The Hero/Playing With

Basic Trope: The protagonist of the story; the leader, official or spiritual, of the Five-Man Band.

• Straight: Hiro is the only one with the MacGuffin essential to defeat Emperor Evulz. Acting on "destiny," Hiro acts to lead his Five-Man Band against Evulz's regime.
• Exaggerated: He's a Boring Invincible Hero who wouldn't even need a team.
  • Hiro's the main focus even though this was suppose to be about the Band of Five. The other four are pathetically helpless without him.
• Justified: Hiro's idealism is a rarity in his Crapsack World, thus making him the only one who could understand the MacGuffin and help lead the heroes to fight the villins.
• Inverted: Supporting Protagonist
  • Anti-Hero/Villain Protagonist
  • The Five-Bad Band counterpart would be the Big Bad, or The Dragon.
• Subverted: Hiro dies. Abruptly. In the first episode scene.
  • Though Hiro's the main character, he does abslutely nothing but hold the MacGuffin. Lance is the true hero and leader.
• Double Subverted: But the MacGuffin keeps him from dying, and he comes back stronger than ever.
  • Hiro was faking useless so he could get captured. He then breaks out and learns the Big Bad's secrets.
• Parodied: Idiot Hero, The Cape (trope).
• Deconstructed: Hiro becomes extremely tired of saving the world (seeing people die, trying to always escape death while helping his friend do the same) and just wants to be normal. His destiny causes him to crack and he's within inches from being Driven to Suicide.
  • The other teammates feel useless and quit.
• Reconstructed: But he realizes that his hero status has given him a fulfilling existence, and snaps out of his funk to rejoin the heroes.
  • Then they remember, their roles are important, just made more useful by Hiro's leadership.
• Zig Zagged: (continued from Double Subverted) It turns out, the Big Bad only let Hiro escape, and get the plans. The plans turn out to be false, and he does not help the group at all.
  • After hearing so much that he has no control over what happens and is simply playing out his fate (which is to defeat the Big Bad), a cynical Hiro leaves the Five-Man Band to prove that he has complete control over his life. The Lancer becomes the leader of the Five-Man Band, and Hiro joins a group that doesn't fight the Big Bad but still does heroic things. But then, a mentor tells Hiro that he can have a destiny but keep his freewill, that is, "choosing his own destiny". With renewed confidence Hiro leaves his new group and becomes The Hero once more.
• Averted: The story stars a group of people, no one has the spotlight on them.
• Enforced: Every single important event in Hiro's life is there for the sake of extending the adventure, even after his original quest is over. Even if the original quest was a Fetch Quest.
• Lampshaded: "Why? Because I'm the hero!"
• Invoked: Hiro basically goes out to find the MacGuffin so he can the be Chosen One.
• Defied: Hiro falls victim to Comedic Sociopathy:

Hiro: Please, take me with you, I want to help!
Smart Guy: Well, what can you do?
Hiro: (Beat) ...I have the one.

Mentor: *Beats Hiro up and takes MacGuffin* Thanks for your help, kids. *Band of five leaves*

• Discussed: "Oh yes, it's you. The one who's gonna save everyone in the end?"
• Conversed: "Here's the part of the episode where Hiro saves the day."

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Save the day back at The Hero.