There's a dynamic I've been noticing while watching FOR ALL MANKIND. Every good character has a hole in them, something they need that they can't fill--and also that they don't know how to fill, or maybe even want to.
And obviously dealing with that hole is going to end up being a big part of their journey on the show. It's Karen trying to figure out how to be free in season one. It's Margo being so completely alone in the first two seasons. It's Gordo trying to see a way past his fears, really trying to see a future for himself. It's Aleida and her self-destructive tendencies.
Along the way other characters are going to help them or hinder them on that journey. But usually on MANKIND eventually there will be one character who is, if I can nerd out, the Apollo to their Soyuz. The person who has the piece that they need.
Karen needs to learn that she can be free and needs someone who can shepherd her on that journey. And who shows up? Wayne Cobb, Molly's fearful and yet very free artist-husband. For quite a while Karen sees him as an antagonist, which makes total sense. Even before she has the words for what she wants, he is the living example of it.
In season one Margo seems to get everything that she wanted. But that opening scene with her that I wrote about a couple posts go is instructive--what was her problem? That she was alone. They never make this a big issue, we never get Margo pining after some guy or whatnot. And she's so busy with being awesome in season two I more or less forgot about that as a key part of her character. And then they introduce her counterpart from Russia, Sergei, and immediately her life just seems that much more interesting, because finally this gap--which from our perspective is to say, this untapped story arc--is getting started.
(One thing I note about both Wayne and Sergei, which could also apply to Aleida's frenemy Bill, is that as soon as they become part of their partner's story, they become characters that we love. I think that's precisely because again, they address that untapped story, they make things more interesting, just by who they are.)
I had originally labeled this kind of character as the "Unexpected Sidekick," which sort of fits: these characters are almost always unexpected in some way. Even if they've been around for a while, still we don't see them coming. But sidekick is not quite right. They're more like BUDDIES to the character they're partnered with. That is to say, they're more than just the character's assistant; they have journeys of their own. Bill has long suffered for something that happened 20 years ago. Wayne is afraid for his wife, and has a great relationship with her. Sergei struggles with what he's asked to do relative to Margo.
In a way the Buddy is a booster rocket for a character (such a nerd),
but instead of falling away those relationships--whether romantic,
friendships or mentoring--become part of that character's life.
I've never noticed a show do this before, especially on a such a broad scale. (And to my mind as we enter season three I'm intrigued to see how that dynamic might play out for other characters, like Ed, who is sort of adrift for the first time, and actually needs some kind of friend, or Ellen, who found a wonderful missing piece for a short time in Tom, but now is once again alone.) It's definitely worth watching MANKIND to see that dynamic at work. It makes me ask in my scripts, who fills those roles for different characters. Or what kind of person will I need down the line to do so.
More on FOR ALL MANKIND coming Thursday.
