Space Channel 5 - Television Tropes & Idioms

A rhythm game devoted to dancing duels against multi-colored screen-faced aliens or robots.

The first game has you play as spunky reporter Ulala as she tries to save the day from the Morolians while getting the big scoop. Along the way she'll meet local dreamboat Jaguar and her Rival from Channel 42, Pudding. You'll take them on multiple times to win the scoop.

The second game has a new threat to the galaxy: Purge and his Rhythm Rogues! Even worse, Jaguar seems to have diappeared while searching for information about Purge! It's up to Ulala amd her co-worker Noize to save Jaguar and stop Purge from forcing the Galaxy to dance for him! Along the way she'll meet Pine, a beautiful woman who is the head of the Space Police, President Peace, the President of the Galaxy who has the Power of Song and Shadow, Purge's second in command and ground leader of the Robo.

One of the most cameo-able SEGA games, it is famous for its odd gameplay and even odder premise.

Both of Ulala's adventures contain examples of:

Adaptation Decay: A very slight case. The rhythm is slightly "off" in the PS2 version of the game, especially compared to the original Dreamcast game. A skilled player can adjust to it, but it is definitely noticeable enough to cause problems and has been commented on by a number of players.
- Then, there is the Game Boy Advance version... which is not to be mentioned in pleasant company.
Akira Ishida (He voices Purge in the Japanese version.)
All Is Well That Ends Well (The end of both games.)
Badass Boast ("I'm taking the Space Transmitter with me as a present!")
The Bad Guy Wins (Report 4 in the second game has Purge successfully steal the Space Broadcasting Satellite.)
Bald Of Evil (Blank in the first game.)
Batman Can Breathe In Space (Ulala does this in the first game, but she wears a helmet in the 4th mission of the second game.)
Best Boss Ever (The boss from the fourth mission of the second game is a giant, apish, speaker-handed robot piloted by a mad scientist, and you have to use the power of Space Michael ~~Jackson~~ to defeat him.)
Big Bad ( Blank in the first game and Purge in the sequel.
- The Dragon (Respectively, the Morolians or Evila and Shadow.)
Bilingual Dialogue: Space Micheal only speaks in English, even in the Japanese version.
Brainwashed (Jaguar, in the second game, becomes Shadow, until Ulala saves him in the most unintentional reference to Sesame Street ever. Does this need a spoiler tag, though?)
- Also the Morolians in the first.
Brought To You By The Letter S (In the second game, P stands for Purge.)
Calling Your Attacks (Both the enemies and Ulala say their cues ['left', 'right', 'down', 'up', 'hey' and 'chu'/'shoot']. If they didn't, the game would be unwinnable.)
Camp (You betcha.)
Character Customization (The second game takes this to the extremes. You can even dress up as different characters!)
Cheating (The second game gives you a cheat code, the person who gives it to you? The Final Boss of the previous game.)
Cool Shades (Blank in the first game; his were pink variants of the classic Kamina 'boomerang' shades. His 'turn' icon even had a glint next to the glasses!)
- Don't forget Purge and his Blue and Pink sunglasses!
The Coats Are Off (Purge loses his coat before challenging you to the Final Dance-off.)
Credits Gag (Don't think it's safe to put down the controller after the credits...)
Crowd Song (The final battle against Purge has you and everyone you've saved singing with him.)
Corrupt Corporate Executive (Blank fits this trope perfectly)
Dancing Theme (And how.)
Dark Skinned Blond (Jaguar.)
Defeat Means Friendship (Beating rivals such as Pudding or Jaguar has them join you later in the game.)
Die For Our Ship (If there's a discussion about Ulala x Purge and Ulala x Jaguar, things aren't going to be pretty, needless to say...)
Disney Death (Fuse in the second game by Taking The Bullet.)
Dual Boss (The first part of the King Purge battle has you taking on Purge and the Mecha President Peace.)
Duel Boss (The dance off between Ulala and Purge.)
Delayed Explosion (Both games have this at one point.)
Dissonant Serenity (Purge, no matter what happens, always seems to be calm.)
- Until his voice starts cracking when he begins to realize that Ulala has him beaten by the end.
Ear Worm (The game's theme song, "Mexican Flyer")
Early Bird Cameo (In the second report of part 2, Pudding appears at the beginning. Later, you take her on.)
Energy Weapon (The final 3 "chus" of both games.)
Evil Albino (Purge, arguably.)
Evil Laugh (Purge's is 'nyeh-heh-heh-heh' in English, and 'ah-HAH-hah-hah-HAH' in Japanese. The first game's Blank doesn't laugh, save for an 'ah-HA!')
Evil Plan (Purge is trying to make the galaxy dance for him.)
Evil Twin: Obviously, Evila. Padding and Texas of SC 5 P 2 aren't really evil, just... alternates.
- Well, then there's Purge Jr. who is actually evil.
The Faceless (Fuse is always heard, never seen.)
Fan Preferred Couple (Ulala and Purge seem to be more popular than Ulala and Jaguar.)
Famous Last Words ("Dance yourselves to hell, see if I care!" Even though Purge doesn't really die, as shown in the credits...)
Fashion Victim Villain (Purge, Purge... what in the world is with that sleeveless purple disco suit?!)
Fate Worse Than Death (Purge is trapped in the giant metallic P as he is sent flying into deep space. Of course, this doesn't last long, as you see in the credits.)
Fembot (The Ultimate Reporter, Evila.)
Final Boss (Blank in the first game, Purge in the second.)
Gadgeteer Genius (Purge is only 18 years old, and yet he makes most of the enemies you face off.)
Going For The Big Scoop (Ulala will brave robots, aliens, and even naughty-tentacle plants to get the scoop/save the world/save the president. Seriously, she should get paid more.)
Gondor Calls For Aid (The Final Boss in both games.)
Hand Wave (Wait... How did Purge show up in the credits if he was sent out into Space?)
He Knows Too Much ( Jaguar in the beginning of Part 2 by Purge.)
Hypnotize The Princess (And how. "Oh, no! The _____ is being forced to dance!" Replace the blank with 'Space Bird Mistress/Space Dog Trainer/Space Tour-Guide/Space Michael' etc...)
Hey Its That Guy (Reporter Ulala is very recognizable for her pink pigtails and orange retro outfit, but hardly anyone knows her name/what game she's from.)
Hey Its That Voice (The Japanese voice actor of Purge also does the Japanese Voice for Gaara in Naruto.)
Hopeless Boss Fight (The first time you take on Purge the Great, you can only dodge his attack barrage. However Ulala can only dodge for so long, and she is killed by Purge.)
Hundred Percent Completion (Easier said then done.)
Hypno Ray (Happens in both games. To The Morolians in the first game and Jaguar in the Second.)
Idol Singer (Pudding's previous job.)
In Game TV (The Moro Channel 5 cutscenes in Part 2, which would be interrupted by Purge as he gives you information about his plan without completely giving it away.)
Insufferable Genius Purge may brag about how he's a genius and amazes himself, but he really is smarter than the average villain in the series. He has a plan for everything, should you beat him here, he'll have a backup idea at the ready. That is, until the ending, when Ulala has him beat.
Intrepid Reporter (These people will brave alien invasions, meteor fields, giant mechs, and more to get their reports done.)
It Runs On Nonsensoleum ("There's no power! Ulala, all that's left is dance and jiggy power!")
Large Ham (There are several to say the least, who pull it off rather well.)
- "My name is..." "JAGUAAAAR~"
Leitmotif (Purge, Pine and President Peace get their own unique themes.)
Lets Play (While there are some Let's Plays out there, PeachFan2262 really does this well with her hilarious commentary.)
Like You Would Really Do It: Fuse at the end of the second game.
- "Oh come on, do you REALLY think they would kill someone off in this game?"
Loners Are Freaks (The second game seems to give this message with Purge.)
Magic Dance (Everything in the game is done with dance. See also Metaphysical Fuel.)
Magic Music (In the second game it's shown that dance isn't the only unusual legitimate superpower in the universe.)
Mecha Mooks (Purge just loves these.)
Metaphysical Fuel (Even the vehicles are powered by 'dance and jiggy power'. See 'It Runs on Nonsensoleum'.)
Metro Sexual (If you thought that Purge wasn't straight... better luck next time.)
~~Michael Jackson~~ Space Michael (Guest stars in both games, essentially as himself)
Musical Assassin (OH YES.)
My Suit Is Also Super (The Super Ulala Suit)
Naughty Tentacles (In the end of Report 2 of the second game, a huge tentacle monster grabs Ulala. It would just be normal tentacle use if it wasn't for Ulala's quote following her 'abduction'...)
Fuse: Look, tentacles! Can you handle it, Ulala?
[Camera falls off stand and goes static]
Ulala, held up by tentacles: Ah... Not there!
Needs More Love (Stop teasing us Sega, and give us a third game already!)
Nintendo Hard (The game looks deceptively easy... until you play it. 'I didn't know it had to be at the same moment too!' indeed.)
Nonstandard Game Over (Missing the final 3 chus/shoots in the games. Looks like it's back to the beginning of the report for you!)
Older Hero Vs Younger Villain (Ulala is 22 years old; Purge is only 18 years old.)
Older Than They Look (Jaguar may look young, but he's 35 years old.)
Only One Name
Our Presidents Are Different (President Peace sings to purge evil and sadness of people's hearts, and he's used as a core for some of Purge's robots.)
Panty Shot: The games have more than a few.
Parental Abandonment (Ulala was found alone in space when she was young and was saved by Jaguar.)
Psycho Electro (You learn in the second part of Report 6 that Dance Energy isn't the ONLY thing Purge can control...)
Real Men Wear Purple Sleeveless Disco Suits (Purge, we're looking at you.)
Repeat After Me (Purge and Fuse do this at one point in Report 4's Boss.)
The Rival (Pudding, of Space Channel 42)
- Though, technically, Pine counts as her rival... at drums.
Rule Of Cool (Who cares if it makes no sense? IT'S STILL AWESOME.)
Rule Of Fun
Rule Thirty Four (It exists, Just not of Ulala...)
- And THAT's why you don't hypnotize 35-year-old men kids!◊
Say My Name (Ulala does this in the first game respectively for Pudding and Jaguar when they get smacked by the final boss.)
Scarf Of Asskicking (Shadow has a Red Scarf that flaps regardless of if there's wind or not.)
Secret Character (Somewhat used in Part 2. Filling certain conditions will unlock different characters to play as, Even the Big Bad himself.)
Screw the rules, I have RATINGS! ( Blank... Did he just summon multiple robots to the field?!)
Sequential Boss (The second part has Purge the King, a 3 part battle, with no recovering stars.)
Ship To Ship Combat (See Fan Preferred Couple. There are some fans of Ulala x Jaguar.)
Sinister Silhouettes (Purge just loves these. 3/4 of the second game has you looking at his silhouette.)
Sleeves Are For Wimps (Purge once he takes off his Cloak.)
Space Pirates (The Underground Space Pirate Broadcasters)
Space Police (The Sexy Space Police in Part 2)
Spoiler Title (Report 4 in Part 2 "The end for Space Channel 5?!" The station explodes.)
Stalker With A Crush (Purge in the intro of the second game. Search yourself, you know it to be true.)
Stuff Blowing Up (The best moment of this is in the second game, at the end of report 4.)
Theme Music Power Up
A Twinkle In The Sky (Both Purge and Blank have this when they are defeated.)
Villain Song (Purge's Theme is so awesome. The Fear Lounge remix takes the awesomeness and cranks it to 11.)
Wave Motion Gun (The Final Hit against the Final Boss is this in both games.)
We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties (Happens in both games, but most noticeably in Part 2 When the loading screen is replaced with this right after Ulala is killed by Purge)
Well Intentioned Extremist (Purge believes he's been given a holy mission to lead the Brutish and Unhappy masses of the Galaxy to the heavens by dancing.)
White Haired Pretty Boy (Purge with his white hair and purple eyes.)
You gotta have Pink/Green/Blue/Whitish-Purpleyish hair