info
Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss
MISC: Godling Reboot??
24 views
Skip to first unread message
jvdste...@gmail.com
Jul 19, 2013, 2:32:24 PM7/19/13
to
Any of you remember my Godling stories? I'm thinking about doing a reboot.
The old version:
Professor Quentin Alexander is a mythology professor. The Greek gods gift him the ability to change into the superhero Godling and channel ALL their powers (but only one at a time). This way they want people to believe in them again, so they regain more power. He is in love with professor Monica Sawyer who is in a relationship with a cop, Sgt Wade Hudson. The main villain of the first big arc was Master Destiny who wielded the spear of destiny.
I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too boring a character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also, Godling lived in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing bothering me was that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the powers he could channel.
For the reboot I want to:
Have an actor become Godling. The gods think an actor would be great at playing their hero. There are many other superheroes and the Greek gods think they have kind of taken their place, so with their powers and influence waning the choose an actor to be kind of a prophet. This actor has an ex-wife (an actress as well), a snarky agent and the fast life of a movie star. He will have to learn to become a hero, meanwhile making sure Godling gets a lot of publicity and becomes more popular than the existing heroes, this way getting the Greek gods more powerful
Not sure about the villains, but I think I will not do a Master Destiny style villain pulling all the strings. ALSO GOdling can still use one power at a time but only (?)has invulnerability, strength, speed, flight, throwing lightning bolts, engineering skills, being able to look a minute in the future and healing powers.
What do you all think about this reboot?
best
Jochem
http://godling.blogspot.com
The old version:
Professor Quentin Alexander is a mythology professor. The Greek gods gift him the ability to change into the superhero Godling and channel ALL their powers (but only one at a time). This way they want people to believe in them again, so they regain more power. He is in love with professor Monica Sawyer who is in a relationship with a cop, Sgt Wade Hudson. The main villain of the first big arc was Master Destiny who wielded the spear of destiny.
I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too boring a character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also, Godling lived in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing bothering me was that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the powers he could channel.
For the reboot I want to:
Have an actor become Godling. The gods think an actor would be great at playing their hero. There are many other superheroes and the Greek gods think they have kind of taken their place, so with their powers and influence waning the choose an actor to be kind of a prophet. This actor has an ex-wife (an actress as well), a snarky agent and the fast life of a movie star. He will have to learn to become a hero, meanwhile making sure Godling gets a lot of publicity and becomes more popular than the existing heroes, this way getting the Greek gods more powerful
Not sure about the villains, but I think I will not do a Master Destiny style villain pulling all the strings. ALSO GOdling can still use one power at a time but only (?)has invulnerability, strength, speed, flight, throwing lightning bolts, engineering skills, being able to look a minute in the future and healing powers.
What do you all think about this reboot?
best
Jochem
http://godling.blogspot.com
Tom Russell
Jul 19, 2013, 8:26:38 PM7/19/13
to
Anything that gives us more Godling to read is a good thing!
I personally have an extreme aversion to stories about the fast-lane-life-of-an-actor. That could just be my own personal taste, but it could also be that it undercuts some of the "wish fulfillment" aspect of the superhero. There's something tremendously appealing about someone who is more-or-less anonymous in his civilian life but famous and beloved in his superhero persona; all that gets lost when you have a character who is famous in both identities. At the same time, the idea of someone who, due to his civilian experience, knows how to garner publicity for his costumed persona is pretty neat. I'd almost like to see an agent/manager/twitter-account-handler to the stars take on the super-heroic role.
But that's just me, of course, my own personal taste, so take it with a grain of salt. You gotta be true to what fires you up and excites you as the author.
Regarding the powers: I dunno if the previous Godling was overpowered necessarily. The one-at-a-time rule was a really neat way to limit things while opening up a lot of possibilities for cool moments and stories. And that being said, I don't think "overpowered" is necessarily a bad thing. One could argue that Superman, Green Lantern, or the Flash are overpowered-- speedsters have an especially versatile set of gimmicks and solutions-to-impossible-problems within one elegant superpower-- but that's only if the stories are about the brute application of those powers without imagination or personality. The best stories for those characters have imagination and personality to spare. I think your stories had the same qualities of imagination, personality, and wonder-- they weren't about the powers but the things those powers let you do as a writer.
I personally have an extreme aversion to stories about the fast-lane-life-of-an-actor. That could just be my own personal taste, but it could also be that it undercuts some of the "wish fulfillment" aspect of the superhero. There's something tremendously appealing about someone who is more-or-less anonymous in his civilian life but famous and beloved in his superhero persona; all that gets lost when you have a character who is famous in both identities. At the same time, the idea of someone who, due to his civilian experience, knows how to garner publicity for his costumed persona is pretty neat. I'd almost like to see an agent/manager/twitter-account-handler to the stars take on the super-heroic role.
But that's just me, of course, my own personal taste, so take it with a grain of salt. You gotta be true to what fires you up and excites you as the author.
Regarding the powers: I dunno if the previous Godling was overpowered necessarily. The one-at-a-time rule was a really neat way to limit things while opening up a lot of possibilities for cool moments and stories. And that being said, I don't think "overpowered" is necessarily a bad thing. One could argue that Superman, Green Lantern, or the Flash are overpowered-- speedsters have an especially versatile set of gimmicks and solutions-to-impossible-problems within one elegant superpower-- but that's only if the stories are about the brute application of those powers without imagination or personality. The best stories for those characters have imagination and personality to spare. I think your stories had the same qualities of imagination, personality, and wonder-- they weren't about the powers but the things those powers let you do as a writer.
Scott Eiler
Jul 19, 2013, 10:49:27 PM7/19/13
to
On 7/19/2013 11:32 AM, jvdste...@gmail.com wrote:
>
> I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too
> boring a character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also,
> Godling lived in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing
> bothering me was that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the
> powers he could channel.
Whatever you think about the present Godling, you can bet his gods think
>
> I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too
> boring a character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also,
> Godling lived in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing
> bothering me was that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the
> powers he could channel.
that too. So, I'm all in favor of a reboot... but I suggest, keep it in
continuity! Keep the previous history, but transfer the Godling powers
to your new host. If you need to adjust the population of other heroes
and villains, the gods can probably tweak the natural forces
accordingly. And this sponsorship dilemma will help your storyline move
away from beating up on villains like clockwork every episode.
--
(signed) Scott Eiler 8{D> -------- http://www.eilertech.com/ ---------
When you *are* the leader... whatever goes wrong... whether you did it
or not... *you* are held responsible. - Barack Obama
I know. - Archie Andrews
- from Archie #617, March 2011, scripted by Alex Simmons.
Andrew Perron
Jul 20, 2013, 4:38:12 AM7/20/13
to
On Fri, 19 Jul 2013 18:32:24 +0000 (UTC), jvdste...@gmail.com wrote:
> I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too boring a
> character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also, Godling lived
> in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing bothering me was
> that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the powers he could
> channel.
Hmmmmm. Personally, I liked that he was inspiring other heroes. And
> I want to do a reboot because I think Quentin might be a bit too boring a
> character and the love triangle thing a bit too stale. Also, Godling lived
> in a world with just a few heroes in them. Another thing bothering me was
> that Godling might be a bit too powerful with all the powers he could
> channel.
honestly, I like the professor better than the movie star - seems more
inspiring to me, more in-line with the Golden Age-y values you're playing
with here.
That said, if you're having trouble with ideas and feeling like the series
is getting stale, why not introduce some of these ideas directly into it?
Or you could have a rebooted Godling from an alternate universe show up! Or
just do what you want, I'm not the boss of you
Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, y'know?
Andrew Perron
Jul 20, 2013, 9:29:48 PM7/20/13
to
On Sat, 20 Jul 2013 00:26:38 +0000 (UTC), Tom Russell wrote:
<snip>
different abilities to use, but has to be clever with which one he picks
and how he uses it.
Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, always fun.
<snip>
> And that being said, I don't think "overpowered" is necessarily a bad
> thing. One could argue that Superman, Green Lantern, or the Flash are
> overpowered-- speedsters have an especially versatile set of gimmicks and
> solutions-to-impossible-problems within one elegant superpower-- but that's
> only if the stories are about the brute application of those powers without
> imagination or personality. The best stories for those characters have
> imagination and personality to spare. I think your stories had the same
> qualities of imagination, personality, and wonder-- they weren't about the
> powers but the things those powers let you do as a writer.
Pretty much. I'd say Godling works well when he has a wide palette of
> thing. One could argue that Superman, Green Lantern, or the Flash are
> overpowered-- speedsters have an especially versatile set of gimmicks and
> solutions-to-impossible-problems within one elegant superpower-- but that's
> only if the stories are about the brute application of those powers without
> imagination or personality. The best stories for those characters have
> imagination and personality to spare. I think your stories had the same
> qualities of imagination, personality, and wonder-- they weren't about the
> powers but the things those powers let you do as a writer.
different abilities to use, but has to be clever with which one he picks
and how he uses it.
Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, always fun.
jvdste...@gmail.com
Jul 22, 2013, 4:39:01 AM7/22/13
to
Wow, guys. Good to hear you all still remember Godling ;-)
Well, your comments make it clear to me you ''got'' what I was trying to do with Godling.
So... I will not do the reboot but incorporate some of my new ideas in the current series.
I will also continue where I left off with The Reality Bomb story.
I guess sometimes I start to feel insecure about my work and where I'm going with it. Comments from readers like you really help me.
I'm still very honored Godling won ''favorite character'' a year or so back.
All of this makes me wonder what you guys think of the New 52 Superman reboot though... Any comments?
Jochem
Well, your comments make it clear to me you ''got'' what I was trying to do with Godling.
So... I will not do the reboot but incorporate some of my new ideas in the current series.
I will also continue where I left off with The Reality Bomb story.
I guess sometimes I start to feel insecure about my work and where I'm going with it. Comments from readers like you really help me.
I'm still very honored Godling won ''favorite character'' a year or so back.
All of this makes me wonder what you guys think of the New 52 Superman reboot though... Any comments?
Jochem
Andrew Perron
Jul 24, 2013, 3:04:29 AM7/24/13
to
On Mon, 22 Jul 2013 08:39:01 +0000 (UTC), jvdste...@gmail.com wrote:
> Wow, guys. Good to hear you all still remember Godling ;-)
Naturally! <3
> Wow, guys. Good to hear you all still remember Godling ;-)
> Well, your comments make it clear to me you ''got'' what I was trying to
> do with Godling.
> So... I will not do the reboot but incorporate some of my new ideas in the
> current series.
> I will also continue where I left off with The Reality Bomb story.
> I guess sometimes I start to feel insecure about my work and where I'm
> going with it. Comments from readers like you really help me.
> I'm still very honored Godling won ''favorite character'' a year or so back.
> All of this makes me wonder what you guys think of the New 52 Superman
> reboot though... Any comments?
of the relationship with Lois and putting in one with Wonder Woman is a
move that makes no sense and is detrimental to all three characters; the
rest... eh?
Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, meh?
0 new messages