About Mullet Force Six

Mullet Force Six is the brainchild of Bob Burden, creator of the legendary cult comics: Flaming Carrot and The Mysterymen (adapted into the feature film MYSTERY MEN by Universal in 1999) and DYNAMITE GIRL (see dynamitegirl.net). Developed first as a comic book property (currently in production), Burden is pursuing a version for other visual mediums.

Short Synopsis

A down and out promoter organizes a blue-collar rock group to capitalize on the perceived coming Mullet phenomenon. The boys get a taste of fame when a TV show pilot features the boys in an action series, which is sort of a cross between the A-TEAM and THE MONKEES. When the promoter dies suddenly, and the stillborn mullet fad fizzles, the boys become a real life "Action Team", led on dubious missions by Kronner, the macho, but somewhat insane, technical advisor from their canceled TV show.

WHO ARE THESE GUYS?

Losers? Maybe. White trash? In some people's minds. Out-and-out fools? Let's hope so. More than anything else, these boys are CONSUMERS! Consumers of banal TV shows, meaningless rock-and-roll lyrics, studio wrestling, urban legends, violent cartoon characters, Hollywood blockbusters, bad advice, and video games. These are the American Dreamers: the children of a TV nation, reared on Freeze-Pops, Slim-Jims and Captain Crunch. These are the people that run the cash registers, pump the gas, make your copies, man the assembly line that packages your cat food, and write stupid limericks on the stalls of strip-joint bathrooms. If they live long enough, they will someday have diabetes, credit card debt, lawn ornaments, a wide screen TV, and call-waiting. And there are millions of them out there! The common man has dreams. They see a movie or TV show, and then they fantasize about it. They dream at night, as they fall asleep. They daydream at work or riding home from work. Without dreams they would probably never be able to handle the every day grind. Their fantasies and the daydreams are the oil - the lubricant - that keeps America running smooth! This story is about ordinary dorks living their dreams, and fantasies. Maybe the missions aren't exactly James Bond level, maybe the villains are goofy, and maybe the adventures look like some lame Benny Hill skit - but they're having fun and living large!

THE PREMISE and ORIGIN

An old time Hollywood promoter smells a new, big trend on the horizon. Mullets! Mullets are going to be the next hot thing! Four guys are brought to Hollywood, after an extensive talent search, and groomed to be next big marketing and media sensation. The show is pitched as a way to overtake rap music with a good, old fashioned, rock-and-roll, action-team. The plan is to combine the musical popularity of the IN SINC, BACKSTREET BOYS, or SPICE GIRLS with the coolness of a Ving Diesel style TRIPLE X adventure show. Thinking it's The boys get a taste of fame with a TV show pilot that features the boys in an action series, which is sort of a cross between the A-TEAM and THE MONKEES. The show is actually perceived as a joke by the public and premiers to some good initial ratings. Though the boys are taking it all very seriously, the rest of the world is laughing at them. But after a few shows the public realizes that it's not a joke and the project fizzles like the Lambada phenomenon. Then things take a turn for the worse when the promoter dies. (His prosthetic ass cheek, constructed from unstable plastic after a Korean War injury, explodes on a New York City avenue when he backs into a street vendors overheated hot dog wagon.) But the boys have had a taste of fame and they stay in Hollywood, holding on to their dream till the last dollar is gone. After three weeks living in a dumpy, $139-a-week West Hollywood motel they are out of money and on their way to the bus station when, on the street, they run into KRONNER, the propmiester and action scene technical advisor from their old show. He has a job for them, it's dangerous but it'll pay OK ,and they just might get laid.

THE INCREDIBLE BUT SLIGHTLY INSANE KRONNER

Kronner was the technical advisor on their short-lived TV show. He's a very cool guy. When he's not working as a technical advisor for TV, he has lots of other sidelines going. Kronner is on his way to a job, and he can use a hand, so he enlists our boys. Today he has to repossess a steam shovel from a shady producer that's holding it hostage till he gets paid by a studio. Kronner is a professional technical advisor, stunt man and prop miester for the film industry. He's in his 40s but physically strong and powerful. He's a charismatic leader, a colorful character and is the macho, rough and ready archetype that all the guys want to be when they grow up. At the same time he is insane. Not in a bad way, but sort of a macho, devil-may-care, over-the-top style. With the help of the Mullet Force, the repo turns into a comedy of errors, violence and destruction, but they do finally pull it off. Since the boys are on the ropes, Kronner invites them to stay with him for a while. He has a super-cool compound, with all sorts of movie rental props, old surplus military vehicles and fantastic toys located in Topanga Canyon, and even more at a base out in the desert. The compound used to be a ranch, and there's a bunkhouse they can all crash in. And they'll feel right at home: Billy Ackley, the little person that played DR. BLAR, the arch villain on the boy's pilot episode is crashing there too, answering the phones and keeping an eye on things, whenever Kronner is on the road.

AN ACTION TEAM IS BORN

The boys are all in their early to mid twenties, but there's still a big part of them that is twelve years old. They all look up to Kronner. He's a living action-hero, a real life Chuck Norris or Steven Seagal. He knows all about martial arts, evasive driving, and stealth. He knows how to handle most any weapon. He knows how to talk to women. And he knows a whole lot of interesting (and often shady) people. Kronner is the glue that holds the team (and the show) together. Kronner can use the boys for his "special missions". With the increased manpower, Kronner can take on a lot of jobs he could never have tackled before. Most of the plots and dubious adventures originate from Kronner's contacts. He has friends in the movie business, corporate America, and a mysterious cousin in the CIA. In his earlier years Kronner was a mercenary in every theater of the Third World. He has done bodyguard work for heads of state and the super rich. He has more stories than an old sea captain, and a souvenir room full of amazing relics, each with it's own tale. For The Mullet team, all this is a dream come true. They are so gung-ho and stoked to be part of the team, that they will follow Kronner to hell and back. (Remember the Hanson Brother's blind dedication to hockey, in the Paul Neuman movie SLAPSHOT? Well that's out guys.)

WHO ARE MULLETS?

A "Mullet" refers to an odd hairstyle fashion that was sort of hip in the 80's. It's pretty much a redneck, white-trash thing. The Mullet haircut is characterized by very short hair on the top, and very long in the back. The people who still wear these haircuts are called "mullets" by fashion-conscious intelligentsia. The Mullet haircut fad came and went years ago, but die-hard mullets still abound in the trailer parks, K-Marts, and cultural backwaters of America, much to the endless amusement of a growing cadre of snobby intellectuals and elitist pundits. It has become hip to make fun of The Mullet, as evidenced by the ever growing number of websites devoted to "mullet sightings" and "mullet" haircuts. These sites have grown from three or four a few years ago, to over a hundred today. It has become a snotty inside joke for those in the know, and another way for people to look down on others. Our series explores this weird, underground phenomenon with a twist. We take these cultural outcasts to be our heroes. But they are not your typical, invincible heroes. They are unlikely champions, with absurd powers, ridiculous villains and preposterous story premises. At the same time, they are sympathetic, and real; men with actual human personalities, desires and problems. Jeered at as buffoons, ridiculed as unfashionable clods, held in contempt by arrogant hi-brows, these intrepid upstarts will still put their life on the line to fight for, and save a world that mocks and scorns them.