Sunday 4 May 2014

ASK A SUPER VILLAIN - "Outing Yourself"

Even Super Villains need advice.  Ask an expert, Ask a Super Villain...



Today's letter comes from "Confused" and was posted as a comment the initial Ask a Super Villain post on this blog (I have removed the parents' names for obvious reasons):




As a Super Villain of some renown I know everything there is about being a super villain, and I’m here to help you with advice...
... fortunately I came from a long line of Super Villains, so there was no need for me to "come out" as a Super Villain.  Unfortunately that means that although I know everything about being a Super Villain, I cannot help with this particular problem, as such I got in touch with a Evil Weapon Builder friend of mine who went through similar an experience when he was starting out, Denizen of Uber-Greatness, had this advice:

Thank you Doom's Unending Guardian for allowing me the chance to help your reader and others like them.  First up, let me say that I was the child of a hero's sidekick and a member of the hero's support cast, not the child of two full-blown heroes like yourself, so I can't say my experience will exactly match yours, but then everyone's experience is different anyway.
 Be aware, there may be:
 - Anger, blame and recriminations.  Make it clear to them that it is not something that they did.  This is the way you are and that it isn't because you were punished too much or not enough or were bought the board game Risk when you were 12.
 -  Grief and probably tears.  Try to avoid lines like " I feast on your tears," they aren't as soothing as they sound in your head.
  - Bargaining and dismissal.  Explain to them that this isn't a phase: it's something you really believe in.  You're not experimenting, you're not just Evil Until Graduation, although some do you're not going to turn good eventually, you're not sympathetic villain or anti-hero, you're a villain.
 - Depression and anxiety.  Point out that not all super villains kill their entire families and that super heroes will usually leave the villain's families out of the battles.
 - Acceptance and foreknowledge.  Some parents will already know, or at least say they should have seen the signs.  They way you laugh, your dress sense or the way you played  with your toys as a child.  This isn't a time to get into an argument about reading too much into things or stereotyping.
There are support groups for families of super villains: there used to be a single group, but they split into two separate entities: Siblings, In-Laws & Mothers Of Non-goodies (SIMON) has had ongoing success while the other: Good And Righteous Fathers of Usurpers, Non-goodies, Killers & Evil Legions (GARFUNKEL) pretty much disappeared, but certainly recommend that they visit one of these if they need ongoing support.
 Well, that's all I can think of to say on the matter, Doomy, and I think that should help your reader.  On other matters, the main reflector in the array is in place meaning that everything should be ready once the giant 
Well, "Confused", I hope Denizen of Uber-Greatness's advice helps you and the many others out there facing this important issue.  That said, may I advise you to stay away from your parents for a while, because one of my Death-Squads may be targeting their civilian identities for the foreseeable future.

Any problems you may have, I can give you the solution.  Just ask in the comments here or on the original Wordpress blog or on tumblrGoogle+ and Twitter.

~ Doom's Unending Guardian.

(Special Thanks to Gillian Langtree)
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The above is carried out by professional Super Villains.  Do not try it at home.

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