A Four-Man Band, despite assumptions, is not simply a smaller version of the Five-Man Band archetype. While the Five-Man Band have skills just crying out for an action or an adventure story, the Four-Man Band is a primarily comedic group, designed for a sitcom or domcom. The four distinct personalities are specifically designed to play off each other, and Hilarity Ensues.
Please note that in a Four-Man Band there is no Hero. The focus is evenly spread between them. If there is a Main Character (rare) they can easily be any one of the Band, or it can just be switched between episodes to give focus to different characters.
Compare and contrast Four-Temperament Ensemble and of course, Five-Man Band. The band most commonly includes:
- Only Sane Man - Or maybe just the guy who comes the closest to being sane most often. Every zany gang must have a straight man, and the other three leads have to share one. While his (or her, although the role is usually male) friends act out, the Normal Guy's role is to Lampshade and be embarassed by their behaviour. He will be more successful with the opposite sex than his friends, notably The Pervert.
- The Smart Guy - More intelligent than his friends. His Five-Man Band equivalent can do research for the group or explain some of the tougher concepts to the rest of the band or the audience, but this variant is primarily geared towards Lampshading the relative stupidity for the others and being humiliated for his arrogance. Alternatively he may be a Mad Scientist type, with insane inventions.
- The Pervert - This guy has a perverted mind. He usually takes one of two common forms - the Loveable Sex Maniac whose high sex drive is his most memorable trait, or the Comedic Sociopath, who has bursts of hilarious violence. In lighter examples, certain concepts may be Played for Laughs, whereas in darker examples the character may draw on Black Comedy Rape.
- The Butt Monkey - A character who serves as a target for the others' jokes. There are a few tropes that could make the Band's Butt Monkey; The Ditz, the Extreme Doormat or others. This member has remarkably less charisma than his friends or is a better target for jokes. The others will pick on him frequently and make him the target of practical jokes. Sometimes, however, this character may get one over on his bandmates, and this will thoroughly humiliate the others.
Examples of Four-Man Band include:
Anime/Manga
Film
Live Action TV
| The Inbetweeners
|
| Only Sane Man |
Simon Cooper. Not, however, the Main Character.
|
| The Smart Guy |
Will Mackenzie, who speaks French and is something of a high flyer
|
| The Pervert |
Jay Cartwright, who has been singularly attributed with bringing the word clunge back into the popular lexicon
|
| The Butt Monkey |
Neil Sutherland. While he is more successful with the opposite sex than the others, he takes The Ditz to extreme levels and is the target of the others' jokes
|
| Only Fools and Horses
|
| Only Sane Man |
Denzil
|
| The Smart Guy |
Boycie, a Chessmaster and manipulative car salesman who always seems to get the better of Del
|
| The Pervert |
Del. His brother Rodney qualifies as well, with his, ahem, interest in uniforms
|
| The Butt Monkey |
Trigger. With his sub-par intelligence he is often a pawn in Del's schemes. The other members of the band ridcule him frequently
|
Red Dwarf
Western Animation