Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is a “musical tragicomedy” (Wikipedia) directed by Joss Whedon in 2008 during the Writers Guild of America strike. It was originally released as a web series with three 14-minute episodes. The film centers on Dr. Horrible, a supervillain with "a doctorate in horribleness" (Whedon) who wishes to join the exclusive Evil League of Evil commanded by Bad Horse and alleviate the "misery of the human condition" (Wikipedia). At the same time he is trying to win the affection of Penny, a girl who is the embodiment of good, as his alter ego Billy as they meet at the laundromat every week. Rounding out the trio is Captain Hammer; a muscular, self-centered superhero who, to Doctor Horrible's chagrin, is well-loved in the city of Los Angeles. The three main characters create an incongruous love triangle with Penny at the center who never fails. This film is chaotic and ironic as it challenges the common roles assumed by the superhero and supervillain in most classic and modern films. At the same time, it has a streak of unrequited love reminiscent of Charlie Chaplin films. The contrasting genres that Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along blog encompasses reflect the duality of Dr. Horrible's character. Doctor Horrible is first and foremost an anarchist. It was written specifically to “evade the issues being protested during the [Writers Guild of America] strike” (Wikipedia). Due to the nature of the film being produced as a low-budget, independent web series, Joss Whedon was able to avoid the issues being addressed during the strike. No major studio was involved in the film's production, so Whedon and the other writers did not have to worry about the amount of compensation they would receive if they distributed the film with a major studio. Dr. Horrible is also an anarchist in the sense that he attacks standard conceptions of authority.