Brigadoon: Marin & Melan

Taking place in 1969 Japan, Brigadoon tells the story of Marin Asagi: an ambitious, innocent, orphaned 13-year-old girl. Not the most ordinary school girl, but she has an adoptive family of colorful characters who care deeply about her and a school friend named Moe Kisaragi. Everything changes one day when an unknown alien world appears in the sky sending out killer robots (called Monomakia) that target her. Luckily, she finds an alien creature named Melan who seems to be protecting her from the assassins. The series focuses on uncovering the mysteries of the alien world, as well as detailing the growing relationship between Marin and her protector.

Cute art, comedic moments, and satiric characters notwithstanding; this series takes itself very seriously. Almost immediately, the action is tense and bloody and humans die.

Not to be confused with the musical starring Gene Kelly.

Tropes used in Brigadoon: Marin & Melan include:

A-Cup Angst: Played for laughs with Marin and Moe.
Air Jousting: Since Melan and lots of his opponents can fly, there are many battles like this.
Action Girl: Erin and, much to Marin's surprise, Kushatohn.
- Marin sort of becomes one later in the series. She helps Melan in his battles and even saves his life a few times, though she rarely ever causes real harm to the opposition. This is all thanks to a handy power up from the legendary Monomakaia Cosmos.
Against the Setting Sun: Parodied at the end of the first episode.

Marin: "You saw my panties... didn't you?"

- Played a bit more straight in Episode 4 during a short sports-related flashback about how Marin and Moe became friends.
A Girl and Her Gunswordsman
Alien Sky: Brigadoon is visible in Earth's sky for the entire series, and vice versa. On Submaton Color you can see both worlds at the same time.
All of the Other Reindeer: Marin is unfairly discriminated against for being an unwealthy orphan. It gets worse when the Monomakia come along. She's even arrested by the police and later almost murdered. Never mind that she's only thirteen, has no idea why alien monsters are after her, or how many times she tries to save the people around her.
Aloof Ally: Erin eventually becomes this for Marin and Melan.
The Alcoholic: Tadashi. Ironically, he's one of the more rational members of Marin's family, even when he's drunk.
Alien Blood: Purple, and lots of it.
Aliens Speaking English: Judging by the writing it would seem Brigadoon has its own language, but Lolo's race and the Monomakia are always shown speaking Japanese.
Alternate History: The story takes place in 1969 and presents the world as it was then pretty accurately, with the obvious exception of Brigadoon appearing and various Monomakia spreading chaos.
- One notable anachronism is a single shot of the New York skyline. The famous Twin Towers can be seen, but in reality they were still under construction at the time.
- Another anachronism is the World Expo in Osaka, which in reality took place there in 1970 rather than 1969.
Amulet of Concentrated Awesome: Cosmos Yariya, a legendary Monomakia that allows its user to transform into anything they see.
Anime First: The manga was created to promote the anime.
Apocalypse How: Class X, planetary annihilation for both Earth and Brigadoon. The two planets will literally tear each other apart in a phenomenon called Mutual Collapse.
Apologises a Lot: Along with being chivalrous and considerate of Marin's feelings, Melan tends to apologize to her often whenever he makes a mistake. Whether it be causing harm to fellow humans, making Marin sad, or identifying something with complicated words. He also becomes an Apologetic Attacker, starting in Episode 12 when he kills enemy Monomakia Ping-Pong. In later episodes he apologizes to Erin for breaking one of her wings, and to Kuston for stabbing him in a vital spot.
- Moe is prone to frequent apologies as well, usually just because she's very unsure of herself. For instance, she apologizes for coming unnanounced to Marin's house so they can walk to school together. She apologizes again when Marin comments on how far apart their houses are.
Arm Cannon: The Gun-Swordsmen each have one of these in place of a left hand, and they fire Frickin' Laser Beams!
Armor-Piercing Slap: Marin gives one of these to Melan in Episode 20. It doesn't hurt him, but it's definitely a surprise.
Artistic Age: Almost every human female character under the age of thirty looks younger than she really is.
Ascended Extra: In the manga Aloma is much more involved in the plot, while in the anime he's practically a background character.
- The unlucky and ineffective Monomakia Nepon is a greater threat.
- Grandpa Gen and Granny Moto's youths are expanded upon.
- The detective and Moe's mom are both given a Freudian Excuse for being mean to Marin.
- And Crace Maureen plays a much larger role and has a totally different backstory.
Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: Happens to Moe when she is infected by a growth proliferation Monomakia.
Axe Crazy: Kaori's mother, a woman driven insane after her daughter is killed by Monomakia. She blames Marin for it and tries to kill her with a kitchen knife.
BFG: Agon Ghidorah fits this very nicely.
Badass Baritone: Every male humanoid Monomakia capabale of speech qualifies.
- In the English dub, Pyon's voice is noticeable deeper than Melan's, while in the Japanese they're about the same.
Bait and Switch Credits: The OP and ED sequences are all guilty of this, mostly by making it look like certain supporting characters will play larger roles in the show than they actually do. Especially in the cases of Moe, Poikun and Kushatohn
Band of Brothers: The Gun-Swordsmen are supposed to be this. If only they'd stop bickering so much.
Bandage Mummy: Lolo ends up like this after a bomb explodes in his apartment.
Barrier Maiden: This is Creis's main purpose and the reason the Big Bad wants her dead.
Berserk Button: Marin tends to turn the other cheek when she's picked on, but certain things provoke her to violence. Seeing Moe get hurt is one, her home and/or family being insulted is another, and so is her status as an orphan.
- In Episode 18, the usually unflappable Melan goes mad with rage when Marin is stabbed in the back by a Monomakia she had just stopped him from killing.
Better as Friends: Marin and Melan in the two volume manga, their relationship is not developed enough to be considered truly romantic, though there are definitely some strong hints from both sides.
Big Bad: The Hensu-Chi/Renegade/Variable.
Big Breasts, Big Deal: Jun, Type 1. No one else seems to notice them besides the envious Marin and Moe, and she gets rather flustered when they bring it up.
- Erin counts as the indifferent type, even though the issue never comes up.
The Big Damn Kiss: Happens at the end of the final episode just before the credits roll.
Big Eater: Melan uses rice as fuel, and eats a comically large amount of it.
- - Where does all of that rice go?
- Aloma is seen eating in nearly every scene he appears in.
- Lulu frequently talks about or mentions food when he isn't actually eating it.
- Mike is implied to be one, too, if his overreaction to Melan eating all the rice in Episode 3 is any indication.
Big Fancy House: Moe's family has one in Tokyo and in Kobe, just to show the audience how incredibly rich she is.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: When first introduced, the more cruel of the two detectives acts like a kindly old man who is constantly smiling and bears a striking resemblance to Buddha.
Bittersweet Ending: Both Earth and Brigadoon are saved and everyone is resurrected, but the portal to Brigadoon will soon vanish and won't return for another 100 years, hence Melan has to go. Get your tissues.
Bizarre Alien Biology: Perhaps the weirdest parts of Melan's anatomy are his "magic hands," two pairs of oval-shaped objects located on either side of his upper torso that stretch out on skinny wires. One pair he uses for grabbing and holding things, and the other pair seems to aid his healing factor. He also uses them to carry Marin with him when he flies.
- And for Lolo's species there's Lili, who has an extra face on the back of her head.
Blade Below the Shoulder: All of the Gun-Swordsmen have swords for their right arms.
Blade Lock: Happens often when the Gun-Swordsmen a fighting each other, usually with Sword Sparks for extra coolness.
Bland-Name Product: The cameras are all "Nikgn" (Nikon) cameras.
Blind Without'Em: Marin subverts this trope. She needs glasses because she is far-sighted, but it's not so bad that she can't see anything when they are broken or lost. Exaggerated when she actually DOES go blind and can only see with the aid of a particular Monomakia serving as her glasses.
Blob Monster: Hyudol, the Monster of the Week in Episode 4.
Blood-Splattered Innocents: Marin gets splattered with Melan's blood in more than one episode.
Bloodless Carnage: Violence against humans is significantly less messy than violence against Monomakia. Case in point; Pyon slaughters a a good number of police officers but we don't see a single drop of their blood. When he fights Melan later, there's purple blood flying everywhere.
Bodyguard Crush: Starts to come up in Episode 15.
Book Ends: The latter part of the final episode shows variations of several scenes from earlier in the series.
Brainwashed: The Big Bad does this to Lolo and the Gun-Swordsmen in the last episodes. Strangely, this doesn't happen to Kushatohn or Poikun.
Break the Badass: Starts happening to Melan around Episode 13.
Break the Cutie: Just when you think things can't possibly get any worse for poor Marin, they do.
Breather Episode: Episode 15 has Marin and Melan relaxing in Submaton Color, a bizarre Sugar Bowl type world, shortly after almost getting killed on Brigadoon in Episode 13. Turns into a Wham! Episode at the last minute.
- Episode 23 acts as a similar calm before the storm.
Bring My Brown Pants: Marin exclaims she has to go to the bathroom during two stressful yet totally separate situations.
Calling The Old Lady Out: In Episode 11, Moe has a rare moment of assertiveness and stands up to her mother for saying bad things about Marin and her family. Sadly, the results didn't quite work out in her favor.
Cardboard Prison: It's remarkably easy for Midori to get Marin out of jail. Somewhat justified in that she's been locked up before.
Cast of Snowflakes: There's great visual diversity in the human and Monomakia characters. This doesn't seem to apply to Lolo's race, though.
Catch Phrase: "Wakatta" ("I understand/Understood") is probably Melan's most standard piece of dialogue besides Marin's name.
Caught in the Rain: Aloma and Marin first met in Episode 4 on a rainy day.
- A similar occurence happens in the manga. Marin and Aloma end up alone together in her room, and just when things start to heat up, the house gets attacked by Monomakia.
Caught the Heart on His Sleeve: In episode 25,when Melan is about to cut his and Marin's reunion short, telling her to rest and heal after he stabbed and shot her due to brainwashing by the Hensu-Chi, she grabs him by the arm, telling him she won't let him leave her behind again and that wherever he goes, she'll follow.
Chainmail Bikini: Erin has way less armor than the male Gun-Swordsmen.
Chekhov's Gun: The necklace that Marin receives on Submaton Color happens to be one of the most powerful Monomakia ever created.
Chekhov's Gunman: Lolo, and later Chroma.
Cherry Blossoms: They show up in a flashback sequence of the early stages of Marin and Moe's friendship. Much later Richard Nixon sees them in a flashback of Washington DC, and they appear again during the epilogue of the last episode.
Children Are Innocent: Averted, mostly. For every Moe in the series there are about 10 violent, depressed, or perverted kids.
The Chosen One: Seems to be played straight until we learn that Marin isn't Creis, but just an ordinary human. She ends up saving the day anyway.
Chromatic Arrangement: Marin (pink/red), Melan (blue) and Lolo (green).
- This also applies to Lolo when he's with his two friends Lala (pink/red) and Lulu (blue).
- It would apply to the three Gun-Swordsmen, too, if Pyon was green instead of silver.
Class Representative: Sumire Hanazono for Marin's class, who is often more mature and commanding than the teacher.
Cliff Hanger: Practically every other episode has this kind of ending, especially in the second half of the series.
Cold Sniper: Erin fits this role extremely well.
Colourful Theme Naming: The Gun-Swordsmen's names all end in the name of the color that they are. They also happen to be Color-Coded for Your Convenience.
- Much of the human cast has color names, too. For example, the kanji of Marin's surname "Asagi" translates to "light blue" in English. The same rule applies to her adoptive family and most of her classmates.
- Interestingly, Chroma is the only member of Lolo's species whose name follows this theme.
Come with Me If You Want to Live: Sums up Marin and Melan's first meeting quite nicely.
The Comically Serious: Melan. He's so serious that he doesn't even start smiling until the series is almost over.
Compressed Adaptation: The manga tries to cram 26 episodes of content into just two books. Several story arcs and characters are sacrificed as a result.
Conspicuous CG: In general there's not much CG in the show, but it's pretty obvious when it appears, usually in the form of ripple effects.
Conflict Ball: Moe's piggy bank ends up being one of these. She tries to give Marin her money so she won't get sent to an orphange, but Marin thinks she's trying to 'buy' her friendship and rejects it.
Contrived Coincidence: This series is full of utterly convenient coincidences, but the most notable one is when Marin goes blind due to a head injury, and almost immediately afterwards she awakens Cosmos, a Monomakia that allows her to see again.
- Marin's similarity to the real Creis seems like this, even to the characters, until it's revealed last-minute that she's actually the Creis's prototype.
Cool Airship: The Arks, giant flying Monomakia that vaguely resemble whales. Doubles as Living Ship.
Cool Mask: Melan and the Gun-Swordsmen have retractable face-guards for battle.
Cool Helmet: All the Gun-Swordsmen have these.
Cool Old Guy: Gen Asagi, Marin's deceased adoptive father, is said to have been like this and acts like it in flashbacks.
Cool Old Lady: Moto Asagi, Granny's adoptive mother. She's cool enough to accept Melan as a member of her household just for saving Marin's life, and will even risk her own life when Marin's in trouble. All of this makes her sudden death all the more tragic.
Costume Inertia: When Marin uses Cosmos to transform, it basically dresses her up as a rather silly and childish version of the person or thing she's copying.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: When Melan and Marin defeat Erin and she pulls out a giant bomb to kill them all, who of all people should come to their rescue but Mike!
Cultural Translation: The Japanese version is full of puns that don't translate into English, and are changed for the dub.
Curb Stomp Battle: Any time the police or the army try to fight Monomakia, they tend to end up dead. This is especially true for Gun-Swordsmen.
- A more specific example is Melan's battles with Pyon in Episodes 6 and 7. He's almost killed both times, and it's pure chance that he makes it out alive.
Cynicism vs Idealism: A bit of an anomaly. Almost every instance where a character (including Marin) is being idealistic they get a BFG sized beam of reality shot right into their face. However, despite things not going the way she wants over and over again, Marin (the very idealistic character she is) doesn't give up. Her drive to never give up and make everything right wins in the end, and the world is saved because of it. Thus, it fits best in the category of Earn Your Happy Ending. Still, the sheer volume of instances where cynicism triumphs over idealism definitely tips the scale on the former's side.
Death World: Judging from the flashbacks of the Gun-Swordsmen, the area of Brigadoon they trained in was like this.
Deliberately Monochrome: Certain flashback sequences qualify for this. First, there's Moto's sepia-toned recounting of Marin's adoption and childhood. Likewise, the three Gun-Swordsmen each experience blue tinted memories of their pasts.
Delinquents: Midori is one of these. She wears a much longer skirt than the other female students, carries a wooden sword around, skips classes regularly and has been to jail more than once.
Determinator: All the Gun-Swordsmen qualify for this in their own ways.
Deus Angst Machina: Where to start? Try episodes 17 and 18. There is no limit to what the protagonists go through in just two episodes.
Did Not Get the Girl: In the manga, Shuta has romantic feelings for Moto, who knows this but remains faithful to her late husband.
- Also in the manga, this actually happens with Marin and Melan.
Disco Tech / Magic Music: In the manga, singing is apparently an important part of the Pasca ritual.
Ditzy Genius: Shuta and Mike, with the former being slightly more 'genius' and the latter slightly more 'ditzy.'
The Dragon: Kuston.
Driven to Suicide: During one of the lowest points in Marin's depression, she stumbles into a river and almost lets herself drown. Moe also tries to drown herself in the ocean when she becomes a giant. Both cases become an Interrupted Suicide.
Dropped Glasses: Marin gets her glasses knocked off and stepped on by a bully early in Episode 3, and she has to go without them until they're fixed in Episode 4.
Drowning My Sorrows: Mike does this briefly after Jun leaves.
Doomed Hometown: Tokyo takes major damage from the Mutual Collapse and Marin's house gets burned down.
Dub Name Change: Erin's name is "Eryun" in the original Japanese anime. Strangely enough, it's spelled that way in the English version of the manga, and both translations were done by Tokyopop.
- The English version of the manga altered the names of several other characters. Hanazono=Hannah, Jun=June, Tadashi=Sei, Creis Marine=Crace Maureen.
Duel to the Death: Being the chivalrous guy he is, Pyon challenges Melan to this at least twice. Melan beats him in their first duel, but Pyon gets dragged back to Brigadoon before he can be killed. Later on Pyon intercepts Melan as he brings Marin to Brigadoon and they start fighting again, but things get complicated when Erin shows up.
- Erin does the same thing later, though she's not so chivalrous about it.
Dull Eyes of Unhappiness: Marin's eyes become like this when she becomes blind from a head injury, and she's usually unhappy in that state.
- In the manga Marin's eyes turn this way after Moto dies, and they don't go back to normal until Melan comforts her.
Dynamic Entry: All the Gun-Swordsmen leave very strong first impressions by showing up out of seemingly nowhere and destroying something in a highly spectacular fashion.
- In Episode 1, the first thing Melan does when he is released from his ampoule is blast Dollon into a river with his laser gun. This is before he even notices Marin is there, too.
- When Pyon first appears on Earth, a fighter jet shoots missiles at him. He simply destroys said missiles with his gun and then slices the plane in half with his sword. Later in the same episode, he breaks into a police station by throwing a car at the entrance and blowing it up, and then slaughtering all the cops who try to stop him.
- Not to be outdone, Erin introduces herself by ambushing Marin from the shadows and blasting Melan within an inch of his life. Her first day on Earth has her killing several human soldiers without even touching them.
Eccentric Mentor: Chroma, though the dub tries to make him sound like Yoda.
Earth All Along: Judging from the exposition from the last few episodes Brigadoon is actually Earth in the distant future.
Emergency Impersonation: Marin successfully pulls this plan off in Episode 25 when she uses Cosmos to disguise herself as Creis Marine, effectively serving as a Body Double to lure the brainwashed Gun-Swordsmen away from the latter so she can safely fulfill her duties.
Emergent Human: Melan.
Empathic Environment: In the first half of the series, the weather only turns rainy when Marin is depressed. In the latter half the sky is nearly always overcast.
Ending Theme: The ridiculously happy and upbeat ending theme can be fairly jarring later in the series.
Energy Absorption: Kuston has this power, which is not legally allowed for Monomakia to have and makes him especially dangerous.
Mr. Fanservice: Melan tends to be this for most of the girls in the audience.
Eternal English: Everyone in Brigadoon can speak modern Japanese (or English if you're watching the dub).
Ethereal Choir: The soundtrack has a lot of this, sometimes bordering on Ominous Latin Chanting.
Everyone Can See It: Several supporting characters notice the budding romance between Marin and Melan long before either of them openly admits it. In the manga, Melan seems to fall for her sooner than he does in the anime. In both versions, Marin also falls for him, and he seems oblivious to it until much later in the story.
Everything's Better with Rainbows: They turn up a lot in this show, usually for symbolic purposes.
Evil All Along: Big Bad Friend Lulu in the manga. Rather than being a Well-Intentioned Extremist like in the anime, he reveals himself to be the villain as he loves Chaos more than Order.
Evil-Detecting Dog: The animals of the Ueno Park Zoo notice the presence of Hyudol the Liquid Monomakia long before anyone else does. Not that it does them any good...
Excalibur: Pyon calls his sword by this name, and even claims it to be sacred.
Fade to White: At the end of Episode 25.
Faux Symbolism / Rule of Symbolism: We have a global catastrophe that threatens to wipe out the human race, giant ships called Arks, and rainbows as symbols of hope. Does this sound familiar?
- There's also Creis, whose name, duty, and powers are almost identical to those of Christ, and the Day of Pasca, which shares many similarities with the resurrection story behind Easter (and believe it or not, Easter is called Pascha in Greek).
Feud Episode: In episode 11, Marin and Moe's friendship suffers when Marin misunderstands Moe's offer to give her money to stay at the tenement house as an attempt to buy her friendship. They don't see each other for another ten episodes due to Marin's journey to Brigadoon and back. Their reunion occurs due to a BIG problem with Moe. This tearful reunion almost concludes with Marin and Melan being forced to end Moe's life until Erin appears with the antidote. Cutting it close aren't we?
Finale Credits
Fish Out of Temporal Water: Melan qualifies as this, sleeping for 100 years within the confines of his ampuole in the year 1869 and arriving in the year 1969.
- Subverted as he didn't belong in either time periods, and going home was in easy reach by entering the portal back to Brigadoon.
Foreign Cuss Word: Most of the English-speaking characters exclaim "Jesus," and/or "Oh my god" at some time or another. Oddly, the latter is usually shortened to "Oh my g-!" when it is said, although there is no one interrupting. Go Figure.
Foreign Language Title: The official logo spells 'Brigadoon' in English. 'Marin and Melan' is written in Japanese, with a bilingual English/Greek subtitle.
Foreshadowing: In Episode 9, Marin initially expressed no interest in wanting a boyfriend and uncertainty about leaving home for someone she loved. How ironic that she eventually falls for Melan hard enough to consider staying with him forever.
Four Is Death: Kuston Brown, a fourth Gun-Swordsman, is intended to take Melan's place for the Day of Pasca. Instead he ends up serving the Big Bad by brutally attacking his own comrades, kidnapping Creis, and almost killing Marin.
Freudian Trio: The three Gun-Swordsmen fit this trope quite well. Erin is the rage-driven and ultraviolent Id, Pyon is the disciplined and honor-bound Superego, and Melan becomes the rational and compassionate Ego.
Friend Versus Lover: Averted with Moe, though the lover in question is not dubbed as such until much later in the series. She mentions being envious of Melan's ability to protect and be with Marin all the time, yet she has no ill-feelings towards him and vice-versa.
- Subverted in the manga as Moe asks Melan "assertively" to leave Marin alone as she blames Melan for causing Marin trouble rather than help as a protector.
Funbag Airbag: Marin falls face-first into Jun's chest in Episode 1 and again in Episode 9.
Funny Foreigner: Mike White, the single American resident in Marin's household. In fact, just about anyone from America counts.
Fur Is Clothing: Lolo's species and Chroma follow this trope.
Gadgeteer Genius: Lala, who invents two very useful (if very silly looking) Monomakia.
Gatling Good: Pyon's gun is this type, and it can blow up the missiles of a fighter jet with no trouble.
Genre Roulette: Adventure, comedy, drama, science fiction, mecha, romance...Did we leave anything out?
Genre Savvy: When Marin meets Aloma, her first reaction is to ask him if he's a history observer from the future and she turns out to be more or less right.
- And as early as Episode 2, after she realizes that the monsters are targeting her, she leaves her house to keep her friends and family from being harmed when they attack.
Genius Loci: The astronauts discover that Brigadoon is actually a whole living organism, and everything living on it are its parasites.
The Glomp: Marin begins doing this to Melan as of Episode 7.
Go for the Eye: Lots of the enemy Monomakia have only one eye, which are pretty much always their one weak spot. This is most obvious in Episode 8. Taratta was immune to all of Melan's attacks until he finally managed to shoot its eye.
Going Commando: Marin has to go without underwear from episode 14 until episode 18, though this is only treated as fanservice in episode 15.
Godiva Hair: The only thing covering Ryunma's naughty bits while disguised as a human woman. Doubles as Rapunzel Hair.
Gotta Catch Them All: Seems to be almost Type C at first in regards to Monomakia...
Gotta Kill Them All: Kuston's main purpose in life is to kill everyone who could stop the world from ending, and for only showing up in the last few episodes he does a great job of it.
Gratuitous English: Mike, the President, the astronauts, and every other American.
- The priestess at Nezu Shrine counts, too.
- And on Submaton Color, Marin attempts to communicate with some sentient snowmen in English.
Gratuitous Greek: In the official logo, Melan's name is spelled in Greek letters. In fact, the word 'melan' is Greek for 'dark/black'.
- Many other Monomakia have names derived from Greek, too. such as the three Bronte type Monomakias in Episode 2. 'Bronte' means 'thunder', their names Proton, Deuteron, and Triton, are all derived from Greek words (first, second, and third), and they each have a letter from the Greek alphabet on their armor.
Green-Eyed Monster: In the manga, one of the first signs that Melan is falling in love is the unhappiness or suspicion displayed when he finds Aloma and Marin alone together in a half-dressed state.
Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: Applies to the fighting styles of Pyon and Erin. They are skilled with the same kind of weapons, but they both show a preference for one over the other (Pyon for his sword, Erin for her gun). The size difference of their respective swords and guns makes this even more obvious.
Happily Adopted: Marin.
Healing Factor: Melan has rapid body regeneration, allowing him to get beat the hell up every episode but most of the time he'll be fine in the next. The other Gun-Swordsmen also have this ability.
- Marin gets a limited form of rapid healing once she acquires Cosmos.
- And then there's Kuston, whose biology is illegally altered so that he heals almost instantly any time he gets hurt.
Herald: Lolo plays this role for Marin in episode 1 by leading her to where Melan's ampoule was located.
Hermit Guru: Chroma is a hermit that lives on the highest peak in Submaton Color. He's the only inhabitant who is of any help to Marin and Melan while they are there, aiding them in their efforts to contact Brigadoon and return to Earth, and giving Marin Cosmos Yariya, a legendary Monomakia that is extremely useful later. He also was a part of Wawa's plan to save Brigadoon on the Day of Pasca by keeping Reikons hidden in Submaton Color until the time was right to use them.
Heroic BSOD: When Marin returns from Submaton Color her house is burned down, the loving family she had is nowhere to be seen, there is no food available to her, and her classmates still hate her... she loses it and attempts to steal some bread to fend off starvation.
- Later on, Melan has a rather violent BSOD of his own when Marin is stabbed in the back by a Monomakia she had just saved him from (named Death, no less). Totally enraged, Melan screams and bashes the thing with his sword so hard that it smashes a concrete pillar into rubble. He freaks out even more when it looks like Marin might die from her wound.
Heroic Sacrifice: Towards the end of the series, Lulu seems to do this for Lolo and Lala, and Poikun does it for Marin.
Hero Insurance: Consistently averted.
Hero with Bad Publicity: Marin and Melan both qualify for this trope but for different reasons.
Hey, It's That Voice!: As far as anime goes, this is virtually an all-star cast!
- Marin is voiced by KAORI, best known as Nana "Hachi" Komatsu of Nana and Haruka/May of the Pokémon franchise. She also sings the Ending Theme for the show.
- Then there's Hochu Otsuka as Melan, Ayaka Saitou is Moe, Hikaru Midorikawa plays Aloma and Lulu, and Lolo is voiced by Mayumi Shintani, aka Haruko from FLCL. Akira Kamiya voices Kuston Brown, Kae Araki plays Jun, Isshin, and Erin, and Ryoka Yuzuki is Midori, the Momoi Aunties, Chiasa (Marin's teacher) and Kushatohn.
- And in the English dub we have Wendee Lee doing TEN voices, including Marin, Moto, Jun, Midori and Erin. Also, Tony Oliver is both Melan and Mike, while Michelle Ruff is Moe, A-ko (the main female bully), and the Momoi Aunties. Oh, and Dave Wittenberg (as Dave Lelyveld) plays Aloma, Tanzen and Lulu.
Hilarious Outtakes: The English dub has some pretty funny outtakes of the voice actors screwing up their lines (by accident and on purpose).
Historical Domain Character: Several figures from reality play crucial roles in the plot, most notably Richard Nixon and the three astronauts of the Apollo 11 moon rocket.
Hive Queen: Erin has this sort of control over the missile Monomakias called Vizars
Honor Before Reason: The Gun-Swordsmen are usually like this, though Pyon and Erin slip into Lawful Stupid a lot.
Hospital Hottie: Jun is a professional nurse.
Hot Springs Episode: Episode 9, "Pink Flight", is a bath house variation.
Humans Are the Real Monsters: Take your pick. From the detective who repeatedly slams Marin's head against a table to her classmates who berate her repeatedly for being an orphan, and one who even tried to murder her while she was blind because of something she had no control over. There is no shortage of examples for this trope.
Humans Are Flawed: The show's overall philosophy on human nature seems to be this. While a lot of people treat Marin horribly they're never presented as pure evil and even the worst of them have believable motives. On the other side of the coin, Marin's friends and family are all good people and obviously care about her, but their human limitations often make them unable to help her when she needs it the most.
Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Melan and Marin are a non-romantic variation at first.... He's so tall (roughly 6'5", it's All There in the Manual) that he has to kneel down to meet her eye level when she's standing up.
I Believe I Can Fly: Flight seems to be one of the most common powers of Monomakia, whether they have wings or not.
Identical Grandson: In a sense. In the anime Marin is the prototype of the Creis, and so they have very similar DNA. In the manga it's the other way around. Creis Maureen more or less "cloned" herself to create Marin, thus switching their roles.
Identical Stranger: Marin and Marine are so alike that they even have the same Verbal Tic!
Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Most (if not all) of the episode titles involve color in one way or another.
I'm Dying, Please Take My MacGuffin: A flashback in Episode 25 reveals that this is exactly what happened with Wawa, who gave Creis Marine's ampoule to Lolo just before he died.
Ill Girl: Moe has a weak constitution and gets sick easily, but her actual health condition is not explained.
Imagine Spot: Marin does this A LOT, usually involving herself or someone close to her getting killed, and ending with her dismissing the fantasy as impossible.
- The ones about her getting arrested by the police turn into a Cassandra Truth, and as things get more serious they start bordering on the level of a Nightmare Sequence.
Impossibly Graceful Giant: Kushatohn is like this, even though she's more of a Kaiju than a Humongous Mecha.
Immune to Bullets: Melan takes a bullet for Moto in one episode. It leaves a hole in his back and he bleeds, but he acts like it doesn't even hurt.
- Pyon is also shot in the same episode. Although we don't see him bleed, his reaction is the same as Melan's.
Implacable Man: Kuston.
Infinity+1 Sword: Cosmos. Not content with just letting her transform into anything that is around her, Cosmos rapidly heals Marin's wounds, can transmit her life force into another Monomakia to make them super powerful, and happens to cure her blindness as well. It's so powerful that it risks turning Marin into a Marin Sue.
Interspecies Romance: Happens with Marin and Melan over the course of the series.
- In the manga there's also Maureen and her human husband.
Intimate Healing: Played hilariously straight in Episode 15.
Invisibility Cloak: Shuta tries to invent this kind of device to hide Marin's signal from dangerous Monomakia. None of his creations are actually useful until much later in the series.
It Runs on Nonsensoleum: Melan and Kushatohn recharge by consuming rice and water, respectively.
- And somehow a nude, 13-year-old girl lying in a hole has the ability to save the world. That's nonsensoleum personified.
It's Not You, It's My Enemies: In episode 19, Melan, feeling it's his fault Marin was wounded, regretfully leaves her in the care of Jun to continue his search for the Creis Marine and to ensure Marin can't and won't get mixed up in anymore trouble. Considering Marin and Melan have been through thick and thin by this point, she takes this "noble abandonment" pretty well.
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Moe regarding Marin.
I Was Quite a Looker: Moto was quite beautiful in her younger days.
I Will Protect Her: Melan towards Marin even when it's no longer his mission to do so
I Will Wait for You: Moe tells this to Marin in the manga when Marin may decide to leave Earth and live in Brigadoon
Japanese Pronouns: They don't show up in the subtitles, but you can hear them if you pay attention.
- Melan uses the terms "boku" and "kimi", which are both very male and casual but still polite.
- Lolo refers to himself as "oira", which is associated with being from a low-class rural area.
- Shuta uses "washi" when referring to himself, which suits him well since the term seems to be reserved for elderly men.
Japanese Honorifics: Just about every human character uses honorifics on a regular basis. Characters from Brigadoon never seem to use them, though.
- Marin refers to Moe and everyone in her adoptive family with the "-chan" suffix. She's even friendly enough to call Aloma "Aloma-kun" although she barely knows him, but she's polite enough to call Midori "senpai". And after befriending Erin, she politely calls her by the "-san" suffix.
- Interestingly, Moto calls Shuta "Shu-chan," and he calls her "Moto-chan". For two elderly unmarried people to be so informal with each other, they must be very close friends.
- Several human characters refer to Melan as "Melan-san".
Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Skiar, the Judgement Execution Monomakia.
Just in Time: Used so many times it might kill the trope until Marin transforms and saves it at the last second
Karma Houdini: After making the lives the heroes miserable, committing an endless list of crimes against Brigadoon and Earth, and betraying his own friends, Lulu gets away without so much as a slap on the wrist.
Killed Off for Real: Granny Moto dies suddenly at the end of Episode 10.
- In the manga the same thing happens, but it's more of a Heroic Sacrifice.
Kiss of Life: Occurs in the manga. Marin saves Melan from drowning this way. Shortly after he wakes up, she realizes that their lips touched. She gets flustered, but he's as clueless as always.
Kissing Under the Influence: This is what two out the three kisses Marin and Melan share are made of. The first time he kissed her after she consumed hallucinogenic chocolates that he ate as well to neutralize the toxin. The second time she kissed him after he was brainwashed and in pain due to his memories rushing back. Their first normal kiss would be at the end of the last episode.
The Lady's Favour: When Melan goes to duel Pyon in Episode 7, Marin puts her hairtie on his sword to make him promise to come back. Episode 16 repeats this sort of scenario and is aptly titled "The Golden Promise." See also Memento MacGuffin and Red String of Fate.
Leitmotif: Marin has a very upbeat theme tune that plays most often in the early episodes. Melan's theme plays almost every time he comes out of his ampoule and in his battles. The same applies to Poikun, Kushatohn, and Lolo whenever he shows up.
- Cosmos has its own theme, too, which sounds pretty similar to Marin's.
- The judgement Monomakia Skiar also has his own theme even though he was only in two episodes, but it is later used for Kuston.
Let's Get Dangerous: Although they're just ordinary humans, Marin's adoptive family successfully manages to come to her and Melan's rescue on more than one occassion.
Like Brother and Sister: Erin states that she has this sort of bond with Melan.
Lighter and Softer: The manga adaptation is considerably toned down in many respects.
Limited Wardrobe: Justified for Marin because she can't afford new clothes and most of the clothes she already has are Jun's hand-me-downs. The same logic applies to everyone else who lives in the tenement house.
- Moe, on the other hand, is the financial opposite, yet she wears the same outfits all the time.
Living Weapon: The Gun-Swordsmen and many of the other Monomakia.
Love Before First Sight: Played with in the manga when Marin imagines the legendary Blue Swordsman. She pictures him to look like Aloma, whom she doesn't meet later in the chapter. Of course, Melan turns out to be the real Blue Swordsman.
Love Confession: Near the end of the series, Marin witnesses one of these when Mike confesses his feelings to Jun rather awkwardly.
- And in a flashback, Gen did this for Moto by giving her a teddybear with a note tied around its neck.
- The very last lines of the whole series are basically this between Marin and Melan.
Magical Boyfriend: One unlucky but lovable girl + One cybernetic Knight in Shining Armor = The best inversion of this sub-genre!!
Magic Pants: Averted when Moe loses her clothes when she becomes a giant. Played straight when Marin uses Cosmos to transform back to her original state.
Magic Skirt: Averted for laughs by Marin. Played straight by everyone else.
Mama Bear: Moto gets like this when Marin is in serious danger and leads the rest of the family in their wacky rescue missions.
The Man Behind the Man: Lulu in regards to Lele. Doubles as The Man Behind the Curtain.
Manly Tears: In the final episode, Melan cries for the first time EVER. As if the ending itself wasn't enough of a Tear Jerker...
Maybe Ever After: The ending of the last episode is so ambiguous in regards to what finally happens to the romance of Marin and Melan that it's a constant source of debate in the fanbase.
Mayfly-December Romance: The relationship between Marin and Melan slowly turns into this.
Mecha-Mooks: The Big Bad has a large number of robotic Monomakia called Agons at his disposal.
Medium Blending: The sequences for both of the opening themes features the 2D animated characters flying through clouds in a live-action sky.
- The title cards are hand-written on graph paper and usually include a relevant prop like feathers or sea shells.
- Claymation is used in the episode preview sequences.
Mega Manning: This is a good description of what Cosmos does for its user.
Meganekko: Marin until the last episode where her eyesight is permanently cured.
Memento MacGuffin: Marin's hairband and later her ribbon on Melan's sword.
Mentor Mascot: Lolo plays this role for both Marin and Melan, and it's hard to find a piece of official merchandise from the show without his picture on it somewhere.
Mirror Routine: Marin and Marine do this when they first meet.
Missed the Call: This revelation is made in Episode 14, and Marin and Melan learn it in Episode 15.
The Mistress: Jun has an affair with a married man and runs off with him, but she leaves him and returns later in the series. Slightly overlaps with Your Cheating Heart.
Mobile Suit Human: Near the end of Episode 26 Aloma is revealed to be this kind of human disguise for the much smaller cat-alien Lulu.
Modern Mayincatec Empire: The cities on Brigadoon look a lot like this.
Moe Couplet: Marin and Moe.
Moe Moe: "Moe is moe moe!"
The Mole: Lulu, who was the Hensu-Chi all along. Managed to keep this facade up until the last episode.
Monster of the Week: The first half of the series zigzags through this trope.
Monster Roommate: Melan moves into Marin's house shortly after meeting her. Justified since his mission is to protect her.
Mood Whiplash: And how!
Morality Pet: Marin plays this role for Melan, who doesn't understand that killing people is wrong until she explains it.
Ms. Fanservice: Erin, and to a lesser extent Jun, especially during the bath house episode.
Multi Boobage: The Long Distance Analyzer Monamakia, Horan Ane, has these despite being essentially a living TV set.
Mundane Utility: Marin invokes this trope in Episode 5 when she wants Melan to use his sword to split a popsicle in half. In later episodes he uses his weapons for simple tasks like cutting firewood, lighting a bonfire, and slicing vegetables for soup.
Mushroom Samba: Happens to Marin and Melan in Episode 15 when they eat some unusual chocolates on Submaton Color.
My Beloved Smother: Moe's mother is overprotective and disapproves of her friendship with Marin. But she gets over it later on.
Mysterious Past: Marin's unknown biological parentage is recurring theme, but it remains a mystery all throughout the series. The manga, however, is a different story.
Mysterious Watcher: Aloma.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Melan pulls this in Episode 3 by attacking Marin's classmates and unwittingly making her already difficult life even worse. Although to be fair, he never would have done any of that if Marin hadn't let him out of his ampoule in the first place. Episode 13 is definitely the biggest one, when the heroes' valiant attempt to save their worlds just screws everything up.
No Name Given: The girl who bullies Marin the most, Moe's mom, the two detectives, and Kaori's mother are all characters who play major roles but remain nameless throughout the series.
- The credits list the bully girl as A-ko (Girl A), and the two detectives as Wakai and Chunen (Young and Middle-Aged). That's the closest they get to having actual names.
Non-Human Sidekick: Seems to be played straight at first with Melan but then is inverted since Marin is more of the sidekick later on. It still counts for her two other Monomakia allies, Poikun and Kushatohn.
Not Distracted by the Sexy: Witnessing female nudity seems to have no effect on Melan.
Not-So-Omniscient Council of Bickering: Brigadoon's Central Assembly is like this, with bickering in the form of pie fights.
Not So Weak: Moe never stands up for herself when she's being bullied by her classmates or scolded by her mom, but that all changes as soon as Marin becomes the target.
- Jun is a lot like this, too.
Not What It Looks Like: In the manga, when Marin and Aloma have to escape the rain . . . things look a lot worse than they really are.
The Oathbreaker: Melan is considered to be this by Pyon and Erin, and it's not until the series is nearly over that Melan convinces them otherwise.
Obfuscating Stupidity: Lolo does this constantly.
Official Couple: Marin and Melan. At first, it sounds utterly ridculous, but watching the series from beginning to end, it lives up to this trope. Go Figure
Officially Shortened Title: The English version is simply called 'Brigadoon' and drops the 'Marin and Melan' part completely.
Offscreen Teleportation: Lolo is a master at this.
Off the Wagon: Tadashi in like one episode.
Only Known by Their Nickname: Aloma's actual name is Makoto Alo, but no one ever calls him that.
Only Sane Man: Jun comes off this way whenever the rest of the family is planning to rescue Marin from the police or her Monomakia enemies. She's never directly involved in their crazy plans and often has to patch everyone up when it's over. Then in Episode 9 she briefly Took a Level in Badass by using Poikun to save Marin, Melan and Moe from the Monster of the Week. Too bad she got Put on a Bus afterward.
Opaque Lenses: Onando's glasses are like this.
Opposites Attract: All pairings in the show seem to be governed by this trope.
The Order: The Gun-Swordsmen.
Organic Technology: Monomakia. With the exception of the Agons.
Orphan's Plot Trinket: In the manga, Marin's real parents left a pocket watch with her when they abandoned her as a baby. It turns out to be the container of Maureen's ampoule.
Our Monsters Are Weird: Every Monomakia seems to have its own brand of weirdness, whether they're allies or enemies.
Out of the Inferno: Part of Pyon's Dynamic Entry into the police station.
Outdoor Bath Peeping: Isshin tries to do peep on the girls twice during the bath house episode. First he's thwarted by Aloma, and later he's thwarted by Ryunma, an enemy Monomakia.
Overdrawn At the Blood Bank: Melan has a tendency to spew purple blood everywhere in almost every battle.
The Paladin: Pyon and Erin.
Panty Shot: Played for laughs by Marin, but never Fan Service.
Parental Abandonment: Marin is not the only character with missing parents.
- Jun's mother left her father because he drank too much, Moe has a mother but her father is mysteriously absent throughout the series, and Midori states that she has just her mom but we never see her.
Pimped-Out Dress: Applies for Marine/Maureen in both the anime and manga, though she has different variations on the theme. In the anime her outfit is more like Requisite Royal Regalia, while in the manga it's more like a Fairytale Wedding Dress. In both cases, neither outfit is very practical.
Pinball Projectile: Erin has a set of discs she can use to reflect her lasers in any direction she wants. They also serve as shields.
Pink Girl, Blue Boy: Erin and Melan.
Pink Skinned Space Babe: Ryunma, the spider Monomakia from the bath house episode, disguised itself as a beautiful naked woman and used some rather kinky powers.
Plucky Girl: Describes Marin most of the time...
Pocket Dimension: Submaton Color seems to count as this.
Pokémon-Speak: The Monomakia called Nepon talks like this.
Police Are Useless: Human law enforcement and military just can't handle Monomakia.
Police Brutality: The older of the two detectives is especially guilty of this.
Portal Pool: Earth, Brigadoon and Submaton Color all have at least one of these.
Posthumous Character: Marin's Grandpa Gen Asagi, who we only learn about through flashbacks and narration. Much later and much more important to the plot, there's Wawa, Lolo's friend who first got wind of the Big Bad's plot but didn't survive long enough to stop him, and gave the task of hiding Marine's ampoule to Lolo as his last request.
Power Makes Your Hair Grow: Happens to Marine in a single shot during the final episode, and it turns inexplicably blonde, too. When she appears again her hair is back to it's normal length and color.
The Power of Love: In Episode 26. When Marin dies, Melan is given five seconds to mourn before Cosmos activates its power and gives Marin's last remaining lifeforce to Melan to restore his body and give him new powers to fight Kuston.
The Power of Trust: This power runs strong between Marin and Melan. Seems to be in short supply on Brigadoon, especially with Pyon and Erin. It gets so bad that Marin finally has to call them out on it.
The Professor: Grandpa Shuta is mostly the Bungling Inventor variety with shades of Mr. Exposition.
Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner: Subverted with Melan in Episode 10 in the English dub. Before he shoots today's enemy, he says "Let us begin" in a tough guy way. Unfortunately, the next second the monomakia he fights sucks him into its mouth and swallows him whole.
Precocious Crush: Marin develops this for Melan.
The Promise: Part of Marin and Melan's bond is due to their trust in each other's promises, whether it be for him to come back alive when facing Pyon in a duel, or when he promises to find her again after finding the Creis Marine and saving their worlds.
- In the manga, Marin promises Melan she won't cry anymore after Moto dies. He reminds her about the promise when she starts crying over him going to duel Pyon. When the time comes for them to say goodbye, she ends up breaking this promise after HE starts to cry.
Protectorate: Marin is this for Melan even after it is revealed she is not Creis Marine
Psychopathic Manchild: Kuston qualifies for Type B, technically.
Purple Eyes: Jun has these. Moe's are a bit more on the pink side, but close enough.
Put on a Bus: Jun disappears for many episodes after running off with her lover, but comes back later and stays for the remainder of the series. Poikun and Kushatohn aren't so lucky, as they get left behind on Brigadoon and don't appear again until the show is just three episodes away from over.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: In the final episode, Melan gives one of these to Kuston, and Lala and Lolo give one to Lulu.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Prime Minister Eisaku Sato, President Richard Nixon, and Lili, the Chairman of Brigadoon's Central Assembly, are all good examples of this trope.
Recap Episode: Episode 14, "Lost in Colors." Also doubles as a Wham! Episode.
Redheaded Hero: In colored artwork for the manga Marin's hair is more red than brown.
Red Herring: Lele does this in the anime. He was mistaken for the Big Bad but was really being manipulated like everyone else. In the manga this is the same, but he was more willing to play a part in Lulu's scheme.
- In Episode 25, Kuston chases Melan and the Creis Marine to kill them. he catches them only to find that instead of having the Creis Marine in his grasp it's actually Marin! Lame....
Red Oni, Blue Oni: Marin and Melan, respectively. They even wear the corresponding colors.
Red String of Fate: Marin's red ribbon on Melan's sword is a literal example of this trope.
Relationship Upgrade: In the final episode it is implied that Mike and Jun become a couple.
Replacement Goldfish: In the manga Moto named Marin after her dead child.
Rescue Romance: This trope pretty much defines the relationship of Marin and Melan.
Reverse Mole: Lolo and the audience is initially lead to believe that Lele is the Big Bad, but he was actually just one of his pawns.
Rich Bitch: Moe's mom is like this for much of the series.
Richard Nixon: He's actually a pretty nice guy in this show.
Ridiculously Cute Critter: Poikun and Lolo. Slightly subverted as Lolo is also the Lancer and very helpful later on in the series.
Ridiculously-Human Robots: The gunswordsman monomakia qualify as these.
Right Hand Versus Left Hand: The main reason Melan's former comrades want him dead is because he has a secret mission he can't tell them about and they refuse to trust him when he says he's not a traitor.
Robeast: Describes most of the Monomakia trying to kill Marin.
Romantic Two-Girl Friendship: Played so straight it has to be a parody.
Rousing Speech: The Gun-Swordsmen give one of these near the end of the series right before going into what seems to be the Final Battle, but then the Big Bad throws a BFG in their face and kills them soon after said speech.
Royal Brat: Creis Marine has been treated like a princess her whole life and even dresses the part. Selfish enough to try running away from her duties when things go wrong, but Marin and Melan talk her out of it.
Rule of Cool: "Wow that is way too convenient and stupi...oh shit robots are fighting!"
Rules of Orphan Economics: Type 3 for Marin. She has to earn her own money by delivering newspapers. And then when she finds herself jobless and homeless, she becomes so desperate that she tries to steal food. Fortunately Midori stops her and takes her in.
Same Sex Triplets: The Momoi sisters.
Save Both Worlds: Brigadoon and Earth will destroy each other if the Pasca ritual doesn't happen.
The Scapegoat: Marin is blamed for the problems caused by Monomakia simply because she is their main target. Melan is accused of things he didn't do as well, though in his case he's more of a Silent Scapegoat.
Scare the Dog: The Kisaragi family dog tries to scare Marin away from Moe's house, but as soon as Melan shows up it can't run away fast enough.
- Due to that scare, the dog even gets frightened when he sees Marin.
Sculpted Physique: Lots of the Monomakia.
Secret Legacy: In the manga, Marin learns that she is really a Monomakia, and the clone offspring of Crace Maureen.
- This trope is also invoked in the anime when Marin imagines her true parents to be wealthy aristocrats and in some narrations she calls herself a princess from Brigadoon.
Sensei-chan: Marin's teacher, Chiasa Kurihara.
Sealed Evil in a Can: Inverted with Kuston. Melan defeats him for good by trapping him inside of his ampoule form.
Sealed Good in a Can: Melan, as well as Poikun and Kushatohn. They were resting inside their ampoules for a hundred years until Marin found them.
Sealed with a Kiss: But see Maybe Ever After for complications.
Ship Tease: Marin and Moe get some moments like this (see Romantic Two-Girl Friendship), but the more crucial ones happen with Marin and Aloma, as well as Melan and Erin. In both cases, the resulting feelings of jealousy only serve to reinforce the characters' growing attraction for each other.
Shipper on Deck: Jun and her father Tadashi are the first people to notice when the relationship between Marin and Melan changes, and Erin isn't far behind. In the manga Lolo is the first to see it.
Shrines and Temples: Melan's ampoule was kept in Nezu Shrine for a hundred years. The shrine actually exists, too. Sadly, the ampoule doesn't.
Shout-Out: In the manga, Aloma casually mentions the musical the series gets its name from. He also talks about Tim Burton's movie Edward Scissorhands as a subtle comparison to Marin and Melan's relationship.
- In the anime we have Agon Ghidorah.
- Moe has a pet Collie named Lassie.
- In Episode 1, Marin imitates Kamen Rider in her copycat game with Lolo.
- Chroma looks a lot like Yoda.
- The three Gun-Swordsmen are loosely based on The Three Musketeers. In fact, the Japanese term used to refer to the former (三銃剣士, san juukenshi) is almost identical to the Japanese term for the latter (三銃士, san juushi). They even strike the iconic group pose with their swords! [1][2]
- Marin's neighborhood is based on the real location where director Yoshitomo Yonetani once lived.
- When Marin uses Cosmos for the first time, one of her transformations makes her look like Mickey Mouse. All that's missing is the shorts. [3]^{[dead link]}
- After Creis Marine is released from her ampoule, she strikes a pose similar to the ones Sailor Moon uses at the end of her transformation sequences. [4]
  - Speaking of Sailor Moon, Erin's mechancial pink pigtails make her look a lot like Chibi-Usa, who was also voiced by Kae Araki.
Single-Minded Twins: The Momoi Aunties are a triplet version of this, and employ various other Twin Tropes such as Finishing Each Other's Sentences.
Sleep Mode Size: The Monomakias' ampoules.
Sliding Scale of Anime Obscurity: The show is somewhere between Level 4 and 5, unfortunately.
Slobs Versus Snobs: The low financial and social status of Marin and her adoptive family is a frequent point of contention with her classmates and Moe's mom.
Sniper Rifle: Nepon, the Sniper Monomakia, is a living version of this trope. Too bad he's also The Chew Toy.
- Erin's Arm Cannon seems to be this type of gun, judging from it's shape and size. It even has a scope on it.
Social Services Does Not Exist: Subverted. When Moto dies, Marin's concerned teacher tries to convince her to go to an orphanage.
The Space Race: The Race to the Moon is referred to, but in this timeline the Russians landed there first because the Americans decided getting to Brigadoon was more important.
The Spartan Way: Gun-Swordsmen go through this sort of training starting from childhood. Only three of them survive to adulthood.
Spiritual Successor: To GaoGaiGar and possibly Betterman. Mike White even appears to be an Expy of Stallion White.
Spoiled Sweet: Moe is a fine example of this, although she's also a Lonely Rich Kid.
Stalking Is Love: Parodied in Episode 22 when Marin is on the floor talking to her Moto's teddy bear only to look up and find Melan has been watching her the whole time. She becomes more flustered when telling him she's feels embarassed he saw that only for him to tell her "I think you are perfect just the way you are" Squee~
Strange Syntax Speaker: Due to Chroma looking similar to Yoda, the English dub took note of that and portrayed Chroma as such.
Sugar Bowl: Submaton Color is this kind of place, and Brigadoon has elements of it as well (it has an ocean made of marshmallow creme for some reason).
Sugar and Ice Personality: Melan pretty much exemplifies the trope.
Sunrise: Brigadoon is an awesome sci-fi anime with amazing robots; it's Sunrise.
Sword and Gun: The Gun-Swordsmen, naturally. Overlaps with The Musketeer since they always use both weapons at the same time (unless one happens to break).
Talking to the Dead: Marin does this with her deceased Grandpa Gen and later Granny Moto.
- Episode 26 has an especially tragic example. After Melan defeats Kuston and is dying, he talks to the now-dead Marin in his arms, thanking her for giving him the chance to fight and promising that they will be be together forever.
Talking to Himself: In the English dub Wendee Lee voices TEN characters, many of whom are in the same scenes conversing with each other.
- Marin lampshades this trope when she meets Chroma, saying his voice sounds just like Grandpa Shuta's. In fact both their voices are performed by the same actor (Isamu Tanonaka), and they do sound pretty much the same. The English dub keeps the line, but the joke no longer makes sense since the English voices of Shuta and Chroma sound nothing alike.
Team Chef: The Momoi triplets seem to do all of the cooking in Marin's household, though Moto's no slouch in the kitchen.
Tear Jerker: Several moments qualify for this, but the most powerful is when Marin, after getting shot by a possessed Melan, unapologetically grabs the arm sword he is pointing at her, blood dripping from both of her hands. Melan then plunges the sword through her shoulder and lifts her up, Marin is still holding onto the sword as she is skewered. An ominous chorus plays throughout this scene, and we see a flashback of all the time Marin and Melan have spent together right before Melan delivers what he intends to be the final blow with his laser gun. Keep in mind that Marin is completely blind throughout all of this... it's hard enough to describe this scene without crying, let alone watch it.
- Not to mention the fact that the way the episode ends leads you to believe he didn't miss.
Technical Pacifist: Melan becomes this thanks to Marin's influence. Pyon and Erin, however, have no problem killing any humans who get in their way and never show remorse for it.
Thanks for the Mammary: While flying with Marin for the first time in Episode 1, Melan accidentally happens to touch her miniscule chest. She flips out, of course.
That Came Out Wrong: Moe has several lines like this, though her first conversation with Aloma is the most hilarious.
Theme Tune Cameo: Both the opening and closing songs are played at various times for dramatic effect in certain episodes, and in Episode 8 Marin and Moe actually sing part of the closing song.
They Call Me Mister Tibbs: Melan always refers to Lolo by his official title and never by name. The English manga shortens this to "Director Lolo", probably because "Chairman of the Life Improvement Committee" is just too long to squeeze into each panel.
Thou Shalt Not Kill: Marin forbids Melan to kill humans and sometimes even tries to stop him from killing enemy Monomakia.
Throwing Your Sword Always Works: Or in Melan's case, letting the blade break off, fly straight up in the air, and stab his opponent when it comes back down.
- Pyon later attempts the same strategy when fighting Kuston. He succeeds in damaging his gun and thus saving Marin's life, but Kuston simply flings the blade right back at him.
Tin Man: Melan starts out as one of these.
Tomboy and Girly Girl: Marin and Moe, respectively.
Tokyo Tower: The location of the battle in Episode 2.
Translation Convention: American astronauts speaking Japanese to each other.
Trigger Happy: Erin. Kuston could count as this, too.
True Companions: Marin's adoptive family is composed of many people who all live together but aren't blood related, yet they see themselves as a real family and even adopt Melan into their group. They will also rush to Marin's (or Melan's) rescue at a moment's notice, and sometimes it actually works!
True Love's Kiss: In Episode 25.
Tyke Bomb: The Gun-Swordsmen at the very least, having been trained from youth.
Umbrella of Togetherness: Played with in Episode 4, when Marin first meets Aloma on a rainy day.
The Unchosen One: Marin becomes this in the latter part of the series.
"V" Sign: One of Onando's trademarks.
Vague Age: Monomakia seem to age much more slowly than humans, so it's hard to tell exactly how old they are. For instance, Melan is at least 100 Earth years old, yet Word of God states he is mentally 18-22. Likewise, Creis Marine doesn't look her age, either.
Vanishing Village
Verbal Tic: Lolo's "lolo~" and Marin's "Ahaaa!"
The Vietnam War: Mentioned a few times as it was actually happening in the timeline, and some of the human characters were involved. Mike moved to Japan because he was Draft Dodging.
The Voiceless: Onando. He never utters a single sound, even when he stabs himself in the foot and should be screaming in pain.
Weaksauce Weakness: The sniper Monomakia Nepon dissolves instantly in alcohol.
We Are as Mayflies: Monomakias age slowly compared to humans
- In the manga, the Creis Marine/Crace Maureen dealt with being a mayfly when experiencing life on Earth
- This would also be the same case for Marin as in the manga she's a cloned replica of the Creis/Crace
Well-Intentioned Extremist: Aloma/Lulu to a fault
Wendee Lee: Her named roles in the dub rank in the DOUBLE DIGITS.
Wham! Episode: There are several that qualify, with Episode 14 as probably the most important example.
Wham! Line: In Episode 25, it's made official. "You can't kill me. After all, you're my boyfriend"
What Do You Mean It's for Kids? / What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids?: This show is a bit of a weird case. In Japan, it was apparently marketed as an all-ages series, while in the U.S. it's rated T for Teens and up.
What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?: In Episode 9, Onando dramatically tosses a daikon radish to Melan, who uses his sword to slice it into bite-sized pieces while it's still in midair.
What Happened to the Mouse?: The Engrish-speaking Miko of the shrine where Melan's ampoule was kept pretty much disappears after the first episode ends. You would think she'd at least have something to say about the mess he made.
What Is This Thing You Call Love?: Romance is a foreign concept to Melan, who doesn't seem to know what a kiss is.
What the Hell, Hero?: Marin angrily scolds Melan when he attacks her classmates for picking on her. Later on Melan calls Marin out (much more kindly) when she almost gives up on saving the world. The final scolding is directed towards the Creis Marine when she wants to escape to Submaton Color just when Brigadoon needs her the most.
When He Smiles: Melan makes his first real smile in Episode 22, and it's truly a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming.
Wise Beyond Their Years: Life isn't easy for Marin and forces her to grow up fast.
Winged Humanoid: Melan and the Gun-Swordsmen are robotic alien versions of this. Their wings don't flap, but they can fly with them and are grounded if they get damaged.
- Marin and Melan both appear as the traditional angelic variety in the show's second opening sequence.
Wings Do Nothing: Cosmos helps Marin transform into anything and acquire her transformation's abilities, but when she becomes a Gun-Swordsman her ability to fly is bar to none.
Wooden Katanas Are Even Better: Midori's weapon of choice, though there's nothing really special about it. It did come in handy, though, in fending off bullies and later a deranged psychopath.
World-Healing Wave: The results of the Pasca ritual does this to Brigadoon but it doesn't affect Earth beyond bringing Mutual Collapse to an end.
World War II: Moto and Gen Asagi survived this but lost a child and Shuta worked as a scientist for the Japanese military.
Yamato Nadeshiko: Jun seems to be this. She's so traditional that she always calls her drunken, deadbeat dad "otousan".
Year Outside, Hour Inside: A year on Brigadoon equals a hundred years on Earth.
- When Marin and Melan leave Earth on their first trip to Brigadoon it is late summer. They spend maybe a few hours there, and then a few days on Submaton Color. When they get back to Earth it's winter.
You Are Not Alone: Happens frequently between Marin and Melan, sometimes using those exact words.
Your Cheating Heart: Jun has an affair with a married man and even runs off with him, but later she leaves him and comes back home. This is before Mike confesses his feelings for her, so he is heartbroken until they meet again and he gets the chance to tell her.
Your Universe or Mine?: This choice crops up in the anime, but frustratingly, the ending doesn't resolve the question. In the manga, Marin and Melan opt to go separate ways.
You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Moe, Midori, and Aloma all qualify; purple, pink, and green respectively.
Zero-Approval Gambit: Lolo set this sort of plan in motion when he originally sent Melan to Earth with Creis Marine's ampoule. He swore Melan to secrecy and didn't tell anyone else so the as-yet unidentified Big Bad would remain in the dark. Then he started acting like a selfish doofus to keep his friends from being hurt.
Zettai Ryouiki: Marin's standard outfit in the second half of the series includes a miniskirt and stockings that go past her knees. It's not long before we see Moe wearing a similar ensemble. Erin has a thigh-high boot variation.