Hey, hey all!
I’ve talked a lot about my various inspirations over the years since starting this blog. I’ve always stood by how I think it’s important to openly talk about and discuss our inspirations. We shouldn’t shy away from what has filled us with joy and expanded our minds creatively. It’s important to consider how fiction evolves and grows over time, often building on what has come before in some way.
So far, I’ve discussed film inspirations like Star Wars and the works of Christopher Nolan. I’ve talked about TV inspirations like The Expanse and Doctor Who. I’ve even talked about video game inspirations like Mass Effect, Halo and Ratchet & Clank.
Today’s blog is the last major inspiration I want to talk about. Superheroes…
Defining ‘superheroes’ as an inspiration
‘Superhero’ is a very broad genre, encompassing tonnes of distinct characters and franchises across a lot of different mediums. So, let’s kick off the blog by defining what I actually mean when I’m talking about superheroes as an inspiration.
Let’s start with the obvious: DC and Marvel. Unfortunately, not the comics for you comic fans out there, I’m talking about mass of films that have built up over the years for these two powerhouses: the standalones, the trilogies, the MCU and even the DCEU. I’ve watched a few TV series here and there from both sides: animated and filmed. Being a gamer, I’m also quite partial to the occasional superhero video game.
Just recently, I talked about my love for Christopher Nolan’s work, including his Dark Knight trilogy. I was heavily invested in the MCU up until Endgame, I love both the Batman Arkham and Insomniac Spider-Man games, and I’ve even thoroughly enjoyed multiple films in the now-retired DCEU. But I haven’t watched every MCU TV series, nor all the DC animated series or any of the Fox X-Men films. What this should tell you is I’m more than a casual viewer, but I’m by no means a superfan.
Superhero is a massive, massive genre, and it’s quite the mountain to climb to say you’ve read, watched and played all the superhero media out there. I’ve seen a lot, but I didn’t love everything. Sometimes I’m in line with what’s popular, sometimes I love something that wasn’t popular and sometimes I hate something that everyone else seems to love… In my fairly big pile of things I’ve loved, I’ve found some real gems and parts of those gems have rubbed off on me and seeped their way into my own writing.
So as an inspiration, superheroes encompass all the bits and pieces of the genre I’ve seen (or played) that collectively left a mark on me in some way.
A powerful being who stands tall above the rest
When talking about the Vigor Humans and Shadow Knights in my Nash series, I always think of their origin and place in society along similar lines to superheroes. That’s despite any similarities they might share with the Jedi and Sith in Star Wars. While Jedi and Sith have powers – there’s a more religious and faith-based element to their powers. In Nash, it’s more about the science. At their core, Vigor Humans and Shadow Knights are essentially genetically enhanced humans in a normal – albeit future – human society. In Star Wars, it’s a completely foreign galaxy where Jedi and Sith are very engrained into the world, making society’s reaction to them quite different.
What I’m describing definitely doesn’t apply to all superheroes (Thor is a good example). But the superhero stories that resonate the most with me are those with strong origin stories where we see all the pieces that make them the hero they are. Batman Begins completely re-defined what made an origin story back in 2005 and since then, we’ve been able to get some fantastic origin films such as Iron Man in 2008 and hell, even The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012 (in my opinion).
Once the hero is established, we often move into them finding their moral balance in society and dealing with the implications of their actions. We explore how a normal society like ours reacts to having a powerful superhero become part of the everyday and all the good and bad strings that come attached.
The villains
Every superhero needs their villain(s). Villains will always rise to challenge the hero. The hero and their villains are always on one level while everyday people are many levels below them. Only the hero can defeat the villain. It makes the hero’s presence all the more important.
A villain’s origin story can be just as captivating as the hero’s origin story. Their backstory often informs of how they’ve evolved into what they are now. Seeing what has shaped their lives and pushed them over the edge is always fascinating, especially when you juxtapose that with the hero’s story. It’s always interesting to reflect on what you might do in their situation. Maybe you’re more likely to become the villain than the hero?
A villain is often a very specific challenge for the hero. The hero needs to learn how to overcome the villain. Even if they’re experienced heroes, this villain might challenge the way they think or have operated in the past. It gets even more interesting if the hero has somehow indirectly caused the villain, making the whole confrontation more personal.
And we can’t talk about villains without talking about their physical transformations – the physical change that showcases the internal change where they’ve morphed from good/normal to evil/modified. As part of their transformation, they often seem to get the coolest gear and outfits too. A cool villain is one you enjoy seeing rise to power. Even if you know they’re evil and must be defeated, a cool villain can almost infect you with interest – making you want to see them win. Or maybe it’s just an underlying desire to feel as powerful as the villain does in that moment.
Either way, the villain is crucial to making the story interesting. In my Highton Heroes series, each season (or novel – not sure what it’ll look like yet) features one primary antagonist. I put a lot of thought into these villains, often drawing inspiration from the dozens of superhero villains I’ve seen on the screen.
The action (when it’s good)
I talked a bit in my Star Wars blog about how much I loved the action in the prequel trilogy, especially the lightsaber duels. In a story that is driven by action, that action has to play out in a captivating way.
With so many superhero stories out there, it’s no surprise that a fair share have dull action. Dull, or even mediocre action, is a sure-fire to weaken the story being told. When you’ve seen or read action done better, you know it can be done better. Anything less starts to feel cheap, rushed and doesn’t captivate you or raise the stakes like it should. I enjoyed the earlier Avengers films, but the Avengers action in Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War really stands tall above those earlier films.
Good action I’ve seen with my own eyes often inspires the action in my works. Whether it’s films, animated shows or even the moves characters make in video games, I’m more often than not impressed and trying to imagine how my own characters might use their talents or equipment in similar or opposing ways. Given I’m writing for the page and not telling my story on the screen, I have the harder job of trying to paint that action picture completely in words. I can’t just say “They punch and then he wins.” I need to try and capture the magic I’ve seen on screen and get the words to jump off the page for the reader. It needs to grab them and pull them into the story as much as anything else. A hard feat, I know.
A story universe
Even before the MCU was a thing, superheroes have built out large story worlds in their comic books. Hell, they even built out large story worlds on the screen in trilogies and in TV series.
I truly value building a story that is more than just one-and-done. I value building a story universe. I value creating story legs that have the potential to tell hundreds more stories. Seeing how superhero franchises (and even series like Mass Effect, Star Wars and Halo) have managed to do this is fascinating and something I seek to learn from.
But there are pitfalls to building a story universe. While you want those story legs to exist to give the story world depth, there is a flaw in actually exploring every single one of those legs. It leaves nothing to the imagination. In real life, there’s a lot of mystery. We don’t know everything going on in everyone’s life around us. And then there’s all the people we don’t know and have never met. We fill in all those blanks with our own imagination. The same should be said of a story universe. What an audience member can imagine about a character’s backstory or a side story mentioned in passing can be more engaging and interesting to that individual than if someone fills out the stories and makes something canon.
Some of the examples I’m inspired by in this regard have started to become… too big, dare I say? There’s too much to absorb. It’s bloated. And the more of a story world you reveal, the more everything that came before starts to feel less impactful. So, while I’m appreciative of the lessons these series gave me in building a story universe, I want to avoid the pitfall of sharing all the information possible as well. I want to leave some things up to the imagination of the audience.
Well, that’s it for my major inspirations on Nash on Highton Heroes. I haven’t shared an exhaustive list; there are plenty of other one-off pieces of media that have inspired me. Not to mention there are new things I’m discovering and feeling inspired by every day. Inspiration isn’t always just other pieces of media, either. Inspiration can come from anywhere: an event in your own life, an experience in your day or just something you saw for a second while walking down the street.
Find out what inspires you and drill down to find out why. It can help you truly tap into it in your own creative instincts, and it’s one of the reasons I wanted to write all these blogs. That, and I just love talking about these amazing series with people.
So please, if you want to chat about superheroes or any of the other inspirations I’ve talked about, leave a comment below or reach out via my social media channels.
One more blog to go and then we’ll be on to 2025! Can you believe how close next year is?
Til next time,
Dean
Space & Lasers 