History Film / Skyhigh

From the creators of ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'', about... well, you just read it. The high school and SuperHero tropes blend well enough (especially when PlayedForLaughs), it's almost a shame nobody thought of it sooner, unless they did and it [[DevelopmentHell just didn't get made until recently]] (*cough*[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_High Hero High]]*cough*). Featured a surprising amount of high-level names, including Michael Angarano as Will Stronghold, KurtRussell as The Commander, Lynda "WonderWoman" Carter as the principal, BruceCampbell as Coach Boomer, and MaryElizabethWinstead as Gwen Grayson.

A 2005 live-action Disney flick jumping on both the {{Superhero}} and ''HarryPotter'' [[FollowTheLeader bandwagons]]. Revolves around a kid named Will Stronghold, who is the son of the world's two most famous superheroes and is about to start high school at their alma mater: the titular Sky High, a school exclusively for people with superpowers. Between dealing with GirlNextDoor Layla ([[GreenThumb plant controller]]), son-of-archnemesis JerkWithAHeartOfGold Warren Peace ([[PlayingWithFire fireball thrower]]) and the typical cliques of high school (being either a hero or [[strike:a {{sidekick}}]] "Hero Support"), Will must also face the embarrassing fact that, despite his pedigree, he does not seem to ''have'' any superpowers. At least not yet...

->''"The kids who [[{{Spider-Man}} get bit by radioactive insects]] or [[SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker fall into a vat of toxic waste]], their powers usually show up the next day. Or - [[RealityEnsues they die]]."''

* AmbiguouslyGay: Mr. Boy. "Blue just makes my eyes ''pop''."

* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Mr. Boy, for Jetstream. Justified in-story, in that a hero like her could never notice someone in 'Hero Support' - not with the strapping, handsome, charismatic Commander around.)

* ShoutOut: Gwen Grayson's name may be a reference to prominent comic book characters '''Gwen''' Stacy and Dick '''Grayson'''. It is also a reference to the tendency for comic book characters to have alliterative names.

* StevenUlyssesPerhero: Basically the same as PunnyName above, but used so much that it deserves both entries.

** TheLancer: Zack. His useless powers contrast Will's standard and easily used powers. Also, he's super confident despite them while Will was having an indentity crisis.

* EvilPlan: The BigBad wants revenge but that's actuall a sidenote to their real agenda. [[spoiler: turning everyone in the school into babies and repurposing the school as a villain training center.]]

** The instructors state that Will has no powers...after he has already taken several hospitalizations worth of
punishment during tryouts with no injury. So being Made of Iron is pretty much expected.

* {{Technopath}}: Gwen Grayson

** Played straight for most of the movie, as most of the kids' power uses fall under this heading. Layla spruces up houseplants (and picks fruit off of trees), Gwen helps Will in mad science class, Zack illuminates a classroom when the power goes out, Speed and Lash bully kids and dominate gym class, etc.

->''"The kids who [[{{Spider-Man}} get bit by radioactive insects]] or [[TheJoker fall into a vat of toxic waste]], their powers usually show up the next day. Or - [[RealityEnsues they die]]."''

From the creators of ''KimPossible'', about... well, you just read it. The high school and SuperHero tropes blend well enough (especially when PlayedForLaughs), it's almost a shame nobody thought of it sooner, unless they did and it [[DevelopmentHell just didn't get made until recently]] (*cough*[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_High Hero High]]*cough*). Featured a surprising amount of high-level names, including Michael Angarano as Will Stronghold, KurtRussell as The Commander, Lynda "WonderWoman" Carter as the principal, BruceCampbell as Coach Boomer, and MaryElizabethWinstead as Gwen Grayson.

Not to be confused with the [[Manga/{{Skyhigh}} incredibly obscure seinen manga by Takahashi Tsutomu]]. Compare ''{{PS238}}''.

* {{Acrofatic}}: Speed, one of the supervillian/bullies, was a Flash-like speedster in spite of being overweight.

* BatmanGambit: A minor one in the beginning of the film. Will's parents defeat a giant robot terrorizing the city and the Commander takes a part of the robot (its eye) as a trophy. [[spoiler:That robot eye is still functioning and being used by Royal Pain (who sent the robot to attack the city in the first place) to secretly spy on the heroes.]] Royal Pain knew he would do just this ("His ego's bigger than a giant robot") and the reporter says its a habit but if he didn't then plans falls flat, and that would detrail the entire EvilPlan.

* CanNotSpitItOut

** More like [[spoiler:[[ChekhovsGun Chekhov's Pacifier]]]] - technically, it's an actual gun ''called'' [[spoiler:the Pacifier]].

* {{Dating Catwoman}}: Warren was the result of superhero and supervillain parents who ''continue to battle each other''.
* DeadpanSnarker: Magenta. She even dryly sings the aforementioned "Rudolph the Red Noise Reindeer" line to tease Zack. And Warren Peace.

** TheLancer: Zack. His useless powers contrast Will's standard and easily used powers. Also, he's super confident despite them while Will was having an indentity crisis.
** TheSmartGuy: Ethan, Magenta. You gotta be smart to make use of their powers.
** TheBigGuy: Warren. (tallest, biggest, and physical-based (albeit elemental) powers).
** TheChick: Layla. Not the only girl but the one who acts 'girly' and is a love interest for the hero.

'''Ron:''' [''crestfallen''] Get help. Right.

-->"The kids who get bit by radioactive insects or fall into a vat of toxic waste, their powers usually show up the next day. Or - they die."

** The instructors state that Will has no powers...after he has already taken several hospitalizations worth of
punishment during tryouts with no injury. So being Made of Iron is pretty much expected.

** Nurse Spex mentions getting kicked through a wall by Will's dad. Make of this what you will.

* [[spoiler: MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Seems to be hinted at with Gwen, until we learn ''she's'' actually the Mad Scientist herself. She's still a [[LargeHam Hammy]] [[VillainousHarlequin Evil Clown]]'s Beautiful Adoptive Daughter, if that counts]].

* MeaningfulName: Warren Peace, the son of a hero and a villain. [[IncrediblyLamePun It's like War and Peace]], [[DontExplainTheJoke GET IT?]]

* OldSuperhero: Chronically unappreciated All-American Boy is the past-his-prime sidekick without the retired superhero. His assigned mentor, The Commander, is still operating at his peak, while All-American Boy is now teaching "hero support" classes in the titular hero school. Partially subverted as All-American Boy is all but decrepit, and is still able to help the heroes.

* RedHerring: Warren's dad. But not [[spoiler:Gwen's]].

* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The trailer makes it seem like the main conflict of the movie is the main character's lack of super powers. Then, approximately 10 seconds later, it shows him with super strength and flight — at which point the viewer realizes there's probably more to this movie that they're not telling him, and there goes the element of surprise.

-->"Remember when we used to use real citizens?"

* DeadpanSnarker: Magenta. She even dryly sings the aforementioned "Rudolph the Red Noise Reindeer" line to tease Zack.

** TheChick: Not the only girl but the one who acts 'girly' and is a love interest for the hero.

** A line from this song is actually sung at one point in the movie.

* BrokenAesop: The story is mean to show that separating people into groups is bad, but it serves a vital purpose in Sky High -- mainly, it keeps the sidekicks from getting killed by something they can't handle. If Magenta (who only shapeshifts into a guinea pig) tried fighting the Giant Robot from early in the film... It's even worse for Zach (who just glows) and Ethan (who melts), since their powers could easily be replaced with utility belt items (Flashlight and Oil Slick, respectively).
** Not really. The Aesop is more "The Powers Don't Make The Super Hero" than "Work together". Even with their "[[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway lame]]" powers, they can get by with [[HeartIsAnAwesomePower creative uses]]. And that without mentioning the super heroes who ''don't'' have any super powers, and aren't mentioned at all in the film.
*** "You don't need Hero-class powers to be a hero" rings a little hollow when the main character develops not one but ''two'' top-tier powers which which to impress his classmates and save the day. Multiple sub-tier powers can, with the right set of circumstances, provide vital background assistance; or you can single-handedly overpower a cheerleader army with your GreenThumb, be the main muscle through PlayingWithFire, or save ''everyone in '''and''' below school'' by virtue of being a FlyingBrick.
*** Though do note, a lot of the Aesop depended on how the Sidekicks were ''treated''; though there was a practical purpose in isolating them and the main hero ended up saving the day, a lot of the conflict stemmed from the fact the sidekicks were treated like second-rate trash and the hero learned to interact and empathize with them.
* TheCallPutMeOnHold: Will. [[spoiler: At least until his powers activate]]

* ChekhovsGun: More like [[spoiler:[[ChekhovsGun Chekhov's Pacifier]]]] - technically, it's an actual gun ''called'' [[spoiler:the Pacifier]].
** Of course it's only used for one scene. You have a power weapon to that can render enemies powerless and 'stop using it'?
** The business card of Ron Wilson, Bus Driver.

* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: There's a prevalent theme in pairing up characters with complementary color themes.
** Specifically, Will wears almost exclusively red, white and blue, plant girl Layla wears green,and human glow stick Zach wears neon and white. Justified, in that you would want to play up your powers to impress your classmates. Besides, if your parents are superheroes with similar powers, similar colors would be included in their costumes. Because they like those colours, you would be exposed to them throughout your childhood.

* HarmlessFreezing: Several characters are frozen in various ways. It's treated lightly, but I can't think of any point where we've seen a frozen character unfrozen, and at one point we see two guys who were frozen quite a while earlier, still stuck there, entombed in ice... So Yeah. Possibly, horribly averted.
** Easy to miss, but after Mr Medulla freezes a student in Mad Science class he does tell someone else to thaw him out. As with the two guys earlier, it's clearly harmless in context.
* HeroesWantRedheads: Layla.

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[EscapeFromNewYork Snake]] has super powers!
** So does [[ArmyOfDarkness Ash]] - or is it [[BurnNotice Sam Axe]]?
** Is that [[SuperTroopers Rod Farva]]/[[{{Beerfest}} Landfill]] driving the bus?! I thought he got suspended ''because'' of an incident with a school bus!
** [[Series/{{Community}} Dean Pelton]] is [[ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Ramona Flowers']] father/[[spoiler:annoying sidekick.]]
** [[NewsRadio Dave Nelson]] as Mr. Boy.
* HeyItsThatVoice: You may recognize Chester Timmerman as a certain [[SpongebobSquarepants sea sponge]].
** [[LiloAndStitch Pleakley]] is apparently a mad scientist, now.
** And PatrickWarburton provides the voice of the BigBad.

'''Ron:''' [crestfallen] Get help. Right.

* ILoveNuclearPower: Referred to by the school nurse

* MadeOfIron: The instructors state that Will has no powers...after he has already taken several hospitalizations worth of punishment during tryouts with no injury. So being Made of Iron is pretty much expected.
** Not to mention Warren gets thrown face first into a concrete overhang, falls, and hits a table hard enough to splinter it to pieces, is thrown ''through'' a wall into a pillar hard enough to ''nearly break it in half'' and then gets up, looking not the worse for wear, except for the debris all over him, and ''goes back for more''. Surely, that boy is made of stronger stuff.
** Given that Will inherited both his parents' powers and Warren also have two super-powered parents, it's possible that Warren has MadeOfIron as his secondary superpower along with PlayingWithFire.
** He says "'Think I can't take a hit?" when he walks back in, so it's ''possible'' it's an actual power. More likely it's just a genre convention, though

* [[spoiler: MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Seems to be hinted at with Gwen, until we learn ''she's'' actually the Mad Scientist herself.]]
** [[spoiler:She's still a [[LargeHam Hammy]] [[VillainousHarlequin Evil Clown]]'s Beautiful Adoptive Daughter, if that counts]].

* MundaneUtility: Subverted when Warren offers to heat up Layla's now cold meal. She protests that they're not supposed to use their powers outside the school, but he explains he was just gonna put it in the microwave.

* NeverTrustATrailer: Not sure if it counts, but this troper has seen advertisements for this on DisneyChannel (with their tradition of playing movies that are years old) that had convinced this troper (who had not seen the movie yet) that Layla, the plant girl, was the villain.
* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Will gets tossed out a window... [[spoiler: and discovers he can fly]].
** This is actually Foreshadowed (albeit subtly) when he's had his FirstKiss with Gwen: [[spoiler: He shoots out his arm in a triumphant punch like {{Superman}} and ''flies along the street'', grabbing a post and swinging on it to slow himself. He probably thought it was just his SuperStrength which elevated him, or maybe was too ecstatic to really notice (he's a teenager); or perhaps he took note but just manage to master it until he needed to.]] It must be remembered that [[spoiler: his mother's power is flight, and so it's not implausible to inherit abilities from ''both'' his parents.]]
* NoPlansNoPrototypeNoBackup: [[spoiler:The Pacifier. Despite being built by Royal Pain, the whole plan rests on getting it back from the Strongholds. It seems Royal Pain just could not build another.]]
** [[spoiler:Possibly justified by the original being a group design based on the picture of the science club. Also, she seems to have forgotten everything about her past life, while retaining her powers. She didn't ''know'' how to make it from scratch, and even if she did, she's a supervillain. She'd steal it just for poetic revenge.]]
*** [[spoiler: Also possibly justified by the fact that she's a technopath rather than an actual genius. She can make stuff but might not really understand them. Reference the number of times Forge has created stuff and never been able to create them or undo them again.]]

* OperationJealousy: Layla started a fake relationship with JerkWithAHeartOfGold Warren Peace in order to annoy Will. Warren, who disliked Will for his own reasons, was happy to oblige.
** This may have lead to a RelationshipWritingFumble when Will and Layla went through their RelationshipUpgrade, as Warren and Layla did seem to have more attraction between them than the OfficialCouple. However, see WordOfGod.

* ThoseTwoActors: You know who else was in ''The Tick?'' [[spoiler:Patrick Warburton, who provides Sue's Royal Pain voice.]]

* WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway: Subverted -- even the "lame" powers [[PlotTailoredToTheParty turn out to be useful at least once]], and several could be easily be used for espionage and/or utility purposes.

* ClarkKenting: Parodied with Mr. and Mrs. Stronghold, who both wear thick glasses. While Mr. Stronghhold accessories with vaguely 50s-style clothing, Mrs. Stronghold just dresses like a normal mom. A normal, HotLibrarian HotMom.

* AlphaBitch: Penny. "[[JerkAss Sorry, all full]]." She's apparently the ''entirety'' of the cheerleading squad, as well.

** [[{{Community}} Dean Pelton]] is [[ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Ramona Flowers']] father/[[spoiler:annoying sidekick.]]

* ChekhovsGun: More like [[spoiler:[[ChekhovsGun Chekhov's Pacifier]]]].
** Technically, it's an actual gun ''called'' [[spoiler:the Pacifier]].

** [=~Me's A Crowd~=]: Penny.

From the creators of ''KimPossible'', about... well, you just read it. The high school and SuperHero tropes blend well enough (especially when PlayedForLaughs), it's almost a shame nobody thought of it sooner, unless they did and it [[DevelopmentHell just didn't get made until recently]] (*cough*[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_High Hero High]]*cough*). Featured a surprising amount of high-level names, including Michael Angarano as Will Stronghold, KurtRussell as The Commander, Lynda "WonderWoman" Carter as the principal, BruceCampbell as Coach Boomer, and MaryElizabethWinstead as Gwen Grayson. [[{{Tsundere}} Many critics and reviewers admitted that, upon viewing the film, they didn't dislike it]].

** [[http://thrythlind.livejournal.com/1049.html I've talked about the multiple Broken Aesops myself.]]

* UnfortunateImplications: [[spoiler:Will gong out with Gwen, who also turns out to be Royal Pain, who is quite a bit older than Will.]] Borders on paedophilia if you think about it.

** MaryElizabethWinstead and Kurt Russel were also in Deathproof