Wei Xiao Bao: The Batman of the Jin Yong Universe?

[Wu Wudi]

While JY's characters don't actually have super powers in the classic sense, their martial arts do allow them to perform many superhuman acts like blasting a hole in a wall with QI or jumping tens of feet in the air. Wei Xiao Bao is the only JY protaganist that did not have the martial arts skills which would have allowed him to perform such incredible feats.

As silly as the idea might sound, Wei is actually very similar to another fictional hero, Batman. Both are normal men living in a world with superpowered beings. Both are able to repeatedly obtain victories in fights against those superpowered beings through the use of wits, subterfuge and fancy high-tech weapons. Wei even had several secret identies throughout his story!

Batman notoriously had preformed strategies for taking down every superpowered being in the DC universe. What would happen if Wei were to do the same for the elite pugilists in JY's world? For example, if Wei were in the ROCH era which had plenty of martial arts masters, how would he go about taking them down one by one? For the sake of this scenario, let's assume that Wei is on such an assignment because he had become buddies with the Mongol Emperor in the same manner that he became friends with the Manchurian Emperor in DOMD.

[jiang bao]

If you consider only the superficial similarities, I guess you can stretch a little (actually a lot)... but if you consider what they stood for, no.

[Wu Wudi]

I'm just concered with the characters' abilities to handle themselves in a world which had beings much more powerful than them. Everyone knows that only one of them is a hero. I don't see how pointing out such an obvious point is conducive to this discussion.

[Han Solo]

WXB is more like James Bond than Batman.

He is a double, triple, quadraple (?sp) agent.

He gets all the chicks.

He gets the permission to kill ppl.

Han Solo

[Wu Wudi]

Interesting comparison but unlike Wei, James Bond is more physically capable than most of his opponents. Bond can just outright kick the asses of his opoonents and that's pretty much what he's done in the last two films.

Anways, if WXB were to map out strategies for taking out his enemies like Batman, he would probably map out their weaknesses first. I'll start with a couple.

Broken Wheel Monk: Insecurity and over-emphasis on brute strength

Yang Guo: his love for his Gu Gu, and having only one arm

XLN: love for YG, simple-minded

GJ: stubborn, too willing to believe in the best of people

HR: other than her lower level of MA, I can't really think of any glaring weakness. She doesn't seem to have the intellectual or emotional weaknesses of the others.

[remember_Cedric]

I doubt that totally! More like, Badman!

[tweety365]

So you consider Batman physically weaker than his opponents? I don't think that is the case. I would wager Batman > 007.

Back to the question on WXB vs characters in ROCH.
GJ - too trusting. WXB can gain his trust and backstab him.
XLN - too naive. WXB would most likely drug and rape her like he did with his other wives.
GWM - not exactly the smartest cookie around. WXB can hatch a scheme to do the monk in.
YG & HR might be harder to fool, but WXB has the power of surprise and he doesn't fight fair.

[Wu Wudi]

So you consider Batman physically weaker than his opponents? I don't think that is the case. I would wager Batman > 007.

I was talking more about the comics version of Batman. In the world of DC Comics, Batman is often pitted against enemies that are around the power level of Superman. Not only does Batman not get killed, those immensely powerful villians actually fear him. DC also did a story about how Batman was prepared to take down every super power being in the Universe, including the heroes. Yes, there's something out there that is even more unbelievable than Wuxia fiction.

[flamer]

I would wager Batman > 007.

The only problem being that 007 is still bound by possibilities of reality.

[tape]

Add to it that both are ridiculously lucky. It shouldn't really matter how smart and resourceful you are when all it takes is one bad tempered bad guy to just lose it and kill you in half a second with a punch/blast. I mean with how much power the foes have relative to both of them, tehy simply shouldnt be alive. All it takes is one jealous martial arts master/villain to stalk them day and night and if they're off guard for a couple seconds, that's all it takes.

[smurf120]

One of the great things about WXB is how he gets things done thru sheer wit, laziness, and greed while upholding friendships to the end.

Even if he were dropped Xiang ShaoLong style into the Sung Dynasty and working for the Mongols, he would still probably be friends with GJ, YG, and such. Heck he might even get the Jin, Sung, and Mongolia to sign a peace treaty.

And if he does become friends with YG (or respectful) of him, he'll probably take the rest of the women off his hands. He'll also be able to sweet talk (deal) and get both sets of antidotes so XLN doesn't need to jump the cliff.

[Han Solo]

Somehow, i can never imagine WXB making deep friends with GJ.

He's a more complex and nuanced character that GJ would have difficulties in understanding etc.

Han Solo

[Wu Wudi]

Somehow, i can never imagine WXB making deep friends with GJ.

He's a more complex and nuanced character that GJ would have difficulties in understanding etc.

Han Solo

Well, GJ did fall in love with a very complicated gal and became sworn brothers with a man that few people understood.

[kidd]

You make WXB sounds so like a genius who can defeat anyone with his wits. But, even in DOMD itself, he didn't fool everyone. Kangxi knew what he was doing for a long time but just kept quiet about it.

DOMD doesn't have a lot of smart people. I don't think he can handle smart people in other novels so easily.

[Wu Wudi]

You make WXB sounds so like a genius who can defeat anyone with his wits. But, even in DOMD itself, he didn't fool everyone. Kangxi knew what he was doing for a long time but just kept quiet about it.

DOMD doesn't have a lot of smart people. I don't think he can handle smart people in other novels so easily.

I also mentioned WXB's weapons. Didn't WXB take care of many opponents with his super armor and gun?

[smurf120]

You make WXB sounds so like a genius who can defeat anyone with his wits. But, even in DOMD itself, he didn't fool everyone. Kangxi knew what he was doing for a long time but just kept quiet about it.

DOMD doesn't have a lot of smart people. I don't think he can handle smart people in other novels so easily.

Actually, I don't think he can outsmart everyone but in keeping with the DOMD theme, I truly think that WXB can make friends (or less of an enemy) out of everyone. He also respects true heroism so it would be out of his character to be enemies with the protagonists of other stories.