Two killers take a break, with Kareoke!

So my first novel if I have ever mentioned it here happens to be a science fiction action adventure. While the first book is a fairly standard revenge tale and moves at a break-neck pace, I want any potential sequels to be in a more "Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys" format where each book is a standalone adventure with perhaps some plot arcs carrying over.

My Protagonist is a teen aged cyborg ninja turtle super soldier. She's conditioned for battle and goes into a frenzy at the sight and/or smell of blood evoking her name sake Kali (a Hindu goddess). By virtue of the trauma (both physical & psychological) she ends up with a very cynical worldview and snarky personality.That said, I still want to maintain that she's a kid at heart and likes to have fun on her "off hours."

My concern with this is the tone. Now my story involves sexual themes, child soldiers, human trafficking and basically all the ugly stuff that take place in the dark alley's of the world. When Kali or Sumisha (her real name) is on a mission, she's a remorseless killer and even scares her handlers with her absolute ruthlessness. Then she comes home, a small villa just outside a hill station to chill and relax. That relaxation typically involves video games or even Kareoke. Does it hurt the tone for an otherwise serious protagonist to act so goofy?

Now another character shows up, a Jason Bourne esque agent and professional assassin. This guy, lets call him Mike is not as dour as the protagonist. He takes his work very seriously (in that he doesn't enjoy killing or hurting but does it without any moral/ethical concerns of his own.) but also the kind of guy you could lay back and have a couple of beers with.

So after a mission, Mike sees Sumisha play Kareoke. Mike laughs at her singing and decides to join in. They have fun. So now you have two of the most dangerous people on the planet, goofing around and playing Kareoke. Does it work? Does it hurt the tone? Does it go into WTF territory? Is it a Big Lipped Alligator Moment?

To clarify, I don't want to omit such scenes all together because I wanted a focus on the off hours aspect of her life. Kali/Sumisha isn't really affected by all the blood & death but Mike tries to stop himself from thinking about the stuff he's done and always looks for a distraction.

I suppose having an aftermath would help. Maybe they just crash onto the couch and discuss how screwed up they must be. The inspiration for this was today's Cracked article: http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-thought-experiments-that-ruin-any-movie/

Specifically: What do these heroes/villains do when they are not fighting?

edited 23rd Jul '15 7:01:25 AM by SmokingBun

I don't really think there's anything wrong with it, personally. It seems logical that the characters aren't going to be devoted 24-7 to their respective "deep" aspects. Several of my characters relax when they aren't saving/destroying the world or seeking the answers to dark mysteries. In fact—at least in my stories—a major sign that someone has an unhealthy and destructive fixation with their work or goals is that they never take a break or deviate from their focus on it to decompress.

So actually, I'd have to say it's the opposite in my opinion. If they never did anything but kill and fight or be series, it would be both unrealistic or show them as very very badly adjusted.

It definitely sounds like you're on the right track. Having the grisly parts of a story is fine, but I've always thought it's best to have scenes with some levity — breathers and such that can mix up the pacing, or let an audience see characters in a new light.

Granted, the challenge for you now is to make it so that the two aspects — the violence and the chilling out — mesh together. It's not as if it's impossible, but it's a matter of making both of them the best they can be. In the case of the R&R bits, have them be substantial. Make stuff that's in line with the character, and let people learn about them in ways the assassination stuff wouldn't allow. Personality, likes and dislikes, things like that; you've got the groundwork with Sumisha and Mike already, but actions and dialogue alike can show off even more.

And of course, you'd want to gear the R&R scenes in a way that isn't TOO farcical. They can be lighthearted and laid-back, but going overboard with goofiness won't do you, the tone, or the story any favors. But working within the bounds of your story should come pretty naturally, so I wouldn't worry about it. Just work with it, and find something that fits your groove.

@ Swordofknowledge

That's a very good point about how someone who doesn't take a break could have something wrong with them or is potentially a sociopath/self-destructive. Neither of my characters are and can be fairly amicable if you are on their good side. Perhaps how well adjusted they are can be a topic of conversation for character building.

In addition, Mike smokes Marijuana, citing the relaxing sensations help him forget the bad stuff.

@ Voltech44

Good point. Even in real life you can be two different people at home and the workplace. Often in fiction you see people putting on masks and being different people based on present company. And I plan to focus on the private moments anyway since on the job they could almost be considered mechanical.

No plans to go overboard or farcial as you suggested. But yes I do want to keep the the idea that despite everything else, somewhere inside Sumisha/Kali is just another teenage girl. She's human but everyone else finds her monster side much more useful.

edited 24th Jul '15 1:46:28 PM by SmokingBun

One of the things that was most effective in Pulp Fiction was showing Vince and Jules chatting about other mundane things - MacDonalds and foot massages - before going in and intimidating/killing.

It made them more "real", their job is shaking down people for Marcellus but they are just regular Joes with interests outside work, opinions etc and they have to "get in character" (to the point of pausing at the door and saying "OK, let's get in character") before they do the "work" stuff.

You could imagine hanging out with these guys at a pub and them being good to get along with - you just wouldn't want them to visit you in their professional capacity.

Having socialised on a few occasions with an actual gang enforcer, I'd say that was pretty accurate to real life.

edited 24th Jul '15 4:26:59 PM by Wolf1066