For those who don't understand, fridging is a comic trope in which a character (usually female) is killed in order to further motivate the main character's (usually male) development.
Think Spider-Man's Gwen Stacy or Kyle Rayner's Alexandra Dewitt.
Apparently, I've done the same to my AU's Starscream by having Megatron kill Nightbird and forcing Star to watch as he takes the life outta his wife.
If you're wondering how Megsy did it, he crushed her spark.
Same things happens to Fire Convoy as he almost witnessed Andromeda's death, if it weren't for Alpha Trion rebuilding her into Yellow Splendid Convoy.
The Ultimate Create Your Own Superhero/Supervillain OC Questionnaire
That's right guys, gals and non-binary pals! I have been switching back and forth between staring at the TV Tropes list for superheroes, the inky black void, and my notes app for nearly 5 hours straight!!
I sought out a questionnaire that would fit my needs creating my own superhero universe just for funsies and found the internet WANTING so I have in my hubris decided to inflict the madness brought upon by mother necessity onto all of you! In the form of 128 gotdayng questions! Not all require answers but it is a feast for thought!
Before They Were "Special"
What is your hero’s real name (if they have one)?
Where did they live before becoming a superhero/supervillain? Do they still live there?
What did they do for a living before becoming a superhero/supervillain? Do they still have that job?
What was their personality like before becoming a superhero/supervillain?
Then, On One Fateful Day…
How did your superhero/supervillain get their abilities? Through training, magic, radiation, copious amounts of money, or something else?
Were they born with their powers or were they acquired?
Did they decide to become a superhero/supervillain or were they called to it against their will?
What was their a special event or tipping point that made them decide to be a superhero/supervillain? What was their turning point?
What did they feel like the first time they did something majorly heroic or villainous? Their first rescue? Their first big crime?
What type of mistakes did they make in the early days of their superheroics/villainy? Do they still make them on occasion?
Superpowers (and Aesthetics!)
What is your superhero/villain’s code name? Did they pick it themselves or was it given to them and by whom?
Does your superhero/supervillain have super powers? If so what are they?
If they don’t have super powers, what special skills do they have that allow them to be super?
If your superhero/villain has special skills in addition to their powers, how does one help the other?
Are their powers or skills activated by something like a trigger word, battery, special material or weapon? If so what?
How do their superpowers work?
What are the limitations of their super powers or skills?
Do their powers come with special weaknesses?
Does your superhero/villain’s skills, abilities, or the nature of their dual identity come with benefits semi-unrelated to their powers like a secret base, privileges, or allies?
Does your superhero/villain have a costume? What does it look like? Did they make it or find it? Does it do anything other than hide their secret identity or does it have special features?
What is the simplest thing that signifies your superhero/villain? A letter? An animal? Object? Color/color palette? Catchphrase? Etc.
Now that's probably enough to get one started BUUUUT if you wanna get deeper nitty gritty aspects of superheroics and supervillainy jump into this here read more!
Secret Identity: The Mask vs. The Man
Relationship with their Dual Identities:
Do they have a secret identity at all or are they completely open about their superheroic/villainous nature? Is their a dual life occurring or are they doing their super thing 24/7? Do they have more than one secret or super identity?
How do they regard the duality of their regular civilian life and their superhero/villain life if they have it? Do they treat their civilian and super identities as different people, or as multiple different facets of themselves?
Are there aspects/personality traits about themselves that they hide/suppress that are unrelated to their powers/skills as one persona or the other? Do they do so deliberately or accidentally?
If they were stuck as one identity or the other forever, which one would they choose and why? Would they regret it or would they be relieved?
Are there any circumstances where your superhero/villain would retire from the gig? Temporarily? Permanently? Why?
Everyday Secret Identity Struggles
How does your superhero/villain succeed and/or fail to balance their secret and super identities? Do they spend too much time in one or the other? When the heck do they even sleep (if they need to)??
If your superhero/villain is injured and remains so after a fight, how do they justify it as their secret identity?
How does your superhero/villain justify absences, short and prolonged, as their secret identity due to super activities?
Does your superhero/villain pretend as though their super and secret identity know each other? What does that “relationship” look like and why?
What is their default reaction to people figuring out their secret identity or accusing them of secretly being any super?
What would they do or say if someone caught them changing into their costume/uniform or hanging out in their secret base out of costume/uniform?
What would they do if their secret identity was revealed to the world against their will? What are the consequences?
How Do You Feel About Your Job?
How do they personally feel about being a superhero/villain? Do they enjoy the work or hate it, or do they find it boring?
How do the fundamental aspects of who they are shape the type of superhero/villain they became? Such as upbringing, race, gender, sexuality etc?
Does their civilian profession affect or come into conflict with their superhero/villain activities or compliment them? How and why?
Does their personality come into conflict with their superhero/villain activities or compliment them, if so why?
Relationship with Power
What is your superhero/villain’s relationship with their skills/powers? Do they relish in having them, resent them or something more nuanced?
Does their personality, be it super or secret, match up with the stereotypes of other characters with similar power sets? Or do they reject convention?
Was there a learning curve regarding their powers and their superhero code? Are they still inexperienced or are they more seasoned?
Do they regularly use their powers at full throttle or are they constantly holding back?
Do they prefer to use their powers to do basically everything that they can or do they avoid using their abilities outside of their superheroics/villainy? Why?
Does your superhero/villain have any strange (but not necessarily good/bad) social or skill deficits as a result of their powers/abilities? Such as, “why would I need to know how to dodge a punch if I’m indestructible”?
Super Power Problems
What would your superhero/villain do if they were de-powered? Temporarily? Permanently?
What would your superhero/villain do if they lost control of their powers? From minor to severe, how catastrophic are the consequences? Temporarily? Permanently?
If your superhero/villain could give their powers to someone else, would they? Who would they give them to? This could result in them no longer having that power or both of them having super powers, you can answer either or both!
How would they react if the nature of their powers completely changed overnight? Or if your superhero/villain is skill-based, what would they do if they acquired superpowers? What kind would they have?
Public Relations
How well is your superhero/villain perceived by the public if at all? If they’re a celebrity of some kind this includes how the public reacts to their secret identity as well as their super one.
What is their relationship with their fans? Be they grateful citizens to your superhero’s heroics or sycophantic suckers to your supervillain’s evil schemes?
What is their relationship with their critics?
How do they feel about those who try to imitate or are inspired by them or their actions? Do they love it? Hate it? Somewhere in between?
How much does public perception of their superhero/villain identity affect them on an emotional level?
Does the public perception of their identity affect their super or secret identities in any practical/logistically significant way?
Ethics and Dilemmas
Basics
What is your superhero/villain's code of ethics?
What is the most ethical thing they’ve ever done as their secret identity?
What is the most unethical thing they’ve ever done as their secret identity?
What is the most ethical thing they’ve ever done as their superhero/villain identity?
What is the most unethical thing they’ve ever done as their superhero/villain identity?
Authority, Crime & Punishment
What is your superhero/villain’s relationship with authority in general?
Does your superhero/villain fight to maintain the status quo or do they rebel against it? How?
How does your superhero/villain feel about government regulation of superpowered/super-skilled beings?
How does your superhero/villain feel about working within the confines of the law and/or with law enforcement? How about first responders who aren’t law enforcement?
If they’re a superhero what is the type of crime that bothers them/they go after the most? If they’re a supervillain what crime do they enjoy committing the most? Why? (You can answer both if your superhero/villain is in a morally gray area)
If they’re a superhero are there any laws/rules they chafe against and/or regularly break (that aren’t obvious like the ones against vigilanteism)? If they’re a supervillain are there any laws they actually advocate for and/or work to their benefit?
Aftermath & Logistics
How does your superhero/villain feel about collateral damage? Human? Property?
Is your superhero/villain the type to clean up after their fights and/or cover their tracks? Why?
Is your superhero/villain proactive or reactionary? Does your superhero work in crime-prevention and rehabilitating villains or simply beat up the bad guys and leave? Does your supervillain work in politics and/or organized crime to achieve their goals or do they just break stuff?
Personal Code of Honor
Would they break their code of ethics for someone, if so who and why?
If they’re a superhero is their someone they wouldn’t save, even if they could? If they’re a supervillain is there someone they would spare in their mission?
What is one moral line they would never cross under any circumstances?
What would your superhero/villain do if they were forced to cross their personal moral hardline?
Is there any circumstances under which your superhero/villain would switch sides permanently? What are they and why?
Corruption, Redemption, Self in The "Other"
If their greatest arch-villain, the one who had hurt them the most, made a genuine attempt at reforming what would they do? Or in the inverse, if their heroic nemesis became corrupted and joined their side?
What would they do if their closest friend or loved one switched moral alignments and became a superhero/villain in direct antithesis to them? (If they weren’t already doing that secretly or openly).
How would your superhero/villain react to a biological clone of themselves? Or, if they’re the last/only one of their kind, discovering that’s not the case?
What would they do if a clone or a member of their endangered kind was in moral opposition to them?
Degrees of Success & Failure
What would your superhero/villain do in the face of the trolley problem? The good of the one vs. the good of the many? How would they feel upon success or failure? Like, their girlfriend being in danger at the same time as a bus full of children for example.
Does your superhero/villain believe in no-win scenarios? Why or why not?
How does your superhero/villain respond to failure? From the smallest misstep to the ultimate defeat (assuming they survive)?
Friends & Foes
Family Matters
Are their parents alive or dead? What is the hero/villain’s relationship with them?
Do their parent(s) know about their dual identity? How do/would they feel about it?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their parent(s) by death or estrangement?
Do they have any siblings? Who are they and how many? What’s their relationship with them?
Do their sibling(s) know about their dual identity? How do/would they feel about it?
Are their family immediate family members who know about their dual identity while others don’t? How does that alter the family dynamic?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their sibling(s) by death or estrangement?
All You Need Is Love
Do they have a crush, significant other or spouse? For how long?
How did they meet?
If they’re together how long have they been dating/married?
If your superhero/villain has, when did they reveal their dual identity to their partner (assuming it wasn’t already public knowledge)?
How does their partner feel about the superhero/villain and whichever identity (or identities) they’re aware of?
Is their partner a superhero/villain? Does your superhero/villain know? How does it affect their dynamic?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their partner by death or estrangement?
The Kids Aren't Alright (or are they?)
Does your superhero/villain have any children?
Are they alive? What is the parent child relationship like?
If your superhero/villain has multiple children, what is their sibling dynamic like from your superhero/villain’s perspective? How do they feel about each of them?
Do they know their parent(s) have superpowers/skills and are their superheroes/villains (or sidekicks) in their own right?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their child(ren) by death or estrangement?
Rogue's Galleries, Goodie-goodies and the art of the Arch-Nemesis
What do your superhero/villain’s enemies look like? Who is in their rogue’s gallery or primary heroic opposition?
Do they have an arch-enemy or a villain who hates them the most? Who are they, what do they do, and why do they target your superhero/villain especially?
How well does your superhero/villain know their enemy and vice versa? How does it affect their dynamic?
How would your superhero/villain react to being forced to work with their greatest enemy and vice versa?
Is there an enemy of theirs that has something they desperately want or need? What lengths would they go to in order to get it from them?
What is their dynamic outside of the super-sphere? Do they know each other personally or are they worlds apart?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their nemesis by death or estrangement?
Get By With A Little Help From My Friends
Does your superhero/villain have any friends? A best friend?
How did they meet their friend(s)? Why are they friends?
How did their friend(s) discover their dual identity?
Do the superhero/villain and their friend(s) have mutual people in their lives who don’t know the hero/villain’s secret? How does that alter their dynamic?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their friend(s) by death or estrangement?
Teams & Sidekicks
Does your superhero/villain have a sidekick (or sidekicks) or teammates or goons and so on? What is their dynamic with them?
How did your superhero/villain meet/adopt their sidekick if they have one?
How did your superhero/villain join the team they’re a part of?
What is the overall group dynamic if they’re part of a team, where do they fall in it?
If they don’t do sidekicks or teams, why do they prefer doing the super-gig solo?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their sidekick(s)/team by death or estrangement?
With the Power of the Superfriends You're Never Alone!
Is your superhero/supervillain friends with other superheroes/villains? Who are they? Why are they friends?
Does your superhero/villain know the secret identity/identities of their constituents? Does it affect their dynamic?
Are their heroes/villains on the same side as them that your superhero/villain doesn’t like? If so, why?
How would/did the superhero/villain react to losing their ally/friendly rival by death or estrangement?
Else-worlds, Multi-verses & Other Hypotheticals!
How does your superhero/villain feel about time travel and alternate universes in general?
What would they be like in a world where they were the opposite moral alignment they are now? How would the original react to this alternate/inverted version of themselves?
What would they be like if they were raised in the opposite circumstances of their birth? Rich instead of poor, abusive parents instead of good ones and so on?
How would the context of their story change if some fundamental aspect of who they are was altered? Such as race/ethnicity, country of origin, gender, or sexuality?
What would it be like if their close non-super counterpart (partner/friend/sibling/parent etc) became their superhero/villain identity instead of them?
If there was a specific period in history or a non-super type sci-fi/fantasy setting your superhero/villain would do particularly well in, what would it be and why?
It’s a wonderful life! What would the world look like if your superhero/villain had never existed? Or stranger yet, if they had been defeated or killed and their enemy had won at some crucial point?
On the inverse, how would your superhero/villain cope if they were the only force for good/evil in the world? To what degree they be able to handle it? Or would they get swallowed up by the tide of the opposition?
I always love when a character prepares a sexy surprise for the love interest, but instead he/she/they are discovered by the last person the character wanted to be seen and ends up to do everything but getting laid.
I’m always gonna be pissed that “heroes focusing more in PR than anything else” is more of a trope associated with those edgy deconstructions of superheroes, or a sign that they aren’t all that pure, sometimes even both. Because there is an interesting story idea here.
You see, whenever I think of a team with a majority young or minority characters, I always come back to the PR situation. The media/government is always willing to tear apart anyone who doesn’t fit into societal norms, and it’s made worse by then having superpowers. So the characters would have to fight an uphill battle just to be seen as the good guys, much less equals to their more “normal” contemporaries. Because people are more willing to trust a white man with the powers of a god, than a black man with a stick.
It’s like how the comic Young Justice had to fight against a government organization, and kept accidentally making all teenage superheroes look bad, leading to them having to do a press conference to see the record straight. Or the X teams having to fight against constant abuse and intolerance. Or even the Champions doing a mix of both.
But no, writers just use the trope for their asshole superheroes. It’s too interesting to be exclusively used by those kinds of books.
