The Troop

Remember the days of Nickelodeon that featured ordinary kids getting thrust into wild and wacky supernatural situations with a healthy dose of comedy and danger? No? Well, apparently Nick decided that the brats of today needed a refresher course, hence the sci-fi/comedy show The Troop's birth.

The show focuses on three high schoolers that suddenly are thrust into a secret society, courtesy of their school counselor, that protects humankind from all the supernatural scourges in existence that we think aren't real, but most assuredly are. The main characters consist of:


 * Jake - a massive comic book/superhero buff who is more than enthused that he has been enlisted into the world of...world saving.
 * Felix - The resident brains of the group. Somewhat awkward in regards to social norms, he wants to reveal to anyone and everyone what the group does in order to boost his status, but due to a previously taken oath, reluctantly refrains.
 * Hayley - The school's most popular beauty queen, good at everything and anything, but discovers her monster-battling abilites are less than subpar. Usually ends up being the voice of reason when she's not concerned about her popularity.
 * Kirby Cadworth-Bankroft III - A rich kid who used to be part of the Tulsa Troop and transfers in after Felix leaves to go to Troop International.
 * Mr. Stockley - The current school administrator/counselor who enlists the kids into the world of The Troop. Loves his job a little TOO much, which tends to disturb the trio at times.

This show provides examples of:
"Claudia: Let's go someplace else and get to know each other."
 * And Starring - the credit for John Marshall Jones, who plays Mr. Stockley.
 * Adults Are Useless - Literally, once you hit 18, you lose your courage and cannot fight monsters.
 * Alpha Bitch - Somewhat averted in that Hayley is the school's number one popular chick and can be shallow, yet she can take the reins of the team if need be due to the realization that it's no longer always about her, thus making her Spoiled Sweet.
 * Ambiguously Gay - Pick one? Mostly Felix. (See also Camp Straight)
 * Annoying Younger Sibling - Phoebe
 * Badass Adorable - Jake
 * Big Eater - Cadence. In each episode she has be featured in (so far, not many), there is at least one scene where she eats (off screen) quiet a large amount of food for someone her age. In the first episode she was in she eats 3 whole pizzas by herself.
 * This is probably due to the fact that
 * Butt Monkey - Felix, Felix, Felix.
 * Cain and Abel -
 * Chain of People - the Troop forms one to save Jake's little sister Phoebe from being pulled into another dimension in "Itty Bitty Baby Dragon".
 * Clothing Damage - in "Lost in Translation" and "Itty Bitty Baby Dragon"
 * Cloudcuckoolander - Augustus's new sidekick Fredo.
 * Dawson Casting- Nick Purcell (Jake) started the show at age 19 which isn't too bad, and David Del Rio (Felix) at 23...only Gage Golighty is appropriately aged for a high school show.
 * Disguised in Drag - Jake and Felix in "Pajama Game... of Death"
 * Family Unfriendly Death - A few people on this show have been killed and eaten by monsters. One episode's intro featured a guy getting dissolved in a gelatinous cube monster.
 * Freaky Friday Flip - Jake and Hayley in "Taming of the Cube"
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar - In the beginning of "Lost In Translation", the trio tries to capture a Noctem, but fail. When it sprays them with acid like goo, their clothes melt and dissolve, making all three naked. When a naked Jake tries to turn around to see a naked Hayley, she then holds up her Troop lazer gun and says, "Any of you turn around, and you'll be evaporated". Very eye popping stuff for a kids show.
 * The censors must've been asleep when the episode that featured Jake being bitten by a snark went through. A guy gets pregnant with a baby monster? Nick's done that before. But, Mr. Stockley's line "You should've thought of that before you got snarked up"? Subtle as a flying mallet.
 * The ep where Haley and Jake switch bodies


 * Not that bad in itself but considering they're all at that age
 * Half Human Hybrid -
 * Harmless Villain - A monster called a Danker is locked up in the Halloween Special. According to the Troop monster guide, it has a razor sharp tongue, but there's nothing to suggest that it's ever used it or that represents a danger to society. When, the Danker stays it's cell and keeps Jake company. If anything it seems more annoying than threatening.
 * Hate Plague - Inverted in one episode, where insects called The Swarm feed on people's angst and anger, causing everybody to like each other.
 * Hero Worshipper - Jake to Lance in "Tentacle Face"; Hayley (and to a lesser extent, Felix) to Bianca Stonehouse in "The Substitute"; Keiko and Yuki to Felix in "Lost in Translation". Also, Kirby once wore a shirt with Felix's face and the inscription (What Would Felix Do?)
 * Hey Its That Guy - Mr. Stockley is T.J.'s dad.
 * And Lance is Josh Trager.
 * Oh, and we can't forget that the Eris Fairies were Tori and Trina Vega.
 * Cadence used to be Geena Fabiano.
 * Kirby was Ryan.
 * Killer Rabbit- Plenty in this show, including one that actually looks like a rabbit.
 * Laser Guided Amnesia - Snarking.
 * Masquerade - Maintained by snarking anyone else who finds out about the monsters.
 * Mexican Standoff - When the three of them can't figure out which one is possessed by the monster.
 * Mister Seahorse - Jake in "Snarked Up"
 * Mood Motif - The twinkling glockenspiel of "wow he's suitable for the Troop!"
 * Noodle Incident - When Troop International showed up to arrest Cadence, Kirby commented all he knew about International Law was about having parties at boats and importing white tigers. While Kirby being a rich kid might explain him being no stranger to those parties and laws that affect them, one must wonder how he'd know about the tiger part.
 * Ordinary High School Student - Jake
 * Our Vampires Are Different - Vampsters, vampires with hamster attributes
 * Poor Communication Kills -
 * Power Trio - Jake, Felix, and Hayley
 * Proud to Be A Geek - Felix
 * Put On a Bus - Felix
 * Retool: Between the first and second seasons to create a more comic-book feel complete with a new theme song.
 * Ship Tease - Jake and Hayley
 * Somebody Doesn't Love Raymond: Hayley had an episode devoted to trying to win over a girl who absolutely refused to like her. In one scene, the girl starts to apologize to Hayley for being rude, but it goes downhill and the girl decides she hates her again. Hayley eventually learns that it's not important if everyone likes her.
 * Taken for Granite - In the pilot, they had to face a basilisk.
 * That Poor Cat - Hayley's cat in "The Pajama Party... of Death". The poor thing gets DEVOURED, CHEWED, and SWALLOWED by the cheerleader possessed with the Vespinox. Serious getting crap past the radar, indeed.
 * Three Amigos
 * Troperiffic - It's supposed to be reminiscent of old Nickelodeon Sci-Fi shows.
 * Two Guys and A Girl