship with Penny in Doctor Horrible’s face, the doctor really has no desire to kill anyone, even though he’s required to do so in order to get into the Evil League of Evil (run by Bad Horse, the Thoroughbred of Sin). Though Doctor Horrible harbors a secret crush on Penny, he doesn’t pressure her to like him back or force himself on her in any way—in fact, he can be very respectful (you know, when he’s not stalking her).
While most villains operate with anarchy as their main goal, Billy views anarchy as a tool necessary to overthrow the broken system that guides humanity.
Whatever the case, he has his finger on the pulse of human nature, and he recognizes the evil that lurks in the heart of humankind. He doesn’t embrace corruption—in his own weird way, he hopes to fight it.
So let’s take a peek at some of the things that might make him “the good guy”. Before Captain Hammer rubs his relationship with Penny in Doctor Horrible’s face, the doctor really has no desire to kill anyone, even though he’s required to do so in order to get into the Evil League of Evil (run by Bad Horse, the Thoroughbred of Sin). Though Doctor Horrible harbors a secret crush on Penny, he doesn’t pressure her to like him back or force himself on her in any way—in fact, he can be very respectful (you know, when he’s not stalking her).
While most villains operate with anarchy as their main goal, Billy views anarchy as a tool necessary to overthrow the broken system that guides humanity.
Whatever the case, he has his finger on the pulse of human nature, and he recognizes the evil that lurks in the heart of humankind. He doesn’t embrace corruption—in his own weird way, he hopes to fight it.
(Also, it could
be argued that, had the freeze ray not chosen to malfunction at a critical
moment, it’s possible Doctor Horrible might have been unable to go through with
the murder of Captain Hammer. But that’s all speculation, and it’s a moot point
since the freeze ray DID malfunction. Moving on.)
Now for our
next villain candidate: Captain Hammer. As the one who sets himself up against
Doctor Horrible, it seems pretty obvious that Captain Hammer is our hero. After
all, he continually thwarts the Doctor’s nefarious schemes, he rescues Penny,
and he helps the homeless. Pretty great guy, huh?
Unlike other
heroes, though, Captain Hammer is a major jerk. Throughout the story, it’s
obvious to everyone except Penny that he doesn’t respect her—doesn’t even see
her as more than an object for his own amusement. In fact, I find it very
telling that he rescues Penny from the runaway van by shoving her into a pile
of trash bags—because, had Penny lived, that’s exactly what he would have done
to her in the end. He would have grown tired of her, dumped her like garbage, and
moved on to the next good-looking girl.
Ultimately,
he’s only concerned with what he can get and by how people see him.
As long as the masses fall at his feet, worshiping him for his heroic deeds and his good looks, then he doesn’t worry about whether he’s doing good or not. He looks down on those he considers lower than himself, and continually reminds them of his perceived superiority. And, unlike Doctor Horrible, he doesn’t care about correcting the rampant problems in society (such as the homelessness epidemic), unless by doing so he can make himself look great.
“Wait Liz,” you say, “he does do nice stuff—he does help the homeless.”
But my question is, if you do nice stuff for bad reasons, does that really make you a hero?
As long as the masses fall at his feet, worshiping him for his heroic deeds and his good looks, then he doesn’t worry about whether he’s doing good or not. He looks down on those he considers lower than himself, and continually reminds them of his perceived superiority. And, unlike Doctor Horrible, he doesn’t care about correcting the rampant problems in society (such as the homelessness epidemic), unless by doing so he can make himself look great.
“Wait Liz,” you say, “he does do nice stuff—he does help the homeless.”
But my question is, if you do nice stuff for bad reasons, does that really make you a hero?
Right about
now, you might be thinking “Just be done, okay. He’s hot, Liz, so don’t
question him.”
To which I
answer, “Wait, there’s more.”
As Doctor
Horrible points out in his song (“Slipping”), Captain Hammer’s disguise is
slipping—more and more, what lies beneath his “nice guy” exterior is becoming
evident.
When Captain
Hammer comes across true pain, the kind he has so enjoyed inflicting on Doctor
Horrible, he runs screaming from the room, knocking over a lady on the way out.
The fact that, by doing so, he’s leaving Penny skewered with death ray shrapnel, isn’t at all important to him—and maybe you could argue that he couldn’t have known so he isn’t to blame. Fair point. But if he were a true hero, even though he’s in pain (and not visibly wounded), his first priority should be the well-being of others. Considering that the death ray explosion occurred in his attempt to kill Doctor Horrible and thus is his fault, it’s his responsibility to make sure no one is injured.
Instead he thinks only of himself, leaving Doctor Horrible to sit with Penny during her last moments.
The fact that, by doing so, he’s leaving Penny skewered with death ray shrapnel, isn’t at all important to him—and maybe you could argue that he couldn’t have known so he isn’t to blame. Fair point. But if he were a true hero, even though he’s in pain (and not visibly wounded), his first priority should be the well-being of others. Considering that the death ray explosion occurred in his attempt to kill Doctor Horrible and thus is his fault, it’s his responsibility to make sure no one is injured.
Instead he thinks only of himself, leaving Doctor Horrible to sit with Penny during her last moments.
“Okay, Liz,
you’ve made your point. Can I go home now?”
Wait, I’m still
not done. Because there’s one more villainous candidate.
“WHAT? ARE YOU
CRAZY? YOU HAVE GOT TO BE JOKING. TELL ME YOU’RE JOKING.”
I’m not joking.
Because our
next candidate is Penny—sweet, innocent, naïve little Penny who harbors such
compassion for the dark and gritty areas of society.
“Liz, you
monster, I can’t believe you. Poor darling Penny has probably never hurt anyone
or anything in her life. She puts herself at risk just to collect signatures
for a building she hopes to convert into a homeless shelter. Even to the end,
despite the way he treats her, she still refuses to recognize the evil in
Captain Hammer. She doesn’t judge Doctor Horrible. And she’s just so stinking
nice. Liz, you really are a heartless, soulless, cold—”
All this I
know.
“Didn’t you
listen to the songs? Didn’t you hear Penny say she believes there’s good in
every heart? Didn’t you—”
There you have
it, and I couldn’t have said it better myself. Yes, Penny is a sweetie, and I’m
not arguing so much that she is the problem, but that she has contributed to
the problem. And please don’t assume that I’m at all victim-blaming. The fault
of her death lies with both Captain Hammer and Doctor Horrible, and we can
discuss the blame at a later date. But as Billy so aptly points out, Penny is
treating a symptom—homelessness—rather than the problem.
And you can’t help people until you find out what’s wrong with them. Sure, if you have a headache, I could give you ibuprofen, but that really won’t take care of your festering brain tumor. If I were truly concerned about you, I’d do everything I could to make sure someone took that tumor out of you before it killed you.
And you can’t help people until you find out what’s wrong with them. Sure, if you have a headache, I could give you ibuprofen, but that really won’t take care of your festering brain tumor. If I were truly concerned about you, I’d do everything I could to make sure someone took that tumor out of you before it killed you.
I’m not blaming
Penny for wanting to help the homeless—I think that’s admirable of her, and we
need more people willing to do that. Honest to goodness, that’s not the issue.
But I want to challenge her ideology. If there really is good in every heart,
then why do homeless people exist in the first place? When Penny dies, she dies
believing that Captain Hammer is her shining, selfless hero and that Billy is
her sweet laundry buddy.
And while that makes Penny a genuinely loveable person, in order to help people, you have to see them as they really are, broken and messy and imperfect. No one is going to save the world through idealism—and rose-tinted glasses have a way of blinding people to reality.
And while that makes Penny a genuinely loveable person, in order to help people, you have to see them as they really are, broken and messy and imperfect. No one is going to save the world through idealism—and rose-tinted glasses have a way of blinding people to reality.
So there you
have it, your three candidates. Now who do you think is the true villain? Or is
it fair to single out only one individual? Also, on a scale of one to ten (ten
being the greatest), how mean am I for even considering Penny as one of the
baddies?
