Sky High (2005 film)

""The kids who get bit by radioactive insects or fall into a vat of toxic waste, their powers usually show up the next day. Or - they die.""

- Nurse Spex

A 2005 live-action Disney flick jumping on both the Superhero and Harry Potter bandwagons. Revolves around a kid named Will Stronghold, who is the son of the world's two most famous superheroes and is about to start high school at their alma mater: the titular Sky High, a school exclusively for people with superpowers. Between dealing with Girl Next Door Layla (plant controller), son-of-archnemesis Jerk with a Heart of Gold Warren Peace (fireball thrower) and the typical cliques of high school (being either a hero or a Sidekick "Hero Support"), Will must also face the embarrassing fact that, despite his pedigree, he does not seem to have any superpowers. At least not yet...

From the creators of Kim Possible, about... well, you just read it. The high school and Superhero tropes blend well enough (especially when Played for Laughs), it's almost a shame nobody thought of it sooner, unless they did and it just didn't get made until recently (*cough*Hero High*cough*). Featured a surprising amount of high-level names, including Michael Angarano as Will Stronghold, Kurt Russell as The Commander, Lynda "Wonder Woman" Carter as the principal, Bruce Campbell as Coach Boomer, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Gwen Grayson. Many critics and reviewers admitted that, upon viewing the film, they didn't dislike it.

Not to be confused with the incredibly obscure seinen manga by Takahashi Tsutomu. Compare PS238.

"Will: If I'm not back in 30 minutes... Ron: Come in after you! Will: ...I was gonna say "get help". Ron: [crestfallen] Get help. Right."
 * Acrofatic: Speed, one of the supervillian/bullies, was a Flash-like speedster in spite of being overweight.
 * Actor Allusion: After they resisted it the entire film, the Principal's last line is, "" She's played by Lynda Carter. Also doubles as a Casting Gag.
 * Adults Are Useless: The Commander and Jetstream are the only competent heroes shown in work,  Anything worthwhile is done by adolescents. Even the villains are all young. Sort of. (Except )
 * Air Vent Passageway
 * All Guys Want Cheerleaders: Averted with Penny.
 * All Love Is Unrequited: Mr. Boy, for Jetstream. Justified in-story, in that a hero like her could never notice someone in 'Hero Support' - not with the strapping, handsome, charismatic Commander around.)
 * Alliterative Name: Gwen Grayson.
 * All of the Other Reindeer: In this school, you're either a hero, or a zero; "Hero Support" = Sidekick = social inferior.
 * A line from this song is actually sung at one point in the movie.
 * Almighty Bus Driver
 * Alpha Bitch: Penny. "Sorry, all full." She's apparently the entirety of the cheerleading squad, as well.
 * Badass Normal: Ron Wilson, Bus Driver!
 * Battle Trophy: The Commander and Jetstream has an entire section of their base to show off stuff taken from defeated opponents.
 * Batman Gambit: A minor one in the beginning of the film. Will's parents defeat a giant robot terrorizing the city and the Commander takes a part of the robot (its eye) as a trophy. Royal Pain knew he would do just this ("His ego's bigger than a giant robot") and the reporter says its a habit but if he didn't then plans falls flat, and that would detrail the entire Evil Plan.
 * Be the Ball: One girl's superpower is to turn into a big rubber beach ball. The unimpressed Coach Boomer merely kicks her away shouting "SIDE-KICK!".
 * Berserk Button:
 * Betty and Veronica: Layla and Gwen, respectively.
 * Beware the Nice Ones: Layla. She can weaponize plants, people. She just doesn't, usually. Until you annoy her.
 * Bigger Bad: If one considers and  to be  (though for what it's worth  doesn't),  could be seen as this. Baron Battle also sort of qualifies, as while he's not behind anything he's apparently an even worse villain than ... who spectacularly fails to show up in the movie.
 * Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Or in this case,.
 * Black and Nerdy: Ethan.
 * Black Best Friend: Penny to Gwen.
 * Brainy Baby:
 * Brick Joke: Early on in the movie, it's mentioned that the only way for kids of superheroes that don't get powers is to fall in a vat of toxic waste. This is mentioned again later.
 * Broken Aesop: The story is mean to show that separating people into groups is bad, but it serves a vital purpose in Sky High -- mainly, it keeps the sidekicks from getting killed by something they can't handle. If Magenta (who only shapeshifts into a guinea pig) tried fighting the Giant Robot from early in the film... It's even worse for Zach (who just glows) and Ethan (who melts), since their powers could easily be replaced with utility belt items (Flashlight and Oil Slick, respectively).
 * Not really. The Aesop is more "The Powers Don't Make The Super Hero" than "Work together". Even with their "lame" powers, they can get by with creative uses. And that without mentioning the super heroes who don't have any super powers, and aren't mentioned at all in the film.
 * "You don't need Hero-class powers to be a hero" rings a little hollow when the main character develops not one but two top-tier powers which which to impress his classmates and save the day. Multiple sub-tier powers can, with the right set of circumstances, provide vital background assistance; or you can single-handedly overpower a cheerleader army with your Green Thumb, be the main muscle through Playing with Fire, or save everyone in and below school by virtue of being a Flying Brick.
 * Though do note, a lot of the Aesop depended on how the Sidekicks were treated; though there was a practical purpose in isolating them and the main hero ended up saving the day, a lot of the conflict stemmed from the fact the sidekicks were treated like second-rate trash and the hero learned to interact and empathize with them.
 * The Call Put Me on Hold: Will.
 * Cannot Spit It Out
 * Captain Ersatz: A few, but the most obvious is Layla, being similar to Batman's villainess Poison Ivy. She's a redhead, she controls plants, she pretty much always wears green, she's very environment friendly, etc. -- except she's a good gal.
 * The Cheerleader: Penny.
 * Chekhov's Gun: More like.
 * Technically, it's an actual gun called.
 * Of course it's only used for one scene. You have a power weapon to that can render enemies powerless and 'stop using it'?
 * Chekhov's Gunman: Unless you're good at identifying C-list actors under heavy makeup hiding in the shadows, this one will get you. though maybe not so much now that he's.
 * Chew Out Fake Out: Will trashes the school cafeteria, gets into a fight, and uses his powers when he wasn't supposed to. His dad punishes him by telling him no X-Box for a week. Will protests that he doesn't have one...at which point his dad reveals he's so proud of him for having powers that he bought him one.
 * Clark Kenting: Parodied with Mr. and Mrs. Stronghold, who both wear thick glasses. While Mr. Stronghhold accessories with vaguely 50s-style clothing, Mrs. Stronghold just dresses like a normal mom. A normal, Hot Librarian Hot Mom.
 * Color Coded for Your Convenience: There's a prevalent theme in pairing up characters with complementary color themes.
 * Specifically, Will wears almost exclusively red, white and blue, plant girl Layla wears green,and human glow stick Zach wears neon and white. Justified, in that you would want to play up your powers to impress your classmates. Besides, if your parents are superheroes with similar powers, similar colors would be included in their costumes. Because they like those colours, you would be exposed to them throughout your childhood.
 * Cool Loser
 * Corrupt the Cutie: Will falls victim to this when he is sorted into the Heroes track and starts going out with Gwen.
 * Dating Catwoman: Warren was the result of superhero and supervillain parents who continue to battle each other.
 * Deadpan Snarker: Magenta. She even dryly sings the aforementioned "Rudolph the Red Noise Reindeer" line to tease Zack.
 * Derailing Love Interests: It seems to happen with Gwen late into the film
 * Designated Girl Fight: Layla vs Penny.
 * Diabolical Mastermind
 * Die or Fly
 * Does Not Know His Own Strength: The Commander.
 * Does This Remind You of Anything?: Will's revelation to his father that he doesn't have any powers and has been classified as a sidekick has distinct overtones of a coming-out scene.
 * The Driver: The school bus driver.
 * Elaborate Underground Base: The Secret Sanctum.
 * Elaborate University High
 * Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: Mr. Medulla
 * Enter Stage Window
 * Mr. Fanservice: Steven Strait, a.k.a. Warren Peace, as admitted here by the director.
 * Everyone Went to School Together
 * Evil Chancellor
 * Evil Plan: The Big Bad wants revenge but that's actuall a sidenote to their real agenda.
 * Evil Twin: Parodied, when Coach Boomer invites Medulla on a double-date with a female hero and her evil twin. When we see the date, it's with Coach looking on in disgust as Medulla enjoys the attention of both ladies.
 * False Dichotomy: Layla, asked to demonstrate her powers, claims that the hero/sidekick dichotomy is a false one, but is cut off by Boomer declaring her a sidekick.
 * Fastball Special: With Will playing the part of Colossus and Hothead playing the part of Wolverine.
 * Fat and Skinny: Speed, the fat guy, actually has Super Speed, but Lash, the skinny guy, has stretching powers.
 * Fire-Forged Friends:
 * First Girl Wins
 * Five-Bad Band
 * The Big Bad / Evil Genius: /Royal Pain.
 * The Dragon:
 * The Brute: Both Lash and Speed.
 * The Dark Chick: Stiches.
 * If one counts, the algorithm may be read as:
 * The Big Bad:.
 * The Dragon: Stitches.
 * The Evil Genius:
 * The Brute: Lash and Speed.
 * The Dark Chick: Penny.
 * Five-Man Band
 * The Hero: Will. He wears red, he's a Flying Brick and the protagonist.
 * The Lancer: Zack. His useless powers contrast Will's standard and easily used powers. Also, he's super confident despite them while Will was having an indentity crisis.
 * The Smart Guy: Ethan, Magenta. You gotta be smart to make use of their powers.
 * The Big Guy: Warren. (tallest, biggest, and physical-based (albeit elemental) powers).
 * The Chick: Not the only girl but the one who acts 'girly' and is a love interest for the hero.
 * Flying Bus
 * Fountain of Youth: The Pacifier.
 * Freeze Ray
 * Freudian Excuse:  because she was put in the Sidekicks class.
 * Gadgeteer Genius
 * Girl Posse: Penny herself is an entire Girl Posse.
 * Goth: Magenta, possibly a Perky Goth
 * Granola Girl: Layla.
 * Harmless Freezing: Several characters are frozen in various ways. It's treated lightly, but I can't think of any point where we've seen a frozen character unfrozen, and at one point we see two guys who were frozen quite a while earlier, still stuck there, entombed in ice... So Yeah. Possibly, horribly averted.
 * Easy to miss, but after Mr Medulla freezes a student in Mad Science class he does tell someone else to thaw him out. As with the two guys earlier, it's clearly harmless in context.
 * Heroes Want Redheads: Layla.
 * Jetstream also has reddish hair, though she's a hero herself (and already married to one!)
 * Hey, It's That Guy!: Snake has super powers!
 * So does Ash - or is it Sam Axe?
 * Is that Rod Farva/Landfill driving the bus?! I thought he got suspended because of an incident with a school bus!
 * Dean Pelton is Ramona Flowers' father/
 * Dave Nelson as Mr. Boy.
 * Hey, It's That Voice!: You may recognize Chester Timmerman as a certain sea sponge.
 * Pleakley is apparently a mad scientist, now.
 * And Patrick Warburton provides the voice of the Big Bad.
 * High School
 * Hollywood Nerd:.
 * Hooked Up Afterwards: Arguably Zach and Magenta, also Warren and Freeze Girl.
 * Hot Dad: The Commander.
 * Hot Mom: Jetstream.
 * Idiot Ball: A very light case, with the Commander.
 * If I Do Not Return: Will and Ron Wilson, Bus Driver, have this exchange:

""The kids who get bit by radioactive insects or fall into a vat of toxic waste, their powers usually show up the next day. Or - they die.""
 * I Just Want to Be Special: Ron Wilson, Bus Driver!
 * Will,.
 * I Love Nuclear Power: Referred to by the school nurse

""I forget. Did Tigerman get bit by a radioactive tiger, or was he bit by a regular tiger and then exposed to radiation?""
 * Also by Layla and Magenta


 * Incompletely Trained: Well, obviously. They're all still in Superhero School.
 * In with the In Crowd
 * Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Warren Peace
 * Large Ham Title: Less pronounced than most, Ron Wilson, Bus Driver!
 * Last-Minute Hookup: Will and Layla
 * Limited Wardrobe: Played with -- each student's clothing varies day to day but with the same colors and design, hinting toward their emerging Superhero personas.
 * Made of Iron: The instructors state that Will has no powers...after he has already taken several hospitalizations worth of punishment during tryouts with no injury. So being Made of Iron is pretty much expected.
 * Not to mention Warren gets thrown face first into a concrete overhang, falls, and hits a table hard enough to splinter it to pieces, is thrown through a wall into a pillar hard enough to nearly break it in half and then gets up, looking not the worse for wear, except for the debris all over him, and goes back for more. Surely, that boy is made of stronger stuff.
 * Given that Will inherited both his parents' powers and Warren also have two super-powered parents, it's possible that Warren has Made of Iron as his secondary superpower along with Playing with Fire.
 * He says "'Think I can't take a hit?" when he walks back in, so it's possible it's an actual power. More likely it's just a genre convention, though
 * Nurse Spex mentions getting kicked through a wall by Will's dad. Make of this what you will.
 * Mad Scientist: The school has a Mad Science class.
 * Manipulative Bastard:
 * Meaningful Name: Warren Peace, the son of a hero and a villain. It's like War and Peace, GET IT?
 * Coach Boomer. And his superhero name used to be Sonic Boom, to boot.
 * Lash and Speed.
 * Stronghold.
 * Principal POWERS.
 * Professor Medulla.
 * Meganekko: Kelly Preston looked damn good as Josie. As did.
 * Misfit Mobilization Moment: Happens when
 * Mood Lighting: During the fight sequences, and when.
 * Mundane Utility: Subverted when Warren offers to heat up Layla's now cold meal. She protests that they're not supposed to use their powers outside the school, but he explains he was just gonna put it in the microwave.
 * Played straight for most of the movie, as most of the kids' power uses fall under this heading. Layla spruces up houseplants (and picks fruit off of trees), Gwen helps Will in mad science class, Zack illuminates a classroom when the power goes out, Speed and Lash bully kids and dominate gym class, etc.
 * My Brain Is Big: Professor Medulla.
 * Never Be a Hero: The message drilled into Hero Support is "Just stand back and hand me the Batarang silver-tipped crossbow, kid. And don't block my camera angles while you do it."
 * Never Trust a Trailer: Not sure if it counts, but this troper has seen advertisements for this on Disney Channel (with their tradition of playing movies that are years old) that had convinced this troper (who had not seen the movie yet) that Layla, the plant girl, was the villain.
 * New Powers as the Plot Demands: Will gets tossed out a window....
 * This is actually Foreshadowed (albeit subtly) when he's had his First Kiss with Gwen:  It must be remembered that
 * No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup:
 * No, You Go First: Layla is going to confess to Will that she likes him, by asking him to the school dance. As she was going to talk about the school dance, Will figures it's the perfect time to mention that he's going with the most popular girl in school. So Layla ends up telling him that she's going as well. With his archenemy.
 * Not Wearing Tights / Civvie Spandex: Notably, only the adult heroes wear Spandex, Latex, or Leather, and then only when in action or on special occasions.
 * Old Superhero: Chronically unappreciated All-American Boy is the past-his-prime sidekick without the retired superhero. His assigned mentor, The Commander, is still operating at his peak, while All-American Boy is now teaching "hero support" classes in the titular hero school. Partially subverted as All-American Boy is all but decrepit, and is still able to help the heroes.
 * Operation: Jealousy: Layla started a fake relationship with Jerk with a Heart of Gold Warren Peace in order to annoy Will. Warren, who disliked Will for his own reasons, was happy to oblige.
 * This may have lead to a Relationship Writing Fumble when Will and Layla went through their Relationship Upgrade, as Warren and Layla did seem to have more attraction between them than the Official Couple. However, see Word of God.
 * Ordinary High School Student: Will, and most of the others, too.
 * Paper-Thin Disguise: The Commander is wearing glasses and Steve Stronghold is not, as Layla points out and his disguise is totally different from Superman.
 * Phosphor Essence: Subverted with Zach: he can glow in the dark... and that's about it.
 * Plot Tailored to the Party: In the climax, everyone's powers become useful and are used, even the lame powers like glowing.
 * Powered Armor
 * Power Nullifier: The Detention Room.
 * Puberty Superpower: In some cases.
 * Punny Name
 * Raise Him Right This Time:
 * Real Life Relative: The actors who play the Timmermans, Tom Kenny and Jill Talley, are husband and wife in real life.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Will is seriously squicked out when when he learns that
 * Punny Name
 * Raise Him Right This Time:
 * Real Life Relative: The actors who play the Timmermans, Tom Kenny and Jill Talley, are husband and wife in real life.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Will is seriously squicked out when when he learns that

""Of course I'm a girl, you idiot! How I lost to an fool like you I'll never know.""
 * Red Herring: Warren's dad. But not.
 * Rule of Funny: In the DVD Bonus Features, there's one question which Kevin McDonald (in his Medulla costume -- large head and all) answers "Yes, I agree", and then he consents for the editors to use him saying that for anything they like. Throughout the documentary, they randomly cut to him saying "Yes, I agree" for virtually anything. It's hilarious.
 * Samus Is a Girl

"Coach Boomer: SIIIIIIDE-KIIIIIICK!"
 * Sassy Black Woman: Penny.
 * School Saved My Life: Subverted for Will, played straight for everyone else.
 * Sealed with a Kiss
 * Secret Identity
 * Self-Duplication: Penny, the one woman cheerleading team.
 * She Fu: Penny does this while fighting Layla.
 * Shout-Out: Gwen Grayson's name may be a reference to prominent comic book characters Gwen Stacy and Dick Grayson. It is also a reference to the tendency for comic book characters to have alliterative names.
 * Sidekick Glass Ceiling
 * Sitting on the Roof: Will and Layla do this after the first day of school
 * Skirt Over Slacks: Layla has this fashion choice at some points in the movie
 * Soaperizing
 * Spandex, Latex, or Leather
 * Steven Ulysses Perhero: Basically the same as Punny Name above, but used so much that it deserves both entries.
 * Stock Super Powers
 * Animorphism: Magenta, but she can only turn into a guinea pig.
 * Elemental Powers
 * An Ice Person: A background character called Freeze Girl.
 * Green Thumb: Layla.
 * Light'Em Up: Zack, but he just glows.
 * Make Me Wanna Shout: Ashley "Ash" Williams Coach Boomer.

""Remember when we used to use real citizens?" "Yeah...""
 * Making a Splash: Ethan. Although he doesn't control water, but he can "melt" into some kind of liquid (and can't do anything while in it).
 * Playing with Fire: Warren.
 * Flight: Jetstream.
 * Flying Brick:
 * Me's a Crowd: Penny.
 * Rubber Man: Lash.
 * Super Speed: Speed.
 * Super Strength: The Commander.
 * Technopath: Gwen, the Trope Namer (though the power itself had existed previously)
 * X-Ray Vision: Nurse Spex.
 * Suicidal Gotcha
 * Super Family Team: The Stronghold family.
 * Super-Hero School
 * Superpowerful Genetics
 * Super Zeroes: Poor, poor Mr. Boy.
 * Technopath: Gwen Grayson
 * This Looks Like a Job For Aquaman: There are quite a few impressive coincidences that can only be solved by one of the random powers that the Sidekicks have.
 * Those Two Bad Guys: Lash and Speed.
 * Those Two Actors: You know who else was in The Tick?
 * Dave Foley and Kevin McDonald from The Kids in The Hall
 * Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Kurt Russell were also in Deathproof. Furthermore, Russell were also the main protagonist in the 1982 movie The Thing and Winstead his Distaff Counterpart in the 2011 prequel
 * Took a Level in Badass: Ron Wilson, arguably Ethan.
 * Trailers Always Spoil: The trailer makes it seem like the main conflict of the movie is the main character's lack of super powers. Then, approximately 10 seconds later, it shows him with super strength and flight — at which point the viewer realizes there's probably more to this movie that they're not telling him, and there goes the element of surprise.
 * Unlucky Childhood Friend /
 * Unwilling Suspension: This is done to the inflatable "Citizen" in the Save the Citizen game in Sky High, to simulate villains doing this to their captives. Will Stronghold mentions at the end how after they replaced the citizens with the actual villains no one saved the Citizen anymore, but we're to assume that's a joke because he said as much.


 * Villainous Harlequin:Stitches.
 * Wham! Line: A single word - "ME!" When the time comes to unmask the Big Bad, you will boggle at who says this.
 * What Could Have Been: See Word of God. Anyone know if Paul Hernandez has the rights back yet? Or if the Marvel buyout would mean a comic continuation...?
 * What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: Subverted -- even the "lame" powers turn out to be useful at least once, and several could be easily be used for espionage and/or utility purposes.
 * Deconstructed as well with the Big Bad's background and motivations.
 * White Void Room: The detention room.
 * Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?: Lampshaded during a study session with the hero supports; they're discussing radioactive zombies and what to do. One of the options is handing the hero his crossbow. Zack wonders why you don't just shoot the zombie yourself.
 * Where Are They Now? Epilogue: Shown in comic book form during the credits, the most awesome of which is
 * Why Couldn't You Be Different?: Steve really takes it hard when he learns Will has no powers and is Hero Support. Josie admits being disappointed as well, but is far more accepting and convinces Steve to be.
 * Wild Teen Party
 * Wire Dilemma
 * World of Ham: The character played by Bruce Campbell is actually one of the most normal characters in the film.
 * X Meets Y: High School meets Super Heroes.