Dinokid

Dinokid is a comic book series created by the Spanish author David Ramirez, author of the popular comic Minimonsters. Like his predecessor, it was published monthly in the ¡Dibus! magazine from 2000 to 2015. However, they were published as comic strips.
The story is about the hilarious adventures of "Dinokid", a kid who can transform into all kinds of dinosaurs thanks to the powers of a magical egg. Later, there were introduced more kids with powers similar to him, as well as some villains (so to speak) who antagonize the kids.
Similar to its predecessor Minimonsters, Dinokid later released a compilatory album called "TODO Dinokid" in 2021.
Tropes used in Dinokid include:
- Abusive Parents: Terrícola's parents forced her to do "boy" things (or what she thought were "boy" things), like cutting off her hair, so people won't mock her.
- Adorkable: All of the kids, especially The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds.
- Affectionate Parody: Of superheroes.
- All of the Other Reindeer: AnfiBoy and Terrícola before joining the team.
- All Love Is Unrequited: The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds and Rosita suffer this.
- Alliterative Name: Invoked. Every superheroic kid has a name showing what kind of animal they transform into.
- Ambiguously Brown: Dinokid and his family have a skin tone darker than the other characters.
- Anti-Hero: None of the kids are straightforward heroes, being prone to Comedic Sociopathy a lot of the time.
- Anti-Villain: The so-called supervillains are Ineffectual Sympathetic Villains and Too Funny to Be Evil.
- Arbitrary Skepticism: Peza was introduced as this, not believing in dinosaurs but completely convinced aliens exist (she turns out to be right, but still).
- Armoured Closet Gay: More like Armoured Closet Trans, but Terrícola, as Matías, became a bully due to misguidedly thinking that was how she was supposed to act as a boy, though in a subversion, she was forced into the closet by her Abusive Parents. Thanks to the gang (mainly Insect Girl), she comes out and embraces her gender identity after receiving her superpowers.
- Ascended Fanboy: AnfiBoy, since he was introduced, wanted to join Dinokid's team of superheroes. After receiving his superpowers, he managed it.
- Badass Crew: The Kid Heroes have the potential to become this... If this wasn't a parody of superheroes, that is. They still qualify, though, especially at the end, as detailed in Book Ends below.
- Betty and Veronica: T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K. (Betty) and Mamífero Boy (Veronica) for Insect Girl. She chooses the latter, much to the former's chagrin.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Don't piss off the main heroes. Just... don't.
- Big Good: The creator of the power eggs, who was not revealed until the final strips. If you're curious, it's alien girl Cirene.
- Black Comedy: Well, it's from the same person who did Minimonsters, it's a given.
- Body to Jewel: The supervillainess Mineralia Milenaria has this as her superpower.
- Book Ends: The first strip of the compilatory album has Dinokid trying to stop a robber but failing miserably. The last strip has him facing said robber again, but now with his True Companions by his side, intimidating him.
- The Bully: Matías before becoming the superheroine Terrícola (Earthling).
- Butt Monkey: T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K, definitely. On the "villainous" side, we have The Animal Collector.
- Cannot Spit It Out: The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds just can't manage to tell Insect Girl how he feels towards her. It gets worse once she ends up dating his friend Mamífero Boy.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Rosita doesn't take well other girls paying attention to Dinokid, as seen with her fierce reaction towards Cirene kissing him.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Gore Li. In a terrifying way.
- Comedic Sociopathy
- Comically Missing the Point: The source of all the comedy in the series.
- Coming Out Story: A superheroine example with Terrícola (formerly Matías).
- Crap Saccharine World: Even moreso than its predecessor.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Mamífero Boy turns out to be one once he hooks up with Insect Girl, though he doesn't manage to do anything due to his stupidity.
- Deadpan Snarker: Dinokid, usually.
- Deconstructive Parody
- Defector From Decadence: The villains' incompetence proves too much for CrockBot to handle, and pulls a Heel Face Turn as a result.
- Dogged Nice Guy: Both Rosita and The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds are this to Dinokid and Insect Girl respectively.
- Dumb Muscle: Mamífero Boy can transform into every mammal alive, and he's really dumb.
- Easy Amnesia: Dr. Olvido. Played for Laughs.
- Easily Forgiven: Discussed and Played for Laughs. Dinokid is miffed over Matías/Terrícola being granted powers and joining the team after spending most of the year bullying them (A fair point, but he wasn't aware of her previous Character Development). CrockBot points out he did the same thing, but Dinokid says he made up for it by being able to transform into a flamethrower.
- Embarrassing Nickname: "Mam-Bo", for Mamífero Boy. Do not ever call him that.
- Et Tu, Brute?: Dr. Olvido doesn't take CrockBot's Heel Face Turn well.
- Expy: Matías/Terrícola started out as one to Quasim, being Redheaded Bullies who antagonize the main Kid Heroes. However, Terrícola ends up becoming Quasim's Good Counterpart thanks to Character Development.
- Extreme Omnivore: AnfiBoy. He even eats his own superhero suit!
- Evil Old Folks: Dr. Olvido.
- Fat Best Friend: AnfiBoy, even before he got his superpowers.
- Fat Idiot: AnfiBoy is not dumb (at least not like Mamífero Boy), but he can be rather dim at times.
- Fiery Redhead: Eventually subverted with Terrícola, as she had a Jerkass Facade when she was a bully and ditches this once she gains superpowers.
- Fire-Forged Friends: Every member of Dinokid's superhero team joined him and, despite initial difficulties, they bond into tight-knit friends pretty quickly.
- First Kiss: Mamífero Boy gets a kiss from Insect Girl, cementing their Relationship Upgrade.
- Five-Man Band:
- The Hero: Dinokid.
- The Lancer: Mamífero Boy and T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K.
- The Smart Guy: Peza.
- The Big Guy: AnfiBoy.
- The Chick: Insect Girl and Terrícola.
- The Sixth Ranger: Rosita and Gore Li, the token muggles of the group.
- Foil: Non-hostile example with Dinokid and his favorite hero, Saurus-H. While Dinokid is a human who can transform into a dinosaur, Saurus-H is a dinosaur who can transform into a human.
- Freudian Excuse: Matías/Terrícola's bullying behavior was a result of being a closeted Transgender girl who was overcompensating due to pressure from her parents. She improves very quickly once she comes out, though.
- Friendless Background: Heavily implied with AnfiBoy. It makes his joining to the superhero team all the more heartwarming.
- Terrícola was also this due to being a bully (though with a sympathetic reason).
- Friendly Enemy: Played with CrockBot. He's very friendly to the heroes every time they meet, but then again, he's not exactly a villain. He drops the "Enemy" part later on.
- The Gadfly: Peza, usually when The Animal Collector is concerned.
- Getting Crap Past the Radar: The same case as Minimonsters.
- Good Parents: DinoKid's parents genuinely try to raise their son well and teach him the token Comes Great Responsibility philosophy (though they're not above using their son's powers to help them around the house).
- Grey and Gray Morality: Due to being a Superhero parody, the black-and-white setting of those stories is replaced with self-serving kid "heroes" against incompetent villains.
- Hair of Gold: The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: Dinokid's mom.
- Harmless Villain: Every villain in the comic.
- Not So Harmless Villain: Word of God has mentioned that, if not for the fact she always forgets her evil plans, Dr. Olvido would be a great threat to the heroes.
- The Heavy: The Animal Collector is the most recurring villain in the comic. An ineffectual one, though.
- Heel Face Turn: CrockBot, though he wasn't very much of a "Heel" to begin with and he's not completely tamed. Justified, since he was Dr. Olvido's robot sidekick.
- Terrícola goes from AnfiBoy's bully to a superheroine in her own right.
- Henpecked Husband: Dinokid's dad.
- Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain: Every villain in the Rogues Gallery. In fact, "being evil" is equivalent to "being a Jerkass" and nothing else.
- Innocent Aliens: The Big Good of the series, Cirene, who created the eggs as a way to study humanity.
- Innocently Insensitive: Dinokid, especially with Rosita.
- Mamífero Boy, due to his stupidity. One notorious strip has him transforming into all kinds of "fat" animals (elephant, sea cow, etc.) in front of AnfiBoy.
AnfiBoy: Are you calling me fat? |
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Mamífero Boy can be pretty insensitive and competitive, but he's a good guy overall.
- The main character himself. He's often irresponsible and frequently uses his powers for selfish reasons, yet he's genuinely a nice kid underneath it all.
- Jerkass Facade: Matías had one at the start of the story. She completely ditches it once she befriends the Kid Heroes and eventually becomes one of them.
- Kid Hero: The Superzoo Team, obviously.
- Lighter and Softer: While the series is portrayed in a Crap Saccharine World, Dinokid has a lighter tone than its predecessor Minimonsters.
- Love Letter Lunacy: Boy howdy. T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K not only fails to confess to Insect Girl, but he mistakenly hooks her up with Mamífero Boy as a result of this.
- MacGuffin: The strange eggs that made the kids get their superpowers. Their origins are (at the moment) unknown, but David Ramirez said their origins are the same, and all the kids that found one live in the same city.
- Meaningful Name: Everyone.
- Meganekko: Peza.
- Mistaken Declaration of Love: Due to contrived coincidences, Insect Girl thought the love letter she received was from Mamífero Boy. It was actually The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds who wrote it. Ouch.
- Mundane Utility: The comic's main source of humor is how the kids use their powers for menial tasks, and people's complete indifference to it.
- My Beloved Smother: Dinokid's mother is a light-hearted example of this, with Dinokid's father being her Henpecked Husband.
- Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant: Gore Li is obsessed with blood, and his comics are always portrayed as Bloody Hilarious.
- No Name Given: The superhero kids are referred to only by their superhero names. The only one who has a civilian name is Terrícola (Matías), and it's her deadname.
- Oblivious to Love: Both Dinokid and Insect Girl don't seem to realize Rosita and T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K have respective crushes on them.
- Official Couple: As of late, Insect Girl and Mamífero Boy. T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K. is not amused.
- Overly Long Name: The Guy Who Can Transform Into Birds Of All Kinds, often reduced to T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K.
- Potty Failure: All too present. Even the girls are not safe.
- Rogues Gallery: Every superhero series has one, and this one is no exception. We have The Animal Collector, King Acorn, Dr. Olvido, Mineralia Milenaria, and CrockBot before his Heel Face Turn.
- Rose-Haired Girl: Insect Girl.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K. and AnfiBoy (sensitive) to Dinokid and Mamífero Boy (manly).
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Peza is the tomboy to Insect Girl, Terrícola and Rosita's girly girls.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Terrícola after she comes out and becomes a superhero.
- Transgender: The seventh member of the team Terrícola (birth name Matías) is a trans girl.
- Triang Relations: The T.G.W.C.T.I.B.O.A.K./Insect Girl/Mamífero Boy Love Triangle, starts as a Type 5, but becomes a Type 4 once Mamífero Boy starts to reciprocate Insect Girl's feelings.
- True Companions: The main Kid Hero team, plus Rosita and Gore Li.
- Two Girls to a Team: Insect Girl and Peza are the only female members with superpowers in the team. Subverted once Terrícola joins the group later on.
- Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist: While Dinokid is a more likable protagonist than Victor, he's still a selfish kid whose mishaps with his powers cause a lot of hilarious situations.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Dinokid and Mamífero Boy are best friends who like to pick on each other a little too much, but they get along well overall.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: All the kids who touched the magical eggs can transform into whatever animal voluntarily (or become a simple shapeshifter like Terrícola).
- Walking Spoiler: Cirene the Alien.
- With Friends Like These...: The main protagonists at their worst.
- You Are What You Hate: Insect Girl has the power to transform into all kinds of insects, but usually doesn't because she hates them.