Any point in secret identities?

[Nerys Myk]

I don't see how just telling a person who you are close to that you are superhero would instantly put their life at risk. I'm sure there are probably plenty of undercover cops, Seal Team members, or CIA operatives who manage to have friends and families without them getting killed.

Telling Lois is one thing. Telling the entire world is another. OTOH, Karen Page knew that Matt Murdock was Daredevil. IIRC, that didn't turn out too well for several people.

As I've said, secret identities are a plot device used to ramp up the drama ( or comedy in some cases). They're only as bad or good as the plots they're used in.

 

[Anwar]

Telling Lois is one thing. Telling the entire world is another. OTOH, Karen Page knew that Matt Murdock was Daredevil. IIRC, that didn't turn out too well for several people.

As I've said, secret identities are a plot device used to ramp up the drama ( or comedy in some cases). They're only as bad or good as the plots they're used in.

The lengths the heroes sometimes go to in order to maintain them can downright crazy though.

Look at Superman II, Superman decides that he simply can't trust Lois with continued knowledge of who he is so he erases her memory with some Super-Kiss power.

He violates her mind without her permission. The woman he's supposed to be in love with.

And he CONTINUES to try and romance her afterwards?!

 

[Imaus]

I don't think it's wholly impossible to maintain a secret or separate identity in this day and age. The thing is that the government probably knows who you are. Criminals might track you a bit. But if you're dealing with JUST criminals, and have no qualms about the government, simple privacy precautions can go a long way. Keeping a small net footprint and scouting out the area long beforehand and getting into the right jobs to know where stuff is might help (and thus fuel new storylines?)

The government probably knows who Tommy Wiseau truly is. We don't. That's my 2c.

 

[Nerys Myk]

The lengths the heroes sometimes go to in order to maintain them can downright crazy though.

Look at Superman II, Superman decides that he simply can't trust Lois with continued knowledge of who he is so he erases her memory with some Super-Kiss power.

He violates her mind without her permission. The woman he's supposed to be in love with.

And he CONTINUES to try and romance her afterwards?!

That's just bad writing.

 

[Jayson1]

You know It just occurred to me is were talking about secret identities but all of us sort of have one when on the internet in terms of personal info. Perhaps keeping thigs secret also help in that you don't have things like groppies camped out at Wayne Manson hoping to glimpse Batman or making all your insurance go up because who wants to sale car insurance to someone you might have to pay out if the car is used in a caper. Forget about poor Peter Parker when in high school or working for cheap at the Daily Bugel getting health insurance if people know he is Spiderman. Also people can search your history and find out some mistake you made in the past and tarnish the heroes reputation. Maybe people don't like Spiderman if they find out he let the robber get away who would eventually kill his Uncle Ben.


Jason

 

[suarezguy]

I think the Power Rangers having to keep their identities secret, was pretty much just applying/re-wording or emphasizing the rule about not using their powers for personal gain, that they also shouldn't use their roles at all for any personal glory or advantage to themselves.

In general, having to keep a secret identity and thus live two lives does allow heroes to have a real civilian life of its own and I think more kinds of stories and different types of interactions with more characters.

 

[Christopher]

I think the Power Rangers having to keep their identities secret, was pretty much just applying/re-wording or emphasizing the rule about not using their powers for personal gain, that they also shouldn't use their roles at all for any personal glory or advantage to themselves.

Sure, but then you have to wonder why, if the villains know their identities, they don't just blow up their houses while they're asleep. Although there were occasional episodes where the villains kidnapped the Rangers' families or put spells on them or something. Which just underlines the uselessness of a secret identity that's known only to your enemies.

 

[Silvercrest]

He violates her mind without her permission. The woman he's supposed to be in love with.

And he CONTINUES to try and romance her afterwards?!

One wonders where he expects the relationship to go. It appears he's just messing with her.

 

[Guy Gardener]

The lengths the heroes sometimes go to in order to maintain them can downright crazy though.

Look at Superman II, Superman decides that he simply can't trust Lois with continued knowledge of who he is so he erases her memory with some Super-Kiss power.

He violates her mind without her permission. The woman he's supposed to be in love with.

And he CONTINUES to try and romance her afterwards?!

Movie 3 and 4 are Lois light.

Mariel Hemingway and Annette O'Tool were the love interests.

 

[Anwar]

Movie 3 and 4 are Lois light.

Mariel Hemingway and Annette O'Tool were the love interests.

And ironically, because they were both attracted to Clark first (or only Clark), they came off as better love interests for it!

 

[Guy Gardener]

And ironically, because they were both attracted to Clark first (or only Clark), they came off as better love interests for it!

If his enemies attacked, murdering Lacy would have been no big huff, but Lana had a cute kid that made Clark feel paternal and gooey. So Clark was really all over the place when securing the safety of his potential mates.

I feel like Lois found out all the time, and then he hypnotizes her, or turns back time.

50 first super dates.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

I don't see how just telling a person who you are close to that you are superhero would instantly put their life at risk. I'm sure there are probably plenty of undercover cops, Seal Team members, or CIA operatives who manage to have friends and families without them getting killed.

It is self-serving and psychologically abusive to tell a civilian you're a superhero, and in some upside down way, expect them to just take it all in without being stressed to no end when the hero is facing superpowered threats every day. Or, if the civilian cannot take it, they might try to involve themselves, or shoot their mouth off to anyone else in a period of high stress and/or weakness. It serves no purpose for the civilian to know, but that's not the main issue. The main issue is that the superhero's life is dangerous beyond the comprehension of any civilian, and in two well-known examples, when the hero's life was not completely secret, two people were murdered.


As for your cop/Seal Team reference--it does not work that way; I have a long family line at different levels of the military, and the one thing they will tell you up front (which has been understood for generations) is that they do not share their lives/work with family or other civilians, and even after their career comes to a close, they are very selective about what they will say--if anything. They live the textbook definition of separate or dual lives due to the dangerous and sensitive nature of their careers. That, and as said of superheroes, its not the civilians' business to know that which does not concern them.

Above all else, its weak, high-school level type of fan fiction to have everyone in on the hero's secret as if its something anyone can just absorb, roll with it, and there are no consequences.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Nope. Thor was secretly Don Blake. Ant Man and the Wasp were secretly Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne. Even Banner wasn't known to be Hulk at that stage.

You would think a hardcore Marvel fan would have known that.

 

[Nerys Myk]

As for your cop/Seal Team reference--it does not work that way; I have a long family line at different levels of the military, and the one thing they will tell you up front (which has been understood for generations) is that they do not share their lives/work with family or other civilians, and even after their career comes to a close, they are very selective about what they will say--if anything. They live the textbook definition of separate or dual lives due to the dangerous and sensitive nature of their careers. That, and as said of superheroes, its not the civilians' business to know that which does not concern them.

I still don't know exactly what my father did in the military. All I know it was something to do with intelligence gathering.

 

[JD]

But did you know he was in the military?

Sure, but then you have to wonder why, if the villains know their identities, they don't just blow up their houses while they're asleep. Although there were occasional episodes where the villains kidnapped the Rangers' families or put spells on them or something. Which just underlines the uselessness of a secret identity that's known only to your enemies.

That seems kind of backwards to me, the bad guys are the one major group that you really don't want to know your civilian identity.

It is self-serving and psychologically abusive to tell a civilian you're a superhero, and in some upside down way, expect them to just take it all in without being stressed to no end when the hero is facing superpowered threats every day. Or, if the civilian cannot take it, they might try to involve themselves, or shoot their mouth off to anyone else in a period of high stress and/or weakness. It serves no purpose for the civilian to know, but that's not the main issue. The main issue is that the superhero's life is dangerous beyond the comprehension of any civilian, and in two well-known examples, when the hero's life was not completely secret, two people were murdered.


As for your cop/Seal Team reference--it does not work that way; I have a long family line at different levels of the military, and the one thing they will tell you up front (which has been understood for generations) is that they do not share their lives/work with family or other civilians, and even after their career comes to a close, they are very selective about what they will say--if anything. They live the textbook definition of separate or dual lives due to the dangerous and sensitive nature of their careers. That, and as said of superheroes, its not the civilians' business to know that which does not concern them.

Above all else, its weak, high-school level type of fan fiction to have everyone in on the hero's secret as if its something anyone can just absorb, roll with it, and there are no consequences.

But with undercover cops and groups like Seal Team 6, the people close to them know that they are an undercover cop or a member of a Seal Team. When they are going to take part in an operation, they don't lie to them and just say they are working in an office and have to go to a conference.
That is the kind of thing I'm talking about here, I'm not saying that they should share every detail of what they're doing, but they at least deserve to not be lied to every time the hero is going out to fight crime.

 

[Nerys Myk]

But did you know he was in the military?

The uniform was a dead give away.

 

[Anwar]

It is self-serving and psychologically abusive to tell a civilian you're a superhero, and in some upside down way, expect them to just take it all in without being stressed to no end when the hero is facing superpowered threats every day.

People married to Cops and Military Operatives still get told they ARE married to Cops/Military Operatives and aren't kept 100% in the dark. Even if they aren't told anything they're told something.

Or, if the civilian cannot take it, they might try to involve themselves, or shoot their mouth off to anyone else in a period of high stress and/or weakness. It serves no purpose for the civilian to know, but that's not the main issue. The main issue is that the superhero's life is dangerous beyond the comprehension of any civilian, and in two well-known examples, when the hero's life was not completely secret, two people were murdered

Those people died because the villain knew and the civilians didn't take better precautions because THEY didn't know they'd be in danger.

As for your cop/Seal Team reference--it does not work that way; I have a long family line at different levels of the military, and the one thing they will tell you up front (which has been understood for generations) is that they do not share their lives/work with family or other civilians

But they still told their loved ones they WERE involved in the military. They didn't tell them they were TV Repairmen while they were off doing secret jobs.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Wrong.

 

[Anwar]

Wrong.

 

[YLu]

The main issue is that the superhero's life is dangerous beyond the comprehension of any civilian, and in two well-known examples, when the hero's life was not completely secret, two people were murdered.

Because the writers chose to make it happen that way. Other times, the writers choose to NOT have it cause such problems (Alicia Masters, Tom Kamalku, Alfred (who was eventually made ex-MI6 but only decades into his existence), Superman's parents, Pete Ross (pre-Crisis), Lana Lang (post-Crisis), Luke Cage's supporting cast, etc.)... and in those cases, far from crying out about the sheer selfishness or ludicrousness of the scenario, fans generally had no problems accepting it. Because it made for interesting stories.