Richie Ryan (Highlander)

Richie Ryan was a character from the fictional universe of Highlander: The Series, portrayed by actor Stan Kirsch.

History

(1974-1992) Early years

Richie Ryan was an orphan, (or foundling according the Highlander series fictional universe), who grew up as a thief. A life of crime was beckoning Richie Ryan the night that he broke into Noel and MacLeod Antiques, in "The Gathering". A few weeks short of his eighteenth birthday, he was already a skilled thief, but fate was to overtake him. If he was shocked to see the owner of the store coming at him with a Japanese sword and threatening to cut off his head, he was astounded when two more men appeared, also carrying swords, and all three seemed ready to use the weapons they carried. He beat a hasty retreat, straight into the arms of the police. The antiques store owner refused to press charges, but intimidated Richie into saying nothing about what he had seen. Intrigued, he started following Duncan MacLeod, only to see the man finish what had been started that night in the store, when MacLeod beheaded Slan Quince.

(1993-1994) Immortality

After the trauma of Darius' death in Paris, Duncan, Tessa and Richie returned to the States, where Duncan uncovered the secret of the Watchers. It was to be a traumatic discovery. Tessa was kidnapped by renegade Watcher Pallin Wolf, and although Duncan rescued her, she and Richie were gunned down and killed by a mugger on their way back to the store, ("The Darkness"). Richie revived to find MacLeod cradling Tessa in his arms and himself immortal.

Later on, Richie, who was now immortal, ran into some trouble, as he and Duncan MacLeod ran into an Irish immortal named Annie Devlin. She was about to kill a British ambassador. The plot was stopped by Richie, who ended up killing Annie's husband, and then she swore revenge. Duncan knew her really well and told Richie he needed to defend himself. Duncan trained Richie to use a sword to defend himself. Later on, Annie is still after Richie for killing her husband, Duncan talks to Annie, Annie was still going after Richie. Richie went to face Annie and they fought, Richie ended up disarming Annie, but spared her life. Duncan convinced Annie to end her quest for revenge. Later that day at Duncan's loft, Duncan gave Richie his first sword, a Spanish Rapier.

Richie met and immortal named Mako - a bounty hunter, tracking down a girl who was on the run from the law. Richie took her into his protection, Duncan agreed to help her, they discovered she was wanted for murder. She killed her husband in self-defense. Mako was an immortal who lived by the letter of the law. Duncan met Mako along time ago and he knew Mako won't give up. Richie and the girl decided to run away, they stop at a hotel and later, Mako found where they are staying and they both escaped. Then, Richie decided that they couldn't keep running, Mako was driving his truck and saw them, he ran his truck into the girl and killed her. Richie, enraged, pushed Mako into a glass door of store being remodeled. Duncan arrived and saw the girl was dead, Duncan goes in the store and sees Richie fighting Mako. Richie and Mako ends up in a room full of paint, Mako gets up on a table and falls in, Richie takes his head and Richie receives his first Quickening. At Duncan's loft, Duncan told Richie it was time to go, and Richie understoond.

(1995) Trouble in France

A couple of months later in France, Richie was on his motorcycle going to Marseille, he was being followed by an immortal named Martin Hyde. Martin was using Richie to lead him to Duncan MacLeod. When, Richie stopped at a gas station and got some gas and had some coffee, he sensed an immortal, he got his sword out, demanding the immortal to show his face. The clerk's husband was murdered by Martin Hyde. After she came out and saw her husband dead and saw Richie with a sword, she thought Richie killed him. Richie got on his bike and left. He arrived at Paris, he went to Duncan's barge and asked for his help. Richie told Duncan everything that has happened. Duncan figured out it was Martin Hyde, an immortal who used younger immortals to lead them to their teachers so he can take their teacher's head. The police arrived and Richie tried to get away, but was caught by the police and was arrested. He is identified as the killer by the gas station clerk. Richie is in jail for murder and Duncan must find a way to prove his innocense. Duncan figured a way to help Richie by setting up Martin Hyde, and proving he is the murderer. It worked, Martin killed himself though. Richie was free. Martin escaped from the morgue. Duncan went off to face him and defeated him. He and Richie renewed their friendship, they had a drink of a great vintage wine.

As motorcyclist, Richie was getting better and was competing in France, however in a twist of events, he "died" and had to flee the country. MacLeod gave him passport and during this time was trying to rekindle his relationship with the beautiful surgeon Anne Lindsay. However, he met there the former Cossack voivode Ivan Kristov, who turned into prime Russian mobster, organising crime and heroine trade for the Russian mafia. When one of his smugglers - his mortal girlfriend Tasha was saved by McLeod - Kristov threatened Duncan, saying that he didn't want to fight Duncan, but he would if he has to. At the end, Kristov captured Richie (who still hadn't left the country) to blacmkail McLeod to kill Tasha in the spare of Richie's life. Duncan arrived to save Richie and started knocking off Kristov's men. Meanwhile Richie easily untied himself while Kristov wasn't watching and challenged him. Duncan witnessed the lightnings of quickening and raised his sword, but for latter's happiness, Richie emerged victorious, beating the Cossack's prowess.

Broke of faith

Back in Seacouver, Richie concentrated on training, running the dojo and letting MacLeod fight his own battles. Buying a hot dog on the street, he watched a young man walk by, ("Leader Of The Pack"). It took a moment for him to remember the face of the punk who killed Tessa. He chased Roscza, who ran to the police. Roscza denied shooting Tessa, but Richie brought back the memory to the reformed junkie, but left him alive with the knowledge that he was a murderer. Accompanying his foster-mother’s daughter Maria to a modelling agency, Richie met Kristen Gilles, the beautiful agency owner and an immortal, ("Chivalry"). Ignoring warnings from Duncan and Methos that Kristen was bad news, Richie fell in love, only for the insanely jealous Kristen to try to kill him and Maria. As both Duncan and Richie harboured feelings to her, both couldn't gather enough courage to kill her. At the end it was Methos, who appeared without compunctions and beheaded her, though Richie still found it hard to accept that Methos took her head to stop her doing it again.

Later on, Richie returned in America with Duncan, who had just broken with Lindsay and was to meet the "old" indian chief James Coltec, but Coltec had just received the Dark Quckening and only the quick intervention of MacLeod prevented him from beheading Ryan. Later, when MacLeod received the quckening himself and with graceful arrogance fought the youngling, this time only the quick intervention of Joe Dawson stopped MacLeod from his killing his own protege. Ryan fled, with his all faith broken, after his own teacher and best friend tried to kill him. From there, Ryan decided that it's all about the Game, that McLeod did it, so he started train franticly and pick up fights with everyone on his way. Due to him being trained by MacLeod - one of the finest immortal swordsmen - Richie took a lot of heads on his killing spree, rarely if ever fleeing.

(1996)

He returned the following year, still picking fights with any immortal who crossed his path. Dawson came to warn MacLeod to watch over Richie, who was "walking the edge", provoking and challenging them. When he killed Carter Wellan, ("The End Of Innocence"), Wellan’s friend Haresh Clay swore revenge and nearly took Richie’s head, breaking his sword in the process. Duncan MacLeod came, offering to rebuild their shattered friendship, but giving Richie another sword, who belonged to his old master, killed by Clay. Richie and Duncan rebuilt their relationship, this time as equals, and Richie let Duncan settle the old score with Clay.

Jennifer Hill came to Seacouver, looking for Duncan to avenge her husband, Alec, as she was "Haunted" by her husband's ghost. As Duncan went to San Francisco to honour his vow to Alec to take the head of the immortal Gerard Kragan, who they think killed Alec, Richie looks after the grieving Jennifer and they feel a mutual attraction, to Joe Dawson's horror. Joe tells Richie it was he who killed Alec, as an unnamed immortal he killed the summer before, who had attacked him without warning, was Alec Hill. Despite this, Richie was unable to prevent matters taking their course, sleeping with her, but felt obliged to tell Duncan when he returns. To make matters worse, he told Jennifer, who shot him and was about to kill him with his own sword when Duncan persuaded her to let go of Alec.

When Richie interrupted a fight between MacLeod and William Culbraith, Duncan began to doubt his own worth as a teacher, but when Richie told him that he had learnt his new way of peace from Methos, Duncan was enraged. Methos turned up at the loft and was amused to find that the "other Methos" was in town. This mysterious immortal and his gospel of peace had cost several of his converts their heads and Duncan doesn't want "The Messenger" putting Richie at risk. Methos found his doppleganger and decided not to kill him, but Culbraith had no such compunctions and, after taking the imposter's head, tried for Richie's. When Duncan arrived in the nick of time to return his sword, Richie defeated Culbraith.

(1997) Death

Richie left Seacouver and made his way back to Europe, using the name of Richard Redstone. After a decidedly unusual courtship with Marina LeMartin, (she kidnapped him and tied him to her bed), in "The Ransom Of Richard Redstone", it seemed he was about to settle down. But a night at the Opera with Duncan was a prelude to disaster, ("Archangel"). MacLeod swore he saw James Horton on the Quai by the barge that night. At first reluctant to believe, Richie found himself defending Duncan to a sceptical Joe and Methos, but then he saw Horton holding a gun to Joe’s head. After telling MacLeod where they were, he went in to try and rescue Joe, unaware that what he had seen was an illusion. He came upon Duncan fighting invisible enemies, unaware that Ahriman had taken Richie’s form as well as those of Horton and Kronos. Before Duncan could distinguish illusion from reality, he struck, taking Richie’s head. Joe and Methos found the distraught MacLeod kneeling over his pupil’s body, but it was left to Joe to bury Richie with his sword after MacLeod and Methos both disappeared. Duncan never fully recovered from the death of Richie.

Character and fighting style

From a non-chalant, tricky and irresponsible character, Ryan had matured through the series. Starting from petty thieving and a irresponsible attitude, he developped into an individual with a distinguished personality.

His fighting style was marked by his thieving skills, with "dirty" tricks like kicks into the groins, jerky shifting and deceptive moves. As Ryan was taught by Duncan MacLeod, who is one of the finest immortal swordsmen, his skills were considerably increased. Combined this with hard training in the dojo, despite his young age, he was one of the strongest adversaries. This caused many older immortals to fall by his hands as Ivan Kristov and Carter Wellan, who was said to be at least 900 years old.

Richie's death

While his death was reputed to the producer's desire to introduce new characters in order to start a spin-off series, it didn't work at all. In most of the fanbase the opinion is that his death in the season finale and the introduction of the demon Ahriman caused the show's ratings to slip down considerably and to be cancelled after the rushed out season 6. Richie Ryan was probably one of the biggest fan-favourites of the show beside Duncan and Methos. Some fans even refuse to acknowledge his death, with some fanfictions set around his character and possible further development.

The manner of his death is also highly critisized. Ryan didn't raised at all his sword to protect himself, considering the facts that Duncan tried to kill him earlier in the series and it was quite obvious that the Duncan was out of his mind, while Ahriman haunted him.