Minimonsters



"Monsters are real. They exist. Vampires, werewolves, witches, mummys and other night creatures... All of them are real. But... Chsssst! It's a secret. They're cities that officially don't exist. They don't appear in any human map. They're inaccessible places, protected by impregnable mountains, laberintic forests, terrible rivers and ancient magic. But they're beings that can get there... and live there. Beings that have something in common: they want to live peacefully, far away from humans, that plague that spreads across the entire planet. That beings are... Monsters! And they populate these cities throughout the world: Miedópolis, La Nuit Noir, Aaaah! City, Monsterland, Bloodgrad, Forever Halloween, Maldiciünd... But we are interested in another city. Maybe is not one of the biggest, since only live there fifty monster families. Maybe is not one of the most famous, since even in some monster maps doesn't appear. But as you get to know it... Sure it'll become your favourite! It's Villa Susto... where they reach the adventures of the Mini Monsters. Who are the Mini Monsters? If you want to know... keep reading."

Minimonsters is a comic book series created by the Spanish author David Ramirez. It was published monthly in the Spanish magazine ¡Dibus! between years 2000-2015. At the moment, there are four monographic albums, collecting all their adventures: “El Veneno de Porcelana” (2003), “El Perfeccionator” (2006), “¡Historias para no Dormir!” (2007), and “El Gran Partido de Calabacesto” (2012). A fifth one is currently in progress.

The plot takes in a small town called Villa Susto, where they live monsters who want to be far from humans. Victor Von Piro (A high-class vampire and main protagonist) moves to Villa Susto, much to his changrin. There he meets his new friends, The Frank’s gang: Frank Einstein Jr. (A genius Frankenstein and leader of the gang), Lupo (A narcoleptic werewolf), Momses (A mummy with an obsession of sports), Gus (A cute, but fearful ghost) and Piruja (A very amorous witch). Together, they will live a lot of misadventures involving them and the rest of the people in Villa Susto.

Quotes are translated, as they’re in Spanish.

"Victor: Stop complaining and kneel... AT THE BEETLE GOD! Rattus Sapiens: The Beetle God GOES IN UNDERWEAR?!"
 * Adorkable: Gus has everything about this trope: He's cute, sweet, innocent, cries very easily, has geek tendencies, a stutterer, and is one of the youngest characters in the comic. It makes the fact that he's the main chew toy sadder.
 * Affably Evil: Rattus Sapiens is polite even with his enemies.
 * Mienai is a fairly nice guy when Morty isn't around.
 * All-Ghouls School: Villa Susto’s local school. It’s a monster town, so…
 * All of the Other Reindeer: Billy and Quasim, though they have very good reasons to be in this trope.
 * Alpha Bitch: Although is a male character and isn’t popular, Morty definitely fits this trope. Her “girlfriend” Guillotine is more of a Lovable Alpha Bitch.
 * An Ice Person: Yokai.
 * Anti-Villain: Guillotine is a Type I: She's very rude and mean to others, but shows her softest side with Piruja, being like an older sister to her. She will do anything to make her happy, such as hooking her with Victor, no matter how mean and sadistic are her ways. Mienai and Skin are a Type IV.
 * Badass Crew: Frank’s gang can be this when it’s convenient. Or, at least, they try.
 * Beware the Nice Ones: The Frank’s gang are good most of the time, but mess with them and they will kick your ass hard. Especially Frank.
 * Big Bad/Arc Villain: With the exception of the 3rd album, we have these:
 * First album: Rattus Sapiens and Quasim.
 * Second album: Miss Hit.
 * Fourth album: Morty Vivente.
 * Currently, we have Flan Hellsing.
 * Big Brother Instinct: Frank has this with his gang, especially Gus.
 * Lupo towards his younger siblings.
 * Bitch Alert: When Miss Hit appears for the first time, it's clear she's bad news. Very. bad. news.
 * Brilliant but Lazy: Lupo is slow due to his constant sleepiness, but he is very far from being stupid, as it shows that he’s very witty. It could be considered as a Genius Ditz case.
 * The Bully: Quasim. He's huge and strong, and no one can beat him....
 * Cannot Spit It Out: Frank and Henrietta definitely love each other, but they can't tell their feelings because of shyness. Also, Miss Hit does not help at all. Unsurprisingly, all people think they're a couple, and Frank constantly denies it.
 * Word of God says they’re a couple. Moreover, the author said that he created Henrietta, so Frank could get a girlfriend.
 * The cover of the second album confirms this.
 * Cerebus Rollercoaster: A mild example. The first album is definitely a comedy, but the second album, being Darker and Edgier, has more serious and cynical outlooks while still keeping the humor. Then the third happened and goes back into straight comedy. The point is: the comic IS a comedy, it's the amounts of it that varies.
 * Now that the ¡Dibus! magazine is closed, one wonders if David Ramírez will use this trope more consistently...
 * Characterization Marches On: A lot of the character in the comic had shown progress and Hidden Depths. Special mention goes to Frank: In the first album, he was a bit of a jerk, but from the second album onwards, he mellowed into a Type B Tsundere.
 * Comedic Sociopathy
 * Cool Big Sis: Guillotine is this to Piruja, being one of her redeeming qualities.
 * Cool Loser: Momses is not cool... HE'S HANDSOME!
 * Also, the entire Frank's gang are constantly called this by the Morty's gang... Who are the REAL losers between them.
 * Crap Saccharine World: Villa Susto. Cute and rosy (somewhat) on the outside, but happens a lot of weird things in that town.
 * Darker and Edgier: Downplayed in "El Perfeccionator". While the story remains comical, things like split personalities and Frank's Character Development makes the story slightly darker compared to the other ones. Not to mention the character of Miss Hit.
 * Deadpan Snarker: Everyone in the comic has acted like this at least once.
 * Dressing as the Enemy: Played with hilariously in the first album, when Victor dresses himself as a beetle in order to trick Rattus Sapiens.

"Frank: *After Momses accidentally breaks his invention* Thanks for finding it, Momses... *facepalm*"
 * Extreme Omnivore: Lupo and Skin, especially the former.
 * The Faceless: The adults. Averted with Victor’s grandmother.
 * Face Palm: Many characters do that, but Frank does this more than anyone. Being the Only Sane Man has its consequences...

"Gus: Frank, you're a g-genius! Skin: Emm... You should wait until he finishes talking, dude. Gus: Y-Yeah, hehehe... Gus: Have you finished? Frank: ...Yes. Gus: Frank, you're a g-genius! Skin: *facepalm*"
 * And in the same story:
 * Frank explains his invention*

"Victor: *holding a stick* I think it's time to someone to lose his milk teeth..."
 * Fictional Sport: Calabacesto (Pumpkinball). It’s the main theme of the fourth album.
 * The Friend Nobody Likes: Victor is this to the Frank's gang (Except Piruja), only admitted because of pity. Frank even tells him this IN HIS OWN FACE.
 * Gadgeteer Genius: Frank is considered this, but he’s more of a Bungling Inventor because his inventions totally lack common sense.
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar: Dear God.
 * Good Is Not Nice: Victor Von Piro definitely fits this trope.
 * Hair of Gold: Frank is blonde, and he’s a very nice person. Most of the time.
 * Hair-Trigger Temper: Victor's main trait besides his narcissism.

"Frank: A girl? Why is she crying? Henrietta: Is a horrible monster! Frank: *saddened* ...for me."
 * Heroic Self-Deprecation: Frank's opinion of himself is total crap.
 * How much? We have this exchange in the second album:

"Victor: *after Momses destroys Frank’s invention* AAAAH! WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS GUY?! Frank: *facepalm* That’s what is called the mummy’s curse…"
 * Hidden Heart of Gold: Victor is implied to have one deep, deep, DEEP down his spoiled jerkassery.
 * Guillotine has one too, only showing her loving side with her best friend Piruja, and sometimes Henrietta.
 * Humans Are Bastards: Taken Up to Eleven. In this comic, humans are the "monsters", and the monsters "humans".
 * Humans Are the Real Monsters
 * Inferiority Superiority Complex: Implied with Victor, and played straight with Frank and Flan Hellsing.
 * Intelligible Unintelligible: Momses talks in mummy, and only his closest friends and family can understand him. Lupo and Frank usually traduce what he says to the other people.
 * Ironic Name: Piruja’s black cat, “Buena Suerte”, which means “good luck” in Spanish. Yeah, right.
 * Jerkass: This comic is filled by jerks, with most ones (mainly Victor and Guillotine) showing better traits under that exterior. Morty and Quasim are definitely the worst.
 * The Klutz: Momses. He has not Buena Suerte’s “luck”, but he’s extremely clumsy due to his physical strength.

"Gus: V-Victor, can we scream l-like little girls now? Victor: *running away* YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!"
 * Laser-Guided Karma: In the fourth album, Morty’s dirty tricks to win the match take a toll on him and his band. . All of this is well-deserved, at least for Morty.
 * Love Hurts: The main reason why Frank wants to create the Perfeccionator. If we don't count his self-esteem issues, that is.
 * Meaningful Name: All characters have names that are based of famous monsters or mystical creatures. It's very common the use of the portmanteau.
 * My God What Have I Done?: Frank has this reaction when he discovers his latest invention is used to kill the girl he loves. And man, it's really depressing.
 * Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Mr. Abra falls onto this trope a lot.
 * Odd Friendship: Victor and Frank, constantly picking each other. Also Lupo and Momses, but they get along much better than the other two.
 * Oh Crap: Has a lot of moments, recurring or not:
 * Victor usually does this, particularly with Frank's inventions and Piruja’s stalking demeanor.
 * Also, in the end of the first album, the Frank's gang after.
 * Morty's face expresses this perfectly in the fourth album when.
 * Frank does a nice one, seen [here].
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: As a group, The Frank's gang (Blue) towards Morty's gang (Red).
 * Rotating Protagonist: Although Victor is the lead character, the story focuses on other characters as well.
 * Screams Like a Little Girl: When Victor and Gus have to face a giant monster, Gus is terrified and Victor tells him to stop screaming like a little girl, since he can stop him (due to his new abilities). However, he fails to do this (obviously) and the monster defends himself with a giant rock. Cue Oh Crap situation.

"Lupo: Frank, help me! When I try to remember, I see everything black! Frank: Could it be you remember the inside of your eyelids? Lupo: It will be that!"
 * She Is Not My Girlfriend: A Running Gag between Frank and Henrietta.
 * Slapstick Knows No Gender
 * Sleepyhead: Lupo IS this trope so far, exceeding the absurdity limit. Also a Running Gag of the comic.
 * One hilarious example of this:
 * Lupo’s memories appear, with him sleeping in all of them.*

"Miss Hit/: You've been slow to realize... ...Frank."
 * Slobs Versus Snobs: Frank's gang (The good ones) and Morty's gang (The evil ones).
 * In the fourth album, we have the “Muerte Chunga” team (Evil) vs “Los Fresitas” (Good).
 * Stalker with a Crush: Piruja is this to Victor, and nearly every guy she meets; much to their dismay. Her mother is even worse.
 * Stepford Smiler: Frank is revealed to be a Type A, putting a happy mask to cope with his task as a leader and hide the fact that he has huge self-esteem issues due to his physical appearance. He gets better, though.
 * Stepford Snarker: Lupo, being incredibly snarky and dealing with a very poor family at the same time.
 * Surrounded by Idiots: Victor thinks this constantly.
 * Swirlie: Quasim's main choice of torture to his victims.
 * The Team: The Frank's gang.
 * The Leader: Frank. Also The Smart Guy.
 * The Lancer: Lupo.
 * The Big Guy: Momses.
 * The Heart: Gus.
 * The Chick: Piruja.
 * Sixth Ranger: Victor. Occasionally The Lancer.
 * Three Amigos: The main characters Victor, Frank and Piruja.
 * Toilet Humour: Oh, man, this comic has a lot of this, mixed with Spanish humor and Black Comedy. Well, considering the author's sense of humor is based on Akira Toriyama's...
 * True Companions: The Frank's gang. Sure, they don't like each other at times, but it's clear that they love each other deeply and stay together regardless. Victor's relationship with them is a case of Fire-Forged Friends (Piruja too, but in a much lower manner).
 * Vitriolic Best Buds: Victor and Frank. As they're polar opposites, both spend their time insulting and bickering each other constantly. However, neither of them can be separated and they're best friends, although Victor denies this.
 * Walking Disaster Area: Buena Suerte’s causes great accidents when he’s around. The only thing that could stop his disastrous luck is being inside Lupo’s stomach.
 * Wham! Episode: "El Perfeccionator" is considered to be this.
 * Wham! Line: In the second album, we have this line, which sets a notable Mood Whiplash and things become Serious Business (This doesn't quit the comedic elements totally, though).


 * With Friends Like These...: Victor has this relationship with the Frank's gang.
 * Much like Victor and everyone.
 * Much like Victor and everyone.