A typical main superhero skill set. Like some hero stories the movie begins as flashback, and shows how things used to be for Mr.. Incredible. The flashback begins with an interview scene of Mr.. Incredible, Frozen and Elasticity talking about being a superhero and how they each have a secret identity that they go by when they aren’t in superhero mode. The next few scenes show Mr.. Incredible or Bob Parr (his secret identity name) on his way to his wedding when he is side tracked by chase between a gunman & the police and an old lady getting her cat stuck in a tree.
Long story short he detaches the tree from the ground and shakes the at free while also using the same tree to stop the gunman driven car. The old lay and the police both thank him and tell him how grateful and thankful they are to have Mr.. Incredible around. This follows along exactly with phase one of Campbell hero journey, this is the familiarity that Mr.. Incredible has with his surrounding and home environment. He is comfortable with this because it is what he knows as normal.
To add to that, the girl he is marrying is in fact Elasticity, who he has known for some time and also fought along side of her in passing. After the marriage they have 3 kids (who also have super powers). This is step 7, not exactly following the order of events directly but it doesn’t necessarily have to. Elasticity is Mr.. Incredible soul mate. She is a perfect for him and has the ability to help him keep a level head when he cannot and also helping him to overcome obstacles he would normally be at a disadvantage when facing these dangers alone.
The second part of the journey for a hero is for something that would normally occur to once again occur but shows the hero a different side to doing what he thought was right all along. In the movie Mr.. Incredible saves a man jumping from a 30-story building, but breaks the man’s neck in the process. In turn the man sues him and causes a chain reaction of disputes between humans and almost all of the “Supers”; because of this all the supers are forced to make their secret identity their only identity.
Which brings us to present day, which I guess is still the past considering that this movie came out in 2004. However in this present time period Mr.. Incredible is stuck working some boring office job that he does not enjoy one bit. Unlike every other hero Mr.. Incredible refuses to conform to this idea that he should blend in with everyone else when clearly he is not like them. Unsatisfied with his job he still finds a way to help defend the city.
In fact on Wednesday nights he and his good friend Luscious (Frozen) have a “bowling night” where they actually sit and listen to a police radio to see if there is anything they might be able to assist with. Frozen is hesitant to do this and jokingly said that he would go bowling. Both of them wind up rescuing people from a burning building that ends up collapsing. Being such a close call Luscious claims he is one with the super hero work for a while, but Mr.. Incredible insists on continuing in such activities.
Following right along with step three of Campbell pattern (refusal to the call). What Mr.. Incredible didn’t know was that a girl who works for an evil villain (Syndrome) was following him. She sends Mr.. Incredible a letter that contains a mission that she has for him that would allow him to fulfill what that superhero void that he has; after a large altercation with his boss Bob is fired from his job, so not knowing the dangers or thinking of anything else he accepts the offer graciously. The lady who has been watching Bob or Mr.. Incredible goes by the name of Mirage.
This is Step four of Our hero’s journey, she is the character that shows him guidance and lets him know that he’s not alone and there’s still hope for hero’s to still be hero’s. That’s the encouragement he needed to persuade him that he might not be in the wrong for thinking that hero’s can make a comeback. Unaware that the mission ahead is for him to destroy a prototype robot that Syndrome has built he is excited about his mission; and due to him losing his job he doesn’t now how to tell Helen (his wife/Elasticity) so he makes up a story that he is going on a business trip.
Which brings us to step 5 of the journey, the hero is ascending into something that he is unsure of but taking steps foreword to achieving his ultimate goal. His task is a great one but he must face the robot on his own. This robot is something that Mr.. Incredible has never seen before, but like any other hero would he takes the robot head on. It challenges him and nearly defeats him; this robot is much stronger than anything he has seen before.
