Joseph Allen


 * For a list of other Allens, see Allen.

Private First Class Joseph Allen (AKA Alexei Borodin) (Russian: Алексей Бородин) was a playable character and the main protagonist in the early part of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

75th Ranger Regiment
Allen is introduced in "S.S.D.D." helping Sergeant Foley train Afghan National Army troops at Firebase Phoenix in Afghanistan. He then undergoes a selection phase for Task Force 141, running "The Pit", prior to engaging local OpFor troops immediately after. Before joining the Rangers, he lived in Ithaca, NY.

Task Force 141/C.I.A.
After completing "The Pit", he is hand-picked by General Shepherd to go undercover in Vladimir Makarov's cell under the alias Alexei Borodin. Allen was killed by Makarov when attempting to escape from Zakhaev International Airport in the level "No Russian", having learned about his real identity. He became a victim of a conflict of goals between General Shepherd and Makarov. It is interesting to note that his voice is heard later in the game after he has been picked for Task Force 141, making him the one of the few playable characters in the Call of Duty series to be heard.

Locations

 * Firebase Phoenix, Afghanistan - Assisted in the training of local military forces, participated in combat operations IVO Firebase Phoenix.
 * Red Zone, Afghanistan - Helped take control of small Afghan school and town.
 * Zakhaev International Airport, Moscow - Participated in CIA-sponsored deep-cover infiltration of Makarov's inner circle; compromised and killed by Makarov.

Quotes
"It's an honor, Sir. When do I meet the rest of the team?"

- Joseph Allen to Shepherd in the Cliffhanger cutscene "So Makarov is the prize."

- Joseph Allen to Shepherd in the Cliffhanger cutscene "Their feet wet?"

- Joseph Allen to Shepherd in the Cliffhanger cutscene

Trivia

 * The name Alexei Borodin might be a reference to the first Call of Duty game, because of the fact that the first playable Russian character's first name is Alexei, and the first person the player meets has the last name "Borodin".
 * He is one of the only playable characters who speaks in the Modern Warfare series, the others being Cpt. Price, Soap, AC-130 crew and Yuri.
 * The tattoos on Allen's chest that were added as part of the operation are Russian Prison tattoos. The cathedral is symbolic of how long a person has been in prison, with each steeple representing a sentence.
 * PFC. Allen was the fourth youngest playable character (after C. Miller and Aleksandr Sokolov, both 20, and Dimitri Petrenko, 18 at a time) and the youngest to die to date.
 * He is one of the 4 playable characters in Modern Warfare series to be seen without gloves, the other being Alexei_Borodin_MW3.png Ramirez, Yuri and Andrei Harkov.
 * He is the only playable character in the Modern Warfare series to be in three factions.
 * Joseph Allen is referenced in Modern Warfare 3 during the cutscene before 'Turbulence', on a sticky note that reads: "Who is Alexei Bodorin?".
 * During the intro of Turbulence the sticky note metions his name as: uncorrectly "Alexei Bodorin" instead of "Alexei Borodin".
 * He CAN be seen in Zakahev International Airport in Yuri's flashback, however, he uses Lev's character model.