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* {{Retraux}}: The series is [[DeliberateMonochrome deliberately monochrome]], evoking the look of a 1950's science fiction BMovie.

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* {{Retraux}}: The series is [[DeliberateMonochrome deliberately monochrome]], DeliberatelyMonochrome, evoking the look of a 1950's science fiction BMovie.

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* BottomlessMagazines: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on ''The Mercury Men'' website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Music/GeneAutry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.



* InfiniteAmmo: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on ''The Mercury Men'' website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Music/GeneAutry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.
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** Doctor Tomorrow gets one when Edward asks what he is:
--> '''Dr. Tomorrow:''' "I am the herald of the Great Worlds, captain of the Ocean of Storms, and commander of the League. I am Doctor Tomorrow."


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* CreatorCameo: Director Chris Preksta appears in the penultimate episode as one of the League members that shows up to save Edward and Jack from the Mercury men.


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--> '''Dr. Tomorrow:''' "I was witness to the greatest and most dangerous adventure on which man had ever embarked- the impossible. It is because of their ingenuity, their immeasurable capacity for bravery, that I have chosen the men of Earth to serve in my League as the Men of Tomorrow. Ambassadors to the new worlds, and custodians of this great and dangerous new way of travel which they have introduced to the greater galaxy."


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** After nearly being strangled by the Mercury engineer, Edward tries to leave while Jack convinces him to stay to help save the world. The way this shot is framed is with Edward in the foreground and Jack standing far behind him, so that Jack appears over Edward's shoulder, symbolizing his conscience.


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* YouAreBetterThanYouThink: Dr. Tomorrow gives this speech to Edward to encourage him to rescue Jack from the Mercury Men.
--> '''Dr. Tomorrow:''' "You share these same abilities. And though you search every crack to escape, now that you see there is none, you ''will'' face the situation."

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''The Mercury Men'' is an indie sci-fi web serial, syndicated on Creator/{{Syfy}}'s website in 2011. Filmed in black and white, it combines elements of {{Dieselpunk}}, RaygunGothic and atomic punk, with a feel reminiscent of ''Series/TheOuterLimits1963''.



''The Mercury Men'' is an indie sci-fi web serial, syndicated on Creator/{{Syfy}}'s website in 2011. Filmed in black and white, it combines elements of {{Dieselpunk}}, RaygunGothic and atomic punk, with a feel reminiscent of ''Series/TheOuterLimits1963''.


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* ActorAllusion: Aaron Kleiber once again plays a [[WebVideo/CaptainBlasto janitor named Daryl]].


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** Inverted with the montage from Episode 6, which was deliberately shown in color to capture the excitement of the Space Race.


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* QuizzicalTilt: One of the Mercurian Engineers does this while strangling Edward in the elevator. [[WordOfGod The Director's Notes]] edition of the series indicates that the Mercurians are not accustomed to humans and often show curiosity towards them.


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* RuleOfSymbolism: After Jack is captured, Edward walks into the hall and his gaze lingers on an "EXIT" sign, symbolizing his temptation to abandon Jack. Moments later, while Edward tries to call for help using Jack's radio, his shadow on the wall looks like he's praying.


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** The elevator fight scene was inspired by the fight between James Bond and Red Grant in ''Film/FromRussiaWithLove'', which takes place aboard a cramped train car.
** The scene where Jack cautiously approaches the brain-in-a-jar is a deliberate homage to Indiana Jones' approaching the gold idol in ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk''.
** Dr. Tomorrow's appearance is inspired by the Magic Mirror from ''WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs''.
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* Foreshadowing: When the men of Mercury first attack Edward's office, an unarmed janitor is hit by lightning at least four times before dying, foreshadowing Jack surviving being struck down during the climax.

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* Foreshadowing: {{Foreshadowing}}: When the men of Mercury first attack Edward's office, an unarmed janitor is hit by lightning at least four times before dying, foreshadowing Jack surviving being struck down during the climax.



* InfiniteAmmo: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on The Mercury Men website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Music/GeneAutry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.

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* InfiniteAmmo: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on The ''The Mercury Men Men'' website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Music/GeneAutry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.



* RaygunGothic: Much of the serial evokes this genre. The hero himself, Jack Yaeger, is dressed as a typical Raygun Gothic pilot: Bomber jacket, flight cap and goggles, jodhpurs and jackboots, and carrying a raygun.

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* RaygunGothic: Much of the serial evokes this genre. The hero himself, Jack Yaeger, is dressed as a typical Raygun Gothic pilot: Bomber pilot (Bomber jacket, flight cap and goggles, jodhpurs and jackboots, jackboots), and carrying carrues a raygun.



* Retraux: The series is in [[DeliberateMonochrome deliberately monochrome]], evoking the look of a 1950's science fiction BMovie.

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* Retraux: {{Retraux}}: The series is in [[DeliberateMonochrome deliberately monochrome]], evoking the look of a 1950's science fiction BMovie.



** The two named league agents are [[Film/TheRightStuff Yaeger and Glenn]]. Also, Borman. Shoutouts to the American space program.

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** The two named league agents are [[Film/TheRightStuff Yaeger and Glenn]]. Also, Borman. Shoutouts to Glenn]], and the American space program.main character is named Borman, all references to key figurs in the US Space Program.

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* AliensAreBastards: The Mercury Men are never depicted as anything other than antagonistic towards humans.
* AlienInvasion: A small-scale one, as men from Mercury take over an office building as part of a plan to pull the Moon into the Earth.



* AlliterativeTitle: The '''M'''ercury '''M'''en.
--> Several episodes titles do this as well, including "'''S'''kyscraper '''S'''aboteurs" and "'''E'''nemies of '''E'''arth.



* ATeamFiring: Jack misses practically every shot he takes during the opening gunfight, only managing to hit his opponent after dropping a door on top of them and shooting them point-blank.
** When Edward is tasked with holding off several Mercurians while Jack reverses the polarity of the Gravity Engine, he fires multiple rounds before managing to hit one of them, despite the Mercurians remaining stationary the whole time. Cue this exchange:
--> '''Edward''': I got one!
---> '''Jack''': ''Only one?!''
* BadassBoast: Jack gets one when the [[BrainInAJar Battery]] threatens to kill his love interest before the Moon falls.
--> '''Jack''': I know you can read my thoughts, so know that I'm not lying when I say this: before this night is over, I'm going to crack open that jar and I'm going to crush you with my own hand.



* DistantFinale: While the first nine episodes take place over the course of a single night, the tenth and final episode is set some time the following year.



* DragonInChief: The Chief Designer is the mastermind behind the men from Mercury's evil plan, but never appears in person. Instead, the Battery is in charge of the invasion.



* EasilyThwartedAlienInvasion: Given that their goal is to crash the Moon into the Earth rather than outright conquest, only a dozen or so Mercurians are sent to Earth to deploy the Gravity Engine. Their entire operation is thwarted by a single member of the League and an (unwilling) office drone, armed with a single pistol between the two of them.



* ExtremelyShortTimespan: The first nine episodes take place in the span of about 12 hours.
* Foreshadowing: When the men of Mercury first attack Edward's office, an unarmed janitor is hit by lightning at least four times before dying, foreshadowing Jack surviving being struck down during the climax.



* LeanAndMean: The antagonistic Mercury men are much taller and slimmer than humans due to lower gravity of Mercury.



* OffscreenTeleportation: After he witnesses Edward being ambushed by a Mercury engineer when he steps into an elevator, Jack is somehow waiting for them when the doors open several floors down.

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* OffscreenTeleportation: Edward's EstablishingCharacterMoment has him tell a lady that his office closed at 7, despite the clock on the wall reading 6:55. When she looks back to confront him, Edward is nowhere to be seen and there is a "Sorry, We're Closed" sign sitting on his desk.
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After he witnesses Edward being ambushed by a Mercury engineer when he steps into an elevator, Jack is somehow waiting for them when the doors open several floors down.


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* PreMortemOneLiner: Jack gets one just before shooting a Mercurian point-blank as it rounds a corner:
--> '''Jack''': Lights out.


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* Retraux: The series is in [[DeliberateMonochrome deliberately monochrome]], evoking the look of a 1950's science fiction BMovie.


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* ScienceHero: Jack's skills in mathematics and engineering are what ultimately foil the invader's plans, even more so than his gunslinging.
* SequelHook: In the final episode, Jack discovers that Edward is being targeted by the Mercurians. The series ends with Edward receiving a package of ''Lumiére'' bullets from Jack right before a Mercurian emerges from the shadows behind him. Doubles as a BolivianArmyEnding as it seems unlikely the series will be continued.


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* StockFootage: Stock photos and video of the Apollo moon missions are used during Doctor Tomorrow's speech explaining why Earth is being targeted by Mercury.


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* ThisCanNotBe: Edward's initial reaction to Jack telling him that the Men from Mercury are planning to crash the Moon into the Earth is to claim that it's not possible.
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* LightIsNotGood: The men of Mercury are composed of pure light, and are anything but good.
* LightWorlder: It never becomes relevant to the plot, but Mercury's gravity is about 38% that of Earth's. [[AllThereInTheManual Jack's journal]] notes this is the reason for the Mercury Men's hunched postures.
* ManipulativeBastard: According to Jack, the Chief Designer, who gave the Mercurians the technology to invade the Earth and crash the Moon into it, was able to manipulate them into doing so by exploiting their fear of humanity.


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* OffscreenTeleportation: After he witnesses Edward being ambushed by a Mercury engineer when he steps into an elevator, Jack is somehow waiting for them when the doors open several floors down.


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* RevolversAreJustBetter: The ''Lumiére'' resembles a modified six-shot revolver.


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* SovietSuperScience: The Chief Designer who masterminds the plan to crash the Earth into the Moon may have been Sergei Korolev, the former head of the Soviet space program.
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* InfiniteAmmo: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on The Mercury Men website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Gene Autry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.

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* InfiniteAmmo: Averted/subverted. Although The League’s zap-gun-of-choice - the ''Lumiére'' - resembles a modified six-shot revolver, so at first glance this trope appears to be played straight, the blueprints on The Mercury Men website reveal that each of the six glowing ''mercury pin'' bullets is good for 24 shots, for a total of ''144 energy blasts per full reload!'' Finite yeah, but still -- Gene Autry, Music/GeneAutry, eat your heart out! It does, however, seem to run out at the most inconvenient times.
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** Another League member is named [[TheRightStuff Glenn]].

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** Another League member is named [[TheRightStuff [[Film/TheRightStuff Glenn]].



** The two named league agents are [[TheRightStuff Yaeger and Glenn]]. Also, Borman. Shoutouts to the American space program.

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** The two named league agents are [[TheRightStuff [[Film/TheRightStuff Yaeger and Glenn]]. Also, Borman. Shoutouts to the American space program.
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* TwoFistedTales

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* TwoFistedTalesTwoFistedTales: Deliberately meant to be an homage to old-time serials. "Drawing from the same retro serials that inspired such films as ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones''..., The Mercury Men reintroduces audiences to the great mystery, danger, and suspense the stories were originally known for."
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* Zeerust: Jack uses a slide rule and notebook to do complex gravity calculations.

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* Zeerust: {{Zeerust}}: Jack uses a slide rule and notebook to do complex gravity calculations.
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* TheWarHasJustBegun: Jack, to Edward, when he gives him his gun. "This is only the beginning. Godspeed."
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* BrainInAJar: The "Batteries", thirteen Soviet scientists who sold their allegiance to The Chief Designer in exchange for "life indefinite".

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* BrainInAJar: The "Batteries", thirteen Soviet scientists who sold their allegiance to The Chief Designer in exchange for "life indefinite".
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* BigBad: The Chief Designer.

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* BigBad: The Chief Designer. From notes on the website, he may be Soviet top scientist Sergei Korolev, who officially died in 1966 but may have faked his death.



* BrainInAJar: The "Batteries", Earth scientists who sold their allegiance to The Chief Designer in exchange for "life indefinite".

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* BrainInAJar: The "Batteries", Earth thirteen Soviet scientists who sold their allegiance to The Chief Designer in exchange for "life indefinite".

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* GoodWithNumbers: When Jack breaks his pencil, he does the complex gravity equations in his head.




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* Zeerust: Jack uses a slide rule and notebook to do complex gravity calculations.
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* Hammerspace: Most of the things Jack pulls from his utility belt wouldn't actually fit in it.

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* Hammerspace: HammerSpace: Most of the things Jack pulls from his utility belt wouldn't actually fit in it.
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* Hammerspace: Most of the things Jack pulls from his utility belt wouldn't actually fit in it.
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* DoNotAdjustYourSet: Dr. Tomorrow takes control of a television set to give Edward a message.
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* BigDamnHeroes: The other League members show up just when all hope seems lost.

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* BigDamnHeroes: The other League members [[spoiler: show up just when all hope seems lost.lost]].

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