Unlikely/Hesitant Heroes - Know any good fictional ones?

[Zilong]

Oh and this dude, just for me to be a great big cartoon-watching nerd.

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/5459/simon1024fe1.png

Yeah, pre-episode 13 simon is basically that, thrown into a situation as Lagann's pilot, and overshadowed by Kamina's presence and ended up straggling along Kamina's pace due to his lack of self confidence, until the point where Kamina died. Afterward he just entered a period of heroic BSOD, until finally finding his courage and be the motherfucking badass he is for the rest of the series.

Also, surf TVTropes.org for a bit, tossing in the hero you already have as a starting point and get the keyword archetype they fall into, you should be able to find connection/parallels to other stories in many medias.

[Deftscythe]

Damn this is for an English class and nobody is using examples from literature?

Faillll

So contribute some.

[Jaybar]

How about Odysseus?

[Zilong]

Wasn't he already an established badass hero of the Trojan war when he was thrown in his adventure in the Odyssey though?

[Heian]

Wasn't he already an established badass hero of the Trojan war when he was thrown in his adventure in the Odyssey though?

Yulp

and I already said Ralph from lord of the flies, but that is more about society than being a hero

[Jotaru]

There's not many reluctant heroes that end up successful in their task yet broken at the end of the line.

I struggled and struggled with this sentence as I knew in my head I had the *PERFECT* character, but couldn't remember who. I must've sat here for five full minutes just trying to pick my brain to think of it, something so awesome, it just fits this topic 100% spot on.



Then I remembered why I liked Metal Gear Solid 4 so much.

Solid. Fucking. Snake.

Or rather, Old Snake. If you haven't played the series to culmination in 4, go do it. There's nothing like it, with this topic.

[Price]

Shikimaru from Naruto would fit I guess. He always complains about how everything is bothersome, but he has to be a squad leader to make sure nobody gets hurt.

[tyven]

richard rider had to lead the army against the annihilation wave, while storing the entire nova force in his body. there is your unlikely hero.

[Kononeko]

I don't know if this one has been said yet but, Linda Fiorentino as Bethany Sloane in Dogma. Anyone who has watched that movie knows what I'm talking about.

[Kaludneisucks]

As far as this being literary i doubt this will work but remind your teach that they all start as screenplays?

[Wintermute]

Solid. Fucking. Snake.

Or rather, Old Snake. If you haven't played the series to culmination in 4, go do it. There's nothing like it, with this topic.

Problem is that Snake is only reluctant on the first game (MGS series) and he's pretty much the only man for the job.
I forget the quote but he pretty much fights because he's a soldier. That and out of duty to the Colonel and his history with Foxhound.

In the second he's there to put a stop to Ocelot and Metal Gears in general and in 4 he's pretty much finishing the job with Ocelot/Liquid etc.

The only time he's "Unlikely" is in the first MGS and he never really hesitates because he's a soldier following orders and the overally feeling is "I've got a job to finish".
There's no real "why me?", "why am I doing this?" runs where there's emphasis on Snake doubting that he's the best man for the job.


The problem with finding characters from books is that all books are interpreted differently by each person who reads it. One person could view a protagonist as a coward and another as a hero.

Think about book to movie deals. The reason a lot of people get upset or think the movie is terrible is because they interpreted the book in an entirely different way.

[Graves]

Motherfucking Jack Burton, from Big Trouble in Little CHIIIIIIIIINA!!!!

[Jodwahh]

^ This oh my god a million time this.