Both the movie, Shaun of the Dead, and Fight Club deal with a duo.  In Shaun of the dead, the main character, Shaun, has the dolty pot dealing Ed.  In Fight Club, the un-named character has Tyler Durden, the soap making delinquent.  Both Ed and Tyler share an interesting characteristic.  Both seem to represent an alter ego, or even a Hyde to to Dr. Jeckyll type figure that hinder the figure significantly.

                            The British manger, Shaun, leads a monotonous life.  He spends each day at a job he hates and nights getting lit at the local pub.  Ed, the chubby video game player is Shaun’s best friend and roommate.  It seems as though Ed plays a significant role in dragging Shaun down.  He sucks Shaun in to a life of couch potatoing and late nights boozing at the pub.  It seems as though Shaun, although subconsciously, may have Ed around because in comparison he could still feel as though he’s leading a successful life.  Ed is such a slacker that he’s not even successful at dealing drugs.  When the dinner plans fall through, Ed convinces Shaun that a date at The Winchester would be comparable to a date at an exclusive restaurant.  This leads to an abrupt breakup, and guarantees that Shaun will be free to get hammered and listen to cheesy eighties music with Ed.  It seems as though Ed deliberately sets Shuan up for a royal dumping in this scene.  Ed also suggests that the Winchester would be the safest place for the surviving humans to hide out in.  This idea is a bad one as it turns into catastrophe.  Lastly, even the zombification of Ed ultimately hinders Shaun.  In the end, Shaun has not changed for the better.  He is stull stuck on the couch with Ed playing video games. 

                   Tyler Durden plays a similar role in the life of the main character in Fight Club.  Before Tyler, the character shared a life similar to Shaun.  He had a dull, monotonous life where he was so frustrated he had to go to support groups to vent his dismay.  Although the introduction of Tyler changes the monotony of his previous life, he ultimately leads to the degradation of the character.  Like Ed from Shaun, Tyler plays a significant role in the decision making of the character.  He is literally controlling the character at points in the story.  Tyler also literally drains the character due to the fact that he can’t sleep.  When he thinks he’s asleep, Tyler is actually using his body to gallivant around and further his vision of fight club and project mayhem.   Ultimately, Tyler’s actions and influence on the main character lead to him being committed to an insane asylum.  In all aspects, Tyler, like Ed, hinders his counterpart substantially. 

                              Although both Shaun of the Dead and Fight club are two very different stories, both have the same relationship of a devil on the shoulder.  Ed and Tyler Durden are these characters whispering into the ears of their friends, hindering them significantly.