Kaleido Star: Difference between revisions

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{{tropelist}}

* [[The Ace]]: Deconstructed through May Wong (along with [[Tsundere Sue]]), just like Sora is a deconstruction of the [[Purity Sue]].

* [[All of the Other Reindeer]]: At the beginning, almost everyone thought Sora got her spot by sucking up to Kalos and treated her like crap.

* [[Badass Bookworm]]: Mia Guillem is a Kaleido acrobat who also writes her own scripts and invents new tricks for the stage.

* [[Better Than It Sounds Anime]]: It looks like your typical slice-of-life shoujo, but it's captivating once you get into it.

* [[Bifauxnen]]: Anna Heart has ''many'' fangirls for her boyish looks and roles. Two of them, Hannah and Barbara, actually manage to become her partners in the second season.

* [[Bishonen]]: Leon Oswald, Yuri Killian

* [[Blooper]]: Anna and Mia's costumes change mid-conversation in one episode.

* [[Boke and Tsukkomi Routine]]: Sora brings some typical ''manzai'' comedy props as a gift for Anna. She immediately tries to rope Ken into a B & K routine. Ken is not amused.

* [[Bratty Half-Pint]]: Marion, in her first episode.

* [[Break the Cutie]]: Sora is the butt of ''lots'' of bullying in the first season, until she proves she's more than Kalos's protege and has her own worth as a performer. And in the second one she's also the target of ridicule and lectures for her [[Wide-Eyed Idealist|rose-tinted vision of circus life]] and her own self-esteem problems.

** Also, a terrible [[Break the Cutie]] process made {{spoiler|Leon Oswald}} the cruel, bitter person we meet. {{spoiler|He gets better.}}

** Also, {{spoiler|"Yes, Yuri Killian, you can try buying the Kaleido Stage to punish the guy you blame or your dad's death and be an asshole while doing so, but get ready to have Sora and Layla fighting back and completely pwning you."}}

* [[Butt Monkey]]: Apart from Sora? Ken is this in regards to his crush on Sora and Anna's stage antics. A lighter version is May {{spoiler|after her fall of grace ''and'' during her re-training with Katie and Layla}}.

* [[Calling the Old Man Out]]: Anna pulls this to show her father how disappointed she is in him. Layla does it more subtly to show her own old man that she wants to help the Kaleido Stage instead of going to Broadway or Hollywood {{spoiler|after Yuri seizes the Stage}}. And in a genderflipped version, {{spoiler|Rosetta defies her mother ''and'' manager to tell her she wants to be a trapeze artist as well as a diabolo expert}}.

* [[Calling Your Attacks]]: "DEEEEEEMOOOOONIIIIIC SPIRAAAAAAAL!" Oh, ''May''.

** This trope gets silly in the "Legend of Phoenix" OVA. "DEEEEEEMOOOOON BRAAAAAAAKE!"

* [[Character Development]]: Even the most evil, sneaky and/or annoying characters are given ''[[Hidden Depths|reasons]]'' to be the way they are, and chances to get redemption.

* [[Chilly Reception]]: Sora's first few weeks as a Kaleido Stage member are pretty miserable, with Layla picking on her, the rest of the crew following her lead, and even her future [[True Companions]] regarding her as a cheat and a manipulator.

* [[Clingy Jealous Girl]]: May Wong is a half-romantic, half-hero worship version of this, in regards to Leon Oswald (and, somewhat, to Layla as well).

* [[Cool Big Sis]]: Cathy Taymor, Layla's partner and friend from the second season. Also, Pamela from the itinerant circus Sora and Ken visit once.

* [[Establishing Character Moment]]: When Sora chases a thief around ''on borrowed roller blades'' during the first episode.

* [[Et Tu, Brute?]]: Sora puts up with a hell of a lot of grief in the second season -- not that the first season was a picnic, but still. At various points in the storyline, she is demoted, fired, paired up with a partner who verges on sociopathic and spends the whole series struggling to earn the title of Kaleido Star -- which she had won fair and square by the end of the first season, only to be usurped by [[The Minnesota Fats|a newcomer who wields far more power than any newcomer to the troupe has a right to.]] Through most of it, she remains perky and cheerful, convinced that everything will work out all right in the end...but when Layla, Sora's idol, suddenly turns on her and sides with Sora's rival, the poor girl finally cracks.

* [[Fairy Companion]]: Fool

* [[Fan Service]]: (slightly, anyway) It's a series about circus acrobats. How could you ''not'' expect them to have at least one character in a spandex get-up in each episode?

** The time Sora visits Yuri's apartment to talk to him, he is [[Shirtless Scene|shirtless]] the whole scene.

*** What do you expect? The guy who was the producer of this was the producer of [[Sailor Moon]].

** Many of the camera angles in the ''New Wings'' OVA offer rather... convenient... shots of Rosetta and Soras' backsides.

* [[Feminine Women Can Cook]]: A running gag from the second season is having Rosetta facing the woes of maintaining her place more or less in order without making anything explode. (Then again, Rosetta is at most thirteen or so and living on her own for the first time).

* [[Five-Man Band]]:

** Anna Heart, [[The Big Guy]]. Sometimes Jerry the Policeman fits in, too.

** Mia Guillem, [[The Smart Guy]]. {{spoiler|Helped by Ken Robbins and later by Cathy Taymor.}}

** Kalos Eido, [[Mentor Archetype]].

** Rosetta Passel, [[Sixth Ranger]]

** Marion Benigni, [[Tagalong Kid]].

** Jonathan the Baby Seal and Fool the Stage Spirit, [[Team Pet]].

* [[Fluffy Fashion Feathers]]

* [[Genki Girl]]: Sora, Rosetta, Marion

* [[Gentle Giant]]: Jerry the Policeman

** Marion's [[Missing Mom]] was incredibly pretty too.

** Sora's deceased mother was basically an older Sora.

* [[Idiosyncratic Episode Naming]]: All the episodes have the word "sugoi" ("amazing") in the titles

* [[Important Haircut]]: {{spoiler|Layla is given one by Sora in an OVA in order to be "reborn" like a phoenix.}}

* [[It's All About Me]]: When May walks into Kaleido Stage in the second season, she's amazed and pissed off that no one but her sees how wonderful and perfect she is and haven't handed her every lead role over the current star who worked for everything she has. [[Break the Haughty|She gets better]], but she'll really make you want to jam your thumbs in your eyes for about a dozen episodes.

** Leon is the same, in a subtler and colder way. He believes his skill makes him so important that he demands script changes and special treatment at the drop of a hat. {{spoiler|It turns out he even puts his costars out of commission when he decides they are not worthy of being his partner. If he deems them unworthy, there's no point in them ever continuing to perform.}}

* [[Jerkass]]: Leon Oswald and May Wong, at least initially. To a lesser degree, Layla at the beginning of the first season.

* [[Kick the Dog]]: {{spoiler|Yuri's trap for Sophie that causes her death. Julie and Charlotte using Layla to ruin Mia, Sora and Anna's role upgrades in ''Cinderella.'' Later, Julia and Charlotte ''again'', telling Layla about the [[Power Trio]] trying to help her with her [[Disappeared Dad]] so, when things don't work the way the trio wanted, Layla gets upset at them. Yuri seizing the Kaleido Stage as revenge against Kalos [[You Killed My Father|for (supposedly) causing Aaron's death.]] May's behavior prior to the ''Dracula'' auditions, various stuff that Leon does prior to his defrosting -- and ''especially'' when he ''deliberately injures Mey solely to tell her that she's not worthy of being his partner.'' No matter what May had done, ''no one'' deserves that, and specially when it's stated in canon that such a behavior '''caused the death of at least one of Leon's partners, and severely crippled another'''. }}

* [[Lost Aesop]]: In the end, ''was'' it good or not to be competitive? See the entry.

* [[Mai Nakahara]]

* [[Megaton Punch]]: Sora uses this so many times on Fool...

* [[Missing Mom]]: Marion and Layla lost their mothers when they were small girls. Rosetta is distanced from her mom for a long time, until she's fully recruited by the Stage.

* [[Mood Whiplash]]: It often goes from drama to comedy without almost any warning.

* [[My Greatest Failure]]: {{spoiler|Kalos never forgave himself for Aaron's death in the Kaleido Stage.}}

* [[Non-Action Guy]]: Kenneth Robbins.

* [[Not Allowed to Grow Up]]: The whole cast, really, but it's most obvious with Marion, who stays about 10ish, and Jonathan, who remains a baby seal, for what appears to be about two years of elapsed time across the two seasons.

* [[The Ojou]]: Layla is a North American version of this.

* [[The Pollyanna]]: Sora goes just ''too'' often from a normal [[Genki Girl]] to this...

* [[The Power of Friendship]]: That goes without saying.

* [[Pretty in Mink]]: Some of the costumes have fur trim.

* [[Promotion to Parent]]: Leon, in regards to Sophie.

*** Again, hello... [[Sailor Moon]]???

**** And in an interview with Sato, it is revealed that they would often attempt to see how far they could take such. It's in the US singles' releases.

* [[Shout-Out]]: Of course, the whole concept of the Kaleido Stage is a ''huge'' shout-out to the [[Cirque Du Soleil]].

** Anna's posse. C'mon, [[Hanna-Barbera|Hannah and Barbara]]?

* [[Show Within a Show]]: Several, going from fairy tales ("Cinderella," "The Little Mermaid") to literature classics ("Dracula," "Romeo and Juliet"). Arguably the whole point of the setting.

* [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism]]: You have three chances to guess which side this series firmly sits on, and the first two don't count.

* [[Smug Snake]]: {{spoiler|Yuri Killian, in the first season.}}

** Ironically, "Kalos" sounds like ''callous'', which describes him pretty well when he's at his worst.

** It of course serves the "Kalos Eido"/"Kaleido" pun better this way as well. Yes, Kalos apparently named his circus after himself.

** The final single ADV Films DVD release cover takes full advantage of this Fanservice (which see [[She's Got Legs]]).

* [[Takehito Koyasu]]: Fool

* [[Team Mom]]: Sarah is a rather peculiar version of this trope: despite being an efficient dorm supervisor, an [[Idol Singer]] for the Stage and Sora and Co.'s [[Cool Big Sis]], sometimes she can be [[Adult Child|even]] ''[[Adult Child|more]]'' [[Adult Child|child-like]] than her proteges. She gets bonus points for {{spoiler|being in love with [[Team Dad]] Kalos}} though.

** And double bonus {{spoiler|for actually ''getting'' him in the end.}}

** Oddly, Layla is an ex-[[Defrosting Ice Queen]] who possesses traits belonging to ''both'' types.

* [[Television Geography]]: "Cape Mery" can't seem to make up its mind whether it's Los Angeles or San Francisco -- it's got LA's shoreline and palm trees but also San Francisco's hills, vintage streetcars, and a dead-on markup toward the Ferry Building and nearby Amtrak terminal in the second season's opening. (Plus, oddly, just a bit of the concrete canyons of New York City...) And just to confuse the issue even further, the {{spoiler|rising sun over the ocean horizon when Sora performs the Angel Maneuver}} in the final episode makes it clear that the open sea is to the ''east'' of the city -- pretty hard to do anywhere in California. Some viewers suspect that it's actually in Hawaii, not California, which would solve most of these problems (and explain some otherwise extremely fast travel times from Japan).

** The dialogue in episode 22 specifically states that the protagonists are from Los Angeles.

* [[Time to Unlock More True Potential]]: Almost every time Sora needs to expand her skills, she finds someone to put her through an ever more grueling [[Training From Hell]].

* [[Tomboy and Girly Girl]]: Mia and Anna, respectively. Sora is the tomboy when with Layla; with May... it ''[[Tsundere|heavily]]'' depends on May's current mood (and curiously, May ''really'' looks the part of the girly girl, thanks to her [[Rapunzel Hair]] and cute wardrobe).

** Let's not forget Sora and Rosetta. Since both are [[Shorttank|Shorttanks]], they also switch around the roles.

* [[Training From Hell]]: The series is ''infamous'' for this. And [[Never Live It Down|believe it or not]], Sora is ''not'' the only one who has to go through it once and again and again...

* [[Transformation Sequence]]: Sora's explosive costume change {{spoiler|at the climax of the final episode of the second season}} certainly shows the influence of predecessors like ''[[Sailor Moon]]'', even though it's (probably) not magical.

* [[Victorious Childhood Friend]]: {{spoiler|Jerry the Policeman, since he manages to ''marry'' his childhood friend Kate the doctor.}}

* [["Well Done, Son" Guy]]: Layla is a female version of this.

* [[White-Haired Pretty Boy]]: Leon Oswald.

* [[Wide-Eyed Idealist]]: Boy, does Sora get called out for being one of these...