Smelly Skunk: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

 

 

That skunk spray smells rotten is [[Truth in Television]]; it can make a '''''[[Everything's Worse with Bears|bear]]''''' clear out! It's ''so'' vile, that it adheres to the clothing and hair of anyone within nose-shot. The spray is also very durable, getting even worse in water rather than washing off. And if you live in the country, you '''know''' when a skunk's been hit, even if it's a good mile away!

 

 

 

It is possible to remove the stink glands via surgery, and this is obviously standard for pet skunks. Still, having a skunk standing at your door might be better than a dog to deter potential thieves.

 

{{examples}}

** The original version of the toy during the Transmetals II run of ''[[Beast Wars]]'' toys was even named "Stinkbomb."

* In ''[[Stitch!]]'', Hamsterviel sends sends a skunk-like alien to retrieve Mr. Stenchy for him, it's able to shoot powerful stink bombs from its fur instead of spraying. [[Playing with a Trope|It turns out]] {{spoiler|not only is she in love with Mr. Stenchy, her stench and his stench mix to form a delightful smell.}}

* A boy and his hamster friend find out firsthand that when a skunk does a handstand, it's not to entertain, it's mostly to get ''BETTER'' '''''AIM'''''!

 

* Averted with Geoffrey St. John in the Archie ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (comics)|Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' comics.

 

* In ''[[Fatal Instinct]]'', Ned Ravine gets his wife a pet skunk. She does ''not'' appreciate it.

** Upon entering the house trying to rescue her friends, Stella unleashes a massive explosion of her own natural "tear gas"! In the end, {{spoiler|she falls in love with the cat because he's completely unable to smell.}}

* In ''[[Snow Dogs]]'', after going through the [[Humiliation Conga]], and finding a car buried in the snow, hero is leading his sled dog team in training by towing it. Unfortunately, he doesn't find out about the stinky stowaway in the back seat until it was too late... the dog riding shotgun with him jumping out and running away should have been an indication.

* In the "Johnny Appleseed" segment of ''[[Melody Time]]'', the first forest animal to interact with Johnny is a skunk. At first it gets angry when Johnny accidentally hurts it, and gets ready to spray, but then Johnny strokes its back and calms it down, which convinces the other animals that the stranger is friendly.

 

** In one notable example Visser 3 gets sprayed and they trick him into thinking it's ''grape'' juice that gets rid of the stench. Not only does it not work it turns him purple.

* In ''Winterdance'', the protagonist's first two lessons learned in the field: Don't grab a skunk by the tail and pull; Don't kick a skunk, either. On the other hand, the skunk's smell didn't turn off his dogs.

* [[Gary Paulsen]]'s [[Brian's Saga|Brians Saga]] uses this quite a bit.

* In the furry-populated world of ''[[Spellsinger]]'', intelligent skunks make up the police force, using their spray (which is apparently ''even worse'' than that of our world's skunks) to disperse crowds and subdue criminals.

 

* The late great [[Billy Mays]] sets up one of these in his ''Pitchmen'' reality show to set up an ad for an odour remover. He'd been a bit of a [[Jerkass]] before the shoot, so the crew play a little prank on him. There's two skunks, one crankier than the other, but both disarmed. They say the cranky one's fully armed. He ends up reluctant...

* While averted in ''[[Chouriki Sentai Ohranger]]'', where Bara Skunk, which could spray a gas the reverted the Ohrangers to normal instead of smelling bad, it's played straight in [[Power Rangers Zeo]]. Bara Skunk's counterpart, [[Meaningful Name|Stenchy]] sprayed a terrible smelling gas from his mouth or tail that stuck to its victims.

* On ''[[The Most Extreme]]'', the skunk became the Most Extreme Stinker in the episode of the same name.

* ''[[Dirty Jobs]]'' had Mike tangling with skunks on at least two occasions. For the first, he was an animal control officer and had to wrangle a skunk in a live trap. It must've been quite the cranky skunk (or just plain scared), as it sprayed him almost on sight, not bothering with the usual foot-stomping theatrics. For the second, he had to inspect and clean out crawl spaces, and declared that ''dead, decaying'' skunks smelled [[Up to Eleven|even worse than live ones]].

** Even worse, after a [[Humiliation Conga]], the same skunk sprays Alan '''''again'''''!

* In one episode of ''[[Big Time Rush]]'', Gustavo is mailed a skunk by his archrival Hawk and spends much of the episode attempting to get rid of it with no luck (though he doesn't end up getting sprayed ether). The boys finally return and capture it easily (apparently this is a common occurence back home). Gustavo, seeking revenge, has the boys plant it in Hawk's car and he ends up getting skunked.

 

* One of these showed up to bully [[Dilbert]] in a few strips, coercing him to get him food lest he get scared and hose the place.

** Another one, which Gary Larson's editor deemed too offensive for publication, had a family of skunks sitting down to dinner and the "man of the house" groaning [[Toilet Humor|"Beans again? Well, it won't make much difference."]]

* In ''[[Rose Is Rose]]'', the squirrel that Peekaboo bothers gets a skunk to 'hang out'. Peekaboo wisely chose to leave them alone.

* One ''[[Beetle Bailey]]'' strip had war games being postponed due to Company A being afflicted with this trope.

 

* The only skunk in the [[Beanie Babies]] franchise is named Stinky. He [[Meaningful Name|lives up to his name]], and his poem even indicates that he hopes not to stink someday.

** There's also "Skunkers" who is always quick to point out that she isn't an example.

* One of Skeletor's minions in the ''[[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe|Masters of the Universe]]'' toyline was a skunk-man named Stinkor. He smelled of patchouli.

 

** One of their abilities (besides the obvious "Stench"), Aftermath, is based on the '''other''' annoying aspects of skunks, of the roadkill variety. They ''explode'' when hit, releasing all their musk in one shot. Thus why it can stink for ''days'' afterwards.

** Humorously, they only bothered to add the [[Totally Radical]] aspects to the back of the box. The game itself was pretty much left alone, save Kuri/Punky's name.

* Mileena's Animality in ''Ultimate [[Mortal Kombat 3]]''.

** That is '''truly''' [[A Fate Worse Than Death]].

* The Skunk from the ''[[Worms]]'' series, once deployed, will walk around and, after a few seconds, spray toxic fumes which [[Universal Poison|poison nearby worms]].

* The Stenches from ''[[Crash Bandicoot|Crash Of The Titans]]'' and ''[[Crash Bandicoot|Crash: Mind Over Mutant]]'' are a mix of this, some sort of bird, and in Mind Over Mutant, a astronaut. It is worth noting that in Crash Of The Titans their stink projectiles are fired from their tail, while in Mind Over Mutant their regular stink projectile is fired from a gun that they wield and their special attack is fired from their... yeah.

 

== [[Web Comics]] ==

** Her last name also means Skunk in French.

* Subverted twice in ''[[The Cyantian Chronicles]]'':

** The first is with Twinkie, a skunk that keeps coming back to Marcus's house. Turns out the bad smell is due to being around some Skunkupines that ''do'' stink: he himself does not.

** All Exotica Genoworks C-class skunks are genetically engineered to have a nice, pleasant smell, like fruit, flowers, or cedar.

* Subverted here in ''21CcenturyFox''. [http://techfox.comicgenesis.com/d/20000131.html Know your audience] ''BEFORE'' signing that certain song by Loudon Wainwright III!

** Played for drama: [http://techfox.comicgenesis.com/d/20050603.html "Smelly! Are you okay? Smelly? SOMEBODY CALL 9-1-1!!"]

** Another skunk in the cast is Zig-Zag, a [[Ms. Fanservice|porn star]] both in-universe and [[Furry Fandom|out]].

* Isolde from ''[[Ozy and Millie]]'' hams up the failure of the presidential campaign she ran for Llewellyn, citing that there was a stench in the air. Ozy reminds her that it's just Emily, a neighbourhood kid. "I get that a lot." ([[D. C. Simpson|DC Simpson]] noted how popular Emily ended up with some fans, despite having an entire two panels to herself in the strip's run.) Other skunks who show up generally don't have their smell commented on.

** Let's not forget about the storyline about [http://www.kevinandkell.com/2001/kk0921.html a genetically-engineered allergen] [http://www.kevinandkell.com/2001/kk0922.html Angelique was using to keep Lindesfarne and Kell apart ...]

*** …and how [http://www.kevinandkell.com/2001/kk0923.html it came back to bite her on the butt!]

* Jake in ''[[The Whiteboard]]'' once set off a biohazard alarm after getting startled.

 

* Averted with Petunia from ''[[Happy Tree Friends]]''. She's shown to be a [[Neat Freak]] and even has a car air freshener necklace.

* While the smell is never directly mentioned, an undead skunk sets up [[Ominous Fog]] in [[Zombie Roadkill]].

* Averted in ''[[Tasakeru]]'', though the local [[Fantastic Slur]] for the species is "stinktail".

 

* Odie Colone of ''[[King Leonardo and His Short Subjects]]'' is a rare hero skunk in his role of getting the King out of whatever jam he currently finds himself in.

* Disney loved the idea of fox hunters seemingly capturing a fox inside a hollow log, then pulling out a skunk instead. Variations of this gag end ''all three'' of the studio's fox hunting cartoons.

* Skunk stink was of course the entire point of almost every Pepe LePew [[Looney Tunes]] short.

** The cartoon "Odor of the Day" features a skunk who may or may not be Pepe (most likely it's his American cousin). Unlike Pepe, he uses his odor defensively, shooting it out of his tail like a machine gun.

* In one episode of ''[[Beethoven (TV series)|Beethoven the Animated Series]]'', Beethoven is in a tracking competition with another dog. The other dog purposefully insults a skunk, making it mad enough to spray, and uses this to mask his trail.

* The eponymous character of ''[[Skunk Fu!]]'' uses the "Farting Skunk" type.

** Worth noting is Skunk can't spray of his own free will, only if he's embarressed or startled.

* ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'': In his youth, Dr. Doofenshmirtz aspired to be a stage magician, but all his tricks inexplicably ended with him getting sprayed by a skunk.

** No doubt Avery was parodying the earlier MGM short "Poor Little Me", in which a boy skunk can't make friends with the other woodland creatures, until he meets a girl bunny with a cold.

* A skunk forces Emma out of her initial staff dorm in ''[[Stoked]]'', driving her to bunk with Fin and Lo. Lo pets a skunk in episode two, thinking it's a kitty.

* In the ''[[Heathcliff and The Catillac Cats]]'' episode "Be Prepared", the titular tomcat lures an egotistical Boy Scout leader to a bush where a nest of skunks are sleeping. The scoutmaster looks into the bush (just as Heathcliff drops a firecracker!), waking the skunks up, giving the scoutmaster a full blast into his face!

** In the episode, "Riff Raff the Gourmet", Riff Raff is competing against Pierre, a cat who is also a French chef. Riff Raff is busy fishing on a pier, but Pierre hooks Riff Raff's line to a cage with a skunk inside of it...

'''''*POOF!*''''' }}

* This is the backstory for "Stinkbomb" in an ''[[Animaniacs]]'' episode. He was shown chasing Slappy Squirrel into a cave. Not knowing, he lit a match to find it was a den of skunks. After he'd grabbed and threatened one. Green smoke gushes out of the cave as a result.

* Elmer Fudd found himself snagging a skunk instead of [[Bugs Bunny]] in ''[[A Wild Hare]]''. "Well… confidentially… you know…" Elmer winces, sets the skunk down carefully, tries to lower his tail, and hopes for the best as he gently shoos him away.

** Plus, in the episode where they play at being superheroes - "The Mega-Diaper Babies" - Chuckie is "Stinkie" ("with the stench of ''two'' babies!") and wears a skunk costume. He is NOT happy about it. {{spoiler|At least until he's [[This Looks Like a Job For Aquaman|the one to beat the bad guy]]}}.

* Baby Fozzie should have known better in one episode of ''[[Muppet Babies]]'' called [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBESgctTbyg "The Daily Muppet"] at 01:49:

'''Baby Fozzie (holding his nose):''' PHEW! I'd rather be hit by a tomato any day! }}

** {{spoiler|And a tomato splatters on Baby Fozzie's face immediately afterwards!!}}

** Another time a skunk appeared was in the ''World Adventure'' special, where Swiper's French counterpart, Fifi (no, no, not [[Tiny Toon Adventures|THAT Fifi]]). No comment is made on her smelling bad, they simply don't want her 'swiping' from them.

* An episode of ''[[Kim Possible]]'' had a skunk-based villain named White Stripe, whose suit let him spray like a real skunk, only the stench could knock out most people instantly.

* This trope was actually inverted in ''[[Ace Ventura]]: The Animated Series'' where Ace must save a little boy's pet skunk from an evil businessman. The parents allowed their son to keep the skunk because they knew that as long as it wasn't scared, it didn't release it's stinky artillery. This becomes a major factor in defeating the bad guy who was keeping a bunch of skunks captive.

* The ironically-named Flower from ''[[Bambi]]''. However, he didn't spray in the first film. He did, however, in the second {{spoiler|ultimately using it to scare off a dog chasing Bambi.}}

* In the first season of ''[[Total Drama Island]]'', a family of skunks appear on several occasions, including a few challenges. Bridgette's first elimination is in part the result of getting sprayed by them.

* In ''[[Back at the Barnyard]]'', Pig has a pet skunk, Skunky, but he'll only spray Duke. {{spoiler|Even the Duke imposter is safe.}}

* In the British preschool quiz show ''Kerwhizz'', one of the regular features is "Hunt the Skunk", in which the teams have to guess where King Pong the skunk is hiding. King Pong's appearance is always heralded by a stinky green miasma. Occasionally averted when King Pong is replaced by Queen Pong or Princess Pong, who smell very nice and produce a fragrant pink vapour instead.

* Tootles from ''[[Peter Pan (Disney film)|Peter Pan]]'' wears a skunk suit as clothing.

* Subverted in ''[[Franklin]]'' with Skunk, who doesn't stink and is actually quite happy when people don't make jokes about it.

* The episode of ''[[Stanley]]'' called "PU Pup" dealt with skunks. However, while the skunk did spray his dog, the point of the episode is actually Stanley discovering that skunks spray to defend themselves and don't stink themselves.

* On ''[[Regular Show]]'', Rigby gets sprayed by a [[Our Werebeasts Are Different|were-skunk]], and if he doesn't find a way to clean the smell off, he will turn into one.

* In ''[[Wonder Pets]]'' episode "The Wonder Pets Save The Skunk", Ollie, a rabbit who forced himself on the team for the episode, tries to save the title animal himself, ignoring warnings that scaring it would get him sprayed. Guess what happens to him?

* In ''[[The Proud Family]]'', after both of the Prouds' inlaws ended up leaving from the baptism due to inherent disagreements, Oscar is forced by Trudy to sleep in the tent (because Oscar arranged his cousin Ray-Ray to stay at their house due to wanting to hold off Trudy's relatives, there wasn't enough room in the house for Oscar, Trudy, or... well, the main occupants of the house to actually live in the house, so they were forced to set up a tent). It's raining that night. Oscar, desperately trying to make the best of the situation, tries to comfort himself by saying that its his tent as well, and that the black fluffy pillow is his. Unfortunately for him, said "black fluffy pillow" was actually a skunk that was sleeping in the tent.

* On the ''[[Silly Symphony]]'' "[[The Tortoise and the Hare]]", a pair of skunks in the audience get a bleacher all to themselves.

* On ''[[The Penguins of Madagascar]]'' episode "Operation: Plush", a jealous King Julien throws all the plush toys of Mort (which were selling better than his plush toys) into the skunk habitat so they would be recalled. On the episode "Out of the Groove", an equally jealous Julien throws skunks at the baboons after they get more attention than he does.

[[Category:Mammal Tropes]]

[[Category:Smelly Skunk]]