"For whatever reason, there is a party. Whilst a party is normally going to be a fairly festive affair in its own right, sometimes it just needs spicing up - this is where Life of the Party comes into play.
This character will don lampshades (no not necessarily that kind), dance on tables, swing from the chandelier and generally party harder and wilder than anybody else. Sometimes this is done to signify just how awesome a party is, other times it can be to show that the character is immature or is acting inappropriately - say, by drinking excessively at a fancy, upper class tuxedo party and hitting on the mayor's daughter."
Kasey revolves around being in the party scene, or so he'd tell you, even though most people would question why a fully grown man hasn't moved on yet. Not only is he in the party scene, he's also very likely to be found blind drunk and with very little self control, dancing on tables, and unintentionally smashing other people's shit.
"They've got little money, and lots of talent (or not). Being an artist isn't a career with steady pay, and art supplies are expensive. Artists that haven't quite reached commercial success (or haven't gotten picked up by a wealthy patron) often live poorly.
Due to several influential artists having historically been starving artists, the inherent dramatic potential of being talented but cash-deprived, and the appeal of living a life without material possessions, these portrayals are often quite romantic."
This trope applies to Kasey in a loose sense, because while he does make little money from his job, this is mostly due to his flighty personality and inability to commit to more than a couple of gigs a week. It's sort off a self-sabotaging gesture. He doesn't put down enough roots to build himself a loyal customer base to bring in a steady flow of cash-- but it comes with the 'bonus' of not making many connections, and keeping himself a fairly unknown person.
They're Called Personal Issues For A Reason
"Keeping Secrets Sucks. We all know that. However, sometimes, the only thing that sucks more is telling those Dark Secrets. Not as common as some other Stock Aesops due to its status as a somewhat Family Unfriendly one. It serves as either a subversion or aversion of the common belief that friends don't keep secrets from friends. The idea behind this is that everybody has certain things that they'd really rather not have to say, and it isn't right to force people to say those things just to satiate one's curiosity. Say The Atoner wants to start over after his Dark and Troubled Past, for example. Or say someone doesn't want anyone to find out about a tragedy that affected them previously and offer undesired sympathy. On the other hand, this usually does come with an exemption for if there's something they're keeping secret that affects you directly."
Kasey has a weird niche in this trope. He doesn't have a particularly dark past or bad secret, and is a very open person-- except for when it comes making friends and keeping ties. Ask him anything about himself that goes past favourite colour, and he'll become dismissive and haughty. Share too much about yourself, and he'll feel awkward and be inclined to make a rather rude comment about being acquaintances. He has rather strict lines on the distance he wants to keep between himself and other people.
"They are so burningly passionate about everything that they do that they seem larger than life. They give their all in absolutely everything they do, regardless of the task. They can say the cheesiest of lines with a straight face — the best of them can say things that are so cheesy they use the So Bad, It's Good principle to become awesome. These characters are Hot-Blooded."
Kasey to a T, especially when uninhibited. He's the type of guy that will excitedly slap you a couple thousand times on the shoulder if he's trying to catch your attention about something he's noticed, no matter how inane it is. He has a very peculiar view on things and can talk with absolute gusto about atypical things like polka music and will swing around a light pole while breaking into song. He's a borderline Large Ham, but instead of being absolutely ridiculous, he's just very passionate.
"This character was a hero herself once and failed miserably, or maybe she was abused in some way as a kid; whatever the case, her cynicism undoubtedly stems from some traumatic event in her past that destroyed her faith in just about everything. This revelation is normally accompanied by a Freak Out, said past often delivered in a bitter diatribe towards someone who proved a bit too stubborn in their desire to know what it was. At this point, tears are guaranteed, probably more of them the less she's expressed emotion in the past. She also has a 65% chance of engaging in serious physical violence against whoever is closest at the time. This is always treated seriously and Broken Birds have a tendency to be both prone to violence and very good at it, therefore, potential Love Interests should always prepare to be at least slightly maimed during these breakdowns."
I'm not inclined to give out too much on Kasey's application to the Broken Bird trope as it will definitely be played out in due time, but in short, he does a very good job of fluttering along and pretending he can fly.
"This is where a Wide-Eyed Idealist is psychologically beaten and broken down until they become more cynical in their views. May involve More Than Mind Control, the piling on of various misfortunes and traumas, or simply the fact that Growing Up Sucks, but they end up wearing Jade-Colored Glasses."
Really only noticeable if you're looking for it. He flipflops between still being a Wide-Eyed Idealist on occasion, but will make cutting and/or macabre marks that are literally dripping with a dark sense of humour. Many of them are directed at the state of being human, but a few of them are directed at himself. The glasses are there underneath his cheeriness.
"So you've got a badass. Or a loner. Or an Action Hero or Action Girl. Now (s)he needs a suitable way to get from Point A to Point B. Because walking isn't very impressive unless you're calmly walking away from the carnage you just caused, or power walking toward the carnage you intend to cause.
Now you could always go for a cool-looking car. But how about something more personal, and much more impressive?
Easy. Give them a Cool Bike. No, not a bicycle. The big, shiny, loud, sexy, purely awesome motorcycle. The motorcycle is to a modern character what the big black horse is to the Western or Fantasy character: an identifier, a mark of status, and above all, an accessory that adds to their overall coolness."
