And as we grow, our heroes change. Sometimes for the better, sometimes...not so much. We can often fall into the trap of admiring and emulating someone who we think is heroic, but ends up having feet of clay, or worse, their heroism was only in our minds, because we thought they were cool, and 'cool' equaled 'hero' to us.
But throughout our lives, whether we recognize them or not, we all have our heroes. I'm going to list ten of mine, heroes who have inspired me as a writer and as a person. Some of them are heroes from my childhood; some are heroes from later in life, and some are recent acquaintances. But they all have one thing in common: They are heroes.
But, what is a hero? Well, that depends on each of us. We all have our different views on what a hero is. And tastes change over time; what was once considered heroic becomes problematic as society views these older heroes as racist, sexist, etc. But they are who they are, and they still have those heroic qualities that made people admire them throughout history.
In my case, my heroic tastes run to the noble and great, the mighty who protect the weak. When I played D&D, my favorite class was always the paladin. The knight in shining armor, the epitome of the medieval hero, the man who would stand unflinching before the very hordes of hell and hold the line. Stories of King Arthur and his knights always fascinated me, even to this day. But knights come in different forms, sometimes in a way we don't expect.
So, here are ten of my favorite heroes from movies, literature, comics...and real life.
10. Sir Richard Burton. The only historical figure on my list, Sir Richard Burton is one of the most incredible men who ever lived. He was a soldier, a spy, a polyglot, and a diplomat. He explored the world; he spoke over two dozen languages; he wrote prodigiously about his travels, and gave us two of the most famous (and notorious) collections of writing in English history: The first complete translation of the Arabian Nights, and the Kama Sutra. He is a titan in history, and while the number of people who remember him or his activities is dwindling, he casts a massive shadow over not only history, but literature. For more on that, check out this link at DMR Books' blog: The Literary Afterlife and Legacy of Sir Richard Burton. If a writer were to invent Burton, he would be ridiculed for creating such an over-the-top, larger-than-life character. But he was real, and he was definitely a hero.
9. Luke Skywalker. I've written about Luke before. While everyone I knew was into Han Solo, Luke was my guy. He was a paladin, even though it was called a Jedi Knight. He did what was right, he didn't fall into temptation, and he did something extremely Christian: He redeemed a fallen soul, his father, before he died. Luke Skywalker is a fantastic hero, in more than one sense. We will ignore the fake Luke Skywalker that appeared in the new sequel trilogy, because that was not Luke Skywalker.
8. Honor Harrington. The only woman on my list, she is the star of David Weber's Honorverse series of books. I know that she's a ridiculous Mary Sue, but I still like her. True, you could switch her out with a male character and, other than the romance parts of the story, you'd see nothing different. The thing that I appreciate is her absolute devotion to duty and her determination to uphold the traditions of the Navy and the Queen she serves. She's obviously and blatantly modeled on Horatio Hornblower, with not a little bit of Admiral Nelson thrown in. But there's nothing wrong with that. I've been reading her books since the first one came out, On Basilisk Station, many years ago, and I never get tired of them. Sure, I'll skim over the technical exposition to get to the action. Action is the point, anyway. And the Honor Harrington books have a whole hell of a lot of action. Space battles galore! And sword fights, just because! It's fun, and she is a great hero.
7. Conan. I'm a newcomer to the pulps; I've read a few Conan stories, and yes, I've seen the two Arnold movies (but not the Jason Momoa one). But let's face it: Conan is as larger-than-life as it gets. He's Richard Burton, minus the civilization. He gets around, he explores the world, but he always remains true to himself and his own code. I'm looking forward to reading more of Howard's greatest creation as I progress through my Appendix N list; what I've read so far makes me want to read more. As for the movie version, I prefer the second movie to the first one, which I know makes me insane. But the first one was plodding and as soulless as one of Thulsa Doom's thralls. Plus, I'm not a big fan of the R-rated stuff. The second one was more of a romp, light-hearted and silly at times, but I found it had more action.
6. Spider-Man. I always looked at Peter Parker with a sympathetic eye, because I could most definitely identify with him. Smaller, shy, bookish...Peter's trials and tribulations throughout high school resonated with me. And he was someone that, through extraordinary fortune, because extraordinary himself. But he still acted and felt like a typical high school kid, one who didn't have all the glory and the girls, like so many of us. And the thing I liked about his adventures was that he didn't always win. In fact, he often got his butt kicked the first time around. But he never gave up, he always came back and found a way to come through when it mattered. No wonder he became the most popular comic book hero on the planet for a good chunk of time.
5. King Belgarion. This one is a sentimental favorite. I didn't read Lord of the Rings until I was in high school, and while I enjoyed it (I was among the many who assumed that LotR was the ur-text for Dungeons & Dragons), I found it to be a bit of a slog to get through. The long descriptive passages turned me off, and I found my eyes glazing over as I skimmed ahead looking for some action. But David Eddings' Belgariad was my real introduction to epic fantasy. I got the first two books for my twelfth birthday (along with the first Foundation book, which made LotR look like an Edgar Rice Burroughs book). It took me a couple of tries to get into the story, since it started off rather slow, but once I got into it, I was hooked. I read the entire series as each book came out, and I reread them regularly. Garion, like Peter Parker, was a character I could identify with. Hey, he was roughly my age. And he was on this incredible journey of discovery, not only of the world around him, but of his own heritage and power. To this day, it's still my favorite fantasy series, largely because of Garion and his earnest heroism. He didn't always know what to do, but he did it sincerely.
4. Madmartigan. I wrote about this recently, too, although I focused more on the movie in general and not as much on Madmartigan. But despite his single appearance in this movie, Madmartigan was one of my favorite characters, ever. He wasn't much at the beginning; a thief, a liar and a swindler, but by the end of the movie, he had more than redeemed himself. The moment where he swears himself to Willow's service still gets to me, and his heroic one-man stand against an army (and a dragon) had me riveted. Plus, he got the girl in the end, which is always important.
3. John Carter. The foundation of fantasy and science fiction literature in the twentieth century, John Carter's shadow looms over everything. He debuted in 1912 in All-Story Magazine, and turned a whole generation of boys into readers. Without him, there's no Star Wars, no Superman, and no Dungeons & Dragons. He changed it all, creating a whole new genre of planetary romance, and setting a new standard for a superman with his fighting prowess and incredible leaping. His indomitable spirit and indefatigable endurance make him one of the deadliest warriors ever. And that was E.R. Burroughs' first written work! I've read four Barsoom books so far, and they're all fantastic. In every sense of the word.
2. Captain James T. Kirk. I was actually torn between Kirk and Cpt. Archer, his predecessor as captain of the first Enterprise. Archer's Enterprise is still my favorite of the Star Trek series, with its relatively-primitive technology and that sense of exploration and wonder that was missing from the 24th-century shows. But Kirk is still the man, and will continue to be so. His willingness to do what was right, even in defiance of the almighty Prime Directive, is one of the most important qualities of a hero. And while sometimes his stories got a bit preachy, you could always count on him to jump into the action and save the day. He was the ultimate leader, a man who could inspire everyone around him to greater heights, and he deserves every accolade the Federation ever gave him.
1. Superman. Of course it's Superman. Just as I preferred Luke to Han, there was never a question in my mind of 'Superman or Batman.' Superman just exceeds Batman in every significant way. Sure, Bruce has more money than Fort Knox, has the cool villain gallery and the great toys, but let's face it: Superman would take out Batman in about three seconds. I don't care how much prep time Bats has; Superman moves at near-light speeds, can heat-vision you from a mile away, can hear you coming from even further, and can bounce pretty much anything you throw at him.
But that's not what makes him a hero. He's the greatest hero because although he has the ability to do all that, he holds back. He's the ultimate example of how far we can go as a race, but he's still grounded with his friends, his career, his family, and his humanity. Yes, the most powerful being on the planet is still human where it counts. He's the shining, noble knight who will fly in to save the day, never hesitating to put himself in harm's way to protect the weak. He could rule the world, and no one could prevent it. But that's not what he's all about; he's about inspiring us to be greater than we are. And in the end, that is the most heroic action of them all.
If these are the kinds of heroes you like as well, you might be interested in checking out my first fantasy novel, Arrival, the first book of the Chronicles of Meterra. It's got literal knights in armor doing the right thing, carving their way in a strange new world. Check it out, and support indie publishing.
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