| “ | What I do requires a certain mindset. I do assignments; designated targets. Some jobs need to look like accidents. Others must cast suspicion on someone else. A select few need to send a clear message. Pulling a trigger is easy. The best jobs are the ones nobody even knows you were there.
— Arthur Bishop
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Arthur Bishop, also known as Santos, is the titular protagonist of the remake of The Mechanic and its sequel Mechanic: Resurrection. Bishop is an assassin who specializes in making his assassinations look like petty crimes, accidents, or suicides.
One day Bishop was ordered by his employer Dean Sanderson to kill his friend and mentor Harry McKenna. Although Bishop was hesitant, Dean convinced him to follow through on it, explaining that Harry sold him out during a mission in South Africa, which left many of his men dead, and needed to be punished. In truth, Dean orchestrated the mission’s failure to cover his shady dealings. Despite his reluctance, Bishop accepted the mission and made Harry’s death look like a carjacking gone wrong.
At Harry’s funeral, Bishop encounters Harry's son Steve. After being stopped by Bishop from killing a carjacker Steve asked Bishop to train him, which he accepted. Steve proved to be less subtle in his methods and Bishop’s relationship with Dean became tense as he believed the usage of Steve violated their contract
After killing a cult leader, Bishop was approached by a fellow hitman who was supposed to have died in the South Africa mission. The hitman revealed the truth behind the reasons why Dean wanted Harry dead. Both Bishop and Steve managed to fight off Dean's henchmen who tried to ambush them separately, after which Steve found his father's gun in Bishop's safehouse, discovering he killed Harry. The pair managed to kill Dean and Steve tried to kill Bishop afterward, though failed and was killed by a boobytrap Bishop set up for him instead.
Using the failed assassination attempt to fake his death, Bishop fled to Brazil and took on the name Santos, hoping to live a quiet life. This was not to last as he was eventually approached by Renee Tran, who told him that her employer Riah Crain wanted him to kill three targets. Refusing the mission, Bishop was hunted down by assassins working for Tran and escaped to Thailand.
There, he rescues one of Crain’s would-be-victims Gina Thornton, and falls in love with her. Thornton was eventually captured by Crain, who used her to force Bishop in doing his bidding, getting him to kill two of his three targets, though managed to enlist the aid of his third target Max Adams. With Adam's help, Bishop freed Thorton, killed Crain, and once again faked his own death before moving to Thailand to live with Thorton.
Battle vs. Jason Hudson (by Codgod13)[]
Arthur Bishop is escorted into a room, inhabitated by a ex-soviet general.
"Who do you want me to kill?" Bishop asks.
"Jason Hudson, Viktor Reznov, Alex Mason, or Frank Woods." the soviet replies. "As of now, they are all dead. But in the cold war, they stopped my father from victory. you will travel back in time and kill one of the three. I don't care which. Woods saved Mason's life from my father second-in-command. Reznov helped him escape rom a russian gulag. Hudson saved him from my father in the final battle aboard the Rusalka."
"Travel in time?" Bishop says, raising an eyebrow.
Instead of responding, the soviet general turns around, and says, "Show him in,"
A door opens, and a scientist is forced in, spewing massive amounts of cusses in a mix of english and german. He has a nazi symbol on his hat. As the guard tries to push, the scientist grabs his head and breaks his neck with ease. The scientist spits on the dead body, and says, "You have no right to use my time machine!"
The general points a pistol at him, and says, "Mr. Bishop, meet Dr. Edward Richtofen. Inventor of the time machine and wunderwaffe DG-2. He will lead you to you your goal."
"Fick dich zu, du Arschloch." Richtofen spits at the general. Bishop, who speaks German, decides not to tell the general what he said. Instead he says, "How much?"
"5 million american." The general says, "I have a note reminding me to pay you when the past changes."
Kowloon, February 9, 1968
Jason Hudson, Grigori Weaver, and Dr. Clark are sprinting across rooftops and through buildings, being tailed by Spetsnaz and, unknown to them, Arthur Bishop with an F2000. As they near safety, Clark slips on the soaking rooftops, and nearly falls to his death, but is caught by Hudson. Bishop aims, and fires a single shot. He misses Hudson, but the bullet strikes Clark in the head. Hudson drops him, and he and Weaver run toward their CIA van. They are almost there, when the everyone in the van is gunned down, including the gas tank, and the van explodes. Hudson, who had fallen onto a fruit stand, and Weaver, was far enough from the explosion to survive with out any injuries.
Hudson and Weaver each grab and AUG from some of their comrades, and seeing Bishop, begin firing. Bishop retreats, and says, "Another time, CIA."
Mt. Yamantau, February 18, 1968
Bishop had gotten reinforcements from 4 other mechanics, and was waiting for Hudson, disguised as Soviet Forces. They are inside, and suddenly hear an alarm go off. A team of five rappels through the windows, and start firing. The mechanics shoot back, and a CIA agent falls due to a mechanic with an F2000 (5-4 Bishop).
Bishop and his team take cover, and a firefight begins. None of the sides take any casualties, until a mechanic ducks out of cover to get a better view. He is quickly gunned down by Weaver with a Spectre (4-4).
The teams split up among the snowy environment. A mechanic spots two agents, and begins firing with his F2000. However, the agents immediately dive into the snow and the mechanic proceeds cautiously, switching his F2000 for a shotgun. However, he doesn't see or hear the silent death that is fired into his neck from a crossbow, and he falls (4-3 Hudson).
Bisho sees his operative fall, and he sees another bolt stab into the snow at his feet. He runs back to a building, where he meets his other two mechanics. They see Hudson, Weaver, and two agents running toward them. The two teams fire, until only Hudson and Bishops are left (1-1).
Hudson runs out of ammo and sprints toward Bishop. Bishop also runs out, and reaches for his pistol, but is tackled by Hudson before he can pull it out. After a brief struggle, Hudson shoves Bishop back, and draws his CZ75s. Bishop flees, taking out his nickel M1911. They keep firing, and as Bishop reloads, Hudson shoots him in the thigh, making him drop his handgun. Bishop falls to one knee, and Hudson walks in front of him. He smiles, and points his pistols at the assassin. He fires one, then the other. Both have no ammo. Fast a snake, Hudson whips out a shotgun holstered to his back and blasts Hudson backward, killing him instantly.
Limping and bleeding, Bishop makes his way back to the time machine. He enters, but instead of going back to the general's base, he ends up in a tropical temple next to four other people. Oh yeah, and a horde of the undead. He draws his M1911, and joins in the slaughter.
WINNER: Arthur Bishop.
Expert's Opinion[]
This match ended in a tie, so I chose the victor. I thought Bishop's more modern weapons and the fact that he was trained to actually kill singular people, won him the day.