46 pages • 1 hour read
Carl DeukerGym Candy
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2007A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Mick Johnson
Mick Johnson started playing football with his father, Mike Johnson, when he was four years old. His position is running back. By the time he is in eighth grade, he has a shot to make the varsity team at Shilshole high the following year. He does but is disappointed to learn that the coach does not start freshmen. Mick is relegated to the second string and the special teams, but when the starting running back and quarterback are suspended, he gets his chance to start. During a pivotal game with Foothill High, Mick has a chance to score the winning touchdown, but he is stopped a foot outside of the end zone by a stronger player. Afterwards, his father gets him a gym membership at a gym called Popeye’s. Under the tutelage of a trainer named Peter, Mick begins using oral steroids, then progresses to the stronger injectable steroids. His strength and speed increase and he begins to break league football records. However, as side effects—acne, rage, suicidal depression—begin to mount, and a coach and teammate both begin to suspect that he is using steroids, Mick’s future in both football and life is in jeopardy. Mick’s story ends on an ambivalent note: he is in rehab, committed to leaving steroids behind, but is aware that the urge to take them again may always be there.
Mike Johnson
Mike Johnson is Mick’s father. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargersbut cut from the team for drunkenness, problems with the law, and poor play on the field. He has always told Mick that an injury ended his career prematurely. He begins playing football with Mick when Mick is four, hoping that he will be able to craft Mick into a player who will not squander his talent, as Mike himself did. Mike seems to want the best for his son, but he also puts unhealthy amounts of pressure on him to win, which Mick interprets as winning at all costs. However, at the end of the story, Mike doesn’t scold Mick for his steroid use. He promises to help him with whatever he needs. He shows far more humility by the end of the novel than at the beginning.
Mick’s Mother
Mick’s mother is a reminder that football is brutal: she refuses to watch her son engage in his passion out of a fear of seeing him hurt. When Mick is in rehab, she gives him a Bible and tells him that every time she opens it, she finds something to help her. She is also a symbol of forgiveness. When Mick is inclined to look down on his father for his deceit, she gently reminds him that everyone makes mistakes and that it’s not like Mike committed any serious crimes. If she can forgive him, then surely Mick can as well. Later, after Mick’s suicide attempt occurs and his drug use is revealed, her example may be useful to Mick in allowing him to forgive himself.
Coach Carlson
After Coach Downs accepts a job elsewhere, Carlson—the school custodian—becomes the coach. He quickly shows himself to be a wealth of football knowledge and the players respect him, despite their initial skepticism. Carlson represents a type of authority that Mick’s father does not: his judgments are unimpeachable, and, even though he is the coach, he is quick to discipline Mick when he tackles another player after a play during a moment of roid rage. He does not believe that winning is the most important thing if it involves operating outside of the team code of conduct.
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By Carl Deuker
