Lesson 2

[Jeremy Kirk]

Subject line: Jeremy Kirk – Hero and Villain

“What I learned doing this assignment is, you can keep adding story elements but have to be careful as too many and you might not be able to land the plane. A story can become bloated. Keep it light on its feet, quick and not bogged down.

Concept:

• Hero Morally Right: Jackie kills people through contract hits so he can build up enough money to give to Shelly.
Yael the Guardian Angel is bound to protect Jackie at all cost.
• Villain Morally Wrong: Birchwood wants Jackie dead for a perceived slight, Letha Koffin wants Jackie dead to collect on the bounty, as does every other hitman out there, ie. Moose LeHarl and Johnny Wrought.

Hero
• A. Unique Skill Set: Jackie is a hitman – killing, escaping tight situations, being “lucky”
Yael is indestructible as an Angel, so bullets, knives, explosions do not destroy him.
• B. Motivation: Jackie wants to stay alive long enough to find out who placed a 10-million-dollar bounty on his head and be able to get Shelly her money.
Yael wants to keep Jackie alive as he is his “Master”
• C. Secret or Wound: Jackie got his start as a hitman by shooting Shelly’s father in the head. Birchwood collected a junkie degenerate gambler and gave him a choice: either go and shoot the man watering his lawn and have his debt completely paid, or they would take a ride in which Jackie would not return. Birchwood through he knew Jackie, thought Jackie would fail and they would get to kill him. He was more than surprised when Jackie walked right up to the man and shot him, cold blooded. The problem; his little girl was in the window eating a Popsicle and watched the whole thing.
Yael is told time and time again, “why do you keep that fool alive?” he remembers back to a time when he made the wrong decision. It was 1893 and a very sick little boy lies in bed, in a cottage. A doctor present is very skeptical that he will live. Yael is the boys Guardian Angel and decides to help. He lays hands on the boy’s chest and “heals” him. When the mother enters the room, she is surprised to see her little Hitler looking so healthy and well.
Cut to 1945 in the Führerbunker in Berlin. Hitler takes a pistol to the side of his head and Yael watches and does not interfere as he is still sickened by the fact he let this man live so many years ago.

Villain
• A. Unbeatable: Birchwood has assassins at his disposal. But when he places the 10-million-dollar bounty, professional killers come out of the wood work.
• B. Plan/Goal: Wipe the stain of Jackie Divine from the face of this earth by placing a massive bounty on his head. Birchwood thinks with an amount of 10 million, he won’t have to pay it out, as the assassins will kill each other for a chance at the prize.
• C. What they lose if Hero survives: Jackie has continued to survive. Mathematically it doesn’t make sense. By placing Jackie on so many jobs, he is slowly becoming one of the top-rated hitmen in the industry and Birchwood can’t live with that. Jackie is like a sliver under his fingernail, and no matter how much he chews at it, he can seem to set it free.
Impossible Mission

• A. Puts Hero in Action: Jackie is placed in action from the start. The “job” he was sent on was really a trap to kill him. But he perseveres much to the chagrin of Birchwood and the Agency.
• B. Demands They Go Beyond Their Best: With so many killers after him, professional and amateur, Jackie must use everything at his disposal to survive. Of course, with the help of his Guardian Angel, Yael.
• C. Destroy the Villain: once Jackie receives the divine revolver, he will have more than enough firepower to destroy any assassin that stands in his way. He cuts a swath through the killers as he closes in on Birchwood and the agency.

What I improved on my answers was just a little more detail. For example, on secrets or wounds, I added more detail about what exactly Jackie did to earn the hate of Shelly and why he is collecting money from his hits and living so ‘frugally.”
Also, I added the Guardian Angel, Yael as both Jackie and himself are a team. More like a buddy cop action movie. Yael has a secret that he once watched over a young Hitler and kept him from dying. This ultimately was a bad move, and down the road, Yael does not save Hitler when he commits suicide at the end of the war.

• This reply was modified 3 weeks, 2 days ago by  Jeremy Kirk.

[Jason Lauer]

Jason Lauer's Heroes & Villains

### **Concept:**

When the President’s grandson is kidnapped and strapped beneath a Cold War-era missile by a rogue operative inside a decommissioned military base, only **Rick Maddox**—the 1980s action star whose films were based on real classified missions—can return to the site of his most dangerous op and stop **Damien Voss** before the launch countdown ends.

—

### **Hero Morally Right – Rick Maddox**

Rick is motivated by honor, guilt, and the desire to protect the innocent—even if the world sees him as a washed-up relic. He chooses action over safety, sacrifice over image, and proves that real heroes never retire.

—

### **Villain Morally Wrong – Damien Voss**

Voss is driven by jealousy, ego, and resentment. Willing to kill a child and launch a nuclear weapon to rewrite history in his favor, he twists heroism into spectacle and legacy into violence.

—

## **Hero – Rick Maddox** aka *Dutch Striker*

**A. Unique Skill Set:**

* Black-ops legend who turned real missions into “fictional” 1980s action movies.
* Analog infiltration expert with deep knowledge of Cold War sabotage and survival tactics.
* Only man alive with operational knowledge of **Blackridge Missile Complex**—the story’s primary location.

**B. Motivation:**

* Save the President’s grandson, who believes in the *Dutch Striker* legend.
* Redeem himself for the lives lost during the original Blackridge mission.
* Prove that the man behind the myth is still a hero—without the cameras.

**C. Secret or Wound:**

* Haunted by the teammates who died so he could complete the mission that made him famous.
* Feels his public persona was built on their sacrifice, not just his own deeds.

—

## **Villain – Damien Voss**

**A. Unbeatable:**

* The modern apex operative: methodical, ruthless, and surgically efficient.
* Trained in asymmetric warfare, tactical engineering, and psychological manipulation.
* Outfitted the entire base as a lethal proving ground built to destroy Rick’s legacy.

**B. Plan/Goal:**

* Lure Rick back to **Blackridge**, defeat him publicly, and kill the myth of *Dutch Striker*.
* Launch a Cold War-era missile—symbolically erasing the past while murdering a child to send a message.
* Replace Maddox as the greatest operative ever… by making the world *watch* his fall.

**C. What Damien Voss Loses if Rick Survives:**

* The chance to become a legend.
* Any illusion of superiority—defeated by the man he claims is a fraud.
* His control, credibility, and legacy—all buried in the ruins of his own ambition.

—

## **Impossible Mission**

**A. Puts Rick Maddox in Action:**

* Must infiltrate the fortified Blackridge complex.
* Navigate mercenaries, traps, and memories of a deadly past.
* Rescue a hostage boy strapped under a rocket armed for launch.

**B. Demands Rick Go Beyond His Best:**

* Forces Rick to return to the site of his greatest triumph *and* deepest guilt.
* Faces a younger, more technologically advanced rival who’s studied his every move.
* Pushes him to fight not for glory, but for redemption.

**C. Destroy Damien Voss:**

* Rick defeats Voss in a brutal gantry-top fight using sheer grit and ingenuity.
* Triggers a silo collapse with a Cold War-era override valve.
* Escapes with the boy just before the missile explodes, incinerating Voss and the twisted legacy he tried to claim.

• This reply was modified 2 weeks, 6 days ago by  Jason Lauer.

[Tom Wilson]

Tom’s Hero and Villain
Doing this assignment, I see this is a great opportunity to attract A-List actors so I can sell my project.
Concept: When Michael, a severely wounded soldier returns from Afghanistan, he finds his look-alike, Roger, impersonates him, lives with his wife and two children who think he’s their father. Will Michael ever get his life back?
• Hero Morally Right: Michael sees Roger the imposter is a better family man than he ever was.
• Villain Morally Wrong: Roger takes Michael’s place at the science lab, steals industrial secrets he will sell to the Iranians.
Hero
• A. Unique Skill Set: Michael was an Army Ranger who fought the Taliban in Afghanistan.
• B. Motivation: He wants to discover who runs his imposter, Roger, so he can kill the foreign agents who sent Roger in to steal his secrets.
• C. Secret or Wound: Michael can return to his happy life only if he finds who Roger works for. Michael will then eliminate Roger, reunite with his family who must never learn about Roger.
Villain
• A. Unbeatable: Watkins is a professional imposter handler who replaces genuine family men with his agents who steal industrial secrets at his workplace.
• B. Plan/Goal: Once Roger gives him the industrial secrets, Michael can return to his family and work life only if he kills Roger whom he ties up and tosses him in the river. Michael returns to his family and they are no wiser.
• C. What they lose if Roger survives: Roger escapes drowning and blackmails Michael. He to tell the FBI Michael stole the secrets and sold them to the Iranians. Michael will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Impossible Mission
• A. Puts Hero in Action: Michael turns the tables, coerces Roger to cooperate and goes after Watkins, Roger’s handler.
• B. Demands They Go Beyond Their Best: Michael discovers Watkins wants to kill him so he gets the industrial secrets he’ll sell to the Iranians.
• C. Destroy the Villain: Michael discovers he’s in the Watkin’s crosshairs. It’s a double-double cross and he missed being shot by millimeters.