Legends of Windemere

Booster Gold from DC Comics

Booster Gold is a character who didn’t step into being a hero to help others or save the world.  He traveled from the future to use his higher tech and past event knowledge to gain fame and glory.  I got into him later when he took a central role in ’52’ and he was given an episode of Justice League Unlimited.  Something about his cockiness was refreshing after seeing dour vigilantes, noble heroes, and all other types of heroes that you find all over comics.  This reminded me a lot of Luke Callindor in my books who sets off to be a hero to prove that can do it.  There’s an interesting evolution with these self-centered characters who are still trying to do good.  They either break and give up or become true heroes that do it for good.  They can even become villains too.

So, what can you do with such a character and what are some aspects?

1. Give them an ego.  You really need to be full of yourself at some level to be a hero solely for the fame.  Everything this character does is about image and they will be defensive if that image is threatened.  You can have them fight another hero who publicly calls them out, accept any challenge from a villain, or do whatever you think an egomaniac would do.  Yet, you always have to remember that they’ll try to save lives and protect others.  So don’t go callous with them because that makes them more of a villain.
2. Cheating and setting up heroic encounters is perfectly legal for these characters.  They will do whatever it takes to be seen as the hero.  This can include hiring their own villain for a public display, stealing credit from someone else, and lying to be given a chance at something.  Again, these have to be minor infractions instead of something like kidnapping an innocent to save them.  Many times this will backfire and cause this type of hero to retire for a time.
3. Demonstrate how their success or failure affects their personal life.  Do they make friends among other heroes even with their selfish reasons?  Will they leave friends behind when they make it big or drive them away when they fail?  This is what comes from having a character driven by ego alone.  They will gloat in some fashion, which is another problem if they try for a secret identity.  Honestly, I don’t see that working out too well.
4. DO NOT make them useless if you want this hero to be taken seriously by the public.  If you want their story to show them reaching their goal of fame or at least be seen as a real hero then they need to be capable.  Even if it’s a glimmer of what they may be really capable of, give it to them.  Otherwise, you get a hero that is nothing more than a joke and any praise that they get for greatness will seem out of place.  For example, the hero has some technological toys or minor spells that they use to some effectiveness to get positive media attention.
5. Include the media in this story such as interviews, articles, public response to him/her, and whatever else celebrities get.  Remember that this hero is trying to be a celebrity instead of a world saver.
6. Aim for an evolution of some kind to keep the reader interested.  An egomaniac that remains an egomaniac for an entire story can feel like it’s lost something.  Even if they keep that persona, there should be something that changes like with all characters. An evolution of these characters is where a solitary loved one or item can come in handy.  Have them killed, injured, or harmed in some way to shock the hero to the realization that being a hero is no game.  After all, a big part of these characters is that they see being a hero as a game unlike the more serious heroes.  So shocking them out of that realization will force them into a new role.  Still, you can always have them keep the old persona as an emotional shield.

So, anybody have a favorite egomaniac hero?