Who's the Protagonist?

While watching the excellent documentary "His Name Was Jason," one of the commentators remarked how Jason was "the protagonist in his films." This struck me as interesting but not incorrect depending on how you look at the Friday the 13th series.

The simplistic, watered-down definition of protagonist as I understood for many years was "the good guy." While this is the most commonly used definition, other means exist as illustrated by the literary definition. The term can mean anything from the first actor onstage in theatrical productions, the "hero" of the story, or even a mere participant in the story. Arguably though, the best definition is the central character, the one whom the audience conveys the most sympathy towards.

Now, the Friday series is not known for its depth in characterization. In fact, there is very little overlap between any of the films in the series with the characters. With some exceptions (mostly reduced to cameo roles), the bulk of the characters in the films are not only disposable but also interchangeable. The only real standout is Tommy Javis who appeared in parts 4, 5, & 6 whose character appears to be crafted by Shakespeare compared to the rest of the cookie-cutter gang. Sure, some of the final girls had their unique attributes, but ultimately no one went to see a Friday the 13th movie for the human fodder. The movies belonged to Jason.

Jason is the one constant in the series (with the exception of Part 5) and has been the one character with the most celluloid devoted to his past. As Jason is scorned from his untimely death as a child, he seeks out the similar miscreants who caused his demise and eliminate them. In this fashion, Jason is in fact the hero as he tries to cleanse the Crystal Lake area of the irresponsible, drug-smoking, fornicating teens littering the countryside, similar in fact to John Doe from Se7en. Jason is of course rather oblivious to the religious implications of his slaughtering activities, focusing merely on dicing anyone who crosses his path, perhaps with the goal of creating a better, safer lake-front property for himself and all the future little Voorhees children.