Type #6 The Boy Scout

He does NOT want to be left alone in the woods.

We’re back on our series of nine sitcom character types, loosely based on the Enneagram. After that, I think we’re going to get back to the basics of sitcom. But if there’s anything you really want to ask me about writing sitcoms, please put it in the comments below, or ‘reply to’ to this email in your inbox. Wait. You don’t get this via email? Subscribe. It’s weekly and it’s free:

Do send me questions. Seriously, no question is too basic or dumb or weird. I’ve been writing sitcoms for over twenty years and I’ve forgotten what it’s like to not know where to start. So help me help you!

Right. Here go. Type 6. The Boy Scout.

Is this type, the Boy Scout, ready for any situation? Are they a loyalist, fanatically defending the group? Are they a sceptic who struggles to trust anyone?

The Enneagram calls the Type Six ‘the Loyalist’ or ‘the Sceptic’. At first these characters hardly seem the same, but they all share one deep need and insecurity. They are afraid of being abandoned or left alone without support.

The Boy Scout, then, is prepared for any emergency in case the worst happens and they are, metaphorically, stranded alone in the woods. This type probably struggles to trust anyone at all and is over-compensating by being self-reliant. They have a cabin in the woods, canned goods and ammunition, and they are ready for the Zombie Apocalypse. But when a crisis comes, they whirr into action and are vindicated for their readiness.

This is Ron Swanson. He doesn’t trust anyone. At all. He doesn’t have any friends. He doesn’t want to be disappointed by anyone and left alone, so he has decided to be alone. But if you make it through that incredibly thick armour, as Leslie Nope does eventually, he will go to the ends of the earth for you, because he is loyal.

How do others see this character? It’s always worth thinking about that. This kind of Boy Scout is a loner, anti-social, defensive, private and secretive. These are all defences against – and preparations for – being abandoned.

This could be Monica Geller. She is fiercely competitive, but I don’t think she wants to win because she wants the adulation of others and the status it brings. She wants her skills to be tested and tested. Again, it comes down to self-reliance. Others would call her a control freak. (My daughter says Monica is probably a Type 2. Or at Type2w1).

Some Boy Scouts really don’t fancy their chances in the woods – and so they are very loyal friends and will back them no matter what, even if their friend does something mean or immoral. They simply cannot lose the friendship and risk being left alone in the woods.

This is George Constanza. He is a fundamentally anti-social, selfish and neurotic man who has one friend: Jerry. George will do whatever it takes to remain friends with him. He knows that, left entirely to his own devices, he wouldn’t survive in the jungle of New York.

Back to the Restaurant

Let’s put one of these into our restaurant sitcom. Meet Marcus. He is the owner’s husband, a doormat who will do anything for his wife since he knows one thing: she is the best thing that ever happened to him. He is essentially the restaurant’s janitor, fixer and dogsbody. He has a spanner for every bolt, a fuse for every device. He is ready to be deployed at any minute to keep the restaurant running smoothly and his wife happy.

At the moment, Marcus doesn’t sound very funny, does he? He is passive and reactive and I don’t think we’re going enjoy him. Here he is:

Let’s crank him up a little to make him more proactive. Let’s make him more paranoid, and prone to escalate doom-based scenarios. And then attempt to mitigate them. So he is all about health, safety, hygiene and making sure the kitchens don’t catch fire, or that people don’t cut themselves.

To be fair, commercial kitchens are extremely dangerous places, so Marcus isn’t being entirely unreasonable. But he always takes things a little too far.

One week, he’s installing a sprinkler system that is extremely sensitive and causes havoc. Another time, he’s trying to find the best Hazmat suit in order to be ready for any kind of nuclear incident. He’s forever trying to head off problems in the future. And he’ll leap in to help if someone doesn’t show up to work. So he’ll be a sous-chef, waiter or maitre d’ as needed, despite having no clear skills in this area, causing more chaos that he is then desperate to fix.

Why? Because Marcus is terrified of being alone. The restaurant must thrive. And if it fails, it certainly cannot be his fault.

That’s type 6, what I call “The Boy Scout”. Next time, type 7. Find out what this by subscribing to this weekly newsletter. Which is free:

Some Help Starting Over

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