The Penny Problem or: A defense of Captain Hammer

"But now we pick pick
Pick pick pick it apart
Open it up to find the
Tick tick tick of a heart
A heart, broken"

Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog

I'm basically saying he's Walter White.

We get that Dr. Horrible is the bad guy right? I mean apart from the whole actually wanting to be a super villain thing.

Sure he's smart, good looking, shy and can belt a show tune or two but he's a massive raging asshole.

A walking, talking indictment of the 'good guy' self delusion. He indulges in the behavior of a stalker, exhibiting jealousy and cruelty which ends up destroying that which he professes to love. And why does he love her? She has nice eyes? He desires a conquest every bit as much as Captain Hammer. As he cannot bring himself to talk to Penny there is no connection there and when he does it is based on lies (oh he loves laundry does he now) and spying on her habits (god forbid he had actually talked to her to find out she liked frozen yogurt).

Penny is nothing more than a trophy, the unattainable goal. He shows no real respect for her throughout. His own needs come before her at every turn from barely noting what her cause is to utilising her death to further his career. 

The man corrupts all around him, like so many liquefied, cumin smelling, gold bars.

Captain Hammer is a douchebag. Sure. But he actually tries to work with Penny. He doesn't even really hide who is he, his general disgust with homeless and ducks is plain for all to see. Like the bad Doctor he knows a bunch of signatures isn't going to change anything but actually does something about it in his own selfish way. And gets it done without needing a freeze, or even death, ray. 

He claims to want to bang the two dimensionally angelic Penny to get at Horrible but we know this to be a lie (being mendacious to your enemy much more acceptable than to the one you are supposed to love) as they go out before he knew the connection with the Doc and confesses he would like to go out again (couched in unquestionably uncomfortable sexist terms, yes, but she is already making him think more about women than he possibly has before).

Whereas Horrible is raised high by Penny's death, Hammer is brought low. He feels physical pain for the first time but far worse surely is the realisation of his inadvertent part in her killing. Maybe if he wasn't so wrapped up in himself she would be alive today. He already bettered the city from just knowing her and has gone for therapeutic help since the incident, maybe Penny's enduring legacy can be in making a Hero a better man.