The superheroes of the world (colloquially referred to as "capes") are primarily modelled after those of the Golden Age of Comic Books, usually clad in brightly coloured outfits consisting of skin-tight materials such as Lycra or spandex.
The presence of superheroes in the world is commonplace, arriving not only to save people or avert disaster but also carrying out everyday tasks such as grocery shopping or taking a smoke break, all while in full costume.
Don appears to be the only cape with a more modern-style costume, wearing a black leather suit of body armour in stark contrast to the brightly coloured outfits of his peers.
Devlin is the most successful cape in the United Kingdom; he is a "Rock Star" within the superhero world, with a high public profile and numerous commercial endorsement deals.
Given that they took so long to respond to his calls, they were never seen on screen (although their coffins were present at Simon's funeral), even after relocating their home reduced their response time from 2 and a half hours to 40 minutes.
He was captured and tortured by Don in episode 6, revealing the location of the villains' stronghold to enable the heroes to avenge the death of Simon.
Stephen Armstrong of The Times thinks that No Heroics is "possibly the first genuinely amusing sitcom on any ITV outlet since, well – any suggestions?
"[6] Also at The Times, Michael Moran expresses similar sentiments, suggesting that it "is edgier than My Hero though – closer perhaps to cult favourite Mystery Men" and that while "Episodes one and two might be a slow burn ... [b]y the third instalment though, the hapless heroes are established as a superior sitcom characters that deserve a spot in the pantheon of loveable loser comedy that stretches from Tony Hancock to David Brent.
"[7] Jane Simon in The Mirror thought that "the affectionate yet satirical tone is gauged just right to appeal to super-nerds and regular viewers, and is packed with tiny details to reward aficionados.
Drew Pearce, the creator/writer, established an engaging collection of pretenders to the throne: The Hotness, a sexually inadequate "cape" with a penchant for heat; Electroclash, who let a shop owner get shot and suffer from his injuries because he was sexist; Timebomb is Spanish, depressed, unhinged; She Force is a superhero with the twittering insecurities of Carrie Bradshaw.
"[12] His sentiments were shared by Anna Lowman of TV Scoop, who thought that "[t]he main problem with this comedy is that the writers have apparently decided to replace the jokes with an unremitting coarseness ... and to produce characters that no-one in their right mind could give too (sic) hoots about" concluding that "No Heroics is just another reason why ITV is known as the graveyard of comedy.
[15] In March it was announced that Freddie Prinze, Jr. had been cast as Infinitum, the A-list superhero, and Paul Campbell, Eliza Coupe, Tom Riley and Arielle Kebbel are playing the B-listers.