I’ve come to the conclusion that I love a dark hero. Last night I got to watch Heroes and 24 back to back. In Heroes we got to see how the characters were in the future after a terrible explosion kills half of New York city. Two of the nicest characters had turned very dark, experience giving them an edge. And as much as I loved them already, this made me like them more. I’m not entirely sure what that says about me. 
This was followed up by 24, where Jack had to save Audrey who’d been tortured and was barely responsive. Her father had a great line at the end of the episode.
“You’re cursed, Jack. Everything you touch dies.”
My heart broke for him…
As a reader, there is something very appealing about the dark, wounded hero. There is something very appealing about a man who’d risk his life for a cause, or the people he loves without any thought for his own safety. But there has to be a balance. I liked the fact that Jack is being shown more as a person this season. He’s getting upset, crying, generally actually feeling all of the chaos in his life. I don’t want all of the hardness, without the gooey center.
The challenge for me as a writer is to find that balance. I tend to write darker heroes. I like to explore what that type of character will do in certain situations. I also like to see what kind of woman that hero needs to balance them. Some are just as dark and together they find a balance. Others are more nurturing.
What do you think of the dark hero?
I don’t care as much for dark heroes.. I’m more of a pure-hearted-Superman-type girl.
But Peter was still hot last night. That’s all I have to say. LOL
He sure was! It’s the scowl and the intense eyes I think.
I never thought i was, until I read the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by JR Ward. I can now answer a definitive YES – dark heroes TOTALLY do it for me. But I’d have NO idea how to write one…
Mmm…. dark heroes.
Done well, they’re my absolute favorite, especially in romance when a writer hits that Beauty and the Beast groove. I never get tired of that theme.
The dark hero is always cooler, not only because they are usually sexier. But their is always the thought/fear that their good side won’t win out, which makes for much better story lines
OMG I just read on Margaret Moore’s website that the mole in 24 last night was Michael Shanks! I didn’t recognize him at all!!
*hangs her head in shame*
And I call myself a Stargate fan…
I don’t watch either show (I wanted to watch Heroes but missed last Season, and it doesn’t make much sense now), but I love dark heroes. My all-time favorite character is Riddick, the anti-hero of Pitch Black. Of course, he’s not “heroic” at all, not in the true sense, but I still love him. My favorite character I’ve written is an assassin with a lot of blood on his hands. Finding the balance is tricky!!
I haven’t seen Heroes or 24 but they sound like really interesting shows, Christine. I also enjoy reading stories with dark characters. I like creating them too but it’s a bit of a balancing act trying to fit them into the romantic comedies I write. If it’s not done just right it comes off sounding out-of-place and ridiculous. One of my contracted books has an ancient, dark warrior being catapulted into the present and into the home of a modern, scatterbrained woman. I had fun with it and the balance in that story worked perfectly.
Oh Daisy that sounds awesome! I can’t wait to read it.
“You’re cursed, Jack. Everything you touch dies.”
Hmmm…so if I show up at a party and Jack and Jessica Fletcher from “Murder She Wrote” were there, I’d beat feet in a hurry.
I like dark heroes, but romance writers tend to soften them up. I want their HEA’s to be tinged with doubt.
Love the dark hero. Love him.
Mmmm, love the bad boy, who is a close cousin of the dark hero. =)
One of my all time favorite dark heroes is Harmon Bass from Dana Ransom’s (a.k.a Lauren Giddings, a.k.a Nancy Gideon, a.k.a Rosalyn West) Temptation’s Trail. The book was released in 1994 and I return to it over and over for the emotional impact it has.