Dr. Horrible: A Tragic Hero
By: Joey Fox
The Six Qualities of a Tragic Hero
1. Has noble stature and embodies nobility and virtue.
2. Isn't perfect.
3. The hero's downfall is partially his/her own fault.
4. The hero's misfortune isn't entirely deserved.
5. His/her fall isn't entirely loss.
6.The tragedy is sad, but doesn't leave the audience depressed.
Imperfections
- Conflicted with pursuing his goal and his moral standings.
- Is influenced too easily by Penny.
- His inventions don't always work out as he originally planned (i.e. his freeze ray took time to charge and his matter transporter liquefied gold.)
- His forethought isn't great, as shown by his releasing his plans onto the internet and neglecting to think about the fact that his enemies could see his plans.
Downfall
Dr. Horrible had attempted to kill Captain Hammer at a public ceremony. Due to his choice of where to kill him, and the fact that he didn't account for the effects of his freeze ray wearing off, his love Penny died. This makes her death partially his fault.
His misfortune isn't entirely deserved
Although he attempted to murder his nemesis, Penny was innocent. A fitting punishment for his actions would be either a prison of some sort, or his own death. To kill the woman he loved, an innocent woman, instead, is far beyond what he had deserved.
There was gain in his loss.
After he lost the love of his life, the one thing he truly wanted, he was accepted into the Evil League of Evil, which he had been working toward the entire movie.
Nobility: "And by the way it's not about making money, it's about taking money. Destroying the status quo because the status is not quo. The world is a mess and I just need to rule it." - Dr. Horrible
At first glance, Dr. Horrible appears to be just another villain, but upon closer inspection we see that he is doing what he's doing for noble reasons. He believes that humanity has fallen, and it needs someone that can help it back onto its feet. He feels that he is capable of doing this, and thus needs to do whatever it takes to conquer people so that he can help them.