I’ve been watching a lot of shitty movies lately. An unhealthy dose of action movies and horror movies of a less than stellar nature is probably more accurate. Slowly but surely I’ve come to realize that if the sentiment of a “hero is defined by their villains” is true (which I firmly believe), then the inverse is just as important. For every Billy Drago and Bruce Payne, there has to be a force of equal of greater value (I believe that’s science, but I was an English and Film major). Now let’s face it, Chuck Norris can’t be everywhere (I know, I know, blasphemy). And when Norris is tied up with terrorists, and Bronson, Eastwood, Van Damme, Stallone, and Schwarzenegger are in Vietnam or on the mean streets of gang ridden NYC or Los Angeles, someone has to be around to answer the call of justice.

It might be the hero’s sidekick that gets thrusted into the spotlight. Occasionally it’s a random athlete who wants to try their hand at saving America. And every now and then it’s the hero’s less astute relative, usually a brother or son, who wants to stand up for the red, white, and blue – or just win an underground karate tournament. Regardless of the circumstance the best thing about action movies is that SOMEONE is there to kick the shit out of anti-American interests.

To keep a similar theme with my Definitive Guide to Obscure Action Movie Villains, I’m forming another crack team of recruits in line with The Expendables. This time, it’s the lesser known heroes of genre cinema. A group I’d like to call The Indispensables (patent pending).