Line #45 Series/TheFades


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_fades_cover.jpg]]
2
3	->''"The Fades are coming... It's inevitable."''
4
5	''The Fades'' is a 2011 BritishSeries about a teenage boy, [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Paul]], plagued by [[BringMyBrownPants pants-wettingly scary]][[note]]literally, for him[[/note]] dreams of [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the world covered in ash and ruin]]. While searching for materials for his best friends' amateur horror movie in an abandoned shopping centre, he stumbles upon much more than he bargained for: a crazed, dirt-covered man pointing a gun at him, a creepy girl only he seems to see and much more worrisome, [[OurZombiesAreDifferent a ghoul-like being]] that really doesn't look very friendly. As he ponders if his sanity has finally decided to fully leave him, he unknowingly involves himself in a struggle that may very well end with his dreams of the apocalypse becoming reality. [[ArcWords The Fades are coming... It's inevitable.]]
6
7	''A link can be found [[http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0129tkw Here]] to the program page''
8	----
9	!!This show provides examples of:
10
11	* AllThereInTheManual: The official BBC website details the premise and the characters, introducing and explains certain concepts before their appearance in the series proper.
12	* AlphaBitch: Paul's twin sister, Anna.
13	* AntiHero: Just about everyone.
14	* AnyoneCanDie:
15	** Established with the deaths of [[spoiler:Sarah and Helen]] in the very first episode -- though seeing as this is a show about ghosts, death doesn't necessarily mean a character's departure from the show.
16	** [[spoiler:Kay's murder at the hande of Neal, in episode 6, is shocking and brutal, as she's made it unharmed to the finale and appears to be the unkillable heroine.]]
17	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: Anna screams: "[to Paul] You're mad, [to Mac] you're mad and Jay's a library monitor!"
18	* AssholeVictim:
19	** Sam Griegson and Greg Taylor. [[spoiler:Even for 12-year-old vandals like themselves, [[CruelAndUnusualDeath getting ripped to shreds by hungry undead]] might be a bit overkill...]]
20	** When Paul gets angry with Anna taunting his relationship with Jay, accidentally using his powers to temporarily [[WipeThatSmileOffYourFace seal her mouth shut]].
21	* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:After spending episode 4 as a fade while his brain-dead body lies in the hospital as a result of his [[UnusualEuphemism encounter]] with a truck, Paul resurrects in a rather spectacular fashion.]]
22	* BadassPreacher: Helen (her first act is to appear in Sarah's room stealing her gun).
23	* BlackAndGreyMorality: While cannibalistic, vengeful undead are hardly sympathetic characters, the Angelics don't exactly live up to their names... [[spoiler:''[[ColdBloodedTorture especially]]'' [[KnightTemplar Neil]]]].
24	%% * BlackAndNerdy: Mac.
25	* BlindSeer: Eric, the ancient Angelic visited by Neil and Paul in the second episode.
26	* BottomlessBladder: Averted. Quite audibly.
27	* BreakTheCutie: An ongoing one for Sarah, [[spoiler:starting with her death and going down from there]].
28	* BreakThemByTalking: [[spoiler:John]] does this to Paul, highlighting their similarities as [[NotSoDifferentRemark the chosen ones of their respective people]] and claiming that while his killings bring life through the resurrection of the dead, [[spoiler:those Paul destroys are dead for good, making him a bigger killer]].
29	* BrokenMasquerade: [[spoiler:By the end of Episode 5, people are fleeing town after all the disappearings, the killings and the ever-increasing tremors, aware that something very unusual and very bad is happening. Plus, Paul now has displayed his abilities in a rather public fashion.]]
30	* BritishBrevity: One season, six episodes.
31	* ButterflyOfDeathAndRebirth: Butterfly motifs are quite frequent in the show, from the [[MacabreMothMotif moth]] puked out after a healing to [[spoiler:the cocoons of a materialising Fade, and of course Paul's resurrection]].
32	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Paul's mother, repeatedly.
33	-->'''Anna:''' Paul is having sex with my best friend, and when I found them and shouted at him, he did a magic spell on me.\
34	'''Mum:''' You're having sex with Tracy?\
35	'''Anna:''' The other one.\
36	'''Mum:''' Jay? Oh... [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments I'm quite impressed with Jay]].
37	* CreepyCrows: Dead ones. When the dead ascend, they explode into flocks of bright birds, [[spoiler:including most the Reborns in Episode 6 once Paul reopens an ascension point -- except John, who turns into fiery red-golden ones]].
38	* DarkMessiah: John, who is seen as a saviour figure by the Reborns -- though his idea of a better world involves everyone either becoming a Reborn or [[ImAHumanitarian Reborn food]].
39	* DeadpanSnarker: Mac, again.
40	-->'''Mac:''' I'm not ready to die, I haven't decided what my last words will be yet.
41	* DeathByOriginStory: [[spoiler:Sarah dies in the first ep, and gets stuck as a Fade. ]]
42	* DesignStudentsOrgasm: The TitleSequence may even give the one in Series/TrueBlood a run for its money.
43	* DisappearedDad: Paul.
44	* DistinctionWithoutADifference:
45	-->'''Paul:''' This is a bad idea.\
46	'''Mac:''' Correction. This is a good idea with bad possibilities.
47	* DownerEnding: Episode 6. [[spoiler:Paul manages to re-open Ascension and thus release the stuck fades and the reborns, only to see the sky turn an [[RedSkyTakeWarning ominous shade of red]] in response. Elsewhere, the wounded and probably dying Neil mutters "I told him... I told him, you don't fuck with Ascension." Plus, the girl he loves got shot in the head by his former mentor. Her death only just hits him once Ascension has been re-opened and Mac and Anna ask where Jay is, and he bursts into tears.]]
48	* EvilCounterpart: [[spoiler:[[DarkMessiah John, the Angelic Killer and leader of the Reborns]],]] to Paul.
49	* EyeScream: Neil. Twice, on the same one -- though the second one was to ''[[NauseaFuel try and scrape the poison out]]''.
50	* FauxAffablyEvil: John [[spoiler:a.k.a. Polus the Angelic-killing Fade, now with a body]]. Ever so pleasant and polite, when not [[spoiler:munching on a carotide or butchering Angelics]].
51	* FromBadToWorse:
52	** [[spoiler:The Angelic-killing Fade has regained full physical form. And now so has Natalie, and at least half a dozen others are in the process. '''And''' this form is apparently immortal. ThisIsGonnaSuck...]]
53	** [[spoiler:The finale has Paul re-open all of the Ascension points, banishing all of the Fades simultaneously. [[TemptingFate Surely the day has to be saved, right?]] Only, we then see the sky suddenly begins to turn a sickly orange, ominous thunder begins to rumble in the distance and a solar eclipse occurs...]]
54	--->'''Neil:''' [[spoiler:I told him. I told him! Don't fuck with Ascension!]]
55	* GenderBlenderName: Jay
56	* GenreBlind: Sure Sarah, go check out the creepily groaning man in the dark corner right after you've had visions of impending doom... although until then, Sarah knew that the Fades ''couldn't'' touch anyone, unaware that now they can.
57	* HealingHands: One of the Angelics' abilities.
58	* HeroicBSOD:
59	** Neil, already under a lot of stress, loses it after [[spoiler:two more of his partners are offed by the Angelic killer -- by Paul's fault, no less]].
60	** Paul may have slowly become more heroic, but with an ever-increasing toll on his life, [[spoiler:and at the end of the first series, he is left in pieces after having lost his girlfriend]].
61	* HeWhoFightsMonsters: The Angelics -- at least, some of them -- are shown to go quite far in their war against the fades, from Neil [[spoiler:[[JackBauerInterrogationTechnique pulling a Jack Bauer]] on Natalie]] to Sarah [[spoiler:deciding to consume her fallen comrades' blood in order to materialise as well and fight on equal ground]].
62	* HorrorHunger: [[spoiler:John, the Angelic killer, and more generally every Reborn.]]
63	* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Neil's justification for [[spoiler:torturing Natalie]] and [[spoiler:killing Jay]].
64	* IdiotBall:
65	** [[spoiler:Neil following Natalie]] in the second episode. Only topped by Paul [[spoiler:leading the Angelic killer to their current hideout, ''fully aware of who he was, simply because he promised not to harm anyone and only release Natalie'']]. It did not end well.
66	** Despite Paul being [[MessianicArchetype their messiah]], none of the Angelics seem interested in giving him crucial information or teaching him how to hone his powers. Granted, they don't know all the information themselves and some of his powers they have never seen before, but you'd think they'd at least ''try'' instead of leaving him to [[FigureItOutYourself figure it out by himself]].
67	* ImAHumanitarian: [[spoiler:The ghoulish fades manage to become tangible again by devouring humans alive.]]
68	* ISeeDeadPeople: The Fades can only be seen by Angelics [[spoiler:and Reborns]]. Mac even talks about ''The Sixth Sense'' based on this.
69	* ItsPersonal: While [[spoiler:John]] always intended to kill all Angelics and especially TheChosenOne, he takes it to a new level with Paul after he [[spoiler:destroys Natalie, the only person he still genuinely loved]], and vows to make him feel the same pain before killing him.
70	* LightEmUp: [[spoiler:Paul has the ability to shoot lightbolts out of his hands that are the only known working weapon to defeat Reborns... and that can also forcibly reopen Ascension points.]]
71	* MoodWhiplash: The show runs on it, being a [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Buffy-esque]] merry mix of horror, fantasy, adult drama and teen comedy.
72	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Paul understandably reacts this way after [[spoiler:causing the death of two Angelics]].
73	* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Paul. Lampshaded, as this is unusual even for an Angelic.
74	-->'''Paul:''' I'm an Angelic Swiss Army Knife!
75	* OhCrap: Neil's reaction when he realises that [[spoiler:fully materialised Fades are immortal]].
76	* OurGhostsAreDifferent
77	* PreviouslyOn: Hilarious ones by Mac, [[BreakingTheFourthWall in character]]. [[spoiler:Including, in episode six, from the boot of the car where he was imprisoned at the end of episode five!]]
78	* RealPlaceBackground: the abandoned mall in the first episode is Yaohan Plaza / Oriental City on Edgware Road, a former well-known haunt for anime and manga geeks, a group that often overlaps with sci-fi viewers.
79	* RedSkyTakeWarning: [[spoiler:The final shot of the series, indicating that even though Ascension has been reopened things are about to get much worse.]]
80	* RefusalOfTheCall: Even though Paul is curious and wants to make a difference, he can't resolve himself to leave his old life behind.
81	* ScrewDestiny: Well, let's just get that in order for this show to have a happy ending, the whole "it's inevitable" better not be. However, at the end of series 1 we see that [[spoiler:screwing destiny may have unintended hazards of its own]].
82	* SecretIdentity: Instead of abandoning his old life, Paul tries to go with this.
83	* SelfDefeatingProphecy: [[spoiler:When Paul realises his vision of his loved ones dead is about to happen, he immediately checks on their safety before confronting John, preventing him from harming them.]]
84	* SexInASharedRoom: Mac and Paul have a strong HomoeroticSubtext to their friendship, which is exemplified by the fact that Paul's seen Mac naked and seen him masturbate (in a shared hotel room in Calais).
85	* ShipTease: Anna/Mac at the end of episode 5
86	* ShoutOut: Boy, does that show ''love'' them...
87	** ''Film/{{Ghostbusters 1984}}''
88	** ''Franchise/IndianaJones''
89	** [[Film/TheMatrix Neo, sooner or later you'll realise that there's a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.]]
90	** [[Film/TheGreenMile Healing with glowing hands while the surroundings shake, then spitting out an insect.]]
91	** Creator/TerryPratchett
92	** Creator/AlanMoore
93	** Creator/NeilGaiman
94	** ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet''
95	** Some twelve year olds overhearing Paul sees things: [[Film/DonnieDarko "Am I a rabbit? Am I a rabbit though?"]]
96	** [[Franchise/StarWars Your friend is quite the mercenary.]]
97	** ''Literature/TheTwilightSaga''
98	** ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''
99	* SmokingIsCool: Paul tries to impress his crush, who smokes herself.
100	* SupernaturalGoldEyes: "Polus" the ghoulish fade [[spoiler:and all the fades that consume human flesh]].
101	* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:Presented with setting out to destroy all reborns or standing back and doing nothing as the only alternatives, Paul ignores both and decides to try and find a way to reopen Ascenscion.]]
102	* TakingTheBullet:
103	** [[spoiler:Natalie jumps in front of John to block Paul's energy blast and is destroyed.]]
104	** [[spoiler:In the final episode, Sarah steps in front of Paul and takes the stabbing John meant to inflict on him, to buy Paul time to reopen Ascension.]]
105	* VillainsNeverLie: [[spoiler:John]] has some interesting revelations to make to Paul about how the Angelics decided to tackle the problem of ascension being "broken" and their subsequent treatment of the fades. [[IdiotBall Paul decides to temporarily trust him.]]
106	* WhamEpisode: Episode 3. [[spoiler:Paul is run over by a truck and is without heartbeat at the end of the episode. Also, a Fade has now regained full physical form -- the very Fade Paul saw in his visions.]]
107	* WipeThatSmileOffYourFace: Episode 3. Paul uses his new-found power to seal his sister Anna's mouth shut.
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Context Series / TheFades