Line #33 ComicBook/BadIsland


1	[[quoteright:240:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/badisland-240_5630.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:240: Probably not the best spot for a family vacation, call me crazy.]]
3
4	''Bad Island'' is a Young Adult graphic novel by Creator/DougTenNapel that was published in 2011 by Scholastic.
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6	It tells of a group of people who are given the opportunity to overcome their personal flaws after they're marooned on a remote, uncharted island. This isn't just ''any'' island, either. This is an island populated with strange creatures, increasingly bizarre phenomena, enigmatic architecture, hostile natives, and a mystery that extends back into the far reaches of the distant past...and there are all these flashbacks too.
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8	''{{Beat}}''
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10	Okay, that admittedly sounds like ''very'' [[Series/{{Lost}} familiar territory]]. But while this comic and its better-known predecessor ''do'' share the same basic elements, ''Bad Island'' plays these elements out in an entirely different way.
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12	In the case of ''Bad Island'', the castaways are a quirky, semi-dysfunctional family of four[[note]]Lyle, Karen and their kids, Reese and Janie[[/note]] (and their pet snake) who end up on the island as the result of an ill-fated boating trip. Soon after their arrival, they learn that the island is home not only to ferocious beasts not seen anywhere else on the planet, but also to a very ancient and powerful secret, a secret that someone (or something) would kill to keep hidden... Oh, and there's a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot subplot with giant sentient robots]]. Hey, it's a [=TenNapel=] comic; that sort of thing is a given.
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14	----
15	!!''Bad Island'' contains examples of the following tropes:
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17	* TheAce: Reese becomes this to the group this very early on, which only heightens Lyle's sense of inadequacy as the head of the household.
18	* ActionSurvivor: All 4 family members qualify as this.
19	* AliensSpeakingEnglish: Averted. The dialogue in the flashbacks are in English, but just for the reader's convenience. With the exception of an instance of telepathy, none of the sentient creatures encountered speak English in the main plot.
20	* AmbiguouslyBrown: Karen, who could maybe be Latina, Indian or Middle Eastern. Oddly, her kids look 100% white.
21	* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:Since The Prince is able to communicate with the family, doesn't that mean he was fully conscious - albeit immobile - during his eons of captivity?]]
22	%%* AnimateDead
23	* AntiHero: Lyle is a Type I [[spoiler:who eventually manages to drop the "Anti" as he becomes more competent in leading and protecting his family]]. Reese is a Type II [[spoiler:who also drops the "Anti"]].
24	* ApocalypticLog: One is found early on by Lyle
25	%%* BadassInDistress: [[spoiler:The Prince.]]
26	%%* BigBad: [[spoiler:The Triangle-Headed Alien]]
27	* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:The Prince, who intervenes just as the BigBad is finally about to deliver the killing blow to the family.]]
28	* BigGood: [[spoiler:The Island itself, which makes the title referring to it as ''bad'' rather ironic]].
29	%%* ButtMonkey: Lyle.
30	* CharacterDevelopment: Over the course of the story, the family members learn how to work together as a team, not just in contributing toward a common goal but also in learning to trust each other more.
31	* ChekhovsGunman: [[spoiler:Pickles the Snake.]]
32	* ComingOfAgeStory: Reese's arc is basically this. [[spoiler:The same can be said of the Prince, in his case signified by his seemingly-wiser behavior and his new whiskers.]]
33	* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler:The Prince's rematch with The Triangle-Headed Alien.]]
34	%%* DaddysGirl: Janie.
35	%%* DamselInDistress: Karen.
36	* DeadpanSnarker: The entire family, other than Janie, seems adept at this, but Karen stands out the most.
37	%%* DemBones
38	%%* DistressedDude: Lyle.
39	%%* TheDreaded: Johnny's Mom.
40	%%* {{Flashback}}
41	%%* GenkiGirl: Janie
42	* GreaterScopeVillain: [[spoiler:The Triangle-Headed Alien's Superior, referred to simply as "Supreme Ruler".]]
43	%%* HearingVoices
44	%%* HiddenVillain
45	* HumongousMecha: Sentient ones exist in the Flashbacks. They protect and rule over a race of smaller creatures that act as the pilots. [[spoiler:The Island is actually one of these mechas who was kidnapped and put into forced hibernation]].
46	%%* ILied: [[spoiler:The Triangle-Headed Alien.]]
47	* IndyPloy: Karen distracting the tribe and buying time [[spoiler:so that Lyle can untie himself; it doesn't work, but her efforts did buy them enough time for Reese and Janie to rescue them]].
48	%%* KillerRabbit: Johnny.
49	* MamaBear: One of the monsters after Reese mistreats its baby.
50	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:The Prince.]]
51	* NoNameGiven: Most of the non-Earthlings, regardless of how important some of them wind up being to the plot. The only one who actually gets a name is Johnny, and [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname that's technically just what Janie calls him]].
52	%%* OurMonstersAreWeird
53	%%* PosthumousCharacter: G.K. Higgenbothan
54	* {{Pride}}: The very notion of pride is deconstructed with [[spoiler:The Prince]].
55	%%* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
56	* SealedGoodInACan / SealedBadassInACan: [[spoiler:The Prince, aka the Island.]]
57	%%* {{The Smart G\|uy}}al: Karen.
58	* SpaceOpera: The flashbacks are essentially this.
59	%%* TwoLinesNoWaiting
60	%%* WithMyHandsTied

Context ComicBook / BadIsland