Line #95 WesternAnimation/ChopSockyChooks


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6	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chop_socky_chooks.jpg]]
7	[[caption-width-right:350:Left to right: Chuckie Chan, K.O. Joe and Chick P.]]
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9	''Chop Socky Chooks'' was a short-lived British-Canadian AllCGICartoon produced by Creator/AardmanAnimations and Decode Entertainment (now part of Creator/WildBrain). A spoof of martial arts movies, the series aired on Creator/{{Teletoon}} and Creator/CartoonNetwork from March to September of 2008, running for a total of 26 episodes. over a single season
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11	The show focused on three martial artists named Chick P., K.O. Joe, and Chuckie Chan, who all live and work in a city-sized shopping mall called Wasabi World, which is owned by an evil little piranha named Dr. Wasabi. The trio protect the citizens of Wasabi World from Dr. Wasabi's various machinations, which usually involves have to use their kung fu skills to battle Dr. Wasabi's ninja chimps and his massive but dimwitted gorilla henchman Bubba.
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13	...Oh, and did we mention our heroes are ''fighting chickens?''
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15	Yeah, this was an odd little show. And if you're wondering about the name, "chop socky" is a slang term used by film buffs for schlocky, low-budget Hong Kong martial arts movies made between the 60s and the 80s (aka the kinds of movies the show is inspired by), while "chook", which is a little-known Australian/New Zealander word for "chicken" (which the characters are highly stylized CGI-cartoon versions of). Basically, it's a weird way of saying "kung-fu chickens".
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17	Incidentally, this was actually Aardman's second co-production with Decode, having previously created ''WesternAnimation/PlanetSketch'' with them. Aardman would later add a third show to their slate of co-productions with Canada in the form of ''WesternAnimation/CounterfeitCat'', although this one was done with Creator/AtomicCartoons. Both shows, incidentally, also aired on Creator/{{Teletoon}} in Canada.
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19
20	!!Tropes the show includes:
21	* ADogNamedCat: Chick P's full name is Chickadee, despite her being a chicken.
22	* AfroAsskicker: K.O. Joe is a martial-arts expert with this signature style. His comb also doubles as a grappling hook.
23	* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: In "Snake in the Class" after the Chooks' cover is blown Chuckie is mobbed by a group of women once they know he's a wanted fugitive.
24	* AssKicksYou: The Iron-Butt Monks use their metal rear-ends to attack people.
25	* BarefootCartoonAnimal: Chuckie Chan and several supporting characters.
26	* BerserkButton: Do NOT mock Chick P's father, especially to her face. [[spoiler:Dead-Eye learns the hard way. If she wasn't Chick P's childhood friend, Chick P might actually have killed her]].
27	* BigBad: Dr. Wasabi. He's the ruler of Wasabi World and he's always making new plans to get even richer and more powerful in the most underhanded ways possible. Including but not limited to: sending people to the moon to force them to mine moon rocks, harvesting peoples' fear from their nightmares, stealing everyone's good karma on Christmas, and feeding people extracted fat from liposuction patients.
28	* BigBadWannabe: Kobura briefly took over the mall in "Snake in the Class".
29	* BigShutUp: Bubba lets out a massive "SHUSH!" in order to silence the cheering crowd in "Now You Coliseum, Now You Don't".
30	* BlatantLies: In "Snake in the Class", Dr. Wasabi claimed he always knew who the Chop Socky Chooks really were.
31	* BreadEggsBreadedEggs: At one point, Doctor Wasabi tries to decide on which deadly trap to use.
32	-->'''Dr. Wasabi''': Shark pit...secret catapult...secret shark catapult...
33	* TheBrute: Bubba is Dr. Wasabi's right hand man, and what he lacks in brains he makes up for in brawn.
34	* ByWallThatIsHoley: Happens to Chuckie and Joe when they are trapped in Wasabi's Dream World and the giant mechanical duck Mr Quackers knocks a building over on top of them.
35	* CasanovaWannabe: Chuckie Chan thinks he's a lot better with the ladies than he actually is.
36	* CatchPhrase: K.O. Joe has one: "Sweet Easter!"
37	* CityOfAdventure: Wasabi World is a mall the size of a city, and there's many layers to it, including ones that haven't seen the light of day in years.
38	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: At the end of "The Mark of the Bantam" Bantam strongly implies that Joe is his son, but Joe remains oblivious and wonders who this son he referred to is.
39	* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Dr. Wasabi is a tycoon who's [[CardCarryingVillain very proud]] of his greedy, dishonest business practices, in addition to being a megalomaniacal villain.
40	* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler:Dead-Eye goes too far and mocks Chick P's father for signing his property over to Doctor Wasabi, and gloats that she herself is responsible, to Chick P's face. Chick P proceeds to angrily beat Dead-Eye in mere SECONDS!]]
41	* DarkerAndEdgier: Bantam, after disappearing for a while.
42	** LighterAndSofter: Bantam, before his disappearance.
43	* DemonicPossession: In the episode "Big Bad Bubba!," Dr. Wasabi accidentally releases a demon that possesses Bubba, causing him to go on a rampage eating everything he can find.
44	* DoNotCallMePaul[=/=]ThatManIsDead: Kobura hates it when someone (especially Chuckie Chan) calls him Kobi.
45	* TheDragon: Bubba is Dr. Wasabi's bumbling sidekick.
46	* DumbMuscle: Bubba is a typical strong but dim-witted lackey.
47	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: In the first episode, Chuckie Chan has a psychic vision when his students are in danger. In later episodes, he never has this ability to see events happening elsewhere.
48	** The later episodes also include a OncePerEpisode LockAndLoadMontage that wasn't present in the earlier ones.
49	* {{Egopolis}}: Dr. Wasabi named his city-sized mall "Wasabi World."
50	* EtTuBrute: Chick P is outraged when she learns Oni was the one who hypnotized her father into giving Dr. Wasabi the land to create Wasabi World.
51	* EvilFormerFriend: Oni and Chick P were best friends when they were kids, [[spoiler: then Oni turned to the dark side and became Dead-Eye.]]
52	* EyesAlwaysShut: Chuckie Chan, but that's just his pupils, he ''still'' has eyelids.
53	** Junior Chook Cho has these as well.
54	* EyesDoNotBelongThere: The pattern on Deadeye's catsuit invokes this, though they're not real eyes.
55	** Played straight with the lard monster in the episode "Do You Want Thighs With That?", as it has eyes on its hands and feet.
56	* {{Fartillery}}: A variant occurs when Dr. Wasabi invents a laser cannon powered by his butt. The same episode, "Return the Other Cheek," introduces the Iron-Butt monks, who have a deadly attack that's basically an energy blast from their butts, the inspiration for Dr. Wasabi's invention.
57	* FreudianTrio:
58	** Chuckie Chan is the Ego, as he believes in an honorable fight, and he tries to keep the others from straying too far.
59	** K.O. Joe is the Id, as he's very confident and bold, but with anger issues.
60	** Chick P is the Superego, as she's got a strong moral compass and a knack for mechanics.
61	* {{Fully Dressed Cartoon Animal}}s: Most of the main characters are. The main trio are chickens in martial-arts uniforms, Wasabi is a piranha in a scientist's outfit, and Bubba is a gorilla in a suit.
62	* GodlikeGamer: "Game Over Chooks!" has Chuckie Chan's student Ume being revealed as one, possessing unbeatable scores on arcade games. Her skill is so great that she gains the attention of [[BigBad Wasabi]], who wishes to steal her gaming skills so he can use them in real life against the Chooks.
63	* HollywoodToneDeaf: Siren is revealed to be a ''horrible'' singer, but Dr. Wasabi and Chuckie Chan can't hear it.
64	* HidingBehindYourBangs: Oni[=/=]Deadeye. When she's Oni, her bangs cover her MadEye, but when she's Deadeye they cover her normal eye.
65	* IAteWhat: In "Do You Want Thighs With That?", the Chooks are horrified and disgusted when they find out the secret sauce on Dr. Wasabi's burgers is actually fat removed from liposuction patients.
66	* IceCreamKoan: Chuckie Chan's specialty, except he [[ExaggeratedTrope exaggerates]] the trope to the point of WordSaladPhilosophy, the point of this aspect of his character being to parody koans in general.
67	-->Child, you must learn that the turtle does not backstroke in the cornfield.
68	-->But does not the minnow risk sharp teeth to sleep on the tiger's tongue?
69	-->It is said when the mighty lion roars, you must put head in mouth to check for toothache!
70	* IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim: Near the end of the series, the heroes finally have Wasabi right where they want him, they are just about to defeat him once and for all, until Chuckie enforces this trope on them. [[StatusQuoIsGod (Though this was more to preserve Status Quo)]]
71	* InformedSpecies:
72	** The main trio are chickens. Only Chuckie, with his weird hair thing, even slightly resembles one.
73	** Similarly, Wasabi looks more like an actual dollop of wasabi than any sort of live, intact fish.
74	** Oni[=/=]Deadeye also does not resemble a viper.
75	* IronicEcho: In "Snake in the Class", combined with CaptainObvious:
76	-->'''Chick P:''' Looks like someone blew our cover.\
77	'''K.O. Joe:''' No, you think?\
78	'''K.O. Joe:''' I knew it! It was ''[Kobura]'' who blabbed our secret identities!\
79	'''Chick P:''' No, you think?
80	* JokeOfTheButt: Basically the entire episode "Return The Other Cheek." The MacGuffin even looks like a butt!
81	* KamehameHadouken: For some unexplained reason, Chuckie Chan is able to produce a green EnergyBall version of this trope.
82	* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: K.O. Joe is a huge fan of the Bantam.
83	* LampshadeHanging: A young Kobi gets bitten by cobras in "Kobura Strikes!". When he gains snake-like properties because of it, we get this:
84	-->Chuckie Chan: The cobra venom turned his mind as black as his heart. Luckily for me, it also deadened [Kobi's] reflex.\
85	Kobi: I hate you...I dessssspise you!\
86	Chuckie Chan: And given him a lisp. Apparently snake venom can do that.
87	* LaughablyEvil: Dr. Wasabi's schemes are over the top to a ridiculous degree.
88	* MadScientist: Dr. Wasabi is a smart man who knows how to make machines that will cause as much misery as possible.
89	* MagicSkirt: There's a noticeable example in "Now You Coliseum, Now You Don't," when Chick P hangs upside-down for several minutes straight. Funnily enough, the episode repeatedly showed that she's wearing athletic shorts under the skirt, so the trope is unnecessary in this case but suits the quirky tone of the show.
90	* ManiacMonkeys: Dr. Wasabi's ninja chimps.
91	* ManlyTears: Lampshaded at the end of "The Lamest Show on Earth."
92	--> '''Chick P''': What's the matter, Joe? [[SandInMyEyes Got sawdust in your eye?]]
93	--> '''K.O. Joe''': What? A guy can't cry?
94	* MayContainEvil: The hot new toy of the Christmas season is a robot pet that steals your good karma and sends it to Dr. Wasabi.
95	* MeaningfulName: Bantam is an anagram of Batman. It also refers to any small fowl, such as chickens.
96	* MobileFishbowl: Dr. Wasabi is a piranha who travels around in an astronaut-style suit filled with water. Siren Sung also appears in a literal instance of this trope in "His Master's Choice".
97	* MouthyBird: The main trio are chickens with beaks that look like human lips, making it [[InformedSpecies difficult to identify them as chickens]].
98	* TheNapoleon: Dr. Wasabi is shorter than the main trio, but he more than makes up for his short stature with his attitude.
99	* NoGuyWantsToBeChased: Chuckie Chan in "Snake in the Class".
100	-->"Ladies, please! One at a time!"
101	* NobodyTouchesTheHair: K.O. Joe doesn't like anyone messing with his 'fro.
102	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Professor Shericon's voice is an impersonation of Jimmy Stewart.
103	* NotWorthKilling: The Chooks let Dr. Wasabi live so they can set a good example for Bantam.
104	* ObligatoryJoke: In the episode "The Chooks Of Hazard," the chooks have to deactivate a nuclear bomb/electric razor hybrid. Once it's turned off, K.O. Joe has this to say:
105	--> K.O. Joe: Now that's what I call a close shave. [beat] Well, somebody had to say it!
106	* OffstageVillainy: In the earlier episodes of the series, all of Wasabi's schemes revolve around trying to dispose of the heroes, who are not established as having actually done anything to earn his ire in the first place. It's only in later episodes where Wasabi starts concocting schemes whose end goal is something other than the removal of his pre-existing heroic nemeses.
107	* OneEpisodeFear: In the episode "In Your Dreams," K.O Joe is revealed to be afraid of jellybeans after having one stuck up his nose as a kid. This fear is never brought up before or again.
108	* OurMermaidsAreDifferent: Siren Sung from "His Master's Choice" is stated to be a mermaid but is a full anthropomorphic fish.
109	* PaperThinDisguise: No one can tell who the Chooks are despite their disguises only consisting of a different set of clothes.
110	** In "Snake in the Class" it's explained they're relative nobodies and hardly anyone knows them in their regular civilian lives.
111	* PowerTrio: Chick P, Chuckie Chan, and K.O Joe are the heroes that defend Wasabi World from crooks and ne'er-do-wells.
112	* APupilOfMineUntilHeTurnedToEvil: While Kobura's anger is directed entirely on Chuckie, who was a fellow student, while Kobura is giving his big speech and walks away their sensei tells Chuckie he's heard a few of these before.
113	* {{Revenge}}: Kobura wants revenge on Chuckie Chan for making him look bad in front of their sensei, getting bitten by cobras, and banished forever.
114	* RivalTurnedEvil: Kobi[=/=]Kobura turned to the dark side after being bitten by cobras.
115	* RuleOfCool: Presumably why the protagonists use martial arts in particular to fight evil.
116	* RumpRoast: Invoked by the Iron-Butt monks, who trained themselves by dunking their backsides into sand, hot rocks, and molten lava.
117	* SameLanguageDub: Chuckie's voice was replaced for American airings because his original voice was thought to be offensive.
118	* SaveTheVillain: In "The Mark of the Bantam" the Chooks have to save Wasabi from Bantam because he has [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope jumped off the slippery slope]] and is trying to kill him.
119	* SecretIdentity: Chick P (Chickadee Pao), K.O. Joe (J.J.), and Chuckie Chan (Sensei Chan)
120	* ShortRunner: The show only lasted 26 episodes before it ended.
121	* ShoutOut:
122	** "Where did I go? Franchise/{{Back to the future}}?"
123	** [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Bantam]]
124	** Master Chan calls his Wasabi Burger his "[[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings precious]]".
125	** In "Game Over Chooks!", Ume plays an arcade game sharing the same graphics as ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter''.
126	* StableTimeLoop: In the episode "Chop Socky Whoops," Dr. Wasabi goes back in time to prevent the Chop Socky Chooks from forming, but his intervention causes them to meet anyway. He's even ''responsible for their group's name'' when he gives them his good old "[[WeWillMeetAgain I'll get you next time you Chop-Socky Chooks]]" -- the trio have no clue what he's talking about, but agree it has a nice ring to it.
127	* StatusQuoIsGod: In the episode "Snake in the Class," the Chooks' secret identities are revealed [[spoiler: by Kobura.]] Once he's been defeated, the Chooks use his giant hypnotizer statue to erase everyone's memories of their identities, restoring order to Wasabi World.
128	* SmallSecludedWorld: The show never ventures outside of the same specific city-sized mall. Occasionally the action might wander to the outer walls and immediate parking lot of the structure, but the world past that might as well not even exist.
129	* SssssnakeTalk: As a result of being bitten by cobras, Kobura hisses his S's. Funny enough, when he hypnotized all of Wasabi World to destroy the Chooks, he made a point to make everyone stop.
130	-->'''Kobura:''' And you will stop slurring your S's!
131	-->'''Hypnotized citizens:''' Okie dokie.
132	* SueDonym: The Chooks' aliases are very similar to their real names.
133	* {{Tagalong Kid}}s: The Junior Chooks Cho, Raco, and Stroose occasionally help the main trio with their plans.
134	* ThatManIsDead: When Oni/Dead-Eye flees at the end of "If Looks Can Kill", Joe asks Chick P if they should chase after her, prompting Chick P to invoke this trope.
135	-->'''Chick P:''' No, let her go...Oni doesn't exist anymore. Wasabi saw to that a long time ago.
136	* TimeTravel: In the episode "Chop Socky Whoops," Dr. Wasabi accidentally invents a time machine in the form of the camera, and, once he figures out its true power, uses it to prevent the Chooks from ever meeting. Naturally, it fails.
137	* {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s: Some punks throwing vegetables at K.O. Joe in "Snake in the Class".
138	-->'''Chuckie Chan:''' We cannot endanger {{innocent bystander}}s.\
139	'''K.O. Joe:''' ''(gotten hit by a vegetable)'' Yeah, well some of them ain't all that innocent.
140	* UsedToBeASweetKid: Oni/Deadeye, before Wasabi led her down the dark path.
141	* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Despite his vicious personality, Wasabi cares about keeping the public's respect. A significant example of this occurs in "Now You Coliseum, Now You Don't," when Wasabi has an opportunity to kill the Chooks, but he spares their lives to avoid displeasing the public.
142	* WackyRacing: The episode "The Chooks of Hazard" has the chooks participating in a scavenger hunt race.
143	* WantedPoster: The Chooks share one. Their pictures intentionally depict them with unflattering facial expressions.
144	* WeUsedToBeFriends: Chick P and Oni were best friends until Oni became Deadeye. [[spoiler:It was revealed in "If Looks Can Kill" that she used her hypnotic powers to get Chick P's dad to sell his property to Dr. Wasabi.]]
145	* WeWantOurIdiotBack: In "Planet of the Bubba", a freak accident in space causes a satellite TV chip to get lodged in Bubba's head, making him a super genius who leaves even Chick P. and Wasabi in the dust. The latter finds it great at first, until Bubba decides that he would be a better ruler than his boss, locking Wasabi up in jail with everyone else. The Chooks and Wasabi then form an alliance in an attempt to return Bubba back to his idiotic self. They manage to do so using the TV remote for Wasabi's TV to switch the channel giving Bubba his intelligence to shows that instead lower it back to normal.
146	* WhoEvenNeedsABrain: In one episode, Dr. Wasabi's latest money-making scheme is to open a liposuction clinic that gives clients complementary burgers made with the fat that they just had sucked out of them. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard He falls into one of the liposuction machines himself and his brain gets sucked out]], leaving him with the intelligence of an infant.
147	* WholePlotReference: "Now You Coliseum, Now You Don't" is one to ''Film/{{Rollerball}}''.
148	* WrenchWench: Chick P is a janitor and can often be seen carrying a wrench in her civilian life.
149	* YamatoNadeshiko: Cho dresses exactly like one.

Context WesternAnimation / ChopSockyChooks