Line #131 KevinAndKell/TropesSToZ


1	[[center:[[WMG:'''''WebComic/KevinAndKell'' by Bill Holbrook''']]]]
2	[[center:[[WMG:[-'''Tropes:''' [[KevinAndKell/TropesAToB A to B]] \| [[KevinAndKell/TropesCToI C to I]] \| [[KevinAndKell/TropesJToR J to R]] \| '''S to Z'''-]]]]]
3	[[center:[[WMG:[-[[Characters/KevinAndKell Main Character Page]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellCoreFamily Core Family]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellKindleExtendedFamily Kindle Extended Family]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellDewclawExtendedFamily Dewclaw Extended Family]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellLindesfarnesPeers Lindesfarne's Peers]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellRudysPeers Rudy's Peers]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellConeysPeers Coney's Peers]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellYoungerCharacters Younger Characters/Turvy's Peers]] \| [[Characters/KevinAndKellOtherCharacters Other Characters]]-]]]]]
4
5	[[foldercontrol]]
6	[[folder:S]]
7	* ScarsAreForever: Leona has a scar over her left eye thanks to a hunting match at Caliban where a branch smacked her in the face, requiring her to get stitches.
8	* SecondLove: Most of the cast are happier with their second spouses/lovers than their first ones, as with Kevin and Kell, Ralph and Martha, Douglas and Dorothy, George and Danielle, Aby and Mark, Leona and Carl, and Miranda and Edgar.
9	** Also averted with Angelique, who is twice divorced. Kevin was first, then the father of Gweneth and her 19 other rabbit/skunk hybrid children. She also may or may not have had multiple lovers between marriages.
10	** Edgar is also an aversion, as he had two previous serious relationships with Rhonda and Leona before finding lasting love with Miranda.
11	* SecretRelationship:
12	** An interesting case involving [[https://kevinandkell.com/1996/kk0104.html one of the earliest secrets of the strip]] is Bruno denying experiencing constant feelings about girls to Rudy at the age of 12, when in reality he's wearing his girlfriend, Corrie, as a sheepskin. It would still be four years before Rudy would meet Corrie, and even longer before he learned she was a sheep.
13	--->'''Corrie:''' So when you gonna tell 'im 'bout us?\
14	'''Bruno:''' Patience, my sweet.
15	** Miranda initially tried to keep her relationship with Edgar a secret. They put it back into secret during the campaign to get her the Rhizome Trophy. Both times, Edgar disguised himself as a mouse. The second time, they described Edgar's real form as a "groupie", since he had already previously been seen at Beige University's stadium.
16	* SecretTestOfCharacter: [[https://kevinandkell.com/2009/kk0702.html Kevin's dad pulls strings to get Douglas bunked with him in prison]] so he could make sure he was a suitable partner for Dorothy.
17	-->'''Kevin:''' Dad, I'm surprised.\
18	'''Bentley:''' ...that I'm a better ex-husband than a husband? '''''WHY???'''''
19	* SelfDemonstratingArticle: When Lindesfarne is [[MurderTheHypotenuse hunting Fenton's lover after finding out she's a nocturnal insectivore]], Rudy and Bruno mention she'll probably make a rookie mistake. Sure enough, [[http://kevinandkell.com/1998/kk0407.html she and Tammy got in a conversation and became friends.]]
20	-->'''Tammy:''' Fenton was dating you, too?\
21	'''Lindesfarne:''' Yeah, what scum.
22	* SelfInsertFic: On Catherine Aura's Twitter, she talks about how she and Nigel are spying on a human (Subject A) that seems to have a 'psychic link' to the K&K world, and is drawing a comic about it. This is a rather obvious hint that Subject A is Bill Holbrook himself.
23	* SexyDiscretionShot: As noted under ReadyForLovemaking, Bill has interesting ways of flirting with his self-imposed rating. The closest he's come to showing anything...explicit is [[https://kevinandkell.com/2008/kk0831.html this August 2008 comic]] where the action is hidden under several inches of insulation, but ear positioning makes what's going on between George and Danielle Fennec crystal clear.
24	** And then there's [[https://kevinandkell.com/2020/kk0216.html this Valentine's Day comic from 2020]] where the holiday is compared to "training for March", when rabbits are usually depicted to be most...amorous. Not least of which is Kevin toward Kell.
25	* ShaggyDogStory: The entire arc with Harelink vying for an extremely lucrative contract to provide free wi-fi to the citizens of Domain was ended in a single strip - after they won, the telecom industry ''instantly'' got a law passed that stopped cities from providing this service entirely because they wanted the contract for themselves. This also rendered the entire arc, which took place over several months, entirely pointless. [[{{Anvilicious}} The real purpose of the arc was revealed to be a soapbox against the telecom industry.]]
26	* SharedUniverse: K&K is effectively in one with ''Webcomic/DocRat''.
27	* SherlockCanRead: In a fall 1998 storyline, Vin Vulpin has joined "The Institute for Species Purity". When Rudy and Fiona wonder why, Lindesfarne lists off a host of reasons, prompting Rudy to remark "Good guess." Then Lindesfarne reveals it wasn't a guess -- she read it on his membership application.
28	* ShipSinking:
29	** Outside the context of the main plot, Catherine Aura tries to prevent Nigel from thinking about or contacting Coney after they cross over to the human world, or trying to find the version of her in their side of the portal.
30	** This is invoked by Miranda's dads after she gets engaged to Edgar. While her uncle notes she always had a thing for carnivores, her uncle's partner [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk1210.html actually hoped she'd get together with Carl.]]
31	--->'''Miranda's uncle:''' That ship left port years ago.
32	* ShoutOut:
33	** Quite a few to ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes.
34	** ... And one to author [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2005/kk0320.html E. B. White]].
35	** In the [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2004/kk0201.html Interspecies Support Group]], you can see a [[WesternAnimation/RockyAndBullwinkle moose standing next to a squirrel]].
36	** And [[http://kevinandkell.com/2015/kk1229.html here]] we have a shout-out to ''Film/JurassicWorld''.
37	--->'''[[Tropers/{{Macsen}} Commenter]]:''' Now I'm imagining Marty being voiced by Creator/ChrisPratt.
38	** The strips from the 16th to the 24th of December 2009 are one big shout-out to ''Film/AChristmasStory''.
39	** When Harold (a stinkbird) helps Jessica (a cow) escape over a wall [[spoiler:with a ladder]] in [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2015/kk0805.html this strip]], she says she "would've exceeded [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail the capacity of an unladen swallow]]."
40	** For a more meta reference, fans broke out the "Log" song from ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'' when Rudy and Fiona rounded out their new burrow by [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0224.html bringing in a log that was a frequent meeting place for them throughout their relationship]] to use as a sofa.
41	** And there is a more internal shout-out to one of Bill's dead tree strips, ''ComicStrip/OnTheFastrack''. When Lin [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk1122.html started to rebel by wearing dresses instead of Mei-Li's preferred professional attire,]] Mei-Li mentions she would've preferred it if Lin went {{goth}} instead. This is likely a reference to ''Fastrack'' character Dethany, a goth executive secretary.
42	* ShovelStrike: [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk1001.html Happened to Spork]] when he tried to rescue his dung beetle co-workers from Herd Thinners' bug operation.
43	* SiblingRivalry: Lindesfarne and Rudy have a typically snarky sibling relationship. [[https://kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0313.html Here's a good example]] from after a situation at Beige where Lindesfarne (using her personal flight drone, since she was pregnant at the time) had to play BigDamnHeroes for Rudy's squirrel charge as a safety escort:
44	-->'''Rudy:''' You know, those "wings" make you look like [[Franchise/ToyStory Buzz Lightyear]].\
45	'''Lindesfarne:''' How'd you like to "fall with style"?
46	* SistineSteal: When George and Danielle regain their static connection, [[http://kevinandkell.com/2003/kk1026.html one of their first poses]] mirrors [[Art/SistineChapel "The Creation of Adam".]]
47	* SlapSlapKiss: Danielle [[spoiler: number two]] and George[[note]][[http://kevinandkell.com/2003/kk1023.html It was an effort to get George to fall out of love with her]] since the original one died. [[http://kevinandkell.com/2003/kk1025.html It]] [[http://kevinandkell.com/2003/kk1026.html failed.]][[/note]]
48	* SmellPhone: Rudy Dewclaw can ascertain that he's cyber-chatting with Fiona by sniffing the [=CPU=] exhaust fan.
49	* SomethingElseAlsoRises: Kevin's one floppy ear perks up when he's feeling frisky.
50	** Kevin inverted this [[https://kevinandkell.com/1998/kk0601.html when he noted in a strip]] that he used Viagra to get both his ears to go straight up.
51	--->'''Kell:''' You've never needed it for anything else...
52	** It happened to Dip when his horns were growing in. [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2013/kk1022.html When Caniche kissed him, they grew suddenly,]] [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2013/kk1023.html and in the next strip, they were full bighorns.]]
53	* SpeakNowOrForeverHoldYourPeace: Subverted for laughs during Lindesfarne and Fenton's wedding:
54	-->'''Reverend Bruinoge''': "And should anyone object to this union... ...Let him speak now or forever hold his peace." (''checks phone'') "Nothin' via text or Facebook! We're good to go!"
55	* SpeciesSurname: damn near everyone, those who don't have surnames based on features of their species.
56	* SpiritAdvisor: Randy, Rudy's dead biological father, came back in spirit [[http://kevinandkell.com/2000/kk0508.html to give Rudy some pointers when he was going to fight Vin.]] Of course, this was ultimately {{subverted}} when it was discovered Vin was also Randy's son from an extramarital affair. He admitted [[http://kevinandkell.com/2002/kk0523.html he helped Rudy because he didn't want both his sons to kill each other.]]
57	-->'''Rudy:''' So who do I turn to '''now''' for a moral, ethical role model?\
58	'''Randy:''' Why, Kevin, of course.\
59	'''Rudy:''' '''''I MEAN ONE THAT I CAN ADMIT TO MYSELF!'''''\
60	'''Randy:''' Oh. Now that's a toughie...
61	* StayWithMeUntilIDie: An extended inversion for the dung beetles with Spork; knowing they don't have long, and won't live past the winter, [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk1119.html they keep Spork company while DFW Alaska is in shutdown.]] Their deaths occured offscreen, with Spork formally adopting their offspring.
62	* StealthPun: [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2010/kk1116.html An elephant insurance man whom no one wants to acknowledge.]]
63	* StockAnimalDiet: Strip 2012-09-01 has one bird eating a mouse, and was able to determine the kinds of cheese in its last meal.
64	* StrawmanPolitical: They appear occasionally. Bill Clinton was apparently a rabbit, George Bush is apparently a butterfly. One of Lindesfarne's blog entries mentioned Kerry as a horse, though he was never shown within the strip. A strip did not show Obama on panel, but described him as the hybrid of an African Gazelle and a North American White Tail Deer. Trump's species is not shown, but it's revealed his ''hair'' is a furry little rodent-like...thing.
65	* StunnedSilence: This is pulled off [[https://kevinandkell.com/2019/kk0225.html Bruno and Corrie]] in the strip before we see them giving up on natural childbirth.
66	* StupidBoss:
67	** George Fennec, when he was running Hare-Link, was almost completely useless beyond bankrolling the company. For a while, his only actual purpose at Hare-Link was daycare for Francis and Coney. And at times his behavior lived down to that, like his ambivalence to the signs that wife Danielle was pregnant:
68	--->'''Danielle''' (in the bathroom with her pregnancy test) HOORAY! YEEEEE-HAH!\
69	'''George''': Odd. She never does that at home when she...\
70	'''Kevin''': Get a clue, George.\
71	'''Ralph''': They sell those on eBay... along with cribs.
72	** Early on in his time as VP of Hare-Link, there were clues to this with Ralph as well. [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2001/kk0702.html Once when Kevin went on vacation,]] he recognized that Fenton and Candance would be the ones actually running the show.
73	* SuddenlyVoiced: Kevin and Kell gain voices in a few simple [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/links/animation.html animations]] that have been done in the past. Kevin has been voiced by Bill himself and Music/TomSmith, and Kell has been voiced by Bill's wife Teri and, in the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPXG56RB3DM song]], by Karen Underwood. Fenton got a voice in [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/about the intro video]], and with a possible TV show on the horizon, more voices may be on the way.
74	* SuperWindowJump: Fenton [[https://kevinandkell.com/2004/kk0122.html flies through a closed window at Tammy and Ray's lighthouse]] to stop Lindesfarne from getting them to take her to the portal so she could return to the human dimension.
75	* SureLetsGoWithThat:
76	** Harcourt's response when Harold [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2015/kk0730.html arrived in Carnivore Summer Camp to rescue Jess]] and asked if his flapping alerted them to his arrival, when it was really his stench.
77	** We get this word-for-word when we find out [[https://kevinandkell.com/2018/kk0920.html Onk's native name,]] which Lindesfarne decides to shorten to Onk as a nickname.
78	* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
79	** Twice during the DistressedDude situations of 2016, Carl suffered side effects from his injuries:
80	*** He spent a couple weeks in the hospital following his near-drowning at the summer camps. While initially sent there for "concussion symptoms", likely because he crashed through a bridge into a river, this pointed at possible pneumonia as a result.
81	*** The second time she saved his life, Leona broke one of Carl's ribs when she used a hose to give him the Heimlich.
82	** The flood that nearly drowned Lindesfarne and Fenton's Tree also caused Douglas' stash of acorns to begin sprouting. He and Kevin were able to sell them to Domain to plant them for use as new residential developments.
83	[[/folder]]
84
85	[[folder:T]]
86	* TakeAThirdOption: At the end of the Danielle arc, Danielle believes she and Lindesfarne will have to return to the human world to restore the balance, but Lindesfarne realizes that any two individuals can restore the balance, opting to have her mice do so instead. According to Catherine Aura, however, they're too small, and [[spoiler: Catherine and Nigel fly through instead]].
87	* TakeThisJobAndShoveIt:
88	** When Kell was ousted from Herd Thinners, [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2012/kk0907.html virtually the entire senior staff walked out behind her.]] This would lead to the formation of Dewclaw's Fine Meats.
89	--->'''Kell:''' Why have you all followed me?\
90	'''Frank:''' Hang on...\
91	'''Madelaine:''' It takes a minute to text a resignation...
92	** In the "Great Resignation" plot of early 2022, every single remaining employee at Herd Thinners quit, forcing them to initially subcontract with Dewclaw's Fine Meats, then pivot to the fake meat industry using bats to harvest insects to produce fake meat products.
93	** In May 2022, Mother Goose injured her wing, leading "Honk" to sub for her. He found out their courier company was purposefully forcing geese to overwork themselves and quit, since the migratory species generally didn't settle and educate themselves. She quit, and they formed a preschool for goslings so they could be directed to actual education, and eventually other careers.
94	* TakeThat: Plenty. Car dealerships, talk radio, Windows, politicians (especially lobbyists), [[HumansAreBastards humans]], even [[CashCowFranchise Pokémon]]... The strip often uses Take Thats as punchlines.
95	* TakingTheBullet: Danielle I for George.
96	* TalkShowAppearance: Kevin and Kell are invited as guests on the "Jerry Springer Spaniel Show," presumably as a BileFascination romance between a large hare and an alpha wolf. Jerry's ulterior motive is to bring up an online affair between "Incisor" and "Deathpaw," in hopes of televising Kell shredding Kevin.
97	* TapOnTheHead: Two notable aversions:
98	** After Kell suffers a concussion in [[spoiler:the challenge she faces as CEO]], her doctor tells her to stop hunting. Though previous pauses to her hunting ultimately were reversed, she has not gotten back into regular hunting since forming Dewclaw's Fine Meats.
99	** It is implied Carl suffered a concussion when he dove through a bridge and into a river to block a predatory bird from getting Francis in the 2016 summer camp arc. Since he was knocked unconscious, he nearly drowned in the river, though Llisa extracted him and Leona resuscitated him. He would spend a couple weeks in the hospital.
100	* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Angelique was forced into this with the Dewclaws when all the workers at Herd Thinners quit in March 2022. Kell [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk0318.html permitted Angelique to subcontract Dewclaw's Fine Meats]] for one week in exchange for a 10% stake in Herd Thinners. She then used her stake [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk0328.html to plant Kevin as a proxy]] on the Herd Thinners board of directors.
101	* TeethFlying: Fights occasionally lead to this:
102	** Rudy and Bruno's fight in 2003 led to major damage to Bruno's jaws and teeth. But there was a silver lining: [[https://kevinandkell.com/2003/kk0304.html he got a full set of herbivore teeth]] out of the deal.
103	** Kell defeated Marty in his challenge [[https://kevinandkell.com/2010/kk1221.html by shoving a fruit cake in his mouth and yanking it out, parting him of his teeth.]]
104	* TemptingFate:
105	** When Fiona bought R.L.'s shares in Kevin's business, she said she saw "nothing but good" coming out of it. Cue [[https://kevinandkell.com/2000/kk0425.html her father George looking for a date.]]
106	** This one time at Carnivore Summer Camp, Lin and Harcourt fantasized about their first kills, but Coney warned them prey isn't going to fall right into their lap. [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2015/kk0724.html Cue Jess falling through their tent,]] a victim of another camper's plot to use a drone to kidnap a Herbivore Summer Camp camper.
107	** Note this line from the mother of Delphi, the opossum friend of Turvy:
108	--->'''Delphi:''' Mom, I ''like'' flying with Turvy!\
109	'''Delphi's mother:''' I don't want you losing your grip and falling! Stay right here on the ground! Where you're safe!
110	*** This is actually an aversion, as Delphi's mom said "where you're safe" right after [[https://kevinandkell.com/2023/kk0622.html an owl snatched Delphi]] while she wasn't looking.
111	* TheirFirstTime: [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0209.html The comic made]] [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0210.html a bit of a big deal of]] [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0211.html Rudy and Fiona's first time]] together when they are twenty-two. [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0212.html But they subsequently agree]] not to [[AltarTheSpeed rush to the altar]] immediately after:
112	-->'''Rudy:''' Still not ready for marriage.\
113	'''Fiona:''' Me neither.
114	* [[ThisIsSomethingHesGotToDoHimself This Is Something She Has To Do Herself]]: Kell facing a predator challenge 28 days after her ascension as Herdthinners' new CEO. It's company policy.
115	** This is explicitly enforced in the first one against Marty, when Kell tells Kevin not to intervene and orders him to hide. This is justified, as her rabbit husband (even though he is much bigger and stronger than the typical rabbit) might make a convenient secondary target--and later proven correct when Marty tries to target Kevin during the fight.
116	* ThreatBackfire: [[spoiler: RL finds out Kell's setting up a rival company and threatens to crush her company and devour her. She's ''thrilled'' that RL sees ''her'' as a threat.]]
117	* ToiletDrinkingDogGag: There's a RunningGag that Rudy, the wolf teenager of the mixed species family, likes drinking from the toilet.
118	* {{Tomboy}}: Jess is this, to the point Wendell didn't realize she was female until he saw the class roster at their school. Even though he knew she was a cow.
119	* TooDumbToLive: Several prey species in one-shot strips get eaten after falling into obvious predator traps or doing other careless things (like leaving their cell phones on).
120	* TookTheWifesName:
121	** Kevin changes his and Lindesfarne's last name to Dewclaw after marrying Kell, mainly because he had been disowned for marrying a predator. Considering he's a rabbit and Kell's a wolf, this is probably the ''least'' unusual thing about their marriage.
122	** Dip took Caniche's last name. Being someone who was bred to be food, there was no point to his having one of his own until then.
123	** George Gopher did this when he married Ophelia, as he was violently on the outs with his own family at the time.
124	* TotemPoleTrench:
125	** Spork's dung beetle co-workers and a bunch of other bugs used this tactic to save Spork from Herd Thinners' mystery meat operation.
126	** After the 2022-23 Winter, when his original dung beetle friends passed away, Spork introduced their offspring to Marty as emerging from one of these.
127	* TropaholicsAnonymous: Being a part of K&K's N.R.A. is nothing to be proud of - in this universe, a predator's natural hunting skills are a source of pride and having to use a weapon to catch prey is a major admission of failure. Not that arming someone as inept as Ralph would put anyone ''but'' Ralph in danger.
128	-->'''Ralph:''' (''having shot himself when his bullet ricocheted'') Uhh...Kevin, could you call 9-1-1?
129	[[/folder]]
130
131	[[folder:U]]
132	* UncannyFamilyResemblance: A recurring trope in the comic, especially when characters use it to trade places.
133	** Kell and her cousin Sheila look similar enough to pass for each other, as Sheila is literally just Kell with different clothes and heavier makeup.
134	** Coney and Wendell look so similar that all they have to do to switch places is for Coney to cut her long hair and give it to Wendell to use as a wig.
135	** When put in fox makeup, Rudy looks so much like his late father that Kell screams and breaks down into tears when he tries to surprise her with it.
136	* UndeadTaxExemption: Completely averted in this series - in the main universe, animals ''must'' be listed in the species registry to be part of the civilized world. Having no records is only possible if you've gone back to The Wild Corrie has to basically live undercover for her first several years in the strip, and being able to become a part of society is a huge factor in her initial attempt to join society as Candace's adopted daughter. However apparently its really ''easy'' to join the registry, as Corrie finds out to her horror. An attempt to help out Rudy and Bruno by temporarily disguising herself as a wolf named Dale suddenly becomes permanent because an overly helpful Fiona fills out an online form in mere seconds. Much later, when Corrie's storyline progresses to the point that she can just live as a sheep again, updating her entry to show her correct species is again a nearly-instantaneous process.
137	** This also carries over into the human world, as when Catherine and Nigel enter human society, Catherine has to forge identities for both of them so they can get jobs and go to school.
138	* UnholyMatrimony: [[CorruptCorporateExecutive R.L.]] and [[JerkAss Angelique]] have been shown to be genuinely in love with each other, despite Angelique seeing R.L.'s disappearance as an opportunity to take over Herd Thinners to conquer the world. Yet when R.L. returns alive, he is only minorly perturbed and simply convinces her its easier to make piles of money instead.
139	* UnsettlingGenderReveal: A rare non-heterosexual example. It looks like Rachel might be trying to romance Bruno... until she realizes he's a boy. Rachel, as it turns out, is gay. Bruno was wearing a fake sheepskin covered with his girlfriend Corrie's wool, thus making him smell like a girl and giving a species with poor eyesight no other cues to his actual gender. After a few laughs from his friends over the misunderstanding, Bruno attaches ram horns to the sheepskin to prevent this from recurring.
140	** Comes back again when Wendell finds out Jess is a girl. Jess has horns, but [[ShownTheirWork a lot of people don't realize both genders of cattle have horns]].
141	--->'''Jess:''' What part of "cow" don't you understand?
142	* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom
143	** [[Webcomic/GeneralProtectionFault Nick and Ki]], by arriving in Domain, [[spoiler:push the animal world past the tipping point, so that the balance must be completely restored (as opposed to merely having the two of them leave) lest instinct loss take over]].
144	** Kevin and Kell's appearance on the Jerry Springer type show leads to his insurance agency that he is married to a wolf.
145	[[/folder]]
146
147	[[folder:V]]
148	* VerySpecialEpisode: When your title couple are the equivalent of an interracial marriage, you know these will happen and frequently.
149	* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Rabbit's Revenge is supported by almost three quarters of the rabbit community because they don't know of their methods.
150	* VisualMetaphor: When [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2016/kk1218.html Carl rose to two feet during his first date]] with Leona, commenters noted that was "standing up for her".
151	* VisualPun: Bill Holbrook is quite fond of these. [[TrophyWife It]] [[DeerInTheHeadlights has]] [[MarriedToTheJob become]] [[UnwiseOwl a]] [[HamsterWheelPower rather]] [[ArchivePanic copious]] ImageSource.[[invoked]]
152	* VitriolicBestBuds: Dorothy and Elanor, despite often clashing, particularly in their different approaches in their work for Aby and Coney's diet, have admitted that they're each other's only friends.
153	* TheVoiceless: Generally, whichever character is a baby/toddler at any point in the strip doesn't talk for ''years'' at a time, well past the point of when normal children would start to talk. It's almost like Holbrook is unaware of what age children start forming words...
154	** Coney was the originator, not speaking in a strip until she was well past the age where she should have started, only beginning when she was in ''preschool''.
155	** Francis was very rarely seen speaking early on, and only spoke one or two words at a time, though one factor to that was him largely being OutOfFocus. When he returned with the Summer Camp 2021 arc, he was speaking normally with those around his age (being only a year younger than Coney).
156	** Turvy [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk0620.html was first seen speaking at age three.]] Her lack of speech was justified because she spoke at super-high frequencies, with Fenton [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk0320.html eventually coaching her down to audible vocal frequencies]] in 2022.
157	** Of the cast around Turvy's age, Carla still has yet to speak despite being five years. Subverted, as [[https://kevinandkell.com/2024/kk0209.html#disqus_thread Corrie has said she does speak when she wants to]].
158	[[/folder]]
159
160	[[folder:W]]
161	* WackyCravings: When Linsfarne is expecting, she is still eating her normal diet but is craving extremely exotic insects; listed examples include 17-year cicada, burying beetle, puss moth caterpillar, scorpion fly and something Fenton calls "a gum leaf skeletoniser".
162	* WackyMarriageProposal:
163	** When Martha proposed to Ralph, [[http://kevinandkell.com/2002/kk0208.html she hid the ring in a meatball.]] He ate it whole.
164	--->'''Martha:''' ...and thirty hours later, he accepted!\
165	'''Fiona:''' ''FacePalm''
166	** When Douglas proposed to Dorothy, [[http://kevinandkell.com/2009/kk0625.html he framed it as a business partnership]] where he'd be planting acorns as new real estate. Dorothy rolled with it.
167	--->'''Dorothy:''' But that'll require a formal financial partnership, with a security stake on your part!\
168	'''Douglas:''' (''presents her with an engagement ring'') Will this precious metal holding suffice?\
169	'''Dorothy:''' Oooo! '''Nice''' collateral!
170	** Not so much wacky, considering the circumstances, but when Aby proposed to Mark so he could adopt his orphaned nephew, [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2018/kk0507.html he gave her a lug nut]] to stand in until they could get actual rings.
171	** Carl and Leona's engagement was pretty much a disaster (see: PoorCommunicationKills). Leona was convinced Carl was going to dump her when he decided to turn pro, and closed herself off emotionally to him, resulting in him returning the engagement ring after multiple attempts to even get to ask her. When she finally re-opened at the cajoling of Frank, he finally popped the question, and [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2019/kk1014.html had to use the return receipt]] as a stand-in for a ring.
172	** When Edgar and Miranda were attacked by a bear following the Rhizome Trophy ceremony, Edgar's mouse disguise was destroyed. A squirrel streamed the aftermath live in an (unnecessary) attempt to smear Miranda. [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk1208.html She turned it around and proposed to Edgar on the spot.]] She then [[https://kevinandkell.com/2021/kk1209.html gnawed an engagement ring out of a branch]] for him.
173	--->'''Edgar:''' Miranda, was that real or improv?\
174	'''Miranda:''' Real.
175	** When George Gopher lamented the jailing of his family after a plot to separate him from Ophelia that involved them faking their deaths, [[https://kevinandkell.com/2023/kk0202.html Ophelia showed him]] he wasn't really alone:[[note]]For context, George, Ophelia, and Greta were eating together, likely at Greta and Ophelia's burrow.[[/note]]
176	--->'''George:''' Now I really '''am''' alone in the world!\
177	'''Ophelia:''' Hardly. (''she slips something to him'')\
178	'''George:''' Did...you just propose to me?\
179	'''Ophelia:''' With an onion ring.\
180	'''Greta:''' Make sure that's not stolen.
181	* WeAreAsMayflies: Taken to an extreme on the short lifepsan species. While it's technically the adult form that has the short lifespan, Mayflies and June bugs are commonly treated as having a sub-month lifespan while still integrated as fully functional members of society as long as they're alive. Examples include June bugs being considered fast food, or mayflies only needing a student loan of 35 cents (for the part of their life that they attend college.)
182	** This became a plot point when Spork migrated to Alaska to join Marty at his branch of DFM. After he got a job, his dung beetle coworkers [[https://kevinandkell.com/2022/kk1114.html reminded him they would not be around much longer.]]
183	* WeakButSkilled: Francis compensates for his lack of natural defenses with clever use of tools and booby traps.
184	* WebcomicsLongRunners: Having started in September 1995--near the beginning of the medium--and still running in 2023, it is the undisputed longest of the long.
185	* WebcomicTime: Zig-zagged over the strips long life. Characters really only age up when Holbrook decides it's time for a new batch of jokes about their current stage of life, particularly the main three Dewclaw kids. It allows Coney, Rudy, and Lindesfarne to age a few years here and there, consequently aging everyone as well. Coney was confirmed to be 5 in 2013 and remained so until 2017 when [[spoiler: Turvy]] was born. Since then, they have aged in almost real-time, with Coney now 8, Rudy's peers now getting married and now having kids at the young but not unheard of age of 22, and with [[spoiler: Turvy]] coming up on her third birthday in 2021. Oddly, Coney and her peers have continued to age, as Wendell and Lin are mentioned as being 10 in 2023, but Miranda and Fiona mention they are still 22.
186	** This can still get very messy with supporting cast members in the orbit of the Dewclaws. Both Rhonda and Rachel were introduced as being ''explicitly'' in Rudy's grade level in high school, but then they suddenly graduated high school well before him and became college roommates with Lindesfarne, who had just started college. Rhonda was even still dating Edgar for awhile, even though he was ''still'' shown as being in high school with Rudy and Fiona.
187	** Vin's birthdate was eventually listed in the comic, showing him to be ''much'' older than he had been implied to be considering his introduction in the strip.
188	** It becomes even more bizarre to the point of bordering on NegativeContinuity due to the acknowledgement of fixed points in time across the history of the comic. The Y2K problem was a major plot arc in the year 1999, and so was set in the present day. However, the strips regarding Rhonda's graduation clearly show her as part of the class of 2013, and the comic has clearly shown that New Year's Eve 2017 occurred in the story. This would indicate that at least 14-18 years should have passed over the course of the comic. However, based on progression of the major characters, only 8-10 years have passed over the course of the comic's run.
189	* WellDoneSonGuy: Lindesfarne to Angelique before the divorce.
190	* WhamEpisode:
191	** Lindesfarne and Fenton discover Vin to be alive, but while investigating it, Fenton is kidnapped, learns that Mrs. Aura is in charge of a conspiracy to prevent the world from descending into chaos and that everyone else, including Lindesfarne, believes that he is dead.[[note]]Well, not so much for Lindesfarne. She would quietly look for him for the remainder of the MillenniumBug storyline, primarily because [[https://kevinandkell.com/1999/kk0201.html he coincidentally disappeared at the same place as Vin,]] who was also disappeared by Microtalon.[[/note]]
192	** The revelation that Lindesfarne is a former human.
193	* WhamLine
194	** One of the earliest. Just when Rudy had finally gotten a girlfriend...
195	--->'''Fiona:''' My family's moving in the morning.
196	** As Kell flees the Rabbit Warren (which she entered to find Kevin's parents) with the rabbit whom she saved and who had helped her.
197	--->'''Kevin''': [[http://kevinandkell.com/2001/kk1214.html Thanks, Dad]].
198	** Dorothy, while discussing requests for arranged marriages for Coney with Kevin, says she had set one up for him.
199	** Kevin finds an intruder in his house, who turns out to be working for his political opponents. When he says he's not up for re-election yet:
200	--->'''Intruder''': Check that. You're facing a recall.
201	** Lindesfarne tells Rudy that she's found Vin Vulpen's half brother, whom they need to give him a tail transplant. Rudy asks who would have to do it, [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2002/kk0518.html and she says "Four inches should do it" while holding a ruler at his tail.]] Shortly thereafter, another comes [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2002/kk0519.html when Rudy realizes the implications of this and denies that his father committed adultery.]]
202	--->'''Rudy''': IT'S A LIE! IT's A SLUR! IT'S--\
203	'''Kell''': It's something I hope neither you nor Vin inherited from him!
204	** The culprit in Sid's murder confesses
205	--->'''[[spoiler:Danielle]]''': I'd say [[spoiler:there's a 100% chance]] it's me, [[spoiler:Daddy]].
206	** [[spoiler:[[http://www.kevinandkell.com/2010/kk1010.html Kell... you... you WON. YOU'RE the new CEO of Herd Thinners!]]]]
207	** Dip reveals his true intended nature when he helps stop a cyber-attack on Dewclaw's Fine Meats:
208	--->'''Dip:''' I'm [[spoiler:a spy for Herd Thinners]]. Duh.
209	** Fenton gets clued in that [[http://kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0101.html his and Lindesfarne's lives are about to drastically change:]]
210	--->'''Fenton:''' Wait... [[spoiler:[[MorningSickness she was the designated driver...]] ([[VomitDiscretionShot as Lindesfarne throws up in the background]]).]]
211	** And another of the earliest in ''Kevin & Kell'', [[http://www.kevinandkell.com/1998/kk0814.html one that would dictate the early history of the strip:]]
212	--->'''Nigel:''' When do you think they'll catch on that we birds run the world?\
213	'''Catherine Aura:''' [[TemptingFate Never]], [[{{Foreshadowing}} if they're lucky]].
214	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Kevin was elected to the school board in 2006, on a platform of eliminating high stakes testing. Which, in this comic's universe, leads to ''students being eaten alive to save money''. Despite the fact that both of his school-age children could be at risk of an untimely death, the comic has dropped the plot entirely and only occasionally revisits his school board post for mundane one-off jokes.
215	** When Corrie first got a job at Herd Thinners as their webmaster, she immediately bought a house. But once she found out Ralph was her father, she immediately moved in with him with no fanfare or explanation. She would go on to move into Martha's side of the Fennec mansion (now the boardinghouse) when Ralph married her, and continued to live there when Bruno started cohabitating with her after his graduation. What happened to her own house was never explained.
216	** After all the hoopla about baby Francis, his genetics, and ''turning into a human baby'', he's barely been seen in strip and the plotline has been dropped. This even includes an obvious SequelHook from Francis' birth storyline in which Danielle hinted that the only reason she would return to the human world would be to save him. [[AbortedArc This is never mentioned again.]]
217	** "Domestication", once a major issue in Domain (though its actual negative effects were nebulous at best), hasn't been a major plot point since 2002, when Vin Vulpen was PutOnABus. It hasn't been mentioned '''''at all''''' since 2005, when Caliban hunting coach Sam Pardus was outed as a domestic cat pretending to be a leopard.
218	** More literally, what became of Lindesfarne's mice/research subjects/assistants? The last time they were seen was at her and Fenton's wedding as guests.
219	* WhatTheHellHero: Rudy often got these for his actions when he was younger. In one case, this overlaps with EvenTheDogIsAshamed, when Coney dope slaps him for not sending Kevin and Kell's marriage registration.
220	** Though he was also able to dish one out on the spirit of his father after finding out Vin was his brother. Complete with [[PaintingTheMedium a cold, dripping speech bubble]] for his salutation.
221	* WhatTheHellIsThatAccent: For some reason, Princess Chertsey of the United Kingdom has [[https://kevinandkell.com/2004/kk0114.html some kind of Cockney-Scots accent, possibly]]. Definitely not "posh", anyway. Then again, she was raised in an orphanage, so she likely picked a lot of vocal inflections that would be unusual for a British royal as she learned to speak.[[note]]Though a relative of the real-world British Royal family would probably be able to affect a Scottish accent, as she would only be a few generations down from Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, Queen UsefulNotes/ElizabethII's mother, who was Scottish.[[/note]]
222	* WhatYouAreInTheDark: PlayedForLaughs (as well as heartwarming) when Coney got Rudy [[https://kevinandkell.com/2012/kk0228.html to explain how he really felt about Fiona]] while she was playing with Fiona's cell phone.
223	* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: Domain's location relative to the rest of [[strike:Earth]] [[MirrorUniverse "the world"]] is pointedly never established. However, the town is heavily inspired by Atlanta, Georgia, where the author lives, and several landmarks from that region appear in the strip using fictional equivalents.
224	** Made even more ambigious by the fact that Domain is openly mentioned to not exist in "our" world in any shape or form (including Parallel versions).
225	** That being said, [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2006/kk0312.html when Dorothy re-entered civilization,]] the address listed for the Dewclaw household had a ZIP code that, in the real world, represents Monroe, Georgia, a town 40 miles east of Atlanta. And the coordinates for her last den in the Wild are just south of the northern Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta.
226	** And Interstate 85, which runs in the Atlanta area, [[https://kevinandkell.com/2011/kk1005.html has been mentioned in the comic.]]
227	* WhoWillTakeTheKids: An early story arc has Kevin and Kell debating over who should take the children in the event of their death. Ralph was automatically ruled out (this was before his CharacterDevelopment), Kell's parents were ruled out since her father was succumbing to Alzheimer's, her cousin Sheila would eat Coney (this was years before Sheila was properly introduced to the strip), and Kevin was still estranged from his family over Kell. In the end, they name Lindesfarne (then in high school) the legal guardian and vow to take separate planes until she's twenty-one.
228	* WholeCostumeReference: Wendell dress exactly like Calvin of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' and [[{{Expy}} shares more than a few]] [[BrattyHalfPint personality traits]] [[GirlsHaveCooties with him]].
229	* WickedStepmother: Inverted; Lindesfarne considers Kell more of a mother than her original adoptive mother.
230	* AWolfInSheepsClothing: Bruno (wolf) and his girlfriend Corrie (sheep) literally, figuratively, and just about every single variation one can think of.
231	[[/folder]]
232
233	[[folder:Y]]
234	* YouHaveFailedMe: R.L. typically fires people by eating them.[[spoiler:..or so we were led to believe. Turns out, most of his trophies (the people he fired) are still alive - R.L. hired them back as temp workers, preventing them from getting any benefits.]]
235	** However, it's implied that it's PlayedStraight when R.L. returns. This is punctuated with Marty's departure, as he left Herd Thinners when he found out he was on a Christmas Party menu.
236	* YoureNotMyFather: Lindesfarne stops calling Angelique "Mom" after the divorce, upset at being abandoned and not being acknowledged much even during the marriage.
237	* YourTelevisionHatesYou:
238	** A variant: [[http://kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0107.html it was a stray Google ad]] that outed Lindesfarne as pregnant to Rudy and Fiona--or at least, led her to admit a positive pregnancy test. She tried to ask them to at least keep a lid on it until she got it confirmed medically, but their initial excitement at the news led to this:
239	--->'''Fenton:''' (''dejected'') Texting the families now...
240	** Later, we got [[https://kevinandkell.com/2018/kk1012.html another bombshell dropped]] due to Google ads:
241	--->'''Kell:''' Ad for a basal body thermometer?\
242	'''[[spoiler:Corrie]]:''' Yes. [[spoiler:Bruno]] and I are trying...

Context KevinAndKell / TropesSToZ