~
If he’s a likeable type of hero-cop or hero detective then he is honest, has a great depth of understanding of human nature, is observant, questioning, skeptical and logical, and has compassion for victims and innocents.
He has foibles: a way of playing poker with suspects, of tilting his head, of hesitating before delivering a punch line. He’s often not very nice to his offsides or trainees. He may have a sarcastic sense of humour.
He has weaknesses: his marriage is on the rocks, his wife is dead or he was always too dedicated to his job to find a mate, he has a wayward teenage daughter, a Dad in a nursing home, or a brother in a psyche ward. He drinks too much. He’s fat and unfit or pasty, round-shouldered and nerdy-thin, when he knows he should be buff and able to run a marathon.
He’s tough: no insult or taunt disturbs his self-assurance, no injury stops him from coming back to work before fully recovered, no PTSD haunts him.