History Main / PluckyComicRelief

* Plucky the Mallard from ''TinyToonAdventures''

* Pintel and Ragetti serve as the comic relief in the ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' movies.

-->--[[DefrostingIceQueen Kati Mannequin]] on [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat The Immortal]] [[CaptainCrash Patrick Courlasour]], ''Gundam00AwakeningOfTheTrailblazer''

* Quina Quen in ''FinalFantasyIX''.

* Jaune Arc of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' seems like he will become this, due to his air sickness in "Ruby Rose" and being launched before hie can finish asking questions in "The First Step".

* Jaune Arc of ''WebAnimation/RWBY'' seems like he will become this, due to his air sickness in "Ruby Rose" and being launched before hie can finish asking questions in "The First Step".

* ''HarryPotter''

** Ron Weasley also fills this role within the main trio, and he's an even earlier gauge of the series' impending [[CerebusSyndrome dark turn]]: as early as book four, his general status as ChewToy produces some moments of unexpectedly bitter resentment. By book seven, he's primed for a [[DarkestHour complete meltdown]].

* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in AlphaAndOmega, with the Omegas. TruthInTelevision since in real life, an Omega is the wolf that, to spite being on the bottom of the pecking order, is tasked with defusing tense situations by engaging other wolves in play when tensions run high. Humphrey shows that he takes his job quite seriously.

* Humphrey from ''AlphaAndOmega'' serves as the snappy one-liner of the movie. he is usually seen hanging out with his other omega buddies and is shown to try to cheer up an alpha named Kate, whom he likes to be with.
** Justified in that this is stated to be the role of the Omegas in the pack; to break up fights and keep everyone's spirits up.

* Humphrey from ''AlphaAndOmega'' serves as the snappy one-liner of the movie. he is usually seen hanging out with his other omega buddies and is shown to try to cheer up an alpha named Kate, whom he likes to be with.
** Justified in that this is stated to be the role of the Omegas in the pack; to break up fights and keep everyone's spirits up.

* Madame Khokhlakov's role in ''TheBrothersKaramazov'' is to provide lighthearted, trivial discussion versus everything else that goes on in the story. She is eternally cheerful and will talk you ''to death''. Dostoevsky used her to insult his critics at the time by having her agree with their works.

* ''Disney/TheLionKing'': Timon and Pumbaa the wisecracking meerkat-warthog duo.

* ''Disney/{{Mulan}}'': Creator/EddieMurphy plays Mushu, the [[UncleTomfoolery jivey]] Plucky Comic Relief. [[TheNapoleon Yao]], [[CasanovaWannabe Ling]], and [[BigEater Chien Po]] also count to an extent, though they (with the exception of [[GentleGiant Chien Po]]) do initially cause conflict for Mulan before becoming friends with her (or rather, [[SweetPollyOliver "Ping"]]). However, all four of them end up performing several important heroic acts by the end of the movie.

[[folder:Film]]

* ''Disney/TheLionKing'': Timon and Pumbaa the wisecracking meerkat-warthog duo.

* Beast Boy from ''TeenTitansTroubleInTokyo''. All the way from beginning to end.

* Bobby in ''AGoofyMovie'' and ''AnExtremelyGoofyMovie''. Notably the only one of the youths present in both movies with no visible conflict with a parent figure, almost everything he says and does is some sort of dumb joke. He takes very few things seriously, is an AttentionWhore, a {{Cloudcuckoolander}}, and more-or-less a PerpetualSmiler, and is considered to be weird (among friends) or annoying (with Beret Girl and the Gammas). He's also the one to [[OoCIsSeriousBusiness give Max an emotionally-charged]] RousingSpeech.

* [[DisneyAnimatedCanon Disney Animated Films]] usually have one. And so do all of the movies that [[FollowTheLeader copy their formulas]].
* ''{{Shrek}}'': Donkey is a parody of the Plucky Comic Relief -- when he isn't being a straight example.
* ''{{Mulan}}'': EddieMurphy plays Mushu, the [[UncleTomfoolery jivey]] Plucky Comic Relief.

* [[YouSuck Ron Stoppable]] from ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'', while also being one of [[TheHero The Heroes]] of the show, though he's typically in a sidekick role.

* As serious as ''TheSecretOfNIMH'' was in tone, there was a certain crow that happens to be the comic relief. And that crow in particular is Jeremy.

* ''VideoGame/{{Portal 2}}'' subverts this with Wheatley, a moronic personality core who escorts the player through the early areas of the game and, with your help, attempts to engineer a coup against [=GLaDOS=]. The subversion comes when [[spoiler:Wheatley, upon successfully replacing [=GLaDOS=] in the Enrichment Center mainframe, goes into full AGodAmI mode and becomes the BigBad of the game]]. Portal 2 has fairly equal distribution of comedy, but Portal 1 arguably has GLaDOS carrying all the comic responsibility. However, this can probably be excused as she is the only speaking character.

* ''VideoGame/{{Portal 2}}'' subverts this with Wheatley, a moronic personality core who escorts the player through the early areas of the game and, with your help, attempts to engineer a coup against [=GLaDOS=]. The subversion comes when [[spoiler:Wheatley, upon successfully replacing [=GLaDOS=] in the Enrichment Center mainframe, goes into full AGodAmI mode and becomes the BigBad of the game]].

[[folder:Anime]]
* Shinagawa from ''AskDrRin''.
* Helen from ''{{Claymore}}'': the sole humorous character in this very dark series. Indulging in everything from [[BigEater over-eating]] to HypocriticalHumor, including a BokeAndTsukkomiRoutine with [[TheStoic uber-stoic]] Deneve and on one memorable occasion actually [[BestBeerEver getting drunk]].
* Shiro Kabuto from ''Anime/MazingerZ'' and ''Anime/GreatMazinger''. Although he is smarter than he looks and he can be an BadassAdorable, he often provides comic relief, or by pulling TooDumbToLive stunts or by being a DeadpanSnarker and the voice of reason.
** Boss and the remainder of TheTeamNormal also were Plucky Comic Relief characters. Boss even lampshaded is in one ''Anime/GreatMazinger'', wondering why he must be the Plucky Comic Relief.
* In the last episode of ''{{Slayers}} NEXT'', Lina concludes that the only reason Martina survived the confrontation with the BigBad was because she is the Plucky Comic Relief character.
* ''Anime/CodeGeass'' features a Britannia comic relief, Rivalz Cardemonde and a Japanese comic relief, Shinichiro Tamaki. Lelouch can confirm that. He's been around both of 'em. Rivalz' friend Lelouch Lamperouge by day, Tamaki's idol, Zero by night.
* Uzura in ''PrincessTutu'' spends much of the second season filling this role, although she has a few plot-important moments towards the end and is never quite able to stay completely detached from the action.
* Shiho from ''{{Mai-Otome}}''. Though some of her antics are usually the cause of (or contribute to) the problem of the day in early episodes, she becomes surprisingly effective near the end, while retaining her goofy madness.
* ''Manga/DeathNote''
** Matsuda. [[BewareTheNiceOnes Until the last episode]].
** Misa Amane. Indeed she and Matsuda were the only characters who used most of the "sillier" anime tropes, like puffy cheeks, {{Face Fault}}s and, at one point, repeatedly hitting Light on the chest with Looney Toons sound effects).
** [[{{Shinigami}} Ryuk]]. He makes off-hand humorous comments that usually involve apples even during the most serious scenes, and almost always chuckles loudly at any new plot or character development that occurs.
* ''{{Berserk}}'': Puck and Isidro apparently exist in part to keep the work from collapsing under its own cynicism during the darker stretches of the series.
* Bat in ''FistOfTheNorthStar'' was the plucky comic relief sidekick until the TimeSkip, where he TookALevelInBadass.
* Sena in ''CrossGame''.
* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'':
** Rock Lee and Might Guy, without a doubt.
** Tobi also played this role in the Akatsuki [[spoiler:[[TheReveal at least until he is revealed to be THE]] BigBad, Madara Uchiha]].
* Smith from ''GingaNagareboshiGin'' who evolves into a CoolOldGuy in ''GingaDensetsuWeed''.
** GB, a LovableCoward, follows in his footsteps in said sequel.
* Gomamon from ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}''.
** ''Anime/DigimonXrosWars'' has a villan version in [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Blastmon]].
** [[StraightManAndWiseGuy Bokomon & Neemon]] in ''Anime/DigimonFrontier''.
* Isaac and Miria, the [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} very]], ''[[TheDitz very]]'' out-of-it OutlawCouple of ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}!''. [[TheFool They also miraculously avoid injury beyond paper-cut level on a regular basis]] in a show with [[{{Gorn}} a violence rating and body count of a typical Quentin Tarantino film]]. The lone exception to this is one heavily-bleeding cut Isaac acquires on his while saving Czeslaw, [[spoiler:which reveals their [[{{Immortality}} less-than-mortal]] nature to the boy when it immediately [[HealingFactor stitches itself up]]]].
* Sailor Mini Moon in the ''Manga/SailorMoon'' anime. Her Pink Sugar Heart Attack rarely worked, and it was pathetically weak. This is in contrast to the manga where it actually does work well on a regular basis.
* Yaya Yuiki from ''ShugoChara''.
* ''DarkerThanBlack'':
** The CluelessDetective duo. They tend to only be involved with whatever SpyVersusSpy craziness is going on tangentially and accidentally, and their NonStandardCharacterDesign and use of anime effects like CrossPoppingVeins and BlueWithShock in a show that mostly uses a more realistic style makes it clear that they aren't to be taken seriously.
** Saito of the Japanese police. He's kind of like Matsuda in that he's a member of a special taskforce with a tendency toward humorous bumbling (Saito has twice been shown using his own name when undercover), and his unrequited crush on [[FairCop Kirihara]] is played for laughs. He's also something of a CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass, which makes sense, as he's a {{muggle}} who has regularly been up against superpowered sociopaths and has survived.
* Naoki from ''{{NANA}}'' fits this trope particularly well: Despite all the drama that goes on in the series, he is oddly immune to it and (in present time) seemingly oblivious. The writer herself admits that he was written to round out the two rival bands in the story -- in essence, he's a throwaway character with no real backstory -- but he usually ends up being used as MrExposition in side stories.
* When he's not being a BadAss, or the resident ButtMonkey (yes, he's actually both), Jun Manjoume of ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'' tends to be this, especially when it comes to his [[AllLoveIsUnrequited hilarious crush]] on Asuka or when his [[SmallAnnoyingCreature spirit partners]] are involved.
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}''
** Up until recently, Keigo Asano from fit this trope.
** Don Kanonji, too.
** And Kon!
* ''{{Kanon}}'': Jun Kitagawa.
* ''VisualNovel/{{Clannad}}'': [[ButtMonkey Sunohara Youhei]], {{Expy}} of Jun Kitagawa.
* Jackie Gudelhian from ''Anime/FutureGPXCyberFormula'' serves as this in the series. He often gets into fights with his partner and rival Heinel, which is often a major source of comedy in the series.
* [[HardDrinkingPartyGirl Misato Katsuragi]] and her pet [[EverythingsBetterWithPenguins Pen-Pen]] in the otherwise quite dark anime ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' count as this. Pen-Pen considerably more than Misato, it has to be said. [[spoiler: [[ShooOutTheClowns When Pen-Pen leaves]], you know that the series has given up on plucky comic antics altogether and has now [[MoodWhiplash completely moved into depressing]] territory.]]
* [[ThoseTwoGuys Bucky and Pauly Cracker]] from ''KimbaTheWhiteLion''.
* Ueda in ''JapanInc''.
* Alielle from ''ElHazardTheMagnificentWorld''.
* Played with in the "Film Noir" episode of ''[[Anime/AbenobashiMahouShoutengai Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi]]''. Getting shot turns you into a chibified comic relief character. Pluckyness varies.
* Pedro and Sancho in Anime/TheMysteriousCitiesOfGold.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* Greg Sanders, the DNA specialist on ''Series/{{CSI}}'' was originally an excellent example of this trope. Later in the series he has several serious character arcs. He also becomes one of the most experienced [=CSIs=] on the team. His role has been taken over by Hodges and the supporting [[LabRat Lab Rats]].
* So is Marshall on ''Series/{{Alias}}''.
* Taylor Townsend of ''Series/TheOC''. As the series [[WackyGuy Wacky Girl]] she was a welcome relief from the sometimes overpowering angst of the penultimate season. Usually her wackiness was paired with Seth and Summer's in the aforementioned season to provide comic drama, if such a thing exists.
* Hurley's role on ''Series/{{Lost}}'' began this way, but has become less so as the character has become more important.
* On ''Series/BandOfBrothers'', it's resident [[ManOfAThousandVoices master of parody]] George Luz. Considering the series is set in WWII, he has some elements of the SadClown.
** His friend Perconte also qualifies, and so does "Skip" Muck.
* Eric on ''BoyMeetsWorld'' started off as the ChickMagnet but when that role was taken over by Shawn he became this. And then things just got [[CloudCuckooLander weird...]]
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': Xander and later Andrew. Though the writing is uniformly witty enough that all characters get their day in the Plucky Comic Relief sun.
** This is true with ''all'' JossWhedon shows, but there is still one or two characters in each series who do virtually nothing ''but'' be funny, in addition to fulfilling their role in the cast. In chronological order: Lorne on ''Series/{{Angel}}'', Wash on ''{{Firefly}}'', and Topher on ''{{Dollhouse}}''.
** Lampshaded on ''Firefly'':
--> '''Kaylee''' Did Zoe seem a little, er, funny to you at breakfast?
--> '''Wash''' C'mon Kaylee. We all know ''I'm'' the funny one.
** And [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]] with Lorne: the toll that being the Comic Relief takes on him by the fifth season is seriously rough.
** Harmony, however, remains her airheaded, self-absorbed self throughout.
* Klinger of ''[[{{MASH}} M*A*S*H]]'' so seldom got into the dramatic plots of the episodes his SarcasmFailure was more effective than Hawkeye's ("Mail Call Three", "Period of Adjustment", "Death Takes a Holiday").
* Chloe O'Brian on ''[[Series/TwentyFour 24]]'' is this, as far as a serious show like this allows anyone to be.
* Both Hiro and Ando on ''Series/{{Heroes}}''.
* Joxer ([[MilesGloriosus the Mighty]]) on ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess''. No matter how hard or how often he tries to be TheLancer, the AntiHero, or the VillainProtagonist, poor man.
-->'''Joxer''': Now listen, I'm fierce, and I have a lust for blood. As a matter of fact, if a couple of days go by and I haven't shed some blood, I get ''very depressed.'' Blood and me go together like a horse and chariot! [[BloodBath I once bathed in a tub of blood]]! My nickname is Bloody Joxer!
-->'''Xena''': If you like blood so much? Keep talking.
* The Lone Gunmen on the XFiles. [[spoiler: This did not save them from a random and contrived death in the last season, in an otherwise comedic episode.]]
* [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in the ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode ''The Unicorn And The Wasp'', when the Doctor calls Donna "The plucky young woman who helps me out":
-->'''Donna:''' 'The plucky young woman who helps me out'?
-->'''The Doctor:''' No policewomen in 1926.
-->'''Donna:''' I'll pluck you in a minute!
* In murder mystery ''HarpersIsland'', Cal and Chloe provide much-needed wacky romance hijinx between all the deaths. They even have a short breather episode after the [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath head spade incident]] when they try to retrieve Chloe's engagement ring. [[spoiler:When they both die in episode 11 of 13, it's a sign that there [[ShooOutTheClowns won't be any more funny bits thence onwards]].]]
* Randy Disher in ''Series/{{Monk}}'' his quirky antics and wild theories really give a nice dose of humor in the show. Still he is semi-competent and is always in the right place when he's needed.
* Tyron Lannister can lighten up any scene in ''Series/GameOfThrones'', even the most violent ones (his [[spoiler: bludgeoning a man to death with his ''shield'' easily counts as one of his most badass and amusing scenes in the series.]]) He also bucks the trend in that he is [[HiddenDepths neither dim-witted]] nor [[MagnificentBastard genuinely concerned for anyone around him.]]
** Oh, he's plenty concerned for others. [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold He just doesn't show it often.]]
* Sister Sisto in ''TheFlyingNun''. In the pilot it was explained that she is studying English sayings in preparation for her eventualy teaching in the United States. From that point on her running joke was to say something like "We need to get on the circle!" to immediatly be corrected by one of the others "Uh, that's 'ball', Sister."
* Bud Roberts on seasons 2,3 & 4 on ''Series/{{JAG}}''.
* ''Series/{{Psych}}'': Shawn Spencer has the distinction of being the main character AND the Plucky Comic Relief. This trope is [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]] in "An Evening with Mr. Yang," when it's revealed that Shawn ''needs'' the Plucky Comic Relief in order to distance himself from the things he has to deal with. When Shawn's mother is kidnapped by the serial killer and Shawn suffers a HeroicBSOD, [[StraightMan Gus]] steps forward to take over the Plucky Comic Relief, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness much to the confusion of everyone around them.]]
* ''Series/{{Revolution}}'': Aaron.
* Andamo of ''[[Series/MrLucky Mr. Lucky]]'' plays this role. Even when being held hostage by a murderer with an itchy trigger finger, he keeps trying to make light of the situation.
[[/folder]]

->''"You know, whenever I'm with you I can't help but feel like a fool for taking things so seriously."

->''"My brothers have my measure when it comes to fighting and dancing and thinking and reading books, but none of them is half my equal at lying insensible in mud."''
-->-- '''Prince Daeron''', ''[[ASongOfIceAndFire The Hedge Knight]]''

** Really any Toa of Air could count.