History Literature / JoeLedger

** NotUsingTheZedWord: Played with. Sometimes the come right out and say it. A Code Zero is [=DMS=] speak for "zombies", and Ledger has used the word "zombie" himself, as have members on their team. For reasons of common sense (to avoid a panic) and professionality, they adhere to the trope when dealing with anyone outside of the security loop -- meaning other agencies and all civilians.

*** Film/ResidentEvil

* AlienTropes: ''Extinction Machine'' is [[TropeOverdosed loaded]] with them. A few examples...

* BugBuzz: Noises heard by Joe, Top and Bunny in "Deep, Dark", as a result of the work going on there.

* [[RedEyesTakeWarning Red Eyes With]] HellishPupils: The vampires.

* UnfortunateName: Theatre/{{Harvey}} Rabbit -- naturally everybody calls him "Bunny". There's also a genius in the Technical Operations Center whose name is [[Franchise/StarWars Yoda]]. Not a nickname. His real name.

%%* PowerTrio: Joe, Top and Bunny.

*** The flying [=BAMS=] units are called [[DonaldDuck Huey, Dewey, and Louie]].

%%* BruiserWithASoftCenter: Bunny.

%%* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Sebastian Gault

%%* JerkAss: Doctor Hu.

* BadassInCharge: Church and Joe

* BigDamnHeroes: Echo Team has one for Joe just about every book.

* BigNo: Echo Team in ''Assassin's Code''.

* BrotherSisterIncest: [[spoiler: the twins from ''The Dragon Factory'']].
* BruiserWithASoftCenter: Bunny.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Sebastian Gault

* CuteBruiser: Lydia.
* DisposableWoman: Played with. Joe's first girlfriend Helen was raped when they were young teenagers, and committed suicide some years later. Joe still has nightmares, but doesn't become overbearing protective to the women he ends up attracted to once he's an adult.

* JerkAss: Doctor Hu.
* LadyOfWar: Grace, Lilith, Violin, Lydia, Montana.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: El Mujahid.

* MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: Invoked. The team crashes/explodes a Cigarette boat to make it look like a drunk boating accident.
** In the novelette "Three Guys Walk Into a Bar" the heroes are brought together when investigating a series of suspicious accidents that they quickly realize are murders. [[spoiler: the murders are being committed by super soldier werewolves]]
* MeaningfulName: Paris and Hecate Jakoby from ''Dragon Factory''. He is interested mostly in life's pleasures and often oblivious to consequences of his actions - and perceived as weak by his father and sister. She is dangerous and creates transgenic monsters with the help of state-of-the-art technology (modern equivalent of witches brew) and kills people for pleasure.

* TheMole [[spoiler: Skip Tyler in Patient Zero]]
* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: The [[spoiler: Upierczi]] family.

* OurMonstersAreDifferent
** OurGhostsAreDifferent
** OurVampiresAreDifferent: The Upierczi is the name given to a genetic offshoot of humanity that requires blood to survive. Stronger and faster than any human, they tear the throats from their victims instead of leaving two nice little puncture holes. Bullets will kill them, but you had best aim for the head. Gene Therapy got rid of any weakness to the sun and in fact made them far more resistant to most forms of radiation. Vampirism is not spread with a bite, but they forcibly interbreed with human women to mixed results. Only males with the right genes became Upierczi, females with the genes become "Half breed" Dhampyr and both of these are an approximately 1-2% minority. Most of the babies born to these pairings were either deformed or stillbirth
*** However, since Joe Ledger takes place in the same universe as Pine Deep, other kinds of more supernatural vampires exist, even if he hasn't fought them yet.
*** VampireBitesSuck: These vampires are of the "tear the throat out" variety.
*** VampiresHateGarlic: These vampires are allergic to garlic, but not in the usual way; Echo Team of course uses the weakness creatively.
** OurZombiesAreDifferent: They have a MadScientist variation on Mad Cow Disease.

* PlayfulHacker: Jerome Williams, the [=DMS=]'s computer genius, aka Bug.
* PowerTrio: Joe, Top and Bunny.

* TheQuietOne: John Smith, aka "Chatterbox".
* RapeAsDrama: Ledger's {{Backstory}}.
** The breeding program used by the Red Knights in "Assassin's Code".

* SuperSoldier: Berserkers in ''Dragon Factory''. Transgenic soldiers, created from individuals who were already hardened mercenaries, inhumanly big, strong, fast and tough, with some other abilities including heightened senses. The only downside is, in combat their bloodlust may get hard to control.
** In the novelette ''Three Guys Walk Into a Bar'' Joe has to team up with Malcolm Crow and Sam Hunter to take on a cell of Werewolf supersoldiers

* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Mr. Church loves Vanilla Wafers, Joe Likes Oreos.

* UnfortunateName: Theatre/{{Harvey}} Rabbit -- naturally everybody calls him "Bunny".
** There's also a genius in the Technical Operations Center whose name is [[Franchise/StarWars Yoda]]. Not a nickname. His real name.

** Another character names his rifle in "Code Zero." [[spoiler: [[CargoShipping And then he has sexual fantasies about it]].]]

* TakeThat: A dig at ''{{Twilight}}'' in "Assassin's Code".

** In the novelette "Three Guys Walk Into a Bar" the heroes are brought together when investigating a series of suspicious accidents that they quickly realize are murders. [[Spoiler: the murders are being committed by super soldier werewolves]]

* FakeHairDrama: Junie. [[Spoiler: it helps save her life in Code Zero]]

The chronological order of the series goes: ''Patient Zero'', ''Zero Tolerance'', then ''Material Witness'', ''Deep, Dark'', ''The Dragon Factory'', ''Countdown'', ''The King of Plagues'', ''The Assassin's Code'', ''Borrowed Power'', ''Extinction Machine'', ''Code Zero''.

** In the novelette "Three Men Walk Into a Bar" the heroes are brought together when investigating a series of suspicious accidents that they quickly realize are murders. [[Spoiler: the murders are being committed by super soldier werewolves]]

** In the novelette ''Three Men Walk Into a Bar'' Joe has to team up with Malcolm Crow and Sam Hunter to take on a cell of Werewolf supersoldiers

-Banshee, an Irish Wolfhound supposedly born under mystical circumstances and later given to Rudy and Circe, fits the bill much closer

* CreepyTwins: The owners of ''The Dragon Factory''. Not only are they incestuous, they've also used gene therapy on themselves to give themselves pointed teeth and other animalistic traits.

* DisposableWoman: Played with. Joe's first girlfriend Helen was raped when they were young teenagers, and suicided some years later. Joe still has nightmares, but doesn't become overbearing protective to the women he ends up attracted to once he's an adult.

* FakeHairDrama: Junie.

** TheHeart - shared by Rudy, who is the heart of the DMS, and Bunny, who is described as the heart of Echo Team itself in recent novels

* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: While Dr. Hu is not actually evil, and is a genuine doctor, he views the end of the world plots as a chance to play with a new toy. He seems to lack empathy completely, which keeps most of the [=DMS=] and him in an antagonistic relationship. [[spoiler: Averted in Kill Switch when early on he's shown personally concerned for Joe's recovery in a dreamwalking session, and later asks whether the innocents of ten cities were saved before he passes away]].

** OurVampiresAreDifferent

* SplitPersonality: Joe Ledger. However, he has worked it out in such a way that the three personalities tend to work together, like a committee. The Civilian keeps him sane, The Cop Works things out and when the [[BloodKnight Warrior]] gets let out, someone is going to get hurt.

*** Noah's callisgn is "[[Literature/LordOfTheRings Gandalf]]"

** "Agent Franks", compared in appearance to "Frankenstein's uglier brother", appears in Dogs of War, implying the series is in the same continuity as MonsterHunterInternational

** Rudy Sanchez looks like Jimmy Smits and sounds like Raul Julia.
** Brick looks like Ving Rhames.

** Aunt Sallie is an exact dead ringer for WhoopiGoldberg.

*** [[TheWizardOfOz Wicked Witch]]

** TheHeart - Rudy.

* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: While Dr. Hu is not actually evil, and is a genuine doctor, he views the end of the world plots as a chance to play with a new toy. He seems to lack empathy completely, which keeps most of the [=DMS=] and him in an antagonistic relationship.

* {{Badass}}: Everyone in the DMS, bonus points to Joe, Mr. Church, Sergeant Dietrich, Bunny and Top Sims.
** Occasionally someone else warrants the title as well. In "Code Zero" it was Latino teen Sammy Ramirez.

* MenDontCry: Subverted. Even though Joe and his team are all {{Badass}}es, none of them flinches from shedding ManlyTears when the situation calls for it.