MOTM - February 2015

[Amin]

Darrin, if you don't write at least a pilot for this, bad things will happen.

[MJ]

Damn, Darrin, that's a great pitch! This competition just become a lot harder, haha! But seriously, great work. I could totally see this as a legitimate tv show with how well it's been pitched.

[Darrin McCann]

Thanks, MJ! I appreciate that! Can't wait to see what you and everyone else comes up with! I love MotM!!

[MJ]

James Zimmerman (Andrew Garfield) is your perfectly average, completely traditional college student- and superhero. James has a power, the ability to jump back in time and change things, for better of for worse. At any point in time he can ‘jump’ (as he likes to call it) back minutes, hours, or even days. But time travel is never simple, and when James jumps he isn’t just reliving events, he’s essentially living as a copy of himself up until the point when his past self completes the jump that sent him back in the first place. Confusing, potentially, but for science geek James it’s the best thing that could have ever happened to him.

Deciding that using his ability just to make his own life easier was a waste of a gift, James took on a superhero identity to help prevent disasters from happening. Juncture was born and his uncanny ability to be in the right place at the right time ensured he became well loved by the public. For a while life was great, but all good things must come to an end.

It had been all over the news- ‘explosion at power station results in forty dead’. James couldn’t leave it be, not when all it took was one little jump to save forty people, and before long Juncture was there to save the day- only it didn’t go entirely to plan. The forty people were saved but there was no sign of Juncture after the incident, and not long after James Zimmerman also disappeared off the face of the earth- both presumed dead. Only James wasn’t dead- a mishap at the facility and an electric charge that would have killed anybody else had sent his power into overdrive. Upon waking James found himself not minutes, hours, or even days in the past, but years. Enough years, in fact, for him to wake up in the Old West.

Waking up in the old west is more than a little bit shocking for James but with the help of the sheriff’s daughter Eleanor (Emily Kinney) and Sheriff Anderson (Tim DeKay) himself, he is soon to find his feet. The struggle of living life hundreds of years before his time is constant for James and he quickly sets about trying to find a way to jump back to his time. It isn’t long before he realises that his arrival has caused the town a lot more trouble than he originally thought in the form of people developing strange and unusual powers- and it seems like none of them plan to use them for good.

Realising that getting back home may take some time, James once again dons the mantle of Juncture and sets about playing hero for Copper Creek, all while struggling to adjust to his new, and potentially permanent, life. 

James Zimmerman | The Hero
(Andrew Garfield)

James is pretty much your average college student, except for the fact that he is hiding a huge secret- he’s a superhero. It was during his teens that James discovered he had the ability to jump backwards in time and, rather than just using it for his own benefit, he decided to take it upon himself to help everyone. He took on the name Juncture and balanced a double life as a geeky science student by day and publicly adored superhero by night. Waking up in Copper Creek after the accident was something James never thought possible but when he realises returning to his own time may not even be feasible he pushes aside his own wants in order to help out the town with their problems- some of which wouldn’t even be there if it wasn’t for him. He’s not you’re typical hero type, and in the wild west he’s definitely a fish out of water, but he has a good heart underneath it all and that’s what makes him such a good hero when all is said and done.

Eleanor Anderson | The Girl Friday

(Emily Kinney)

Eleanor is well known around Copper Creek for being the only daughter of the town’s current Sheriff as well as having an uncanny ability to end up with her nose in everyone’s business, not that anyone minds too much. Eleanor is curious, intelligent, and not afraid to raise hell when needs be. It’s a formidable combination and constant reason for her father to worry about her. For the most part she’s sweet and kind to all who deserve it- sometimes even those that don’t- but anyone who mistakes her for a pushover is in for a rough time. Eleanor is the first person to find James after the accident and the pair, after a few initial faux pas, go on to become good friends and an even better team.

Sheriff William Anderson | The Lawman
(Tim DeKay)

Sheriff William “Bill” Anderson is the incorruptible lawman of Copper Creek. He has been sheriff for six years running and with all law-abiding citizens happy with his work he is likely to remain in the position for many years to come. His wife died of an illness that spread though the town five years ago, leaving him to continue raising their daughter on his own. These days he has a lot on his plate, dealing with a daughter that’s old enough now to make her own decisions despite his eagerness to protect her, and wrangling the seemingly ever increasing population of criminals and outlaws on their doorstep. Some days he doesn’t know which job is harder, being a father or being the Sheriff.

Deputy Cole Bailey | The Deputy
(Ryan Kelley)

Deputy Cole Bailey is fairly new to Copper Creek but his good looks and gentlemanly nature have won over the ladies, and his dedication to his job and tough but fair stance when enforcing the law have made him friends with most the men. It wasn’t long before Sheriff Anderson took him on as his right hand man, and Cole was more than happy to be working alongside a local law legend. He does have ulterior motives for wanting to work so closely with the Sheriff however, and that’s his long held but carefully hidden infatuation with the sheriff’s daughter Eleanor.

Josephine "Josie" Fields | The Bartender
(Lyndie Greenwood)

Josephine “Josie” Fields was, and still is, a mystery to most of the people in Copper Creek. She arrived one day without warning or explanation and made herself at home. For a while most people forgot about her, as much as you can forget about someone in a small town, until she took ownership of the local saloon by winning a bet against the then owner. It was an embarrassing day for the old owner, but many people had witnessed her win the place fair and square. He gave up the building with little fight before claiming he was moving to the city and was never heard from again. People were wary about Josie for some time after that but she runs the Copper Creek saloon better than any man ever has. It’s a mostly respectable establishment and Josie makes sure patrons follow her rules. Any troublemakers are swiftly and firmly kicked out and not invited back.

Doctor Benjamin Frazier | The Doctor
(Lee Pace)

Doctor Benjamin Frazier is Copper Creek’s one and only medical expert. He runs a practice in the center of town and trains a handful of nurses personally to work under him. He appears stern from all outer appearances but has a soft spot for the town and those who live in it. He is a well-off man with the ear of the mayor and substantial pull with others in powerful positions. He won’t hesitate to act if he feels there is something, or someone, threatening the peace.

Abraham "Abe" Tanner | The Outlaw
(Eric Balfour)

Every town has its bad boy and for Copper Creek that bad boy is Abe Tanner. While no one has been able to pin any crimes on him, yet, it’s well known that he works on the wrong side of the tracks. He steals and scams to get what he wants- usually money- but he likes to claim he’s a gentleman because he only kills people if he really has to. Abe has a soft spot for Copper Creek and while his criminal activities are usually restricted to outside of the town trouble tends to follow him back home fairly regularly.

1.01 | Juncture
An average day in the life of James Zimmerman as he attempts to juggle his life as both college student and superhero ‘Juncture’. Everything is going well until a rescue mission at a power station goes awry and James finds his powers have sent him much further into the past than he’s ever been- one hundred and sixty years into the past to be exact. 

1.02 | Copper Creek
Still struggling to come to terms with just where and when he is, James finds himself in the town of Copper Creek. He’s discovered by the sheriff’s daughter, Eleanor, and her and her father take care of him under the assumption he’s a delirious, dehydrated traveller. James begins searching for a way to get back to his own time in secret after he realises no one believes he’s from the future.

1.03 | The Locals
Despite not wanting to get comfortable with his new surroundings, James is finding he enjoys the simpler life in the old west. With Eleanor as his guide he learns more about the town and the people in it. When Abe Tanner rolls back into town with trouble on his heels however, James finds himself using his powers for the first time since the accident.

1.04 | Cause and Effect
James throws himself into his work to try and find a way back home but soon finds his arrival in Copper Creek had some unintended side effects when a local outlaw shows off some new abilities that beggar belief. James sets aside his personal goals in favour of helping the people who took him in and looked after him and Juncture makes his first appearance in the old west. 

So my chosen genre pairing was superhero and western. I also chose the constraint of ‘time travel’. This was so much fun, I love the opportunity to stretch my creative muscles and I must say I’ve really fallen in love with this pitch, more than I thought I would! I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed putting it together.

Also, I hope his powers make sense…? Like, time travel is confusing as all get out and I tried to explain it a simply as possible so I didn’t take up a huge chunk of the plot description, but also detailed enough that people understood it. Hopefully it worked XD