While Propp's Character Theory is an initially useful theory for talking about character archetypes, it is limited. First, it is a theory based almost entirely on the fairytale genre. Not only is that genre's focus narrow but it is also quite old. That means that a number of other character archetypes have originated both in other genres and more modern stories. As such, I present to you a number of other archetypes. Media Studies teachers tend to pick up, develop and share their own theories but most of us aren't published scholars! That means these aren't officially recognised theories and you would need to explain them when discussing them in an exam for the first time (e.g. "The character of Miles fulfils the archetype of a sort of tech support figure, a behind-the-scenes helper who uses technology to assist the hero.")
The Anti-Hero: a development of the False Hero - and probably my favourite of all character archetypes - anti-heroes don't buy into the black-and-white of the 'good vs evil' struggle. They see nuance and shades of grey. They serve one power, purpose and being in life: themselves and those (if any) they immediately care about. This means they aren't evil but aren't exactly ready to sign up with the good guys on an official basis either. They might have a tentative relationship with the side of good, who'll rely on the anti-hero's services and acknolwedge their usefulness, but be quietly embarrassed at being so thoroughly shown up. They'll often deny any knowledge of the anti-hero's involvement when this is discovered or refuse to officially condone his work.
In some narratives, they'll happily work with both sides to advance their own goals. There is nothing like a princess to lure an anti-hero to the side of good, however... Great examples of anti-heroes include Han Solo (Star Wars IV-VI), Deadpool (from his own series of films) and Jack Reacher (again, from his own series of films). Batman is arguably the foremost of anti-heroes given his methods and how quickly the Gotham City Police Department cut ties with him when things go wrong, while Iron Man and Spider-Man arguably fit into this role in their first films.
Femme Fatale/Black Widow: this is another favourite of mine and is again built from the False Hero. The femme fatale (literally 'the fatal woman') is a woman on the side of evil. She may be the villain's enforcer at the same time. She may pose as a sidekick or damsel in distress to trick the hero before betraying him. The femme fatale and villain often have a relationship, albeit an unhealthy one. James Bond films seem to be littered with examples, including Elektra King in The World is not Enough, Miranda Frost in Die Another Day and Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale. Qi'ra in Solo: A Star Wars Story falls into this category as well alongside Angelica in Pirates of the Caribbean and Dr Schneider in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
The Double Agent: I have to say I enjoy this one as well as it is another development of the False Hero. Strictly speaking, a double agent pretends to work for one side while secretly helping the other. However, where Propp's False Hero betrays the side of good to serve evil, double agents can also be characters who pretend to work for the villain whilst actually supporting the hero.
These double agents often earn the trust of the villain, learning his plans and then spilling the secrets to the good side. They meet a horrific end when the villain discovers their work and feels utterly betrayed (while those caught double-agenting by the good side usually end up being arrested instead). Severus Snape is far-and-away the best example from the Harry Potter series of the double agent serving good. In Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, an entire subplot is devoted to 'Mac' Michale's constant pretenses to work for one side and then the other.
The Enforcer/Number Two: I consider the enforcer to be the villain's 'right hand man' or trusted lieutenant. The villain plots and gives monologues but it's the enforcer who actually makes the villain's will happen. As such, enforcers tend to be people of few words whose methods can be quite unusual and brutal, relying on their strength and presence but lacking the smarts to be a villain.
Where henchmen rarely see the villain, they are terrified of his enforcer. Sometimes, the villain is so powerful that he can corrupt a hero or sidekick into becoming his enforcer. Other times, ambitious enforcers end up toppling the villain and taking his place. Commonly, there is just one enforcer, though some villains have been known to have several. In some cases, these enforcers are put in competition with one another (and they often refuse to work together and try to topple each other) while in others the villain keeps each enforcer unaware of the existence of the others.
As I said with Black Widow characters, some of them serve as enforcers and may even be in a very unhealthy relationship with the villain. Harry Potter's Bellatrix Lestrange is a superb example of this. Last time, I said that Star Wars' Darth Vader tops the list of 'best movie villains' quite routinely. Even before the introduction of the Emperor in subsequent Star Wars films, however, Vader very neatly fits into the role of enforcer instead if discussed properly, first to Governor Tarkin and then the Emperor himself. Enforcers are a staple of James Bond films and some of its best loved characters, including Oddjob in Goldfinger or Jaws in The Spy Who Loved Me/Moonraker (who later became a double agent!) We can also include Kraglin in Guardians of the Galaxy, Snake Eyes in the G I Joe films and Mystique in the X-Men series - and that's all before we get to Harley Quinn in any Batman/Suicide Squad stories! The Austin Powers films take this role quite literally with the character of Number Two, who also - because it's a parody - finds himself the unfortunate butt (sorry) of some toilet humour jokes. He later gets his own Number Two who is appropriately named Number Three.
The Henchmen/Minions: henchmen or minions are the numerous, nameless men and women who work for the villain. They're not necessarily evil themselves and may not even realise they're working for a villain - they're just doing a job, in many cases for the legal ruler or government of the day.
Some parodies even lean very heavily on the poor henchmen 'murdered' by the hero having wives, families and so on (the first Austin Powers film being a notable example), while the Despicable Me and later Minions series of films take the minion archetype very literally as well as giving their minions names, personalities and histories!
Minions are infamously bad shots when attacking the hero and are generally hapless and incompetent. Most villains lament the fact that they cannot get capable minions and end up resorting to doing the job themselves or sending their enforcer to scare the minions into improving. Gary Oldman's character of Zorg in The Fifth Element laments the incompetence of his Mangalore minions to the point of parody, near-enough turning to the camera to say that if you want a job done, it's best doing it yourself!
Star Wars' stormtroopers are perhaps the most infamous examples, so much so that 'the stormtrooper effect' is a label used to describe henchmen who are poor shots despite outnumbering the hero with superior training and equipment. The hero might also be said to be wearing 'plot armour' in these situations (i.e. being unkillable because the plot needs them to remain alive.)
The Seer/Prophet: these are usually very old, wise characters or characters who go through some form of magical transformation. Many seers are former mentors and may have been heroes before that. Age and/or higher concerns mean that those two roles are long gone for them. They foretell the hero or villain's story before it even happens or are consulted by the hero or villain for guidance. They can be very enigmatic, speaking in riddles that the hero must decipher (and which the hero usually deciphers incorrectly, jumping to the wrong conclusions). Like mentors, seers are very fond of withholding crucial information for plot purposes! The relationship between seer and hero is often complicated and fraught. Where the hero desires action very much in the 'here and now,' the seer's attention is on the far future and a path of patience. Quite often, they are coldly detached from concern for emotional needs or individual lives, having long left everyday life (and perhaps even their normal bodies) behind in favour of seeing a much bigger picture. As such, these two roles often clash. This can also occur when the hero ends up in a situation that the seer could easily have warned them about, with the seer either omitting this information or dressing it up in a riddle. Seers often find themselves torn between reading the future and changing that future. Great examples include The Oracle in The Matrix series, Jean Grey in the later X-Men films and Master Yoda in the Star Wars series.
The Librarian/Tech Support: stereotypically, heroes favour brawn and action over brains and study. This is an issue when the hero's quest requires a more subtle influence or access to knowledge in the here and now or the hero needs new gear and gadgets. The librarian/tech support figure is a minor sidekick (or henchman for the villain) whose job it is to be well-informed, intelligent and to know stuff. In older narratives, this librarian-esque figure knows just the book in which to find the needed information or which remedy to heal a mortally wounded character with. If the story features any sort of magic, this character will be very strong in that magic but not so strong (if at all) in conventional combat.
In newer stories, our tech support figure is instead 'magical' in the sense that they take care of and deploy their side's technology to search for information (or steal it from enemy systems) and affect digital spaces - often with real world consequences like opening or closing doors for heroes, rerouting henchmen etc. These characters are phenomenally powerful provided they are kept somewhere safe and have access to their books, magic or technology. Take these away and they become next to useless, which is why they can often find themselves falling into the damsel-in-distress role.
Great examples include Hermione in the Harry Potter series, C-3PO and R2-D2 in Star Wars, Lucius Fox in The Dark Knight trilogy, Beast in the X-Men films, Lyle in The Italian Job and - of course - Q in the James Bond series.
The Rival: the role of hero or villain need not be reserved for one person alone. Aspiring heroes may find themselves just one of several trainees under one mentor, while a number of rival enforcers may all have their eye on the villain's job. Equally, one character may resent the hero or villain, having not been strong enough themselves to take the role. Rivals become especially apparent in narratives with younger characters - doubly so if the narrative is set in a school, academy or other training facility. On the side of evil, villains can die with none of the henchmen being strong enough to take the role alone - this then creates an uneasy grouping of rival leaders barely able to cooperate with one another. In some narratives, rivals may switch sides for no other reason than to inconvenience one another or because they feel the path to the top is easier with the other team. Rivals may particularly sabotage one another at crucial moments in training or adventure to make one another look bad. Equally, narratives where the rivals must work together to overcome a challenge are common - these moments can cause rivals to put aside their differences more permanently. Some rivalries can produce future hero and villain pairings, and "our time at the academy was when it all started" is a clichéd trope across media. Others may lead to hero and sidekick partnerships that become fruitful. Kirk and Spock in the Star Trek reboot are a good example of the latter, with one character originally destined for the hero role instead giving way to another.
One of the finest examples is Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter series, a rivalry which becomes deadly in The Half Blood Prince but is put aside later. The complex relationship between The Doctor and The Master in Doctor Who with its origins in childhood rivalry is another great example that gives way to a classic hero/villain pairing, and perhaps one of the longest-running in any piece of media. Rivalries are not limited to the side of good, and in fact some of the nastiest and most dramatic rivalries are found over on the villain's team, with henchmen each keen to suffer the least amount of the villain's wrath. Krennic and Tarkin's bitter rivalry in Rogue One is an entire subplot and Hux and Kylo Ren's rivalry in The Rise of Skywalker is also a good example, with the former betraying the First Order for the sole purpose of embarrassing Ren.
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