Unexpected Greatness

Many characters throughout the novel turn out to be quite different from what they're originally expected to be. Spaz thinks of himself as a nobody, even lower than most of the normals around him because he has a defect of birth (his epilepsy). Spaz doesn't expect much of himself and no one else seems to expect much of him either, until he meets Ryter, who questions him and challenges him and makes him think in ways he never has before. Through Ryter's influence, Spaz realizes he's capable of being a hero, and helping other people learn to think for themselves as well.

Ryter, similarly, does not seem to have much to offer on the surface. He is old, scrawny, and losing most of his hair and his teeth. He is not strong or handsome, like one of the proovs or the stars of the 3Ds...