[imagel]http://www.enworld.org/forum/attachments/talking-talk/37968d1229567127-mm2e-hhpsh-salton-city-needs-heroes-ooc-currently-closed-tenfootpole.jpg[/imagel]I really should stay away. I really should.
But given the decidely European bent of the team, he fits so well. And while thinking about it, I realized I can have a horrible puns as powers.
Mikel "Michael" Styrzkwalski
The Ten-Foot Pole
He's tall. That's his power. The son of Poland's famous crime fighting duo; Rübezahl, the friendy giant; and Vulcana, the rubberized woman. Unfortunately he inherited his father's height . . . and his mother's build, with powers stranded somewhere inbetween. This leaves a stretched out gangly young man with a number of issues.
However, when the Polish Tourism Board needed a public face to sacrifice to the gods of consumerism, they figured he'd fit the bill just perfectly. Send him off to some American TV show, and get some publicity, but without losing any actualy useful hero. A few quick negotiations with the producers and Trzymierniki (3 Meters) was given 2-inch lifts on his shoes and redubbed the Ten-Foot Pole!
Powers:
Tall (300 cm)
Power leap: The Pole Vault!
Extend-o Punch: The Pole Arm!
Catchphrase: "What do you mean, 'Go see if it's a trap.'?"
------- CHARACTER INFO -------
Real Name: Mikel "Michael" Styrzkwalski
Identity: The Ten-Foot Pole
Occupation: College Student
Marital Status: Single
Age: 20
Height: 9'10" (300 cm)
Weight: 490 lb (220 kg)
Hair: Short, brown.
Eyes: Green
Nationality: Polish
Ethnicity: Caucasian (Slavic)
Place of Birth: Warsaw, Poland
Group Affiliation(s): European Union of Heroes (EUoH), junior member
Allegiance(s): Poland
First Appearance: Sultan City Needs Heroes! - Episode 1
[Sblock=Audition Tape]The tape starts up, and a scene shakes into focus, blurs in and out for a moment before focusing on a belt buckle. An exasperated voice speaks from off screen.
"Pan up."
The camera crawls up slowly, eventually finding its focus again on a puzzled looking young man. He picks uncomfortably at his outfit, clearly unused to the spandex body suit. Behind him, the Polish flag waves impressively. He looks down, away from the camera.
"Dlaczego. . ."
The exasperated voice interrupts him.
"English, please, Michael. You will have to speak English for the show, best to get practicing, yes?"
The young man flushes slightly and glances at the camera again for a moment.
"Why am I doing this?"
"I told you, it's for the show. An audition tape, to show them how impressive you are. You want them to want you on their show, don't you, Michael?"
"Not really."
"What was that?"
"Nothing. What I mean is, I thought I was already on the show. Isn't the whole thing being done through some back room deal with the EU? Why do I have to audition?"
There is a brief spate of Polish cursing.
"Look, Michael, the whole point of back room deals is that they are secret, yes? So, we make the audition tape. You act like you want to be on the show, and they act like they select you. And everyone gets to be happy. Good? Good. So we start over. We'll erase all this from the tape before we send it out. Just start from the beginning like we rehearsed."
The young man scowls sullenly for a moment before sighing. He stands up a little straighter, then slouches back down into frame. He looks down to the ground, then starts and locks his eyes to the camera. He nods to himself once.
"Hello, my name is Michael. You may have heard of my parents, their both pretty famous in the heroing world. But that's not why I should be on your show. Sure, my family history has affected me. They brought me up right, to be a hero, and use my powers to protect the little guy. But I can't rely on my connections to make my place in the world. The time has come for me to stand up proud, and take my place in the world. Salton City has put out a call for heroes, and that's a pretty tall order. But I think I'm just the man you need."
The camera slowly zooms out, revealing that the young man towers over everything around him, and stands nearly of a height with the building next to him. He glances down again for a second, nods once more, and then takes a deliberate step forward, making eye contact with the camera again.
"Here in my homeland they call me Trzymierniki, Three meters. But, ha ha, no metric for you Americans. You can me the Ten-Foot Pole. And Salton City? I want to be YOUR hero!"
He points one finger at the camera, coming impressively close to touching it, and then strikes a suitably dramatic pose. He holds the pose for a couple of seconds, before glancing downwards again while trying to hold the pose. A slightly seedy looking man wanders into frame and pats Michael awkwardly on the leg.
"Good, Michael. Good. We'll get one of our editors to go over it, cut out all the junk from the beginning, and maybe clean it up a little. But it should work. Looks real, looks authentic. Young superhero steps out from the shadows and into the spotlight! It's gonna be great, kid. Just great. Soon enough you'll be off to America! Do us proud!"
Michael looks distinctly less than impressed, but nods slightly.
"Yeah, alright." [/Sblock][sblock=Q&A]1. What do you think is your best ability/talent? How would you to use that ability/talent to change the world?
Honestly, I think by best talent in my mind. I mean, having super powers is useful, and all. But it doesn't amount to anything if you don't know HOW to use them. I think it's the only way to truly change the world, too. People need to start thinking and working together, instead of against one another.
2. Who or what do you consider to be your worst fear? Why?
Intolerance, I guess. All the powers in the world won't help if people won't accept you.
3. If you had the chance to save the world or yourself then which would you save if you can not save them both? Why?
The world. What would be the point in saving just me? I'd have nowhere to live. But really, there's a lot of people and things I care about. If it would save the world, I'd lay down my life. Some things are worth any price.
4. What is the one thing you want to do, which you are unable to do? What would you do if you had the ability to do that?
. . . I kind of wish I could have a secret identity. You know, live a normal life, do normal things. I'd only be "super" when I needed to. My mom looks like anyone else when she's not using her powers. I'm always like this.
5. What was your childhood like? Did you grow up powered? Dream of being a hero? Or were you just a normal, every day kid?
It was sort of odd growing up, I won't lie. I've been tall since the day I was born. I was taller than my first grade teacher. They had to bring in special chairs for me to sit in. The other kids found it really amusing, I guess. Having powered parents was odd, too. But mostly I didn't see them much. They're always busy, fighting the good fight. I'd liked to have seen them more, but I guess I understand that they had a job to do.
6. Why do you want to appear on Television?
I don't know. Maybe I just want a chance to be me, to see if I can be a hero on my own. Do I have what it takes?
7. How do you see the future of the world when you are old. Is there hope for the world?
I think there's hope. There's a lot of bad things out there, and thing will probably get a lot worse before they get better. But there's always people out there trying to make things work. I have to believe there's hope, something to strive for, even in the face of all else.
8. What would you like to see in this Season of - Needs Heroes!? Anything you wouldn't want to happen?
I'd like to see teamwork. I think that's at the core of superheroing, and something the show should help us with. Live together, work together, suceed together. So I hope I like my teammates. I'd hate to end up working with a bunch of criminals, narcissists, nutjobs and headcases. Heh. But I think I'll be pretty safe on that account. You guys screen the applicants pretty well, right?
9. What would you say to those people that accuse you of being vigilantes, and say that the police and government should be the only ones that fight crime?
Once again, I can only stress teamwork. There's things that the police simply aren't equipped to handle, but heroes can't just go storming into situations without the proper understanding either. The governments and police need to work together to solve problems. Trust and teamwork will suceed where either one alone will fail.
10. If you had one wish what would it be for and why?
When I was young, I always wished for a normal life. No super powers. My parents would be at home, and I'd be just another kid, instead of a beanpole freak. But I suppose thats kind of selfish. The world needs heroes to stand against the villains. Now I don't know what I'd wish for.
11. Who is someone that inspires you? Who is your personal hero?
My dad. I mean, yeah, he's an actual hero, but he's also been a strong force in my life. He knows what it's like to grow up . . . with an emphasis on the up. His works keeps him away a lot, but he's there when he can be. And his wisdom has helped me a lot, even when he can't be there in person.[/sblock]
