Sidekick

A sidekick is an individual, usually of heroic calibre, who apprentices under or works with a more trained and dominant individual. Although they are generally regarded as partners to the individual that they support, the sidekick is often relegated to performing secondary tasks, leaving the more heroic colleague to take on larger functions. Sidekicks are usually found in the superhero fantasy or adventure subgenres of television fiction. The most famous sidekick of all time is arguably Dick Grayson, aka, Robin, the Boy Wonder - masked teen sidekick to the cowled superhero Batman. In classic sidekick pattern, Batman would usually serve as the front line of a fight or an investigation, leaving Robin to perform more mundane functions such as tackling henchmen, rescuing hostages and gassing up the Batmobile.

Only slightly less well-known than Robin is the Native American warrior Tonto - friend and partner to the infamous masked lawman, the Lone Ranger. As with many sidekicks, Tonto usually served as a surrogate set of ears, allowing the Lone Ranger to explain details of a situation not only to him, but to the viewer as well. Although Tonto was a loyal and able-bodied fighter, he usually got the crap kicked out of him and has been captured by bandits and outlaws more times than one can count.

Classically, a sidekick is usually younger than the partner that he or she supports, but this is not always the case. Tonto appeared to be the same age as the Lone Ranger. Kato appeared to be only slightly younger than the Green Hornet, and Pat Dugan, aka, Stripsey, was considerably older than his teenage mentor, the Star-Spangled Kid.