| 1 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ajk.jpg]] |
| 2 | [[caption-width-right:350:[[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic I'll sing you the story of a duck...]]]] |
| 3 | |
| 4 | ->''"Dipping, bobbing, diving, Alfred's always thriving, he seldom wears a frown. You'll never keep a good duck down."'' |
| 5 | -->-- '''The [[TranslatedCoverVersion English]] theme song''' |
| 6 | |
| 7 | |
| 8 | Alfred J. Kwak is the name and protagonist of a variety of Dutch media, most famously a cartoon. The franchise is popular in several European countries, especially its native Netherlands, [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff Germany, Finland and the United Kingdom]]. Created by [[RenaissanceMan multi-talented]] Creator/HermanVanVeen, Alfred was originally a theatre piece in the 1970s, then a comic strip, and finally a cartoon in the late 1980s. The series lasted for 52 episodes, broadcast between 1989 and 1991. |
| 9 | |
| 10 | The cartoon has endured in the minds of many people because of the dark and often depressing themes it handled, with great maturity and respect for the young viewers. It's also notable for avoiding ComicBookTime: we first meet Alfred just after hatching, and by the time the series ends, he's a grown man deeply involved in politics. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | The protagonist is a duck, Alfred Jodocus (Jonathan in English) Kwak, whose parents have tragically died in a road accident when Alfred was a tiny hatchling. Raised by foster father Henk, a mole, Alfred grows up into an adventurous, brave duck who travels the world. The setting is an obvious allegory of the Netherlands called Great Waterland, full of dikes, polders and canals and populated by anthropomorphic animals, especially birds. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | A sequel series was in the works, focusing on Alfred's son with his wife Winnie. [[DevelopmentHell Unfortunately, as of 2014, nothing more has been heard of it.]] |
| 15 | |
| 16 | A second stage show starring [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k7dLyi8nlc Alfred was performed in 2002]] called ''Verboden Te Lachen'' which features Van Veen being the show's narrator and singer. This time, Alfred is [[CrossCastRole portrayed by a female actor]] which gained a DVD release in 2003. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | A third theater show starring Alfred was created called ''Alfred J Kwak en de Sneeuwvlok'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uch-lfQ-cbI which played in the Netherlands between 2017 and 2018.]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P10J60Z1uA&t=34s A book version of the musical was also created]] during the show's run. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | The original version of theater show [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMFdVoi7em4&t=1613s can be found heard here]] alongside the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Gw4eEV0NTk German version]] from 1985. The 1985/1987 [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BasYtaPE7WQ version can also be viewed here.]] |
| 21 | |
| 22 | In 2004, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUvvWitHDWk a 10 minute documentary about the franchise was released by Herman Van Veen and presented by Harlekijn Holland]]. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | A [[Characters/AlfredJKwak character sheet]] is on the works. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | ---- |
| 27 | !!Tropes: |
| 28 | |
| 29 | * ActionMom: Mrs. Bee. |
| 30 | * AdaptationalAlternateEnding: The original stage show ended with Alfred being crowned king of Great Waterland. The animated series ended [[spoiler: with Alfred's friends and allies celebrating his birthday and successfully arresting Dolf for good.]] The 1987 comic series also has a [[AlternateContinuity different continuity compared to the original theatrical show.]] |
| 31 | * AdaptationalNiceGuy: The king was the villain of the original musical. In the cartoon he's more a clueless and apathetic buffoon who takes on an antagonistic role at first, but as the series goes on he TookALevelInKindness, particularly after the "Emperor Dolf" story arc. |
| 32 | * AdaptationDistillation / AdaptationExpansion: The show expands greatly upon the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BasYtaPE7WQ&t=2837s original 1976 one-man musical]]. The musical itself was roughly adapted into episode 21 of the show ("The King Takes A Loan"). There are considerable differences; some of the musical's more outlandish characters (among other things, a [[AnimateInanimateObject Flamboyant talking french ladder]] and a [[GeniusLoci sentient river]]) were taken out. In the musical, the king was the BigBad and Alfred ends up becoming the new king. In the show, the episode directly leads up to the infamous Emperor Dolf arc. |
| 33 | * {{Animesque}}: The series was animated by three Japanese animations studios (''Creator/TMSEntertainment'', ''Telescreen Japan'', and ''Teleimage'') during its run. It's more notable with the way the characters are talking and Alfred frequently doing the HandBehindHead gesture common in anime. |
| 34 | * AlcoholicParent: It's heavily implied that Dolf's father frequently gets drunk on beer following the death of his wife. This, of course, does not contribute at all to his son's self-esteem. |
| 35 | * AllGermansAreNazis: Sort of; Dolf's parents are rather obviously German expies, and incredibly racist. Subverted with their Hitler-esque son Dolf has no obvious German traits of his own, and professor Paljas, one of Alfred's best friends, has German traits without being a Nazi. |
| 36 | * AllJustADream: Several episodes. |
| 37 | ** Most notably the one where Alfred dreams he is a gunslinger in the Wild West. |
| 38 | ** "The White Queen" is unique in that another character (Dolf) is the one that figures out that they're actually in one of Alfred's dreams. For some reason, Dolf and several others are sharing the dream with Alfred. [[OrWasItADream Then the Queen shows up again after Alfred wakes up]]. |
| 39 | * AllMythsAreTrue: Many times when Alfred and professor Paljas end up chasing after some old legend, it turns out to be exactly true. Averted in Atlantis' case; its inhabitants have been around for so long that even they're not sure whether the legend of their city's creation is true or not. |
| 40 | * AlternativeForeignThemeSong: The show had different theme songs in the different countries that it aired. |
| 41 | * AnachronismStew: The time setting is considerably vague. In general it seems to take place somewhere during the 20th century, but among other things Professor Paljas has access to advanced supertech. The king seems to suggest a more medieval/baroque setting, but in the first season Alfred learns about the Middle Ages during history lessons, so that period is clearly over. In another episode a medieval Middle Eastern kingdom also seems to exist. Dolf takes power in a Hitler-inspired manner, but wears a Napoleon outfit. Krabnagel also dresses like an 18th-century bandit. An explorer called Dr. Livingston, named after the 19th century explorer David Livingstone, doesn't make things less complicated either. |
| 42 | * AndNowYouMustMarryMe: A rare [[GenderInvertedTrope gender-reversal]] when a WickedWitch tries to force Alfred to marry her. The witch actually succeeds, [[spoiler:but it thankfully [[AllJustADream turns out to a nightmare]] Alfred was having.]] |
| 43 | * AncientEgypt: Appears in the form of the "Land of Pyramids", which is clearly Egypt in all but name, complete with mummies, pharaohs, similar pyramids. It even has a sphinx, which despite appearing in a world populated by anthropomorphic animals, still has a human face. |
| 44 | * AnimalStereotypes: Dolf the crow is evil, Alfred is a funny duck, Pikkie is a thieving magpie, Henk the mole wears shades because he apparently can't stand daylight that well, the king is a lion,... |
| 45 | * AnimatedAdaptation: The series is an animated adaptation of both the 1987 comic series by Harald Siepermann, [[https://haraldsiepermann.com/2018/02/18/alfred-j-kwak-comic-book-31st-anniversary/ which was itself a comic adaptation of the one-man musical]] starring Herman Van Veen. |
| 46 | * AnimateInanimateObject: The White Queen in Alfred's chess game is able to come to life and grow to human size. [[InexplicablyAwesome Somehow]]. [[AllJustADream Possibly]]. [[spoiler: Later, Alfred brings all of the other white pieces to life to help get back the White Queen's crown when Dolf steals it.]] The Queen also implies that the characters depicted on playing cards could potentially come to life as well. |
| 47 | * AnthropomorphicShift: Originally, the series started out with the [[CivilizedAnimal animal characters lacking their anthropomorphic designs]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Flag_fkNaQI drawn by Annet Kossen]]. Starting in 1985, the series shifted away with the realistic designs and made some of the characters more anthropormorphic and humanized. |
| 48 | * AudienceParticipation: The 1985 iteration of the original musical involved participation from the audience. |
| 49 | ** Before Alfred begins his journey, Van Veen encourging people to chant "Kwek kwek kwek, Ik ben wel goed, Maar ik ben niet" (he teaches this to fathers, mothers, and lastly children) during moments when Alfred gets a {{MacGuffin}} (such as a fox tail, a latter, and river). |
| 50 | ** When The King of Waterland first shows up, he encourages the audience to cheer for him by raising each of his hands for different sections of the theater. |
| 51 | ** When Alfred is about to get executed, he is despartely calling to audience to save him (mainly from children) which is followed by a bee and river saving Alfred and attacking The King. |
| 52 | ** Near the end of the play, Van Veen invited the audience to put their money into Alfred's pot. The actual money goes to real life charity foundations (notably the "AIDS Healthcare Foundation"). The audience also get a chance to meet Herman Van Veen as Alfred who is later seen dressing up as different characters he performed in the show. To finish off the show, Van Veen sings "Opzij Opzij Opzij" while children and the show's character dance along with him and follow up as they exit the theater. |
| 53 | * ArabianNightsDays: The Evil Spirit of Darkness originates from an ambiguously Middle Eastern kingdom which still looks to be in medieval times. The rest of the show has a lot of AnachronismStew as well, but Egypt curiously seems to be set in the modern day. |
| 54 | * ArtifactOfDoom: Several: |
| 55 | ** The Genie's bottle. The genie within tries to tempt people into releasing him by promising them to give them whatever they desire, but promptly tries to eat them when he does get out. |
| 56 | ** The storybook that apparently contains an evil witch. [[spoiler: Except that it was AllJustADream.]] |
| 57 | ** The Pot of Gold. Since it apparently causes rainbows to appear in the sky, taking it from its hiding place causes the entire world to slowly lose its color until it's returned. |
| 58 | * ArtisticLicenseSpace: When floating around in zero gravity, professor Paljas points out to Alfred that he can simply swim around as if he were underwater. Also, the professor's flying windmill, while equipped with a rocket engine, also makes use of the helicopter blades on top to maneuver in space. |
| 59 | * AscendedExtra: In the original musical, Henk is a minor character who only shows up at the beginning of the first act and doesn't return until the final act when Alfred becomes king. In the [[https://haraldsiepermann.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Alfred-J.-Kwak-comic-books.jpg comic]] and animated series, Henk is a supporting character who becomes a new father to Alfred. |
| 60 | * ArtEvolution: Harald Siperman's original design for [[https://pictures.abebooks.com/isbn/9783551716026-us.jpg Alfred resembled Donald Duck]]. In a 1985 back cover for the German audio of its live performance. [[https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81mboHQUCtL._SX522_.jpg Henk and The King had very different designs]] before the 1989 series began production. |
| 61 | * {{Atlantis}}: Visited by Alfred, and it's inhabited by Dodos, long thought extinct after a massive flood. Its technology and architecture are apparently based entirely on glass-blowing, as well. |
| 62 | * BackForTheFinale: Supporting and minor characters such Snel, Pikkie, the Wana Family, Colonel Rangpang, all return in the final episode to celebrate Alfred's Birthday and the capturing of Dolf. |
| 63 | * BadButt: Despite generally being a well-mannered, peace-loving, happy-go-lucky duck, Alfred is not afraid to get physical when the situation calls for it, especially when it comes to standing up to Dolf. |
| 64 | * BadassAdorable: Alfred himself, as well as several of his allies: a sparrow spy, a rat who throws cheese in Dolf's face, and a {{Badass Family}} of bees who manage to sting the entire Royal Court into submission. |
| 65 | * BatmanCanBreatheInSpace: Pierrot, the clown with the magical violin, can breathe on the moon. Assuming he breathes at all. |
| 66 | * BarefootCartoonAnimal: Henk Mole, Krabnagel (aka Scratchypaws) and Dolf (until the second season). |
| 67 | * BeeAfraid: The bee family that Alfred befriends are generally nice people. [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge Just don't get on their bad side]]. |
| 68 | * BeleagueredAssistant: Most of the king's staff, but most prominently Sir Poen, the king's right-hand man, who often has to help remind the king that he actually has a country to run and shouldn't just be lounging in the bath all day long. |
| 69 | * BigBad: Dolf, natch. Nearly every bad thing that happens in the series, barring the deaths of Alfred's family, can be traced back directly to him. |
| 70 | * BigNo: [[spoiler: Dolf, as he is cornered by the police during the finale right after it looks like he gets away scot-free from Alfred.]] |
| 71 | * BizarreAlienSenses: Played with in the case of the aliens in episode 17, who completely lack a sense of smell. |
| 72 | * BizarreAndImprobableGolfGame: Happens in one episode where Alfred has to face off against a Jipponese businessman on a golf course. The two proceed to completely wreck the place by shooting their balls against trees, out of a lake (completely surrounded by identical balls), and at one point, Alfred even asks a mother eagle to kindly move out of her nest for a moment so he can reach his ball that fell in. |
| 73 | * BookEnds: The series begins with Alfred's birth, and the second episode fast-forwards to his first birthday. [[spoiler:The series finale ends with the other characters throwing a surprise party for Alfred's birthday.]] |
| 74 | * BoomerangBigot: One of Dolf's defining characteristics. He is extremely xenophobic towards half-breeds and cross-species families, as evident in his attitude towards Alfred being raised by a mole. But he himself is half-blackbird, and absolutely loathes himself for it. |
| 75 | * BreakingTheFourthWall: |
| 76 | ** Done in episode 14, as Alfred wonders what the sawfish they're looking for actually looks like. |
| 77 | -->'''Parmezanidas''': What, you don't know? |
| 78 | -->'''Alfred''': Well, I'm sure I'm not the only one who doesn't! [[[AsideGlance glances at the camera]]] |
| 79 | ** The audience is then treated to a still shot of said sawfish ([[InformedSpecies that actually looks more like a swordfish]]), with Alfred and Henk commenting over it despite having no logical way of [[MediumAwareness actually being able to see it]]. |
| 80 | * BuxomBeautyStandard: The witch, when transforming herself into a gorgeous duck to seduce Alfred, gives her an exceptionally well-endowed figure to invoke this. |
| 81 | * CallBack: When Alfred first meets Winnie, he's so embarrassed and nervous that he completely flubs his own introduction, [[SharedFamilyQuirks much like his father did]] when he met his wife to be. |
| 82 | * CardCarryingVillain: The Evil Spirit Of Darkness. It's right there in his name. |
| 83 | * CarnivoreConfusion: |
| 84 | ** The King of Great Waterland is a lion, who in one of the early episodes is shown hunting in the forest. With a rifle. In a land full of talking animals. His servants are later shown taking dead pheasants with them. |
| 85 | ** Even the fish talk, and at one point ask Alfred for help because they are afraid that they'll be hunted to extinction by a new high-tech fishing boat. |
| 86 | ** The character Krabnagel is a dangerous criminal and known to eat others (including little children). He is never charged for this, when he ends up in prison it's for other crimes. |
| 87 | ** [[CorruptCorporateExecutive K. Rokodil]] is happily married to a bird that a real crocodile would have probably eaten. |
| 88 | * CanonForeigner: While Alfred, Henk, King Franz Ferdinand (originally known as "The King"), K. Rokodil, and Poen van Kale Koen were all present in the original theater show. Other characters such as Colonel Rangpang, and Dolf were created for the animated series. Winnie was also created for the comics in 1987 (two years before the animated series). |
| 89 | * CatchPhrase: |
| 90 | ** Alfred has a few: "Pico bello!" when things go his way; "Jeetje Mina!" ("Jeez Louise!") when surprised or shocked; and "Tuurlijk, tuurlijk!" ("Of course, of course!") when reassuring somebody. |
| 91 | ** Dolf likes to tell people to "kras op!" ("bug off!"). |
| 92 | ** Henk has "Alle molshopen!" ("Great molehills!"), |
| 93 | ** Captain Stoppel has "Alle walrussen!" ("Great walruses!"). |
| 94 | * CatsAreMean: |
| 95 | ** Krabnagel. He has no objections whatsoever to eating other animals, [[ChildEater especially children]], if it means satisfying his boundless hunger. |
| 96 | ** Averted with Professor Ramses and the cat people of the Land of Pyramids. |
| 97 | * ChekhovsGun: In the episode where Alfred and Henk meet a race of aliens on a tropical island, they are given a capsule of special food for space travelers. This comes in handy the next episode, when they offer it to a hungry squid to avoid being eaten themselves. |
| 98 | * ChessMotifs: The White Queen feels constrained on the chessboard, despite being the only piece able to move in any direction, and so asks Alfred to show her the world outside. |
| 99 | * ChildEater: [[CatsAreMean Krabnagel the cat]] tries to eat both Alfred and Dolf when they are little. |
| 100 | * ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: |
| 101 | ** Krabnagel disappears from the series entirely after episode 13, barring one final appearance in Alfred's Western-themed dream. |
| 102 | ** Snel also disappears early on. [[spoiler: He does come back during the birthday party in the final episode.]] |
| 103 | ** Despite being one half of Dolf's main duo of henchmen, Hannes disappears at some point as well, while Wannes goes on to become a minor villain in his own right. |
| 104 | ** King Franz Ferdinand's father, Radboud, is never seen again after his son ascends to the throne. Since his son is the new King after the TimeSkip he probably died in the interim, but it's never mentioned. |
| 105 | * CircusEpisode: Alfred joins the circus in one of the early episodes as a young man, filling in for the circus clown while he's ill. However, when a dangerous [[LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy human]] FrazettaMan escapes during Alfred's performance and kidnaps the female star, he's forced to save the day with his improvisational skills. |
| 106 | * ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve: Done almost literally when Alfred and Henk encounter the Polar Star. She says she can show them the way to the South Pole, but only if they clap and applaud her, as stars like herself thrive on the adoration of others. |
| 107 | * ClearMyName: Alfred is wrongfully accused of crimes numerous times, leading to him getting LockedInTheDungeon, and often resulting in him screaming that he's innocent. |
| 108 | * ComicBookTime: Completly averted. Time progresses somewhat normally, Alfred enters and finishes school, everybody visibly ages and so on. |
| 109 | * ConvenientlyAnOrphan: The protagonist, obviously. |
| 110 | * CoolStarship: Professor Paljas' flying windmill, which is able to transform into a submarine and is later equipped with a rocket engine for space travel. |
| 111 | * CorruptChurch: The Archbishop of Great Waterland seems to be interested only in his personal gain. He initially remains on the sidelines when Dolf prepares to take over the country (citing the fruitful affiliation between the crown and the church), but openly supports his new regime after receiving a hefty bribe. |
| 112 | * CorruptCorporateExecutive: K. Rokodil, a recurring villain who tries to make loads of money off the misery of others. Naturally, he's also responsible for driving Alfred's family from their home, and promptly killing most of them by accident by driving over them with his car. |
| 113 | * CowboyEpisode: There's an episode that consists entirely of Alfred dreaming that he is a sheriff in the Wild West (and because this is a kid's show, the saloon only has FrothyMugsOfWater) and has to take down several dangerous gunmen including Krabnagel and Dolf. |
| 114 | * DamselOutOfDistress: [[spoiler: When Dolf kidnaps Winnie, she manages to wiggle out of her bindings and pick up a chair to bash Dolf's head in - except that Alfred gets there first.]] |
| 115 | * DangerThinIce: In an early episode taking place in Alfred's youth during winter, it's mentioned that the lake has frozen over, and after Alfred goes missing his adoptive father Henk (a mole) worries that he fell through the ice and drowned. Alfred actually fell into an empty well with the school bully Dolf and is stuck there, before they're discovered by the hungry cat Krabnagel. In the climax, Henk saves Alfred by distracting Krabnagel, who then pursues him onto the ice and because of his much larger weight ends up breaking it. However, Krabnagel survives thank to HarmlessFreezing, as he returns in later episodes. |
| 116 | * DancePartyEnding: In the 1985 and 1987 stage show, after Alfred becomes King of Waterland. Herman Van Veen congratulates the actors who performed as Henk, the Fox, K. Rokodil, and Poen van Kale Koen. After Van Veen congratulates his composer Erik Van Der Wurff and "Het Groot Waterland Symfonie Orkest staat". Erik Van Der Wurff decides to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIZQjepcjMo play a special song ("Zusammensammeln")]] as the audience come up to greet Alfred (played by Herman Van Veen), while the other animals characters are dancing to the music. Van Veen is also seen dressed as the other characters he performed during the show. To close out the show, Herman Van Veen sings [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-f4r_XRr2M "Opzij Opzij Opzij"]] and leaves the theater followed by children. [[note]] In the 1985 performance in Germany, Herman Van Veen sings "Kleiner Fratz" ("Girl on a Bicycle") which is the very last song of the show.[[/note]] |
| 117 | * DarkReprise: Alfred sing's a somber version of "Spetter Pieter Patter" before his execution in the theatrical show. |
| 118 | * DayOfTheJackboot: During the Crow's Party arc, Dolf uses his [[ANaziByAnyOtherName fascist party]] to take power in Great Waterland, forcing Alfred and his friends to flee to the neighboring country. |
| 119 | * DefeatByModesty: Alfred and Dolf get into a fight after school, and in the process Alfred discovers Dolf's beak is actually covered in shoe polish to hide the fact that it's yellow; Dolf is so embarrassed to reveal his greatest secret that he runs away crying. |
| 120 | * DisproportionateRetribution: Dolf reacts to a rat revealing his yellow beak, thereby humiliating him in public, by vowing to exterminate every rat and mouse on the planet. |
| 121 | * ADogNamedDog: In the Finnish dub, Dolf is known as Korppi, which is the Finnish word for raven (even though Dolf is a crow-blackbird hybrid, not a raven). |
| 122 | * TheDragon: |
| 123 | ** When Dolf becomes dictator of all of Great Waterland, he gets one in the form of his right-hand hippo, Geppe. He remains fiercely loyal to Dolf even when his regime comes crumbling down, [[spoiler: to the point where Geppe helps Dolf escape from prison in the final episode.]] |
| 124 | ** Dolf himself sometimes acts as The Dragon to Rokodil. |
| 125 | * DressingAsTheEnemy: During the Crows Party Arc, Alfred and Rangpang steal the uniforms of two NCP soldiers to get inside the castle. |
| 126 | * DrivesLikeCrazy: |
| 127 | ** When Alfred needs the king's help in getting Winnie's parents out of jail by making them legal citizens, he takes a taxi to the castle. The driver promptly drives headfirst towards a river, bouncing off a boat along the way and barely makes it to the other side. Later, on the way back, he proceeds to launch the car off a cliff, and the last we see of it is a shot of the car flying through the air as Alfred is heard screaming in terror. |
| 128 | ** Professor Paljas also has some trouble getting the flying windmill to land properly, much to Alfred's chagrin. He eventually fixes this by installing a reusable parachute. |
| 129 | * DroppedABridgeOnHim: Alfred's entire family gets offed out of the blue just a few minutes into the second episode. |
| 130 | * DubNameChange: |
| 131 | ** In the Finnish dub, Dolf's name is Korppi (Finnish for [[ADogNamedDog raven]]) and the National Crows Party is Kansallinen Korppipuolue (Finnish for "National Raven Party"). Professor Paljas also becomes Pal'''l'''as, as ''paljas'' happens to mean "bare/uncovered/nude" in Finnish. |
| 132 | ** In the Hebrew dub, Alfred is Shealtiel, Henk is Khefi, Pikkie is Ruby, and Great Waterland is Maimonia (which is a bit awkward; ‘mayim’ is Hebrew for ‘water’, but Maimon is a typical Moroccan last name). |
| 133 | ** The German dub has Dolf's name as Kra and Pikkie's as Stibitzi. |
| 134 | * DrowningMySorrows: [[spoiler: Wannes tries to soothe his guilty conscience with alcohol before his HeelRealization, as described below.]] |
| 135 | * EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: |
| 136 | ** During the early years of the franchise (specially before Harald Sieperman became the illustrator for the characters from 1985 till his death in February 2013). Between 1976 till 1985, Alfred alongside the other cast of animals weren't anthropomorphic. Instead they had more realistic designs and capable of speaking like humans. |
| 137 | ** The original version of "Spetter Pieter Pater" (known as "Plitscher, Plätscher, Feder" in Germany) was much shorter, with some versions given different lyrics for some of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLZ7nEHayI8 Herman Van Veen's live performances in the early 1980s]]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDaRe8u8Doc The current version]] heard in the series' intro which included [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncP-_x54CX0 Van Veen humming]] and an instrumental section wouldn't get added until 1985 when the musical gained an overhaul. |
| 138 | ** It seems like Alfred's house was originally supposed to be [[https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/vLUAAOSwmIZfkDG5/s-l400.jpg an egg]]. |
| 139 | * EpisodeTitleCard: [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/alfred_j_kwak_title_card.PNG The Japanese version of the series had title cards before the actual episodes began]]. The title cards were also used in the Chinese version. |
| 140 | * EvenEvilHasStandards: Hannibal has no problems inventing devices for K. Rokodil's money-making schemes. However, when a group of protesting fishermen on the back of a giant whale block the way out of a harbor to stop their new, highly advanced fishing boat, Hannibal is shocked when Rokodil intends to harpoon them. |
| 141 | * EvilCounterpart: Dolf to Alfred. They both experience traumas during childhood — Alfred loses his parents and siblings too soon after he hatched and ends up ''twice'' in a cell on ungrounded charges, while Dolf has serious issues with his origins (see ParentalIssues below). Dolf bullies Alfred for being raised by a mole while dying his yellow beak black out of fear of being bullied himself. At adulthood, both birds prove themselves to be highly capable and charismatic, but unlike Dolf, Alfred doesn't let his past traumas influence his presence or use them to justify commiting all sorts of selfish and horrible deeds. |
| 142 | * EvilLaugh: Dolf does this when things are going his way exceptionally well. |
| 143 | * EvilSoundsDeep: Dolf in the english dub. |
| 144 | * FantasticRacism. |
| 145 | ** The land of Atrique, where the native black ducks are oppressed by an elite class of white geese. Also Dolf's parents. ("At some level, you have to pity other birds for being so disgusting.") |
| 146 | ** Whenever Pikkie steals something, it's shrugged off as inevitable because he's a magpie. In the third episode, when Alfred is suspected of stealing the King's ruby, he's imprisoned and risks the death penalty -- but when the culprit turns out to be Pikkie, because he's a magpie he's let off with a warning. |
| 147 | * FantasyCounterpartCulture: Great Waterland is a copy of the creator's native Netherlands, with windmills, polders, canals, dikes and the main character whose parents lived in a big ''clog''. Atrique, where Winnie is from is a copy of [[UsefulNotes/TheApartheidEra South Africa]]. |
| 148 | * FeatherFingers: Flip-flopped. Most of the duck/bird characters usually fold up their wings when they don't need them, only to reveal human-like fingered hands when they need them for something. |
| 149 | * FetchQuest: In the original theater show, Alfred has to gather three specific objects (latter, river, and a fox's tail) to give to the King's court. These three objects become useful as the story progresses. |
| 150 | * FinalSolution: To complete Dolf's resemblance to UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, he resolves to kill every mouse (mice have long been used as an analogy for the Jews, see ''ComicBook/{{Maus}}'' for instance) on the planet because they (actually a rat, but Dolf seemkingly makes no difference between them) angered him. |
| 151 | * {{Foreshadowing}}: In one of the first scenes in the very first episode, Johan crosses a trafficked road and narrowly avoids being hit by a car, foreshadowing the accident in the second episode. |
| 152 | * FriendlyEnemy: Alfred and Dolf have this dynamic throughout the first season, before Dolf crosses the MoralEventHorizon in the Emperor Dolf arc. Even when Dolf vengefully confronts Alfred after he has been defeated, Alfred seems more concerned about his former frenemy's mental well-being than about the things Dolf might do to him. |
| 153 | * FrothyMugsOfWater: |
| 154 | ** In the western dream sequence episode, Henk steps into a saloon only selling milk. |
| 155 | ** Subverted by Captain Stoppel, who drinks rum. |
| 156 | * FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse: Dolf had a rather crappy childhood, but's made relatively clear that it excuses none of his actions as an adult. After all, Alfred himself had a relatively crappy childhood too. |
| 157 | * ForgotICouldFly: The eagle in episode 1, first out of carelessness, then out of humiliation at being beaten up by Henk. |
| 158 | * FullCircleRevolution: During the Crows Party arc, Dolf overthrows the centuries-old absolute monarchy of Great Waterland by expelling Franz Ferdinand from his castle. Then he immediately names himself "Emperor Dolf" and becomes a tyrant himself. However, this causes the king to realize his mistakes and promises reforms when [[RightfulKingReturns he returns after Dolf's fall]]. |
| 159 | * FullNameBasis: Alfred commonly introduces himself, or is introduced, by his full name, Alfred Jodokus Kwak. |
| 160 | * FunnyAnimal: The entire cast of characters. |
| 161 | * FurryConfusion: There's several occurrences of regular animals appearing alongside the anthropomorphic ones; noticeably, the circus has trained horses, as well as an anthropomorphic horse who's the resident human trainer. |
| 162 | ** [[https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/gSQAAOSwNHFgW3Ct/s-l400.jpg The cover of a comic book of unknown content]] features non-anthropomorphised goats, despite the fact the series has anthropomorphized goats. |
| 163 | * GRatedDrug: The elephant pills that Dolf slips to Hannes in one episode. To elephants, they apparently provide them with a little extra energy, while the effect is a great deal more extreme for other, smaller animals like ducks. Unfortunately for Hannes, excessive use by non-elephants also has some interesting [[BodyHorror side]] [[BalloonBelly effects]]... |
| 164 | * GenderBender: Ollie the Stork in the Dutch dub is referred to as female in the first handful of episoders, but as male in later ones, while keeping the same (female) voice actor. It may seem like a goof-up, but WordOfGod confirms he's a trans man. Most other dubs stick with one gender. |
| 165 | * GenieInABottle: Two episodes (the first of which was, appropriately enough, titled "The Genie In The Bottle") featured a genie who long ago was imprisoned in a bottle for causing numerous disasters in a far-away country. Upon being found in the desert by an unsuspecting traveler, he pretended to be the kind, wish-granting type to be freed, but when the traveler did release him, he then quickly revealed he had resigned himself to devouring whoever was foolish enough to release him. |
| 166 | * GhibliHills: Most of Great Waterland outside the suburban areas is rife with natural beauty, including around Alfred's home. |
| 167 | * GoryDiscretionShot: Used when Alfred's family is run over, with the camera focusing on the clog-shaped bed hurtling through the air over a red background instead. |
| 168 | * GrandFinale: The final episode, even named "Happily Ever After" in the original Dutch, features [[spoiler: Dolf finally being thrown into prison for his crimes, only to escape, steal professor Paljas' plans for a DeathRay, kidnap Winnie, and hold her hostage in a final desperate attempt at revenge against Alfred for foiling his plans time and again. Alfred eventually tracks him down, rescues Winnie, and has Dolf arrested one last time before returning home to celebrate his birthday with all his friends and family.]] |
| 169 | * {{Green Eyed Monster}}: Alfred, whenever he sees another male bird (Michael Duckson, the golf instructor, even the happily married Ollie) getting close to Winnie. |
| 170 | %%* GreenAesop: Numerous examples. |
| 171 | * HalfDressedCartoonAnimal: Alfred only wears a red scarf most of the time. Some characters wear even less, some wear more. |
| 172 | * HarmlessFreezing: |
| 173 | ** Krabnagel turns into an ice cube the moment he falls into a frozen lake. He's perfectly fine just a few episodes later. |
| 174 | ** In a later episode, Dolf hides from Alfred in a freezer. As soon as Alfred opens the door, a solid-frozen Dolf comes tumbling out. |
| 175 | * HeelRealization: [[spoiler: When Dolf deliberately breaches a dike as part of a scheme to increase his popularity in the upcoming presidential elections, Wannes, who normally hangs on his every word, becomes increasingly unable to handle his guilty conscience after having assisted him, and eventually confesses and turns himself in.]] |
| 176 | * HeroBall: If there's something - ''anything'' - bad going on, expect Alfred to be drawn into it. |
| 177 | * ImagineSpot: Alfred has these a LOT, as his imagination has a tendency to run away with him at times. |
| 178 | * ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: Everybody in Alfred's western dream, especially in the climax where Alfred faces off with Dolf's gang all by himself. Nobody manages to hit anything except the scenery. |
| 179 | * ImpossiblyLowNeckline: The Chess Queen, one of the few human-looking characters in the series who can pull this off. |
| 180 | * IndyEscape: Alfred and Professor Paljas have to deal with a giant boulder threatening to crush them while exploring a pyramid. |
| 181 | * IndyPloy: Alfred admits when sneaking aboard a whaler ship that he's making up the plan to put it out of commission as he goes along. |
| 182 | * InformedAbility: The Hebrew dub for the series [[DubNameChange renamed Alfred ‘Shealtiel’]], or ‘Shalti’ for short, and as the name is derived from the same root used by the words ‘question’ or ‘asking’, he was said to be very curious in the opening segment. This doesn’t seem to show up much in the series itself. |
| 183 | * InkSuitActor: Bob Rock Pop who only appeared in episode 20, is designed after Henk Westbroek. Bob Rock Pop is even voiced by Henk Westbroek and performs the song "Het Allerlaatste Dubbeltje". |
| 184 | * InnocentAliens: The aliens Alfred and Henk meet on their journey to the South Pole. They're a friendly, helpful bunch who periodically visit Earth to collect the rare [[AlienCatnip "marbo" fruits, which is a delicacy to them]]. Later on, a friendly dragon from outer space shows up as well. |
| 185 | * InsidiousRumorMill: Dolf and Alfred end up at the bottom of a well during the winter, because Alfred spooked Dolf and then fell in himself while trying to get Dolf out. Later on, they're almost eaten by Krabnagel the cat. After they're rescued, Dolf tells all his friends that Alfred deliberately pushed him in. They treat Alfred with hostility afterwards, which Alfred does not realize since Dolf greets him like a friend. |
| 186 | * InterchangeableAsianCultures: Played painfully straight with a few Asian-inspired characters that appear throughout the show, who have slanted, narrow eyes, speak in squeaky voices, and substitute R's for L's. |
| 187 | * InterspeciesAdoption: Henk adopted Alfred after Alfred's parents and siblings got run over. |
| 188 | * InterspeciesRomance: |
| 189 | ** Dolf's parents are a crow and a blackbird. Dolf has a yellow beak to show for it. |
| 190 | ** Also, the wife of K. Rokodil is a ''quail'' of all things. They are said to have children, although what they look like is anyone's guess. |
| 191 | * JackassGenie: The [[SealedEvilInACan Evil Spirit of Darkness]] merely pretends to be the "granting wishes" kind of genie in order to trick people into releasing him from his bottle, and subsequently [[ImAHumanitarian eat them]] [[RevengeByProxy out of spite]] for the deity who originally imprisoned him. |
| 192 | * KarmaHoudini: |
| 193 | ** Dolf is the king of these. Even after becoming the fascist dictator of all of Great Waterland, he's not persecuted for his crimes, and even comes back later to legally run for presidency in the elections. |
| 194 | ** Rokodil remains Mayor no matter how much he exploits the town, untill episode 51, when his true colors are finally exposed the police. |
| 195 | * KingIncognito: When Alfred and Professor Paljas visit one of Rameses' relatives in Egypt, they are also introduced to that man's granddaughter. She's later revealed to be the reigning Pharaoh. |
| 196 | * KingOfBeasts: The king is a lion, though initially he prefers his lemonade baths to actual monarching. |
| 197 | * LandOfTulipsAndWindmills: Alfred's home country Great Waterland is an affectionate caricature of the Netherlands (the creator is Dutch), largely composed of polders. Alfred even lives in a huge clog. |
| 198 | * LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy: Played with. While a human does show up he's in fact the ''least'' human of any creature; he's a beastlike caveman shown for entertainment to the talking animals in circus shows, and presumably zoos. |
| 199 | * LockedInTheDungeon: Happens to Alfred far too many times to count, most commonly after being wrongfully accused of a crime, to the point that you could make a drinking game out of it. It even gets [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] in the song "In De Val" ("Trapped") on one of the soundtrack albums, where Herman van Veen wonders "do barred windows like ducks, perhaps?" |
| 200 | * MagicMusic / MusicalAssassin: |
| 201 | ** The magical violin owned by the clown on the moon, which, among other things, is able to make things disappear. Alfred uses it to destroy the deadly Mozons virus. |
| 202 | ** On a more humorous note, Alfred's piano playing is apparently so catastrophically bad that it causes Henk physical pain to listen to, and at one point he is even blown away by an onslaught of musical notes when he opens the door to Alfred's house. |
| 203 | * MagicalClown: There's a clown named Pierrot who lives on the moon. He apparently doesn't need to breathe or eat, and has a [[MagicMusic magical violin]] which can be used to make a deadly pandemic in a poor country go away. |
| 204 | * ManOfWealthAndTaste: Many of the villains like to dress well, and even wear monocles. |
| 205 | * MeaningfulName: |
| 206 | ** The king is named after Austro-Hungarian archduke Franz Ferdinand, who had a great fondness for hunting. Though it's actually his father, Radboud, we see hunting in the second episode. |
| 207 | ** Also, [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Dolf]] is ANaziByAnyOtherName. |
| 208 | ** Invoked with Alfred: his middle name "Jodokus" apparently means "jokester"; his father gave him the name due to his natural curiosity and tendency to wander off from home. |
| 209 | *** "Jodokus" is also the name of the antagonist in an anti-semitic, pro-Nazi Dutch WartimeCartoon based on ''Literature/ReynardTheFox'', a Jewish rhinoceros who upsets the laws of nature by promoting mixed-species marriage. Fitting name for a protagonist who struggles against a Nazi-esque villain and racial segregation. |
| 210 | ** Pikkie/Grabbie has a habit of stealing things, due to being a magpie. |
| 211 | ** Snel the rabbit, "snel" being the Dutch word for "fast". |
| 212 | ** Professor Paljas. "Paljas" means "buffoon", which fits with his eccentric, absent-minded nature. |
| 213 | ** Lispel, named for the Dutch word for "lisping". Being a squishy jellyfish, he obviously does this a lot. |
| 214 | ** K. Rokodil. His name can literally be translated as C. Rocodile. |
| 215 | ** Captain Stoppel/Stubble. As a walrus, he obviously has a lot of facial hair. |
| 216 | ** Winnie, named for the wife of Nelson Mandela. |
| 217 | * MediumAwareness: Characters often hum or even sing along with the background music. |
| 218 | * MindControlEyes: Pikkie gets them whenever he sees something shiny. The first time it happens is even accompanied by a DisneyAcidSequence in which the shiny object calls out to him, ''begging'' him to steal it. |
| 219 | * MindScrew: |
| 220 | ** The Chess Queen two-parter, due to leaving it ambiguous whether the events were just a dream, really happened, or if dream and reality somehow blended together. |
| 221 | ** The circus that Alfred joins in one episode has a ''wild human'' as one of its star attractions, indicating that Alfred's world is some bizarre role-reversal of ours. Even more bizarrely, the guy has a tail. (Assuming that's a real tail and not part of his costume.) |
| 222 | * MinimalistCast: Compared to the original theatrical show, the 2017 show ''Alfred J Kwak en de Sneeuwvlok'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_CGo_oSgnU only stars Alfred]] with none of the characters from the comics or TV series making an appearance. |
| 223 | * MoodWhiplash: Many episodes have {{Downer Ending}}s, followed immediately by the [[SoundtrackDissonance relentlessly upbeat end credits song]]: "Alfred's so merry, so very, very merry..." |
| 224 | * MoonwalkDance: In one episode Alfred's girlfriend Winnie is in love with an arrogant pop singer named [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed Michael Duckson]], who is a partial parody of Music/{{Prince}} too. His stage act is mostly parodying Music/MichaelJackson though, even with a moonwalk-like dance. |
| 225 | * MrViceGuy: Pikkie is a friendly and affable person... it's just that he gets these bursts of uncontrolled thieving. |
| 226 | * MuggedForDisguise: when Alfred and Rangpang need uniforms from National Crows Party soldiers in order to move around unnoticed, they use a combination of this trope and GoneSwimmingClothesStolen. Alfred pretends to be drowning, causing 2 soldiers who notice him to quickly take off their uniforms and dive into the water to save him. Alfred promptly swims to the shore where he and Rangpang steal the discarded uniforms. |
| 227 | * MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Alfred and Henk have a moment like this after they get a sawfish to sabotage K. Rokodil's new advanced fishing boat, which results in a massive explosion that sinks the ship, and the sailors on board to barely escape alive. Worse, Captain Stoppel has a minor HeroicBSOD at the sight of his beautiful new ship sinking, and the situation only gets worse when Rokodil announces that he's going to build an ''even more'' advanced ship as a result. |
| 228 | * MythologyGag: |
| 229 | ** Episode 21 loosly adapted the original musical, notably in the original Dutch version where Alfred is heard saying "Kwek kwek kwek, Ik ben wel goed, Maar ik ben niet" as he's moving past a river. |
| 230 | ** Another reference to the original musical and series creator Herman Van Veen is Episode 50. In the Dutch version, Dolf yells [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-f4r_XRr2M "Opzij Opzij Opzij"]] as he's escaping a casino which Alfred chases after. |
| 231 | * NaiveNewcomer: Despite being clever overall, the Chess Queen knows very little of the world outside the chessboard, and she ends up being robbed of her crown by Dolf. |
| 232 | * NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: Dolf is named after UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, Dr. Livingston after UsefulNotes/DavidLivingstone. Winnie, Alfred's girlfriend, was named after Winnie Mandela. |
| 233 | * NamedWorldAndNamedLand: All the countries follow this formula (with the exception of the middle eastern countries from episodes 37-38 and the South Africa analogue Atrique from episodes 27-30). |
| 234 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: |
| 235 | ** Dolf, which is essentially a Dutch form of [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Adolf]].[[note]]Literally; Dolf was very popular as a boy name with Dutch Fascists during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.[[/note]] |
| 236 | ** There's also Pikkie, translated as "Grabbie", a friend of Alfred's who's affable and easy-going, but due to being a [[ThievingMagpie magpie]] has an unfortunate penchant for taking/stealing shiny stuff, which usually results in a lot of trouble for everyone involved. |
| 237 | ** The Evil Spirit of Darkness, an evil spirit posing as a genie that terrorized his home and killed many people. |
| 238 | * NationalAnimalStereotypes: |
| 239 | ** The Egyptians are mainly represented by cats, due to the association between Ancient Egypt and cats. |
| 240 | ** Dolf, the Adolf Hitler expy, is a German bird. While he is referred to as a crow, his crooked beak recalls the German Imperial Eagle. |
| 241 | * ANaziByAnyOtherName: A half-breed crow named Dolf founds the National Crows Party and takes over Great Waterland in a fascist coup. He also likes to constantly talk about how much superior crows are and decides to exterminate all mice over a personal humiliation (his yellow beak being revealed to his followers by said mouse). |
| 242 | * NearDeathExperience: After Alfred and Henk visit the sawfish to ask for his help, they're caught in a storm and Alfred is thrown overboard. He almost drowns and has a trippy nightmare in which he imagines being alone in the world, before being resuscitated in Captain Stoppel's home. |
| 243 | * NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: One episode centers around a pop singer whom Winnie completely fawns over. His name? Michael Duckson. Dolf is clearly based on Hitler and Napoleon. Another episode has a pop singer clearly modelled after Music/BobGeldof. The pierrot character on the moon is a CreatorCameo of the series' creator Herman Van Veen. |
| 244 | * NobodyHereButUsStatues: When Alfred and Rangpang sneak in the royal palace while it's under Dolf's control, they pose as a statue adorning a railing as Geppe walks past them. |
| 245 | * NonIndicativeName: Several episode titles in the original Dutch version don't really have any significant bearing on the actual episode's plot. |
| 246 | ** Episode 10 is titled "The Sacred Turban", when said turban doesn't appear until the last minute of the episode, where Alfred gets it as a reward for overcoming the genie. It's not mentioned to be particularly sacred, either. |
| 247 | ** Episode 16, "Rangpang", refers to Colonel Rangpang, who also only makes an appearance near the end of the episode. The episode itself mostly focuses on Alfred and Henk as they get underway on their journey to the South Pole. |
| 248 | ** Episode 18, "The Polar Star", is a RandomEventsPlot where Alfred and Henk meet a hungry squid who proceeds to force Alfred to listen to his music, while elsewhere we're introduced to Professor Paljas as he works on his whale translator. The titular star doesn't appear until the last few minutes of the episode, where it shows Alfred and Henk the way to the South Pole. |
| 249 | ** Episode 21, "The Bees": Alfred lends his money to King Franz Ferdinand, not knowing that the royal family is flat broke and unable to pay him back. The titular bees join Alfred as he goes to the castle to demand his money back, and later assist him in dealing with the castle guards. |
| 250 | ** Episode 23, "The Battle For Polderstad": No actual battle ever happens; instead Alfred and crew escape captivity after Dolf takes over and flee the country. |
| 251 | ** Episode 35, "The Snake": The titular serpent only appears briefly at the beginning, and has no bearing on the rest of the plot. |
| 252 | ** Episode 51, "The Rainforest", is probably the worst offender, as nowhere in the entire episode does an actual rainforest appear, nor is one mentioned. Presumably, it has some relation to the episode's GreenAesop, but it's still rather baffling. |
| 253 | ** Note that most of this examples only go for the english speaking version, since the episodes have more fitting names in the original. However "The Snake" and "The Rainforest" are literally translated titles, so they are just as strange in the original. |
| 254 | * NonMammalMammaries: Appear in several places, though not always consistent; egregiously, Winnie's mother clearly has breasts under her clothes, while Winnie, despite supposedly being an adult, does not. Then, of course, there's the witch who wants to marry Alfred, and transforms herself into a rather well-endowed duck. |
| 255 | * NonSequiturEnvironment: In the Egyptian pyramid, Alfred and Professor Paljas are walking through a featureless corridor which ends in a huge drop. When they attempt to go back, the path they just walked on has disappeared. [[spoiler:This is because they are actually hallucinating.]] |
| 256 | * NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: Dolf leads a fascist coup of Great Waterland after building up his own political movement and making public speeches denouncing the King's terrible spending and that he doesn't take his job very seriously. While [[VillainHasAPoint Dolf is actually right about those things]] and [[VillainWithGoodPublicity his own popularity with the people]] is what gets him into power, he is actually only interested in seizing the throne for himself. After deposing the King, he immediately names himself Emperor and becomes even more tyrannical than his predecessor. |
| 257 | * OmniDisciplinaryScientist: Professor Paljas, adult Alfred's friend and ally, who is apparently an expert in mechanical engineering, rocket science, Egyptology, and linguistics, among other things. Slightly averted when he mentions that global warming is not his field, but played completely straight otherwise. |
| 258 | * OnlyInItForTheMoney: Hannibal is happy to design whatever K. Rokodil needs, regardless of its intended purpose. Likewise, Lispel will spy on anybody and sell the information to whoever pays him the most. He even objects when asked to perform sabotage, and only agrees to do it when threatened. |
| 259 | * OrWasItADream: |
| 260 | ** Alfred's adventure with the Chess pieces were all just dreams... or so it seems, until the White Queen talks to him after she's put back on the board at the end. |
| 261 | ** After Alfred's experience with a witch trying to marry him turns out to be a nightmare, he takes Winnie out for an evening walk. He almost gets a HeroicBSOD (he snaps out of it pretty quickly) when he briefly spots the witch flying on her broom. |
| 262 | * OurDragonsAreDifferent: An extinct volcano that's suddenly become active again turns out to contain a dragon from outer space, who got himself trapped by having a giant boulder pin down his tail. Curiously, he breathes cold fire. |
| 263 | * PachelbelsCanonProgression: The title song. |
| 264 | * ParentalIssues: A significant reason why Dolf is so messed up: his mother was a blackbird, which greatly shames him since he wants to be a full-blood crow. Worse, she apparently dies while Dolf is still young, resulting in Dolf's father becoming an alcoholic. |
| 265 | * ParentalSubstitute: Henk (a mole) functions as this to Alfred (a duck) after Alfred’s parents and siblings were killed in a car accident. He was a close friend of Alfred's late father, and resolved to raise the boy in his stead. [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by Dolf, who thinks Alfred is weird or even inferior for having been raised by someone not his own species. |
| 266 | * PhraseCatcher: People are prone to comment on the fact that Alfred's house looks just like a giant clog. |
| 267 | * PoirotSpeak: |
| 268 | ** Professor Paljas has a habit of mixing [[GratuitousGerman random German words]] into his sentences, to the point where some of what he says becomes absolutely incomprehensible. |
| 269 | ** Colombo, the circus clown in episode 11, does this as well. |
| 270 | ** The female French poodle accompanying K. Rokodil's business partner Duizendberg in episode 26 does this with GratuitousFrench. |
| 271 | * PokemonSpeak: Dolf's name in the German dub is Kra ("Caw"), the sound crows make, and his catch phrase when startled or annoyed. |
| 272 | * PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Wannes is basically the personification of racism during the Apartheid arc. |
| 273 | * PrecisionFStrike: |
| 274 | ** While most of the cursing in the series falls under GoshDangItToHeck, Alfred has one moment where he angrily shouts out "DAMN IT!" when [[spoiler: Dolf gets away with the dragon in order to put it on display in K. Rokodil's theme park.]] [[spoiler: Dolf]] even lampshades it by saying "Alfred, you can't say that!" |
| 275 | ** Combined with BilingualBonus - when professor Paljas witnesses a whaler ship approaching one of the whales he's trying to communicate with, he lets out an angry "scheisse!". |
| 276 | * PredatorsAreMean: While most characters are from omnivorous or carnivorous species, they appear to be omnivores and do not hunt. The ones who do hunt other animals, with Krabnagel the cat being the only recurring one, are villains, with the exception of the king in the second episode, who enjoys hunting but seems quite reasonable. A noticeable exception happens during one arc, when Captain Stoppel was supposed to hunt fish and had no problem with it until he learnt that it would drive them to extinction. While the fish in question were sapient and talking all the time. |
| 277 | * PrinciplesZealot: Lispel the jellyfish of all people, maybe as part of his BlueAndOrangeMorality. When somebody has paid him to disclose secres, he simply ''has'' to tell them (even if the buyer alredy knows the secrets). Not disclosing information that has been paid for literally makes him sick. |
| 278 | * RapidAging: The fate of those infected by the Mozons virus, provided they can survive the initial symptons. Being cured of the virus instantly reverses the effects, however. |
| 279 | * Really700YearsOld: Parmezanidas, the wise old hermit crab, claims to have been around for hundreds of years. |
| 280 | * ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Many of Alfred's friends and allies, including professor Paljas, captain Stoppel, colonel Rangpang, and king Franz Ferdinand. |
| 281 | * RedEyesTakeWarning: In addition to Pikkie, as mentioned above under MindControlEyes, Dolf also gets these when he is in a particularly nasty mood; most prominently when [[spoiler: he tries to kill Lispel so he can't tell anybody about Dolf breaching the dike.]] It's also said red eyes are a common trait in witches, [[InformedAbility although this rarely ever shows up]]. |
| 282 | * ReptilesAreAbhorrent: K. Rokodil. One episode features a snake that tries to kill Paljas and Alfred while exploring a pyramid. Averted (as usual) with turtles, as well as with a reptilian lake monster and the reptile-like alien dragons. |
| 283 | * RubberForeheadAliens: The aliens that Alfred and Henk meet on their way to the South Pole look like multi-colored, polka-dotted ducks with human feet, lizard tails and antennae. |
| 284 | * RunForTheBorder: Alfred and his friends flee to neighbouring Broad Reedland when their home Great Waterland is turned into a fascist dictatorship by Dolf and his National Crows Party. |
| 285 | * ScarfOfAsskicking: [[AllLovingHero While hardly a violent character]], the sheer amount of dangerous situations Alfred escapes while wearing his [[IconicItem signature red scarf]], he certainly qualifies. |
| 286 | * SceneryPorn: Oh so much of it, from the GhibliHills of Great Waterland to some of the sights that Alfred and Henk see on their journey to the South Pole. |
| 287 | * SchizoTech: The setting freely combines technology, costumes and politics from any point between 1800 and the 1980s. And then there are Professor Paljas' inventions. |
| 288 | * SchoolyardBullyAllGrownUp: Dolf starts out as a simple schoolyard bully, but he quickly ascends through the ranks of villainy, at several different points being a fascist dictator, a thief, and an arms dealer. |
| 289 | * ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After the fortune that Dolf acquired as dictator and was necessary to fund his regime is stolen by the heroes, his closest aide (Geppe) opts to flee and leaves a note for Dolf advising him to do the same if he wants to avoid being arrested by King Ferdinand when the latter returns to [[RightfulKingReturns reclaim his throne]]. |
| 290 | * SealedEvilInACan: The Evil Spirit of Darkness, an ancient spirit who caused so much torment and destruction that God locked him inside a magic bottle. |
| 291 | * ShapeshiftingSeducer: In one episode, Alfred is pursued by a WickedWitch who [[AndNowYouMustMarryMe wants to marry him]]. Alfred protests, so she transforms herself into a beautiful duck to make it easier for him. Alfred still refuses, since he's engaged to Winnie. |
| 292 | * ShesAManInJapan: |
| 293 | ** Bizarrely, ''in the same country''. Ollie the stork starts out female in the Dutch version, and halfway through the show is suddenly referred to as a man, despite looking and sounding exactly the same. ''He'' even gets a wife and kids. {{Word of God}} confirms this as canon, with the creator of the series [[http://www.vice.com/be/read/ik-stelde-herman-van-veen-alle-vragen-over-alfred-jodocus-kwak-die-ik-ooit-nog-wilde-stellen stating that this happens in the real world too after all]]. |
| 294 | ** Ollie was renamed "Lolly" and turned into a female for the Israeli dub. |
| 295 | ** Pikkie is female in the German dub. |
| 296 | * ShoutOut: |
| 297 | ** The scene of Alfred flying through the night sky with the Chess Queen seems to be directly referencing the famous "Can You Read My Mind?" scene from [[Film/SupermanTheMovie the first Superman movie]], right down to Alfred letting go, falling, and being caught by the Queen. |
| 298 | ** The Mozons Virus story arc has Alfred in the role of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, using Pierrot's violin first to save the country and then to punish its selfish rulers. |
| 299 | * SigningOffCatchphrase: During the show's original televised broadcasts such as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eigO-yWYhgQ VARA (the Netherlands)]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58XvWoFr5xk ZDF (Germany)]], and the United Kingdom from 1989 till 1991. Herman Van Vann [[note]] In the UK airing, it's an unknown singer. [[/note]] would sing an extra lyric as a sign off message during the credits sequence. The extra lyrics were removed in later versions. |
| 300 | ---> '''[=VARA version (Netherlands)=]:''' "Wat leuk dat je keek, tot volgende week. Dan zijn we er weer bij de VARA." [[note]] "So fun that you watched, see you next week. Then we'll be here again with VARA" [[/note]] |
| 301 | ---> '''[=ZDF version (Germany)=]:''' "Das war es für heut, es hat mich gefreut, bis zum nächsten Treff, hier im ZDF." [[note]] "That was it for today, I was looking forward to the next meeting, here on ZDF" (the lyric "hier im ZDF" is removed in later versions.) [[/note]] |
| 302 | ---> '''[=UK version=]:''' "We're glad that you've been with us, And heard our refrain, We hope you'll come along soon, and join us again." |
| 303 | * SlidingScaleOfAnthropomorphism: Bird characters seem to have a less humanoid anatomy than mammal characters. Since birds are bipedal, this is seldom particularly striking - except when Alfred is swimming the way real ducks do! |
| 304 | * SoundtrackDissonance: |
| 305 | ** The intro features a creepy-looking demon thing (who weirdly never appears in the series itself) who lifts a stunned and scared-looking Alfred up by his head and zaps him with some kind of lightning... all while the serene and upbeat intro music plays and Herman Van Veen (or whoever's doing the intro song in the respective dubs) cheerfully sings "La la lala lala la," like nothing's wrong. |
| 306 | ** Like mentioned above, the energetic and happy end credit music can cause some serious MoodWhiplash since so many of the episodes end on a dire {{Cliffhanger}}, or has a BittersweetEnding, or even a downright DownerEnding. |
| 307 | |
| 308 | * SpaceIsNoisy: The violin of the clown on the moon can be heard even in space, despite the fact that there shouldn't be any sound due to a lack of air. Probably justified in that the violin is magic. |
| 309 | * SpoilerOpening: The page image, which appears at the start of the shows theme song since as early as episode 1, effectively spoils Professor Paljas and Winnie will become important characters later on long before they make their debutes in the show. It also shows Dolf in his presidential uniform, thus spoiling his story arc. |
| 310 | * StealthPun: Alfred has a dream where he rides a horse, who promptly drops him off in a desolate, dry country where he nearly dies of thirst. Clearly, the animal was a night-mare. |
| 311 | * StewedAlive: Alfred has this happening to him in one episode when he and the others are captured by some angry natives who decide to cook them into soup. Although he survives, it is a pretty disturbing scene, not at all PlayedForLaughs. |
| 312 | * StormingTheCastle: Alfred does this three times, two of them literal. First he storms Dolf's home with an entire army of living chess pieces in tow to get back the White Queen's crown. The second time he goes to get back the money he loaned to the king after he won't pay him back, where he ends up driving the entire royal family out of the castle with the help of some bees. Lastly, Alfred tries to slip past the guards to get the king to give the Wana family a residence permit and make them legal citizens. |
| 313 | * SundialWaypoint: In the Egypt episodes, the secret entry point to the Pharaoh's throne room in the pyramid is only visible at high noon when a mirror reflects the light. |
| 314 | * SurpriseSlideStaircase: When Alfred and Professor Paljas explore an Egyptian pyramid and get lost, they find themselves on a stairwell that suddenly turns into a slide. They manage to hold on thanks to Paljas' cane, but then they hear [[IndyEscape a rumbling sound approaching from above]]. |
| 315 | * TakenForGranite: The witch threatens to turn Alfred into stone if he doesn't marry her. When he tries to escape during their wedding, she actually does it to his lower half so he can't run away. |
| 316 | * TakeOverTheWorld: Because of an innate fear of [[{{Pride}} being perceived as weak by others]], when he's still a child Dolf decides that one day he will simply rule over everyone and everything. Moreover, when he stages his coup he outright declares that he simply wants power for its own sake. A dream he has in the final episode reveals that despite many years having passed he still harbours this desire. |
| 317 | * TechnoBabble: Pretty common with professors Paljas and Hannibal. A memorable instance of this is when Hannibal claims that K. Rokodil's fancy, computer-controlled fishing boat is prone to explode if "the silicon chip makes contact with the guidance system", which is of course pure nonsense as any guidance system worth its salt would obviously contain more than a few chips (which are, naturally made from silicon to begin with, so saying "silicon chip" is rather redundant as well). |
| 318 | * TheTropeWithoutATitle: In the original Dutch version, Winnie's family's native country is only ever referred to as "the homeland". |
| 319 | * TheyCallMeMisterTibbs: |
| 320 | ** Under Dolf's rule, citizens are punished for referring to him as anything but "President Dolf". |
| 321 | ** Lispel to his chauffeur: "That's Mr. Jellyfish to you." |
| 322 | * ThievingMagpie: One of Alfred's friends is a magpie named Pikkie ("Grabby"), who is actually compelled to steal anything shiny that he lays his eyes on, gaining MindControlEyes in the process. This gets Alfred into a lot of trouble when Pikkie steals a crown jewel and Alfred ends up looking responsible. When the truth is revealed, the king pardons Pikkie since he couldn't help himself. |
| 323 | * ThousandYardStare: A pretty effective one in the second episode when Henk witnesses Alfred's parents and siblings get run over by a car. |
| 324 | * ThreateningShark: When Alfred, Henk, and Pikkie go into a diving bell to investigate the drilling site of an oil platform, they're attacked by a shark that easily dwarfs their craft. |
| 325 | * TimeSkip: |
| 326 | ** After episode 8, the story suddenly skips ahead a few years, with Alfred and all his friends now as adults. |
| 327 | ** A more subtle one happens somewhere between episode 25 and episode 27. Ollie, last seen in 25 as a university student is a successfull lawyer in 27 and in the same arc we learn that Wannes now has a nephew in Atrique. |
| 328 | * TimeStandsStill: In the finale, Dolf dreams about bulldozing a massive, multi-story hourglass, and promptly presents an ultimatum to the world that everything will stop unless he is named the ruler of the world. |
| 329 | * TookALevelInJerkass: Wannes starts out as one half of Dolf's duo of mostly harmless, dim-witted henchmen. Following a TimeSkip, he becomes a well-dressed, wealthy goose who is [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain openly racist against black ducks]], to the point where he relentlessly hounds the Wana family and tries to get them arrested. |
| 330 | * ToothyBird: Even though he obviously doesn't normally have teeth, Alfred occasionally bares them when he's angry. In one episode, he even ''brushes his teeth'' after getting out of bed. |
| 331 | * TrickingTheShapeshifter: Played straight and subverted with the Evil Spirit of Darkness. |
| 332 | ** The genie was defeated hundreds of years ago by a traveller who tricked him into going back into his bottle, and then sealed him shut. |
| 333 | ** When Alfred tries the same thing later on it almost works, but the genie then remembers the details of how he was resealed again, and stops halfway through. Alfred only succeeds when he realizes that the Evil Genie can be hurt by light, and forces him back in. |
| 334 | * TurtleIsland: A tropical island turns out to be carried on the back on of a giant turtle. [[ExploitedTrope Exploited]] by the characters using the turtle to take the entire island out of the path of a dangerous tropical storm, saving all the inhabitants. |
| 335 | * UnexplainedAccent: In the German dub, Alfred speaks with an heavy Dutch accent, despite [[TranslationConvention supposedly speaking his native country's language most of the time]]. (Granted, Great Waterland IS the FantasyCounterpartCulture of the Netherlands, but all other characters speak without any audible accent.) [[RealitySubtext The real world reason is]] that Alfred's German voice is [[CrossDressingVoices Ryan van den Akker, the same woman]] who also provides his voice in the original Dutch version. |
| 336 | * UnwittingPawn: King Franz Ferdinand's negligence leads to Dolf being able to take over all of Great Waterland and usurp him without any resistance. However, [[CharacterDevelopment this does lead the king to realize what a fool he's been all along]]. |
| 337 | * UpperClassTwit: King Franz Ferdinand is at first a totally oblivious ruler who neglects his subjects, though when we first see him as a young man it's clear that he didn't particularly want to be king anyway. He spends most of his time in his lemonade baths and swindles Alfred out of a significant sum of money. When Dolf takes over in a fascist coup Franz Ferdinand demonstrates such a level of ignorance that Dolf and his cronies openly laugh at him before exiling the King. Subverted when this leads Franz Ferdinand to reconsider his own actions and he becomes a better ruler after he returns to Great Waterland. |
| 338 | * TheUsurper: In the "Crows Party" arc, Dolf uses his [[ANaziByAnyOtherName new fascist party]] to throw King Franz Ferdinand out of his palace and declare himself Emperor Dolf I. |
| 339 | * VagueAge: Whether Alfred is still a school kid or a young (?) adult who has a girlfriend and travels around the world: He always looks exactly the same. |
| 340 | * VerbalTic: Professor Paljas has a tendency to end his sentences with "ja, ja!" ("yes, yes!"). |
| 341 | * VillainBall: Dolf has one of these implanted in his skull. You may have noticed he is really not a nice person. |
| 342 | * VillainHasAPoint: While Dolf's campaign to take over the leadership of the Great Waterland is done out of his own ambitions rather than real concern for the country, leading Alfred and Henk not to trust him, he's correct to say that King Ferdinand is not taking his political responsibility seriously enough and no-one's doing enough to rectify the growing unemployment. Similar to how UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler gained power, Dolf wins the people's initial trust by offering employment and seemingly actively doing something to stabilize the country. After Dolf has driven King Ferdinand away, the king acknowledges that his irresponsibility contributed to Dolf's uprising. Also, Dolf's claim of the monarchy being outdated gains weight during the second season when King Ferdinand decides to change the Great Waterland from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy with a democratically elected president (which is ironically something Dolf predicted would happen long before his coup d'état). |
| 343 | * VillainSong: |
| 344 | ** "Miauw" ("Meow"), Krabnagel's ominous Villain Song from episode 3 where he sings about the things he'd like to have to quell his insatiable appetite. |
| 345 | ** "De Kraaienmars" ("The Crow's March") serves as a Villain Song for the Crow's Party as a whole, as they pledge their loyalty to their leader, Dolf. |
| 346 | * VillainWithGoodPublicity: Dolf, both times that he tries to become president of Great Waterland. The second time is especially egregious considering he staged what amounted to a fascist coup the first time. |
| 347 | * VillainousBreakdown: Dolf, at several occasions when his plans are foiled. Especially prominent is when [[spoiler: he loses the presidential elections to Ollie, and walks off into the sunset with crazy eyes while muttering to himself how he's the only one fit to rule, and later when he gets arrested after stealing Professor Paljas' formula for a clean automobile fuel.]] |
| 348 | * TheWallsAreClosingIn: In the Egyptian pyramid, Alfred and Professor Paljas are walking down a dark corridor when giant blocks begin to move towards them from both the front and back. They manage to climb on top of them, but this is then repeated several times with blocks moving in from several different directions to crush them [[spoiler:until they realize that it's all a hypnotic trance.]] |
| 349 | * WarForFunAndProfit: Dolf's last villanous occupation is a combination of arms dealer and warmonger. |
| 350 | * WeakenedByTheLight: Alfred manages to defeat the Evil Spirit of Darkness when he realizes that shining a bright light in the genie's face hurts it to the point that it would prefer going back inside the bottle. Alfred even removes his lamp for a few seconds just to annoy it, prompting a partial re-emergence by the genie, before forcing it into the bottle completely. |
| 351 | * WeCanRuleTogether: |
| 352 | ** Dolf twice offers this to Alfred, first when he's looking for money to fund a political party, second when he's found the money elsewhere and is already in the process of seizing power in the entire country. |
| 353 | ** After the second time Alfred himself inverts it when he barges into Dolf's office, demands that Dolf (a CardCarryingVillain) stop his evil plans and immediately step down. Dolf laughs in his face and just summarily imprisons him. |
| 354 | * WeHaveForgottenThePhlebotinum: Invoked. During a trip to the South Pole to find the whales, Alfred and Henk encounter a race of aliens who possess special translator collars. One episode later, Alfred bemoans the fact that they forgot to ask them to borrow one of the devices, as they'd be immensely useful in translating the language of the whales. |
| 355 | * WeirdMoon: Apparently, a clown playing a magical violin lives up there. |
| 356 | * WeWillMeetAgain: After Alfred destroys Dolf's fascisct coup, Dolf and his associates are forced to flee. Just before he does that, he shows up at Alfred's door, and warns him that he may have won this time, but that one day he'll come back and be powerful again. |
| 357 | %% * WillTheyOrWontThey: Alfred and Winnie. [[spoiler: They do in episode 39.]] |
| 358 | * WhamShot: When Dolf orders his second-in-command to bribe the Archbishop, there's a quiet lead-up until Dolf's massive treasure of confiscated loot is revealed in one shot. The Archbishop's mouth basically drops to the floor. |
| 359 | * WhatExactlyIsHisJob: |
| 360 | ** Although Alfred starts harvesting duckweed at one point, he always reiterates that the proceeds for it go to charity, and so it's unclear if he does actually have a paying job. The way Alfred is constantly ready to go on long trips at the drop of a hat suggests that he doesn't. Kind of glaring considering that most of his friends are shown to have jobs once they grow up. |
| 361 | ** Henk is never explicitly stated to have a job either, but it's reasonable to assume that he makes a living mining coal in the mine next to his house. |
| 362 | * WheelOFeet: Lispel while running away from Alfred in one episode. |
| 363 | * WhenTheClockStrikesTwelve: The Genie's bottle can only be opened after midnight. |
| 364 | * WholeCostumeReference: Dolf's Napoleon attire. |
| 365 | * WickedWitch: The witch from the eponymous episode "The Witch" is teleported from her appearance in ''Literature/HanselAndGretel''. She's basically a checklist of the typical portrayal: fat, ancient, monstrous appearance, tattered clothes, eats children, cackles and flies around on a broom (although she has bat wings...) She also tries to [[AndNowYouMustMarryMe force Alfred to marry her]]. |
| 366 | * WoundThatWillNotHeal: Dolf makes repeated mentions of how breaking his wing when falling down a well messed it up for life, and how it still aches periodically. |
| 367 | * YouAreWhatYouHate: Dolf is actually half-blackbird, though he darkens his beak to hide it. |
| 368 | * YouDirtyRat: Subverted; Alfred is friends with rats, and they prove incidental in bringing Dolf down. |
| 369 | * YourSizeMayVary: As a grown-up Dolf is generally drawn to be taller than Alfred, but sometimes he's depicted as downright miniscule to make him seem like TheNapoleon, especially when he's on his fascist dictator power trip. |
| 370 | |
| 371 | ---- |
| 372 | ->Spetter, pieter, pater, lekker in het water\ |
| 373 | Ga maar vast naar huis, ik komt een druppel later,\ |
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