Tropes Media Browse Indexes Forums Videos Ask The Tropers Trope Finder Media Finder Trope Launch Pad Tech Wishlist Reviews Tools
Cut List New Edits Edit Reasons Launches Images List Crowner Activity Un-typed Pages Recent Page Type Changes Changelog
Tips
Creating New Redirects Cross Wicking Tips for Editing Text Formatting Rules Glossary Edit Reasons Handling Spoilers Word Cruft Administrivia FAQ
Tropes HQ
About Us Contact Us Advertise DMCA Notice Privacy Policy Report Bug
Go Ad-Free Changelog
  • Show Spoilers
  • Night Vision
  • Sticky Header
  • Highlight Links
 

Follow TV Tropes

Following

Deconstructed Trope / The DCU

Go To

The DCU

Deconstructed Trope in this franchise.
    open/close all folders 

    Comic Books 

Comic Books

The following have their own pages:

  • Astro City
    • A story deconstructs the Badass Bystander trope. An actor who plays a superhero on TV foils a convenience store robbery with the help of some friends. He becomes a minor celebrity, boosting the show's profile and his career, as his character is pushed into the limelight. However, he quickly realises that since everyone thinks of him as a superhero now, he's in way over his head, especially when actual supervillains come gunning for him. One act of bravery doesn't make you a hero.
    • Cut Lex Luthor a Check.
      • Deconstructed in "The Tarnished Angel". Steeljack points out that all of the villains he knows (including himself) made millions at one point or another, but he finds all of their widows living in run-down apartments. They all put their fortunes into their next crimes and extravagant spending sprees, telling themselves that the next heist would be big enough to retire on. To a degree, this corresponds to real-life criminal psychology. This is even specifically pointed out when he interviews the Chain's boyfriend, who mentions that he kept pushing the Chain to sell his invention (which allows him to transfer his mind into a metal body) for space or deep sea exploration, making millions in a perfectly legit way. The Chain would always shoot down the suggestions and insist he didn't understand.
      • It is also deconstructed in the Eisner Award winning "Show Em' All" issue. It shows that while supervillains COULD get rich from their creations or even by being more clever with their crimes, that's not why they do it, it's mostly the result of a desperate need for validation. Everyone HAS to know how clever and powerful the villain committing the crime is, they'd rather lose outright than get away with no one knowing who did it.
  • Black Canary deconstructs Jerkass Ball. During the Cry for Justice & Rise and Fall storyline, Black Canary (Dinah Lance) abandons her husband Green Arrow I (Oliver Queen) and her adopted son Speedy I/Arsenal/Red Arrow I (Roy Harper). When Oliver is in prison for the murder of Prometheus, she returns her wedding ring and declares their marriage over. When Roy goes back to using heroin after the pain in his right arm becomes too unbearable because of the infection and the horrible prosthetic Cyborg made, she officially considers him a lost cause. It is implied that Dinah was traumatized because of the events of the story and was lashing out at them. In Birds of Prey, it is revealed Dinah harbors a huge amount of guilt for her actions and regrets abandoning them when they needed her the most.
  • The DC Comics Presents revival of the Atomic Knights deconstructs the After the End trope. The original stories are retconned as being part of a simulation that Gardner Grayle is living in, which was originally intended to determine how a soldier would cope with the post-apocalypse, but which Grayle hijacked and turned into a hopeful tale of heroic knights with himself as protagonist. However, once Gardner starts unknowingly affecting the real world and potentially putting it in danger of a real nuclear holocaust, Superman has to get involved. After being taken out of the simulation, Gardner sums up the point of the story by saying that the very idea of humanity being able to endure a nuclear holocaust is a dangerous, unrealistic fantasy and that we should be focusing on trying to prevent the apocalypse, not clinging to impossible stories of mankind's survival like the Atomic Knights. (For reference, this story was published in The '80s.)
  • JLA (1997) deconstructs '90s Anti-Hero. The Ultramarines, superhuman government mooks ordered to fight and take down the JLA. They end up subject to a deconstruction as they partake in the morally questionable strategy of locking down a civilian-inhabited area to fight the Justice League in and eventually undergo a bad Heel Realization when they notice that while they're busy trashing the place trying to take down the League, their enemy was too busy saving people in the crossfire to retaliate. Not only that, but Superman scans their physiologies and discovers that all of their days are numbered due to the experimentation that gave them their powers. They're just as quickly reconstructed as they maintain their anti-hero tendencies by promising Superman that they'll do "what [the League] can't," but whatever they are intending to do, it has Superman and the League's full blessing and the two teams end their confrontation as full allies.
  • Green Arrow
    • Oliver Queen
      • Deconstructs Laser-Guided Karma. During the Cry for Justice & Rise and Fall storyline where Green Arrow I (Oliver Queen) murders Prometheus for destroying Star City and causing the death of his adopted granddaughter Lian Harper. During Oliver's capture and trial, his family washes their hands of him, with his wife Black Canary (Dinah Lance) returning her wedding ring and declaring their marriage over. His adopted son Speedy I/Arsenal/Red Arrow I (Roy Harper) and biological son Green Arrow II (Connor Hawke) tell him they are through with him. It is implied that Oliver killing Prometheus is the last straw, with Oliver constantly cheating on Dinah, his neglect of Roy, and his abandonment of Connor and lying that he did not know he was his son was the main cause of them leaving Oliver. However, before that storyline Oliver Queen works hard to repair his relationships with them, and they had forgiven him before. It is also implied that they had been traumatized by the events of the story, Star City being destroyed for Dinah, the loss of his daughter for Roy, Connor being in a coma and losing and regaining his memories, and with the resentment they have for Oliver despite forgiving him, they all lash out at Oliver.
      • Deconstructs Good Is Not Nice. While Oliver Queen is ultimately a force for good, he has never been particularly nice about it. On his best days, he's rude, arrogant, and is always convinced that his idea is better. On most days, he's a sanctimonious, elitist Jerkass. At his worst, he's a complete asshole. Oliver's personal and professional lives are a wreck because of his behavior and actions. His relationship with his friends and family is strained, with him constantly cheating on his long time girlfriend Black Canary (Dinah Lance), neglecting his sidekick and ward Speedy I/Arsenal/Red Arrow I (Roy Harper), abandoning his biological son Green Arrow II (Connor Hawke) at birth and lying to Connor that he did not know he was his son when they met and Connor became his sidekick. Oliver also doesn't have a great reputation among the superhero community due to his smug tendencies and boorish behavior. While Oliver generally tries and usually manages to do the right thing, there are times were even his teammates at the Justice League barely tolerate him. While he made a genuine effort to be a better boyfriend and husband to his girlfriend/wife Dinah, and reconnect with Roy and Connor while being a better father to them, and was able to repair his relationship with them and become a better superhero, things went crashing down in the Cry for Justice & Rise and Fall storylines where Oliver murders Prometheus for destroying Star City and causing the death of his adopted granddaughter Lian Harper. His family washes their hands of him, with his wife returning her wedding ring and declaring their marriage over and Roy and Connor telling him they are through with him. It's implied that Oliver killing Prometheus is the last straw for his family and his mistreatment of them was the main cause of them leaving him. Oliver accepted that his behavior drove his family away and decided to work on himself to be a better hero and person as he protected Star City by himself.
  • Injustice: Gods Among Us: Of several tropes at play in the DCU that get a soft pass in more idealistic comics.
    • Cardboard Prison: Part of Superman's plan to make a better world is to close down Arkham Asylum and move its inmates to a proper detention center. In a TV interview, he hangs a lampshade on how ridiculous it is that Arkham is still in operation even though its inmates won't reform and can't be properly held there. It's especially pertinent given that the wide-open nature of Arkham's security is what facilitates the plot. Joker certainly wouldn't have been able to do what he did if he were at a more secure facility.
    • Determinator: Both Superman and Batman are this… and it plays out about as well as could be expected. Each man's unswerving dedication to their respective ideals means that virtually no effort is made to reach a compromise apart from Superman offering Batman a chance to join him early on. Much avoidable conflict ensues because of both being excessively stubborn and their supporters likewise become increasingly radicalized as the conflict escalates from stepping on each other's toes to all-out war, with both sides dragging outside characters into a struggle that is, ultimately, a massive game of Chicken between Supes and Bats.
    • Joker Immunity: Like the game, the story plays hardball with this trope, showing exactly how much damage the Joker could really do if he took his eyes off Batman and went after another hero. The point is also made that the Rogues Gallery types should logically be put in more secure facilities if killing them is not an option, because the traditional status quo merely allows them to keep escaping from jail, going back to crime and returning to torment innocent people over and over again.
    • Thou Shalt Not Kill: Despite being one of the staples of superhero characterization in the DCU, the comic goes out of its way to show how lousy this trope really is. As seen above, Superman pulls no punches with his opinion of Batman's handling of the Joker, calling him out on the hypocrisy of getting snotty with him about killing the Joker when countless people have died on his account because he kept giving the clown second chances that he clearly didn't deserve, stopping just short of accusing Bruce of Murder by Inaction and insinuating he holds him partly accountable for what happened to Lois and Metropolis. The Apokoliptian invasion, meanwhile, along with a Villain Has a Point moment from Kalibak, are what convinces Superman to adopt a more lethal Pay Evil unto Evil approach, after Kalibak underlines what little reason villains — especially the likes of Apokoliptians — have to fear superheroes when there are no permanent consequences to face for their crimes, and how they just as often show more concern for the lives of their enemies than the people they're protecting.
    Kalibak: If you're not prepared to take a life — then you can't possibly fight a war!
  • Justice League Dark: The Will They or Won't They?, Opposites Attract, and Working with the Ex dynamics between John and Zatanna are brutally deconstructed. John's attachment is a borderline obsession that no one really approves of. Zatanna is upset and angry whenever John shows up, and never starts to like or even respect him again no matter how many times he saves her life. In issue #30, Zatanna kicks John out of the House of Mysteries and the JLD. John has matured enough to realize that she, and everyone else, would be better off without him.
  • Joker was written with the title character being so monstrously evil as a way to remind fans not to turn Batman's greatest nemesis into a Draco in Leather Pants.
  • Power Girl deconstructs Cut Lex Luthor a Check. Power Girl (In her role as Karen Starr, head of Starrware) holds the patents to several miraculous technologies and heads what seems to be a well-running corporation. However, now that they have engineered these miraculous technologies they need to develop them into some form of marketable product, deal with worried overseeing government agencies and also contend with the almost insurmountable issues of normal office paperwork. Starrware might be on the cutting edge of human technology, and its stock prices will probably go through the roof once it goes public, but right now it needs to find some way to actually gain revenue from its assets. Power Girl herself is struggling to make ends meet until the profits start to come in, and lampshades this when fighting the Blue Snowman, who had developed the technology to create weather and was using this technology to steal jewels not worth half of what her equipment was worth.
  • Superman stories have deconstructed superhero tropes, too:
    • The Death of Superman goes out of its way to deconstruct Darker and Edgier:
      • The first part of the story goes out of its way to highlight Superman's genuine, kind-hearted nature. Notably, in a television interview, he's his usual friendly self... then someone asks a question basically boiling down to "Do you agree this JLA chick's a babe?" Superman rather coldly responds that she's a very capable person and a valuable member of the team, "Next question." Watching this interview is a young man, Mitch Anderson, who thinks Superman is boring and lame, preferring edgy and "cool" Guy Gardner. Mitch learns to change his tune when Superman stalls his battle with Doomsday to rescue Mitch's family from the destruction that very battle caused.
      • Even when Superman finally returns, it's with all the trappings of Darker and Edgier, but without their substance. He has a new black costume with no cape, his powers have been drained so he's no longer the Boring Invincible Hero, which requires him to use big honkin' energy guns against the villains at the climax, and his hair has grown out into a mullet. But he's still the kind, good-hearted, complimentary cape we all know and love, who won't let anything get in the way of protecting people, won't let anything stop him from doing what's right. That's Superman, accept no substitutes.
    • Supergirl Post-Crisis storyline Who is Superwoman? deconstructs two tropes:
      • Clothes Make the Superman. Lucy Lane dons a super-suit which replicates the powers of several alien races thanks to a combination of magic and technology, and with which she attempts to kill Supergirl. Though, it turns out that a super-suit isn't enough to take down an experienced, prepared meta with natural powers and a volatile temper. Supergirl swiftly guesses what is Superwoman's power's source, and proceeds to easily -and furiously- rip her costume off, meaning Lucy is now helpless against someone who can bench-press a whale. And worst of all, her suit being damaged unleashes the magic energies woven into it, destroying Lucy's body.
      • "Well Done, Son" Guy: Superwoman commits abhorrent crimes in order to earn her genocidal and xenophobic father's approval. As long as she gets Sam Lane's attention and love, Lucy doesn't care who gets hurt or killed.
    • The Untold Story of Argo City deconstructs Unfinished, Untested, Used Anyway. Supergirl wants to use an experimental raygun to send her into a parallel dimension, despite of it being an untested prototype. Dismissing her android's warnings about the inherent dangers of using untested devices, Kara orders the robot to use the teleporting gun on her. Desperate, the android shoots the raygun at another android, whose molecular structure falls apart immediately, thus proving its point to its horrified mistress.
    • "Many Happy Returns" deconstructs Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?. Linda wants to save Kara's life by replacing her and fighting the Anti-Monitor in her stead. Unfortunately, Kara can fight universe-eating Eldritch Abominations because she is all but a Physical God, whereas Linda is a human being, albeit empowered. She has exactly zero chances to hurt the devourer of the Multiverse, and no amount of determination, willpower, human spirit or preparation time will change that. Hence, Kara has to go back to her own time to meet her eventual fate, whereas Linda's failure has left her heartbroken.
  • Teen Titans deconstructs Even Evil Can Be Loved as this trope causes nothing but grief for Roy and Lian Harper because of Cheshire, Roy's ex-girlfriend and Lian's mom. Roy fell in love with Cheshire while he was investigating her for the C.B.I., leaving her because he couldn't bring himself to turn her in. Neither of them knew at the time she was pregnant with their daughter. Roy and Lian both love Cheshire to varying degrees, but it's a very strained type of love because she's an unrepentant psychopath and responsible for destroying an entire country with a nuclear weapon because she felt like it. So they know Cheshire's a horrible person, but she's still Lian's mom and Roy doesn't want Lian to endure having a mother who'll spend the rest of her life locked away in prison (though father and daughter both know she deserves it). The worst part is the mounting evidence Cheshire doesn't love either of them and manipulates their emotions to keep them under her control.

    Films 

Films

  • DC Extended Universe:
    • Man of Steel:
      • The film deconstructs Nigh-Invulnerable by showing that those with his gift still adhere to the laws of physics. For example, when Superman and his two Kryptonian adversaries were hit by Gatling guns, they followed the laws of conservation of energy and mass, and the bullets knocked them back a distance, but they were still durable enough to come out relatively unscathed. Also, when Superman held up a falling oil derrick, he was strong enough to hold it and durable enough to not be crushed but the steel floor wasn't, thus he fell through.
      • It also deconstructs Invincible Hero. There's nothing stopping the villains from being invincible as well, especially since they're of the same super-powered, invincible species. Plus, put an invincible hero and an invincible villain against each other, you have a fair fight, more or less.
    • SHAZAM! (2019):
      • Billy is determined to reunite with his missing mother, going great lengths to find her while getting in trouble with the law and continually running away from foster families who had happily taken him in. He does find her ... but he becomes disappointed with the reunion he had expected to have, as his mother reveals she had knowingly abandoned him when he was three, due to the stress of being a single mother with no support. And despite being found by her lost son, she shows him zero affection and makes no attempt to want to be a part of his life now.
      • It also deconstructs Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You. Marilyn claimed she loved Billy and only abandoned him because she wanted the best for him. But it's telling that Marilyn coldly brushed off any physical affection from Billy and didn't properly hand custody over to the state (where Marilyn could visit Billy anytime), revealing Marilyn cared more about unburdening themselves as a parent than Billy's wellbeing. ]]
      • It also deconstructs the Only the Pure of Heart trope. Shazam has vowed to make sure that his successor will be pure of heart after the last champion turned evil, but he's completely unable to find a human who's pure-hearted enough to meet his standards even after decades of testing countless children. Not only that, but one of these children was so emotionally devastated by basically being told by Shazam that he wasn't a good enough person that he grew up to be the embittered villain Silvana who tells Shazam that he'll never find someone pure of heart and also that telling a vulnerable, impressionable child that they're not worthy enough to be special is needlessly cruel. Ultimately, Shazam is forced to settle for the best candidate he has, Billy, who isn't pure of heart and initially uses his newly-acquired powers in selfish ways but eventually develops into a hero who proves to be worthy of his powers.
  • The Dark Knight Rises deconstructs Not Afraid to Die. It's noted Bruce doesn't fear death, and this is precisely why he can't escape the Pit the first two times he tries. He only manages to escape the third time by harnessing his fear of dying in the Pit, helpless to save Gotham, said fear spurring him to succeed. The blind prisoner even explains to Bruce at length why lacking the fear of death isn't a strength as he assumes.
    Blind Prisoner: How can you move faster than possible, fight longer than possible, without the most powerful impulse of the spirit: the fear of death?

    Live-Action TV 

Live-Action TV

  • Arrowverse
    • Both the two shows below take apart Token Evil Teammate:
    • Season three of The Flash (2014) deconstructs the Close-Enough Timeline trope. In the throes of depression following his father's murder, Barry goes back in time and saves his mother from death, creating the Flashpoint timeline. Eventually he realizes his mistake and undoes his revision of the timeline. However, while Barry is relatively unaffected by the timeline changes, they are devastating to the people around him: Joe and Iris have a wedge driven between them, Cisco's older brother is dead in a hit-and-run, Caitlin is being taken over by Killer Frost, John Diggle's daughter is erased from existence and replaced with a son, and two villains (the Dominators and Savitar) enter the picture as a direct result of Barry's interference with time.

    Video Games 

Video Games

  • The pros and cons of Thou Shalt Not Kill and Pay Evil unto Evil are explored in both Injustice: Gods Among Us and Injustice 2. One of the bigger reasons why Superman and Batman have come to blows over the years is the argument of when and where is breaking the no-kill rule beneficial and nobody finding a middle ground... or backing down. Both sides even jab Armor Piercing Questions at each other about the policies they adhere to post-Metropolis.
    • Batman ardently sticks to not killing, aware that if he does so in the name of justice, he's no better than the criminals he just killed, but couldn't fix the Joker's Karma Houdini problem, which backfired horribly when the Monster Clown caused Superman's Start of Darkness in the first game by tricking him into killing his own wife and nuking Metropolis. Superman frequently chides him for not killing those who deserve to die for the greater good even when he desires to do so.
    • Likewise, Superman no longer believes in the no-kill rule and thinks only Pay Evil unto Evil matters post-Metropolis, especially with villains like the Joker or Brainiac, but Batman still believes that it's an easy path to Jumping Off the Slippery Slope, something which brought out the worst in Superman. In Brainiac's case, while Superman wants to kill the Coluan in revenge for blowing up Krypton, Batman warns they need to keep Brainiac alive if they hope to restore all of the cities.

    Western Animation 

Western Animation

The following have their own pages:

  • Harley Quinn (2019)
    • Harley Quinn
      • Deconstructs All Girls Want Bad Boys. Harley Quinn's initially attracted to the Joker because of his dangerous and unique aesthetic, but she eventually finds out that his violent and uncaring nature extends to her as well.
      • Deconstructs Chaotic Stupid. Having taken down the Joker and Gotham being left in ruins, Harley Quinn has the perfect chance to rise up as the top villain and completely take control of the city. Instead, she chooses to indulge in the Apocalypse Anarchy and outright refuses to bring back organized crime because she loathes any form of order. The result is that the Injustice League traps her in ice when she refuses to share rulership over Gotham with them and Harley ends up regretting not taking the city for herself sooner. It's also part of the reasoning why Ivy rejects Harley's advances; she loves being friends with Harley, but Harley's too wild and short-sighted for a long term relationship.
    • Deconstructs But for Me, It Was Tuesday. The Penguin kills employees so often that when a transformed Clayface replaces the real waiter, he instantly believes the story that he killed Jeffery despite knowing the guy by name and Clayface's nervous hesitation. His casual dismissal that it " Does sound like [me]" shows how he can't fact check something that should be important.
    • Deconstructs Card-Carrying Villain. Queen of Fables (Tsaritsa) uses being a bad guy as an excuse to do horrible actions and, thanks to her "villains don't give a fuck" mentality, feels absolutely no remorse for any of it. What's worse, she seems to feel that this level of extremism is the only way to make it as a villain.
  • DC Animated Universe
    • Justice League Unlimited
      • The final season deconstructs Hidden Agenda Villain with Gorilla Grodd, who assembles the supervillains of the DCAU into an effective coalition and gathers resources for his Evil Plan, which is to turn all people on Earth into gorillas. Lex Luthor points out the silliness in such plan, and no one in the Secret Society bats an eyelash when Lex shoots Grodd in the face and usurps leadership.
      • Black Canary rarely uses her Canary Cry in this show, and the few times she attempts a sustained Cry, it leaves her exhausted and out of breath. Screaming puts a lot of stress on a person's lungs and vocal cords. It is for this reason that Canary Fights Like a Normal, instead.
    • Static Shock: deconstructs Because You Were Nice to Me. Eddie Felson met Daisy Watkins at science summer camp. He developed a crush on her because she was the only person at the camp that was kind to him. However his crush on her become an unhealthy obsession, with him stalking her and stealing luxury items to give to her. What made it worse was it was implied from Daisy's reaction to seeing him again and from the way she talked about him is that she did not like him even as a friend and whatever kindness she ever showed him was out of pity.
  • Teen Titans (2003)
    • "Apprentice (Part 1)" deconstructs Just Between You and Me. It looks like Slade suffers a bad case of Bond Villain Stupidity when he randomly announces to the Titans his plans of detonating a Chronotron bomb, even giving them time to save the day. It turns out Slade is fully aware of Robin's paranoiac obsession with catching him and the Titans' Chronic Hero Syndrome. Unfortunately the heroes bite the bait and the time bomb turns out to be a fake, leading to them being infected with deadly nanobots, while Robin is forced to become his apprentice if he doesn't want to watch his teammates suffer a gruesome death.
    • "The Beast Within" deconstructs Dude, Where's My Respect?. It's clearly shown during the fight against Adonis that Beast Boy has deep anger issues because of the lack of appreciation from the other Titans, and during the fight all of his repressed anger goes out and he totally curb stomps Adonis, much to the shock of the other Titans. His anger only gets worse until he (apparantly) puts Raven into a coma.
    • "TROQ" deconstructs Noble Bigot. Barring Starfire, Val-Yor genuinely liked the other Titans and is trying to stop an evil alien race, but that doesn't stop them from losing respect for him once they realize his racism. Unlike in every other Very Special Episode where the racist's life is saved by a member of the group they are prejudiced against, learns the error of their ways and changes for the better, Starfire saving his life didn't make Val-Yor any less of a racist than he was at the start of the episode.
    • "Stranded" deconstructs She Is Not My Girlfriend, and the Funny Foreigner. Starfire is so upset at Robin's mixed signals that she is unable to use her emotion-driven powers. He assumes she doesn't understand what a girlfriend is, but she demonstrates that she understands perfectly.
    • "Lightspeed" deconstructs Bad Powers, Bad People. Jinx explains to Kid Flash that when you're walking bad luck, it's a lot easier to be a villain than a hero because others will think you're a villain anyway.
  • Young Justice (2010) deconstructs the Kid Hero into Child Soldiers by showing just how brutal trying to fight the same battles that the big league heroes could be. In one episode the team was left so traumatized that they had to get counseling just to deal with the ordeal they have went through during a botched training simulation. Then come the timeskip we see the majority of the group being reduced to nothing more than shell shocked veterans and unlike the comics death is played very straight as several members of the team actually die in field missions. Greg sends the message loud and clear that saving the world and fighting bad guys isn't all fun and games.

Previous

Index

Next

  • Show Spoilers
  • Night Vision
  • Sticky Header
  • Wide Load

Important Links

Ask The Tropers Trope Finder Media Finder Trope Launch Pad Tech Wishlist Reviews Go Ad Free!
Crucial Browsing
Resources
Top