C. David Cole writes...

Hi Mr. Weisman

When writing a series, especially a superhero series, there usually are a set of recurring villains that the hero(es) face off against.

My question is once you've introduced a villain for the first time, how do you decide when or if you'll bring a villain back for another episode/issue?

Is it random? Do you say to yourself "I haven't seen this character in a while so I'm bringing him/her back"?

Or

Is it more situational/theme-oriented? Do you say to yourself "This is the place my hero(es) are in right now and this is the message I want to convey"?

I'll use Batman as an example of what I mean by situational/theme-oriented. Let's say Batman has just lost a loved one, and since Batman is dealing with lost you use this as a perfect opportunity to introduce Mr. Freeze, a villain who is also dealing with the lost of a loved one. Mr. Freeze is thematically tied to the idea of isolation and lost; but you can't keep killing Batman's love ones just to bring Mr. Freeze back, so what do you do?

C. David Cole writes...

Hi Mr. Weisman

I was re-watching Gargoyles and I was looking at how you give your characters' arcs: Goliath learning to trust humans again; the Manhattan clan expanding their philosophy of protecting the castle from the physical castle to the city itself.

I recently read an article by another writing about a type of character she called the mysterious stranger. This character is basically a character that doesn't change. I've read that characters like James Bond have been described as such a character. These type of characters sometimes change the lives of other characters in story but by the end of the story they are still the same character they were at the beginning.

A lot of superheroes are said to be these type of characters. One writer said that Batman shouldn't become happy, Bruce Banner shouldn't learn to control his anger, and the Hulk shouldn't become intelligent (though it has been done), or these characters lose what makes them who they are.

I wondering what are your thoughts on protagonist that don't change.

Can characters be kept the same after going through major events and still seem believable?

Or

Is character change necessary to make believable characters?