i think it’s important to remember that ray never WANTED to be a superhero. he was forced into it at the tender age of eight by his father, and he was never given the opportunity to be anything else. he didn’t even get a proper education! the only thing he’s been taught is how to fight, so much of his self worth comes from his ability to take down criminals. he feels secure as the confident, self-assured captain man. as ray manchester, he feels insecure and inadequate — but he masks that feeling of inadequacy by carrying over the persona of captain man into his private life.
the arrogant, entitled, self-absorbed qualities which all children possess (to different degrees, obviously) are usually outgrown once adulthood is reached. but that growth comes from different, varied life experiences — experiences that ray never got to have, because he spent his childhood under the thumb of his father, unable to properly interact with other children and learn right from wrong. captain man grows up, but ray manchester stays a child.
the reason why ray becomes increasingly childish in the later seasons (apart from the blatant flanderization of his character) is because with henry, charlotte, jasper, and schwoz, he’s given the chance to actually BE ray manchester. fighting criminals is no longer a robotic, emotionless experience — he has somebody to banter with, somebody to have fun with. he no longer returns to an empty mancave, where the only difference between being in and out of his superhero costume is the ability to buy groceries without being swarmed by fans. he returns to a room full of friends, and with that, he’s given the opportunity to be ray manchester. and who is ray manchester but a child who was never given the chance to grow up?
side note: i know we see ray with some people in the first season of henry danger (laylani, etc) but they disappear within a few episodes, which makes me think that the majority of ray’s relationships have been superficial and fleeting.
as the show progresses and ray slowly explores what it means to not be captain man, i think he begins to question whether or not he actually wants to be a superhero. that’s why his performance as captain man deteriorates: it’s not that he’s suddenly incompetent, it’s that for the first time in his life, he experiences (partially) what it’s like to be a normal person. with a sidekick, the burden of knowing the city’s safety depends on you is lessened. he has more space to hang out carefreely with his friends; for the first time in his life, he’s given something that resembles freedom. after thirty years of sacrificing his personal well-being for the sake of strangers, that small taste of normalcy must feel absolutely incredible to ray. no wonder he begins slacking off as captain man! being ray manchester is so much more fun! that’s also why so many of his actions become increasingly morally dubious (i.e. the memory wiper, the occasional disregard of civilian lives, the overuse of violence) — ray isn’t a superhero because he cares so much about being a good person and saving lives, he’s a superhero because his father told him he HAD to be one! as ray manchester starts taking priority over captain man, ray’s underdeveloped moral compass becomes more and more apparent.
as for why ray decided to recruit a literal child as his sidekick? going back to how as ray manchester, he feels inadequate because his growth as a person (not a superhero) was stunted by his father — i think ray doesn’t feel like an actual equal to his peers. he’s uneducated, he has no real family, he’s isolated and lonely, he’s childish and immature. consciously or subconsciously, he realised that if he recruited an adult as a sidekick — somebody well-adjusted, educated; somebody given the opportunities he never had — he wouldn’t have been able to stand it. moreover, i don’t think ray fully realised how irresponsible hiring a child would be. again, he was forced into his superhero job at the age of eight. getting a thirteen year old sidekick probably seemed pretty reasonable to him, if not downright generous.
conclusion: i feel really bad for ray. he spent (sacrificed) thirtyish years of his life making sure swellview was safe from criminals. he learned to disregard his own wellbeing and mental health for the sake of other people — for the sake of maintaining the untouchable appearance of captain man. he never got an education. he was hardly able to experience a decent, real childhood. he didn’t get to make real, genuine connections with other people for so long. i haven’t watched danger force but i know he ends up retiring as a superhero to live his own life, and i am so happy for him. thank goodness. ray manchester, they can never make me hate you.
