*Warning: This post contains spoilers about the characters from the television series Timeless. Read at your own risk if you have not watched the first two seasons.
There is something to be said about a well written, human character. They leap off the page and speak to us as if they were right in front us, as flesh and blood human beings, instead of fictional creations.
In this series of weekly blog posts, I will examine character using the characters from Timeless to explore how writers can create fully dimensional, human characters that audiences and readers can relate to.
Any good story needs a villain. He or she is often the driving force for the narrative, especially when they come into contact with the hero or heroine of the story. But a good villain is there not just to antagonize the main character(s), he or she has a back story and believes that they are doing the right thing.
In Timeless, the villain for all of season 1 and part of season 2 was Garcia Flynn (Goran Visnijc). When the audience is introduced to Flynn, we are told that he is the bad guy. Determined to stop Rittenhouse, Flynn uses a journal written in the future by Lucy Preston (Abigail Spencer). It is up to the Time Team to prevent Flynn from changing major events in American history.
Over the course of season one and season two, it is revealed that Flynn’s family were murdered by Rittenhouse. In the second season, Flynn becomes an ally of the Time Team, in spite of their lack of trust in him, especially Wyatt (Matt Lanter). When Wyatt’s wife, Jessica (Tonya Glanz) returns from the dead and sparks appear to be flying between Lucy and Flynn, this arouses Wyatt’s suspicion even further.
To sum it up: It takes a good writer to create a complicated villain. To be evil for evil’s sake is boring. When a villain has a motive, it only adds to the narrative. Garcia Flynn stands out as a villain because the audience understands why he is doing what he is doing.
Writergurlny 