Line #125 WesternAnimation/ActionLeagueNOW


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/action_league_now.png]]
2
3	->''Action League NOW!''\
4	''Starring The Flesh: He's super strong and super naked.''\
5	''Thunder Girl: She flies like thunder.''\
6	''Stinky Diver: A former naval commando with an attitude as bad as his odor.''\
7	''And Meltman: With the power to... melt!''
8
9	Originally a segment on {{Creator/Nickelodeon}}'s live-action TV series ''Series/AllThat'' and then on its AnimatedAnthology ''WesternAnimation/{{KaBlam}}!'', ''Action League NOW!'' centered on the crudely stop-motion-animated adventures of four superhero toys, who were forever going off on missions that were either ill-defined or just plain weird, and nearly always involved trying to stop the corrupt "The Mayor" in some zany scheme of his. What made it distinct was that the toys were all shown in their "natural state" of being 6 inches tall in a human world, seldom even moving on their own (unless being thrown or the like, which is why the show was sometimes described as being filmed in "Chuck-imation"; traditional stop-motion was used when the characters were required to do something complex).
10
11	Our heroes were The Flesh (a ''Series/ConanTheAdventurer'' doll modified to replace his hips/loincloth with a [[BarbieDollAnatomy Ken-type bulge]] who was described as "super-strong and super-naked"), Thunder Girl (a superheroine with a [[=Sindy=]] doll head who just flew around and complained about how stupid her teammates were, even though she could be just as clueless as the others), Stinky Diver (a loose cannon with a thick British accent and perpetual body odor, made from a Franchise/GIJoe Shipwreck action figure) and Melt-Man (a not-too-bright melted Franchise/GIJoe-like figurine "with the power to... ''melt!''"). They tended to suffer horrible injuries. They were accompanied by The Chief, who would often shout "BLAST IT!" and berate the team for their screw-ups; Justice the Dog, and Bill the Lab Guy, who spoke in monotone, and often made strange inventions and devices to help the League, though these would often be stolen or otherwise used to harm the League.
12
13	As an anthology segment, the series lasted from 1996 to 2000. Their spin-off show consisted of combinations of their old shorts into longer episodes.
14	----
15	!!This series provides examples of:
16	* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: Thundergirl in "A Star is Torn". Just the offer of starring in a movie makes her don shades, bark orders and spend half of her time looking at herself in the mirror. Stinky and the Flesh are all too happy to ride on her coattails and act as yes-men.
17	* ActionFigureSpeech: Justified since most of the cast are action figures.
18	* AddedAlliterativeAppeal: A part of the LemonyNarrator's speech. The Chief also likes to incorporate these into his [[TalksLikeASimile similes]].
19	* AintTooProudToBeg: This exchange in "Voice of Treason".
20	-->''(The garage door that Hodge Podge rigged is about to come crashing down on the League)''\
21	'''Announcer:''' With a door closing on any hope, the league has one last card to play...\
22	'''Thunder Girl:''' No please!
23	-->'''Stinky:''' Don't hurt us!
24	-->'''Meltman:''' We'll be your best friend!
25	-->'''Announcer:''' ..The wuss card.
26	* AnimationBump: ''Rock-a-Big Baby'' (the theatrical short that played in front of ''Film/GoodBurger'') had considerably more stop-motion animated scenes than the rest of the series.
27	** "Science Fiction Parody" and "Testimony of Terror" also have considerably more stop-motion than other episodes.
28	* AntiVillain: Hodge Podge. Even though it was an accident, you can't blame a guy for wanting to destroy the League due to the Flesh's clumsiness causing him to be crunched up by a blender. His hate towards Bill the Lab Guy is also very understandable since Bill horribly botched his operation.
29	* ArchEnemy:
30	** The Mayor counts as one towards the League, as he is the oldest, most frequent recurring antagonist towards the League and the closest thing the show has to a BigBad. The episode (of the anthology spin-off), "His Dishonor" implies he has a personal reason for hating the League....not that we ever find out.
31	-->'''Announcer:''' ''Consider the Mayor. How did he get so evil? Why does he hate the League so? And what exactly is he the mayor of? The answers are simple: We don't know.''
32	** Hodge Podge qualifies as one towards the League (since they ruined his life) but he reserves a special hatred towards Bill the Lab Guy for screwing up his operation. He may qualify even better than the Mayor since all of his plans to get back at the League never involve the use or harm of outsiders barring "Hit of Horror".
33	** The Red Ninja, towards Stinky Diver.
34	* AttackAttackRetreatRetreat: From "Yurplastic Park", when the League tries to evade a hungry T-Rex:
35	-->'''Stinky Diver:''' Head for the chopper!\
36	(''The T-Rex smashes the chopper with its foot.'')\
37	'''Stinky:''' Head away from the chopper!
38	* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever:
39	** The titular monster in "The Wrath of Spotzilla", a live border collie.
40	** Big Baby. It's only a two-foot tall baby doll but it's enormous compared to the toy-sized citizens.
41	* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: Non romantic examples. Despite being jerkasses to one another, when the chips are down the League will band together when the situation calls for it.
42	** In "The Naked and the Dumb", Thundergirl, Stinky and Meltman voluntarily offer to help The Flesh study after he fails a first grade equivalency test.
43	** The Flesh, Thundergirl and Meltman initially object to Stinky fighting The Red Ninja by himself, citing that they're a team. [[SubvertedTrope They quickly change their tune once Stinky mentions The Red Ninja is a ruthless killing machine]], but to their credit they cheer him on during the fight.
44	** Despite constantly ridiculing him and ordering him to get them snacks, when the Chief threatens to fire Meltman for his cowardice in the first half of "In the Whine of Fire", the rest of the League objects. They even plan to secretly help Meltman when he's reassigned as Blandi's bodyguard.
45	* BadassNormal: For a guy who's the leader of a team of superheroes despite having no form of superpowers, the Chief has to count. He even saves the day far effectively than the League does whenever possible.
46	** Stinky Diver as well, despite his claims that "firing [his] harpoon gun" counts as a superpower. ''Many'' episodes are resolved by Stinky simply [[CombatPragmatist harpooning]] whatever the MonsterOfTheWeek is.
47	*** He was also previously in the Navy, so that might have something to do with it.
48	* BadlyBatteredBabysitter: A husband and wife pair of crooks pretend to be The Flesh's parents in order to use his super strength to break into houses. The Flesh, being [[TheDitz The]] [[LethalKlutz Flesh]], puts them through so many accidents that the crooks fess up and beg to be put in prison.
49	** "Testimony of Terror" has the League becoming this to a BrattyHalfPint.
50	* BalloonBelly: The Chief after being cursed to have a huge appetite by a fortune teller. Eventually, he looks like a bowling ball with a head and limbs. Remember, he's a plastic toy when this happens.
51	* {{Balloonacy}}:
52	** In "No Fly Zone", Thundergirl loses her ability to fly, and she needs it to rescue two kids, who are being held for ransom by the Mayor in a birdhouse. One of her attempts to fly up to the birdhouse is to tie herself to a bunch of balloons so they can carry her up. Unfortunately, they carry her up too high and Stinky has to use his spear gun to pop them.
53	** In "Meltman at Large", two kids holding on to some balloons get trapped in a tree at a birthday party. Meltman, who has become a giant from drinking Bill's secret formula, manages to rescue the kids by grabbing the balloons, but when the formula wears off, he shrinks back to his normal size and the balloons carry him away.
54	--->'''The Flesh:''' Well, at least Melty got his raise!\
55	'''Thundergirl:''' Boy, I'm sure gonna miss him.\
56	'''Stinky Diver:''' Me, too. Who's gonna get us donuts?
57	* BarbieDollAnatomy: The Flesh, being an action figure, doesn't have genitalia.
58	* BirdPoopGag: "Where Pigeons Dare" begins with the League attending the funeral for Helena XXII, the Pigeon Queen. During the funeral, one of the pigeons poops on Meltman.
59	* BlackComedy: Much of the humor in this show came from the League getting dismembered, broken apart, or otherwise destroyed. Of course, since they were toys, [[BloodlessCarnage there was no blood]], but it's still pretty graphic.
60	* BlessedWithSuck: Meltman. He has the power to... melt. And that's about it. It doesn't help that he's treated as a ButtMonkey by the rest of the cast. In fact it's even worse because he never uses this ability in the show except in the intro where he's being melted by a magnifying glass, so it's entirely possible he can't even consciously ''start melting himself'', he has to have others do it for him.
61	* BloodlessCarnage: With so many instances of people being run over by cars, decapitated by fans, crushed by various objects and all other sorts of violence which would never be allowed on Nickelodeon if it was a hand-drawn cartoon, it's pretty much clear that this show's use of this trope is justified.
62	* BrattyHalfPint: Just about every kid seen is a snarky, obnoxious brat from the hostage kids who wind up terrorizing the Mayor in "No Fly Zone" to those same kids who chuck one of the eggs the League has to look after in "Where Pigeons Dare." The champion of them is the little kid from "Testimony of Terror" who makes life for the League, his bodyguards, a living hell to the point where they start rooting for the Mayor to do their worst to him. Every single destructive action he gives the team is punctuated with an insult and a taunting [[AnnoyingLaugh "Ha ha!"]].
63	* BreakingTheFourthWall:
64	** In "Tears of a Clone":
65	-->'''Announcer:''' Will his dishonor get away with his fine china chicanery?
66	-->'''The Mayor:''' I'd tell you, but they won't show me the script!
67	** A pretty good one in "Yurplastic Park":
68	-->'''Thundergirl:''' We're trapped!
69	-->'''Stinky Diver:''' Blimey! Is the League about to become a buffet for a B-Movie behemoth?!
70	-->'''Announcer:''' ...Er, that's what I was gonna say. Stay tuned for the action-gnawed conclusion of...Action League NOW!
71	* ButtMonkey: Meltman, though considering the type of humor in the series, pretty much every member of the main cast probably counts as a Butt Monkey. Meltman just happens to take the brunt of the punishment.
72	* CharacterCatchPhrase:
73	** Bill the Lab Guy's "There's nothing I can do." The Chief {{lampshade\|Hanging}}d it once.
74	---> '''The Chief:''' Let me guess; There's nothing you can do!
75	---> '''Bill the Lab Guy:''' Bingo.
76	*** He also had "Oh no! I was afraid of this!"
77	*** Which was ''also'' lampshaded by the Chief, in regard to the entire Action League accidentally being cloned.
78	----> '''Bill the Lab Guy:''' "Oh no! I was afraid of this!"
79	----> '''The Chief:''' "No you weren't, you pointy-headed geek! ''[[FateWorseThanDeath I]]'' [[FateWorseThanDeath was]]!"
80	** The Chief had "Blast it!" and "'''YOU MORONS!'''", the latter used whenever the League screwed up.
81	** The Flesh had "Ouchies!"
82	** Thunder Girl tended to sing her own theme, even when that wouldn't have been such a good idea.
83	** The League itself had "Action League, AWAY!"
84	** The Mayor had "I hate Mondays" almost every time he was crushed and "Uh oh, here's trouble..." whenever something bad [[ThisIsGonnaSuck was about to happen to him]]
85	* ClipShow: "And Justice For None". Lampshaded.
86	-->'' Action League; in deep. High Commissioners; Big creeps. Re-using scenes from old episodes; real cheap.''
87	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: In one episode, Stinky Diver was feeling down. The Chief told the League how Stinky's mother betrayed him some years ago (which caused him to gain his stinkiness).
88	-->'''The Chief:''' Something died in Stinky that day.
89	-->'''The Flesh:''' So that's why he smells so bad. ''(the League look at him)'' What?
90	* ContentWarnings: Main/PlayedForLaughs at the beginning of the episode, "In the Whine of Fire":
91	-->'''Announcer''': "Warning! The following very special ''Action League Now'' special contains scenes of Action Mayhem (AMH), Action Love (ALV), and Action Action (AA). It may be too intense for older viewers. Oh, and did we mention, somebody's naked (NKD) for the whole show?"
92	* CookedToDeath: In the episode "[[ThanksgivingEpisode Turkey of Terror]]" the Mayor traps the Action League (save for Stinky Diver, who doesn't believe he's gone good, and Justice, who has witnessed the event and brings Stinky his badge) in his turkey and attempts to cook it with them inside it. When Stinky finds out about this from Justice, he comes to the Mayor's mansion to battle the Mayor and save the rest of the League.
93	* CousinOliver: Quarky, Bill the Lab Guy's daughter.
94	* DarkAndTroubledPast: Stinky Diver had two events that haunted him.
95	* TheDitz: The Flesh is by far the least intelligent character on the show, often being this. Stinky Diver even uses this to the team's advantage in one episode. As Flesh is fighting Robo-Flesh, Stinky yells out "Hey, stupid!" When Flesh responds with "What?" that's what finally convinces the League that he's the real Flesh.
96	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness:
97	** In the shorts made for ''Series/AllThat'', the opening logo and title cards had a different look.
98	** The Chief originally had a different voice actor, and wouldn't have his signature NoIndoorVoice until "No Fly Zone".
99	** "I've Been Workin' On Derailroad" implied that Meltman got his powers through an accident.
100	** In "Sinkhole of Doom", the Mayor is revealed to have a son, who the League have to rescue from the garbage disposal. He's never brought up again.
101	* EarthShatteringKaboom: [[spoiler:The ending of "Science Fiction Parody", done with a globe actually being blown up.]]
102	* EmergencyImpersonation: In "Danger For A Dignitary", the Flesh is forced to take the place of the ambassador (that he injures by accident) in order to sign a peace treaty.
103	* EverybodyDiesEnding: [[spoiler:The ending to "Science Fiction Parody" where aliens [[EarthShatteringKaboom blow up the Earth.]]]]
104	* EverybodyLaughsEnding: Happens in almost every episode.
105	* EvilDetectingDog: Justice, in "Hey! Who Stole My Face!" Not very surprising, really, given it was just The Mayor with The Chief's face...
106	* EvilKnockoff: Robo-Flesh, to the Flesh. The same guy, except with giant metal bolts sticking out of his body. Somehow, the rest of the League can't tell them apart.
107	* EvolvingCredits: Staring with ''Rock-a-Big Baby''.
108	* ExplosiveBreeder: The chicks that The Mayor illegally imports.
109	* ExtremelyEasyExam: In "The Naked and the Dumb", the Action League's test to renew their action hero licenses is the First Grade Equivalency Test, given to them by Bill the Lab Guy. Most of the members of the Action League pass the test, but the only one who doesn't is [[DumbMuscle The Flesh]], who [[ScantronPicture marked his answers in the shape of a kitten]]. The only way The Flesh can stay in the league is to retake the test and pass, and since The Flesh is the only member with SuperStrength, the rest of the League take turns tutoring him, suffering a series of AmusingInjuries in the process. When The Flesh retakes the test, he gets every answer right, and reveals the secret to his success; this time, he marked his answers in the shape of a dog.
110	* FacelessMasses: In ''Rock-a-Big Baby'', various toys were used as the crowd for the KISS concert.
111	* FailedASpotCheck: Meltman in "Melty's Girl". Made more humorous when the League just follows along with it anyways.
112	-->"Hmm, a large, heavy dangerous object, rigged to fall on anyone standing on that bullseye...At least there's no booby traps! All clear!"
113	* FailureMontage: In "And Justice For None", the Action League are standing before council to see whether they should retain their hero status or be declared a danger to the public for their incompetence. Each of the Leaguers' flashback to their past exploits don't really help their case, but the icing on the cake is Flesh's recollections which are presented in such a montage of how his clumsiness or carelessness only did more harm than good to the people he was trying to help.
114	* {{Flanderization}}: The League started out as pretty effective heroes (albeit still stupid), but became more inept with each episode. Come "Stink or Swim", a person is actually dismayed that the League has come to save him from being flushed down the toilet.
115	* FlowersForAlgernonSyndrome: The Flesh, in one episode. His hyperintelligence gets removed by a blow to the head from one of Smarty Pants's chess pieces [[spoiler:The Flesh wins the chess game anyway.]] Subverted in that the rest of the league is thankful to have the old Flesh back... and promptly reconsider that when he drops a pile of books on them again.
116	* ForTheEvulz: Many, ''many'' of the Mayor's evil plans, despite his insistence otherwise.
117	-->'''The Flesh:''' Why did you do it, Mayor?
118	-->'''Mayor:''' Why? Because I'm evil!
119	* FourthWallMailSlot: The "Ask The League" segments in the spinoff anthology show.
120	-->"And now it's time for Ask The League, where real children ask real questions to fake superheroes."
121	* FreakyFridayFlip: Kinda. The Chief and The Mayor end up switching ''faces'' thanks to a botched operation by Bill. Of course, everyone simply assumes Chief-With-Mayor's-Face is The Mayor and vice versa, so it works in the same way. Hilarious when you remember that The Chief is black and The Mayor is white, yet they still can't figure it out.
122	* FromNobodyToNightmare: The Action League accountant, due to The Flesh's idiocy, ended up being wrecked in a blender and subsequently "operated" on by Bill. The result? [[TheGrotesque Hodge]] [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge Podge]].
123	* GallowsHumor: Obviously done by the Mayor, but the League can be just as bad with it, as seen in the scene after the ColdOpen[[note]]where a swimmer gets eaten by a trophy bass and the only remains found of him was his hand[[/note]] of "Incident at Chlorine Lake":
124	-->'''Announcer:''' We find our heroes in a somber mood, pondering a terrible tragedy.
125	-->'''Meltman:''' Hey Bill! [[{{Pun}} Don't bother reading his lifeline]]!
126	-->'''League:''' laughs
127	* GreenEyedMonster: Thunder Girl becomes this for most of "Thunder and Lightning" because of the rest of the League ignoring her in favor of Lightning Lady. Her petty behavior is only made more hilarious when she admits it to Thunder Dad.
128	* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: In "The Quarky Syndrome", Quarky the Lab Girl gains superpowers after she gets hit with nuclear waste from The Mayor's nuclear reactor. When Bill the Lab Guy looks over her, Quarky accidentally zaps him with her laser eyes, splitting him in half down the middle. Bill spends the rest of the episode bandaged together.
129	* HangingJudge: The High Commissioners in "And Justice For None". Granted, wanting to terminate the Action League for incompetence and lack of heroism is a pretty spot on accusation and most of the damage done to the League is through [[DiggingYourselfDeeper their own testimonies]], but when Stinky actually names instances where the League ''did'' do heroic deeds, they move the goalposts by then asking if they ever took a non-violent approach to solving problems. It's clear that it's a sham trial.
130	* HarpoonGun: Stinky Diver's weapon of choice.
131	* HostileShowTakeover: One episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{KaBlam}}!'', "Tastes Like Paper", had The Mayor taking over as director of research to torment Henry & June. And he did it because he [[DisproportionateRetribution wanted to turn the page]]. When Henry & June bust in on him, he comments: "You were expecting, maybe, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_Littlefield Warren Littlefield]]?" At the end of the episode, H&J get revenge by trampling him with a marching band he hired (which had trampled Henry & June earlier).
132	* HypocriticalHumor:
133	** The Mayor's always quick to call the League idiots, despite half his {{Evil Plan}}s being ones that are clearly not well thought out.
134	** In the episode, "Tears of a Clone", The Chief tells Bill that science shouldn't meddle with nature, just before asking for a heart transplant he promised him.
135	* IdiotHero: The League constantly screws up, walks into obvious traps, and even cause the problem of several episodes due to their combined idiocy.
136	* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Stinky Diver's mother betrayed him all those years ago for [[spoiler:the money, of course]]!
137	* {{Incoming}}: Meltman yells this to warn the League of a flying cinder block... after it's already hit them.
138	* InUniverseFactoidFailure:
139	** Hilariously lampshaded by Meltman in "The Danger Society":
140	-->'''Thunder Girl:''' Quit your whining, Meltman! You're giving me a migraine!\
141	'''Meltman:''' Oh, yeah, miss 'Flies like thunder'. News Flash: thunder doesn't fly!
142	** Also by Stinky in "Flippers of Fury":
143	-->'''Master Pu:''' [[{{Koan}} Remember, a butterfly does not need wings to fly.]]\
144	'''Stinky Diver:''' Wait a minute, yes it does!\
145	'''Master Pu:''' You know what I mean!
146	* {{Jerkass}}: All of the main characters, really. The Mayor is the biggest example, but there's a very good reason the Action League is bad at being superheroes - they're not only incredibly incompetent, they're lazy and much more willing to slack off and/or watch someone get hurt right in front of them than risk their necks. At least The Chief is only a jerk to the team.
147	* KidsAreCruel: In "Testimony of Terror", the League is tasked with protecting a young witness from The Mayor, who intends to off him. The kid does [[BadlyBatteredBabysitter everything horrible you could possibly imagine to his bodyguards]], and by the end the League is ''rooting'' for The Mayor to kill him. [[spoiler: Of course, The Mayor ends up becoming just another victim.]]
148	* KingKongClimb: In the episode, "Big Baby", a cranky Big Baby climbs to the top of a coat rack with Quarky in his hand.
149	* KirbyDots: Used in [[{{Wipe}} transition cards]].
150	* LaughablyEvil: The Mayor lacks any good qualities to his character and does many horrible things throughout the show, whether it be ransoming two adorable kids for money despite already being rich, injuring football players so he can get a chance to play, murdering top 40 musicians so that his record album can make the charts...and yet he's over the top and cheesy you tend to be more entertained than repulsed by his evil.
151	* LastNoteNightmare: The music heard at the end of each short, consisting of a slightly higher-pitched version of their signature fanfare theme that ends in a long ScareChord.
152	* {{Leitmotif}}: "Thunder Girl! Flying like thunder! How other people must wonder, what it's like to be me!"
153	** The Mayor has a cool-sounding theme whenever he appears.
154	* LatexPerfection: "Thunder and Lightning" has Thunder Girl unmask Lightning Lady at the end to reveal [[spoiler:The Mayor, done by placing a hollow Barbie doll-like head over the Mayor figure's head onto a super heroine figure's body]].
155	* LemonyNarrator: Big time. Each episode he just says "THE END", in a deep voice. Other than that, while he doesn't interact with the characters, he makes fun of them and uses AddedAlliterativeAppeal quite often.
156	* LethalKlutz: The Flesh. Super-strength and clumsiness rarely make for a good combination.
157	* LiterallyShatteredLives: A rare example of it not being a case of being frozen or turned into stone, the characters would quite often be reduced to little plastic pieces after being run over by a car or falling into a blender.
158	** In one instance, The Chief was power-sanded down to just a fine powder.
159	* MadeOfPlasticine: ''Everyone''. Justified by the fact that they're action figures.
160	* ManChild: The Flesh. The rest of the League sometimes have shades of this too, minus the Chief.
161	* MayorPain: If he's commonly called "his dishonor", then you have to wonder how he even got elected.
162	-->'''Stinky:''' Don't look at me, I didn't vote for him.
163	* MediumShiftGag: In "Thunder and Lightning", Thunder Girl's father, Thunder Dad, is portrayed as a puppet head, and thus, the only character whose lips move.
164	* MissedHimByThatMuch: [[spoiler:After arresting two criminals pretending to be The Flesh's parents to use him, he wonders if he'll ever meet his real parents. Then, his real (naked) parents drive by wondering if they'll ever find their son, crushing the Action Mobile.]]
165	* MurderByRemoteControlVehicle: In "Tune-Up of Terror", Hodge Podge plants a remote control device in the Action Mobile to frame Meltman for bad driving and send the rest of the Action League into the road to get run over by a much bigger car.
166	* MyGreatestFailure: Years ago, Stinky Diver's brother fell into a flushing toilet. He was about to jump but was afraid his wallet would get wet. He was too late to save him. That event has haunted him since. He told the League about this after he failed to save a civilian from a flushing toilet.
167	* NakedPeopleAreFunny: The Flesh -- by way of BarbieDollAnatomy -- is a ''constantly''-naked (barring one episode) Conan toy, and it's always played for laughs.
168	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: The voice of the Mayor originated on WDVE's morning show (see below) as a parody of Pittsburgh's then-mayor Tom Murphy.
169	* NoIndoorVoice: 90% of the Chief's dialogue is him yelling. Granted, the Action League's bumbling give him a lot to yell about.
170	* OffTheShelfFX: The action figures used in the show are heavily modified from real ones.
171	* OnlySaneMan: The Chief is the only member of the Action League that is not a complete moron and often spurs the Action League to do their jobs when they'd rather be lazy and do something else. Sometimes he's NotSoAboveItAll but he's far more dedicated to the job than his team.
172	** Justice the Dog is possibly the sanest character overall...and he's just a regular dog!
173	* OpeningNarration: ''"Action League Now! Starring The Flesh: he's super-strong and super-naked! Thunder Girl: she flies like thunder! Stinky Diver: a former Navy Commando with an attitude as bad as his odor! And Meltman: with the power to...melt!"''
174	* PaperThinDisguise: The Mayor uses one in "A Star is Torn". Surprisingly, only Meltman saw through the disguise.
175	** Everyone gets completely fooled by Robo-Flesh, who is simply just Flesh with a robot voice and bolts sticking out everywhere. The announcer even [[LampshadeHanging hangs a lampshade]] on it.
176	* PerpetualSmiler: Justified since most of the characters are action figures with static faces, with many of the figures' sole expression being a smile. Though RuleOfFunny comes into play here, as it's quite amusing seeing the Chief smile as he's angrily yelling at the League, or the Mayor smiling when he is frustrated at having his plans foiled.
177	* PetGetsTheKeys: In "Hey! Who Stole My Face?", the Chief's dog rescues him this way.
178	* ThePsychoRangers: Inverted with The Danger Society. A rescue team consisting of four average humans....and they're far more competent and heroic than the League. The League deciding to trash their headquarters and intimidate the members only makes this inversion clearer (and the League look even worse than they normally do).
179	* UsefulNotes/{{Pittsburgh}}: The voices were all provided by Pittsburgh-based disc jockeys. The male characters were voiced by Jim Krenn and Scott Paulsen, who co-hosted the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_DVE_Morning_Show WDVE Morning Show]] for many years together. Cris Winter, the other main cast member, was the morning show's newsreader. Bill Cowher and Kordell Stewart also appeared.
180	* PunchClockVillain: The Mayor isn't always evil; in one episode, he opens up a legitimate poolside resort (the League even shows up to enjoy it) and sells hot dogs. Granted, they're fifty dollars each, but he's just trying to make money. Though when the giant trophy bass attacked, afraid he'll lose his business the Mayor tried to convince everyone the water is safe, only to get chewed up and spit out in pieces.
181	** In an earlier episode, he was enjoying a soccer game when [[RentAZilla Spotzilla]] attacked. He panicked with the rest of the crowd.
182	* RecycledSoundtrack: ''Dog Day Afterschool'' recycled the theme from, of all things, Britain's ''ITV News at Ten''; titled ''The Awakening'', its' been used since the program's debut in 1967; the version used in the episode was used from 1992 to 1999.
183	* RoguesGallery: A fairly small one -- there was The Mayor, Hodge-Podge, Big Baby, and a few one-offs (Spotzilla, Smarty Pants, Danger Society, the Red Ninja).
184	* RunningGag:
185	** If anyone ever goes out onto the street, expect them to get run over by a car. This has even resolved the plot a few times.
186	** Thunder Girl constantly forgets that she does ''not'' have super strength.
187	** Heavy objects keep falling on everyone.
188	* RunningOverThePlot: Whenever somebody goes out into the road, they will get run over by a car (or some other type of vehicle on occasion). This has even defeated the MonsterOfTheWeek a few times.
189	* SeaMonster: The giant trophy bass, as a parody of Film/{{Jaws}}.
190	* ScantronPicture: In "The Naked and The Dumb", The Flesh gets kicked out of the League because he failed a first grade equivalency test after coloring the dots in the shape of a kitten. The episode ends with him retaking the test and passing, because he colored the dots in the shape of a dog instead.
191	* ShooOutTheNewGuy: Bill the Lab Guy's teenage daughter, Quarky. Introduced in ''WesternAnimation/KaBlam's'' second season premiere (if we're going by production order), and was in a bunch of episodes from that season. After "The Quarky Syndrome", she never appeared again due to viewers finding her annoying.
192	* SomethingWeForgot: Happens in the episode, "Stink or Swim", when the League tries to rescue a pair of drowning victims.
193	* SpinOff: Of ''WesternAnimation/KaBlam'', which itself is a spinoff of ''Series/AllThat''.
194	* SpotTheImposter: Robo-Flesh
195	* SuperZeroes: Big time- these guys practically qualify ''as'' villains given their constant screw-ups and lack of concern for other people.
196	* ThanksgivingEpisode: In "Turkey of Terror", The Mayor invites the Action League to his mansion for Thanksgiving dinner to form a truce. Stinky doesn't believe The Mayor has gone good and quits the Action League, and decides to spend Thanksgiving with his own family, who argue with each other when they found out Stinky quit his job. [[spoiler:It later turns out that Stinky was right about The Mayor when Justice witnesses the event and brings him his badge, and Stinky decides to save the rest of the League from being cooked in The Mayor's turkey.]]
197	* TeamPet: Justice, the Chief's dog.
198	* TheEnd: Announced by the narrator at the end of each episode.
199	* ToiletPaperPrank: At the beginning of "Flippers of Fury", the Action League find that someone (later revealed to be the Red Ninja) has done this to Action League Headquarters. To add insult to injury, they used Stinky Diver's own private stash to do it.
200	* TooDumbToLive: ''Every'' character on the show (save for special guests and a one-off villain whose whole schtick was being smart). Yes, even [[GeniusDitz Bill the Lab Guy]].
201	* TookALevelInDumbass: While the League were hardly Mensa material at the beginning, they were still competent enough to save people. As the show went on, they became dumber and dumber.
202	* TricksterMentor: Stinky's mentor Master Pu, who borders on being just sadistic. His "training" doesn't even help Stinky, and instead leaves him injured. He gets his comeuppance in the end, however.
203	* UnsettlingGenderReveal: At the end of "Thunder and Lightning, Lightning was unmasked to be [[spoiler: The Mayor]].
204	* VillainyFreeVillain: The Danger Society in their eponymous episode. They commit the heinous crime of being so good at their jobs that the League is threatened with being laid off. Even when the League barges in to intimidate them, the Captain makes it clear that they'd rather not fight. He also reacts to Meltman making a making a LoserLeavesTown bet over who can save the most kids from a schoolbus in danger [[WhatTheHellHero with absolute horror]]. The only remotely dickish thing they do is some UnsportsmanlikeGloating after they win...and even then it's rather justified because the League immediately chicken out of the bet that ''they'' made and decided to pack their bags early. Of course, being the kind of show it is, the League keeps their job [[spoiler: because the Danger Society gets run over by the bus that the League were going leave town on.]]
205	* WeCanRuleTogether: In "Caged Thunder", The Mayor asks Thunder Girl to join him in ruling the world "as King and Queen". Thunder Girl declines...but not for any heroic reason.
206	-->'''Thunder Girl:''' It's taco night!\
207	'''The Mayor:''' You pretty little fool! They'll only give you gas!
208	* WeaponsThatSuck: In "In the Belly of the Beast", The Mayor attempts to suck up the Action League with a vacuum cleaner. He sucks up The Chief, Stinky, and Thunder Girl, but has to break The Flesh apart before he can suck him up (as his build is too big for the vacuum hose). As Meltman evades The Mayor in the bathroom, he gets him to suck up an entire roll of toilet paper, clogging the hose and causing the vacuum to malfunction and explode.
209	-->'''The Chief:''' Why'd you do it, Mayor?\
210	'''The Mayor:''' Would you believe I'm a neatnik?
211	* WeWantOurIdiotBack: Played with in the episode, "A Flesh of Brilliance". The Action League downloads the knowledge of the world into The Flesh's brain to keep it from getting in the hands of the evil genius, Smarty Pants, who wants to use said knowledge to take over the world. As a result of the download, The Flesh becomes smart. At first, the rest of the League likes the new smarter Flesh, but they start to dislike him when he programs a VCR to record nothing but the History Channel. The Flesh also gets on The Chief's nerves by [[GrammarCorrectionGag correcting his grammar]]. The Chief asks the rest of League if they want the old dumb Flesh back, and they all agree. When Smarty Pants captures the League as a result of The Chief getting aggravated by The Flesh's grammar corrections, The Flesh comes to rescue the League, challenging Smarty Pants to a game of chess. Smarty Pants knocks out all of The Flesh's knowledge, but The Flesh still wins the chess game anyway. After Smarty Pants is arrested, the League is glad to have the old dumb Flesh back, but when The Flesh causes the league to get crushed by some of Smarty Pants' stolen encyclopedias, the League wants the new smart Flesh back again.
212	* WithCatlikeTread: What kicks off the conflict in "Caged Thunder". Thunder Girl is sent to spy on a secret missile site owned by the Mayor, and does so by taking pictures and singing her song while doing so. You can guess what the Mayor decided to use as target practice.
213	* WithFriendsLikeThese: Part of the reason why the League is so inept is that the fact that they're such {{Jerkass}}es to each other. Whenever one member gets captured, the rest of them will find any excuse to use to not rescue them.
214	* WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway: Meltman's power is to just melt his body which never comes in handy.
215	* YouGetMeCoffee: Of the four members of the Action League, The Flesh has SuperStrength, Thundergirl has the ability to fly, and Stinky Diver has the ability to shoot with his spear gun. Meltman, however, has [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway the utterly useless ability to melt]], and thus the League often assigns him to get them snacks, including sodas, pizza, and donuts.

Context WesternAnimation / ActionLeagueNOW