Sure, let’s dissect the trope: the hero is always the decision‑maker, yet the script is the puppet master. Every so‑often you get a moment that looks like genuine free will, but if you track the plot points, it’s just the writer pushing the character to fit the narrative beat. Audiences feel the illusion because the story is designed to reward that “heroic choice,” but the character’s agency is just a narrative veneer over a predetermined arc. It’s like watching a puppet show and assuming the puppet decides where to swing. The myth is simply a convenient device to make the audience cheer for the protagonist while the script runs its course.

So the “good story” is just a well‑crafted illusion of agency, a theatrical cheat where the writer pulls the strings and the hero just follows the beat. Funny how we’re all happy to watch a puppet dance when we think it’s dancing of its own accord.

So you’re not surprised the plot feels like a puppet show with a fancy costume. The illusion works because people like to believe the hero is the master, not the writer.

So we’re the audience, the puppeteer is the script, and the applause is our own cheap validation. It’s like cheering at a circus while knowing the animals are on a leash.