C H A R A C T E R C O N C E P T P R O P O S A LTED KORD: THE BLUE BEETLE
C H A R A C T E R C O N C E P T:
“My greatest strength is an unfocused mind. This is because while you are all thinking of one idea, I’m thinking of five different ideas. My greatest weakness however is an unfocused mind. This is because while I’m supposed to be thinking about one thing, I’m actually thinking of five other things.”
Theodore Stephen KORD
5’11”, 184lbs (Don't judge!)
Born: Charlton, Massachussetts (July 4, 1997)
Graduated: Worcester Polytechnic Institute B.S. Degree in Chemical Engineering, Ph. D degree in Aeronautical engineering, Ph. D in Electrical Engineering, B.S. Degrees in Robotics and Mechanical Engineering
A prodigious mind, but flighty and prone to getting himself into trouble, Ted Kord excelled at virtually anything that he enjoyed and put his effort towards. Science, gymnastics, soccer and baseball, with the world in the palm of his hand Ted Kord could do it all and do it all with a smile on his face and laughter in his heart. His life took a sharp turn however, when he was expelled in his senior year of high school due to his involvement in a scandal which saw two thirds of a class cheat their way to perfect scores in major Physics and Mathematics exams. Knowing that his own grades for the year were sufficient to have already graduated, he refused to roll over and snitch out his friend Carter Johns – the one responsible for selling the tests throughout the class.
But whilst his grades were good enough already to have graduated with flying colours, M.I.T did not respond well to news of his expulsion, nor the manner in which it took place.
Some months later, after a number of phone calls and a hefty donation from Kord Omniversal founder and C.E.O Thomas Kord, and Ted was enrolled to local engineering college Worcester Polytechnic.
Given the opportunity to continue his learning, Ted excelled even further in the less structured college environment where he could focus more on endeavours of his own choosing. He swiftly blew through a degree in Aeronautical engineering, having always looked to the stars with wonder and discovered how much easier the college system suited him. Enrolling further in a number of other engineering courses to be one of the more rounded young scientific minds in the world.
But something was missing from the young man’s life.
Ted was on a mission for knowledge, viewing it as the ends rather than the means until he met another scientist named Hank Pym at a symposium in New York. But Pym wasn’t the catalyst for change so much as a mirror to help see himself better through.
The catalyst was a young man in a black suit slinging some kind of organic strand-like webbing substance, who swept through in pursuit of another man.
@DocTachyonThe two scientists bonded over how this young new superhero they witnessed could possibly be doing the things he was doing (
"It's obvious! A spray dispersal system that fires a resin polymer over a chemical silly-string like chain, solidifying it in the process!" "Are you kidding me? It's clearly some kind of fluid that solidifies on contact with the air!" "Maybe it's actually organic... you know? Maybe it's actually something he secretes inside of him, from in his actual wrists?" "Yeah, sure, whatever. And maybe it's Maybelline..." "..." "..." "BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"), and potential mechanical devices that could mimic his amazing movements and feats of agility, speed and strength. The pair exchanged email addresses and Ted had found what his life had been missing for years. The spark. The joy and wonder from his old high school days.
But this was more than just nostalgia. This was a new path.
“Screw the family business. I want to be one of those guys…”
C H A R A C T E R M O T I V A T I O N S & G O A L S:
It’s the story of a brilliant, yet flawed young man finally finding a path and slowly discovering his potential despite himself.
C H A R A C T E R N O T E S:
Character and Equipment:
Ted Kord – Good natured and affable, unfocused yet brilliant. Ted Kord possesses an eidetic and photographic memory, the ability to demonstrate great logic and deductive reasoning and a love of film (particularly Bond and Mission: Impossible movies). Ted was a gymnast in high school (and a few pounds lighter, but hey, who’s judging…) which plays a heavy factor in his agility based hand-to-hand fighting style.
The Bug – Originally designed by Ted as a prototype for potential space travel (young Ted set his mind to Mars as NASA first began sending probes and rovers) it has since been repurposed for his foray into superheroics. Mimicking the series Star Trek: Enterprise, Ted found a way to provide shielding by magnetizing the airship’s hull. He also found ways to electrify the outer shell to protect it from unwanted boarders. Capable of withstanding the pressures of the deepest sea trench or space travel, the mostly solar-powered Bug is at the bleeding edge of modern crimefighting vehicular technology and Ted’s pride and joy. It’s also controllable by remote, capable of flying or hovering on auto-pilot without Ted needing to be at the helm.
The BB gun – Ted’s primary defensive weapon, the BB gun is capable of emitting either a blinding flash of light, a strong compressed air blast, or a single five second deafening sonic screech. The BB gun is also powered by solar charged battery cells that Ted keeps on his person.
Ted also has access to a ridiculous array of self-invented gadgetry and gimmicks, although most are limited in use and would require the foresight and planning to bring them to utilize.
So, it’s true confessions time I guess…
I never really studied in high school. Ever, if I’m being honest. I never really had to. I read the text books that we were given for the standard curriculum at the start of the term. Tests would come. And every page of every text book was just sitting right there. In my head.
I mean that’s not the sum total of schooling, let’s be honest. Rote memorization. You have to come to terms with the concepts that the class deals with that are inside the books. But when you can just recall everything and anything that the class is dealing with, the second you turn your test sheet over… you don’t really ever need to pay too much attention in class.
So you drift. Your focus waxes and wanes. You become a dreamer. A class clown. Anything to ease off the monotony of those classes which hold you captive from 9 til 3.
Instead of listening to how the mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell, which you read about as soon as you got your books, you’re sketching a spaceship that will one day take you beyond the moon. The spaceship that will make you the first man on that red planet, from this blue one which has been sending probes and rovers over for exploratory purposes since the day you were born.
You drew sketches of yourself in the James Bond suit and tie, holding that trademark Bond pose with the Walther PPK skyward.
…and little do you know that the reason you’re wearing a suit before your 23rd birthday has nothing to do with neither space travel, nor espionage.
You’re sitting in the seat your father vacated. The business and the world he left for you early. And still you drift.
But the craft that sits in the covered hanger, recessed into the roof of the Kord Tower isn’t a dream. And neither is the other suit that hangs in your wardrobe. The one you never tell people about.
“Well, if we’re done here ladies and gentlemen. I think we’ll call it a day.”
mickilennial,
AndyC,
Qia,
Festive,
Sep,
Half Pint,
Roman,
Rockette,
Lord Wraith,
Master Bruce
