The GOOD Guys
Let’s write first about “The Good Guy(s)” AKA The Protagonist, the Hero, The rescuer and includes the good GALS. Even if “Done right” this character has a huge potential to become the most BORING, predictable and dull character in the story. This is true for a number of reasons
· The Hero(ine) is expected to obey the rules (and as such everyone knows the rules…so predictable)
· The Hero generally acts like most other characters, he’s trying to blend in, not take advantage
· The hero in general exercises restraint…so they are kinda like the parent watching a cookie jar. The kid doesn’t get in trouble unless he is CAUGHT taking a cookie, and (from the perspective of your villain) then they just smile and surrender and the punishment becomes…preferable to the consequences?
This makes your hero (or Heroine) very unrealistic, Take for example, Superman, the “boy scout” it got so bad with SM that they had to give him an internal moral dilemma as to whether or not he should be helping at all…or maybe he should impose his will on everyone for the “Greater good”. However, one must never forget that it is the “Good Guy’s” VIRTUE that makes them such a delicious target. The heroine who is chaste and a virgin, The Heroine who fights for others and sacrifices herself, the heroine who keep her body in good shape. If she was a slut who slept with everyone, that’s not NEAR as interesting as corrupting the pristine virgin.
So….how Do we make an interesting GOOD guy? The answer has already been stated and this will become even more clear when I discuss the BAD guys. First off is to realize EVERYONE, and I mean Literally EVERYONE, has a dark side. A side that we never let out except in times of need. This includes fantasies of control (rape, forcing or compelling others to do what WE want) fantasies of looks (how we want to look or others to look) and fantasies of ability (to be able to FORCE pleasure on any one we want or force pain)
Now before you get all defensive. Mainstream comic DOES this already
· Star Trek “Mirror Mirror” Captain Kirk is divided into his light and dark side)
· Batman struggles with his need to uphold the law and the need to go OUTSIDE the law to defeat the antagonist
· Tony Stark uses money to get women and became an alcoholic.
Character flaws, weaknesses in powers, will make ANY character more interesting, the reader can RELATE to them. If you’re REALLY ambitious, you can EVEN have the protagonist commit CRIMES and get away with them (or get caught) but that brings up an IMPORTANT PLOT NOTE: Not ALL indiscretions HAVE to have a negative outcome or EVEN be against the law.
· A hero can sexually “Cheat” on his GF (BF) and actually get away with it
· A hero might actually STEAL something and get away with it
· A hero can use his powers on others for his benefit, and have no one find out
· A hero can let an antagonist escape and not be discovered.
Now GRANTED, a HERO is unlikely to commit murder, rape, or theft of a multimillion dollar diamond (Notice I said UNLIKELY) and certainly it would not be an everyday occurrence, but the more flaw you give them, the more “Real” they will seem. Just remember YOU must exercise restraint, Good guys might tell “White lies” if you have them take advantage of EVERY situation your GOOD guy BECOMES the bad guy (corruption) it’s better if the Hero or heroine ONLY succumbs to INTENSE temptation and ONLY when combined with an Opportunity, and THEN, likely doesn’t repeat it without out something EQUALLY tempting.
As a Commander in the armed forces myself, I can tell you, NO one wants to PUNISH a subordinate, NO one (who is sane) wants to KILL someone they do not even know. But to be a LEADER, you must sometimes bark, and punish, even parents know this...so we DO have a dark side that gives us the resolve to see thru difficult or desperate times…
This is the ESSENCE of “corruption” when I write a CANON hero, I like the saying
When I write Cannon, I usually justify the change in the character…by reasoning that…. Most people are afraid of certain subjects. AS such, the original creator did not make the hero as realistic but instead as they viewed the public would accept. (For example, anyone who KNOWS horses know that A Stallion will GO after a mare in heat, however if you watch “My little pony” your unlikely to SEE that theme due to the target audience (kids), that does NOT mean the creators didn’t have some…DARK thoughts for their Own characters they could not express (because of the TARGET audience)) . You can see this in certain ways. Namely heroines clad in SKIMPY outfits, that’s not for utility…everyone LOVES a sexy body…Heck if you watch the latest “My Little Pony” the “young dragon” Spike, has a CRUSH on a Pony (rarity) who is older (Can you say Inter species? Can you say even underage?) So it is simply a matter of adding these traits or saying “What IF the hero’s actually reacted like PEOPLE instead of the archetypical “good guy”.