The Owl House

""Welcome to the Owl House, where I hide away from the pressures of modern life... also the cops... also ex-boyfriends.""

- Eda

The Owl House is an animated fantasy/horror comedy series produced by Disney Television Animation and created by Dana Terrace, known as the director of DuckTales (2017) and storyboard revisionist for Gravity Falls. It is often regarded as a Spiritual Successor to the latter show. The show premiered on January 10, 2020.

14-year-old Luz Noceda (Sarah Nicole Robles), lives in an average house in an average town and goes to an average school, where she’s doing badly. Not that she’s disobedient or doesn’t want to learn, oh no - she loves to read, especially her favorite series of books, The Good Witch Azura. Problem is, Luz is a little too “creative” in her approach to learning: she auditions as the lead role in the school's production of Romeo and Juliet, using fake intestines for Juliet's death scene, and her art project includes live spiders. Finally, after using live snakes as a visual aid for a book report, the principal decides her overactive imagination has become too disruptive, and Luz is sentenced to a summer at the Reality Check "reform camp".

But no sooner does her mother drop her off at the bus stop than a strange owl steal one of her books, causing Luz to chase it through a mystic portal and into a fantasy world where all of Luz's dreams are given life.

Or so it seems… The Boiling Isles may not be quite what she expected of a fantasy world.

She quickly meets the rebellious outlaw witch Eda (Wendie Malick), and her tiny and adorable demon roommate King (Alex Hirsch). Despite lacking any talent in actual magic whatsoever, Luz eagerly assumes the role of a witch’s apprentice, exploring the secrets - and braving the dire hazards - of this new world, making friends and trying, with difficulty, to find out where she belongs!

You can watch the first episode here. The show was renewed for a second season ahead of the series premiere, which debuted on July 11th, 2020. The second season debuted on June 12th, 2022 (the new intro seen here) with news that there will also be a third season, made up of three 45-minute specials. The first of those specials, "Thanks to Them", released on October 15th, 2022, and can be watched on Disney's YouTube channel. The other two is scheduled for a release in 2023.

The Owl House is a Spoilered Rotten series, so be warned: Spoilers may be unmarked.

Luz: Maybe if we had time for twenty more adventures, but we don't."
 * Action Girl: Pretty much every female character - Eda, Luz, Lilith, Willow, Amity, Camila, Boscha, Viney, Bria, the list goes on. Even Kikimora gets some Dark Action Girl moments when she's put in a real leadership position.
 * Action Mom: Eda is a surrogate one (which she inherited from her own mom, Gwendolyn),
 * Adorable Evil Minion: Kikimora, Emperor Belos' messenger and herald. Don't you just want to give her a big hug? Then you should probably do that before season two when she starts flying off the handle.
 * Adorkable:
 * Luz is cute as a button and an eccentric little goofball with a fascination for all things creepy and weird. Unfortunately for her, her teachers weren't amused by her antics and she was nearly forced to attend a reform camp until she stumbled upon the door to the Boiling Isles.
 * Willow, Gus, and occasionally Amity, which gets less occasional with each season.
 * Hunter becomes this around the other Hexside witches. He has a hard time keeping his sentences straight, especially around Willow, and he constantly struggles with the fact that he has to only seem nice in public. Granted, as he tells Luz,.
 * Lilith turns out to be a giant raging nerd once she's out of the Emperor's Coven. She's practically a Boiling Isles historian with a special interest in classical architecture, ancient puzzles, and other topics most people would consider dry, she quickly befriends Hooty and gives him the nickname "Hootcifer", and she throws a pity party with King over their personal parental issues.
 * Vee is this, mostly when in human form.
 * Adult Fear:
 * The reason why Dr. Noceda prepared to send Luz to Reality Check Camp; Principal Hal kept calling her about her daughter's latest pranks, some of which are expulsion-worthy like using fireworks for her book report. An adult viewer can see that Camilla is at the end of her rope trying to keep her daughter from being suspended or ostracized. "Thanks to Them" goes into this further:.
 * In season one, Luz was able to keep correspondence with her mother and maintain a facade of still being at summer school. However, as of the end of season one, that is no longer possible; in the season two opener Luz is even seen recording messages for her mother to ensure her she is safe, possibly hoping she can find some way to send them. For now, one can only imagine what her mother is going through.
 * The 4th episode of Season 2 reveals that  Dr. Noceda starts crying when Luz admits she chose to.
 * Luz gets a reminder on her phone about an important anniversary, causing her to freak out with guilt. She tells Eda and King that she needs a distraction, and her refusal to be alone with her thoughts gets her and Amity in trouble for an episode. When Amity finally corners her for answers, Luz reveals.
 * In "Edge of the World", when they're alone, Eda breaks down in front of She says that she wants to keep Luz and King safe, but they've all gotten in over their heads with  now gunning for them all. Belos was tolerating Eda because she was harmless, but with Luz.
 * Adults Are Useless: . Season three follows up on showing that.
 * An Aesop: Many:
 * Be yourself, reject conformity.
 * Nobody is truly The Chosen One and everyone's destiny is their own to fulfill.
 * Hiding your true feelings for someone out of fear of rejection only makes rejection more likely, but if you admit the truth, you'll be a lot happier for it.
 * Accept your flaws instead of running away from them. They'll always be a part of you, so you might as well make peace with them.
 * Using a different method to get the same result isn't a bad thing and it doesn't make you weaker or less capable than everyone else.
 * Don't feel pressured to cure an ailment if managing the symptoms works just fine for your needs.
 * Affably Evil:
 * The Golden Guard seems pretty approachable and cordial, despite being more than willing to use extortion and blackmail to get a job done.
 * Alador Blight is more direct and calm than his irritable, overbearing wife.
 * Affectionate Nickname: Hold tight, it's a long list:
 * Eda: Eda the Owl Lady (said in reverence) by Luz, "witchlet" by her mom.
 * Lilith: Lily by Eda, Libby and Aunt Lilith by Luz, Lulu by Hooty (she later returns the sentiment to Hooty by calling him Hootsifer), and "sweet flea" by her mom.
 * Amity: "batata"/"sweet potato" by Luz, Mittens by her parents and siblings.
 * Luz: "mija" (a contraction of mi hija, meaning "my daughter") by her mom.
 * King: widdle guy, widdle baby boo, cutie-pie, beach peach, boo-boo buddy... you get the idea.
 * Flapjack: "Flap" and "Flaps" by Hunter.
 * Hooty: Hootisfer by Lilith, referencing Calcifer from Howl's Moving Castle.
 * Alas, Poor Villain: In King's Tide,.
 * Alpha Bitch: Amity; she starts out as a typical one, but eventually evolves into Lovable Alpha Bitch.
 * However, Boscha remains both this Trope and a female version of a Jerk Jock; Skara and the rest of Amity's Girl Posse eventually softens, but Boscha seems firmly cemented as such. Despite being part of the Posse, Amity isn't all-too fond of them.
 * Bria, who first appears in the season 2 episode "Through the Looking Glass Ruins" a Glandus High student who may be even worse than Boscha, being a Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon type and Poisonous Friend to the other Glandus students who appear in the episode. It is implied in the episode that Glandus is far more competitive than Hexside, even among their own students. The fact that she sees nothing wrong with Grave Robbing to enhance her own powers puts nudges her to the dark side of the morality scale for Alpha Bitches.
 * All Abusers Are Male: Subverted in season 2 between.
 * All Myths Are True: Supposedly, all stories about mythical and fantastic creatures told by humans originated as a result of beings in the Demon Realm bleeding into Earth, including tales of vampires, gryphons, and giraffes.
 * Alternate Realm Boon:
 * Averted when Luz finds the portal to the Demon Realm. Magic is abundant in this realm, but humans lack the sac of magic that Witches are born with to use this mystical art.
 * Inverted with her allies, however. As the season 3 previews show, Amity, Gus, Willow, Hunter, and Vee can use their magic in the human world just fine, and it does seem to benefit them.
 * Ambiguous Gender:
 * It has not been revealed in-story whether Eberwolf - the Beast Keeper Coven Head - is male or female, as the character has yet to speak and no pronouns have been used as reference. Using appearance alone doesn't reveal much either.
 * Word of God has used male pronouns to refer to him in podcasts, so once can work from there.
 * Assuming the Collector even has a gender, it is also ambiguous. Again, their appearance and eerie voice doesn't offer much to work with. It's revealed the Collector uses he/they pronouns as per this tweet which means they may be non-binary.
 * Ambiguous Situation:
 * In addition to, Eda seems to be "ambiguously alive", sort of. Being decapitated or dismembered is, at most, an annoyance and she recovered from both of those things easily, suggesting she's at least partially undead.
 * Season 2 confirms that
 * Whether the Emperor's Coven was behind sending the Greater Basilisk to attack Hexside or whether the Basilisk was a "lone wolf". The Coven denies it, but that doesn't stop Bump from "writing a very stern letter".
 * Ambiguously Evil: Several characters:
 * King talks about being a demon king who once led armies of such beasts, but currently he hasn't been seen doing anything truly evil; annoying, possibly. Whether he's even telling the truth about his past is debatable.
 * Principal Bump straddles the line between a Dean Bitterman who happens to be a wizard to an Evil Teacher. In his first appearance, he tried to dissect Luz to see if she was human; on the other hand, he was willing to admit Luz to the school later (after confirming Luz was human) so long as Eda undid all the damage she caused when she was a student.
 * Amity's siblings Edric and Emira are definitely on the darker side of the morality scale, but as to just how much is debatable. Their fondness towards Luz may be genuine, or they may just be using her as a tool in their schemes. Season 2 adds this since they were willing to go against their parents by giving Amity, Willow, and Gus some disguises to help Luz, but can't resist pasting "Hex Me" signs to their backs in the process.
 * Emperor Belos, at least for most of season one. While he seems to be an oppressive dictator, almost nothing is known about his motives or goals. Of course, given the small amount of info we do have on him, he doesn't look like someone you'd want to cross.
 * Amusement Park of Doom: The setting of "Really Small Problems". Their attractions include but are not limited to: Bumper Carcasses, the Molar Coaster, a Scariss Wheel (sort of like a Ferris Wheel that gives you serious nightmares), sentient games that'll try to scam players, vendors selling rotten candy (cotton candy), and a circus act ran by Tibbles who trains tiny mythical creatures to do tricks.
 * Animalistic Abomination: Apparently giraffes. In season 1, Eda tells Luz that giraffes are natives of the Boiling Isles in a manner indicating that she thinks they're so silly, they must have originated elsewhere. Contrast that with season 3, where Amity, Gus, Willow, and Vee - all of them natives of the Boiling Isles themselves visit a zoo in the human world and take a photo of a giraffe, causing it to show them its true face and leaving them terrified.
 * Animal Motifs: Owls for Eda, ravens/crows for Lilith, hawks for Mrs. Clawthorne, and deer for Belos.
 * Appeal to Novelty: Boiling Isles citizens are easily fascinated by trinkets from the human realm, which Eda gladly exploits by shilling random junk to them as "human collectibles".
 * Arch Enemy:
 * Ascended Extra: Ahem, Steve. Yeah, a guy who had naught but an average name to discern himself from the Emperor's other mooks evolved into a complex and interesting character. Initially he appeared as a one-off joke crony for Lilith, came back as a background character, acted as Mr. Exposition for Hunter in "Any Sport in a Storm", and finally
 * Ascended Fridge Horror: Dr. Noceda suffers this in "Thanks to Them." Sure, the kids told her what happened in the previous episode, that.
 * Author Avatar: Tinella Nosa (aka "Tiny Nose"), the Conspiracy Theorist imp-like creature with the big nose is based on a caricature of showrunner Dana Terrace, who's also her VA.
 * Bad Boss: Odalia. She twists her youngest daughter's arm to act as a guinea pig for product demonstration, not only making her fight the creature but forcing her to lose on purpose in order to make it convincing to investors, and when the demonstration starts to tank she has Luz, Willow, and Gus expelled simply to punish Amity for growing a spine. She has her husband work round the clock without ever rolling up her own sleeves to pitch in (in “Clouds on the Horizon”, Alador tells King that Odalia laid off half of his staff and made him and the staff he had left work overtime to meet Belos’ quota, adding that hasn’t had a weekend off in five years), only sees her family as potential staff for Blight Industries, and uses Alador's sympathy towards their kids to cow him into compliance so they won't be brought on as employees under her control.
 * Bat Out of Hell: The Bat Queen is nasty and scary enough, but looking after her nestlings quickly turns Eda into a Badly-Battered Babysitter.
 * Be Careful What You Wish For:
 * In "Clouds on the Tides", Hunter.
 * The teaser clip of "Thanks to Them" shows that
 * Beach Episode: Parodied and Discussed. The show never has an actual beach episode, instead opting for a Leaning on the Fourth Wall discussion in season 2, episode 19 "O Titan, Where Art Thou". "Eda: I mean, wouldn't you rather, I don't know have a beach day?
 * The teaser clip of "Thanks to Them" shows that
 * Beach Episode: Parodied and Discussed. The show never has an actual beach episode, instead opting for a Leaning on the Fourth Wall discussion in season 2, episode 19 "O Titan, Where Art Thou". "Eda: I mean, wouldn't you rather, I don't know have a beach day?

"Luz: She followed us all day!" "Luz: Aw, Eda, you look so motherly! Eda: Say that again and I steal your tongue."
 * The Bet: Eda is such an avid gambler that this Trope directs the plots of three different episodes:
 * Episode Three:
 * The Terms: If King proves he can be a better teacher to a slug-like creature than Eda is to Luz, Eda has to wear a dunce cap and live in the tool shed. If he can't, his name is officially changed to Mr. Wiggles.
 * The Results: King initially wins, Eda begrudgingly accepting the punishment, but once he runs out of food to feed the now-giant slug, it turns on him. Seeing as Eda saves his life as a result, they agree to forget the whole thing.
 * Episode Five:
 * The Terms: This bet is made by Luz and her rival Amity after the former challenges the latter to a Wizard Duel. If Luz wins, Amity has to apologize to King for ruining his cupcake and admit - in public - that humans can become witches. Amity wins, Luz has to give up learning magic forever, and to make sure she complies, places a Magically-Binding Contract on both of them.
 * The results: Eda and Lilth both cheat to help their respective proteges win, so Luz and Amity are both disqualified. This leads to a real duel between Eda and Lilith, while Luz and Amity have a heart-to-heart talk for the first time.
 * Episode 8
 * The Terms: Eda does a three-person Freaky Friday Flip on herself, King, and Luz (Eda becomes King, King becomes Luz, Luz becomes Eda) and states that whoever has the easiest time living with the new body and identity doesn't have to help clean the house.
 * The Results: All three lose. Eda is nearly turned into a lobotomized living doll by some Evil Old Folks who think King's body is cute, King is nearly killed by a group of teenagers after trying to get revenge on them with Luz's body, and Luz uses Eda's magic far too blatantly, getting herself arrested and nearly conscripted into the Emperor's Coven by Lilith. It's only via a series of Contrived Coincidences that the trio manage to find each other and change back. And they all have to clean the house, which by now, is much messier than before.
 * "Wing it Like Witches" has two in one episode:
 * The Terms, Main Plot: Luz challenges Boscha to a game of Grudgby on Willow's behalf. If Luz and Willow win, Boscha has to stop picking on Willow. If Boscha's team wins, they get to use Willow for target practice.
 * The Terms, B-Plot: Eda challenges Lilith to cutthroat Grudgby, promising to turn herself in if she loses.
 * The Results, Main Plot: Borcha wins, but after losing her entire posse to Willow immediately afterwards, seems to forfeit the condition.
 * The Results, B-Plot: Eda wins, but gives Lilith her ring so she can prove to Belos she actually put up a fight.
 * Beware the Cute Ones: Willow is a sweet, adorable kid, but she can use her plant-magic to create some rather ferocious-looking flower-monsters...
 * Bi the Way:
 * Luz is confirmed bi in season one; she crushes on a handsome warrior . At Grom Night, she.
 * Season two confirms that Eda is either bi or pan. She references having ex-boyfriends, might have married Grunkle Stan, and had a nonbinary ex named Raine.
 * Big Brother Bully: Both of Amity's older siblings are manipulative troublemakers who view Amity as a killjoy and take out their irritation by humiliating her in the nastiest ways. Even worse, they think being family gives them permission to do it.
 * Bizarre Alien Biology: Luz meets a lot of magical beings who fit this Trope. To give one example, one of the girls at the slumber party in "Hooty's Moving Hassle" has a large vertical jaw on the top of her skull, a lolling tongue from this jaw giving an illusion of a hairstyle. For some reason, the animation actually makes this work, and it doesn't seem horrific in the least.
 * Brick Joke: In the first season, Eda's claim that giraffes were native to the Boiling Isles seemed like nothing but an Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking gag that would never be addressed again. Then came season 3...
 * Brought Down To Badass: Luz is still tough if she doesn't have access to glyphs. Season three has her.
 * Brought Down to Normal: Luz can only perform glyph magic in the Demon Realm; on Earth, her glyphs are useless sheets of paper . That's because she draws magic directly from the Titan whose body makes up the Boiling Isles..
 * Butt Monkey: Downplayed with Hooty. He does seem to bear the brunt of abuse and insults from Eda and King, but he does get even now and then; he's their house and they have to live inside him, after all.
 * Cain and Abel:
 * Describes Eda and Lilith's relationship pretty well in season 1, although which is Cain and which is Abel depends on who you ask. Lilith has at least shown a desire for reconciliation with her sister, so long as it's on her terms and Eda joins her side.
 * One truly unique example,
 * Came Back Wrong:
 * Cannot Spit It Out:
 * Season two
 * Captive Date:
 * Cheaters Never Prosper: In the episode where Amity and Willow are introduced, Luz tries to help Willow pass her test by disguising herself (Luz) as an abomination. Unfortunately, her ruse is uncovered when Amity sees her eat a sandwich (actual abominations do not eat) and Luz is nearly dissected as a result, Willow ending up with detention. Downplayed slightly, as this does convince Willow's parents to let her switch classes, which was the intent.
 * Child Prodigy: The Golden Guardian has a reputation for this, although Lilith claims he's actually a Spoiled Brat. Given what is seen of him so far, there is valid arguments for both views.
 * The Chosen One: This trope gets explored a lot in the first and second season, with Luz naming it directly in "Witches Before Wizards".
 * Azura the Good Witch is a chosen one in her book series. Luz admires how Azura has a preordained destiny but always befriends her enemies, or makes them "eat" her magical attacks.
 * "King's Tide": It's ultimately revealed that.
 * The Cloud Cuckoolander Was Right: Played for Drama in season two. King has always maintained he was King of the Demons, an overlord destined for greatness, though "Echoes of the Past" has him realize he may have been playing things up as a baby, to cope with excessive loneliness before Eda adopted him..
 * Co-Dragons: Starting in Season Two, Hunter and Kikimora are this to Emperor Belos, and they do not like each other at all, being bitter rivals competing for the role of sole Dragon.
 * Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Each coven and class at Hexside can be identified by the color of their clothing or uniforms: Bard practitioners wear red, Plant magic members, green, Illusion, light blue, Oracles purple, Beast Keepers orange, Construction brown, Healing blue, Abominations lavender, Potions yellow, and Emperor's are gold. Oddly, Luz seems to be wearing several different colored versions of the Hexisde uniform in the preview to season 2, possibly showing her creative nature.
 * Convection, Schmonvection: The Boiling Isles are named because they are islands in a boiling ocean - if real-world physics were to be applied, this would cover the Isles with superheated steam, making it not even remotely inhabitable.
 * Cool Old Lady: Eda, definitely.
 * Corrupt Corporate Executive: Amity's parents, mostly her mother, combine dark sorcery with the worst capitalism has to offer. Their company markets both abominations and a variety of magical security and weapons-based systems and devices that utilize abomination-slime. Their products and properties likely wouldn't pass FDA or OSHA requirements, and they barely care if a demonstration turns lethal for a test volunteer, so long as it pleases their investors. Assuming Amity isn't the volunteer, but even she gets a few cuts and bruises during these test runs.
 * Crossover: Kinda-sorta had one with Amphibia; the audial-only story was presented online during San Diego Comic-Con on July 24, 2021, with the VAs by both series; it is regarded as non-canon. Hasn't stopped some fans from adding fanmade illustrations, however.
 * Curb Stomp Cushion:
 * Basically, Luz ends up like this every time she fights Belos. She has upgraded her fighting skills and spellwork, but he has more experience and toys with her. Even in "Thanks to Them,".
 * Vee is established as a non-aggressive.
 * Cursed With Awesome: Members of the Detention Tract are troublemakers who are not allowed to learn magic; however, at least three of them know that the classroom has a secret door to a room that allows access everywhere in the school, letting them learn whatever courses they desire when the Apathetic Teacher who watches them falls asleep. It is later revealed that Eda used to do so after magically building the room. Bump likely gets rid of it later, but after Luz and those students save the day, they're allowed to study multiple courses, possibly even starting a new policy at Hexside.
 * In season 2,
 * Cute Monster Girl: Eda, Lilith, Amity, Kikimora, Borsha... Pretty much named every female Boiling Isles resident except the Bat Queen.
 * Cute Witch: Every female student at Hexside; even Amity has moments once her kinder side surfaces.
 * Dance Battler: In "Enchanting Grom Fight", Amity and Luz defeat the eponymous monster with a duet version.
 * Dark Fic: In-Universe example; in "Senses and Insensitivity', King rewrites Luz's part of the story into one of these. Of course, let's be honest here, if The Good Witch Azura was a real series, there'd be hundreds of fanfics of it like this.
 * Darker and Edgier: Compared to the typical Disney cartoon, definitely, especially starting in Season Two.
 * Death World: The Boiling Isles are not a nice place. Luz finds it hard to tell friendly or helpful occupants from ones that want to eat her (and the groups aren't mutually exclusive). The weather is hostile to pretty much everyone, the wildlife is dangerous... Not a place you'd want to live. Worse, it's A World Half Full where the folks in charge impose draconian laws that encourage conformity.
 * Deal with the Devil: According to Lilith, Belos can grant any favor or privilege desired to a member of the Emperor's Coven, and could easily cure Eda's curse if she consented to it. However, this also makes the beneficiary eternally indebted to Belos, the biggest reason Eda won't consider it.
 * Defrosting Ice Queen: Lilith starts to become friendly and more emotional in season 2, starting to show a sense of humor.
 * Deus Exit Machina: In the season one finale, Agony of a Witch, Amity — perhaps the most powerful witch among Luz's friends — is Put on a Bus with a broken leg and lies in her bed. She is unable to participate in the dramatic fights and moments in this episode. She returns by season two.
 * Disappeared Dad:
 * Luz's mother is a single mom, and Luz's father has never been mentioned. Luz later reveals to Amity that.
 * Does This Remind You of Anything?:
 * Eda's mother in "Keeping Up A-fear-ances" has been chasing scam cures for her daughter for years, rather than stick with the standard treatments and pushing Eda away as a result. Seriously, Gwendolyn is every mother with a terminally ill child, bar none, something that makes her efforts so heartbreaking.
 * Do Not Call Me Sir: In "King's Tide," King is unusually nervous when.
 * Dragon-in-Chief:
 * For a while, Lilith. Until Emperor Belos become directly involved in the plot, Lilith was the main antagonist by default.
 * Later, when
 * This is later revealed to
 * The Golden Guardian seems to be shaping up to be this in season 2..
 * Dumbass Has a Point: Hooty is great at defending Owl House residents, but not-so-much at problem solving and paying attention. Heck, he spent a whole day talking to a fly when the Owl House family left without him to go to a carnival. In "Edge of the World," when they learn the Titan Trappers, Hooty aptly asks . Luz follows this line of thinking as well, showing how serious it is that Hooty was actually right about something.
 * Eaten Alive:
 * The way Eda disposes of a depowered Adagast is to simply pop him into her mouth and swallow him whole.
 * Her sister has no problem with this either. In one first season episode, Kiki calls Lilith to tell her that Belos wants a word with her, and a blue bird-like creature on her head mocks her with a "OOH, you're in trouble!" Cut to the next scene where Lilith arrives at the castle and spits out some blue feathers.
 * Eccentric Mentor: Eda, definitely. in fact, some would say she's a lousy teacher, as she seems unable to truly teach Luz magic, although she does (maybe inadvertently) point Luz in the direction she needs to make her own discoveries.
 * Elephant Graveyard: Downplayed. The inhabited areas of the Boiling Isles are built on one skeleton, but it's a huge one. Who or what this giant was, how it died, or even if it's truly dead, is a mystery.
 * Enemy Mine: The Golden Guard knows that Luz is on the side of lawlessness, and he's threatened to drop her in the Boiling Sea a few times for defying him. She's met him blow-for-blow, once knocking him off an airship and scoffing that he would be fine. Sometimes, however, she can convince him to team up if they have a common enemy going after both of their heads. It becomes Played for Drama in "A Hollow Mind" where Luz and Hunter try to survive an accidental trip into the Belos's mind together,.
 * Everyone Has Standards:
 * Luz likes a good prank, as shown in season one. Some have even proven a moral hazard if she adds spiders or snakes. There is one line, however, that she won't cross: violating someone else's privacy. She refuses to help Amity's twin siblings Edric and Emira when they plan to copy her diary and post it all over the school to "teach" Amity a lesson about being a tattletale.
 * The Golden Guard is contracted to serve the Emperor because the man is his uncle, and Belos claims he is acting for the greater good, to stop wild witches from running rampant. Hunter, however, is horrified when he learns that his uncle is.
 * Evil Cannot Comprehend Good:
 * Lilith does not understand why Eda refuses to either surrender to the Emperor's guards or join the Coven, saying she doesn't want to owe the Emperor anything. Season 2 has her lampshade this, that Lilith believed in Belos blindly.
 * In "Hollow Mind," Belos does not understand why "Clouds on the Horizon" emphasizes this when.
 * Evil Counterpart: It eventually comes out that is this to Luz in "A Hollow Mind". Both were.
 * Evil-Detecting Dog:
 * Evil Is Not a Toy:
 * Much like the protagonists of Gravity Falls, Luz gets into a lot of trouble mishandling magic in season one when she wants to learn powerful spells. Season two has Luz grow out of it.
 * Lilith found out the hard way that.
 * Belos himself of all people initiated this..
 * Evil Teacher: While Principal Bump downplays this (being incredibly strict but professional in his methods), the guy he replaced, Principal Faust, was Obviously Evil - and not very competent either. He gives detention to students for not being early enough, and expels them for trivial reasons. Expelling the head of the Grudgby team for wearing squeaky shoes and the school's valedictorian for chewing too loudly both have detrimental effects on the school for obvious reasons. The reason he keeps Eda around (despite her long record of being a discipline problem) is because he sincerely believes Hobbes Was Right and uses her as part of his project to study evil and depravity in children and prove his point. He even goes so far as to have Bump (his assistant at the time) take Eda to the IFWOT training seminar, hoping Eda's failure will give him an excuse to fire Bump, and by "fire", that might mean literally.
 * Evil Versus Evil: The Golden Guard and Kikimora do not like each other, and many episodes in season 2 involve them competing for Belos' favor.
 * Explain, Explain, Oh Crap: "Clouds on the Horizon" ends with this;.
 * Fictional Document:
 * The Good Witch Azura, Luz's favorite book series, the title character being a sort of Magical Girl heroine. The series has at least five titles. Somehow, whoever publishes it is able to market it in the Boiling Isles. (Or maybe it is published in the Boiling Isles and can be marketed on Earth.) Whatever the case, Eda hates the series, claiming its "flowery prose" is an insult to witches. Amity is also a fan, and may have even cosplayed as the heroine when she was younger; in the episode "Adventures In The Elements", she also draws fan-art of herself with a handsome male character from the book. Luz seems to compare Amity to Hecate (Azura's rival in the series), emphasized at the end of "Lost in Language", she gives Amity the fifth book in the series, where Amity and Hecate are shown to have a friendlier rivalry.
 * Cosmic Frontier, a franchise of science fiction novels popular during the 80s, seemingly a parody of Star Trek and a Guilty Pleasure for Luz's mother.
 * Fictional Sport: Grudgby, a popular sport at Hexside, formerly played by Bump, Eda, and Lilith, currently played by most of the younger main cast. It's very similar to rugby, but on a field with numerous magical hazards, and more of a contact sport. Spell-casting may or may not be allowed depending on consent of the players. Team Grudgby requires three players per team, but as Eda and Lilith demonstrate, it can be played one-on-one.
 * Fight Clubbing: The Bonesborough Brawl in "Reaching Out". The only rules of this annual event is that participants must be at least 14 years old and fights are one-on-one. Amity claims her dad was a Former Teen Rebel and that winning the Brawl was "the last cool thing he did", which inspires her to compete in the present day.
 * Fire-Forged Friends:
 * Lilith and Hooty become this in Season 2, almost literally. It seems understandable that they got off on the wrong foot - Hooty is a living security system for a house that Lilith tries to attack numerous times - with Hooty often doing his best to humiliate her in the process. While Hooty seems to have an odd affection towards her from the start, despite Lilith finding him an annoying "house demon" and "weird bird worm" who gets on her nerves, it only gets worse in Season 2 when he seems a little too eager to help her find ingredients for alchemy. However, she warms up to him after he saves her from a swarm of angry fire-bees. Ironically, the first alchemical formula she has to brew afterwards is a salve to treat his burns.
 * Thanks to Belos in season 2,.
 * Eye of Newt: Happens a few times, given the genre:
 * For example, in the season two opener, Lilith attempts to brew a scrying potion whose recipe calls for Fire Bee Honey, Portuspine Quills, Snaggleback Snaggleteeth, and Fairy Tears, although the viewers only see her gathering the first one and having to be rescued from the ferocious bees by Hooty.
 * Also, creating a Grimwalker requires (according to what the viewer can read in Belos' notes) a Galdorstone, Palistrom wood,  Stonesleeper lungs,  Selkidomus scales, the bone of an ortet, and a sample of the tissue of the person used as the model.
 * Fluffy Tamer: At Hexside, students sent to detention are thrown to a huge plant-like beast that traps the disobedient students in pod-like pseudopods and then uses brainwashing gas to "convince" them to behave. However, when Luz and Guz make it angry, Bump simply snaps his fingers to convince the creature to heel.
 * Food Fight: One of many hints that Eda and Lilith used to be closer than they are now, Principal Bump's files show Eda started one of these in the cafeteria after another student stole Lilith's lunch money, the ensuing melee causing several abominations to turn rogue.
 * Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling:
 * Eda is usually depicted as the foolish one opposed to Lilith being the responsible one, although Eda does have her responsible moments and Lilith her foolish ones. The season finale reveals it's the other way around: as Lilith is forced to admit,.
 * Forced to Watch: In "King's Tide," Hooty agrees to protect.
 * Forgiveness:
 * In season two, this is how the Owl House residents, except Hooty, eventually treat their newest guest, . It's a rocky start; Eda constantly guilt-trips her with a trollface about while King snickers that . Even Luz doesn't want to befriend the new person. It's understandable considering . With that said, thanks to Lilith's sincere apologies, the relationships progress to the point where Eda trusts  enough to let her go on a quest with Luz, albeit with a strict warning to not let anything happen to her apprentice.
 * "Thanks to Them" in the preview clips finally has Camilla hear the full story about why Indeed, when Camilla sees
 * Friendly Enemy: In season 1, Lilith honestly believes her quest to arrest and conscript her sister is For Her Own Good and would much rather Eda join the Emperor's Coven by choice rather than have to force her too. Eda, for her point, still cares deeply for Lilith, although exploiting Lilith's reluctance is not beneath her. In season 2, the "enemy" part is more like a sibling rivalry.
 * Fun With Acronyms: Raine leads a small group of rebels called the Bards Against the Throne, or B.A.T.s; appropriately, they wear bat-like masks.
 * Functional Magic: Magic on the Boiling Isles combines Inherent Gift and Wild Magic. Witches and biped demons can cast spells using the magic bile sacs attached to their hearts. They do this by drawing spell circles, which determine the strength of the spell depending on the size. There is also Device Magic, where magic can be cast through Palismen because the creatures have their own source of magic that witches and demons can use if they are bonded to them.
 * The four basic glyphs are Light, Ice, Plant, and Fire. Glyph magic is implied to be ancient before the use of spell circles. Glyphs come from the environment of the Boiling Isles or from a spell. The glyphs are used as words to communicate with the island's magic to cast a certain spell. The basic glyphs can be used for simple spells, but more complex spells need a combination of the basics.
 * The Gambler: Eda seems unwilling to turn down any wager, no matter how trivial or how dangerous, and has a notebook full of the times she's made them with King and won.
 * Gambling Game: While dealing with the stress from, Eda becomes addicted to Hexas Hold 'Em, a witch version of poker..
 * Genius Loci: The eponymous Owl House is a living creature named Hooty, who can talk through an owl-shaped bust on the front door. Eda and King tend to get annoyed with him a lot.
 * Gilligan Cut: In "Wing it Like Witches", Luz assures Willow that Boscha will eventually go away, saying she can't follow them all day. Cut to a scene with them sitting outside, covered with garbage and graffiti:
 * The four basic glyphs are Light, Ice, Plant, and Fire. Glyph magic is implied to be ancient before the use of spell circles. Glyphs come from the environment of the Boiling Isles or from a spell. The glyphs are used as words to communicate with the island's magic to cast a certain spell. The basic glyphs can be used for simple spells, but more complex spells need a combination of the basics.
 * The Gambler: Eda seems unwilling to turn down any wager, no matter how trivial or how dangerous, and has a notebook full of the times she's made them with King and won.
 * Gambling Game: While dealing with the stress from, Eda becomes addicted to Hexas Hold 'Em, a witch version of poker..
 * Genius Loci: The eponymous Owl House is a living creature named Hooty, who can talk through an owl-shaped bust on the front door. Eda and King tend to get annoyed with him a lot.
 * Gilligan Cut: In "Wing it Like Witches", Luz assures Willow that Boscha will eventually go away, saying she can't follow them all day. Cut to a scene with them sitting outside, covered with garbage and graffiti:
 * Godzilla Threshold: In season two, anyone who knows the slightest bit about knows they are bad news. . Thus, when it seems the Day of Unity will go on as planned in "King's Tide," it's a big deal when.
 * Goo-Goo Godlike:
 * Good All Along:
 * Good Costume Switch: In season 2, Lilith switches her tone grey wizard robes for a modest skirt (a hand-me-down from Eda) and a t-shirt (presumably stolen from the human world with the other stuff Eda peddles) of a "low computer battery". Possibly done as Gallows Humor, symbolizing the loss of her powers and her desire to "recharge".
 * Great Gazoo: That is, unless King is up to the task of.
 * Guile Hero: Luz, Amity, Gus, Willow, and eventually Hunter all have Action Hero traits, but most villains in the series are far more powerful than they are, requiring them to shift to this Trope to outsmart them.
 * Hate Sink:
 * Deconstructed with Amity. Her first appearance seems to be setting her up for this role, but she quickly gets Character Development with Hidden Depths as early as her second appearance, edging her into Lovable Alpha Bitch territory.
 * Played straight with Boscha, however, who quickly becomes much nastier than Amity ever was.
 * Amity's parents were getting this before they even appeared in person, with many fan theories assuming they'll have the same role as Pacifica Northwest's parents on Gravity Falls, possibly having a negative opinion of Luz (or even approve of her, seeing Luz as a tool they could use to get on Belos' good side and/or trying to force Amnity, Edric and Emira into joining the Emperor's Coven). When asked, Word of God stated, "Amity's parents appear one way... But there's a little more to them than you guys think, and that could either be good or bad for our protagonists. I especially have fun writing Mr. Blight. He's interesting."
 * Season 2, when they actually appeared in person, only made this worse, the parallels between them and the Northwests only becoming more pronounced. Odalia tries to outright murder Luz for the crime of being Amity's friend and a human to boot.
 * Heel Realization: While when they involve murdering Amity's friends, . Then in "Clouds on the Horizon", a disguised King tells  what the Day of Unity involves..
 * Heroic Sacrifice: Two in succession in "Thanks to them": when Belos forces
 * Hidden Agenda Villain: Many.
 * It's not known just why Belos is so intent on apprehending Eda. While having powerful servants is a benefit to any ruler, there has yet to be any clue as to what his actual goals are. At the end of Season 1, he claims to be working for the Titan and that his goals involve opening a door to the human world, although he tells Lutz it's not for something as "trivial" as an invasion; this unfortunately raises a lot more questions than it answers..
 * Originally, it was not known for what reason the shadowy figure cursed Eda, and the scene at the end of "The Intruder" suggests he isn't done tormenting her.
 * Also, if the Emperor's Coven is indeed behind the Greater Basilisk's attack on Hexside (as Bump suspects they are) their motives for the attack are as yet unknown.
 * Hidden Heart of Gold: Eda, most notable in "Lost in Language" where she is babysitting for the Bat Queen:


 * Hunter is this, post Heel Face Turn. In "Labyrinth Runners", he tries to convince Gus he's still Belos' merciless head enforcer, insisting the only reason he's helping Gus is because Gus gave him his sandwich. Gus doesn't buy it.


 * Hidden Villain: For now, Emperor Belos seems the biggest candidate for the show's Big Bad, and he wasn't seen for most of Season 1, although the Season Finale brought him to the forefront in a big way. There's also the villain who cursed Eda in the first place, who has only been seen as a sinister shadow. Assuming the two aren't the same person, although most fans of Terrace's work would find it odd if she made the plot that predictable.
 * Her Codename Was Mary Sue: Luz writes stories with a protagonist named "Luzura"; obviously this is supposed to be Luz herself assuming the role of Good Witch Azura.
 * Hoist By His Own Petard:
 * Homage: Episode six of season one, titled Hooty's Moving Hassle, pays homage to Howl's Moving Castle, both the novel and anime. The plot involves Hooty gaining the ability to move the titular Owl House and the house standing up. The house walks on legs, just like the film, unlike the book where the castle floats across the sky. A more subtle version involves Lilith's nickname for Hooty in season two, Hootisfer, recreating the fire demon Calcifer's name.
 * Hope Spot: "Thanks to Them" features the kids.
 * Hostile Weather: The Boiling Isles has plagues instead of weather, and it's hazardous to both humans and the natives. In the fourth episode, Luz witnesses a boiling rainstorm, prompting Eda and King to tell her that they have even worse conditions; like gore-nadoes, shale-hale, and painbows, which is sort of like a rainbow, but turns you inside out.
 * How the Mighty Have Fallen: Both Eda and Lilith go through this at the beginning of Season 2, having lost their powers and the respect civilians used to show them. Even worse, they have to take odd jobs and work as bounty hunters simply to get by, as Eda can no longer use the portal to steal things from Earth to sell as novelties. And Luz is now the one teaching both of them runic magic; no complaints from them, but having to learn from your apprentice isn't very dignified.
 * Humanoid Abomination:
 * Hypocrite: Odalia Blight. A small trace of this is shown in the beginning of "Escaping Expulsion" when she tells Amity, “You should be in class right now, what are you thinking?" even though she is the one who pulled Amity out of class and made her come to the office. Far more seriously, her - stated - reasons for having Luz, Gus, and Willow expelled from Hexside is because of the dangerous incidents caused by the students. While she might have a small point there, she literally tries to kill Luz later in an incredibly dangerous demonstration of an equally unsafe abomination-powered robot, something even her husband Alador seems to object to.
 * Luz flat-out calls this in
 * I Gave My Word:
 * Ignored Epiphany: "Thanks to Them" shows.
 * Important Haircut:
 * In this case, Important Dye Job. Amity's natural hair color is brown, and initially, it is dyed green to match her mother's, who claimed she wanted her children to be "color-coordinated". In "Through the Looking Glass Ruins", she dyes it purple and wears it without the ponytail, her way of rejecting such conformity and showing individuality. Amity later says she chose purple because that is the color associated with Abomination Magic.
 * In "Thanks to Them",
 * Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain: Ahem, Grayne, the Illusion Coven Head.
 * Inspector Javert: Lilith. She's determined to bring Eda in, and is willing to forcibly conscript her into the Emperor's coven. Season two has her drop this, as
 * Amity too, towards Luz, at least at first, being something of the "Concerned Clair" type of The Stool Pigeon.
 * Instant Plastic Surgery: One can use illusion bracelets to obtain this effect. Remove the bracelet and the illusion vanishes. It's revealed that the Blight parents make Edric and Emira wear them, and.
 * Irony:
 * Right at his first appearance on the show, Gus was fascinated by the human world and longed to explore it firsthand.
 * Part of the reason why the Owl House residents can't recreate the portal is that they don't have a reliable source for Titan's blood. Turns out the Emperor needs it as well for his plans with the original broken portal, and "Eclipse Lake" shows Eda, Amity and King clashing with Hunter and Kikimora in an attempt to fetch some.
 * Ironic qualities seem to be a recurring theme among Coven Heads:
 * Terra Snapdragon is the Plant Coven Head, and as such, uses magic to literally create life; despite being a sadist who uses said magic to destroy life.
 * Darius is the Abomination Coven Head, and as such, uses magic that creates and manipulates slime - and he's a serious Neat Freak.
 * Eberwolf is the Beast Coven Head, using magic that focuses on taming wild beasts, yet appearance-wise, Eberwolf seems to be one.
 * Raine is Head of the Bard Coven, able to channel magic through music; he has terrible stage fright.
 * Grayne is Head of the Illusion Coven, but while he is fittingly a Mad Artist he is also a Terrible Artist, and
 * The Jailer: Warden Wrath is one, who arrests and locks up anyone he deems "weird". Of course, exactly what you have to do to be considered "weird" in the Boiling Isles is hard to say, given that the whole place is a Dimension of Weirdos. Long story short, he starts off the whole, "conformity is good, individuality is bad" attitude the villains as a whole have.
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold:
 * Jerk With the Heart of A Jerk:
 * Jerkass Has a Point: In I Was a Teenage Abomination, Amity isn't wrong to be upset about being cheated out of being Top Student, because Willow was cheating by having Luz pretend to be her Abomination.
 * Karma Houdini: Piniet, the villain in the episode "Sense and Insensitivity" is a publisher who punishes clients who fail to meet their deadline by turning them into small cubes (and even steps on one of them when he's angry). He's also willing to use extortion to get a client to comply, kidnapping Luz to "persuade" her and King to write a sequel to King's first book. He not only gets no comeuppance at the end of the episode, he gets a client who he believes writes better than King.
 * Lawyer-Friendly Cameo: Lilith's mentor, Flora D'splora. Her name, short hair with bangs, dark complexion, monkey-like Palisman, and archeology expertise makes is obvious who she is supposed to be. Luz even lampshades it by suspiciously saying, "I have questions about that name," when she shows up in "Elsewhere and Elsewhen".
 * Lethal Chef:
 * Amity. In "Escaping Expulsion" she offers Lutz "fairy potpie". Not only is this made with fairies, said fairies aren't dead yet. Possibly justified in that Amity is a sheltered daughter of rich parents who likely doesn't have to cook for herself.
 * Gus, Willow, and Hunter are little better; in "Thanks to Them" they help Amity prepares... something for Luz and her mother that looks even less appetizing. Seeing as Vee (a Boiling Isles native like them) has to nonverbally warns them not to eat it, it's doubtful the culture barrier is the reason. A later scene has Gus brag about how his mustard ravioli brought tears to their eyes - Vee again has to use Brutal Honesty here.
 * Magical Academy: Hexside School of Magic and Demonics. Known classes include lessons on Potions, Plant magic, and Abominations. Somewhat Harmful to Minors given how they handle detention, but at least the principal lets Luz attend.
 * Malevolent Masked Man:
 * Belos, for starters. Whether there is even a human face behind his mask is debatable, as all that has been seen is one evil, glowing eye.
 * Members of the Emperor's Coven wear masks with raven-like faces.
 * The Golden Guard, Lilith's replacement in the Emperor's Coven, as of season 2. He covers his face with a golden full-face, beakless version of the mask the rest of the Coven wears; even Lilith does not know his identity. She knows who he is, though, and really doesn't like him.
 * Meaningful Name: Luz's last name - Noceda - literally means "she doesn't back down" in Spanish, which is fitting for her.
 * Magitech: There are different pieces of magical technology such as Crow Phones, Scrolls, and Crystal Balls. Crow Phones are crows that can make and receive calls while also being strong enough to lift a person. Scrolls look like paper scrolls that can be summoned by magic that can browse the internet, take pictures, and text. Crystal Balls are used to make video calls, watch TV, can be used to surf the internet, and as clocks. There are also Abomatons built by Blight Industries combine Abomination magic with technology. Odalia later gives Kikimora a special Mini-Mecha version loaded with high-tech weaponry.
 * Mama Bear: Eda is a surrogate one to Luz; Luz's own mother is a real one, and not just to Luz. Eda's own mother too; she spends years trying to cure her daughter, making bargains with Wartlop in exchange for remedies; when she finds out they're quack remedies, it does not end well for Wartlop.
 * The Bat Queen is this too, not only towards her own young, but to all the orphaned Palismans she has adopted.
 * Mecha-Mooks: Abomatons are Magitech-Mooks!
 * The Mindless Almighty: Season two hints that.
 * The Mole:
 * Morality Chain:
 * Eda claims to be this for King, keeping him in line as a roommate for "The King of Demons." Granted, it's Eda, who is a thief and a con artist so her word is questionable..
 * Showing how much King takes after Eda, he agrees to become this for.
 * More Expendable Than You: This comes up quite a bit:
 * Eda regularly will send Luz and King out of danger if they're cornered. Luz eventually calls out Eda for this in "O Titan, Where Art Thou," saying that she may be a kid, but she's not going to let Eda martyr herself.
 * "I Was A Teenage Abomination": Willow boots Luz out of Hexside after Bump busts their Abomination cheating plan; she says Luz will get dissected, but Willow will just get detention for defying the principal.
 * "Clouds on the Horizon":
 * King brings up that.
 * When hears about, she asks why she can't take Eda's place. After all, . Eda vetoes this because  and can control it. She doesn't mention that.
 * Belos wants both.
 * Mugging the Monster: Taken Up To Eleven in "Senses and Insensitivity" where a scam artist tries to mug Eda and Lilith at the same time. The two sisters are amused by the audacity while saying his outfit doesn't work for the scam. They quickly mop the floor with him.
 * Mundane Utility: Seems a common practice in the Boiling Isles. Emira and Edric use Concealment Stones to cover their acne, Eda brings vegetables to life so they'll cook themselves (it doesn't work), Lilith uses her newly-mastered ice magic skills to make popsicles and ice sculptures, and there is practically nothing Amity cannot craft out of Abomination slime.
 * A Nazi By Any Other Name:
 * Never Live It Down: There are a few in-universe examples courtesy of season two:
 * "Separate Tides" has the Owl House residents roasting for her season one actions, understandably. She admits that she deserves this and spends the episode trying to prove she can be trusted by collecting scrying potion ingredients. Hooty is the exception, who follows . When she finally accepts his help, they have a talk at the end of the episode where she admits she feels she can never make up for her mistakes. Hooty has to tell her that redemption doesn't have to be solitary.
 * Then in "Reaching Out," Alador Blight and Edalyn Clawthorne recognize each other after helping stop a . He genuinely asks about her . "I'm watching you, Blight."
 * Never Mess With Granny: Eda may be a fun old gal, but she's a powerful witch that you don't want to trifle with. Just ask any of the monsters that meet their end at her hands.
 * Her mother is this too, plus Mama Bear on top of it.
 * Nice Job Fixing It, Villain:
 * Belos in "A Hollow Mind" casually reveals to.
 * The same episode implies that Belos's habit of.
 * Hands down, however, his worst mistake was
 * "Thanks to Them": The kids are nowhere near finding
 * No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup: Eda is the only being in existence with a portal between the Demon Realm and human realm. Belos wanted to keep her alive long enough to ferret the portal's location and activation key. Season two shows Luz and the Owl House residents trying to recreate the portal, with limited success, because the main ingredient Titan's blood is super rare..
 * Noble Fugitive: While not truly evil, Eda is a wanted criminal, both for peddling snake-oil and refusing to join any coven. She boldly operates her business in a town where her Wanted Posters are hanging in plain sight.
 * Non-Malicious Monster:
 * The Bat Queen; scary as she is, she's a decent sort who takes care of orphaned Palismans. Her paranoia is also justified, considering.
 * Noodle Incident:
 * It's bad enough that a Humanoid Abomination like Warden Wrath has a crush on Eda, but King claims her last boyfriend was even worse. "Not my boyfriend!" insists Eda in reply.
 * The Stinger of "Something Ventured, Someone Framed" shows that Eda's school records have lots of things like this.
 * The pixie infestation that causes Hexside to be closed during "Really Small Problems". Willow starts to explain what happened to Eda, but King's antics drown her out to the viewers.
 * Lots of them in "Understanding Willow" regarding Willow and Amity when they were younger. The one with the egg pit stands out, Amity telling Luz that, "that one is kind of hard to explain".
 * Not That Kind of Doctor: Luz's mother, Dr. Noceda - she is a vetrinarian.
 * The Nose Knows: The hall monitors at Hexside (possibly meant to be parodies of the Dementors) can smell "trouble", using this ability to find misbehaving students.
 * The Not-So-Harmless Punishment: In "Something Ventured, Something Framed", Luz first assumes being sent to detention won't be all that bad. Unfortunately, in Hexside, detention means being thrown to a giant, tentacled beast who traps the students in pods, and then applies brainwashing gas to "convince" them to behave.
 * Ridiculously Cute Critter: Palismans; all of them start out as adorable baby animals.
 * Obliviously Evil:
 * Obviously Evil:
 * Warden Wrath, especially when he takes the mask off.
 * Piniet from "Sense and Insensitivity". Most viewers likely realized he was bad news long before King did.
 * The map-seller, also from "Sense and Insensitivity" was easy to identify as a con artist from the start; even Eda was onto him, only using the map he sold him on the off chance he was being truthful.
 * The Greater Basilisk in "The First Day" is even creepy when in disguised form.
 * Offscreen Moment of Awesome: In "Through the Looking Glass Ruins", Amity helps Luz search through the library's restricted archives, only to be caught by Malfus, who scolds Amity for breaking the rules and fires her. At the end of the episode, Luz - who justifiably feels responsible - shows up at Amity's house, ragged and disheveled, having convinced Malfus to change his mind, having to go through "trials" involving man-eating books and a paper dragon to do so. Unfortunately, this may be The Greatest Story Never Told for Luz.
 * The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Eda's attitude towards Lilith; she rescues Lilith from a Giant Spider in "Senses and Insensitivity", claiming that if anyone is going to whack Lilith, Eda is going to be the one who does it.
 * Only Sane Woman: Know how bad things are in the season three premiere? . Even Luz is uncharacteristically off her game out of guilt that
 * Our Centaurs Are Different: Bizarrely played for laughs when Luz meets one with no head, his face on his chest.
 * Our Demons Are Different: King claims to be a deposed demon lord who has lost his powers; whether he is or not is for now, subject to debate. Whatever the case, he's willing to give Luz a few pointers on how to fight them, like telling her that their two weaknesses are purified water and passive-aggressive comments. "Even demons can have inner demons," he claims.
 * According to Word of God, natives of the Boiling Isles is divided into Witches (like Eda, Lilith, and the Blights) and Demons, which are everyone else. Demons are further divided into Bugs (like Adegast and Hooty), Beasts (Vee and the Inspector), Biped (such as Kikimora and Warden Wrath), and Miscellaneous (the Bat Queen).
 * Our Elves Are Different: Eda, Lilith, and most students at Hexide are called witchlings, and seem to have most traits of fantasy elves, including pointy ears and magical ability.
 * Our Homunculi Are Different:
 * Abominations are jars of magical slime that can assume vaguely humanoid forms to act as magical servants. Presumably a profitable and lucrative profession for wizards, as Willow's parents insisted she take the class, even though she had no talent in it. Amity also specializes in this school.
 * In season 2, Amity's parents are shown combining these creatures with Magitech technology to create half-machine-half-abomination soldiers. Amity herself starts showing creative ways to use the conjured-up slime, using it to create bindings, cages, a shield, and a sword,
 * From what we know about Grimwalkers, they seem to fit the description of traditional homunculi, being artificial humans created through alchemy like magical clones, from a tissue sample of a human and various arcane ingredients. They start out as infants, but seem to mature quickly.
 * Our Werebeasts Are Different:
 * Our Vampires Are Different: Dottie and Roselle, two sweet-looking old ladies who run the Kitty Cafe are in fact vampires who kidnap cute creatures and brainwash them with constant babying. Unlike typical vampires, they aren't bothered by sunlight; it's not known what other traditional traits of vampires do or do not apply to them.
 * Override Command:
 * The Owl-Knowing One: Eda claims this is why she's called "The Owl Lady", although King claims its because she coughs up rat bones and Hooty claims its because she's attracted to shiny objects. While all that is true - and as a wizard, she is likely rather wise, if eccentric - the actual reason is she suffers from a curse that causes her to turn into a demonic, owl-like beast if she doesn't take elixir, making her far more like the other sort of owl.
 * Papa Wolf: Principal Bump may be stern and a little outdated when it comes to maintaining tradition, but threaten his students and he is quick to react. When a Basilisk revealed herself and tried draining Amity, Bump put himself between the creature and the best Abominations student and fought her to the best of his ability..
 * Pet The Dog:
 * Subverted when
 * Played straight when.
 * Pick on Someone Your Own Size: Borsha and  Hunter aside, Luz and her classmates have to confront adult wizards, the conflicts usually ending either by said villain having a reason to halt the confrontation on their own (usually of the You Got Spunk type) or Eda's intervention. Belos is a particularly disturbing case, as.
 * Poisonous Friend: King seems to be turning into this quickly, his hubris and pride nearly leading him and Luz to their doom more than once. The last few episodes of season two make him realize he doesn't want to be that kind of friend, and can't be.
 * Politically Incorrect Villain:
 * It's revealed that.
 * Portmanteau Couple Name: In universe example. In Thanks to Them, the opening montage is created by "Lumity Studios", and their logo is visible for a brief second — a reference to the Official Couple of Luz and Amity.
 * Power Limiter: One of the biggest plot points in the series involves the covens, which are sort of like guilds. Each specialize in a specific school of magic, the most powerful ones being : Bard,  Plants,  Illusion,  Oracle,  Beast Keeping,  Construction,  Healing,  Abominations,  Potions, and  Emperor's. When a wizard joins a coven - which is required by law - they receive a magical branding that prevents them from using any magic other than the coven's specialty. Eda refuses to join a coven, meaning she is not limited to one school of magic and is potentially one of the most powerful of sorcerers. Unfortunately, members of the Emperor's coven - like her sister - are also allowed to use all schools. They do have their own brand, however,  one that presumably ensures obedience.
 * Professional Butt-Kisser: Lilith's greatest flaw, unfortunately. Known to be a Teacher's Pet when young, she follows Belos blindly until his true nature is revealed, and then becomes a suck-up to Luz when she tries to teach her and Eda magic.
 * Properly Paranoid: In "Clouds on the Horizon", Eda orders everyone in the Owl House to not tell the CATTs.
 * Protagonist-Centered Morality: Luz is a Nice Girl on the surface and means well, but many times, she pursues her goals by cheating, lying, stealing, and other types of dishonesty. While Amity might call her out on it a few times, she's Easily Forgiven by most characters and never truly held responsible. This, of course, tended to be a problem for the protagonists of Gravity Falls as well.
 * Pyrrhic Villainy: In "Wing it Like Witches", Boscha's team wins the Grudgby match, but Boscha's entire posse rejects her and joins Willow and Luz. Clearly, this is not the outcome Boscha had wanted.
 * Reality Ensues:
 * Luz tries to compare her initial adventures in the Boiling Isles to those in her Azura books, that she's a chosen one who will find her destiny. Eda scoffs at the notion that the fiction would reflect the reality; in addition to the Azura pose being too flowery for her taste, Eda explains that witch magic and society don't work to serve one person's character development or powers. The Boiling Isles comprise the gross remains of a former giant, and the society mainly has witches competing against each other to earn a living or enter the best coven possible for job security. Heck, Eda doesn't even know what "summer camp" is.
 * Luz's initial attempts to get into Hexside get her banned. For Luz's sake, Eda goes to talk with Principal Bump and asks him to take Luz as a student on probation. After a whole episode, Bump agrees, on the provision that Eda cleans up her old pranks and magic waste...and fills out the paperwork. Eda finds the idea of paperwork worse than the cleaning, but Bump is right that they need a record of Luz on file at an academic institution.
 * Lilith has hunted down Eda as a fugitive, taken Luz hostage, and . Though she is sorry about this in the season 2 premiere and, no one in the Owl House has forgiven her except Hooty. Even chipper Luz bluntly says in a video for her mother that she doesn't know if Lilith can ever be trusted. Lilith herself admits she screwed up, and decides to start earning everyone's trust.
 * "A Hollow Mind": Hunter learns that . "Labryinth Runners" goes further when Hunter admits to Gus that.
 * "Clouds on the Horizon":
 * It was safe for viewers to assume that the Blight parents were a united front of emotional abuse and manipulation to secure a rigid future for their children in the Emperor's Coven. Alador at best was oblivious to how they were making Amity, Edric and Emira miserable, while making an effort to listen to Amity. Turns out that.
 * While on a mission to extract Amity, Edric, and Emira from the Blight Manor, Hunter asks Luz to.
 * "King's Tide":
 * While Face Your Fears happens,.
 * Usually Luz and her friends shake off whatever the Boiling Isles tosses at them. Gus and Hunter also expressed a desire to see Earth for real in different episodes. Not this time: after the events of the episode, and realizing.
 * "Thanks to Them"
 * The preview clips of the season three premiere show that . It says something that.
 * Indeed, the truth about Luz and Hunter's secrets come out at the worst possible time, as . Despite what both of the teens fear,
 * One that works against Belos; he is very much a Fish Out of Temporal Water
 * Most shows that have a character not breathing would lead to Clean Pretty Reliable often done incorrectly. Not here: Dr. Noceda a trained vet,
 * Really 700 Years Old:
 * It's not known how old Principal Bump is but he's obviously many centuries old, because in "The First Day", he's mumbling, "only 300 years to retirement". If he is indeed a Witchling, this Trope might apply to Eda and Lilith.
 * Word of God has since confirmed that what Bump said was intended as a joke.
 * is at least four hundred years old, and kept himself alive by.
 * The Collector is confirmed to be way older than any of the residents of the Boiling Isles..
 * From what the Collector says,.
 * Replacement Goldfish: Two very disturbing examples courtesy of Belos:
 * It's revealed that Hunter is this for
 * Belos is also implied to see a lot of in Luz, the most recent human to visit the Boiling Isles. Like . He puts out orders to keep her alive for season one and most of season two, and seems amused at how she refuses to bend to him. After she's served her purpose,.
 * Reasonable Authority Figure:
 * Principal Bump may be strict and a bit dramatic in his first appearance when he asked Willow to dissect Luz disguised as an Abomination, to get proof that Willow was cheating, but he does care about his students. Part of the reason that he has to be strict is he has to balance the children's interests with the donation money that would rebuild the regular damage, and parents on the board like the Blights. When Eda petitions him to accept Luz as a magic student on probation, he agrees on the condition that Eda cleans up her old pranks. Later, despite Luz and the Detention Kids breaking the rules to save the school from a Basilisk, Bump concedes about the one-track system and gives the students permission to study as many courses as they like. What's more, he reveals that he figured out who created the Detention Kids' secret passages: a younger Eda, and shows Luz to reveal that she's got a lot of inspiration from her predecessors. We also see that he had this relationship with Eda in the past; when assigned to help her get a ribbon so she avoids expulsion and he keeps his job, Vice-Principal Bump tells Eda that she's not a bad kid, just one that needs a healthier outlet than pulling pranks and he's willing to work with her to find that purpose. Later, when she and Raine forfeit a chance to get a ribbon so that Terra won't make them fight to the death, Bump isn't angry; he's proud of her, but apologizes because he knows it's the end of the line. He regrets that he can't protect her. When Terra steps in and says she'll talk to Bump's boss because she can also see Eda's potential, he faints in relief.
 * While hates the name for the Resistance because it's silly,.
 * Redemption Demotion: This tends to happen to the antagonists that pull a Heel Face Turn:
 * starts as a formidable rival to Eda, hunting her down on a regular basis. In season two, owing to the fact that.
 * starts as a guy that casually threatens to murder Luz and Eda, curbstomping them before they can put up much of a fight. By the time of "Clouds on the Tides," he has renounced Belos and that includes.
 * Remember the New Guy?: The Golden Guardian made his first appearance during the first episode of Season 2, although Lilith claims to have known him for a while, claiming (with a resentful tone) that he "always got special treatment because he was the "genius teen prodigy, he's really just a brat." Of course, we find out there's a reason for it:.
 * Rescue Romance: would never admit it, at least not in season one but she fell for  when the latter attempted to rescue her from the Wailing Star hijinks that Edric and Emira started by corrupting Otabin. Keyword "attempted" but it was a pretty good effort. . It's notably the first episode where she laughs at.
 * The Rival:
 * Amity to Luz initially, although it has progressed from a hostile rivalry to a friendly one.
 * Eda and her sister Lilith have a love-hate relationship that goes back and forth.
 * Lilith seems to be (or have been) this to the Golden Guard, but as yet, there has been no on-screen confrontation between them. Kikimora is definitely this to him.
 * Hexside has a rival school called Glandus High.
 * Sacred Hospitality:
 * Even though she keeps Luz from escaping to Earth for help with retrieving King's crown, Eda also makes it clear she's a guest in the Owl House, especially when Luz asks to stay for the summer. This means that Luz is under her protection, so woe be to any rival that tries using her apprentice as a hostage.
 * Eda is safe from the law at Hexside because Principal Bump is, in his own words, not a "snitch". Even if she did cause him a lot of trouble when she was a student, he respects that she was sincerely trying to use her talent in a more useful manner.
 * When Dr. Noceda sees that.
 * Sadistic Choice:
 * "Young Blood, Old Souls" has two for Luz:
 * A captive Eda orders Luz to use the portal to return to Earth, destroy it, and hide! It's confirmed that Luz.
 * Belos pins down Luz and makes her watch.
 * In "Clouds on the Horizon", Gus has this when Luz whispers a plan to him..
 * Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right: In "Labyrinth Runners,".
 * Sealed Evil in A Can:
 * Seldom-Seen Species: The Greater Basilisk is believed to be extinct - the episode "The First Day" proves otherwise.
 * Secret Secret Keeper: Mutually done by Luz and Hunter in season 3. Luz keeps mum about Hunter being a Grimwalker (as he does not think Amity, Willow, and Gus would trust him if they knew) while Hunter keeps quiet about Luz helping Belos release the Collector, for the same reason.}}
 * She Is Not My Girlfriend: Ultimately Subverted. After an entire season of being unable to tell Luz her feelings, she finally does, and after that, is more than willing to say she's her "girlfriend". It seems the truth really can set you free.
 * Shadow Dictator: Emperor Belos was this for most of Season 1, and to a small degree, still is, story-wise.
 * She Is Not My Girlfriend: Amity Defies this Trope. After several false starts, once she is finally able to admit her feelings for Luz (coming to terms with the fact that she's gay in the process), she is happy to admit she's Luz's girlfriend. The Aesop, of course, is "admitting the truth will set you free".
 * Shoo the Dog:
 * A brainwashed Raine forces Eda to leave her for her safety when the latter wants to talk to them during the Coven Day Festival and ask what happened to them after Raine got captured by, first by attempting to fight Eda and then warning her the Emperor Coven guards are closing in on Eda, forcibly putting Eda's invisibility glyph in the Owl Lady's hands. It especially becomes this case when a later episode reveals that.
 * The season two finale "King's Tide" has.
 * Silver Fox: While of Vague Age, Eda is clearly an old woman, but far from your typical old hag. Luz even says she's “surprisingly foxy for her age”.
 * Sixth Ranger: The season three preview implies that.
 * Snake Oil Salesman:
 * Eda is the Lovable Rogue type; one of the things she sells is literally called snake oil. "For oiling snakes", she claims. She also pilfers objects - mostly junk - from the human world and sells it as "Human Collectibles" for a high price.
 * Eda's poor mother means well, but in her efforts to cure her daughter's curse, she has fallen for quack-remedies sold by scam artists for the past three decades.
 * So Proud of You: Eda has a weird idea of when she should be proud of her apprentice; the first time she has this reaction to Luz is when Luz does something that results in her face appearing on Wanted Posters. Later, she seems equally proud when Luz coerces her into teaching her a new spell by appealing to her pride.
 * Spanner in the Works:
 * We find out in "Edge of the World" that was this to the Titan Trappers. . Turns out that their plans got disrupted when.
 * As Darius explains in "O Titan, Where Art Thou", he was planning to.
 * "King's Tide": Belos had every contingency covered. Turns out . Despite Luz being better at glyph magic, he still has four hundred years of experience on her and curb-stomps her after humoring her for round two. . Who ends up undoing all this order? King and Kikimora, who . Being cute does not mean you are harmless.
 * Starter Villain: The first villain in the show was Warden Wrath, a Jailer villain with an unhealthy crush on Eda.
 * Take That: The show has quite a few Affectionate Parody scenes derived from Harry Potter, but the scene in "Wing it Like Witches" where Boscha wins the Grudgby match by catching the Rusty Smidge (and Luz's angry reaction) is clearly meant as criticism towards such an unfair game mechanic, something even the most diehard of Harry Potter fans is hard-pressed to deny.
 * This Looks Like a Job For Aquaman: The Greater Basilisk is a malevolent beast that eats magic, and as a result, it is able to defeat the students and faculty with relative ease. However, it seems it cannot easily consume more than one type of magic at the same time, and finds trying to consume the mixed-magic assaults Luz and the members of the Detention Tract throw at it Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth.
 * Time Skip: A montage in "Thanks to Them" suggests several months pass, with Luz and her friends cleaning up and converting the old house into a secret base (trying and failing to open the portal), turning two rooms in her house into guest bedrooms, Hunter cutting his hair, Luz "coming out" to her mother as a lesbian (Ms. Noceda is super supportive, to the joy of fans), and so on. By the end of the montage when the story resumes, all of the kids seem to have had a few growth spurts with Amity's roots starting to grow out again.
 * Token Heroic Orc: Zigzagged. Season one had a Greater Basilisk try to wipe out Hexside, and from what the defeated students say, most basilisks are like this. When Luz meets.
 * Tomato in the Mirror:
 * As of "A Hollow Mind,"  doesn't react well on learning that . As of "King's Tide,"  hasn't had time or headspace to process any of this.
 * King has long believed that he is the King of Demons, depowered to a tiny form. "Echoes of the Past" reveals . Then we get to "Edge of the World"; he meets with a tribe called the Titan Trappers that may comprise his family, and asks to play catch with the one that resembles who he thinks his father would look like. . Talk about Be Careful What You Wish For since the episode ends with King giving a sad, "Hi" to.
 * Tom the Dark Lord:
 * The Golden Guard, The Dragon to Emperor Belos; under the mask, he's a normal-looking teenager named Hunter.
 * Also,
 * Total Eclipse of the Plot:
 * Traumatic Haircut: Fortunately subverted; Hunter has a freakout in "Thanks to Them" when seeing
 * The Unchosen One: Luz would have liked to be a Chosen One. In fact, episode 2 is about her facing the reality check that the Boiling Isles hasn't a PG-rated fantasy world with prophecies and trustworthy wizards. Eda, however, tells Luz that it means she can choose her own destiny, without any limitations. Luz realizes that she has to become this in season two, where Luz finds out what exactly the Day of Unity involves.
 * Villain Forgot to Level Grind:
 * Luz was pretty terrified of Warden Wrath in the pilot, and for good reason since he was pretty nasty. In the first Season Finale, however, he ended up being all talk, and Luz - now proficient in magic - takes him down with ease and exposes him as a Dirty Coward when faced with someone who could fight back.
 * Subverted with Belos..
 * Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: The show as a whole is pretty dark for a Disney cartoon, but Emperor Belos is pretty creepy even for "darker Disney". But then, this is the same creative team that created Bill Cipher, so...
 * One could argue that
 * Wanted Poster: Eda's are everywhere on the Isles, and she even keeps a huge one framed in her house. Then when Luz gets her first wanted poster, Eda acts like a mom beaming with pride before putting it up right next to her own, which can be seen in the background from then on.
 * Weaksauce Weakness: Demons have two weaknesses that King (a demon himself) relates to Luz, purified water and passive-aggressive comments. "Even demons have inner-demons," he claims.
 * What Measure Is A Non Human:
 * Whole Plot Reference: "A Hollow Mind" is one for the Promised Day Arc in Fullmetal Alchemist. The heroes find out what exactly an upcoming event will be, that.
 * Why Did It Have To Be Snakes:
 * Luz's fears include "jerks online who want to debate", "human souls trapped in cat bodies", and... milk ("I'm lactose intolerant!"). She also fears disapproval from both Eda and her mother.
 * Amity fears rejection, the biggest reason she Cannot Spit It Out to Luz.
 * Gus has coulrophobia, the fear of clowns.
 * Willow is afraid of ladybugs, which is ironic since ladybugs protect plants from aphids. But considering how weird Boiling Isles ecology is, there's a chance their ladybugs aren't as harmless and helpful as ours.
 * Edric says his greatest fear is being alone, whereas Emera's is being stuck with her brother forever.
 * Wild Goose Chase: Or rather, a "wild Luz chase". In "Edge of the World," Lilith suggests that Luz and Hooty accompany King on his latest quest to find his identity, pragmatically pointing out that . Later, she tells Eda she knows.
 * Wild Magic: Eda practices this, claiming that using Wild Magic draws power from the natural magic of the Boiling Isles itself.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years: Mascha in "Thanks to Them" shows a bit of this when telling a scary story during the hayride, about two brothers that a witch separated. She says that while the story is that the witch spirited the older brother off, with the younger one chasing them down in desperation, more likely the older brother eloped with a girl, and  was unable to accept the reality that his brother had moved on without him..
 * The Worf Effect:
 * Would Hurt A Child: Seeing as Luz is a Kid Hero, every villain counts, but
 * Worthless Yellow Rocks: Eda has an odd perception of what is valuable among the stuff she steals from the human world. In the first scene she appears, she throws away a golden chalice, considering it "garbage", but perceives a pair of novelty goofy-glasses as priceless.
 * Wrong-Context Magic:
 * You Can't Thwart Stage One: Luz destroyed the door to Earth before surrendering it to Belos when he revealed he needed it for the Day of Unity. Belos repaired it in a week and was only annoyed that Luz tricked him. Raine and Eda tried, but they were unable to stop the Day of Unity by taking out Darius and Eberwolf in a suicidal magic spell run. . By the time of "Them's the Brakes, Kid," "Edge of the World", and "Labyrinth Runners", the independent resistance groups acknowledged they can't stop the Day of Unity, so they went for Plan B instead: reverse whatever would happen as much as possible.
 * Younger Than She Looks: While Eda has been stated to be the older of the two siblings, she seems a little too much older, and
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Most witchlings have green hair, but Amity's brown roots suggest she dyes hers. The memory scenes in "Understanding Willow" show that her hair used to be completely brown.
 * The Worf Effect:
 * Would Hurt A Child: Seeing as Luz is a Kid Hero, every villain counts, but
 * Worthless Yellow Rocks: Eda has an odd perception of what is valuable among the stuff she steals from the human world. In the first scene she appears, she throws away a golden chalice, considering it "garbage", but perceives a pair of novelty goofy-glasses as priceless.
 * Wrong-Context Magic:
 * You Can't Thwart Stage One: Luz destroyed the door to Earth before surrendering it to Belos when he revealed he needed it for the Day of Unity. Belos repaired it in a week and was only annoyed that Luz tricked him. Raine and Eda tried, but they were unable to stop the Day of Unity by taking out Darius and Eberwolf in a suicidal magic spell run. . By the time of "Them's the Brakes, Kid," "Edge of the World", and "Labyrinth Runners", the independent resistance groups acknowledged they can't stop the Day of Unity, so they went for Plan B instead: reverse whatever would happen as much as possible.
 * Younger Than She Looks: While Eda has been stated to be the older of the two siblings, she seems a little too much older, and
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Most witchlings have green hair, but Amity's brown roots suggest she dyes hers. The memory scenes in "Understanding Willow" show that her hair used to be completely brown.