This is where we start getting toward the more profound end of this story, regardless of the original silliness of intent.
Everything I write is like an avalanche; little pebbles start rolling downhill to the catastrophe that no one thought would happen.
My first prose novel, an illustrated book called An Insupportable Light (available at Lulu), deals with this. Yes, it’s one of those post-apocalyptic novels, but it was written some time ago, and from my own ideas. We were just all thinking of the same thing back then: “We are so gonna get it!”
Anyway, the novel is about my first published character, Stinz (before I drew him as a centaur). Nobody’s the bad guy. In fact, his nemesis is introduced as though he were the hero of the piece. He, after all, only has his own viewpoint, and cannot see why all these tedious peasants don’t get with the program. Stinz just wants to stay out of the mess, but he’s like a Kevin Costner character: a natural leader who gets dragged into the quagmire.
Lots of fun historical details and some of my most old-fashioned, wood-cut-style art. I’ve updated the book, changed some of the antique speech forms, and proofed it again. I hate being a publisher. Somebody get me an agent (mine, or potential agents — they’re like Potential Slayers — they keep dying).
There’s a true story that would make a great movie if the right screenwriter got hold of it. It would not be easy to write, however, because the four antagonists are all heroes. One is somewhat less appealing than the other three, but he was a dying man and knew it. The story is Colin Smith’s The Ship that Hunted Itself. It’s about one of the weirdest naval battles ever: Cap Trafalgar vs Carmania.
They’re all girls who drowned trying to swim to their lovers? I’m sorry, I always have fun with that name! But “Drowning while trying” IS the traditional definition of “heroism.” What’s the modern definition? It seems to be anybody on Our Side who gets hurt. Or anybody at all on our side, even if it’s just a spitball fight.
Hasn’t the hero vs. hero movie’s been made more than once? The one I can think of right now is “The Enemy Below.” Anybody else got some good ones? Just about any HBO historical special will do. Everybody in any situation is a Hero In His Own Mind.