Roman is the retired police commissioner of the fictional Midwestern town of Salem, and currently manages and tends bar at his family's business, the Brady Pub. He is also a former agent of the fictional International Security Alliance (ISA), a spy agency focused on all sorts of unusually high-level global conspiracies that tended to center around his otherwise-quiet home town. During his portrayal by Northrop, he was established as a top-notch cop but also a bit of a renegade, often accepting deep-cover assignments, and a master of disguise (similar to Sherlock Holmes). Hogestyn's character was more by-the-book on the job, although still dangerous with a dark side somewhat characteristic of an ex-spy (which later fed into the "John Black" persona), with expertise in Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do, and a little more of a ladies' man. Taylor's portrayal is more that of a "regular guy", with a bit less intrigue and more straightforward professionally, although still with an eye for the ladies and more inclined to engage in one-night stands with various women than the character as portrayed by Northrop or Hogestyn (such as with Kate Roberts, Billie Reed, ex-wives Anna DiMera and Marlena Evans, and a strongly hinted at – but never confirmed – rendezvous with Nicole Walker).
