History Literature / MyBrotherIsASuperhero

* SinkOrSwimMentor: To test Zack’s [[BarrierWarrior force field]], Luke's idea is basically "throw bricks at him." ** PlayedForDrama in the climax of the first book: [[spoiler:to activate Zack's final power, which Luke is convinced must be {{Flight}}, he lets go of the villain's PoweredArmor mid-flight and lets himself plummet toward the Earth, forcing Zack to save him]].

** Several lines in Chapter 29 of ''My Gym Teacher is an Alien Overlord'' hint at the plots of the next few books. Luke thinks of the similarities between himself and Christopher Talbot: "We shared a brain. Not a giant-brain-in-a-jar-with-electrodes sense." In Book 4 he does actually encounter a brain-in-a-jar. Later when he and Serge make up: "I couldn't imagine a universe in which Serge and I weren't best friends." [[spoiler: In the alternate universe of book 3 he and Serge ''aren't'' friends.]]
** In chapter one of book 4 Luke mentions a cousin in Birmingham. This cousin is the time-traveller in book 5.
** Serge suggesting that S.C.A.R.F write their adventures during assembly in book 5.[[spoiler: That ends up being exactly what Luke does.]]
* ForWantOfANail: In Stellar's world he was the one who got superpowers instead of Zack. [[spoiler: He kept his identity secret, which meant his friends weren't there to help him when the Nemesis came, resulting in much more damage from the falling pieces of debris, one of which killed Zack.]]

* OneDialogueTwoConersations: Luke and Zack are discussing Cara early in book 1 and he uses his telekinesis to recover her phone from down a drain. Luke thinks Zack is suspecting that Cara is Nemesis while Zack thinks Luke is encouraging him to make the first move.

* CoolLoser: Luke may have helped save the world but he's picked on at school by bully Josh Khan and considered a weirdo by nearly everyone else. Meanwhile Zack who is a superhero is regarded as an excellent student but a dorky nerd by the likes of rebel Cara Lee.

* SuperpowerSillyPutty: [[spoiler: Chistopher Talbot, with the powers growing increasingly ridiculous. He starts out an evil GadgeteerGenius before making a machine that will drain Zach's powers and give them to him. When that goes wrong, he seems to have been lost in space, only for him to return with slow-to-recharge ShockAndAwe powers. ''Then'' he returns again as a pseudo-{{Cyborg}}, with the [[ItMakesSenseInConext alien invaders' hundreds of remote controls all fused to his body]], although the only power that really gives him is [[MundaneUtility being able to change TV channels without having to look for a remote]].]]

* FakeRelationship: In book 1 Luke pretends to be dating Lara to his family to excuse them spending a lot of time together while she tries to uncover Star Lad's secret identity and he tries to make sure she doesn't find out it's Zach.

* SueDonym: Walter E. Go=alter ego. Sue ''Dunham'=pseudonym. Norman Dagger=nom de guerre.

* ''My Cousin is a Time-Traveler'' (coming 2019)

* AcademicAthlete: Zach is very good at sports as well as maths and science.

* CloudCuckoolander: Luke seems to be a borderline example, as he often seems unable to tell fiction from reality. (Of course, [[TheCuckoolanderWasRight some of those fictional things turn out to be true]]...)

* CoolLoser: Luke may have helped save the world but he's picked on at school by bully Josh Khan and considered a weirdo by nearly everyone else. Meanwhile Zach who is a superhero is regarded as an excellent student but a dorky nerd by the likes of rebel Cara Lee.

** Averted in later books with Colonel Crowe and Star Squad, who were put in place specifically to assist Star Lad, [[spoiler: the real Mrs Dunham]] and Saoirse. [[spoiler: Christopher Talbot also proves helpful, despite his ambiguous morality.]]

* ForWantOfANail: If Luke had got powers that night in the treehouse instead of Zack [[spoiler: In Stellar's version of events, he kept his identity secret, which meant his friends weren't there to help him when the Nemesis came, resulting in much more damage from the falling pieces of debris, one of which killed Zack.]]

* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Lara's animal powers only work on relatively small critters, not larger animals like lions and tigers. Despite Luke initially passing them off as useless, Lara's powers actually prove very handy frequently throughout the series, as the animals are always available, she can use pigeons and rats as scouts and spies, squirrels as communicators and birds to help her fly, and supervillains find it more difficult to combat them since they're much less a direct attack than Star-Lad.

** Luke also counts, holding pretty well on his own without superpowers.

* AdultFear: You have to feel bad for Luke and Zack’s parents. First their oldest son disappears. Less than a day later, they find out that the world is a week away from ending, and have to comfort their other son about the very strong chance of imminent death. (Though Luke is less concerned than they are.)
** {{Averted}} in the fourth book: Luke notes that it's going to be hard to explain ''another'' multi-day disappearance to them, so Zorbon just gives them a form of LaserGuidedAmnesia.

--> '''Zach:''' It's ten miles away. How do I get there?* PsmithPsyndrome: Zack is initially unsure if he wants to be “Star Guy” or “Starguy.” He opts for the former when he realizes that a plain “S” insignia [[Comicbook/{{Superman}} is already taken]].

* PsmithPsyndrome: Zack is initially unsure if he wants to be “Star Guy” or “Starguy.” He opts for the former when he realizes that a plain “S” insignia [[Comicbook/{{Superman}} is already taken]].

* RealityEnsues: When Zach's radar sense develops, he becomes aware that a bank is being robbed but...
--> '''Zach:''' It's ten miles away. How do I get there?

* DitzyGenius: Despite his odd tendencies, Luke seems to grasp some pretty advanced scientific concepts for his age, and is reading Creator/CharlesDickens novels before he goes to middle school. He's also very good at thinking on his feet, using his comic-book knowledge to come up with effective plans, such as when he works out how to use an alien teleporter to escape back to Bromley after being [[AlienAbduction abducted by aliens in book 2.]]

* RealityEnsues: When Zach's radar sense develops, he becomes aware that a bank is being robbed but has no way to get there in time to stop it.

* FakeRelationship: In book 1 Luke pretends to be dating Lara to his family to excuse spending a lot of time with her while she tries to uncover Star Lad's secret identity. Really, Luke is trying to keep tabs on her and make sure she doesn't find out it's Zach.