| Neil | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Real Name: | Neil |
| Ancestor: | Narcissus (Ancestor) |
| Mentor: | Aphrodite |
| Age: | 16 [Season 1] 17 [Season 2] |
| Relatives: |
Unnamed mother |
| Abilities: |
Good Luck |
| Weapons: | |
| Interests: |
Looking good |
| Physical Description | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Hair color: | Blond |
| Eye color: | Blue |
| Height: | 6'0 |
| Character Information | |
| First appearance: | Chaos 103 |
| Portrayed by: | Ted Cole |
| GALLERY | |
- "This is awesome! The ocean spray, the wind in my hair! Man, I must look good!"
- —Neil in the Odie-sey.
Neil ("The Good Looking"), is the descendant of Narcissus. He was the seventh and last of The Chosen Ones to be brought to Olympus High School and is mentored by Aphrodite.
Appearance
Neil is a young and incredibly handsome teen. He is tall with a slender yet muscular build, short blond hair, and wears designer clothing in black and white. He prefers wearing designer clothes and claimed that as a toddler he discovered he was "actually allergic to clothes without designer labels."[1] He is taller and much more muscular compared to Archie, Jay, and Odie, but is slightly shorter and less buff than Herry. Due to his attractive appearance, Neil works as a model and at times uses his looks to the advantage of himself or the team.
Personality
Most likely due to the attention he received because of his looks and his lineage, Neil is very vain. He is often concerned with the status of his appearance and his clothing and usually does what he can to keep both in perfect order or else he frets when either is messy. Because he is so used to being one of, if not the, most attractive person, he becomes incredibly jealous when someone more attractive is around and he is no longer the center of attention.
Despite his high maintenance behavior, Neil is caring toward his friends and often does not hesitate to help them. He is very interested in horror movies and is very familiar with different monsters and legends, this knowledge helping the team greatly when Sybaris sought revenge against Hera. He is shown to be quite sly when possible as he was able to get Eris to send him a photo of herself in Applet of Discord that allowed the others to identify her and eventually defeat her.
Neil wants to prove to the team that he is a hero. He tends to be rather blunt, has a high opinion of himself, and is easily startled. He often alternates between being very cheerful and enthusiastic and being uninterested or sarcastic about whatever is happening. Neil loves to dance and party as he is shown to be a skilled dancer in several episodes. Occasionally he does like to prank others and sometimes unintentionally go too far but does make amends and apologize for his actions.
History
Neil's family is never seen or mentioned, though he does reference having a living mother.[2] Neil is the last of the seven to join the group. He's 16 years old and exceptionally handsome and knows it, as he works as a freelance model and has his photos plastered all over New Olympia. His lifestyle made him a spoiled brat, and the others initially harbored some doubts of his status as a "hero". He always has a monogrammed three-paneled mirror on-hand, which includes an autographed picture of himself that flips out of the middle mirror.
Outside of the opening sequence, Neil is first seen on a billboard ad before the heroes or Cronus find him. The team later sees his image on an ad on the side of a bus before meeting him. His name is first mentioned by Hera who advises the others that he's "not exactly" an invincible warrior, but he does have qualities that are "unique." His mentor Aphrodite was supposed to bring him to the school but either forgot or didn't bother, instead advising the heroes that he was "having fun in the city somewhere." Aphrodite didn't know exactly where he was, so instead she sent the heroes to see The Oracle. After speaking to The Oracle the heroes find him at a photo shoot at the train yard, but Cronus finds Neil first and convinces the model to come with him while the heroes fight Cronus' giants in which they end up defeating. He wants to prove to the team that he is a hero. He tends to be rather blunt, has a high opinion of himself, and is easily startled.[3]
The group originally laugh at the idea of him being a hero because he is a model, and even Cronus remarks that he doesn't seem like "the hero type" and "the gods must be crazy." After all, Neil is revealed to be a direct descendant of Narcissus. After the heroes fight Cronus and fill him in, he joins the team. His reflection hitting Jay's PMR later gives Odie the idea which helps stop Cronus from taking over the world.
Throughout the Series
Relationships
- Aphrodite: Neil's mentor. He is shown to have a close relationship with her as they share their love of beauty with one another. They often feed one another's vanity, but they genuinely care for one another, and Neil appears to be one of few who can calm her down when she's emotional.
- Odie: One of the teen's Neil hangs around most in his free time. They both share their disliking of being the 'leftovers' of the team as their powers/abilities are not as physical as the others, but they have been shown to make a formidable pair together. Despite how close they are, Neil often plays elaborate pranks on Odie but never means any real harm.
- Herry: Similar to his relationship with Odie, Neil often spends time with Herry but also jests about Herry not understanding many things; possibly labeling him as the "All brawns, no brains" type. Even so, they get along very well and Neil is often the one helping Herry with lifting heavier things for the team plans.
- The Chosen Ones: Neil very much cares about his teammates and helps out when he can, though he does give some protest at certain times. He listens to orders from Jay and shows genuine care and respect to Theresa and Atlanta. He gets along well with Archie though he often gets the most criticism from the warrior for his actions or behavior.
Powers and Abilities
- Good Luck: Neil is extremely lucky, which helps the team defeat powerful foes, as well as helping him with minor things like always winning coin tosses[4] and board games. It also possibly helps him in school as he once decided to skip studying to watch a movie and confidentially stated he didn't need to study because of his natural luck. Neil generally does not wield a weapon, much to his annoyance, but is usually able to use weapons like tasers and Hecate's Torches with great effect, likely because of his natural luck. His luck lets him defeat Cronus using Jay's shield, Xiphos, despite not really knowing how to use it.[5]
Occasionally, it appears that Neil's luck will sometimes work against him and seem like something bad happens but it turns out to be a part of a larger outcome for the heroes victory. Such an example is seen in They Might be G.I.Ants when Neil is struck by an ant and becomes overwhelmed with ant venom, but it worked in their favor as it allowed Neil to get hold of one of the collars and ants under their control which eventually led to them stopping Cronus and saving the soldiers.
- Fair Physical Attributes: Despite his general lack of enthusiasm for exercise, he often helps Herry with lifting and moving heavy things or people, even being strong enough to single-handedly hoist Atlanta and Herry into Jay's moving boat from the ocean with little to no difficulty and was seen helping Herry carry an enlarged quiver holding Zeus' thunderbolts during the Titan war. He can use a bow and arrow just as well as Archie, Jay, Theresa, and Herry.[6] During the episode The Trojan Horse, Neil demonstrates in a scene that he is capable of some acrobatics when he is seen using a tree to do a back flip while simultaneously leading a giant to crash into the tree head first.
- Knowledge of Horror Legends: At different points in the series, Neil demonstrates that he has impressive and accurate knowledge of monsters and their lore. Best seen in Sybaris Fountain, Neil led the group in fighting against spiritual vampires and had the highest hit count on the vampires by using the well-known weaponry of holy water, garlic, and bright lights.
Weaknesses
- Midas Touch: For his self-centeredness, Nemesis briefly cursed Neil the Midas Touch, causing anything he touched to turn into gold. Once he learned to be less selfish and used his new ability to temporarily stop Cronus, Nemesis lifted her curse.[7]
- Mortality: Neil is human and possesses all the conventional vulnerabilities of an ordinary mortal (e.g., old age, blood loss, poison, etc.).
- Narcissism: Much like his ancestor, Neil can be incredibly self-absorbed and at times this proves extremely detrimental. His self-absorbed nature and tendency to admire himself rather than helping the team has led him to be viewed as the least helpful member.
Trivia
- He claims he always looks good in a swimsuit.[3]
- Neil wears green monogrammed pajamas and a matching green eye mask to bed.
- Neil appears to not be shy about his body. While modeling, he's posed shirtless, wearing white underwear and tight blue jeans. He was also photographed wearing nothing but a loincloth in Sibling Rivalry. In The Last Word when he thinks somebody is in the bathroom while he's showering, he pulls back the shower cloth without covering himself. He has also wandered around The Brownstone wearing nothing but a towel.
- Neil is often used as a distraction or bait for enemies, such as Thanatos[5] and Talos.[8] This could be due to his natural good luck offering the best chance for the plans to work.
- Neil appears to take his sleep schedule very seriously, as he was already in bed while the girls were at the movies and the guys were baking.[9]
- He snores quite loudly. Ironically, he expresses annoyance at Herry and Archie snoring.[10]
- He calls The Brownstone "a dump", though it is unclear how seriously he meant it.[5]
- Aphrodite remarks that Neil has "good-looking" cheekbones equal to her own.
- Has a desire to be on TV and implies his "good side" is the view of him from behind when he turns his upper body slightly to the right.[1]
- Neil states that he is against hunting and thinks it is cruel, although that was probably only because Adonis had said that he loved to hunt and Neil was trying to avert attention back to himself.[12]
- His greatest fear is going bald, gaining weight, and developing skin problems (essentially, becoming conventionally unattractive).[13]
- A plot hole not addressed in the show is how Neil's ancestor, Narcissus, had any descendants since he died alone and is believed to have not loved anyone but himself.
- According to Theresa in Cronus Vanquished, Neil's good luck is the very reason why he doesn't have a weapon of his own.