Johnny Grimm
The Jericho Kid
Jonathan Franklin Grimm (a.k.a. Johnny,)
The Shocking Sparkplug!: The Origins of the Man You Know As The Jericho Kid!
Ladies and Gentlemen, I have heard you talking behind my back. Forgive me for eavesdropping, but you're all good for a laugh. "He was an army brat. That's how he learned to shoot." "His daddy was a police officer shot in a riot, that's why he became a law man." "His mother beat him. I can't prove it, but you don't get a wild child like that without some kind of abuse." I like that last one. Makes me feel like a rebel.
It pains me to say none of you lovely folk have it right. My dad was far from any kind of officer and my ma was far too good for world. The closest, was the one calling me an army brat, and only 'cause of the second half. Christ on a cracker, I was a brat. I gave my parents a thousand more hells than they deserved and I gave my teachers a thousand more. The only person I showed any respect was my brother, and I got no idea why. He was so damn cool to me. He came home with a tattoo once. Superman shield smack in the middle of chest. Law says you gotta be eighteen or have your parents permission to get one, and he didn't qualify for neither. Dad saw it when he was changing for football practice. I can still hear the argument. Somebody wanted to know where I got my filthy mouth? I learned seven words that day. I don't know how I'd live without them.
But back to my brother. Pauly taught me about comics, superheroes, and Marvel movies. The day I started shooting sparks, I started crying. I was gonna be an Avenger. I was gonna save the world...
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Buff for a thirteen year old. Little bit of a gut.
Body Features
Gnarly farmer's tan.
Facial Features
Head like a stack of bricks.
Crooked nose from a jungle gym incident.
Thick eyebrows.
Thin lips.
Strong jaw.
Identifying Characteristics
Snowman shaped mole on his right ass cheek.
Physical quirks
Right handed.
Slouches until you upset him. Then he goes ramrod straight and puffs his chest out like a turkey.
Special abilities
He's a Tonanti, a living storm. Right now, all he's figured out are how to make strong static electricity, slightly enhanced strength, and barriers around his knuckles. He'll get better at it. Or he'll get shot. Probably both.
Apparel & Accessories
Is dropped on Reservation wearing a jumpsuit two sizes to big for him and a welding mask. Where the name tag should be is a glued on shrinky-dink showing off his chosen emblem, two lightning bolt wrapped around a spark plug (like a diesel-punk caudecus) . The mask has a yellow lightning bolt painted on, going from his temple to chin. He's got a monkey wrench stuffed in one of the pockets, a first aid kit in another. Underneath, he's wearing jeans and a dark green hoodie. Going commando.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Born in Rutland, Vermont, July 25, 2006, Jonathan F. Grimm grew up poor. His father's garage kept them from qualifying for food stamps, but that was the extent of it. His mother worked day cares in the summer, and ski resorts in the winter. His older brother influenced his taste in music and comic books, and spent the rest of the time teaching Johnny all the wrong lessons. Like how to interact with your friends. Turns out, high school football players might be wired different from four graders.
Enter Pete. The kid had a similar home life to Johnny but lacked his ambivalence about it. Johnny hated to see him wallowing in self pity. He was trying to make him better. Well the school didn't see it that way and suspended the burgeoning bully. Johnny, shocked at the realization of his actions, swore he would fight bullies in all forms until the day he died. And he kept his promise. There was three more suspensions, all for leaping to the defence of others. He was a little legend around the school yard.
Right up until eighth grade, when his powers first manifested. He consulted Pete, now his best friend, and decided there really was only one thing to do. Taking the name Sparkplug, he donned a gray jumpsuit and a welding mask. He took to the streets and became a successful vigilante for about two hours. That was when the Snatchers showed up.
And that was when his legend really began.
Sexuality
Straight
Education
Stayed in school up to halfway through eight grade. Got surprisingly good grades in English, and terrible ones in math. Did okay in history and science. Relied on spellcheck.
Employment
Mostly household chores, including chopping fire wood.
Helped his father in the garage quite a bit. Theoretically, he could rebuild an engine, if you gave him all the parts.
Has an hour or so of vigilante work. It went... poorly? Catastrophic? He doesn't put it on his resume is all I'm trying to say.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Excellent football player. Kicked ass in the pee-wee leagues as a running back and line backer.
Had a poem he wrote printed in the paper. It wasn't very good but that clipping is still on his parents refrigerator.
Highest grade for his seventh grade english class. Small pool of competition, but that doesn't stop him from rubbing it in Shana Cole's rich bitch face.
Failures & Embarrassments
In fourth grade, he was suspended for bullying another student. He hadn't realized he was hurting the kid so badly. He hadn't realized he was hurting the kid at all. He made a vow that day to bully anyone ever again. Accusing him of being a bully makes his blood boil, causing him to lash out.
His family was always poor growing up. Their lawn was covered in scrap metal. Hates to be called white trash.
Mental Trauma
Can not stand being called a bully or trash.
Tendency towards addiction. High risk for alcoholism.
Intellectual Characteristics
Visual, mechanical, linguistic, and slightly musical.
Morality & Philosophy
Copied wholesale from Spiderman. Great power, great responsibility. He should be helping people with his power, not hiding in the mountains like this. He's desperate to go off Reservation.
Taboos
The 'C' Word. Every other swear word is fair game, but he keeps this one in an underground silo somewhere in the middle of Nebraska.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Wants to be the center of attention. In a good way of course. Praise is like a drug to him.
He worships superheroes and the vigilantism that goes with it. Someone has to stop the bad guys right? Why should they need a badge to do it?
Johnny can't stand bullies. Someone accused him of being one once, and it eats at him every day.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
Athletic, mechanically inclined, deceptively good at writing, decent shot, and amazing at making barriers.
Can't do long division to save his life, can't say no to a drink, and has trouble with telekinesis and lightning. Awful speler.
Likes & Dislikes
Loves praise, attention, strength, alcohol, exploring.
Likes snowboarding, women, explosives, guns.
Dislikes quiet, criticism, laziness.
Hates bullies, being called a bully, being called trash, being looked down on, self pity.
Virtues & Personality perks
Quick with a smile, slow with a frown.
Athletic.
Big fan of personal freedoms.
Vices & Personality flaws
Addictive personality.
Never really considers the social justice side of things.
Willing to take matters of the law into his own hands.
Personality Quirks
Puffs his chest out when angry.
Jabs his finger into the chest of people he's angry with.
Reaches for a high five more often when he's uncomfortable.
Hygiene
Tries to fit a bath in once a week. If he can't, oh well.
Keeps his room free of trash, but lets his laundry pile up.
Back home, he always weaseled out of dishes, and now that he's on his own, eats out or not at all.
Social
Contacts & Relations
His sidekick, 'Wrench', was left behind in Rutland. Now he's all alone. Sheriff Brach is trying to keep an eye on him but Vulgur is home to an awful lot of people during the winter. One boy is easy to lose track of.
Family Ties
A mom, dad, and older brother back home. They think he's dead.
Religious Views
Leaning towards atheist. He was baptized at the behest of a born-again Grandma, but that was the last time he's been to a church.
Social Aptitude
Overly cocky. Sarcastic often.
Usually making light of a situation, even when he really shouldn't. Get's him in trouble quite a bit.
The girls go back and forth on whether they like it or not but he never wavers in his love for them.
Mannerisms
Always smiling. Doesn't seem to understand there are things he can't do.
Hobbies & Pets
Loves to snowboard.
Recently started lifting weights.
Had a pug named Snorkle back home. Wonders about him a lot.
Speech
Right in the throes of puberty, so his voice tends to break when stressed.
Like a lot of Vermonters, he drops consonants from the ends of his words. Doesn't notice it. Slowly picks up the south-western drawl used by Brach and Teach.
Thinks swearing makes him sound more grown-up. Motherfucker.
Relationships
History
Joe saved Johnny from a group of thugs who'd taken Johnny's mask. Now He's showing the boy the ropes of live on Reservation.
Relationship Reasoning
Joe feels a responsibility to the knew arrivals and sees the potential of something great in Johnny. For his part, Johnny sees Joe as Hercules and hero worships him.
History
Johnny and D.J. met on the helicopter ride on the way into Reservation, along with Aisha Norton. While Johnny was picked up first, he was unconscious for most of the trip and woke up about an hour before they landed. The two didn't really hit it off at first, until D.J. found Johnny getting his ass kicked at a saloon, about an hour after they'd landed. He jumped into the fight on Johnny's side and they quickly found themselves in a snowbank outside. They've been near inseparable since.
Nicknames & Petnames
Johnny is the one who christens Diego D.J.
Relationship Reasoning
Well, they're stuck in this strange new place that doesn't seem to like them. They might as well watch each other's back right?
Commonalities & Shared Interests
Initially bonded over saving Johnny's ass, but it turns out they both like superheroes.
Wealth & Financial state
Recently dropped into Jericho with nothing but a 'custom' jumpsuit and painted welding mask. Sheriff Brach gave him a dollar to find a place for the night. He's going to spend it on his first drink.
Current Location
Species
Realm
Honorary & Occupational Titles
Sparkplug, The Real Fixer-Upper. (This lasted about an hour before he got snatched.)
Year of Birth
2006 A.D.
12 Years old
Circumstances of Birth
Broken condom, almost got caused his parents marriage to fall apart
Birthplace
Vermont
Spouses
Siblings
Children
Current Residence
Vulgur
Gender
Male
Eyes
Hazel with yellow veins
Hair
Short, silky, dark brown,
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Kinda ruddy, serious farmer's tan.
Height
5' 4"
Weight
130
Other Affiliations
Character Prototype
Thor and Doc Holiday's bastard lovechild.
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Comments
Author's Notes
Bear with me on this guy. It might be a while before I get to his story but it will be worth it. If anybody among you is an artist, I would love to talk to you about commissions. Hit me up, [email protected]