Girl Genius/Tropes A-C

Tropes for Girl Genius, A to C:
"Zeuxippe: So much that they are trying to kill you over it!!
 * Absolute Cleavage
 * Makes a brief and remarkably subtle appearance in the last panel of this page.
 * Lady Vrin, too.
 * Absurdly Spacious Sewer: Sturmhalten.
 * Accentuate the Negative
 * The problem with kids these days.

Old Man Death: Always you gotta find problems!"

"Guard 1: Of course... the castle is over there. We're over here, and those flaming things are coming back...
 * And the younger guard:

Guard 2: Live in the moment, kid. Live in the moment."

"Lackwit! How dare you put yourself at risk!"
 * Accidental Truth
 * Theo's story at the beginning about the Dragon from Mars is a pure flight of imagination, but ! Also, in this story
 * Here the crowd calls the Baron's daughter, which according to Word of God is actually true -- if the sketch of her father which looks exactly like Klaus is to be believed.
 * Action Survivor: Moloch von Zinzer fits this trope to a giant neon capital T. He starts out as a mere soldier who steals a Chekhov's Gun from the main character in the first chapter, so you'd expect him to last about five minutes. But after his brother's death by said Chekhov's Gun, getting mistaken for a Spark, and eventually ending up imprisoned in a sentient castle built by a family of murderous sociopaths, he's still kicking thanks in part to large amounts of luck, Genre Savvy, and talent for dealing with Sparks.
 * Aerith and Bob
 * The list of Heterodyne names in the crypt includes Caligula, the Red Heterodyne, the Black Heterodyne(the "Black" is written in bold font), Mordred, Oxalof, and Bob. Also, the world is full of people with weird names like Gilgamesh, Moloch, and Theopholous living right alongside people with ordinary names like Bill, Barry, and Agatha; no one comments on it or seems to consider it odd.
 * In a side-story: Flopsy, Mopsy, and Nietzsche.
 * AI Is a Crapshoot: Castle Heterodyne. Well, actually, the guy who built it was an evil maniac, so it's probably working as designed. Even Agatha's own little 'bots have stopped listening to her. It seems Sparks can't build anything without it going haywire.
 * Airborne Aircraft Carrier: Castle Wulfenbach
 * Allohistorical Allusion: As you'd expect from a universe in which electronics moved quickly enough for Rembrandt to be a roboticist, Galvani's eponym comes not from discovering the effect of electrical impulses on muscles, but something involving molten zinc and Life Energy... which is often used metaphorically to mean electrical stimulation of muscles. Actually a Genius Bonus, as in real life metallurgy, Galvanizing refers to the process by which zinc (or another metal) is plated onto iron or steel to prevent rusting.
 * All Part of the Show: Several times:
 * All There in the Manual: The Secret Blueprints and the expanded chapter-by-chapter Cast pages.
 * All Webbed Up: What the nyar-spider does to its prey.
 * Almost Kiss
 * Between Bill Heterodyne and the storyteller's self-insert character in the Fan Fiction side-story. The interruption comes from the listeners objecting.
 * Argh! Damn you, Merlot! The page is even called "Smoochus Interruptus".
 * Between Agatha and Tarvek twice. Self interrupted by Tarvek here, and by both participants here.
 * Alternate History: Perhaps better called Parallel History, because the Sparks have been around for long enough that even geography has been changed by their influence, and yet the world and its history are not completely dissimilar to ours:
 * There were still Mongol Hordes on cue, German is still spoken as a European lingua-franca, R(embrandt) Van Rijn was still a famous genius and Casanova a famous skirt-chaser, the [Weather] King was still a towering historical figure...
 * There is still a powerful church(es) with not one, but seven popes, according to this page.
 * And there's "The Autonomous Library" built by Voltaire.
 * Alternate Universe Reed Richards Is Awesome: Together with the above Alternate History.
 * Amazing Technicolor Population: Jägermonsters, many other kinds of constructs, and anyone infected with Hogfarb's Resplendent Immolation or Vericus Pantiliax's Chromatic Death, although as the names of those ailments may suggest, the affected person didn't start out that way and won't be that way long before something bad happens. Fans are now calling the sequence ending here the Amazing Technicolor Dreamboat Sequence. Yowza! Or Eeyyooww-ZAP!
 * Amazon Brigade
 * Bangladesh DuPree's pirate crew seems to be entirely female.
 * Same goes for Heliolux Airship Fleet's flagship crew.
 * Let's not forget the geisterdamen (those spider-ladies) and Zeetha's mysterious tribe. Lots of Amazons.
 * And I Must Scream
 * The "squirrel".
 * The copy of Lucrezia stuck inside.
 * Anger Born of Worry: By Baron Wulfenbach, towards Gil.
 * And I Must Scream
 * The "squirrel".
 * The copy of Lucrezia stuck inside.
 * Anger Born of Worry: By Baron Wulfenbach, towards Gil.

"Othar: We're in Castle Heterodyne with exploding collars around our necks, caught between a fake Heterodyne and a real one (as well as assorted criminals, maniacs, and various monsters), and I suspect that even if we found any beer in here, it would be evil, or at least flat."
 * Anguished Declaration of Love
 * Gil gets one regarding Agatha. Not to her, admittedly, but he was still pretty anguished thanks to Zeetha hitting him.
 * Subtext, people. Subtext.
 * Anticlimax: The final "battle" of Revenge of the Weasel Queen.
 * Anti Villain: Klaus Wulfenbach. He may have used military might to bring Europa under his iron-fisted rule, but when you consider the alternative...
 * Arc Words: "I can work with that," "I hate this place" (and variations) and "You have no idea." Also "No, we're good" and "I was beginning to like him/her."
 * Arson Murder and Jaywalking:

"Franz here liked turning people into beetles. Zonia believed that orphan blood had medicinal properties. Krag put his feet on my bed."
 * Also involving Othar: "De dirigible iz in flames, everyboddyz dead an' I've lost my hat." To be fair, hats are a big deal to the Jägers whereas arson and murder are hobbies.
 * Another example here:

"Gil: This is not a trick! I did not get lucky! I am Gilgamesh Wulfenbach -- AND I AM IN CONTROL!"
 * A villain learns why you must never punch a lady, or wake her up too early in the morning.
 * Art Evolution
 * The earlier strips have bizarre anatomy issues and ugly gradient coloring. (Also after the first volume there was a great deal of uneven inking.) These problems eventually disappear.
 * Volume 1 was originally published in black-and-white. Volume 2 saw the introduction of color, in searing neon gradient fills. The coloring eventually settled down and volume 1 was eventually recolored in a somber desaturated palette. The result cleverly mirrored Agatha's psyche, as her perceptions are dulled in volume 1, overloaded in volume 2, and by volume 4 settle into a happy medium.
 * Ascended Fanon: In universe in this comic, about Von Pinn really being Lucrezia Mongfish.
 * Aside Glance: Plenty.
 * "At least she was color coordinated."
 * Klaus glances at the Fourth Wall in the first panel.
 * Tarvek's, in the last panel, is probably the funniest one to date.
 * Attack Hello: Maxim is just saying "hello".
 * Author Appeal
 * Phil Foglio is well-known (unabashedly so) for drawing his female characters with rather large "assets". But it's his wife (and co-author) who loves to get Agatha into the "lacy underthings." She's a big fan of Victorian-era undergarments.
 * Not to mention paper dolls.
 * There's also the matter of all the handsome shirtless men running around.
 * Phil admits the only reason the Jägers became recurring characters is because he really likes drawing them.
 * Author Avatar: The creators, Phil and Kaja, are both apparently natives of the story's world who, it would seem, will eventually meet, marry, publish a... controversial account of Agatha's deeds, and flee into our world with it to continue it safe from Agatha as a supposedly fictional comic.
 * Authority Equals Asskicking
 * Klaus (he clawed his way to being ruler of Europe atop God knows how many others and it shows) and his son (when thrust into authority, Gil's asskicking genes more than rise to the challenge)
 * The Jäger-Generals.
 * More generally -- in a semi-feudal world ruled over by extremely intelligent nutjobs, it's the one at the top of the castle you want to watch out for. They're in that spot for a reason.
 * Awesome Yet Practical: Violetta's ability to swap out objects or weapons (or people) held by others for useless decoys. That comes in handy unsurprisingly often.
 * Axe Crazy: Oh so many...
 * Most notable is probably Bangladesh DuPree, whose axecraziness is frequently Played for Laughs.
 * Jägers are highly destructive, if not malicious, but "no-longer-a-Jäger" Vole manages to be axe crazy even by their standards.
 * This is also pretty much a requirement for every Spark, especially when in their "madness place". The Heterodynes (with the exception of the Heterodyne Boys and Agatha) deserve special mention for being batshit insane [[Everyone Has Standards even by Spark standards]
 * Back From the Dead
 * "Seriously? The old 'bring her family back from the GRAVE gambit? Have you no SHAME?"
 * The simplest cure for some ailments.
 * Back to Back Badasses
 * Gil and Tarvek, on the cover of Volume 9.
 * Zeetha and Higgs during the bar fight.
 * Badass: Most of the main cast fit into several subtropes; many of the secondary cast fit at least one.
 * Badass Abnormal: Would most Spark characters who have "broken through" and Boris Dolokhov count?
 * Badass Boast: Lots and lots.
 * This is one of the more effective examples.
 * Gil can also keep his boasts very short:

"Tarvek: ... You came running in and saw someone you hate and fear trying to kill her -- of course you reacted.
 * Dr. Sun's threat towards DuPree.
 * Zola is a beautiful chemical killing machine.
 * Tarvek uses a very short (but effective) one here on Gil:

Gil: I do not fear you.

Tarvek: Really? You should."

"Gil: So this was the nursery?
 * Agatha, showing that she learned the "hamming the bunch of unruly minions into obedience" part of her family business.
 * Badass Bookworm: Most of the Spark characters.
 * Badass Grandpa
 * Old Man Death from the "Maxim Buys a Hat" side-story. He rode with the Jägermonsters in his youth, has never lost a fight, and can still keep up with them to this day -- impressive for a (presumably) baseline human. As a result, his hat has become an object coveted by Jägers striving to prove themselves, but they only get three tries. He also counts as a Cool Old Guy and Badass Normal.
 * The former Seneschal Carson von Mekkhan has been around during the time of Agatha's grandparents. Trust him, you are NOT the weirdest thing he has seen.
 * Dr. Sun Jen-dijeh. He's able to intimidate Bangladesh DuPree, and as for Klaus... Klaus has every reason to fear and respect Dr. Sun. Dr. Sun also expresses complete confidence that he can give Gil a thrashing.
 * Badass Labcoat: Here.
 * Badass Longcoat: Baron Klaus Wulfenbach has them as regular wear. Gilgamesh Wulfenbach has worn them too. And Agatha, of course. Krosp got his from the circus.
 * Badass Normal: Many of the non-Spark supporting characters.
 * Axel Higgs, fullstop. Quiet, unassuming, half-asleep, and nigh-invincible.
 * Zeetha. Versus a pirate stronghold (She won.) Versus a demon-horse-thing-monster. (She didn't win, but it cheated by growing a new mouth and tentacles after she cut its head off.)
 * Bangladesh DuPree, and Violetta. Moloch von Zinzer seems to be heading towards this, somewhat unwillingly.
 * Many people might have thought Wooster was on the low end of the Badass Normal spectrum. Then this happened. Now he's basically James Bond in a steampunk/mad science setting. He also gave Bangladesh DuPree an Offhand Backhand.
 * Sanaa is pretty badass when she needs to be.
 * Bad Boss: Castle Heterodyne's subsystems are stupid, murderous, and confused when it comes to repairs.
 * Bald of Evil: Veilchen
 * Bar Brawl: Apparently there's one every evening in Mamma Gkika's. Except on Thursdays; that's poetry slam night.
 * Bash Brothers: Da Boyz and the Jägergenerals. Klaus and the generals were having fun at some points of the wasp attack. The Heterodyne Boys were a more literal example.
 * Battle Butler: Ardsley Wooster and Boris Dolokhov, though, technically speaking, neither is an actual butler. Wooster is a valet or gentleman's gentleman; Dolokhov is more of an aide-de-camp, librarian, accountant, and general manager.
 * Battle Couple: To an extent, Agatha and Gil during the wasp outbreak on Castle Wulfenbach. Now that she, Gil, and Tarvek are battling with and through Castle Heterodyne, they're a Battle Threesome.
 * Battle Cry
 * "Ve hunt!"
 * "SHOWTIME!"
 * Bear Hug: Mama Gkika gives Agatha one when they first meet.
 * Behind the Black
 * Gil didn't notice Agatha launching herself at him while he was yelling at Tarvek?
 * Lampshaded here, where Jenka points out that they should have heard the army of giant clanks (helpfully called War Stompers too) marching up to their tower.
 * Betty and Veronica: Gil & Tarvek, to Agatha.
 * Beware the Nice Ones
 * Agatha. She really is a very nice, pleasant, easy-going girl. Until she go to The Madness Place or you hurt or threaten one of her friends. Then the Death Ray comes out.
 * Gilgamesh is usually rather pleasant and doesn't scream and beat people to get his way. Piss him off. Go on.
 * Tarvek is the blue to Gil's red. He's rather charming and civil by default. When he gets mad, up and surrenders. He doesn't let it end there. Oh, no.
 * Big Book of War: Agatha brains with one of these, entitled "Using Found Objects as Weapons." The sound effect when she beans them is "TOME!"
 * Bifauxnen: Grantz, Baron Wulfenbach's monster hunter. Even Gil apparently gets this one wrong, as he refers to Grantz as a "he" early on.
 * Big Damn Heroes
 * Gil, once again demonstrating why you shouldn't shoot him. You'll just make him mad.
 * Zeetha and her carefully placed clothing swing in to save the day.
 * When a humanoid killing machine is lying on the floor Not Quite Dead and you're caught up in your evil plans to enslave several main characters, frankly what do you expect?
 * Big Damn Kiss: As of August 17, 2011, it has happened. And the Fandom Rejoiced. So very big, it had to be continued on the next page.
 * BFG
 * "Clenk Gon".
 * Agatha's Death Rays. Played with, when she made a "very small" death ray. That she used to blow a hole out of the castle, taking out a chunk of a nearby mountain. And a hole from fairly high in the castle, to the basement. What a magnificent death ray!
 * Big Labyrinthine Building: Castle Heterodyne, and the Wulfenbach airship.
 * Big No: Several times.
 * Right after Agatha breaks Merlot's mind with the enormity of his mistakes.
 * Here, too.
 * And here.
 * And here!
 * Big Screwed Up Family:
 * House Sturmvoraus, aka "a bunch of evil-minded, cynical, backstabbing old fools". Occasional kinship feelings... such as they are... get expressed in hilariously twisted ways.
 * The Old Heterodynes, as seen here, for instance.

Tarvek: It explains ... so much..."

A lot of Girl Genius is made up of brilliant little ideas that Foglio didn't use in his pornographic work. The Jägers' speech pattern and dental work? From XX Xenophile: "A Beautiful Tail" and "My Favorite Oitling". Zeetha's jewelry, with the little faces that mimic whatever her current facial expression is? From XX Xenophile: "Blue Opal". "Zeetha: (a green-haired Amazon) Hey, Skifander's patron Goddess is Ashtara, she who controls, among other things, fertility. Our holy-days are fun! (Cha cha cha!)"
 * Not that armored toys weren't necessary sometimes.
 * The Mongfishes.
 * Bilingual Bonus
 * Many names of people, races, places, etc., make more sense if one knows a little German; for instance, "Jägermonster" can be interpreted as "hunting monster".
 * "Si vales valeo" is Latin for "If you are well, I am well", a phrase used in ancient Roman times to start writing a letter like "Dear Mister Smith".
 * Black and Gray Morality: Agatha and Klaus are both sympathetically gray and fighting for perfectly reasonable reasons. There are several villains that are clearly black, and both of them want those destroyed.
 * Bleached Underpants: A variant, in that prior to Girl Genius, Phil Foglio was the author and artist of the XX Xenophile series of pornographic comics, and unlike many artists with a similar background makes no attempt to hide it. However, before XX Xenophile, he was already well known for What's New With Phil and Dixie for Dragon Magazine, and Buck Godot Zap Gun for Hire, and did book covers and illustrations (most memorably, for Robert Asprin's Myth Adventures series), as well as the classic Con Reports and a trio of excellent, funny updates of old '60s humor comics for DC Comics at about the same time as XX Xenophile.
 * Blessed Are the Cheesemakers: Cheese appears often, and sometimes seems to be employed as a symbol of romance. And a barfight projectile. Sometimes both at the same time. See Zeetha and Higgs. Lars was a cheesemaker's apprentice before he joined the Circus.
 * Blessed With Suck
 * The Spark itself. If you have it, you can warp the laws of physics with the contents of the average Store Cupboard. Bad part? You go insane to varying degrees whenever you do it. The natural result of that is that most Sparks, and Agatha in particular, have to deal with being shunned, used, or attacked by most everyone they meet. And that's if they don't get killed by one of their own creations.
 * Agatha before her breakthrough, when she wore the locket to suppress her Spark. It undoubtedly saved her life, but it also made her completely incompetent and destroyed her self-esteem.
 * Bling of War: Most troops are trying to look cool -- some, too hard. Jägers tend to dress in less unified fancy clothes, with their own peculiar taste. Of "Da Boyz", Maxim wears the most fashionable set -- he's an ex-cavalry officer, after all.
 * Blondes Are Evil: Played straight with Lucrezia and Zola; played with by Von Pinn. Averted with Agatha (who's a strawberry blonde, therefore crossing into Heroes Want Redheads).
 * Blue Blood
 * Boisterous Bruiser: Othar, as well as the Jägers.
 * Bottled Heroic Resolve
 * "Moveit #6"
 * Jäger battle-draught. Slightly Better than Death!
 * "Moveit #11" has also made an appearance. According to Violetta, using Moveit #11 would kill most people.
 * Bow Chicka Wow Wow:

"Snaug: ... spiky trap-doors... torture chambers... man-eating bats... impertinent mechanical squid...
 * Brain Bleach: Remember, the strip is full of Mad Scientists.

Mittelmind: Oh, there is some psychological damage, but I always wipe her memory for her birthday.

Snaug: Happy birthday to meeeeeee..."

""It could be a really evil town...""
 * Braggart Boss: Minus the fact people of the street think he is a hero, Othar Tryggvassen (Gentleman Adventurer!) fits the mold nicely.
 * Breather Episode: Side stories every once in a while.
 * "Maxim Buys a Hat!"
 * Brick Joke
 * A long time after Agatha is convinced that her battle merry-go-round is too dangerous to construct, a soldier who failed to capture her is diagnosed with a concussion for explaining that her injuries were sustained while destroying a merry-go-round.

"Evil stepmother: Hy knew hit!"
 * In the Cinderella special, the "evil step-mother" comments that Agatha could win the kingdom with a dead rat and a houseplant. At the end, she bribes the king, a cat, with a dead rat and potted catnip.

"Agatha: I got so mad at you, and then, within the hour, I threw him out an airship too!
 * Gil throws Othar out of an airship, and when Agatha gets mad, he assures her that once she gets to know Othar, she'll do the same. An hour later, she does, and mentions, "I owe Gil an apology." About ten chapters later, she gives it to him.

Gil: And you felt bad for throwing--

Agatha: I felt bad for yelling at you!"

"Moloch: Uh... hey, check it out.
 * "But why are there mechanical squid in the cistern?" Well, two years and two volumes earlier...
 * Steam-powered feet? Steam-powered feet!
 * Broken Angel: Otilia
 * Brother Sister Team: Othar and . Othar isn't overjoyed about it.
 * Brown Note: Ringing the Doom Bell has this kind of effect. This bit implies that the Doom Bell actually uses doom itself as a means of incapacitating people, by hammering them with the concept of existential despair.
 * Bullying a Dragon: Vole seems a bit prone to it. And there are two examples so far. And he doesn't seem to learn, either.
 * But for Me It Was Tuesday: Gil has no idea which particular atrocity the various assorted assassins are trying to off his father over.
 * Butt Monkey
 * Moloch Von Zinzer
 * Tarvek in the Paris flashbacks
 * Caffeine Bullet Time: Agatha has it. It is implied to be a Heterodyne thing.
 * Calling Your Attacks: Done by under the influence of a massive overdose of battle stimulants, resulting in a cry of "Chophead Tinybits!"
 * Came Back Wrong: Subverted. Apparently being brought Back From the Dead causes memory loss (as we have been repeatedly told) and frequently drives the recipient Ax Crazy. However, when it happens to, all it takes to bring him out of a homicidal rage is the following:


 * Good Heavens."

"Othar Tryggvassen: What, tyrant? Does your empire give you no pleasure?
 * Can't Live Without You: When Gil supports both when they get infected by Hogfarb's Immolation.
 * Cartwright Curse: Being a suitor to Agatha is hazardous to your health.
 * Catch Phrase
 * Agatha: "You'll like him."
 * Tarvek: "I can't [really] complain."
 * Othar Tryggvassen (Gentleman Adventurer!): "Foul!"
 * Cat Fight: Gender-flipped (but still played for Mr. Fanservice in-comic) here. Complete with hair-pulling!
 * The Chains of Commanding:

Klaus Wulfenbach: No. It gives me no pleasure. Politics always annoyed me. Now I do it every day. I haven't seen my wife in years. My old friends are gone. I haven't traveled or explored. At least with the Heterodynes we had the adventures. The occasional fight. Now it's send in the armies, then the bureaucrats with mops. It's become an old formula."

"Castle Hetrodyne: All the Wulfenbach sparks are known for their oversized machinery, you know. I mean, just look at castle Wulfenbach. What exactly are we trying to say, here?"
 * Chandlers Law
 * Character Development
 * Character Name and The Noun Phrase: The titles of the volumes, and also used in-story as the titles of Heterodyne Boys stories.
 * Charm Person: "Ah, it is part of the power of the Gifted. Those around them wish to aid them. To serve them. Even when we know them to be monsters."
 * Chaste Hero: Barry Heterodyne, quite possibly. Barry always ends up with "the High Priestess" in the stories and plays, "The High Priestess" being the catch-all term for whatever lost priestess, Distressed Damsel, or mad scientist's beautiful but misguided assistant (other than Lucrezia) happened to figure in any given Heterodyne play (basically, an in-world trope). There is no indication Barry had a love life in Real Life, though. Also Agatha, thus far.
 * Chef of Iron: Old Man Death
 * Chekhov's Boomerang: Gil's invisibility device mentioned offhand by DuMedd quite a bit earlier. And seen in action even earlier, although at the time Gil didn't realize what it was and used it as a simple power source.
 * Chekhov's Clank: The creature who climbs out of the pit in this comic was first seen, looking much better for wear, in the back of.
 * Chekhov's Gun: Bunches of them, often coming back several 'books later.
 * Gilgamesh's lightning generator which was used again almost four years later.
 * The Torchmen. Seen before activation here, although we didn't know what they did at the time.
 * Even PIES end up as Chekhov's Guns in this comic. Possibly also qualifies as a Brick Joke.
 * Then there's the poison pellet Gilgamesh gave Von Zinzer to use as a suicide pill if he chose. While Von Zinzer has shown up again (alive), the poison hasn't shown up again... yet.
 * Agatha's locket. It is introduced at the very beginning, then disappears from the story within the first few chapters. Then its importance is revealed -- and then it comes back a second time, important in a brand new way.
 * Chekhov's Skill: Agatha's training under Zeetha. Mind you, it's not like it was ever a secret it would be useful.
 * Cheshire Cat Grin
 * Agatha frequently sports these, as do many other Sparks when in The Madness Place, sometimes reaching the level of Slasher Smile.
 * The Jägerkin sport those every time they're about to fight, so it also overlaps with the Slasher Smile.
 * Chewing the Scenery: It's bursting at the seams with mad scientists who are compelled, by their very nature, to go off on emphatic rants on how the fools did not understand! This section is called "Gil Chews the Scenery." Which he does.
 * Chew Toy: Moloch von Zinzer. He didn't start out that way, and it's not physical abuse. He was one of the soldiers who stole the Orphan's Plot Trinket. The Karmic Chess Master moved him next to Agatha. He tried to play rough. Now his nerves are the butt of every joke the fates can manage. Examples: The tables are turned, his GenreSavvy fails, the rain of fear begins, the Castle has some fun, the Castle gets serious, GenreSavvy does no good at all, GenreSavvy says it all, Nightmare rising, Especially when it works as planned, Fool for love, and many, many more.
 * Chiaroscuro
 * Chirping Crickets: During the Hugo acceptance speech.
 * Circling Birdies
 * Gil sees circling zeppelins after getting socked in the head by the aptly-named Punch.
 * Agatha's little Clanks get circling gears.
 * Maxim, on the other hand, gets circling hats.
 * City of Weirdos: Mechanicsburg. Lampshaded when one of the inhabited asked if growing up there made them weird.
 * Cleavage Window: Ferretina's default. It's been noted. Quite happily. Underboobs included.
 * Clothing Damage: If you wear clothes and anything action-y happens, hope for the best. The fans certainly do.
 * Close Knit Community: Mechanicsburg
 * Compensating for Something
 * Der Kestle about the Wulfenbach:

"Rudolf Selnikov: The depressing thing? Twisted and ruthless as you people are, throwing in with you is a step up."
 * The Heterodynes never built anything small either.
 * Continuity Nod: Hundreds, and ranging from extremely obvious to incredibly subtle.
 * While having tea with the Jägergenerals, mention is made of "gingerbread trilobites from Mechanicsburg", and of the fact that Castle Heterodyne is mad, dying, and useless. Guess what Zeetha's eating as she stumbles across Gil putting his plan in motion in order to enter the mad useless castle, six years later.
 * Old Man Death has a mini-flashback of people who rode with the Jägers -- like the Seneschal. Still not sure if he's in there, though.
 * Cool Airship
 * Castle Wulfenbach, of course.
 * Zola's ship would qualify, but as this handy comic showing them both demonstrates, the Baron's ship is tough competition.
 * Cool and Unusual Punishment: Mamma Gkika wants you to remember that it's bad to hit women or to wake her up too early in the morning.
 * Convection Schmonvection: Averted beautifully here. Anevka pumping out enough electricity in her arm to  releases enough waste heat to send her entire outfit and wig bursting into flames.
 * Crapsack World: The world is dominated by people and things who'd fit right in with Warhammer 40000 Orks, and the only thing keeping them mostly in check is anti-villain dictator Klaus, who is quite willing to level cities in order to achieve such. His territory is described as containing a lot of empty space despite being central Europe, is littered with forgotten but highly-lethal Spark inventions, and walled-in cities are the closest one comes to safe. The Other systematically leveled much of Europe not long before that, . Outside Europe, things aren't much better, with northern nations having a tax on fire. The greatest folk heroes are missing, and the second greatest folk hero is a serial killer.

"Krosp: This thing just wants to catch someone, right?"
 * Alternatively, A World Half Full. Europa has mostly recovered from a devastating genocidal war that employed mad science bioweapons just decades ago, and is ruled by an extremely intelligent benevolent dictator who keeps the peace and lets most people get on with their lives. There are systems in place to contain the mad monstrosities that arise, and the people Othar has killed (usually) had it coming.
 * Crazy Enough to Work: You get the impression this happens a lot.
 * Perhaps the most hilarious one would be curing of a terrifying disease by  Even more hilarious given the way Agatha said the trope name. "This has a small, but fascinating, chance of actually working! Let's do it!"
 * Crazy Prepared:, as acknowledged even by The Other, who took care... only to discover she's been outmaneuvered once more.
 * Crouching Moron Hidden Badass
 * Da Boyz. Oggie is the least bright of the three, but don't let that fool you.
 * Zola looks like a vapid fool, but then she drops the "vapid fool" mask and soundly beats Zeetha and Violetta, and matches Higgs -- three of the seven most capable physical fighters in the main cast. (The other four are Da Boyz -- Oggie, Dimo and Maxim; and VonPinn, who's a construct.) Though her physical abilities were boosted by a Deadly Upgrade, she did have to steal the upgrade -- from a Smoke Knight -- requiring a different kind of badassery.)
 * Cry Cute: Dupree of all people gets a moment here.
 * Cryptic Background Reference: All over the place, as Chekhov's Guns, but Sanaa's backstory is one of the few that is likely never going to be explained further.
 * Cultured Badass: Klaus and Gil at times, but definitely Tarvek. The Jägergenerals can be this when they're not beating the hell out of someone. Wooster's Badass Normal status puts him here as well. Dolokhov can make tea or beat people up with equal effectiveness.
 * Curb Stomp Battle
 * The first time we see the Lapinemoths, them against Agatha, Zeetha, and Othar (GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER) was this.
 * Two in rapid succession. drinks Moveit#11 and one-shots Zeetha, but despite her incredible fighting ability, Higgs is beating her down so badly the panels can't keep up with his attacks.
 * Cut the Juice (Type 2): "He's going to FRY-- AND NO POWER ON EARTH CAN STOP IT!"
 * Cutting the Knot: Krosp's method of dealing with an out-of-control clank


 * Cyanide Pill: One is offered to Moloch von Zinzer, but he obviously has yet to use it.
 * Cyber Cyclops: Most little Clanks. Subverted, though, as it doesn't stop them from being more cute than sinister. Well, usually; except here. Red Eyes Take Warning, much?