#marvel citizens

[pierre-reads-comics]

Fantastic Four (1961) #65 — Stan Lee, Jack Kirby

"Besides--whenever they're around--things happen!"

[nexas-hart]

Marvel Neighborhood Watch

We all talk about how the emergency services, like the police and fire departments, help the heroes with various villains. That's great, I really enjoy seeing them taking an active role in fighting against supervillains because they can help out once they get used to dealing with the more science fiction sides of their occupations.

However, what I am picturing is what happens when the citizens themselves just get tired of all of the rampant destruction some of these villains create.

In most of the neighborhoods and communities I've live in over the years, we've had something called the "neighborhood watch". It's supposed to be an organization of various members of the community that help keep crime and various other violations down in the area.

Some of the places I've been had people who just used it as an excuse to nitpick at things they didn't like about people or houses around them; but others actually did help with the health, safety, and general wellness of the community. Most of them were just a few of the more permanently housed members meeting up every few weeks to discuss things that might help the neighborhood or anything potentially dangerous they might have seen in the area. Others, though, were a lot more organized. They would have group chats and different roles. They'd discuss emergency plans in case of fire and blizzards. They'd talk with their neighbors about different things they struggled with and ways to assist. Some of them didn't even call it a neighborhood watch, it was just a good community effort to help others.

I'm not sure if New York or any of the big cities in Marvel would have things like that, although they might have something similar.

I just see the civilians in those cities hearing a crash around the block and thinking "Oh, it's Tuesday, must be Doctor Doom and the Fantastic Four." They help any new residents or tourists get somewhere safe and that's that. Then, they get together with a few of their friends and start coming up with evacuation plans and teaching ways to reinforce various places to minimize housing damage in the inevitable fallout. Eventually, they start supporting the heroes after the fight with first aid kits for injuries or tool boxes for broken tech.

Soon after that, someone sees one of the heroes break open a fire hydrant to douse an electric or fire villain in water and they start thinking. There are a lot of villains with glaring weaknesses. He gets a large pipe wrench from the hardware store and a fire hose from his friend at the station. Then, he starts talking with the other members of the watch.

They discuss the risks and dangers of the different villains and the response times of the heroes and law enforcement. Then, they set a plan for when they should cut their losses and evacuate and when they have a chance to stay and fight. They of course decide it's wiser to run more often than not, especially if said villain happens to be trying out some new nefarious technology or scheme. However, next time Spider-Man swings into the area to battle Electro, he finds the man already soaking wet and wrapped in insulated bindings, with a citizen on standby with a still dripping fire hose.