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* GameFace: During the climactic fight between Sara and Gallo in the pilot, his face briefly morphs into a demonic grin after he tells her that killing her is NothingPersonal to him.

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* GameFace: During the climactic fight between Sara and Gallo in the pilot, his face briefly morphs into a demonic grin after he tells her that killing her is NothingPersonal to him. This weird hint that he's NotEvenHuman is then dropped completely, as it's never brought up in later episodes.
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Duplicate example.


* MatrixBulletTime: Some action sequences will slowed down to the point where bullets can be seen wirring past the heroine.
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* AdaptationalModesty: In the live-action version Sara herself and other wielders of the Witchblade are nowhere near as [[{{Stripperific}} scantily clad]] as the comic versions of the characters, which would probably have been far too distracting for what is basically a supernatural crime drama.


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* CasualHighDrop: During a chase scene both Moebius and Nottingham jump off a high building and land right on their feet with no injuries.


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* GameFace: During the climactic fight between Sara and Gallo in the pilot, his face briefly morphs into a demonic grin after he tells her that killing her is NothingPersonal to him.


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* HookHand: A killer who targets fashion models has a prosphetic hook in place of his right hand. [[spoiler:This is because he once tried to wield the Witchblade, which dessicated his arm as punishment since it only accepts female bearers.]]


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* MatrixBulletTime: Some action sequences will slowed down to the point where bullets can be seen wirring past the heroine.


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* SuperCop: Sara Pezzini is a detective in the NYPD homicide department who gains the power of a magic artifact known as the Witchblade.


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* YouKilledMyFather: In the PilotMovie mafia hitman Tommy Gallo reveals to Sara that he is responsible for killing her father, which we then see in a flashback.
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No spoiler tags in the description. See Handling Spoilers for more information.


The Witchblade itself is a supernatural weapon that can only be wielded by a woman. The reason given for this varies from character to character - Irons says it's because women are "more elemental" while Nottingham claims it is because women can better stand pain. It ends up on the wrist of Sara during a shootout at a museum where it was displayed, ultimately saving her life. From that point forward, it begins to show her visions of the past and, later, [[spoiler: her dead partner, Danny.]]

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The Witchblade itself is a supernatural weapon that can only be wielded by a woman. The reason given for this varies from character to character - Irons says it's because women are "more elemental" while Nottingham claims it is because women can better stand pain. It ends up on the wrist of Sara during a shootout at a museum where it was displayed, ultimately saving her life. From that point forward, it begins to show her visions of the past and, later, [[spoiler: her dead partner, Danny.]]
Danny.
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* NewYorkCityCops: Inevitable, given who the protagonist is.
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Badass is no longer a trope.


* BadassNormal: Sara, without the Witchblade. With, she's just plain {{Badass}}.

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* BadassNormal: Sara, without the Witchblade. With, she's just plain {{Badass}}.badass.

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* DeadPartner: Literally in season one. Danny Woo is murdered in the pilot and spends the rest of the season following Sara around as a ghost.

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* DeadPartner: DeadPartner:
**
Literally in season one. Danny Woo is murdered in the pilot and spends the rest of the season following Sara around as a ghost.ghost.
** In "Agape", Narcotics detective Dean Gorner accuses Sara of dragging her feet on investigating the shooting death of his partner Torres. [[spoiler:Turns out Gorner himself was the killer.]]
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* CopKiller:
** In the pilot {{Mafia}} hitman Tony Gallo murders Sara's partner Danny Woo in cold blood in front of her, and she spends the rest of the episode trying to catch him while learning to use the Witchblade. [[spoiler:Gallo also killed Sara's father, a beat cop.]]
** "Agape":
*** Narcotics detective Dean Gorner gets into it with Sara at a murder scene, claiming that Homicide is dragging its feet on investigating the death of Gorner's partner Torres and taking umbrage. [[spoiler:It turns out in the end that Gorner and Torres were {{Dirty Cop}}s and Gorner himself was the triggerman. He killed Torres for his share of the take.]]
*** Following on from the above spoiler, a drug kingpin refuses to kill [=McCarty=] or Gorner, because [[spoiler:"unlike you, I'm not a cop killer." But he's not above [[LeaveBehindAPistol leaving them both guns so they'll kill each other]]. Fortunately Sara and Danny get there in time.]]
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* ArcNumber: 11. Sarah acquires the Witchblade on November 11th (11/11) and she works at the 11th Precinct.

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Trope has been split


* ImplausibleFencingPowers: Established in the pilot when Sara is able to block gunfire and even redirect bullets. [[JustifiedTrope It's all the Witchblade's doing]]--without it Sara is just an ordinary cop with an ordinary department-issue Glock.


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* ParryingBullets: In the pilot, Sara is able to block gunfire and even redirect bullets. [[JustifiedTrope It's all the Witchblade's doing]]--without it Sara is just an ordinary cop with an ordinary department-issue Glock.
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* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Sort of. Irish rocker Conchobar named himself after (and is implied to be the {{reincarnation}} of) [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conchobar one of several ancient Irish kings]] who, InUniverse became one half of a BattleCouple with Irish ActionGirl Cathain, a wielder of the Witchblade who apparently became a {{War God}}dess in later Myth/CelticMythology. However, the show never actually specifies exactly which Conchobar they're talking about, and the stuff about Cathain is completely fictional (as in, made up for the show).

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* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Sort of. Irish rocker Conchobar named himself after (and is implied to be the {{reincarnation}} of) [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conchobar one of several ancient Irish kings]] who, InUniverse InUniverse, became one half of a BattleCouple with Irish ActionGirl Cathain, a wielder of the Witchblade who apparently became a {{War God}}dess in later Myth/CelticMythology. However, the show never actually specifies exactly which Conchobar they're talking about, and the stuff about Cathain is completely fictional (as in, made up for the show).
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* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Sort of. Irish rocker Conchobar named himself after (and is implied to be the {{reincarnation}} of) [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conchobar one of several ancient Irish kings]] who, InUniverse became one half of a BattleCouple with Irish ActionGirl Cathain, a wielder of the Witchblade who apparently became a {{War God}}dess in later Myth/CelticMythology. However, the show never actually specifies exactly which Conchobar they're talking about, and the stuff about Cathain is completely fictional (as in, made up for the show).

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The series is something of a cult classic among viewers, and was only recently released onto DVD. General opinion has that the show was a reasonable translation of the comics and quite good in that regard. In fact, the show would have likely continued for several more seasons if not for lead actress Yancy Butler's substance abuse problems.

to:

The series is something of a cult classic among viewers, and was only recently released onto DVD. General opinion has that the show was a reasonable translation of the comics and quite good in that regard.regard . In fact, the show would have likely continued for several more seasons if not for lead actress Yancy Butler's substance abuse problems.



* {{Ghostapo}}: The most recent Witchblade wielder was an American spy in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII who was given the Witchblade by an SS officer she romanced while undercover (the implication is that the Nazis looted it from the Catholic church, who are confirmed to have taken it from UsefulNotes/JoanOfArc). UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was a wielder of TheLanceOfLonginus.

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* FramingTheGuiltyParty: {{Deconstructed}} in "Nailed". Danny Woo is revealed to have once planted evidence to get a SerialKiller convicted (they knew he was their guy but couldn't prove it). The plot kicks off courtesy of [[RealityEnsues the killer's conviction being overturned because of the frame-up]], forcing the team to catch him all over again.
* {{Ghostapo}}: The most recent Witchblade wielder prior to Sara was an American spy in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII who was given the Witchblade by an SS officer she romanced while undercover (the implication is that the Nazis looted it from the Catholic church, who are confirmed to have taken it from UsefulNotes/JoanOfArc). UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was a wielder of TheLanceOfLonginus.
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* DeadPartner: Literally in season one. Danny Woo is murdered in the pilot and spends the rest of the season following Sara around as a ghost.
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* StarCrossedLovers: Sara and Conchabar. The first time around, [[spoiler:he is taken hostage by Irish intelligence officers trying to use him as leverage against his terrorist brother, and is killed by one of his captors during Sara and Ian's rescue attempt]]. The second time is during the FightClubbing episode in season two, [[spoiler:when he winds up comatose from a head injury sustained in a bout]].
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* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:In season two Sara kills Irons in the Lance of Longinus episode (or rather he runs himself through when she has him at swordpoint), but he's around for the rest of the season as a ghost. In the series finale she uses the Witchblade to banish his ghost for good.]]

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* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: Everyone who died in season one, thanks to the ResetButtonEnding.]]



* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: Everyone who died in season one, thanks to the ResetButtonEnding.]]

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* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: Everyone who died in season one, thanks to BikerBabe: Sara ''loves'' her Buell Lightning X1, [[spoiler:so much so that the ResetButtonEnding.]]White Bulls have it smashed up to rattle her]].



* DirtyCop: The White Bulls.

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* DirtyCop: The White Bulls.Bulls, a secret society of dirty cops inside the NYPD. One of the rules is that if you find a spent shell casing with a bull engraved on it, it's a signal to cover up the crime.



* NewMeat: Detective [=McCarty=], a rookie homicide detective who is assigned Sara as his training officer after Danny Woo is murdered. [[spoiler:Subverted. As revealed late in season one, he's really an undercover FBI agent investigating rumors of a DirtyCop ring inside the NYPD. This is presumably still true in season two despite the ResetButtonEnding, though it doesn't come up.]]



* NinetiesAntiHero: None of the cops seem to have a problem [[CowboyCop breaking the rules]] to get things done.

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* NinetiesAntiHero: None of the cops seem to have a problem [[CowboyCop breaking the rules]] to get things done. Though Sara doesn't go as far against ordinary criminals as the others: [=McCarty=] is shown using the JackBauerInterrogationTechnique at least once.



* PilotMovie

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* PilotMoviePilotMovie: Opens with a double-length pilot that follows Sara as she acquires the Witchblade and begins learning to use it.
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* FightClubbing

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* FightClubbingFightClubbing: "Palindrome" has Sara, Danny, and [=McCarty=] investigate a death at an underground fight club. Sara keeps watch outside because women aren't allowed in.



* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Each episode's title is a single ancient Greek word, e.g. "Agape".

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* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Each episode's title is a single word, often from ancient Greek word, Greek, e.g. "Agape".
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* {{Ghostapo}}: The most recent Witchblade wielder was an American spy in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII who was given the Witchblade by an SS officer she romanced while undercover. UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was a wielder of TheLanceOfLonginus.

to:

* {{Ghostapo}}: The most recent Witchblade wielder was an American spy in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII who was given the Witchblade by an SS officer she romanced while undercover.undercover (the implication is that the Nazis looted it from the Catholic church, who are confirmed to have taken it from UsefulNotes/JoanOfArc). UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was a wielder of TheLanceOfLonginus.
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* {{Ghostapo}}

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* {{Ghostapo}}{{Ghostapo}}: The most recent Witchblade wielder was an American spy in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII who was given the Witchblade by an SS officer she romanced while undercover. UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was a wielder of TheLanceOfLonginus.

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* ISeeDeadPeople: One of the powers the Witchblade grants Sara.

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* ISeeDeadPeople: One of the powers the Witchblade grants Sara.Sara is the ability to see and speak with certain dead. She spends all of season one with Danny Woo as her ghostly companion. There seems to be some unspecified rules though: she seemingly can't interrogate her homicide victims [[spoiler:unless Danny acts as an intermediary]].
* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Each episode's title is a single ancient Greek word, e.g. "Agape".
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* WhoShotJFK

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* WhoShotJFKWhoShotJFK: Sara is visited by JFK's ghost in a late season 2 episode and the assassination is touched on. JFK says something to the effect of, he was killed for wanting to change the world.
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The series is something of a cult classic among viewers, and was only recently released onto DVD. General opinion has that the show was a reasonable translation of the comics and quite good in that regard. In fact, the show would have likely continued for several more seasons if there weren't problems with the lead actress.

to:

The series is something of a cult classic among viewers, and was only recently released onto DVD. General opinion has that the show was a reasonable translation of the comics and quite good in that regard. In fact, the show would have likely continued for several more seasons if there weren't problems with the not for lead actress.
actress Yancy Butler's substance abuse problems.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None



to:

* WhoWantsToLiveForever: In the ''Series/{{Witchblade}}'' episode "Lagrimas", Sara meets and falls in love with a man named Daniel Germaine. [[spoiler:Daniel was a Roman prison guard who abused {{Jesus}} on the way to the Crucifixion. Jesus cursed him to live until the Second Coming and Daniel spent the next two millennia [[DeathSeeker trying to find a way to end it]]. Turns out that the Witchblade, a weapon of divine origin, is his way out: at his urging, Sara runs him through and he dies happily in her arms.]]

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* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: Many famous historical figures, including Joan of Arc, were actually wielders of the Witchblade. And, in a strange twist, [[spoiler: actually all Sara herself.]] Constantine and Adolf Hitler were both wielders of the [[PublicDomainArtifact Lance of Longinus]].

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* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: Many famous historical figures, including Joan of Arc, were actually wielders of the Witchblade. And, in a strange twist, [[spoiler: actually all Sara herself.]] Constantine and Adolf Hitler were both wielders of the [[PublicDomainArtifact Lance of Longinus]].TheLanceOfLonginus.



* TheLanceOfLonginus: The Lance is the (literal) SpearCounterpart to the Witchblade.



* PublicDomainArtifact: The Lance of Longinus, which is the (literal) SpearCounterpart to the Witchblade.
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* SuperSoldier: The Black Dragons, which includes [[spoiler: Nottingham]].

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* SuperSoldier: The Black Dragons, which includes [[spoiler: Nottingham]]. They were an elite unit created by Vorschlag Industries for SOCOM using experimental therapies.
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* StraightGay: When Sara and [=McCarty=] investigate a SerialKiller operating out of a gay bar, she lays into him for mild homophobia (he's visibly uncomfortable talking about two men being together). Turns out she's a lesbian and nobody noticed because [[ButchLesbian she fits neither]] of the [[LipstickLesbian major stereotypes]].

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* StraightGay: When Sara and [=McCarty=] investigate a SerialKiller operating out of a gay bar, she lays into him for mild homophobia (he's visibly uncomfortable talking about two men being together). Turns out she's a lesbian and nobody noticed because [[ButchLesbian she fits neither]] of the [[LipstickLesbian major stereotypes]]. (Although it's quite possible she was just messing with his head, given that all of her {{Love Interest}}s in the series are male.)

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The Witchblade itself is a supernatural weapon that can only be weilded by a woman. The reason given for this varies from character to character - Irons says it's because women are "more elemental" while Nottingham claims it is because women can better stand pain. It ends up on the wrist of Sara during a shootout at a museum where it was displayed, ultimately saving her life. From that point forward, it begins to show her visions of the past and, later, [[spoiler: her dead partner, Danny.]]

to:

The Witchblade itself is a supernatural weapon that can only be weilded wielded by a woman. The reason given for this varies from character to character - Irons says it's because women are "more elemental" while Nottingham claims it is because women can better stand pain. It ends up on the wrist of Sara during a shootout at a museum where it was displayed, ultimately saving her life. From that point forward, it begins to show her visions of the past and, later, [[spoiler: her dead partner, Danny.]]



* AllAsiansKnowMartialArts: Danny Woo is shown practicing kata in one episode of season two, and uses it to subdue a SerialKiller a couple episodes later.



* DoingItForTheArt: InUniverse, Conchobar gives this as his reason for not accepting any of the many record deals he's been offered. He wants to be a troubadour, not a rock star.



* MorphWeapon: The Witchblade can take the form of a bracelet, a gauntlet, or a sword.

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* MorphWeapon: The Witchblade can take the form of a bracelet, a gauntlet, or a sword. Season 2 adds brass knuckles. And the sword can either sprout from Sara's wrist or emerge from the end of her fist.

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http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Witch_Blade_Poster.jpg
[[caption-width:289:Not someone to take lightly.]]

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http://static.[[quoteright:289:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Witch_Blade_Poster.jpg
[[caption-width:289:Not
jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:289:Not
someone to take lightly.]]



* AnyoneCanDie: At least in season one.

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* AnyoneCanDie: At least Being in the opening credits is no defense in the first season. By its end, [[spoiler:every major character save Sara and most of the recurring characters are dead. But then Sara uses the Witchblade to reboot the entire season to square one.]]



* ItOnlyWorksOnce: [[spoiler:The time-reversal power Sara uses at the end of season 1.]]
* [[spoiler:LittleDeadRidingHood: Bola.]]

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* ImplausibleFencingPowers: Established in the pilot when Sara is able to block gunfire and even redirect bullets. [[JustifiedTrope It's all the Witchblade's doing]]--without it Sara is just an ordinary cop with an ordinary department-issue Glock.
* ItOnlyWorksOnce: [[spoiler:The time-reversal power Sara uses at the end of season 1.1 can only be used once by each wielder.]]
* [[spoiler:LittleDeadRidingHood: Bola.LittleDeadRidingHood: [[spoiler:Bola.]]



-->'''Gallo''': You know, killin' your father wasn't personal. Neither was Maria. And don't flatter yourself, neither are you.

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-->'''Gallo''': You know, killin' [[spoiler:killin' your father father]] wasn't personal. Neither was Maria. And don't flatter yourself, neither are you.



* PublicDomainArtifact: The Lance of Longinus, which is the male counterpart to the Witchblade.

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* PublicDomainArtifact: The Lance of Longinus, which is the male counterpart (literal) SpearCounterpart to the Witchblade.



* ReincarnationRomance: Sara and Conchobar.
* ResetButton: [[spoiler: The Season 1 finale.]]
* [[spoiler: ResetButtonEnding]]

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* ReincarnationRomance: One of the earliest wielders of the Witchblade was an ancient Irish ActionGirl named Cathain, who was sought out by a tribal chieftain named Conchobar for battle training. They fell in love. So do Sara and Conchobar.
* ResetButton: [[spoiler: The Season 1 finale.
a present-day Irish indy rocker who uses Conchobar as his stage name. [[spoiler:And as in the story, Conchobar ends up dead.]]
* ResetButtonEnding: [[spoiler: ResetButtonEnding]]The Season 1 finale has Sara use the Witchblade to turn back time to the beginning of the season. ItOnlyWorksOnce, and season 2 goes a very different route with Sara only occasionally getting flashbacks of the previous season's events.]]



* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma: In ThePilot, after the titular artifact gauntlet bonds with Sara, she has the following exchange with Kenneth about what the artifact is.
-->'''Sara:''' What is this thing? What is the Witchblade?
-->'''Kenneth:''' A mystery, wrapped in a riddle, and cloaked in a conundrum.
-->'''Sara:''' That doesn't help very much.

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* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma: In ThePilot, after the titular artifact gauntlet bonds with Sara, she has the following exchange with Kenneth about what the artifact is.
-->'''Sara:''' What is this thing? What is the Witchblade?
-->'''Kenneth:'''
Witchblade?\\
'''Kenneth:'''
A mystery, wrapped in a riddle, and cloaked in a conundrum.
-->'''Sara:'''
conundrum.\\
'''Sara:'''
That doesn't help very much.


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* ShirtlessScene:
** Conchabar has his shirt off in a lot of his scenes.
** Danny gets an extended one in season two while practicing martial arts kata to work out.

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* RealitySubtext



* StraightGay: When Sara and [=McCarty=] investigate a SerialKiller operating out of a gay bar, she lays into him for mild homophobia (he's visibly uncomfortable talking about two men being together). Turns out she's a lesbian and nobody noticed because [[ButchLesbian she fits neither]] of the [[LipstickLesbian major stereotypes]].



* SwordOverHead: Sara defeats Gallo in the season one finale and holds the Witchblade to his throat. In the end, though, she chooses to arrest him instead of killing him.

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* SwordOverHead: Sara defeats Gallo in the season one finale premiere and holds the Witchblade to his throat. In the end, though, she chooses to arrest him instead of killing him.

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