Character Relationship Map: Self Helpless

Characters

• The Drake (played by Andrick Deppmeyer) — protagonist

  A friend who works at a landscaping company and lives with an unpleasant girlfriend. After following a self-help book, he is kicked out. In Mexico, he befriends gangsters, gets high, and accidentally...

• John Candy (played by Patrick Cassidy) — supporting

  A local dive bar DJ who is part of the friend group. After failing at self-improvement, he is fired. He translates a Mexican website for his friends, mistranslating a dog grooming service as a spiritu...

• Simon (played by P.K. Simone) — supporting

  A troubled and unsuccessful birthday party magician. He attempts self-improvement but ends up incarcerated multiple times. He travels to Mexico, gets abducted and beaten, and is accidentally grazed by...

• Felix (played by Adam Jaroszewski) — supporting

  A miserable local lawyer who tries to improve his life through a self-help book but gets fired. He joins his friends in Mexico, where he mistakenly offends a well-dressed man and is abducted and beate...

• Don Rodrigo (played by Alberto Gutierrez) — supporting

  Initially appears as a dog grooming service on a Mexican website. Due to a mistranslation, Simon and his friends believe he is an all-knowing guru. They eventually visit his house in Mexico to learn f...

Key Relationships

• John Candy → Don Rodrigo (Power Disciple)
• Felix → Don Rodrigo (Power Disciple)
• Simon → Don Rodrigo (Power Disciple)
• The Drake → Don Rodrigo (Power Disciple)
• Felix → The Drake (Social Friends)
• John Candy → The Drake (Social Friends)
• John Candy → Felix (Social Friends)
• Simon → Felix (Social Friends)
• Simon → John Candy (Social Friends)
• Simon → The Drake (Social Friends)

Story Analysis

Four friends misguided attempts at self-improvement lead to chaotic misadventures in Mexico and a confrontation with their own impulses.

Plot Progression

1. The Misguided Pursuit
2. The Mexican Misunderstanding
3. Chaos in Mexico
4. Guru's House and Aftermath