Originally Posted by
The Overlord
Really what issue stated why he couldn't have made money legitimately through his tech? It seems like you are taking vague hints at something as being equal to a well-developed story. Also, is the story where he tried to murder 12 people for a crime boss an example of his rationality? It seems like the writers and many fans do not want to put a lot of effort into Shocker as a character.
Because ''robber'' is not a character, its an archetype. There is nothing wrong with starting with an archetype, but an archetype is not a compelling character in of itself if you do not add dimensions to it. Electro started off as an archetype but adding the self-esteem issues and dependent relationship with his mother added something to mix, he is not the most compelling character ever, but you have moved him beyond just being an archetype. Would it kill Shocker if he was moved beyond one-note robber archetype? What is wrong with expanding the character? I am not asking for a lot, if he is a thrill-seeker who likes to rob banks for the trill, that could be an explanation, its something and putting him in situations where he is pretty defined morally is more interesting then ''he is a robber, nothing else''.
You say Shocker has moved beyond this archetype, but has he? He believes in honor among thieves why was he ok with murdering 12 civilians?
He is supposed to be smart, but there are likely a ton of different legal and illegal ways that would net him more money than bank robbing would, so just saying he is a robber and that is it., really makes him less like a stale one-note character. and doesn't make him seem smart. His motives do not need to make perfect sense, but come on, the writers could try a little harder with the character to add some depth or cleverness.