String Theory MUX: Matt Parkman

Matt Parkman

Characters » Matt Parkman


Portrayed By	Greg Grunberg
Sex	Male
Status	Registered Evolved
Ability	Telepathy
Age	40
Date of Birth	June 10, 1968
Date of Death	N/A
Occupation	High-Level Homeland Security Agent
Family	Maury Parkman (father), Matthew Parkman (possible son), Molly Walker (adopted daughter)
Significant Other(s)	Kaydence Lee Damaris (fiance); Janice Parkman (wife, divorced)
First Appearance	Interdepartmental Cooperation
Last Appearance

No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advise the prince; no doubt, an easy tool,
Deferential, glad to be of use,
Politic, cautious, and meticulous;
Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse;
At times, indeed, almost ridiculous—
Almost, at times, the Fool.

-T.S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," lines 111-119

NOTE: Matt has been referred to as the Dept. Sec. of DHS in logs recently - this is incorrect. Please note his occupation to the right. We won't let it happen again. Swear. ;)

Character History

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As different as it may have been, Matt Parkman’s childhood situation isn’t as rare as it would have been a century ago. As far as Matt is aware, he father stole a substantial amount of money from a variety of people and then fled after giving his only son a pat on the head and a little over one hundred dollars. In reality, Maury Parkman was one of the twelve who founded The Company and, like his son, is Evolved. Matt was raised by his mother, and the rest of his childhood and young adult life in Los Angeles was rather uneventful. Matt made several attempts throughout his lifetime to find his father, but has had no success. As he got older, the dream of seeing his father took a backseat in Matt’s mind.

Matt wasn’t diagnosed with dyslexia until he was in middle school, and he struggled with it throughout his school career. Refusing the help offered to him by the school’s special needs staff out of a fear of the stigma it would give him, Matt’s grades suffered. Through his own determination, Matt was able to scratch out a decent enough average to get into college, though he took a year off from school before continuing his education. His college expenses were taken care of primarily by need-based scholarships. The distaste for crime that his father helped foster in Matt took a strong enough hold that after Matt graduated high school he went to school for his degree in Criminal Justice from Cal State L.A. and soon landed a job with the Los Angeles Police Department. While at Cal State L.A., Matt met Janice. They were engaged her senior year, and not long Janice graduated (two years before Matt, who had to retake several classes due to poor grades), they were married. Matt was accepted as a cadet in the LAPD’s academy shortly after his graduation. From the start, their relationship wasn’t picture perfect. While Matt was still in school, Janice had to be the primary bread-winner for the house, but the promise that Matt would try for detective as soon as he could in order to rise in the ranks of law enforcement gave them both hope for a better future.

Fresh out of the Academy, Matt was partnered with Tom McHenry. But a beat cop doesn’t solve crimes, so as soon as he was able, Matt took the detective’s exam. Once again afraid of being labeled a special case in terms of his academic ability, Matt didn’t seek any alterations to circumvent his dyslexia, and as a result, he failed the exam. Matt’s determination was not shattered, and he made a second attempt. On his next try, not only his dyslexia, but a night spent eating donuts in his squad car as a result of Sarah Ellis’ powerful suggestion also played into Matt’s second failure. But while Matt was struggling, Janice was advancing in her business career, and the still unbalanced income was just one more thing that put a strain on their already rocky marriage. By the time Matt failed the exam for the third time, his partner, Tom McHenry, had already made detective.

Matt discovered his powers while on the scene of one of Sylar’s murders. Unable to explain where the little girl’s voice in his head was coming from, Matt crossed the yellow tape around the Walker home and located the terrified Molly Walker. At the same time Matt tried to come to grips with his newfound telepathy, the FBI investigating Sylar’s string of murders was demanding answers – and results. But after Matt was kidnapped by The Company, losing a day, and discovered that the FBI detainee, Ted Sprague, had as well, his investigative goals included finding out what had been done to both Ted and himself. Whatever it was, Matt’s telepathy was more uncontrollable than it had been previously, causing him headaches and, in one case involving a potential robbery at a convenience store, unconsciousness.

At the same time, Matt used his telepathy (and the fact that he was hand-picked to aid the FBI by agent Audrey Hanson) to try and repair his marriage, but in reading his wife’s mind he found out more than he had wanted to – Janice was keeping something from him. Catching bits of Tom McHenry’s, Matt’s former partner’s, thoughts, Matt put two and two together and correctly pegged Tom as the man his wife was having an affair with. After punching Tom in the face in a gut reaction to what he heard in his mind, Matt was suspended from the force without pay for one month. Janice admitted to the affair, and though she said it was over, Matt was still troubled.

Despite his suspension, the FBI still used Matt in their attempt to find the escaped Ted and the still at large Sylar. While investigating the carnage at Union Wells High School in Odessa, Texas, Matt tried to listen to Noah and Claire’s thoughts with determined effort to break through the “static” that results in a nosebleed and a single word: Sylar. This lead Matt to stake out Primatech Paper with Audrey for two weeks. The stakeout and then raid was an unsuccessful embarrassment, and a frustrated Audrey let him go.

Back at home in Los Angeles, Matt finally clued Janice into his ability to read her mind. In front of the LAPD review board looking over the Primatech incident, Matt tells them what they want to hear in order to escape more trouble. He is suspended for six months as a result, and when he tells Janice, she informed him that she was pregnant. The news took Matt’s mind off his previous stresses and concerns, and he was overwhelmed with excitement at the thought of having a child; he would finally have the chance to right his own father’s wrongs in raising his own child.

In order to keep bringing in some bacon, Matt took a job as an armed security job. But when the job went wrong and Nikki Sanders, as Jessica, killed Matt’s charge, Aron Malsky, Matt took home the bag of diamonds that Malsky had purchased with money he had stolen from Linderman. Janice became suspicious of the diamonds when one Matt had set in a ring for her was questioned by a jeweler. But Matt was more suspicious of Mohinder Suresh, who kept calling the house because Matt is on his list. Before Matt could deal with either of these problems, however, Ted called him to meet in a graveyard with Candice. Ted and Matt then went to the Bennet’s home to take them hostage and force Noah to give them the information about The Company that they wanted. After a heated standoff, trickery, and lots of mind-reading, Ted burned down the Bennet’s home and the two were taken to a medical facility within The Company. With help from Noah, who has also been locked away, Matt was able to escape with both of the men he went in with.

With Noah to help them stay off The Company’s radar, the trio made their way to New York City to destroy The Company’s new way of tracking Evolved humans. They meet up with Claire and Peter, and Matt went with Ted with the other two while he and Noah went to find the tracking system. Matt’s telepathy helped them get into The Company’s New York facility in Kirby Plaza. But when the tracking system is discovered to not only have been moved but to be Molly Walker herself, Matt’s paternal instincts kicked in and he refused to let Molly be harmed. In an effort to protect Molly, Matt pursued Noah out of Kirby Plaza, who shot Matt three times in the chest in the process of trying to shake him and achieve his own goals. Matt slowed when he came across the overturned FBI van containing Ted’s mutilated body, and in doing so lost Noah’s trail. Determined, Matt continued on, trying to find where Noah had gone.

When Peter exploded, unable to control Ted’s power within him, Matt was luckily out of the blast radius. The events in New York on November 8, 2006 were the last of a long line that drove an even deeper wedge between Matt and Janice. Matt’s hospitalization due to radiation exposure kept him out of contact with his wife, who was already worried about her husband’s whereabouts. In the end, the lack of communication between the couple was their downfall, and in January of 2007, Matt and Janice’s divorce was finalized and he relocated to New York to join the NYPD and aid in the efforts to keep the peace. With an increase in crime and the help of his abilities, Matt passes his detective’s exam and is finally able to cross that yellow tape, wear a suit to work, and actually solve cases to get to the bottom of crime surge.

On February 18, 2007, Matt came forward during Nathan Petrelli’s press conference as one of the NYPD officers having abilities in order to lend evidence to the truth. In the chaos that followed, with the Evolved citizens of the United States being treated worse than the “witches” and communists that came before them, Matt Parkman’s experience in dealing with Sylar’s case and abilities earn him a referral to Homeland Security, where he helps to enforce the Linderman Act by finding, registering, and detaining Evolved individuals. With the help and influence of Nathan and Angela Petrelli, Matt found himself one of the office’s highest positions, reporting directly to its head.

Evolved Ability

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Main Ability – Telepathy
Matt is telepathic. That is, he has the ability to hear people’s thoughts. Matt can concentrate to listen to an individual’s thoughts, but he is also able to tune out thoughts when in large crowds of people. Months have doing the latter have made it somewhat second nature, or Matt’s “default” setting. However, strong or “loud” thoughts, or thoughts from people in his immediate vicinity are harder to ignore. If he doesn’t tune out the constant barrage of thoughts, Matt can suffer from severe headaches.

Thought Invasion
With an effort, Matt can tune out the thoughts of others around him in order to focus on those of one individual. That person can try to resist Matt's invasion by either clearing their mind or thinking of something else.

Thought Projection
Once Matt has successfully invaded someone's thoughts, he can concentrate harder to try and inject his own thoughts into that person's head. These thoughts are in Matt's own 'voice,' and it is essentially like having a conversation without anyone needing to move their mouths.

Robot Master
Once Matt has successfully invaded someone's thoughts, he can attempt to act as puppeteer in that person's brain, injecting thoughts disguised as belonging to that person rather than himself. Highly perceptive individuals may be able to recognize the command as having a foreign source, but it takes a great deal of effort to resist.

Hallucination
Without distractions to counter his concentration, Matt can use a mental connection with a person to induce hallucinations. By tapping directly into all of the senses, a whole new reality can be created to fool a subject. The intensity of the hallucination will depend on how much Matt concentrates and how many distractions, external and internal, he faces while constructing it. Matt can continual reinforce the hallucination, fighting against the willpowers of any trying to resist it, but if he becomes too distracted or moves away, the hallucination will fade when the captive stops believing in it.

Notable Relationships

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Family

	Ever since he found her in her home, Matt has felt the need to protect Molly Walker from Sylar and any other person that wishes to harm her. While Molly is useful to Matt in a professional sense, he tries not to think of her as a tool, but as a surrogate daughter. More recently, Matt has agreed to let Molly attend private school, and it has been implied that once he is married to Kaydence, they will adopt a more traditional family structure. Molly has since moved in with Matt, and Cole and Kay stay for the occasional sleepover.

Ever since he found her in her home, Matt has felt the need to protect Molly Walker from Sylar and any other person that wishes to harm her. While Molly is useful to Matt in a professional sense, he tries not to think of her as a tool, but as a surrogate daughter. More recently, Matt has agreed to let Molly attend private school, and it has been implied that once he is married to Kaydence, they will adopt a more traditional family structure. Molly has since moved in with Matt, and Cole and Kay stay for the occasional sleepover.

	Matt's first partner as a detective with the NYPD was Spencer Damaris, Kaydence's late husband. He established a strong friendship with both Spencer and his wife and daughter. Matt opted to try and safe Spencer's life when his partner was shot by a pimp in an altercation with a prostitute, but his efforts were in vain. Currently, Matt is engaged to Kaydence.

	Due to their rocky past and estranged status, Matt reluctantly considers his father family. He's everything Matt despises - a criminal, a deadbeat, and a terrorist. But Maury's strange behavior at Pinhearst is still wheedling in the back of his son's mind.

	Mohinder works for Homeland Security and answers to Matt, as well as the other top agents in the bureau. Their personal relationship is not that strong, despite having roomed together at one point, but it is more from a lack of time than anything else.

	While this negater is handy to have around from time to time, Matt is always careful to keep his own distance from Trask so that his own abilities don't fall within the man's field of influence.

	The Haitian is perhaps the only man affiliated with the Company that Matt had previous contact with that has been able to stomach being around since their limited partnership. He sees him as a useful tool, to the point where he often, unintentionally, forgets the man is human.

	A welcome variation from Bob Bishop, Sabra is a helpful ally in Matt's eyes. Her sociable quality is not lost on him, but one that is greatly appreciated.

	Matt and Nathan are aware of each other, as Matt was one of the officers who revealed his power during the congressman's legendary press conference, but the two lack any personal relationship beyond that.

	During the transitional period between election and inauguration that ended up being all-for-naught, Matt saw a lot of President-Elect Rickham. He even helped him make the decision to “come out” to his wife and son. While Matt feels his subtle involvement may have helped lead to the man's resignation, he is proud to know him.

	Matt owes Linderman a favor as a result of the old man restoring his left arm to the best of his ability. It's not uncommon for the telepath to have nightmares concerning the possible nature of this favor.

	Politics aren't really Matt's game, so he relies on Tracy to steer him the right way to some degree. She's a shark, after all, and he's a bulldog - they aren't known for their ability to swim.

	Being a man with many responsibilities himself, Matt has very little respect for Peter, as he has been unable to manage and has at times altogether abandoned his own. He sees him as naïve, and is hesitant to trust him.

	More a headache than a help, Matt doesn't trust Niki/Jessica at all. This may be because he finds her difficult to read due to her dysfunction, but it is more likely tied to his opinion of her “professional” behavior.

	It was Claire who first made Matt aware of his ability to craft illusions, but the fact that he hasn't seen or heard of the girl he once fought (unknowingly) to save since he dropped her off at her grandmother's frightens him. She is a rare but strong source of worry.

	While Matt and Noah once worked together, they are currently at odds with each other. Or, at least, Matt is at odds with Noah, holding the fact he wanted to kill Molly against him.

	Hana helped Matt gain information on the Vanguard, but when the flow was staunched just prior to the events at the end of January, 2009, Matt's improving opinion of the woman who tricked him into Company incarceration years ago did a 180° turn again.

	The currently leader of New York's most active subversive group is at the top of Matt's current “to-do” list – and not in the good way.

	While Elisabeth is a member of SCOUT, she is also a Phoenix operative. The latter puts her on the "do not trust" list…

	Maybe he's intimidated by how much she can hold in her noggin at one point in time. Maybe he thinks she's too uptight. It's hard to say – Matt's interactions with Cat were during a very stressful and frantic time of his life. Nevertheless, she is a member of Phoenix, and that puts her on the same list as her fellows in Matt's book.

	Of all the injuries that Matt has suffered, the one Abby healed is one of the only to leave a physical scar. It serves as a reminder both of the attack he suffered it in and the Southern woman's attempts to heal him. Therefore, Matt's inclusion of her on his mental list of Phoenix operatives is a hesitant one.

Trivia and Notes

Matt has no feeling in his left arm. That is to say, his left arm is functional, and he can move it all he wishes, but were he to be injured in it - even something as small as a papercut - he would not feel it. This is a result of an incident with Huruma and subsequent healing by Daniel Linderman.
Matt carries a few scars from scrapes he's been a part of in the line of duty, but the most notable is one across his chest courtesy of Sylar which he received while trying to protect President-Elect Rickham.