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Scenarios
You know how they say there's really only 5 stories being told and retold?
From The Areas of my Expertise by John Hodgman, p.44-45.
| Man/Woman v. Man/Woman | Man/Woman v. Nature | Man/Woman v. Society | Man/Woman v. Him-/Herself | Man/Woman v. Cyborgs | |
| 100 | Boy v. Girl | Mountains thwart progress. | A stranger comes to town. | Triumph over ennui | Threat of cyborgs from the future |
| 200 | Cop v. Rookie | Zoo animals attack zookeepers. | A town springs up magically around a stranger. | Success thwarted by phobia | Threat of present-day cyborgs |
| 300 | Magicians v. Detectives | All animals attack all humans. | Society persecutes inventor of revolutionary fabric or vehicle. | Hero must choose between excellent sexual partner and stable companion. | Return of Civil War-era cyborgs that are powered by steam |
| 400 | Teacher v. Unruly class; both learn lessons. | Hunted by tornadoes | Self-satisfied loner flouts irrational laws, reveals absurdity of society, congratulates himself. | Past life reasserts itself. | Cyborg fights the man within. |
| 500 | Pursuit throughout life by a French constable whose determination exceeds his reeason | Volcanoes come to town. | Hero is chased by townspeople bearing torches. | Hero wonders if closest friend is actually archenemy, then lives in fear. | Many seeks control of his own cybernetic brain. |
| 600 | Country mouse v. City mouse | Only partially blinded bear seeks revenge. | Person living in a two-dimensional world encourages embrace of third dimension and is shunned. | A horrible physical deformity is overcome, only to be revealed that it is all in the protagonist's imagination. | Only the hero can see the cyborgs who secretly run our government and media. |
| 700 | Devil worshippers v. Apartment dwellers | Wilderness becomes crucible in which asthmatic learns to grow beard. | Conscience prevents acceptance of Soylent Green. | Only partially blinded bear overcomes need for revenge. | Family pet discovered to be cyborg. |
| 800 | Rivals in business become partners in bed. | The ocean arrives to put an end to well-laid plans. | True talent overlooked in favor of kiss-asses. | Struggle to overcome the effects of brainwashing/hypnosis | Young, handsome cyborg Army officer kills own family, blames hippies. |
| 900 | Former lovers who are archeologists seek same ancient curio. | Petty jealousy inspires tireless pursuit of whale. | Numbering system for clones proves problematic for non-clones. | Everything turns out to be a dream. | Man creates cyborg who wishes to be a real boy. |
| 1000 | Evil cousins thwart romance. | Saint Bernards come first as rescuers, then reveal themselves as enemies. | Shark loves Jet (all can be Man v. Nature or Nature v. Technology). | Body part is severed, gains mind of its own: Watch out. | Cyborg servants turn on master. |
| 1100 | Professional debunker v. Popular spoon-bending psychic | Snakes lie in wait. | Child raised by Saint Bernard assassins seeks acceptance and forgiveness in human society. | Hero in coma seeks to solve own murder, discovers culprit is himself. | Cyborgs seek fortune on Broadway, settle for bartending gig, and learn much about human life. |
I think many of these would make excellent writing prompts. I also want to play Jeopardy guessing the more specific ones, ergo my extra label of moolah.
Man v. Man for 500, Alex. What is Le Miz?
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