The reason the Shadow is called the Shadow is because, well, that’s what it is. If we are the Hero, then our Shadow is the dark force that follows us around when we stand in the light. The stronger the light, the stronger the shadow.

Shapeshifters are defined, irritatingly, by their indefinability. So, I will defer to the inspiration for this series, Christopher Vogler, for a definition:

Tricksters aren’t villains. Except for when they are. In all honesty, there’s no such thing as a villain, but Tricksters are the first archetype in this series that closest resembles the direct antagonist to the protagonist of your source text.

So far, we’ve explored the nature of two archetypes and how they make great protagonists (the Mentor and Threshold Guardian), now it’s time for the Ally to step out of the shadow and into the Hero’s seat.

In essence, that’s what a Threshold Guardian is.

The hero is at point A.

They need to be at point C.

But point B is blocked by someone / something.

The Mentor is, in most cases, the character that reminds the audience what it is the whole story is about. If a story is Thesis / Antithesis / Synthesis, where the antagonist represents antithesis and the hero strives for synthesis, the Mentor represents the thesis.

Hollywood is dying. The era of peak TV is rumoured to be in its final days, and everybody wants to know where it went wrong. As industries collapse, major corporations are trying to monopolise what’s left, squeezing the final pennies into their bank before the inevitable collapse. Transmedia practices offer a collaborative, adaptive, audience focused and artist centric way to tell stories. Done right, they can build exponentially outside the Hollywood system and hopefully, one day, replace it.