Looking at this backstory... Out of curiosity, have you ever watched a Tokusatsu program? Power Rangers counts. That sort of backstory really goes in the face of the tone I'm looking for here.

I mean, maybe go for crossing the line twice- your character's friend was his partner on the police squad, who was two days from retirement so he could go be a better husband to his pregnant wife. But then he was tragically gunned down by a suit monster and you're seeking answers. Maybe paramedics responding to monster terrorism resulted in one's death. There's just not a lot of romance in what you've got there. I'm not looking for gritty, realistic tragedy so much as ham-fisted melodrama.