Good Cop Bad Cop

Idea: Plotline/Protagonist

Genre: Detective

Pitch: Everyone loves a detective series. We watch law enforcement hunt down creative and peculiar bad guys while handling the personal dramas and romances in their teams. There have been straightforward adaptations as well as ones with added twists, like the popular shows Lucifer, Sherlock and Psyche. These stories take the mystery-solving and add some chaotic flavor to the lawful setting. But, overall, the law enforcement is good. That is a key factor in the heroes. Sometimes there is corruption, but the main characters remain true to the ideals of justice.

But what if this pure system was infected at its core? If a villain decided to become a spy and infiltrate the entity that pursued them? Not just as a side-character plot twist, but as a main character? Surrounded by police officers and detectives who believe this character to be their friend, this protagonist would actually work for the interests of nefarious crime gangs. They would be fully knowledgeable of the bad guys’ secret plans that the side-characters are trying to figure out, and occasionally drop a real theory in order to gain creditability to lie later. It would be a dangerous, delicate balancing act. And, if the character does their job for the cops too well, then their criminal allies might take vengeance.

Of course, no matter how charming or hardworking the villains may be, all readers want the good guys to win in the end. Eventually, this character would have to switch sides and choose their new friends over their old life. But the slow development, the truths vs. betrayals, would leave the readers on the edge of their seat.