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* TitleDrop: Narrator Sandy recalls looking in the shed containing the "car" and thinking the scene is like a modern art exhibit, called something like "From A Buick 8".
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* MocksteryTale: It has the attributes of a detective story, but in fact, it is all about coming to terms with the fact that some mysteries ''cannot'' be solved.
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!!Tropes:
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* ArcWords: Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.
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* ArcWords: ArcWords:
** Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.
** Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.
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* AskAStupidQuestion: the following conversation between Tony Schoondist and George, when the former orders the latter to get a pair of gerbils plus a cage so they can test if being inside the Buick is dangerous:
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* AskAStupidQuestion: the The following conversation between Tony Schoondist and George, when the former orders the latter to get a pair of gerbils plus a cage so they can test if being inside the Buick is dangerous:
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* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:The Neo-Nazi Brian Lippy, who was arrested for reckless driving and beating his girlfriend, is "eaten" by the Buick after it's implied he tried to hide in the trunk.]]
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* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:The Neo-Nazi Brian Lippy, Lippy]], who was arrested for reckless driving and beating his girlfriend, is "eaten" by the Buick after it's implied he tried to hide in the trunk.]]
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* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged. The bulk of the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
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* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged.Zig-zagged. The bulk of the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
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* HauntedTechnology: the Buick.
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* HauntedTechnology: the The Buick.
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* HumansAreCthulhu: [[spoiler:The one thing that makes it out of the Buick's trunk alive sees the officers as just as mind-breakingly horrible as they see it.]]
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* HumansAreCthulhu: HumansAreCthulhu:
** [[spoiler:The one thing that makes it out of the Buick's trunk alive sees the officers as just as mind-breakingly horrible as they see it.]]
** [[spoiler:The one thing that makes it out of the Buick's trunk alive sees the officers as just as mind-breakingly horrible as they see it.]]
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* [[spoiler: MercyKill: The first time something comes out of the Buick that lives long enough for the officers to interact with it, the station dog, Mister Dillon, goes nuts and attacks it, apparently ingesting some of its flesh. The poor dog starts burning from the inside out, and one of the officers decides to shoot him, as there is nothing else they can do to help him.]]
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* [[spoiler: MercyKill: The first time something comes out of the Buick that lives long enough for the officers to interact with it, [[spoiler: the station dog, Mister Dillon, Dillon]], goes nuts and attacks it, apparently ingesting some of its flesh. The [[spoiler:The poor dog dog]] starts burning from the inside out, and one of the officers decides to shoot him, as there is nothing else they can do to help him.]]
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* [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone My God, What Have We Done?]]: [[spoiler: After they kill the previously mentioned "live birth" creature, Shirley says "We killed a ''thinking being.'' That's murder."]]
* NothingIsScarier: [[spoiler: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a policeman's hat belonging to Ennis Rafferty, and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.]]
* NothingIsScarier: [[spoiler: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a policeman's hat belonging to Ennis Rafferty, and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.]]
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* [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone My God, What Have We Done?]]: [[spoiler: MyGodWhatHaveIDone: After they kill [[spoiler: the previously mentioned "live birth" creature, creature]], Shirley says "We killed a ''thinking being.'' That's murder."]]
"
* NothingIsScarier: [[spoiler: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in theBuick Buick]] is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a policeman's hat belonging to Ennis Rafferty, and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.]]
* NothingIsScarier: [[spoiler: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the
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* DeliverUsFromEvil: Discussed in its gender-flipped form. One character mentions that sometimes crooks straighten themselves out after becoming fathers, but that more often it just means that they have one more person to victimise.
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* PoliceCodeForEverything: Played with; Troop D doesn't standardly have a code for dealing with supernatural cars, but they come up with "Code D" to use in case they need to inform each other about the Buick over the radio.
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* BaitAndSwitch: In the final chapter, set 4 years after the rest of the story, it is strongly suggested that [[spoiler:Ned is killed in a car crash; the car was Curtis' chevrolet and it is mentioned that SC Dearborn will have to inform the victims mother and sisters]]. The twist: [[spoiler: it was actually Eddy J. who was in the car, having bought it from Ned earlier. Ned is alive and well and has just joined Troop D]].
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* BaitAndSwitch: In the final chapter, set 4 years after the rest of the story, it is strongly suggested that [[spoiler:Ned is killed in a car crash; the car was Curtis' chevrolet and it is mentioned that SC Dearborn will have to inform the victims mother and sisters]]. The twist: [[spoiler: it was actually Eddy Eddie J. who was in the car, having bought it from Ned earlier. Ned is alive and well and has just joined Troop D]].
* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged. The bulk of the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
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* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged. The bulk of the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
* HauntedTechnology
* HauntedTechnology
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* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged. The bulk of HauntedTechnology: the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
* HauntedTechnologyBuick.
* HauntedTechnology
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* ExtremelyShortTimespan: zig-zagged. The bulk of the story is set on a single evening with all members of Troop D telling Ned about the history of the Buick and Curtis' time on the force. The stories they tell him however span a time period of 25 years.
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* BaitAndSwitch: In the final chapter, set 4 years after the rest of the story, it is strongly suggested that [[spoiler:Ned is killed in a car crash; the car was Curtis' chevrolet and it is mentioned that SC Dearborn will have to inform the victims mother and sisters]]. The twist: [[spoiler: it was actually Eddy J. who was in the car, having bought it from Ned earlier. Ned is alive and well and has just joined Troop D]].
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* AskAStupidQuestion: the following conversation between Tony Schoondist and George, when the former orders the latter to get a pair of gerbils plus a cage so they can test if being inside the Buick is dangerous:
-->'''George''': Should I get them some food, too?
-->'''Tony''': Absolutely not. We're going to buy a couple of gerbils and then let them starve to death out in the shed.
-->'''George''': [[SarcasmBlind Really?]] That seems sort of mean to-
-->'''Tony''': Get them food George, yes.
-->'''George''': Should I get them some food, too?
-->'''Tony''': Absolutely not. We're going to buy a couple of gerbils and then let them starve to death out in the shed.
-->'''George''': [[SarcasmBlind Really?]] That seems sort of mean to-
-->'''Tony''': Get them food George, yes.
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* EvilDetectingDog: Mister Dillon, Troop D's German Shepherd mascot, reacts violently to the car whenever he gets near it. It's enough proof to the cops that the car is indeed something bad.
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* FromBadToWorse: The "worst day ever", as described by Shirley, starts with [[spoiler:a chemical tanker colliding with a school bus, causing all of Troop D to head to the accident, leaving her alone with Huddie and Mister D. Eddie pulls over his old high school bully Brian Lippy, who has since become a neo-Nazi drug addict, for beating his girlfriend. He and his partner George take him back to the troop, where they discover to their horror the Buick has given ''live birth'' to a HumanoidAbomination, which they are forced to kill. Mister D ingests some of the creature's flesh, suffering a horrifying death. Finally, Brian Lippy escapes custody in the confusion, and is "eaten" by the Buick while hiding from the troopers]]. Yeah, it was a pretty shitty day indeed.
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* MagicRealism: When the novel isn't about the Buick and the crazy shit that happens because of it, it's a perfectly grounded look at the lives of a group of state troopers. Tellingly, [[spoiler:the Buick only ever claims the life of one of the troopers, while others die throughout the years due to car accidents or suicide]].
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* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: A running theme throughout the novel is how the Buick is overshadowed by the often mundane, occasionally dangerous, and once in a while lethal life of a state police officer. The Buick may be an otherworldly, inexplicable ''thing'' from somewhere else, but the troopers have other things to do, and have gotten used to it.
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* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly in our atmosphere. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
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* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly in our atmosphere. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature AlienAutopsy does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
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And that's just the start because ''things'' come out of it - the story--as written by StephenKing--is framed as the current Sergeant Commanding and some other officers explaining the thing to the traumatized son of an officer who was tragically killed by [[ContrivedCoincidence that same loser]] years later.
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And that's just the start because ''things'' come out of it - the story--as written by StephenKing--is Creator/StephenKing--is framed as the current Sergeant Commanding and some other officers explaining the thing to the traumatized son of an officer who was tragically killed by [[ContrivedCoincidence that same loser]] years later.
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* NothingIsScarier: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a policeman's hat and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.
to:
* NothingIsScarier: [[spoiler: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a policeman's hat belonging to Ennis Rafferty, and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.]]
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* AlienSky: In the climax, Sandy pulls Ned out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.
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* AlienSky: [[spoiler: In the climax, Sandy pulls Ned out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, world with a deep purple sky, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.]]
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** Come closer, children. See the living crocodile.
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* ItsPronouncedTroPay: Tony Schoondist's last name is pronounced "Shane-dinks", which Sandy makes a point of saying.
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[[quoteright:286:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/from_a_buick8_stephenking.jpg]]
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* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things like birds and bats when it is very clear that that is not what they are at all.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things like birds and bats when it is very clear that that is not what they are at all.
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* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly.instantly in our atmosphere. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things likebirds "birds", "fish", and bats "leaves" when it is very clear that that is not what they are at all.all; Ned's repeated failure to grasp this point irritates Sandy immensely.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things like
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* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him as looking "melted", and he had a very odd posture. Outside the novel, said driver is generally theorized to be a [[Franchise/TheDarkTower Low Man]].
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* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him his ear (the only feature he saw clearly) as looking "melted", "melted, like he'd been in a fire", and he had a very odd posture. Outside the novel, said driver is generally theorized to be a [[Franchise/TheDarkTower Low Man]].
** [[spoiler:When Sandy gets a glimpse of the world beyond the Buick, he sees Ennis Rafferty's hat lying on the ground with a wooden stake driven through it, as if whoever or whatever found Ennis was afraid he would come back to life.]]
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* MrsRobinson: Invoked. Sandy wonders if Shirley might be telling Ned so much and so easily because he's good looking and wonders if she might be thinking of 'playing Mrs Robinson' but nothing ever comes of it.
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* MrsRobinson: Invoked. Sandy wonders if Shirley might be telling Ned so much and so easily because he's good looking and wonders if she might be thinking of 'playing Mrs Robinson' "playing Mrs. Robinson", but nothing ever comes of it.
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* NothingIsScarier: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a polcemans hat and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.
to:
* NothingIsScarier: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a polcemans policeman's hat and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.
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* PoliceBrutality: Commented on in-story. One of the cops notes that small town cops are good enough, but they get a bad rap from bigger cities: for every honest, hard-working cop, there's a power-tripping asshole waiting to beat you.
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* PoliceBrutality: Commented on in-story. One of the cops Sergeant Tony Schoondist notes that small town cops are good enough, but they get a bad rap from bigger cities: for cities -- "for every three honest, hard-working cop, cops in Los Angeles, there's a power-tripping asshole waiting to beat you.two Hitler Youth wannabes on motorcycles."
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* RuleOfScary: This is one of the themes of the book. The creatures that come out of the Buick, and the Buick itself, make no sense by human standards and will probably never really be understood. The same goes for the motivations of the driver who abandoned the Buick, there is no elaboration of who, or more likely, what he was, just that he drove the "car" to the gas station, left it there, and then disappeared.
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* RuleOfScary: This is one of the themes of the book. The creatures that come out of the Buick, and the Buick itself, make no sense by human standards and will probably never really be understood. The same goes for the motivations of the driver who abandoned the Buick, Buick; there is no elaboration of who, or more likely, what he was, was -- just that he drove the "car" to the gas station, left it there, and then disappeared.
** Tony Schoondist tells his officers that the Buick needs to be kept a secret, and points out that it's fallen right into the hands of people equipped to do that.
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** It's also speculated that, for all the scary power the Buick possesses the vehicle was left behind because it was somehow ''broken''...
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** It's also speculated that, for all the scary power the Buick possesses possesses, the vehicle was left behind because it was somehow ''broken''...
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Averted, as the creatures that come out of the Buick pretty much die and sometimes rapidly decompose when exposed to the open air. It's theorized it would be the same for someone going into their world.
to:
* NothingIsScarier: The world on the other end of the dimensional portal in the Buick is only glimpsed briefly by the narrator, but in that brief moment, he sees the remains of the people the Buick had drawn in. No bodies, just a boot, a swastika necklace that had belonged to Brian Lippy, a polcemans hat and a gun. Someone has driven a stake through the hat, and the gun is rusted. What exactly happened to the people is never revealed.
* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Averted, as the creatures that come out of the Buick pretty much die and sometimes rapidly decompose when exposed to the open air. It's theorized it would be the same for someone going into their world.
* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Averted, as the creatures that come out of the Buick pretty much die and sometimes rapidly decompose when exposed to the open air. It's theorized it would be the same for someone going into their world.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The driver of the Buick is seen from behind by Bradly Roach, the gas station attendant, and they exchange a few words as he exits the car and walks toward the other side of the building. Then the driver rounds the corner and is never seen again.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The driver of the Buick is seen from behind by Bradly Bradley Roach, the gas station attendant, and they exchange a few words as he exits the car and walks toward the other side of the building. Then the driver rounds the corner and is never seen again.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The driver of the Buick is seen from behind by Bradly Roach, the gas station attendant, and they exchange a few words as he exits the car and walks toward the other side of the building. Then the driver rounds the corner and is never seen again.
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* DepartureMeansDeath: Things from the trunk can't survive in our world, and it's assumed stuff from ours wouldn't survive there either. No one knows why.
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* DepartureMeansDeath: Things from the trunk can't survive in our world, and it's assumed stuff from ours wouldn't survive there either. No one knows why.why, although it's theorized it's due to the change in the air.
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Averted, as the creatures that come out of the Buick pretty much die and sometimes rapidly decompose when exposed to the open air. It's theorized it would be the same for someone going into their world.
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* AlienSky: In the climax, the main character pulls the son of the dead officer out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.
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* AlienSky: In the climax, the main character Sandy pulls the son of the dead officer Ned out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:The Neo-Nazi Brian Lippy, who was arrested for reckless driving and beating his girlfriend, is "eaten" by the Buick after it's implied he tried to hide in the trunk.]]
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* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him as looking "melted", and he had a very odd posture.
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* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him as looking "melted", and he had a very odd posture. Outside the novel, said driver is generally theorized to be a [[Franchise/TheDarkTower Low Man]].
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* PosthumousCharacter: Ned's father Curtis, whose death brought Ned to Troop D and whose obsession with the Buick provides a lot of the story. Other deceased officers make appearances in the flashbacks as well.
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* VomitingCop
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* VomitingCopVomitingCop: The horrible things that come from the Buick make several cops throw up.
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* OhCrap: The general mood whenever someone at the station realizes the Buick is ''doing something'' out in that shed...
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** It's also speculated that, for all the scary power the Buick possesses the vehicle was left behind because it was somehow ''broken''...
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* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:The Buick remains a complete mystery by the end of the novel... but newly hired deputy Ned notices that the once-pristine car is showing signs of damage, meaning it's dying and whatever threat it represents will soon fade.]]
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* TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: The attitude of most of Troop D towards the Buick. Even the ones who do want to know more about it, Curtis and the previous sergeant, Tony Schoondist, don't want to call in any scientists to look at it beyond their usual forensics guy, mainly because they feel it's "theirs" now and don't want to give it away.
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In rural Pennsylvania, one of life's great losers looks up from behind his gas station counter and notices that a big old Buick is still sitting out front with its driver nowhere in sight. After a quick search, he can't find the driver but fears he may have fallen into the river, so he calls the state police. When the police arrive, they cannot find any trace of the man and take the car away as potential evidence. Only... only it's not really a car. There's no way it can drive, it's missing essential parts and looks like it never had them and seems more like it teleported in judging by the lack of mud.
And that's just the start because ''things'' come out of it - the story--as written by StephenKing--is framed as the current Sergeant Commanding and some other officers explaining the thing to the traumatized son of an officer who was tragically killed by [[ContrivedCoincidence that same loser]] years later.
----
* AlienGeometries: It seems to have a direct connection to another universe, perhaps another world linked to Franchise/TheDarkTower.
* AlienSky: In the climax, the main character pulls the son of the dead officer out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.
* AmbiguousSituation: Basically the point. You don't get many answers by the end. There are multiple theories, but you don't know if any are true.
* ArcWords: Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.
* AttackOfTheKillerWhatever: Well, it ''looks'' like a car, anyway.
* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things like birds and bats when it is very clear that that is not what they are at all.
* ContrivedCoincidence: Subverted. Curtis is eventually killed in a hit and run by the same guy who called the police about the Buick, but Sandy speculates that the Buick somehow arranged it.
* CoolCar: It'd be an impressive vehicle if it actually, you know, was a vehicle.
* DepartureMeansDeath: Things from the trunk can't survive in our world, and it's assumed stuff from ours wouldn't survive there either. No one knows why.
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Eddie at the end, though it was set up to seem as though it was Ned.]]
* EldritchAbomination: One officer notes that looking at the things that come out of the trunk made him feel like ''[[MindRape his EYES were being raped]]''.
* HauntedTechnology
* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him as looking "melted", and he had a very odd posture.
* HumansAreCthulhu: [[spoiler:The one thing that makes it out of the Buick's trunk alive sees the officers as just as mind-breakingly horrible as they see it.]]
* HumansThroughAlienEyes: [[spoiler:The above creature was not afraid as it was torn to bits, only very, very confused at what these horrible things were doing to it.]]
* [[spoiler: MercyKill: The first time something comes out of the Buick that lives long enough for the officers to interact with it, the station dog, Mister Dillon, goes nuts and attacks it, apparently ingesting some of its flesh. The poor dog starts burning from the inside out, and one of the officers decides to shoot him, as there is nothing else they can do to help him.]]
* MrsRobinson: Invoked. Sandy wonders if Shirley might be telling Ned so much and so easily because he's good looking and wonders if she might be thinking of 'playing Mrs Robinson' but nothing ever comes of it.
* [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone My God, What Have We Done?]]: [[spoiler: After they kill the previously mentioned "live birth" creature, Shirley says "We killed a ''thinking being.'' That's murder."]]
* PoliceBrutality: Commented on in-story. One of the cops notes that small town cops are good enough, but they get a bad rap from bigger cities: for every honest, hard-working cop, there's a power-tripping asshole waiting to beat you.
* RuleOfScary: This is one of the themes of the book. The creatures that come out of the Buick, and the Buick itself, make no sense by human standards and will probably never really be understood. The same goes for the motivations of the driver who abandoned the Buick, there is no elaboration of who, or more likely, what he was, just that he drove the "car" to the gas station, left it there, and then disappeared.
* SurrealHorror: Big time.
* VomitingCop
* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: The Buick itself. The things are incredibly alien and horrible, but you can see them properly. The Buick is speculated to be something along the line of the breathing valve for an EldritchAbomination's scuba gear.
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And that's just the start because ''things'' come out of it - the story--as written by StephenKing--is framed as the current Sergeant Commanding and some other officers explaining the thing to the traumatized son of an officer who was tragically killed by [[ContrivedCoincidence that same loser]] years later.
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* AlienGeometries: It seems to have a direct connection to another universe, perhaps another world linked to Franchise/TheDarkTower.
* AlienSky: In the climax, the main character pulls the son of the dead officer out of the car, and in the process, gets a brief glimpse of the world on the other side, an alien world, along with remnants of the people absorbed by the Buick.
* AmbiguousSituation: Basically the point. You don't get many answers by the end. There are multiple theories, but you don't know if any are true.
* ArcWords: Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought him back.
* AttackOfTheKillerWhatever: Well, it ''looks'' like a car, anyway.
* BizarreAlienBiology: The creatures that come out of the Buick. In addition to the visually apparent weirdness, there is something about their chemical makeup that makes them start decaying almost instantly. An [[AlienAutopsy autopsy]] that was attempted on one creature does not go well. [[spoiler: Sandy later realizes that if some of the blood-like black substance that squirted out of the bat-creature had gotten into Curtis' mouth, he would have died.]]
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Various things come out of the trunk of the Buick. They tend to get called things like birds and bats when it is very clear that that is not what they are at all.
* ContrivedCoincidence: Subverted. Curtis is eventually killed in a hit and run by the same guy who called the police about the Buick, but Sandy speculates that the Buick somehow arranged it.
* CoolCar: It'd be an impressive vehicle if it actually, you know, was a vehicle.
* DepartureMeansDeath: Things from the trunk can't survive in our world, and it's assumed stuff from ours wouldn't survive there either. No one knows why.
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Eddie at the end, though it was set up to seem as though it was Ned.]]
* EldritchAbomination: One officer notes that looking at the things that come out of the trunk made him feel like ''[[MindRape his EYES were being raped]]''.
* HauntedTechnology
* HumanoidAbomination: The mysterious driver of the Buick that originally left it at the gas station at the start of the story, and who disappeared behind the building. The gas station attendant described him as looking "melted", and he had a very odd posture.
* HumansAreCthulhu: [[spoiler:The one thing that makes it out of the Buick's trunk alive sees the officers as just as mind-breakingly horrible as they see it.]]
* HumansThroughAlienEyes: [[spoiler:The above creature was not afraid as it was torn to bits, only very, very confused at what these horrible things were doing to it.]]
* [[spoiler: MercyKill: The first time something comes out of the Buick that lives long enough for the officers to interact with it, the station dog, Mister Dillon, goes nuts and attacks it, apparently ingesting some of its flesh. The poor dog starts burning from the inside out, and one of the officers decides to shoot him, as there is nothing else they can do to help him.]]
* MrsRobinson: Invoked. Sandy wonders if Shirley might be telling Ned so much and so easily because he's good looking and wonders if she might be thinking of 'playing Mrs Robinson' but nothing ever comes of it.
* [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone My God, What Have We Done?]]: [[spoiler: After they kill the previously mentioned "live birth" creature, Shirley says "We killed a ''thinking being.'' That's murder."]]
* PoliceBrutality: Commented on in-story. One of the cops notes that small town cops are good enough, but they get a bad rap from bigger cities: for every honest, hard-working cop, there's a power-tripping asshole waiting to beat you.
* RuleOfScary: This is one of the themes of the book. The creatures that come out of the Buick, and the Buick itself, make no sense by human standards and will probably never really be understood. The same goes for the motivations of the driver who abandoned the Buick, there is no elaboration of who, or more likely, what he was, just that he drove the "car" to the gas station, left it there, and then disappeared.
* SurrealHorror: Big time.
* VomitingCop
* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: The Buick itself. The things are incredibly alien and horrible, but you can see them properly. The Buick is speculated to be something along the line of the breathing valve for an EldritchAbomination's scuba gear.
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