I was re-reading Marvel Civil War, and part way in the beginning, Iron Man talks with some people about the Green Goblin escaping and killing some odd 23 people and a dog.

They talk about Spiderman and how they wonder when it will start to become his fault when the deaths tally up. What I'm getting at is that should super heroes be responsible for the villains they lock up, seeing as they can escape and kill people?

Should they be punished for not killing the villain and saving innocent lives for when the villain breaks out again?

Woah...I never really thought about this. Consider my mind blown XD

Anyways, I believe they should only kill a villain in the most extreme of circumstances, or if they're beyond rehabilitation. For example, take Bane, from Batman. He was a villain, but later on sort of went around to Batman's side, and while he didn't become a hero, he certainly was no longer a villain. But in cases like the Joker, or the Green Goblin, rehabilitation sounds impossible, and perhaps they should be killed.

Overall, it really is a tough question.

Is murder ever really justified?

If you're talking IRL, that's a whole different ball game.

But as for the comic book world? Sometimes, yes, it is.

Supers killing villains like that is the whole reason why a Super goes from Super to Rogue, and becomes an addiction that leads from becoming the Hero to the Villain.

Think of Supers who take things a bit too extreme afterwards. X villain has been thrown to jail y times, and the hero decides that it´s better to have the Villain out. But then having an easy alternative as that deals with killing even more villains, with a dead set mind that he is doing good. But when everyone else starts fearing this trend and tries to do something about it, the Hero starts imposing his ultimate justice gainst those that oppose him "for the good of the people".

Has anyone seen Superman Doomsday? When the Clone Superman takes things to the extreme, he kills the Villain who was going to be just jailed when he killed a girl, and he takes justice to the extreme by dropping him from a skyscraper. Then when Lex Luthor (Sexily voiced by James Marsters), tried to dispose of the clone, the Clone figures the Kryptonite encased in Lead in his brain and performs self-brain surgery to avoid that. Then mortally wounds Lex, and then all goes to hell when the Military wants to stop this Rogue Superman.

So yes, Superheroes are the icons and symbols that inspire people. Having a Superhero kill a villain on purpose disorts this view of the icon they represent, and they become feared by wondering who he could kill next.

Very interesting dilemma. The obvious response is that they're not the ones responsible. They did their work by capturing them, they fulfilled their duty by putting them in jail, and if the villains escape, they keep killing of their own accord. If anything, it's the prison guards' fault for not keeping them locked up.

Which brings to mind an idea of a hero devoted not to the pursuit of villains out there, but to keeping the prisoned ones locked up tight. And interesting plot developments such as conducting inhuman experiments on them to deprive them of powers, absorb them for himself, and grow corrupt one day... >:3

I'm positive they're not responsible for deaths of a villain that escaped prison. Whether or not they should kill them on the spot is a different question. I guess it should be decided on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the severity of committed crimes and the likelihood of reforming the villain.

The problem with Super Heroes and Super Villains is usually that Super Heroes have a much greater power yet try to avoid abusing it like the villains. Seriously speaking, the sheer fact they use that power for good and not for their own benefit is enough to make them heroes and forgive some mishaps.

Imagine someone normal from everyday streets becoming Superman, Spiderman, Ironman, Whateverman. They would either hide that fact so they can continue with their normal lives or go wild and either demolish the town by accident while having fun OR purposefully use it to gain wealth the easy way.



Besides, didn't it ever hit you WHY EXACTLY super heroes hide their identity? It's not only because they want to protect their friends and family from villains targeting their weak spots. By being anonymous, they can pretty much destroy half the town while hunting for a villain and nobody can like.... sue them for that.

Just imagine this situation: Superman is suddenly sued because he destroyed the road! He needed to roll the dangerous villain with it, so he cannot escape and can be approached, however he destroyed the property of the city. He would have to pay from his lousy Newsman Pay-check for all the damage he's done. But since NOBODY knows who exactly Superman is.... then who will they sue? The hero can just continue helping the world, while not even caring about the law searching for him. After all, even if they find him.... what can they do to him? Spit on him?

If someone is willing to, you can watch "Hancock" since that would pretty much be Superman if he didn't give a shit about anything AND didn't have a secret identity.