For those who know Zell Sloan personally, the idea the he holds the secret to multiple personas presents no conceptual obstacle. For everyone else, however, the thought would be nearly inconceivable. This is, of course, quite inconsequential. The Griever, the Don, both need the celebrity. The money, the social standing -- both are useful. Perhaps, too, he needs something to force him to engage in customary social contact. Perhaps Zell Sloan the celebrity is a sort of societal life line, a threshold guardian at the edge of precipice. Which immediately begs the question -- which is the true Zell Sloan? Who masquerades to portray the character the script calls for? Who is Zell Sloan and what does he care about? What does he believe in? If not an actual mask for The Griever, then couldn't he at least be considered some kind of slave? He had twenty seven years of childhood, twenty seven years to choose a destiny before it was settled for him. For some people, that seems to be enough. They are, by that time, in their own skin. Whole somehow, formed. Was it enough for Zell Sloan? Was it enough to make vigilantism or Donship an option, rather than a necessity? To do what he does, the be who he is, Zell has made many sacrifices. For all his mastery over his own mind and body, he's a man who barely knows his heart. For years, it probably wasn't worth knowing. For years it must have been filled with only rage and grief. If that has changed, though, if there are now other sentiments moving through that vital organ -- do these stirrings belong to Griever, the Don, or the celebrity? Or perhaps the person that is Zell Sloan? It takes effort, actual effort for him to maintain the persona of an innocuous dilettante. It's an act, the whole thing -- from the vocabulary to the posture. And yet it's inconceivable, isn't it, that being cruel could be anyone's true human nature? Even The Griever is an act as well; a calculated response to - even a construction contrived to deal with - malevolence. So where is the man? Who is he when he is not actively manipulating his observer's cognition? What does it mean about him if he himself does not know? Is there a vulnerability there? A danger of becoming trapped between several artifices? Surely he's prepared to navigate such potential hazards, even if his secrets were revealed. Surely he has a contingency plan. But how can one man be so many different people yet by the end of the day, they all become one? The all rely one one another. Who. Is. Zell. Sloan?


The movie star ; We start off dissecting the man by driving through the multitude of layers, starting with the outer shell, a widely known personage. This is the first part of `celebrity.` Not a stranger to the limelight, his career started out musically, producing five multi-platinum albums and accumulating eight Grammy's. The musical career ended in mid-2009 and since then he hasn't sang one note. Inspired by his mother, silver screen star Michelle Sloan, Zell moved on to star in a series of film productions after graduating from the Broadway stage after the N.M.L incident. Since then he's garnered the adoration of fans on a global base and accumulated eleven Oscars with fourteen nominations. The fame doesn't end there, as he endorses various products in advertising campaigns, his largest so far is Mercedes-Benz and Lamborghini as he is the spokesman for dual manufacturers. Publicly since the divorce he's reclaimed his title as billionaire playboy, but harbors traits of the aforementioned innocuous dilettante to keep true to the role.


The businessman ; Still a public incarnation, but with a smaller more targeted audience, Zell Sloan also plays the role of CEO of Sloan Enterprises. Since its founding when the city was industrializing itself, there has never been someone not of Sloan ancestry that claimed the position. The company specializes in an assortment of things, rising to multinational conglomerate status in the early 50's. In his youth, Zell single handedly raised the company's profitability margin tenfold before handing the company to his mother to pursue other goes, but inevitably took back the seat upon his mother's death. After careful examination, Zell re-plotted the aim of the company in early 2018, adding to its concise mission statement the fact that Sloan Enterprises does not treat companies like competition, but rather assists both large and small alike to bring their products and services into society. Its extensive internships and college loan plans helps youths find their way in the world. He plays this role as the same before, his behavior is passed off as a person referred to as a `traumatized individual,` but competent enough to run a multi-billion dollar company.


The mob boss ; The deeper we delve to uncover the identity of Zell, the more narrow the hierarchy gets as knowledge becomes exclusivity. There is an oath, a general rule in the runnings of society's underbelly, that those involved don't divulge a single word to those not. Since the Sloan name split to Vercetti in the early 1930s, differences stirred between the pacifist Sloan's and the truculent other halves. The matter was resolved twenty years later when Robert Sloan became Don of the family, then passing it over to nephew, Linus Vercetti, who then would've rightfully passed it to Cephas Vercetti but due to complications that had risen to in the N.M.L era, the Donship passed right to Zell Sloan some years later who had proven he could've handled the task. It's been a year since he graduated from capo, and has wisely elected capo's to serve under him whom he can trust, following his father's example and given women a more pivotal role in the family.


The griever ; When the veil is lifted we come to the final stage of Zell Sloan. When the family split in the 1930's and Vercetti returned to its mafioso roots, there was a new figure established. A phantom that stalked the streets carrying with it a benevolent agenda and an everlasting philosophy of crime and punishment. Its purpose was to cure the wrongs that society upheld, investigating to clear the names of the innocent on trial and defend their city, as well as keep the mob regulated through the guise of a masked entity. The mask legacy has been passed down from Sloan father to Sloan son, as well as the necessary training to be worthy of the facade. Their funding for gadgetry and other notables comes from allocated assets from the Enterprise. It was Zell's turn next, revitalizing the phantom, the urban legend, after a twenty five year retirement. And he upholds it well with a personality completely apart from the rest -- cold, dark. There are even few that know the identity of the man behind the mask, those include only: Alfred Masters, Samantha Sloan, Kodi Sloan, Jackson Kennedy, Felicia Kennedy, London Matthews, Jimmy Wilder, Riley Williams, Dr. Leslie Thompkins, the City Council, Cephas Vercetti, Carmela Vercetti, Bishop Vercetti, Tiffanie Tiseo, Jericho, and Estevao Torres.


Final analysis shows Zell's true self remains a mystery, debated between the Don or the Griever. Wrapped up in complications, he seems to be in charge of his own life. Or is he? Is this just an act like the rest? The ones The Griever trusts with his secret, could he truly depend on them? Could he ever allow himself to get close to someone without putting them in danger from multiple sides? Is one man capable of fending off not just death, but the harsh realities of life? These answers remain incomplete. But what is Zell's motive in wearing the mask? In certain extreme situations, the law is inadequate. In order to shame its inadequacy, it is necessary to act outside the law. To pursue .. natural justice. This is not vengeance. Revenge is not a valid motive, it's an emotional response. No. Not vengeance. Punishment.