History Characters / Runaways

* UnusualWeaponMounting: Victor has FrickinLaserBeams in his watch.

[[caption-width-right:350:Skrull Form]][[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/xavin_runaways_marvel_comics_skrull_h2_4.jpg]]

* JerkassGenie: He is the reason for every instance of Staff acting like one.

* UnwantedRevival: In the 2017 series, he is ''livid'' that Chase reactivates him because he thought dying would finally prevent him from becoming [[FutreMeScaresMe Victorious]].

* BigBeautifulWoman

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/klara_portraid.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[https://arsenicview.tumblr.com/post/161509511362 Portrait by arsenicview]]]]

* BadassGay: Her being a lesbian doesn't stop her from having awesome powers and using them later on in the series.

* PromotedToParent: It takes a while, but Chase was always the oldest of the Runaways and by the time of the 2017 series the age gap has never been more obvious. He drives them around, is their main source of financial support, and even makes a rota to ensure they do all their chores and get Molly to school on time.

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: They, like their parents, want to rule over an Earth free of humanity. [[spoiler:Gert decides to give them just that - by sending them 999 years into the future, by which point she expects humans will be extinct(Not the case since 999 years would send them to Kang's timeline).]]

* HopelessWar: Until the Runaways defeated their parents, Doc and the J-Team couldn't defeat the Pride with their powers and wealth. Even against new and weaker Pride, Doc Justice can't do more than take down some of their assets.

* {{Hypocrite}}/InsaneTrollLogic: He claims [[Film/StarTrekTheWrathOfKhan "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few"]] to justify aiding his parents in destroying humanity. What he fails to grasp is that this will benefit ''absolutely no one'' [[ItsAllAboutMe except him and the people ''he'' wants to live through the apocalypse]], and that while most of the Pride at least were willing to die so their children could inherit a better earth, Alex just wants to ensure himself, his crush, and their folks can have eternal life.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/klara_prast_runaways_marvel_comics_plants.jpg]]

* {{Adorkable}}: Turbo called him "charmingly fanboyish".

* AmbiguouslyChristian[=/=]AmbiguouslyJewish: It's never been explicitly stated which religion she belongs to. On the one hand, she hails from Bern, a traditional stronghold of the Swiss Reformed Church, and some of her stated beliefs suggest a belief in predestination. On the other hand, she used to be a laborer in the garment industry, which was often a field dominated by Jewish immigrants in the early 20th century, and child marriage was not known to be common in the Swiss Reformed Church, but did sometimes occur in conservative or Orthodox Jewish sects.

* HorrorHunger: He bluntly states several times that the Gibborim, and subsequently, him, needs to feed on [[HumanSacrifice human souls from sacrifices]] to satiate their hunger and to grow. Naturally since the Runaways aren't keen on killing innocent people, they've been trying to get him on regular food and perform non-lethal sacrifices, both to little success. [[spoiler: Sadly, they don't find one in time before he nearly dies and he's only saved when Old Lace drags the body of Doc Justice to him to feed on.]]

* EvilSoundsDeep: According to Nico she would "recognise Mr. Wilder's baritone anywhere."

* KnifeFight: [[spoiler: 1985!Geoffrey briefly engages Chase in one]].

* ManOfWealthAndTaste: Both Katherine and Geoffrey favour expensive suits.

%%[[caption-width-right:326:some caption text]]

[[folder:Matthew]]

Molly's manipulative new friend.

* BadassGrandpa: He's 66 and has muscles and fighting abilities on par with guys like ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}.

* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: He doesn't want Gert on J-Team because she's overweight and he thinks the "good-looking girls" could stand to lose a little weight.

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: They, like their parents, want to rule over an Earth free of humanity. [[spoiler:Gert decides to give them just that - by sending them 999 years into the future, by which point she expects humans will be extinct.]]
* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Gert uses the time machine to send them nearly a millennium into the future, with no guarantee that there will still be humans for them to feed on]].

* BiTheWay: Originally she rejects Karolina because she believes that she is 100% straight. By the time she realises that she likes women too, Karolina has already moved on.

* BiTheWay: In the original series, she dated Alex, but after he turned out to be evil, she jokingly swore off boys. However, when Karolina came out of the closet and tried to kiss her, she rebuffed her, only to end up regretting it when Karolina went away. In the 2017 series, she finally embraces her feelings for Karolina and starts dating her.

* VillainTeamUp: Defied. Apparently they were once offered place in [[ComicBook/XMen Hellfire Club]] but refused.

* {{Gayngst}}: Her ComingOutStory would have enough of this trope considering she's her parent's model daughter, but her crises and angst are only compounded by the revelation that she's a {{Human Alien|s}} with a fiancee, as well as her initial unrequited feelings for Nico.

During their escape, she absorbs her parent's magic staff, "The Staff of One". It allows her to do anything, cast any spell she can think of, but each spell only works once. To summon the staff, her blood must be spilled - she carries a small knife to for just that purpose (which she detests, since she is not, and never has been, a cutter), but [[SubvertedTrope does not always]] [[NoPeriodsPeriod need to use it]].

* {{Jerkass}}: Easily the worst ones in the organization. They barely hide how much contempt they have for their fellow Pride members,take sadistic joy in hurting others, and conspire to betray and kill their own teammates out of hatred and greed for immortality. Notably, while the rest agreed to be parents out of genuine love, Leslie did so [[ItsAllAboutMe because it'd get her on the cover of People magazine.]]

* PowerIncontinence: Matthew implies that she's unable to stop absorbing solar energy once she starts, and it can be triggered outside her control. He also states that absorbing it is paniful for her.

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: He can be just as ruthless as his parents, but at heart Alex isn't truly evil, just hopelessly devoted to pleasing his folks. He doesn't have anything against his team, and eventually tries to reconnect with them, but claims if the world was about to be destroyed, [[ThickerThanWater he'd still want his parents to live over them.]]

* GlamourFailure: [[ZigzaggedTrope Zigzagged.]] Alex is a little traumatized having existed in TheNothingAfterDeath for a few years, but otherwise looks normal. [[spoiler: However, he reveals to Molly that touching him reveals his true nature — that he is nothing more than a reanimated corpse. Those who experience it still see his face as normal, but his touch is that of cold, dead flesh.]]

* RoguesGalleryTransplant: The initial secret villain of the Runaways before his death. Since getting revived, he became a villain to [[ComicBook/LukeCage Power Man]] and [[ComicBook/ImmortalIronFist Iron Fist]].

* TokenEvilTeammate: In the 2017 series, he is allowed to rejoin the team only because he has a unique understanding of how the Gibborim think. This is because he spent a year listening to them in Limbo. [[spoiler:He naturally comes up with the idea to kill one of the Seed to obtain their power.]]
* TurnOutLikeHisFather: [[spoiler:He ends up becoming a criminal boss like his father post-resurrection in ''Power Man and Iron Fist''.]]

* Main/BigBeautifulWoman

* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Gert's biggest flaw is this. She is utterly insecure because of her appearance, lack of athletic capability and relative mundanity compared to her friends (she only has her psychic link to Old Lace and even then, she loses that to Chase when she dies.) As such, she tends to snark at her friends or have a condescending behavior with her intelligence. Despite that, she is more content to remain in the background rather than try and go for the leadership role, thus not taking any real responsabilities and not putting herself in a situation where misdecisions could lead to problems.

* TheMillstone: Post-resurrection, her control over Old Lace has become unreliable, her combat skills are about what you'd expect from a teenager who disdains sports, and since she can't get a job and refuses to go back to school, she spends a lot of time lounging around the Hostel.
** This behavior persists when she's a reluctant member of the J-Team. Given how she has no more control over Old Lace and expresses no desire to physically better herself, she is not on the field team. She does end up learning about MissionControl with Matthew.

* ProperlyParanoid: [[spoiler: Issue #30 reveals she was right to be uncomfortable with the group subbing as the new J-Team when she gets into Doc Justice's files and discovers hard evidence he orchestrated the deaths of at least several of his teammates for the sake of keeping the J-Team both marketable and in the public eye. And he wants Karolina dead to serve that goal.]]

* ChildhoodFriendRomance: [[spoiler:She's known Nico for a long time, and has always loved her deep down.]]
* ClosetKey: [[spoiler:Implied to be this for Nico.]]

* {{Gayngst}}: Her ComingOutStory would have enough of this trope considering she's her parent's model daughter, but her crises and angst are only compounded by the revelation that she's a HumanAlien with a fiancee, as well as her initial unrequited feelings for Nico.

* IJustWantToBeNormal: The revelation that she is not even human, along with more personal crises of identity, lead to severe depression. She at first even prefers to tell people she is a mutant than admit she is an alien.

* HowDareYouDieOnMe: He goes kind of crazy after [[spoiler:Gert's death. At his lowest, he considers sacrificing an innocent stranger to the Gibborim in order to bring her back. When he realizes that he doesn't have it in him, he tries to sacrifice himself instead.]]

* TheChainsOfCommanding: She has never been comfortable with being the team leader, and the fact that her tenure included Gert's death did not help.
** Gert lampshades this and it seems to be why she's okay with following Doc.

* DealWithTheDevil: [[spoiler:In the 2017 series, the spirit inhabiting her staff agrees to change the terms of their contract so that she no longer has to cut herself, but in exchange, she has agreed to let him have her body is she casts a certain number of spells.]]

* AscendedFangirl: Shown both in her original crush on Wolverine[[note]]"Can I touch your hair, Wolverine? My friend Karolina said that you use gel, but I think it just grows that way 'cause you're a mutant, oh, and I'm a mutant, too! I used to have a poster of you and Doop in my bedroom when I was little, but I think you're even cooler than Doop, and I liked that one time when you and the other X-Men met the Fantastic Four and..."[[/note]] and in her visit to the X-Men in Vol 3 #10, where throughout the tour she (again) slips into overexcited motormouth mode.

* CuteBruiser: An adorable young girl who punched ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} out of a church.

* IntergenerationalFriendship: With ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, of all people.

* {{Mutant}}: Her powers come from the mutant X-gene like the ComicBook/XMen.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:She absentmindedly left Abigail's youth-freezing cupcake out in the open, which is when Julie found it and ate it in a moment of depression. While thankfully it turned out Abigail had an antidote and Julie's age was properly restored, this just served as the final nail in the coffin of Julie and Karolina's relationship.]]

* AffirmativeActionGirl: GenderInverted. Victor was introduced to fill the "second male" void left by Alex's death at the end of the first arc, and essentially serves as his replacement being the permanent male member of the Runaways alongside Chase. Though unlike Alex, he's ''not'' a NonActionGuy.

* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Already unhappy with being resurrected and convinced that he's doomed to kill Gert as Victorious did in the BadFuture, he starts suffering from severe hallucinations and decides to deal with it by killing himself.]]

* ChildSoldier: Before coming to Earth, they were trained to be a Super-Skrull.

* {{Flight}}: Thanks to possessing Johnny Storm's fire powers.

* {{Invisibility}}: Thanks to possessing Sue Storm's invisibility powers.

* RubberMan: Thanks to possessing Reed Richard's powers.

* SuperStrength: Comes from Ben Grimm's powers.

* TransgenderFetishization: Or rather genderfluid. Initially created to act as a romantic/sexual partner for a lesbian character, although CharacterisationMarchesOn indeed as the comic progresses. Otherwise, considered very attractive in their natural form.

* AbusiveParents: Her mother thought her power was unnatural and was happy to arrange a marriage for her (even if her husband was old enough to be her father.)

* HappilyAdopted: [[spoiler:The 2017 series reveals she's being adopted by a loving gay couple and finally has a sense of stability that wasn't present when she was with the group.]]
* HasTwoDaddies: [[spoiler:Her foster parents are two gay men, which surprises Nico given Klara's previous views on homosexuality. Klara apologizes to Nico for her past beliefs by saying the group showed her she was wrong and love is all that matters.]]

* PowerMakesYourHairGrow: [[spoiler:Once he's fed on Doc Justice's soul, not only is he returned to full health, but his horns grows even longer, along with several more accessories spontaneously appearing on his face and horns.]]

* VillainWithGoodPublicity: All of them maintain covers of being fairly well-liked rich L.A. socialites.

* BigBad: Geoffrey is the leader of The Pride, in the first arc. [[spoiler:His 1985 incarnation is the BigBad of the second arc]].

* AndIMustScream: Subjected to this by Nico when the team is sent back in time - despite fully knowing that [[spoiler:their actions will lead to Gert's death, they are forced to carry on the plot by magic.]]
* BadassMoustache: Dale sports a heavy moustache, and is a formidable time traveler.

* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:As the Marine Vivarium collapses around them, they sadly reflect on what they've been reduced to, watching their daughter escape with her friends.]]

* VillainsWithGoodPublicity: Prior to their deaths, they ran a charity, the Dean Foundation, which has somehow managed to survive the scandal of having alien warlords as its founders.

* PedoHunt: There was a seventh member of the Pride at one point, Eli, but the Steins had him expelled after they found him hanging out in Chase's room.

** She did receive a bit of characterization in the Iron Man storyline... in that she's an InsufferableGenius who hates Tony Stark and [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Reed Richards]].

* EvenEvilHasStandards: [[ComicBook/XMen Emma Frost]] of all people thinks they were monsters.

* {{Mutant}}: Their powers come from the mutant X-gene like the ComicBook/XMen. Seems to have been retconned in the 2017 series, which revealed that [[spoiler:Molly's grandmother genetically engineered their abilities, explaining why they had the same powers.]]
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: [[spoiler:Their intent to betray the rest of the Pride (aside from the Deans) is what inspires Alex to found the Runaways in an effort to stop them, which ultimately leads to the thwarting of the Gibborim's plan in its entirety.]]

* TokenGoodTeammate: ''Good'' is a relative word with The Pride, but Robert is shown to have more hesitation about planetary genocide than his fellow members, and he and Tina are the only ones [[spoiler:shown actively helping the kids escape when The Gibborim declares RocksFallEveryoneDies.]]

* '''Lotus''': A girl who often dresses in archaic-style dresses and loves Renaissance fairs. She quickly gets the hang of magic and [[spoiler:is later forced by Chase to help him find the Gibborim in hopes of bringing Gert back to life.]]
* '''Oscar''': A temp worker who is often fired for playing online RPGs at work. He figures out the decoder ring and partially translates the Abstract. He is [[spoiler:accidentally killed when they try to resurrect Alex.]]

* RocksFallEveryoneDies: [[spoiler:The Gibborim are surprisingly quick to throw up their hands and declare "screw it" after it all goes up in smoke, opting to kill their servants with the power they gave them.]]
* YouHaveFailedMe: [[spoiler:After the Runaways prevent the end of the world, the Gibborim choose to kill all twelve of the Pride rather than simply starting over.]]

* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:Gert uses the time machine to send them nearly a millennium into the future, with no guarantee that there will still be humans for them to feed on.]]

* AbusiveParents: [[spoiler:He's done a number on Matthew's self-esteem and treats him like a hired hand instead of his own son. Doc makes passive-aggressive digs against Matthew's weight (and adds he inherited the problem from his deceased mom Sarah Jo), and as #30 shows did a good job of brainwashing Matthew into believing all the deaths Doc orchestrated were for a good cause: himself.]]

* TheBluebeard: [[spoiler:His files show that his decision to kill off the second Princess Justice coincided with his "personal feeling" rating reaching -6. And his decision to set up Karolina to die came after his personal feeling rating towards her reached -1. It's very likely that his enthusiasm for "Fallen Princess" operations came from his marital problems.]]
* BrokenAce: On the surface, he appears to be a capable, courageous and cunning hero who wants to do the right thing and admired by the population. He even becomes a powerful pillar of stability and guidance for the Runaways. However, he is plagued by what is a long career of failures given the loss of his wife and comrades as well as subsequent members of the J-Team leaving (or possibly dying.) Additionally, his war against the Pride has left in serious finacial troubles and thus [[AllForNothing jeopardizing everything he has worked for in his life.]]

* GreenEyedMonster: [[spoiler:By issue #30, he immediately becomes jealous of Karolina getting more time in the spotlight and begins conspiring to kill her off.]]

* ItsAllAboutMe: [[spoiler:All those past members of the J-Team who died? As Doc views it, they were necessary sacrifices to keep the J-Team, and more importantly himself, relevant in the eyes of the public.]]

* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler:Gert gets into his computer and sees all the files on the previous J-Team members had details on plans to exploit their image and their deaths, revealing he basically set up many of them to die to either improve the J-Team's image or increase the team's market value. It also turns out Ashley, the criminal he's got the guys going after at that very moment, was [=SPF=] of Matthew's team and it's strongly implied Doc's forcing her to attack Karolina.]]

* TeamDad: He acts as such to the team, taking them in and encourages their growth and capabilities. Granted, it's revealed that his motives for doing so are not entirely altruistic... plus [[spoiler:his relationship with his actual son Matthew is a bit complicated.]]

* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: [[spoiler:The final issue of "Cannon Fodder" reveals that he either used to be, or still is, in a relationship with Ashley Pearson.]]

* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler:His surname, Caniglia, is only one letter off from ''canaglia'', which means "villain" in Italian.]]

* GenerationXerox: Every girl who's ever held the mantle has been blonde [[spoiler:and each of the first three eventually became one of Doc's wives.]]

* {{Stripperific}}: Her costume was essentially a bunch of thin straps wrapped around her body and a mask. When Nico tried out the costume, Gert joked if anyone was gonna shoot at Nico she should draw attention to her nipples since they're ''mostly'' protected.

* '''The Witchbreaker''': A magician with a miko-inspired costume. She tortures witches, aiming to bring out their true potential. She is [[spoiler:Nico's great-grandmother. She also appears to have some knowledge of the future concerning her descendants.]]

* TheSlowPath: [[spoiler:After Lillie turned down Victor's offer to join her in the future, she spent the next 100 years trying to figure out a way to send him back in time.]]

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Through it happened offscreen, Kingpin's description paints Pusher Man's demise as very unpleasant.]]

* AffablyEvil: [[spoiler:Her only real goal is that she does not want to lose Molly the way she lost Gene and Alice, and Molly was fine living with her because she was only "sort of" bad. That said, she's nowhere near as depraved as Gene and Alice became when they formed the Pride.]]

* CrazyCatLady: She takes in a lot of strays, [[spoiler:and uses them to spy on people.]]

* EvilAllAlong: She's the reason Gene and Alice had powers, and it's implied she [[spoiler:not only experiments on stray cats but other people as well. There's also the question of cloning Gene and Alice.]]

* ForScience: [[spoiler:Her motives for giving her children their abilities and for wanting to give Gert powers as well, just for the sake of making new scientific discoveries instead of for a power trip or attempt to rule the world.]]

* WellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler:Whereas Gene and Alice basically reveled in everything they reaped by joining the Pride, such as using their powers for wealth and to torture anyone who got in their way, Dr. Hayes's only real concern with the experiments she carries out seems to be just for the sake of scientific exploration. With her resources and intellect she could've easily became a criminal threat on the same level as her children, but didn't. She in fact makes it clear she viewed the Pride as deplorable and blames them for Gene and Alice's death, saying she gladly would've given them the power they sought from the group if they'd been more patient.]]

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: [[spoiler:She wanted to stay young forever, and now she will. Only, after Julie Power takes the antidote Abigail hypocritically hoarded does it mean she'll now experience all the drawbacks of this wish instead of only getting the perks.]]

* TheFakeCutie: She may look like and act like a cute thirteen-year-old, but [[spoiler:she's much older than she looks and she's got a hidden mean streak.]]

* {{Hypocrite}}: For all her nagging about how horrible it is to [[spoiler:grow up and her claims that it's wonderful to remain thirteen forever, she held onto the antidote Amora gave her and was willing to use it in case she outlived her parents and had no one else as a companion. When she tries to withhold the cure from Julie Power on the grounds she really will be thirteen forever, Gert and Nico point out she had fifty years to change her mind while Julie never agreed to halting her youth in the first place.]]
* NeverGrewUp: [[spoiler:Abigail halted her aging at thirteen, and wants Molly to do the same.]]

* OlderThanTheyLook: [[spoiler:She and her parents actually acknowledged she was getting older even though her body physically stayed thirteen years old, and there are pictures of her graduating from high school and celebrating her 20th birthday even though she still looks like a preteen.]]

* AWizardDidIt: Every unexplained and then forgotten power-up or instance of the Staff acting out is explained by being dependent on his whims. Except for the Witch Arm, since he wouldn't likely call it pathetic if it was his work. He is, however, responsible for its disappearance and Nico suddenly regrowing her arm precisely because he was appalled by it.