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* DefrostingIceQueen: K-Os gradually softens over the course of the arcs, though never loses her grumpiness when it comes to dealing with humans.

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* DefrostingIceQueen: K-Os gradually softens over the course of the arcs, though arcs - admitting that she sees Socks as her friend at the end of the second arc, for example. However, she never fully loses her grumpiness when it comes to dealing with humans.



** K-Os rarely shows any emotion besides "mild annoyance", [[SubvertedTrope but very occasionally cracks a smile or laughs]].

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** K-Os rarely shows any emotion besides "mild annoyance", [[SubvertedTrope [[DefrostingIceQueen but very occasionally cracks a smile or laughs]].smile]].
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* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler:The characters left alive at the end of the series go through hell, but they all get at least a sweet BittersweetEnding.]]


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* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: ''Two''.
** "Endings" features an epilogue detailing the activities of the characters after the second arc's ending...then catapults them headlong into the fresh hell of the third arc.
** "Aftermath" is a much more detailed epilogue filled with EarnYourHappyEnding for basically every character still left standing. [[spoiler:It also ends on the revelation that K-Os did not die, but lives on in another plane of existence only Socks can access.]]
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* BonusMaterial: The "Short Skates" are, with a couple of notable exceptions, generally not essential reading, being shorter instalments focusing on minor characters and side stories. Many of them provide interesting CharacterDevelopment and plot points, however, so they are recommended reading.



* OneWordTitle: ''Rollerskater'', which is an unconventional spelling of what is normally two words: "roller skater"; or hyphenated: "roller-skater".

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* OneWordTitle: OneWordTitle:
**
''Rollerskater'', which is an unconventional spelling of what is normally two words: "roller skater"; or hyphenated: "roller-skater"."roller-skater".
** Every instalment in the saga has a title consisting of one word, sometimes tied [[TrivialTitle only obliquely to the instalment's topic]]. The same applies to the Short Skates.
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* AnArmAndALeg: [[spoiler:Socks's left arm is devoured by The Grey Man at the end of the first arc, and even after two universal resets, he doesn't get the arm back. In the third arc he gets a crystal arm, but can only manifest it in certain situations to maintain TheMasquerade. In the end, this, too, gets destroyed, leaving him with one arm once again.]]
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* ChekhovsGun:
** Socks's left hand has the power to break umbric, so of course that's what he uses in his fight against the Grey Man at the end of the first arc. [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope It doesn't work.]]]]
** Later, Socks gets a crystalline left arm made out of penumbric, which we later learn is the only material that can hurt a vampire. [[spoiler:He punches Douglas Baird in the head, destroying Baird, and his crystal arm, instantly.]]
** [[spoiler:The British government asking Emily Bush to take blood samples from Blake. We're led to believe this is because they're trying to understand his physiology. In fact, Baird convinced them to take the blood samples so he could use Blake's blood as part of his ploy to unseal Geb and cause the apocalypse.]]
** Protocol Omega is mentioned during the Arsonist two-parter, but immediately dismissed as far too extreme a response. [[spoiler:We later learn what Protocol Omega is: The detonation of a thermonuclear warhead over a target in Britain to neutralise a supernatural threat. The Captain deploys it at the end of the saga in a futile attempt to strike at the Blood Moon. It doesn't work, but it does kill Blake. It indirectly kills the Captain, too, as he shoots himself after giving the order.]]
* ChekhovsGunman: [[spoiler:Douglas Baird is introduced as a relatively minor member of the Cabinet and a fairly timid individual who is [[ButtMonkey constantly picked on by Mortimer]]. Only at the story's climax is his real role revealed: He is TheMole for the vampires and has been manipulating British politics to sow discord and distract K-Os and her allies from realising what the Cult of the Blood Moon is up to.]]
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* LosingAShoeInTheStruggle: Socks wakes up to find that at some point he’s misplaced his Timberland shoes. He also loses his Reeboks near the end of Arc I.

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* LosingAShoeInTheStruggle: LosingAShoeInTheStruggle:
** In the first instalment,
Socks wakes up to find that at some point he’s misplaced his Timberland shoes. He also loses his Reeboks near the end of Arc I.I.
** [[spoiler:Dolly loses a shoe in "Rubric," but regains it when Socks reverses time back to a "save point" thanks to Magpie. She then uses the same shoe to clock the Captain in the side of the head, once again losing the shoe.]]
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* ItsPersonal: [[spoiler:The reason for Callan Crucefix's suicide mission at the vampires' mansion: The vampires residing there killed his brother in 1964, and he wants them dead.]]
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* BlessedWithSuck: Some chaotic powers are pretty miserable to have.
** Naomi Carter has the ability to "block" people in real life, roughly analogous to blocking people on social media, making her entire existence invisible to people, and all record of their existence - including shared text conversations - invisible to her and the blocked party. This is shown to be ''absolutely terrifying'' for both Naomi and the blocked person, as both people retain the memories of the other. [[spoiler:At the end of "Ghosts", she becomes overwhelmed and blocks the ''entire human race'', which causes her to GoMadFromTheIsolation.]]
** Ysabel Traum from "Lotus" has the ability to enter people's dreams and take control of them simply by making skin contact while in REM sleep. This is shown to be extremely deleterious to her health, however, as while she is in the dream world she is effectively not getting proper rest. As a result, she looks physically emaciated and prematurely aged.
** Aidan, also from "Lotus", causes any room he enters to rise in temperature by one degree Celsius per minute, meaning he can't stay in one place for long, as he starts to literally cook people to death within a matter of minutes. Already a miserable state of affairs. However, on top of this, he feels unbearably cold, shivering uncontrollably and being visibly covered in ice crystals. K-Os tries to help him get control of his powers. [[spoiler:Ysabel Traum inadvertently kills him before she can.]]
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* YourVampiresSuck: {{Invoked}} by Amber Stork, who enters a church uninvited and proceeds to destroy a cross with her bare hands, thus illustrating that the {{WeaksauceWeakness}}es of other vampires do not apply to her. She also states that she is unaffected by garlic, silver, and other traditional vampire-banes. [[spoiler:As it turns out, [[SubvertedTrope Rollerskater's vampires do have their own Weaksauce Weakness]] - it's just that it's a material that is pretty scarce and hard to find.]]

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* YourVampiresSuck: {{Invoked}} by Amber Stork, who enters a church uninvited and proceeds to destroy a cross with her bare hands, thus illustrating that the {{WeaksauceWeakness}}es {{Weaksauce Weakness}}es of other vampires do not apply to her. She also states that she is unaffected by garlic, silver, and other traditional vampire-banes. [[spoiler:As it turns out, [[SubvertedTrope Rollerskater's vampires do have their own Weaksauce Weakness]] - it's just that it's a material that is pretty scarce and hard to find.]]
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* YourVampiresSuck: {{Invoked}} by Amber Stork, who enters a church uninvited and proceeds to destroy a cross with her bare hands, thus illustrating that the {{WeaksauceWeakness}}es of other vampires do not apply to her. She also states that she is unaffected by garlic, silver, and other traditional vampire-banes. [[spoiler:As it turns out, [[SubvertedTrope Rollerskater's vampires do have their own Weaksauce Weakness]] - it's just that it's a material that is pretty scarce and hard to find.]]
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** Mr. Ection refers to the cartoon world as his "toy world", which is a nod to the Music/{{Cardiacs}} demo album of the same name. Additionally, Ection is [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cardiacs/images/8/8b/Wikia-Visualization-Main%2Ccardiacs.png based visually on Tim Smith]], the frontman of Cardiacs.

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** Mr. Ection refers to the cartoon world as his "toy world", which is a nod to the Music/{{Cardiacs}} demo album of the same name. Additionally, Ection is [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cardiacs/images/8/8b/Wikia-Visualization-Main%2Ccardiacs.png [[https://lastfm.freetls.fastly.net/i/u/ar0/5620e462506d66583ebd7cac46dfe4d4.jpg based visually on Tim Smith]], the frontman of Cardiacs.
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** Mr. Ection refers to the cartoon world as his "toy world", which is a nod to the Music/{{Cardiacs}} demo album of the same name. Additionally, Ection is [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cardiacs/images/8/8b/Wikia-Visualization-Main%2Ccardiacs.png/revision/latest?cb=20210212193403 based visually on Tim Smith]], the frontman of Cardiacs.

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** Mr. Ection refers to the cartoon world as his "toy world", which is a nod to the Music/{{Cardiacs}} demo album of the same name. Additionally, Ection is [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cardiacs/images/8/8b/Wikia-Visualization-Main%2Ccardiacs.png/revision/latest?cb=20210212193403 png based visually on Tim Smith]], the frontman of Cardiacs.
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** Mr. Ection refers to the cartoon world as his "toy world", which is a nod to the Music/{{Cardiacs}} demo album of the same name. Additionally, Ection is [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/cardiacs/images/8/8b/Wikia-Visualization-Main%2Ccardiacs.png/revision/latest?cb=20210212193403 based visually on Tim Smith]], the frontman of Cardiacs.
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** [[spoiler:The Project Director freaks out when Dr Bush frees Blake Parish from captivity. He first takes a soldier's sidearm and tries to [[IHaveYourWife use her as leverage to threaten Parish into compliance]]. Blake instead [[TakeAThirdOption takes a third option]] and neutralises his gun with his powers, causing him to fall into a catatonic state. The last we hear of him, he was apparently left [[MadnessMantra murmuring "nine o'clock" to himself over and over]].]]

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* BodyHorror: [[spoiler:People with blood types that only partially match that of Geb are transformed into hideous screaming monsters. ''[[ForcedTransformation Permanently.]]'']]

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* BodyHorror: BodyHorror:
** [[spoiler:In "Lotus", Ysabel takes the form of a creature called "The Unliberty", which has [[StringyHairedGhostGirl stringy black hair]] and disembowels itself, the wound in its stomach turning into a [[VaginaDentata vertical mouth]].]]
**
[[spoiler:People with blood types that only partially match that of Geb are transformed into hideous screaming monsters. ''[[ForcedTransformation Permanently.]]'']]



* BreatherEpisode: The Short Skate "Innocence" takes a step back from the action to discuss Liberty's childhood and her coming into the knowledge of death. [[spoiler:It's {{Foreshadowing}} for the death of her father in the following chapter.]]

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* BreatherEpisode: BreatherEpisode:
** The Short Skate "Bookseller" is a mostly heartwarming story about Monica meeting with a lonely, bitter old bookseller and [[DefrostingIceQueen softening his heart]]. [[spoiler:It's sandwiched between "She" and "Her", two fairly intense instalments that deal with homophobia and transphobia, and "Influence", which is heavy on PsychologicalHorror.]]
**
The Short Skate "Innocence" takes a step back from the action to discuss Liberty's childhood and her coming into the knowledge of death. [[spoiler:It's {{Foreshadowing}} for the death of her father in the following chapter.]]


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* NightmareSequence: [[spoiler:When her attempt to get information out of Socks by giving him a wet dream fails, the Captain authorises Ysabel Traum to initiate a "limbic-system potentiation attack", which involves her taking a monstrous form that engages in extreme BodyHorror.]]


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* OlderThanTheyLook: [[spoiler:Ysabel Traum looks thin and prematurely aged [[MysticalWaif due to her dream-powers]], presumably because she can't really sleep.]]


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* PsychologicalHorror:
** [[spoiler:"Influence" features Lucy, a MindVirus that infects people upon hearing a certain sequence of words, creating a hopeless and paranoid atmosphere, particularly from the perspective of poor Monica, [[WouldHurtAChild who has the mind of a child]]. She is finally defeated by Harri-Bec intervening.]]
** [[spoiler:"Lotus" features an extended DreamSequence that becomes a NightmareSequence. The antagonist of the week, Ysabel Traum, has the ability to invade a person's dreams by touching them. The nightmare she inflicts on Socks is rife with BodyHorror and SurrealHorror.]]

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* GiantWoman:
** [[spoiler:Monica Eno has the ability to turn into a HumungousMecha giantess as part of her "Hallelujah Capacity", which she does in a BigDamnHeroes moment towards the end of Arc III. [[AmazonChaser Dolly is quite impressed,]] to Chelsea's chagrin.]]
** [[spoiler:In "Influence", Harri-Bec appears to [[CuttingTheGordianKnot resolve the installment's seemingly irresolvable deadlock]] by becoming a giant in psychic space and physically tossing "Lucy" out of London.]]



* {{Catchphrase}}:

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* {{Catchphrase}}:CharacterCatchphrase:


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* GiantWoman:
** [[spoiler:Monica Eno has the ability to turn into a HumungousMecha giantess as part of her "Hallelujah Capacity", which she does in a BigDamnHeroes moment towards the end of Arc III. [[AmazonChaser Dolly is quite impressed,]] to Chelsea's chagrin.]]
** [[spoiler:In "Influence", Harri-Bec appears to [[CuttingTheGordianKnot resolve the installment's seemingly irresolvable deadlock]] by becoming a giant in psychic space and physically tossing "Lucy" out of London.]]
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** [[spoiler:New Amsterdam, which became our world's New York, remained Dutch through to the twenty-first century. The Hudson is accordingly named the ''Noortrivier'' ("North River"). [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror The Twin Towers were not attacked on September 11th 2001]], however, the ''Rijk Staat'' (our world's Empire State Building) is implied to have been attacked by terrorists.]]

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** [[spoiler:New Amsterdam, which became our world's New York, remained Dutch through to the twenty-first century. The Hudson is accordingly named the ''Noortrivier'' ("North River"). Additionally, [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror The the Twin Towers were not attacked on September 11th 2001]], 2001]]; however, the ''Rijk Staat'' (our world's Empire State Building) is implied to have been attacked by terrorists.]]
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* AllohistoricalAllusion: Several, [[spoiler:in the alternate timeline in Arc II.]]
** [[spoiler:New Amsterdam, which became our world's New York, remained Dutch through to the twenty-first century. The Hudson is accordingly named the ''Noortrivier'' ("North River"). [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror The Twin Towers were not attacked on September 11th 2001]], however, the ''Rijk Staat'' (our world's Empire State Building) is implied to have been attacked by terrorists.]]
** [[spoiler:The Iraq War didn't happen, but the Soviets invaded Persia in the early 2000s, causing an ''Iran'' War.]]
** [[spoiler:The Sino-Soviet split never happened, so the USSR and China merged into the "SSSR" in the 1960s.]]
** [[spoiler:There's a brief reference to a "[[UsefulNotes/AlGore President Gore]]" in the early 2000s. Al Gore, of course, famously lost to UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush, despite winning the popular vote.]]
** [[spoiler:The successful UsefulNotes/AmericanRevolution, with Dutch help, inspired a wave of bourgeois revolutions in Europe, meaning that most of Western Europe consists of republics, including our world's United Kingdom.]]
** [[spoiler:Roman Londinium was burned to the ground by Boudica, and rather than be rebuilt before becoming an English settlement, it was simply abandoned, with the Greater London area replaced in its entirety by "Tamesis National Park" - "Tamesis" being the Latin name for the River Thames. As a result, Winchester is the capital of England, which it effectively was in the 7th and 8th centuries.]]
** [[spoiler: Creator/YakovSmirnoff [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking never existed.]]]]
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* ThisCannotBe: [[spoiler:Chesterton utters this the moment K-Os comes back to life, just moments before she [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomps]] him.]]
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* MagicAIsMagicA: {{Averted}}. The magic system in ''Rollerskater'' is extremely soft, to the point that it's practically liquid. This is probably because characters derive their powers from a ''breakdown'' in usual physical laws, rather than magic ''being'' a physical law, as in other works of fantasy.

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* MagicAIsMagicA: {{Averted}}.MagicAIsMagicA:
** Mostly {{averted}}.
The magic system in ''Rollerskater'' is extremely soft, to the point that it's practically liquid. This is probably because characters derive their powers from a ''breakdown'' in usual physical laws, rather than magic ''being'' a physical law, as in other works of fantasy.fantasy.
** Played straight in "Carnivore": Despite the presence of supernatural elements in her world, Harri-Bec initially ''refuses to believe'' that vampires exist, even acknowledging that within the story's world, [[Literature/{{Dracula}} Count Dracula]] is a fictional character. As it turns out, however, they are horribly, ''horribly'' [[OutsideContextProblem real]].


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* OutsideContextProblem: Pretty much nobody in the main cast thought vampires were real. [[spoiler:Except, of course, for K-Os, who assumed they were extinct. They weren't.]]
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** [[spoiler:Geb, who destroyed his body through powerful magics, becoming the [[VideoGame/EarthBound Giygas-esque]] EldritchAbomination known as "The Blood Moon"]].

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** [[spoiler:Geb, who destroyed his body through powerful magics, becoming the [[VideoGame/EarthBound [[VideoGame/EarthBound1994 Giygas-esque]] EldritchAbomination known as "The Blood Moon"]].
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* AmazonChaser: Dolly Mixture is not shy about expressing her sexual attraction to K-Os (an asexual) and Monica Eno (a soulless gynoid) in her [[GiantWoman giant form]]. [[spoiler:The woman she ends up marrying, Chelsea Rose, is also notably tall, being almost six feet tall.]]



* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever: [[spoiler:Monica Eno has the ability to turn into a HumungousMecha giantess as part of her "Hallelujah Capacity", which she does in a BigDamnHeroes moment towards the end of Arc III. [[AmazonChaser Dolly is quite impressed,]] to Chelsea's chagrin.]]

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* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever: GiantWoman:
**
[[spoiler:Monica Eno has the ability to turn into a HumungousMecha giantess as part of her "Hallelujah Capacity", which she does in a BigDamnHeroes moment towards the end of Arc III. [[AmazonChaser Dolly is quite impressed,]] to Chelsea's chagrin.]]
** [[spoiler:In "Influence", Harri-Bec appears to [[CuttingTheGordianKnot resolve the installment's seemingly irresolvable deadlock]] by becoming a giant in psychic space and physically tossing "Lucy" out of London.
]]

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