As a child, Bo was involved in a serious car accident. His parents still talk about the miracle it was that no one died in the seven car pileup, but when asked about it, Bo can only gush about the hero that saved his familyās car from toppling off the side of the bridge. Spectrum. The people he tells the story to either scoff and say it was just a matter of the hero being in the right place at the right time or donāt believe him at all, sneering that the incident was too small to even blip on the radar of a hero as famous as Spectrum. But Bo never forgot the red glow of that suit, or the other colors he saw in videos over the years.
And even Bo can admit he became obsessed. With Spectrum, the world of supers, the Guild, the interactions and battles, with villains and the aliens. He watched every video he could get his hands on, compiled data, did his own analysis and debated the pros and cons of various strategies with other kids. Bo filled dozens of notebooks with scrawling looping letters over the years regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the supers he learned about- especially those in the Guild, and their tactics in various situations. There were entire books dedicated to evaluating and improving on those tactics, but as a powerless kid watching from the sidelines, there wasnāt much Bo could do to test his theories other than debate with his friends. But while the other kids grew out of it and focused on other things, Bo only spiraled deeper. His parents still worry that heāll never move on and follow the more accepted life paths for non-powered people, but they support him and wherever his racing thoughts take him, especially since heās still devouring knowledge and figuring out how he wants to use what he knows.
A brilliant kid, he passed through high school with no problems, but itās difficult to turn a hobby of watching supers fight into a good college application, and so Boās in his first year at the community college closest to his parentsā house, studying modern history and taking a couple prelaw courses. Itās still common to see him nose deep in a notebook, scribbling furiously until he runs into someone. But most who know him around campus just shrug and wave him off as just another student cramming for a test. He tutors in his free time for money, in a variety of subjects, and the people he works with do well enough to recommend their friends, but he mostly uses his work to network and get information on whatās going on in the city.
Itās only been a few months since he noticed the increase in crime, but when he realized that there was just too much for the Guild to handle, he figured it wouldnāt hurt to see if he could help. He knew enough to defend himself at the very least, watching professionals gave you the basics when you copied them for hours in your room- muscle memory works even when youāre not entirely sure what youāre doing. The vigilantes that popped up before he really decided to take action sealed the deal. If these random people could stand up and fight back the night, he couldnāt sit on the sidelines.
The first night went poorly to say the least. Thereād been a man threatening an elderly lady with a knife in the alley near Boās path home from the library. Tackling the mugger had been a solid first move, but once the woman was clear and running away, Bo had no idea what to do. A cut to his arm, and a face and stomach covered in bruises were his lessons from the encounter as the man made off with his wallet. But once the man was gone, as Bo lay gasping in pain on the filth ground, the woman peeked back around the corner.
She was clearly still frightened, but her profuse thanks as she helped him up and bought him bandages at a nearby corner store brought a smile to his face for the rest of the evening. His parents fussed over him when they saw the state he was in, but he brushed them off with half-truths.
Once theyād finally let him up to his room, properly cleaned up and bandaged, that smile returned. Limping down the hall, he pulled a small pin from his pocket, a tiny silver and golden flower pressed into his hand with tearful thanks by a woman who didnāt even know his name. The pin found a new home on his windowsill as he pulled a new notebook out of a box, writing notes on his first act of heroism.
There have been a few more moments since then where Bo has gotten to emulate the heroes heās watched for so long, and while most have been just as spur of the moment as the first, heās had a couple opportunities to size up his opponents and come at them with strategies, falling back on the analysis heād down of others all those years ago, even cracking open notebooks he hasnāt touched in years. Heās had mixed results, but some have started taking notice of the young man in the mask. heās had to stat branching out past his usual routes to encounter crimes, and while they laughed in the beginning, heās getting more and more wins on the board, and some are getting nervous about the unknown element.
Hard-Working: The strongest impression that Bo leaves on others is that of someone who puts an amazing amount of effort into everything he does. Thereās almost never a moment of stillness in his life, as he rushes from one event or project to another. He never complains about the load, always has a smile on his face, even as the Watcher. He never stops trying until the job is done, and if he needs to figure out an unconventional way to do it, he will.
Stubborn: One of the first things Bo learned as a vigilante was to keep getting back up until he couldnāt anymore. He gets knocked down fairly frequently, but as long as he keeps getting back up, heās doing it to fight wrongs and help people. Heās dedicated himself to becoming one of the heroes, a light in the dark of Newhaven, and heāll be damned if he doesnāt put his all into it. Granted, this has earned him a few more injuries than he needed to get, but he learns his lessons, hunkers down and goes out into the night again.
Fanboy: If you spend more than an hour at a time with Bo, especially outside of classes or work time, youāll learn very quickly that heās got one thing on his mind at all times. Supers. Particularly during the invasion, it was nearly impossible to have a conversation with him about anything else. Spectrum is his favorite, and heāll tell tales of the heroās deeds for days on end, but he has a surprisingly deep knowledge about all the other supers the media has caught on as well. Heās got notebooks filled with every detail he could scrounge up about the various Guild members, and plenty more filled with conclusions he came to on his own from trying to piece the puzzles of their styles and strategies together. He doesnāt much care about exposing these peopleās identities, but rather learning as much as he can from them and emulating their behaviors.
Studious: Bo had a mind like a sponge. He loves learning about everything, and heās often a teacherās favorite because he asks poignant questions and helps his classmates. His note-taking and analytical skills have been honed over the last decade or so, and while he isnāt quite able to teach others how to do it the same way, the flow of information from teacher to student is important to him. Heās usually found in the city library in the basement when heās not in class or dashing home for dinner and a quick nap.
Impulsive: For all of Boās notes and efforts to plan and prepare tactically, putting on the mask and his outfit for the night seems to throw much of his habits out the window. If he sees an opportunity to help someone as the Watcher, heāll take it without a second thought. He does this to help people, and thereās no way in hell that heās gonna sit back and wait for a ābetter timeā to act. Sure it gets him into more scrapes than he should be, but heās still young and headstrong enough to find himself fully repaid in the thanks of a stranger and the knowledge that heās made his city a little safer.
Loose Cannon: While he appreciates the value of teamwork and knows that working with others gets the best results, his lack of experiences makes it difficult to keep him from careening off and doing his own thing. Particularly if he didnāt come up with the plan, heāll probably have trouble working with a group, though it wonāt be for a lack of trying or social graces. While practice may help him grow out of this habit, itās entirely possible that heāll be recklessly running off to help others for the rest of his life.
Hoarder: Bo is a bit of a collector. From notebooks to random pencils to old school papers to small gifts and souvenirs, nothing ever gets thrown away. Heās lately gained a penchant for collecting small items to remember individual fights. His entire windowsill is covered in meticulously gathered tiny, unique pieces, mostly glass or shrapnel, but there are a few pieces of jewelry or notes from people he helps, and he wishes he could tell people how he got them. Itās not an option for a vigilante, so he satisfies his need to share the story by writing it all down. Itās not like people would think to ask anyways.
Compassionate: Above all, Bo does what he does to help people. Sue he might not remember to take care of himself first at all times, but he wants to make a difference. At least in Newhaven if he canāt make one in the world at large. He doesnāt want recognition, he doesnāt want money for what he does with the mask on, he wants people to know that there are lights in the darkness and theyāre not alone just because Spectrum and some of the Guild arenāt around as much. He wants to give people that hope and sense of awe that heroes gave him all those years ago.
Watch and Learn: Without the powers of those he thinks of as so far above himself, Bo has taken his abilities of observation to an entirely new level. Heās still new to fighting and hero work, but the decade of watching others fight and figuring out the strengths and weaknesses of each side has given him the upper hand in more than a few situations. But when he has the time and resources, Bo usually tries to stake out a target, learn as much as he can before intervening, and use what he knows to his advantage, but there are still times when he gets tripped up or runs in half-cocked and comes out worse for wear. Thankfully none of those mistakes have been fatal, yet.
