I've decided to start an A-Team RP. But before that happens, I'm going to need 3 more people to play the other A-Team Members and Col. Lynch, who will repeatedly try and fail to arrest the A-Team.
Oh, silly me. I forgot to explain the storyline:
The A-Team revolves around the four members of a former commando outfit and current group of mercenaries. Their leader is Lieutenant-Colonel/Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith, whose plans tend to be unorthodox but effective. Lieutenant Templeton "Face" Peck, usually referred to simply as "Face," is a smooth-talking con-man who serves as the team's appropriator of vehicles and other useful items. The team's pilot is Captain H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock, who has been declared insane and resides in a Veterans Administration mental institution, which Face comes to get him out of when he's needed. Finally, there is the team's strong man and mechanic, Sergeant First Class Bosco Albert "B.A.," or "Bad Attitude," Baracus (Mr. T).
The "crime they didn't commit"
During the Vietnam War, the A-Team's commanding officer, Colonel Morrison, gave them orders to rob the Bank of Hanoi to help bring the war to an end. They succeeded in their mission, but on their return to their base four days after the end of the war, they discovered that Morrison had been murdered by the Viet Cong, and that his headquarters had been burned to the ground. This meant that the proof that the A-Team members were acting under orders had been destroyed, and they were arrested. The team was imprisoned at Fort Bragg, from which they quickly escaped before standing trial.
(Bibliograpy: Wikipedia on The A-Team.)
The A-Team:
Lieutenant Colonel/ Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith:
Hannibal is described as follows by a reporter colleague of Amy Allen: "The leader [of the A-Team] is a Colonel named John Smith. But everybody calls him Hannibal. The guy has a very unorthodox style." Smith takes his name from the famous military commander, and strategist, as alluded to by B.A. Baracus in the same episode. He is distinguished by his unflappable demeanor, even when in peril, his constant cigar-smoking, his black leather gloves, and his many comic disguises. He is a master tactician (although his plans rarely turn out as they are supposed to; when asked if she thought this was going to work, Amy Allen summed it up by saying, "Hannibal's plans never work right. They just work.") and seems to have a plan for getting the team out of any situation they get into. His favorite catch phrase is, "I love it when a plan comes together."
He fought in both the Korean and Vietnam wars, serving in the 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam. His rank is inconsistent: throughout the first four seasons, he is referred to as possessing the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, though in keeping with US Army Tradition, he is most often referred to simply as "Colonel". In the fifth season episodes, "Trial by Fire" and "Firing Line," however, he is wearing the eagle insignia of a full Colonel. (His medals in these episodes are also different from those on display the last time he wore his Class A uniform in the first season finale, "A Nice Place to Visit".) Thriving on adventure and the adrenaline rush of life-threatening situations (or being "on the jazz", as the rest of the team refers to it), he seems to genuinely enjoy every challenge they encounter. He is renowned by both allies and enemies for being cool-headed and extremely clever. There is rarely a situation where he is not able to smile in the face of adversity. He will usually light up a cigar when he needs to do some thinking — often when coming up with a plan, and in the heat of a dangerous or exciting moment. He is also often seen putting on his gloves when he senses the action is about to pick up (such as a fist fight breaking out). When captured by their enemies, he will deliver flippant or sarcastic remarks. He regularly dispenses aphorisms, especially to their foes, upon defeating them. He also has some medical skills which he picked up when in Vietnam.
He styles himself a "master of disguise", though his skill lay not so much in how convincing his disguise was, but in his ability to assume any role and convince others that his role is genuine. Most episodes begin with the prospective clients coming to meet the A-Team, and instead, being introduced to one of Hannibal's comic aliases. Hannibal uses his various disguises to screen all the A-Team's potential clients to assure they were not fronts for the military—sometimes playing more than one at a time. Clients often make reference to a "Mr. Lee", the owner of a Chinese laundromat who tells them where to meet the team.
Hannibal is also an aspiring actor, playing monsters in low-budget horror movies (being a fugitive, he can only choose roles in which his face cannot be seen). His many roles include "Gatorella", "Killgator"[5] and his most famous, "The Aquamaniac".[6] Naturally, Hannibal secures his roles playing his own agent; somehow always 'eluding' the Producer of his true identity.
(Wikipedia on John "Hannibal" Smith.)
Lieutenant Templeton A. "Faceman" Peck
Suave, smooth-talking, and hugely successful with women, Peck serves as the team's con man and scrounger, able to get his hands on just about anything they need, using various disguises, albeit less than Hannibal. Effectively second in command behind Hannibal (although Murdock outranks him), he is the one who arranges for supplies, equipment, and sensitive information using numerous scams and hustles. He is also the team member who usually organizes the fees for their services, due to his aptitude with numbers, as demonstrated in "Members Only."
In the pilot episode it is revealed in a discussion with an elderly priest that Face spent his youth at a Los Angeles orphanage run by the Catholic Church, although whether Face himself is actually Catholic is never revealed.
In the fifth season episode "Family Reunion", it is revealed that Face is Richard Bancroft, the son of former presidential adviser and convicted criminal A.J. Bancroft. However, Face only learns this from Murdock after his father's death. Although Murdock found out earlier, Bancroft made him promise not to tell Face, who is furious angry that Murdock didn't tell him sooner about his father. Face is happy to find out about his sister, Bancroft's daughter, as it gives him at least one family member.
Face is the most gentle member of the A-Team, generally attempting to avoid conflict. His interests tend towards more cultural facets, such as country clubs, art purchasing, and wine tasting.
(Wikipedia on Templeton "Faceman" Peck)
Captain H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock
Although Murdock was not convicted of any crime, as the other three were, he is still a full-fledged member of the team.
Considered the best chopper pilot of the Vietnam War, Murdock is officially declared insane (possibly caused by post-traumatic stress disorder) when the other three are imprisoned for robbing the Bank of Hanoi. Although he was alleged to be the A-Team's pilot during the robbery, he is instead committed to a psychiatric hospital. It is sometimes unclear if Murdock is truly insane or only exceptionally good at pretending he is (or a combination of the two). He is stated as having paranoid delusions and intermittent memory loss. It is suggested one has to be insane just to do the stunts he does in his helicopter.
Murdock is committed to a Veterans Administration (VA) Psychiatric Hospital, although he routinely escapes (generally with the help of Face) to accompany the A-Team on their missions. The symptoms of his "insanity" vary from episode to episode, but include self-identification with fictional characters, hallucinations, and belief in the "intelligence" of inanimate objects, among others. He is the most childish of the A-Team as shown that he often plays video games in his room and likes watching cartoons like Woody Woodpecker or Looney Tunes and sometimes will even repeat a Looney Tunes' character's catchphrase like Porky Pig's "th-th-th-that's all folks". He often "channels" a certain character for the duration of a mission (much to the chagrin of B.A.) or becomes fixated on a particular subject to the point of obsession. He also frequently refers to his invisible dog, "Billy".[4][5] B.A., uneasy with Murdock's unusual behavior, is easily annoyed by Murdock and regularly refers to him as a "crazy fool".
Murdock is almost always seen in a ball cap, a customized A-2 leather flight jacket with a picture of a tiger and the words "Da Nang 1970" on the back, a pair of khaki pants with a belt, and a pair of black Converse sneakers. He also often wears a t-shirt with a comical caption or a picture of cartoon characters like The Jetsons on it. Schultz said in a later interview that he was the one who devised the captions on the shirts, saying it was his "one constant contribution to the show." Although he was a helicopter pilot in Vietnam, he is easily capable of flying anything with rotors or wings, including passenger planes, fighter jets, and even autogyros. It is mentioned in the pilot episode that Murdock flew with the elite United States Air Force Thunderbirds (by the mental institution's doctor to Col Lynch just before he questions Murdock about the A-Team). In the episode "Bounty" (Season 3) it is revealed that Murdock served two tours in Vietnam, has three unit citations and a Silver Star, and was wounded twice. Interestingly, unlike B.A., the initials H.M. were never explained in terms of what Murdock's actual first and middle name were, and the nickname "Howlin' Mad" were simply attributed to them (although it is rumored that his name comes from World War II Marine Corps General Holland M. Smith, aka "Howlin' Mad", a nickname given by his troops). Not even his driver's license reveals what "H.M" stands for.[6]
It was revealed in the first season that Murdock and B.A. share the same blood type—AB negative, the rarest type. In the episode "Black Day at Bad Rock", B.A. receives a transfusion from Murdock, who was sprung from the hospital for just that, despite B.A.'s protests (fearing that Murdock's blood will make him "crazy"). This was again referenced in the second season finale "Curtain Call" when Murdock is shot and B.A. wants to donate his own blood to save him. This episode also has several touching moments between the two, as B.A. spends most of the episode caring for and comforting Murdock and showing that, for all their bickering, he and Murdock are actually very good friends.
Due to his nature, many of the details of Murdock's life are unknown, or possibly embellished. According to Amy in the pilot episode, Murdock's mother died when he was five (although they "still keep in touch"). If he is to be believed, he was raised (or at least influenced) by his grandmother (who is supposedly named "H. Emma Murdock") and his grandfather. In one episode in the third season, B.A. says that Murdock went insane after his plane crashed. The exact state of his insanity is never made clear, though he occasionally implies that his insanity is his ticket to his "room and board". Despite his purported mental status, Murdock is a thoroughly competent member of the team, when needed to be. Indeed, because he is not actually wanted by the military, Murdock is often the only team member to evade capture by a given episode's antagonists (or the military police), and he has single-handedly rescued the other team members several times. On the other hand, his visibility and location as a mental patient make Murdock an easy target, and he is kidnapped twice from the hospital. The first time, in the episode "Bounty", Murdock was taken by bounty hunters who wanted to capture the rest of the team. In the episode "Wheel of Fortune" Murdock was drugged and taken by thieves who wanted to use his expertise as a pilot to hit an armored car with a Russian helicopter.
Murdock actually has extensive knowledge of various subjects and keeps up on current events, showing a genius level aptitude. He speaks several languages including Spanish, German, Vietnamese, Japanese, Russian (not too well though) and Mandarin Chinese. In the second season episode "The Maltese Cow", Murdock says, "What can I say? One day I had a gonzo headache and before it went away I could read and speak Chinese. And it was a bad afternoon, too, lemme tell you." He also seems capable of a photographic memory. He is also a talented actor and often accompanies Face on his scams. He is capable of impersonating the voices of famous individuals and mimicking many different foreign accents. It is also revealed in the Season 4 episode "Wheel of Fortune", that Murdock has worked for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on at least two occasions, once in 1969 and once in 1972. The exact extent of Murdock's missions with the CIA are not revealed.
Murdock, as a Captain, has the second highest military rank in the team. In the Team nevertheless Face looks to be the second in command but in the 4th episode of the second season ("Bad Time on the Border"), being Hannibal Smith prisoner is Murdock who made the plan for the rescue and the rest of the Team follow him as leader.
One particular insight into Murdock's unique world view comes during the season five episode "Trial By Fire". Murdock is asked to take the stand at the A-Team's murder trial and give testimony about his helicopter flight following the Hanoi bank mission. The testimony takes the form of a surreal flashback from Murdock's perspective in which Murdock himself (wearing a grey wig and Biggles-style flight jacket) and his female co-pilot come under attack from The Spanish Armada, a sea serpent, and a tribe of Native Americans mounted on horseback, while Murdock spouts melodramatic dialogue. His mental acumen, however had generally improved by the fifth season to the point that he agonized whether to tell team member Face that their current client A.J. Bancroft was in fact Face's real father, and that Bancroft's daughter was his half-sister.
Murdock was permanently discharged from the mental institution in the fifth season, supposedly having regained his sanity, which is consistent with the fact he possibly pretended to be insane as a cover. Following this event, instead of a different mental fixation every episode, Murdock took a different menial job each week, including stints working as a dog walker and a waiter.
(Wickipedia on H.M. Murdock)
Bosco "B.A." Baracus
B. A. is described as follows by a reporter colleague of Amy Allen: "Bosco Baracus. Known as B. A. for 'bad attitude.' The man is a mechanical genius. He also has one of the worst conduct records in the army. He likes to slug officers." A rough-and-tough fighter, the character of B. A. Baracus is basically that of the public persona of Mr. T himself. He is known for his trademark African Mandinka warrior hairstyle (often mistaken for a mohawk hairstyle), and his gold jewelry.
While the other members of the team regularly resort to disguises, scams and subterfuge to achieve their goals, B. A.'s distinctive appearance and confrontational attitude usually lead to a more direct approach to problems, which often involve either his skills at hand to hand combat, or his mechanical talents.
He is a highly-skilled mechanic and has an amazing talent for making impressive machinery out of just about any ordinary parts. He received his initial training in the Jamaican Defense Force.[citation needed] Hannibal once said to B. A., "With a pair of pliers and a little time, you could fix anything but dinner."[when?] He is an excellent fighter and is invaluable in hand-to-hand combat. Because of his massive size and strength, he has a unique fighting tactic, which involves grabbing his opponents, lifting them over his head, and hurling them in the air. He is easily angered to the point of rage, and often greets people with a growl or a snarl. He is most often upset by Murdock and frequently addresses him with the phrase "You crazy fool!", although Murdock is usually unfazed by B. A.'s gruffness. In fact, B.A. and Murdock are very close friends, as can be seen in "Curtain Call", the Season 2 finale, where Murdock is shot and B.A. is desperate to save him. Despite B. A.'s reputed attitude, he is a kind person who has a special fondness for children, occasionally working at a youth center teaching sports to the kids. It is divulged in a season 2 episode[when?] that he is from Chicago, another parallel with the real life Mr. T.
A teetotaler, B. A. never touches alcohol,[citation needed] preferring milk instead. He suffers from pteromechanophobia, an intense fear of flying ("I ain't gettin' on no plane!"), especially when the plane in question is flown by Murdock. This difficulty is often overcome by other members of the team drugging him, knocking him unconscious, or, as in one episode, hypnotizing him, so he can be transported without objection. In the Season 1 episode "The Beast from the Belly of a Boeing", he is on a plane pretending to be a maintenance technician with Murdock when the plane suddenly takes off. He immediately falls into a catatonic state while Murdock tries to revive him. Furthermore, in two episodes "The Sound of Thunder" and "Quarterback Sneak" B. A. hops onto a helicopter which is piloted by Murdock (although he is said to have gone catatonic during the plane ride in "The Sound of Thunder"). However, there have been points when B. A. chose to fly, such as when it was the fastest way to Chicago (to protect his mother).[2] At other points, he endured flying because his country "asked him to".[3]
In the Season 4 episode "Lease with an Option to Die" he temporarily overcomes his fear of flying when he learns his mother (Della Reese) is hurt. In that episode his mother and friends in Chicago are under the impression that he is the leader of The A-Team, which Hannibal and the others go along with for the time being. He becomes a pussycat when his mother is around and accepts her authority. The team is highly amused when his mother calls him by his childhood nickname — Scooter. We learn from his mother that his name is Bosco Albert Baracus. In the Season 2 episode "Diamonds 'n Dust", we learn that B. A.'s father was once beaten up by three men and almost died, giving B. A. a special understanding with the client, Toby, a woman whose father has been murdered.
As revealed in a few episodes, B. A. and Murdock share the same blood type, AB negative, the rarest type. This was a plot device for finding one of them urgently when a transfusion was needed for the other.
B. A. drives a customized 1983 GMC van, painted black and grey with a red stripe, black and red rims, and a rooftop spoiler. B. A. is extremely protective of his van, and becomes furious if it gets any damage. He prefers to drive the van himself and is almost exclusively the driver while he is in the van, although other members of the team would drive the van for a variety of reasons, generally when B. A. was otherwise indisposed. He frequently says, "Nobody drives my van, but me!"
(Wikipedia on B.A. Baracus)
Opposition:
Colonel Lynch is the man who is trying to catch them with the help of the military police.
Something funny yet varied will hapen every time so that he will NEVER catch the A-Team.
Random Antagonists who will be.. oh wait, we haven't reached that part yet.
I'll be Murdock. Once we have someone for each of the other main characters, I'll explain the rest, and we can start.
If you need reference for the other characters or the series, check it out online or rent the movie. Or both.
I love it when a plan comes together.
Topic: The A-Team: Furries Unleashed (OOC) (Read 1288 times)