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OOC: Application (TLV)
User Name/Nick: Ros
User DW: N/A
AIM/IM: pyrocornflakes (AIM)
E-mail: rosloops at gmail
Other Characters: N/A
Character Name: Thomas James "TJ" Hamond
Series: Political Animals
Age: 30
From When?: After he overdoses at the end of 1x04: "Lost Boys."
Inmate/Warden: Inmate. TJ isn't a malicious person, and he's not a big supervillain type (or even a little supervillain type. He's not... any kind of supervillain type), but he is a person who has a lot of demons that he needs to confront. Lacking any sort of healthy coping skills, TJ has turned to self destructive behaviors to deal with the pressures of life in the spotlight. It's worth noting that TJ does have a substance use disorder, and that this is not the reason why he's inmate material. He lies to others, manipulates people, steals from his grandmother (or attempts to), ties his sobriety to the wrong person, and goads his sober partner into breaking his sobriety by doing cocaine with him. He's sort of a whirlwind of self destruction, and it spirals out and harms the people who care about him, namely his family, who look out for him, only to have to watch him hurt himself time and time again.
Item: N/A
Abilities/Powers: None. He's an excellent pianist, and that's about it.
Personality: Warning: Discussion of drug addiction and attempted suicide ahead.
TJ is pretty much infamous for his self-destructive tendencies. He's a cautionary tale, somebody who was thrust into the national spotlight at a very young age (he was eight years old when his father became President of the United States) and couldn't cope with it. As a result, TJ went from being a bright, happy go-lucky kid who was all smiles to being the troubled son who went through three boarding schools and two colleges, flunking most of his classes along the way. With so much scrutiny on him, TJ didn't have many secrets that were kept from the media and thus, the world. He came out of the closet as a teenager in the White House, against his will, and endured a lot of vitriol and hatred as a result. No doubt the amount of scrutiny placed on him had an impact, and he turned to seeking out "highs" wherever he could get them, from booze, weed, and sex, until he later discovered cocaine, which became his drug of choice.
TJ is pretty loyal to his family, although not to the dutiful degree that his twin brother, Douglas, is. He is close with his mother and his maternal grandmother, and it's stated in the show that his mother has a blind/soft spot when it comes to him, always lifting him up and making excuses when he screws up. When things are good between them, they're really good. He helps her with her hair and clothes sometimes, and she supports him. However, given TJ's volatile issues, things can go sour between them at a moment's notice. For example, when he asks her for $50,000 to invest in a night club, she says that she'll give it to him if, and only if, his father agrees to the other $50,000. When his father says no to the investment, and thus his mother, he instantly turns on her and accuses her of lying. TJ also seems to bear some resentment towards his mother for saving his life after his suicide attempt. He tells her that he'll never thank her for it.
His grandmother seems to be the only person who can ever really get through to him, and even then, it rarely ever sticks until the end of the series (and since the series ends shortly into the start of his latest stint of sobriety, it's hard to say if that even sticks). Her ex-husband, his grandfather, was a heroin addict, and so she's had more experience dealing with somebody with an addiction than anybody else in the family. Thus, she tends to be more hands-off with TJ's problems, knowing that he can't be forced into sobriety. She tells him frankly how a story like his ends, and TJ doesn't really listen to her until the end of the series. Like with his mother, when things are good with his grandmother, they're really good. They drink together, play music together (he being a pianist and she being an ex-singer/showgirl), and joke/talk about men together.
He's also close with his brother, who takes after their mother in that he's the ultra-responsible type. Douglas, like their mother, has a soft spot for TJ, and he ultimately gives him the $100,000 investment that he needs for the nightclub. Although he doesn't make excuses for TJ, he does listen to him more than, say, their father does, and he supports him in his attempts at making something of himself. He's the one who ultimately hires a sober chaperone to stick by TJ 24/7, in order for TJ to have some accountability when it comes to his recovery from drugs. TJ clearly loves his brother, but he has no qualms lying to him like he does everybody else. Even though he promises Douglas that he'll get clean if Douglas gives him the investment, he pretty much does drugs the very next day because he can't cope with being around their father.
Speaking of their father, TJ has a pretty awful relationship with his dad, the former President of the United States. Although his father does love and care for him, as we see after TJ overdoses, he tends to play the role of the "bad guy," and he speaks frankly about the fact that TJ shouldn't be near a nightclub, nor should he be given thousands of dollars, because there's always a chance he could blow it on drugs. He's the one who never seems to give TJ a chance, and TJ resents him for it. He also tries to urge TJ into doing things like playing the piano professionally, but TJ won't have any of that, accusing his father of wanting him to have a boring life. TJ can hardly stand to be in the presence of his father, and he's as quick to call him on his flaws as his father is to do the same to him.
Although TJ ultimately loves his family, he does have some mixed feelings about being a Hammond. When the story of his suicide threatens to break to the media, he takes it with a sort of resignation, mentioning how the media (and the world) only loves his family when they're not busy hating them. He resents being considered a national joke/cautionary tale, and has that thrown into his face a couple of times over the series. Also, he's particularly vulnerable to feeling ganged up on, and will accuse his family of being against him/wanting to see him fail when they don't approve of his every action. He's quick to tell his family that he hates them when he doesn't get his way, but he always comes back to them and tries to support them when they ask him to.
As stated earlier, TJ tends to chase highs wherever he can get them. Typically, his drugs of choice are cocaine, alcohol and casual sex. Drugs have been a part of his life ever since he was a teenager, likely around the time he was shipped off to boarding school (after boarding school, after boarding school) because he couldn't cut it in a normal school like his brother. Ever since he started taking cocaine, his life has been a self-described blur. This has led to some identity problems, namely, TJ doesn't really know who he is anymore. When his grandmother asks him what happened to the happy boy he used to be, TJ says that it's been so long since he's been himself, that he doesn't know who that person even is, and that he only feels like himself when he's not himself. Drugs are his escape from his world, and from confronting his own weaknesses and insecurities.
TJ is something of a dreamer, and he can be extremely naive about the things he pins his hopes on. He believes that the nightclub he wants to invest in will be his ticket to a successful life, and that the co-occurrence of drugs in nightclubs won't be a problem to him. He continuously shoots down people's concerns about how a nightclub will affect or enable his lifestyle, and insists that he can be sober. This, of course, is either a lie or a delusion, as he winds up doing so much cocaine on the opening night of the club that he overdoses. Of course, he doesn't just do that for the hell of it; a myriad of triggers (the reappearance of an ex, his family "turning on him," from his POV) set him off. Still, this is one of TJ's darkest moments in the series, as he tells off his entire family and goads his sober chaperone into breaking his own sobriety to do cocaine with him, tearing him down until he does what TJ wants.
Another example of TJ's naivety is when he begins an affair with Sean Reeves, a Republican congressman who is 1) married to a woman and 2) deeply in the closet. The affair continues for six months, and during that time, TJ is so in love that he doesn't even get high anymore. This, unfortunately, points to an unhealthy ideation of his relationship, as he pins his sobriety onto a man who will never really commit to him in return. TJ eats up Sean's pretty words about how he's in love with him, and how he'll leave his wife for him, and he continues living this fantasy even after his mother confronts him with some heaping doses of reality. As usual, TJ turns on his mother when she doesn't support him 100%, telling her that she wouldn't be against the relationship if Sean were a democrat. As soon as things get tough and some political rivals blackmail Sean into supporting a bill the Republicans are opposed to (threatening to out his affair to TJ to the press), he breaks things off with TJ in the worst way, telling him that their affair made him sick, and calling TJ a national joke. Unable to cope with the loss of his relationship, TJ begins to drink heavily and attempts to kill himself by idling the car in the garage. His mother finds him and saves his life, an act which TJ never thanks her for. He clearly still romanticizes his time with Sean, as he gets all weak in the knees the next time they see each other, some six months later and Sean is acting like he didn't totally break TJ's heart.
TJ does some pretty nasty things over the course of the series. He's a selfish person, rarely thinking about how his actions impact or hurt others, and he will try to lie and manipulate and steal to get what he wants. Immediately after overdosing, he lies about running some errands tries to seek out drugs again, and is only stopped by his grandmother's calling him out. Earlier, he steals a blank check from her and tries to cash it in as his investment to the nightclub, and the only thing that stops him isn't guilt, but rather the fact that his partners won't take the check. When his grandmother confronts him, he claims he just couldn't bring himself to cash the check. And, as stated earlier, when he breaks his three weeks of sobriety after a fight with his family, he insults and goads his sober partner into doing drugs with him, telling him that he needs an "A-lister" to be his right-hand man. He also lies to his parents when he tries to get them to invest in his club, telling his father that his mother already said yes to the investment, when in fact she made it clear that her support would only be conditional on her father's. When his mother points that out, TJ calls her the liar and storms out (after declaring that he hates his family).
Despite his selfishness, TJ isn't necessarily a terrible person to be around... in small doses, anyway. He can be very friendly and charming, cracking jokes and flirting with people. He comes across as easygoing, despite his multitude of personal demons. If you didn't know what went on behind closed doors with TJ, namely his reliance on drugs to get through anything, then he'd be a fun person to be around. When things are good with TJ, he can be the life of the party. When they're bad, he can be a completely toxic presence.
Barge Reactions: TJ comes from a world that's pretty grounded in reality, so naturally, the Barge in all its strangeness, will be something of an ENTIRELY NEW EXPERIENCE TO HIM. But he'll likely take it... well... he probably won't take it all that well. Likely, he'll turn to what's familiar in a place like this, so he'll seek out drugs where he can-- and given that those aren't easy to come by on the Barge, that really means he'll just seek out casual/anonymous sex and do a lot of drinking. Eventually, he'll come to accept the weirdness of the Barge, but the first few floods and ports will be rough on him, and his reactions to them-- whether he withdraws or attempts to run away or seeks out solidarity with other inmates-- will largely depend on the kind of response he gets from other characters. One thing he'll probably enjoy is no longer being famous, and not being hounded by the media every time he fucks up.
Path to Redemption: TJ may not be the biggest, baddest criminal out there, but he's not going to be an easy case for redemption, either. People have tried... and tried... to get him to change his ways, but nothing ever seems to stick. He'll nod and agree with people sometimes, claim that he'll try to do better, only to turn around and continue to do the exact same thing he's been doing. Pleas for change seem to go in one ear and out the other, and he has no problem lying and acting like he's doing better when he really isn't. In fact, TJ lies pretty regularly-- it's like second nature to him-- and he'll see no reason not to do it to his warden. Getting an honest reaction from TJ will be difficult, and getting him to consistently be honest will be a great, if extremely challenging, achievement, but it will be the first step towards redeeming him. He lies to his family so much, and these are the people he loves, so naturally, he'll be even worse to his warden.
TJ is also an emotional manipulator, and he's excellent at putting on a sad face and playing the victim to get what he wants. So, in order to be redeemed, he'll need to overcome his impulse to use people as a means to an end. He'll also be likely to do things like attempt to steal a warden item to get to the pub, or stuff like that, and he's a seasoned troublemaker, so just because he's not a violent person, it doesn't mean he won't be a complete pain in the ass for his warden to deal with. Patience is key, as well as an ability not to take his shit and not to fall for his acts.
What a warden-- a successful warden-- will need to do is help TJ to confront the things he doesn't like about himself and his life and work towards developing successful coping strategies. He will hide from his problems for as long as he can, through drugs, alcohol and sex, and he'll lie and pretend everything's okay when it really isn't. His warden will have to be somebody who isn't naive and who doesn't give up easily-- somebody tenacious, who won't enable or coddle him. If his warden reminds him of his father-- somebody who tends to dismiss him and his dreams and push him towards things he doesn't want to do-- then he'll meet them with a great deal of resistance and resentment. Likewise, if somebody is more like his mother, who alternates between enabling him and giving him tough love, then he won't really make many improvements, because he'll just transfer all of his mixed feelings about his mother onto his warden. Somebody who won't let him make excuses, and who won't fall for his bullshit, would be the best fit for him.
His warden should be prepared to keep a close eye on him, especially in ports, where, if he's unsupervised, he'll likely run off to do drugs and have anonymous sex. This is especially vital during the first few ports, because he'll take any freedom he can and run with it. Once he's more accustomed to sobriety, his warden can stop watching him so much, but that will take some time, and any particularly negative experiences can set him off down the path to self destruction at any time. TJ doesn't know how to deal with his anger and unhappiness constructively, and his warden will have to teach him how. Also, he'll probably need to have no access-- or restricted/supervised access-- to the Barge's pub.
Basically, TJ needs somebody prepared to babysit him, because he can be pretty slippery. Further, even though he won't want to work (it's never stated what he actually does for a living in the show, if anything, and it's likely that, given his stature, if he's ever had a job, it was probably not something difficult or menial), a job on the Barge would probably do him some good, teach him how to channel his energies into something constructive that he can be proud of. Of course, he'll be very resistant to working, and will probably not show up to his job if he's not personally dragged there, but eventually he'll get used to working and won't put up too much of a fight. It's important to give him a job that he can eventually feel good about, rather than something demeaning or punishing, which will only fuel his resentment towards his warden.
Deal: N/A
History: Born the son of Secretary of State (and former governor of Illinois, former First Lady) Elaine Barrish and former president Bud Hammond, TJ Hammond has led a life that is both charmed and exceedingly difficult. His father was once governor of North Carolina, and so TJ, and his twin brother Douglas, grew up in the bubble of the governor's mansion. As a child, TJ was always very happy, all smiles and mischief, while his brother was the tortured, brooding one. When TJ was eight years old, his father became President of the United States, moving the family to the White House. As TJ grew up, he became the troubled son. As a teenager, he was forced out of the closet-- although the details as to why are never said-- and became the first openly gay child of a U.S. president. Although he had the support of many people, there was also hatred and vitriol flung at him for his sexuality, and it no doubt had an impact on his ability to cope with his fame.
At some point, he was shipped off to three different boarding schools, flunking his classes and getting into trouble along the way. He chased his highs through alcohol, weed and sex, and eventually-- after his time in the White House-- he discovered cocaine, which became his main addiction. He went through two universities, and it's unknown if he actually got his degree or not.
According to TJ, much of his life since using cocaine is a blur. So, what he did between university to the age of 29 isn't really known. He's known as a national cautionary tale, so his antics likely were many and received a lot of press. It's hard to say if he worked or if he just lived off of his parents' wealth in his 20s. Sometime around June, 2011, at 29, he embarked on an affair with Sean Reeves, a Republican congressman who was both deeply in the closet and married to a woman. During this six-month affair, TJ was absolutely smitten with Sean, and he stopped using drugs and got clean for the first time since he was a kid in the White House. It's arguably the only time TJ was truly happy since his childhood. However, it couldn't last. Around Christmas of 2011, his affair was discovered, and some top-level Democrats used it to blackmail Sean into passing a child welfare bill that he'd been opposed to. TJ told him that this was his opportunity to leave his wife and come out of the closet-- and be free-- and Sean rebuffed him, telling him that their affair disgusted him and calling TJ a national joke. He left, leaving TJ heartbroken.
TJ took to this turn of events with his usual self destructive tendencies. He began drinking heavily and, upon seeing Sean on the TV, went into his mother's garage and turned the car on, attempting to kill himself with carbon monoxide poisoning. Thankfully, his mother found him, and he was rushed to a hospital under a pseudonym and treated.
Several months later, a reporter got a hold of the story and threatened to reveal TJ's suicide attempt to the media if she wasn't given an exclusive interview with TJ's mother. And from there are the events from the show, which can be summed up here. TJ comes from the end of Episode 4: Lost Boys.
Sample Journal Entry: So, it's not enough that I'm on a magic ship in the middle of space. I mean, [He laughs a little, breathlessly.] that would only be a little fucked up, right? [Rather than a WHOLE LOT OF FUCKED UP.] But whoever's in charge-- the Admiral or the, the Wizard of Oz-- you had to put me in my mother's guest room? I'm thirty-years-old and, apparently, dead. Come on, I don't think I need to be living at my mom's house in the afterlife.
[He lets out a sharp breath and mutters:] This place is so weird.
Sample RP: This place? The "Barge" or whatever. It's a far cry from the rehab centers he'd been to. Those places were like glorified hotels, nice, cushy places to hide away people who were too difficult, who'd become embarrassments to their families and friends. He'd been able to do his time in rehab easily-- more than once-- and come out of it exactly the same as ever. The truth of the matter is: TJ's never had much motivation to change, no real incentives. But maybe the Barge could offer one.
After all, this place is just boring enough to maybe make him want to change his ways. Floods provide some excitement, sure, and so do ports, but the rest of his time here? Monotony. And that's just when people aren't trying to murder him for looking at them the wrong way. But the worst part of the Barge is, unlike rehab, he can't just count on a discharge to get him out of it. Apparently, there is no leaving the Barge, not until the Admiral himself dubs you "redeemed." He could be here forever if he doesn't listen to his asshole of a warden.
His warden. TJ frowns at the thought of him. This is the person who assigned him to work in the fucking kitchen. He's the former First Son, and more than that? He's part-owner of the hottest nightclub in D.C. He's not a cafeteria worker. He shouldn't be spending his evenings doling out food to homicidal maniacs and wiping down the stove.
He has to get out of here. Obstinance hasn't worked so far, but maybe playing along will. He's a good enough actor; he's fooled enough people back home. He'll behave, play the model inmate, and maybe, just maybe, he can get out of this hellhole before he completely loses his mind.
Okay, so all that stuff about "motivation to change?" Forget it. TJ's not going down without a fight.
Special Notes:
User DW: N/A
AIM/IM: pyrocornflakes (AIM)
E-mail: rosloops at gmail
Other Characters: N/A
Character Name: Thomas James "TJ" Hamond
Series: Political Animals
Age: 30
From When?: After he overdoses at the end of 1x04: "Lost Boys."
Inmate/Warden: Inmate. TJ isn't a malicious person, and he's not a big supervillain type (or even a little supervillain type. He's not... any kind of supervillain type), but he is a person who has a lot of demons that he needs to confront. Lacking any sort of healthy coping skills, TJ has turned to self destructive behaviors to deal with the pressures of life in the spotlight. It's worth noting that TJ does have a substance use disorder, and that this is not the reason why he's inmate material. He lies to others, manipulates people, steals from his grandmother (or attempts to), ties his sobriety to the wrong person, and goads his sober partner into breaking his sobriety by doing cocaine with him. He's sort of a whirlwind of self destruction, and it spirals out and harms the people who care about him, namely his family, who look out for him, only to have to watch him hurt himself time and time again.
Item: N/A
Abilities/Powers: None. He's an excellent pianist, and that's about it.
Personality: Warning: Discussion of drug addiction and attempted suicide ahead.
TJ is pretty much infamous for his self-destructive tendencies. He's a cautionary tale, somebody who was thrust into the national spotlight at a very young age (he was eight years old when his father became President of the United States) and couldn't cope with it. As a result, TJ went from being a bright, happy go-lucky kid who was all smiles to being the troubled son who went through three boarding schools and two colleges, flunking most of his classes along the way. With so much scrutiny on him, TJ didn't have many secrets that were kept from the media and thus, the world. He came out of the closet as a teenager in the White House, against his will, and endured a lot of vitriol and hatred as a result. No doubt the amount of scrutiny placed on him had an impact, and he turned to seeking out "highs" wherever he could get them, from booze, weed, and sex, until he later discovered cocaine, which became his drug of choice.
TJ is pretty loyal to his family, although not to the dutiful degree that his twin brother, Douglas, is. He is close with his mother and his maternal grandmother, and it's stated in the show that his mother has a blind/soft spot when it comes to him, always lifting him up and making excuses when he screws up. When things are good between them, they're really good. He helps her with her hair and clothes sometimes, and she supports him. However, given TJ's volatile issues, things can go sour between them at a moment's notice. For example, when he asks her for $50,000 to invest in a night club, she says that she'll give it to him if, and only if, his father agrees to the other $50,000. When his father says no to the investment, and thus his mother, he instantly turns on her and accuses her of lying. TJ also seems to bear some resentment towards his mother for saving his life after his suicide attempt. He tells her that he'll never thank her for it.
His grandmother seems to be the only person who can ever really get through to him, and even then, it rarely ever sticks until the end of the series (and since the series ends shortly into the start of his latest stint of sobriety, it's hard to say if that even sticks). Her ex-husband, his grandfather, was a heroin addict, and so she's had more experience dealing with somebody with an addiction than anybody else in the family. Thus, she tends to be more hands-off with TJ's problems, knowing that he can't be forced into sobriety. She tells him frankly how a story like his ends, and TJ doesn't really listen to her until the end of the series. Like with his mother, when things are good with his grandmother, they're really good. They drink together, play music together (he being a pianist and she being an ex-singer/showgirl), and joke/talk about men together.
He's also close with his brother, who takes after their mother in that he's the ultra-responsible type. Douglas, like their mother, has a soft spot for TJ, and he ultimately gives him the $100,000 investment that he needs for the nightclub. Although he doesn't make excuses for TJ, he does listen to him more than, say, their father does, and he supports him in his attempts at making something of himself. He's the one who ultimately hires a sober chaperone to stick by TJ 24/7, in order for TJ to have some accountability when it comes to his recovery from drugs. TJ clearly loves his brother, but he has no qualms lying to him like he does everybody else. Even though he promises Douglas that he'll get clean if Douglas gives him the investment, he pretty much does drugs the very next day because he can't cope with being around their father.
Speaking of their father, TJ has a pretty awful relationship with his dad, the former President of the United States. Although his father does love and care for him, as we see after TJ overdoses, he tends to play the role of the "bad guy," and he speaks frankly about the fact that TJ shouldn't be near a nightclub, nor should he be given thousands of dollars, because there's always a chance he could blow it on drugs. He's the one who never seems to give TJ a chance, and TJ resents him for it. He also tries to urge TJ into doing things like playing the piano professionally, but TJ won't have any of that, accusing his father of wanting him to have a boring life. TJ can hardly stand to be in the presence of his father, and he's as quick to call him on his flaws as his father is to do the same to him.
Although TJ ultimately loves his family, he does have some mixed feelings about being a Hammond. When the story of his suicide threatens to break to the media, he takes it with a sort of resignation, mentioning how the media (and the world) only loves his family when they're not busy hating them. He resents being considered a national joke/cautionary tale, and has that thrown into his face a couple of times over the series. Also, he's particularly vulnerable to feeling ganged up on, and will accuse his family of being against him/wanting to see him fail when they don't approve of his every action. He's quick to tell his family that he hates them when he doesn't get his way, but he always comes back to them and tries to support them when they ask him to.
As stated earlier, TJ tends to chase highs wherever he can get them. Typically, his drugs of choice are cocaine, alcohol and casual sex. Drugs have been a part of his life ever since he was a teenager, likely around the time he was shipped off to boarding school (after boarding school, after boarding school) because he couldn't cut it in a normal school like his brother. Ever since he started taking cocaine, his life has been a self-described blur. This has led to some identity problems, namely, TJ doesn't really know who he is anymore. When his grandmother asks him what happened to the happy boy he used to be, TJ says that it's been so long since he's been himself, that he doesn't know who that person even is, and that he only feels like himself when he's not himself. Drugs are his escape from his world, and from confronting his own weaknesses and insecurities.
TJ is something of a dreamer, and he can be extremely naive about the things he pins his hopes on. He believes that the nightclub he wants to invest in will be his ticket to a successful life, and that the co-occurrence of drugs in nightclubs won't be a problem to him. He continuously shoots down people's concerns about how a nightclub will affect or enable his lifestyle, and insists that he can be sober. This, of course, is either a lie or a delusion, as he winds up doing so much cocaine on the opening night of the club that he overdoses. Of course, he doesn't just do that for the hell of it; a myriad of triggers (the reappearance of an ex, his family "turning on him," from his POV) set him off. Still, this is one of TJ's darkest moments in the series, as he tells off his entire family and goads his sober chaperone into breaking his own sobriety to do cocaine with him, tearing him down until he does what TJ wants.
Another example of TJ's naivety is when he begins an affair with Sean Reeves, a Republican congressman who is 1) married to a woman and 2) deeply in the closet. The affair continues for six months, and during that time, TJ is so in love that he doesn't even get high anymore. This, unfortunately, points to an unhealthy ideation of his relationship, as he pins his sobriety onto a man who will never really commit to him in return. TJ eats up Sean's pretty words about how he's in love with him, and how he'll leave his wife for him, and he continues living this fantasy even after his mother confronts him with some heaping doses of reality. As usual, TJ turns on his mother when she doesn't support him 100%, telling her that she wouldn't be against the relationship if Sean were a democrat. As soon as things get tough and some political rivals blackmail Sean into supporting a bill the Republicans are opposed to (threatening to out his affair to TJ to the press), he breaks things off with TJ in the worst way, telling him that their affair made him sick, and calling TJ a national joke. Unable to cope with the loss of his relationship, TJ begins to drink heavily and attempts to kill himself by idling the car in the garage. His mother finds him and saves his life, an act which TJ never thanks her for. He clearly still romanticizes his time with Sean, as he gets all weak in the knees the next time they see each other, some six months later and Sean is acting like he didn't totally break TJ's heart.
TJ does some pretty nasty things over the course of the series. He's a selfish person, rarely thinking about how his actions impact or hurt others, and he will try to lie and manipulate and steal to get what he wants. Immediately after overdosing, he lies about running some errands tries to seek out drugs again, and is only stopped by his grandmother's calling him out. Earlier, he steals a blank check from her and tries to cash it in as his investment to the nightclub, and the only thing that stops him isn't guilt, but rather the fact that his partners won't take the check. When his grandmother confronts him, he claims he just couldn't bring himself to cash the check. And, as stated earlier, when he breaks his three weeks of sobriety after a fight with his family, he insults and goads his sober partner into doing drugs with him, telling him that he needs an "A-lister" to be his right-hand man. He also lies to his parents when he tries to get them to invest in his club, telling his father that his mother already said yes to the investment, when in fact she made it clear that her support would only be conditional on her father's. When his mother points that out, TJ calls her the liar and storms out (after declaring that he hates his family).
Despite his selfishness, TJ isn't necessarily a terrible person to be around... in small doses, anyway. He can be very friendly and charming, cracking jokes and flirting with people. He comes across as easygoing, despite his multitude of personal demons. If you didn't know what went on behind closed doors with TJ, namely his reliance on drugs to get through anything, then he'd be a fun person to be around. When things are good with TJ, he can be the life of the party. When they're bad, he can be a completely toxic presence.
Barge Reactions: TJ comes from a world that's pretty grounded in reality, so naturally, the Barge in all its strangeness, will be something of an ENTIRELY NEW EXPERIENCE TO HIM. But he'll likely take it... well... he probably won't take it all that well. Likely, he'll turn to what's familiar in a place like this, so he'll seek out drugs where he can-- and given that those aren't easy to come by on the Barge, that really means he'll just seek out casual/anonymous sex and do a lot of drinking. Eventually, he'll come to accept the weirdness of the Barge, but the first few floods and ports will be rough on him, and his reactions to them-- whether he withdraws or attempts to run away or seeks out solidarity with other inmates-- will largely depend on the kind of response he gets from other characters. One thing he'll probably enjoy is no longer being famous, and not being hounded by the media every time he fucks up.
Path to Redemption: TJ may not be the biggest, baddest criminal out there, but he's not going to be an easy case for redemption, either. People have tried... and tried... to get him to change his ways, but nothing ever seems to stick. He'll nod and agree with people sometimes, claim that he'll try to do better, only to turn around and continue to do the exact same thing he's been doing. Pleas for change seem to go in one ear and out the other, and he has no problem lying and acting like he's doing better when he really isn't. In fact, TJ lies pretty regularly-- it's like second nature to him-- and he'll see no reason not to do it to his warden. Getting an honest reaction from TJ will be difficult, and getting him to consistently be honest will be a great, if extremely challenging, achievement, but it will be the first step towards redeeming him. He lies to his family so much, and these are the people he loves, so naturally, he'll be even worse to his warden.
TJ is also an emotional manipulator, and he's excellent at putting on a sad face and playing the victim to get what he wants. So, in order to be redeemed, he'll need to overcome his impulse to use people as a means to an end. He'll also be likely to do things like attempt to steal a warden item to get to the pub, or stuff like that, and he's a seasoned troublemaker, so just because he's not a violent person, it doesn't mean he won't be a complete pain in the ass for his warden to deal with. Patience is key, as well as an ability not to take his shit and not to fall for his acts.
What a warden-- a successful warden-- will need to do is help TJ to confront the things he doesn't like about himself and his life and work towards developing successful coping strategies. He will hide from his problems for as long as he can, through drugs, alcohol and sex, and he'll lie and pretend everything's okay when it really isn't. His warden will have to be somebody who isn't naive and who doesn't give up easily-- somebody tenacious, who won't enable or coddle him. If his warden reminds him of his father-- somebody who tends to dismiss him and his dreams and push him towards things he doesn't want to do-- then he'll meet them with a great deal of resistance and resentment. Likewise, if somebody is more like his mother, who alternates between enabling him and giving him tough love, then he won't really make many improvements, because he'll just transfer all of his mixed feelings about his mother onto his warden. Somebody who won't let him make excuses, and who won't fall for his bullshit, would be the best fit for him.
His warden should be prepared to keep a close eye on him, especially in ports, where, if he's unsupervised, he'll likely run off to do drugs and have anonymous sex. This is especially vital during the first few ports, because he'll take any freedom he can and run with it. Once he's more accustomed to sobriety, his warden can stop watching him so much, but that will take some time, and any particularly negative experiences can set him off down the path to self destruction at any time. TJ doesn't know how to deal with his anger and unhappiness constructively, and his warden will have to teach him how. Also, he'll probably need to have no access-- or restricted/supervised access-- to the Barge's pub.
Basically, TJ needs somebody prepared to babysit him, because he can be pretty slippery. Further, even though he won't want to work (it's never stated what he actually does for a living in the show, if anything, and it's likely that, given his stature, if he's ever had a job, it was probably not something difficult or menial), a job on the Barge would probably do him some good, teach him how to channel his energies into something constructive that he can be proud of. Of course, he'll be very resistant to working, and will probably not show up to his job if he's not personally dragged there, but eventually he'll get used to working and won't put up too much of a fight. It's important to give him a job that he can eventually feel good about, rather than something demeaning or punishing, which will only fuel his resentment towards his warden.
Deal: N/A
History: Born the son of Secretary of State (and former governor of Illinois, former First Lady) Elaine Barrish and former president Bud Hammond, TJ Hammond has led a life that is both charmed and exceedingly difficult. His father was once governor of North Carolina, and so TJ, and his twin brother Douglas, grew up in the bubble of the governor's mansion. As a child, TJ was always very happy, all smiles and mischief, while his brother was the tortured, brooding one. When TJ was eight years old, his father became President of the United States, moving the family to the White House. As TJ grew up, he became the troubled son. As a teenager, he was forced out of the closet-- although the details as to why are never said-- and became the first openly gay child of a U.S. president. Although he had the support of many people, there was also hatred and vitriol flung at him for his sexuality, and it no doubt had an impact on his ability to cope with his fame.
At some point, he was shipped off to three different boarding schools, flunking his classes and getting into trouble along the way. He chased his highs through alcohol, weed and sex, and eventually-- after his time in the White House-- he discovered cocaine, which became his main addiction. He went through two universities, and it's unknown if he actually got his degree or not.
According to TJ, much of his life since using cocaine is a blur. So, what he did between university to the age of 29 isn't really known. He's known as a national cautionary tale, so his antics likely were many and received a lot of press. It's hard to say if he worked or if he just lived off of his parents' wealth in his 20s. Sometime around June, 2011, at 29, he embarked on an affair with Sean Reeves, a Republican congressman who was both deeply in the closet and married to a woman. During this six-month affair, TJ was absolutely smitten with Sean, and he stopped using drugs and got clean for the first time since he was a kid in the White House. It's arguably the only time TJ was truly happy since his childhood. However, it couldn't last. Around Christmas of 2011, his affair was discovered, and some top-level Democrats used it to blackmail Sean into passing a child welfare bill that he'd been opposed to. TJ told him that this was his opportunity to leave his wife and come out of the closet-- and be free-- and Sean rebuffed him, telling him that their affair disgusted him and calling TJ a national joke. He left, leaving TJ heartbroken.
TJ took to this turn of events with his usual self destructive tendencies. He began drinking heavily and, upon seeing Sean on the TV, went into his mother's garage and turned the car on, attempting to kill himself with carbon monoxide poisoning. Thankfully, his mother found him, and he was rushed to a hospital under a pseudonym and treated.
Several months later, a reporter got a hold of the story and threatened to reveal TJ's suicide attempt to the media if she wasn't given an exclusive interview with TJ's mother. And from there are the events from the show, which can be summed up here. TJ comes from the end of Episode 4: Lost Boys.
Sample Journal Entry: So, it's not enough that I'm on a magic ship in the middle of space. I mean, [He laughs a little, breathlessly.] that would only be a little fucked up, right? [Rather than a WHOLE LOT OF FUCKED UP.] But whoever's in charge-- the Admiral or the, the Wizard of Oz-- you had to put me in my mother's guest room? I'm thirty-years-old and, apparently, dead. Come on, I don't think I need to be living at my mom's house in the afterlife.
[He lets out a sharp breath and mutters:] This place is so weird.
Sample RP: This place? The "Barge" or whatever. It's a far cry from the rehab centers he'd been to. Those places were like glorified hotels, nice, cushy places to hide away people who were too difficult, who'd become embarrassments to their families and friends. He'd been able to do his time in rehab easily-- more than once-- and come out of it exactly the same as ever. The truth of the matter is: TJ's never had much motivation to change, no real incentives. But maybe the Barge could offer one.
After all, this place is just boring enough to maybe make him want to change his ways. Floods provide some excitement, sure, and so do ports, but the rest of his time here? Monotony. And that's just when people aren't trying to murder him for looking at them the wrong way. But the worst part of the Barge is, unlike rehab, he can't just count on a discharge to get him out of it. Apparently, there is no leaving the Barge, not until the Admiral himself dubs you "redeemed." He could be here forever if he doesn't listen to his asshole of a warden.
His warden. TJ frowns at the thought of him. This is the person who assigned him to work in the fucking kitchen. He's the former First Son, and more than that? He's part-owner of the hottest nightclub in D.C. He's not a cafeteria worker. He shouldn't be spending his evenings doling out food to homicidal maniacs and wiping down the stove.
He has to get out of here. Obstinance hasn't worked so far, but maybe playing along will. He's a good enough actor; he's fooled enough people back home. He'll behave, play the model inmate, and maybe, just maybe, he can get out of this hellhole before he completely loses his mind.
Okay, so all that stuff about "motivation to change?" Forget it. TJ's not going down without a fight.
Special Notes: