History WesternAnimation / SymBionicTitan

** They seem to have a penchant for exposing Ilana's [[ShesGotLegs legs]] as well. There's actually a scene in "Elephant Logic" featuring both shirtless Lance and Ilana in [[WhoWearsShortShorts short shorts]]. And then there's the episode full of chearleaders crawling around an air duct.

* DownerEnding: "A Family Crisis." Though it's arguably just a Downer Episode altogether. Things certainly don't look too bright for [[spoiler: Lance and Ilana now that Octus is dead. Especially since they can't form Titan anymore.]]

* BadassBeard
** The King of Galaluna. This is showcased in "Escape from Galaluna" when he's fighting the Mutraddi invaders alongside his soldiers. And when his gun breaks, he gets an even bigger one.
** Again, Modula, and his beard trumps the King's.

* WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld: It's a given, really.

On December 15, 2019, the entire series was made available for streaming on Creator/{{Netflix}}.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: [[Radar/SymBionicTitan Has its own page]].

::: Doubles as IncestIsRelative.

* NosyNeighbor: '''Barb.''' ''Dear Lord'', when she thinks the Lunis' have a new pet, she practically ''jumps'' on Mr. Lunis to find out what kind it is. Granted, this is ''Barb'' we're talking about. That was likely less her being nosy, and more like an excuse to practically jump on Mr. Lunis. And she has in every appearance so far walked straight into their house with no invitation.

** Steve "Babyface" Stevens, the spy in "Disenfranchised," bears a remarkable resemblance to [[Franchise/ArchieComics Archie]].

* {{Adorkable}}: Jason, and Octus as Newton.

** Rather subtle by WesternAnimation standards, yet rather blunt by this show's standards. "The Phantom Ninja" had a healthy-eating {{Aesop}}, but it focused less on "eating healthy" and more on "eating things that are edible". It also had a good minute's worth of Lance with an armful of fruit eating a nutritious breakfast for no other reason than to... show him eating a nutritious breakfast. Actually, the healthy eating message was more of a metaphor for the actual plot of the episode involving Lance's boredom with Earth life. The blandness of the food is Lance's boredom with Earth, but he later realizes that even though it's bland at first, it has qualities that are good for him in the long run. Kids will understand the health message, but older audiences will see the subtext.

''Sym-Bionic Titan'' was cancelled on March 29, 2011 [[https://web.archive.org/web/20110720084909/http://animationguildblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/network-of-cartoons.html due to Cartoon Network being unable to acquire a toy license]], and in September 2014, the network officially [[https://toonami.tumblr.com/post/98164760488/good-newsbad-news-batman-fans wrote off the show for financial purposes]], and will no longer be able to air it online or on television in any form. In spite of this, in 2018 Ilana and Octus (in his Newton form) briefly appeared in the "Crossover Nexus" episode of ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'', with the former getting a brief line due to her VA Creator/TaraStrong already being in the special as [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo Raven]] and [[WesternAnimation/Ben102016 Ben 10]].

** Any time Lance is shirtless.

** They seem to have a penchant for exposing Ilana's legs as well. There's actually a scene in "Elephant Logic" featuring both shirtless Lance and Ilana in short shorts. And then there's the episode full of chearleaders crawling around an air duct.

** There's a lingering pan of Ilana when she shifts into her spacesuit in "A Family Crisis."
** "The Steel Foe" sees Ilana coming out of the shower in nothing but a towel

* HesJustHiding: Out of universe, many people believe this of Lance's father. In universe, Lance agreed... at first.

* EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses: Ilana is an alien princess sent into exile to Earth due to the Mutradi invasion.

On December 15, 2019, the entire series was available for streaming on Creator/{{Netflix}}.

* GeekyTurnOn: Octus's reaction to the White Dragon's car is to remark how it makes his "circuits tingle". Lance responds, "Mine, too."

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: When Octus and Ilana are feeling bad about missing the dance in "Uhder Three Moons", they end up beating the Monster Of The Week to death with Titan's bare fists.

* ThreeDEffectsTwoDCartoon:

On December 15, 2019, the entire series has been made available for streaming on Creator/{{Netflix}}.

[[folder: A-E]]

* AutoErotica: The teens in "Roar of the White Dragon" get as close to this trope as is possible on Cartoon Network. See GettingCrapPastTheRadar.

* ConspicuousCG
** The Titan, though it surprisingly works.
** Some of the monsters, on the other hand...
** The Mutraddi in "Escape from Galaluna" get special mention, for being the most obvious to date.

* MrFanservice: Lance
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Lance again.

On December 15, 2019, the entire series has been made available for streaming on Creator/Netflix.

* ShakingTheRump: The infamous "Booty Quake" scene has Kimmy does this in front of Octus as a way to convince him to help her for the test in "Lessons In Love".

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: It was revealed in a [[https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/the-creator-of-samurai-jack-and-hotel-transylvania-wants-to-bring-back-old-school-animation 2018 interview with Syfy]] that Genndy Tartakovsky and his crew wrote 10 more episodes of the show before it was ultimately cancelled.

As of September 2014, Cartoon Network officially wrote off the show for tax purposes, and will no longer be able to air it online or on television in any form. In spite of this, in 2018 Ilana and Octus (in his Newton form) briefly appeared in the "Crossover Nexus" episode of ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'', with the former getting a brief line due to her VA Creator/TaraStrong already being in the special as [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo Raven]] and [[WesternAnimation/Ben102016 Ben 10]].

* LeftHanging: Due to the shows cancellation, we will never find out what G3's connections to Galaluna were, or who the mysterious figure was who [[spoiler:brought Octus back to life]] Not to mention Modula still ruling Galaluna and The King's unknown fate.

** Rather subtle by WesternAnimation standards, yet rather blunt by this show's standards. Episode 4 had a healthy-eating {{Aesop}}, but it focused less on "eating healthy" and more on "eating things that are edible". It also had a good minute's worth of Lance with an armful of fruit eating a nutritious breakfast for no other reason than to... show him eating a nutritious breakfast. Actually, the healthy eating message was more of a metaphor for the actual plot of the episode involving Lance's boredom with Earth life. The blandness of the food is Lance's boredom with Earth, but he later realizes that even though it's bland at first, it has qualities that are good for him in the long run. Kids will understand the health message, but older audiences will see the subtext.
** Episode 10, which is most remembered for the "[[{{Fanservice}} Booty Quake]]" scene, actually did deliver a rather subtle aesop where Octus all but told Kimmy she didn't need to act like a ditzy airhead just because society expects her to act that role.

* AutoErotica: The teens in episode 5 get as close to this trope as is possible on Cartoon Network. See GettingCrapPastTheRadar.

* BackToBackBadasses: Lance and Solomon in Episode 11. Not only is it awesome, it's a plot point, since Solomon should not know the martial art Lance uses. Ilana and Lance do this later in the same episode just before they get their watches back.

* BeautyEqualsGoodness: When [[spoiler:General Steel]] goes even crazier than before in episode 20, his features are noticeably more detailed and ugly; jagged teeth, wrinkles, liver spots on his hands...

* BlobMonster: Episode 7.

** Considering the preview for the [[WhamEpisode sixth episode]], "Roar of the White Dragon" may have been this.
** Episode 10 is also one as it is a teen romantic comedy set between the really sad episode 9 and a particularly violent and intense Episode 11.

* CameBackStrong: [[spoiler:Octus ''and'' the Titan in episode 20. The new Titan is far more powerful and curbstomps three rather strong monsters that had G3 and General Steel completely outmatched. Lance even says Titan feels stronger than before.]]

* CarFu: The way Lance drives his car. On scaffoldings, and getting big air on broken pavement. It's almost LeParkour with a car.

** Lance again in episode 16, when the king refuses to believe that there's an invasion on the way, and Lance is dismissed as a lunatic. Said invasion shows up not long after.

* CombatPragmatist: Lance displays this during the [[WholeEpisodeFlashback flash back episode]]. Outmatched by the traitorous instructor, he used a rock to block his sword, and runs him through with his.

** The Mutraddi in episode 16 get special mention, for being the most obvious to date.
* ContinuityNod
** The construction site in Episode 5 is the same place that was destroyed by the first MonsterOfTheWeek.
** And even before that, the giant effing crater in the middle of the city in Episode 2.

** In Episode 12, Kimmy is seen talking to her friend about the latest episode of ''Highschool Heights'', a ShowWithinAShow mentioned in the first episode. "He can't read?" The show is mentioned again in Episode 13, too. Apparently Ilana and Octus are both fans.
** In "Disenfranchised" we see that the legs of the giant Mecha-Hydra from way back in Episode 2 are in the exact same spot, and a park has even been built around them. The episode also has General Steel's spy questioning students about the events of "Showdown at Sherman High".
** In "Under the Three Moons," the mall is still being repaired from the destruction caused in Episode 2.

* ConvenientlyEmptyBuilding: Subverted. The pilot episode has the Titan destroy an entire section of the city against the first MonsterOfTheWeek. The following episode strongly implies that the cost of the damage was [[InferredHolocaust more than just financial]]...[[note]]However, a huge death toll would probably scare people away from a city where alien giants keep showing up on a regular basis, instead of their going on with their lives as if nothing happened. Except, the populace is showing signs of apprehension and trauma, and the military is suddenly ''everywhere''...[[/note]]

* CuteMonsterGirl: Averted in Episode 13.

** Plus there was that opening scene in episode 6 with all the drowning people.
** [[spoiler:Episode 16 had Lance battling a traitor during the Invasion. At the final part of the battle he catches the traitor's sword with a ROCK then he [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice jams his own sword right into the traitor's gut]].]]
** [[spoiler:Episode 18 is where the show has a main character death, that of Octus.]]

* DiabolusExNihilo: The energy creature from episode 18 shows up with no explanation for its presence or what it even is.

** Although it seems to take effect during a conversation in Episode 13.

* DownerEnding: Episode 18. Though it's arguably just a Downer Episode altogether. Things certainly don't look too bright for [[spoiler: Lance and Ilana now that Octus is dead. Especially since they can't form Titan anymore.]]

* [[EarthShatteringKaboom Earth-Obliterating Kaboom]]: Again, Tashy 497.

* ElegantGothicLolita: Ilana's fourth outfit (her second in the third episode). Oddly enough, her blonde hair really works well with it. She borders on it again for most of Episode 10.

** They don't seem to have much of a problem with violently dispatching the monsters, either. In Episode 5 it shows Titan ripping off its limbs and punching a hole through it.
** And in Episode 15 they literally hack the monster to pieces with a scythe.
** Episode 16 has Lance [[spoiler: stabbing a traitor]] who we then see fall from an extremely tall bridge. Though it's partially cleaned up by the fact that the wound isn't shown and he falls in water, it's pretty clear what happened.
** Episode 17 has two. First the newly introduced MonsterOfTheWeek tears another monster to shreds and kills it by tearing its throat out. [[spoiler: The monster itself is killed by being literally beaten to death by the Titan, blood splattering all over it as it does so]]
** [[spoiler: Octus' death]] in Episode 18 is pretty brutal, what with being [[spoiler: electrocuted and drained of all his energy all while writhing in agony.]]
** The three monsters in Episode 20 are brutally dispatched [[spoiler:by the new improved Titan. The first one gets its leg severed and a spear driven down its throat. The second one gets an arm chopped off and sliced in half, and the final one is ambushed from behind and cut in half, its blood splattering all over Steel.]]

** They seem to have a penchant for exposing Ilana's legs as well. There's actually a scene in episode three featuring both shirtless Lance and Ilana in short shorts. And then there's the episode full of chearleaders crawling around an air duct.

** Lance spends the first half of Episode 11 in nothing but his boxers. Though this turns into FanDisservice [[spoiler: when he undergoes ColdBloodedTorture in them.]]
** There's a lingering pan of Ilana when she shifts into her spacesuit in Episode 18.
** Episode 19 sees Ilana coming out of the shower in nothing but a towel

* FootPopping: Episode 10. After a study date, Kimmy does this when giving Octus a [[TheBigDamnKiss 'real' kiss]] before leaving.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: In Episode 13, Octus says something to the effect of "Nothing stays dead today." At the end of the episode, [[spoiler:Ilana's heart stops. In an almost literal moment of HeartIsAnAwesomePower, it starts again.]]

** The monster of episode 17 also counts. It's fast as lightning but so fragile that [[spoiler:the Titan doesn't even need a weapon to kill it; it just beats it to death once it finally catches it.]]

* GeneralRipper: General Steel has a "shoot first, ask questions never" policy with aliens. That this might not be the best policy to deal with alien threats can be seen in Episode 3.

* GrievousHarmWithABody: The MonsterOfTheWeek in episode 5 has its arm ripped off by Titan as a weapon.

* GrossUpCloseUp: As mentioned above, the Cafeteria person, and done again in Episode 4 with the teacher. And in Episode 10 with the pimple-faced nerd.
* HadTheSillyThingInReverse: In the flashback episode, Ilana and her bodyguard are able to tank-jack, but since the bodyguard was too wounded, Ilana had to drive the tank. The first thing she does at the controls is drive the tank in reverse.

* HeroKiller: The Energy Cloud monster from episode 18. It's impervious to nearly everything they throw at it and is able to permently drain the energy out of electrical devices, meaning it's dangerous to try and use their PoweredArmor or Octus against it for risk of losing them for good. [[spoiler:It becomes a ''literal'' HeroKiller by killing Octus at the end of the episode.]] It takes the G3's battleship firing everything it's got at it and blowing up the space station it was in to kill the darn thing!

* HippieChick: Ilana gives off this vibe, with all her talk of the heart, body, and mind as one. Partially subverted: She does have a problem with [[FutureFoodIsArtificial school lunches having only 1% meat content]], while the stereotypical hippie is, of course, a vegetarian. She ''is'' trying to provide healthier food for the school though, but anything would be healthier than what they had. She's also been seen to sport some pretty funky clothes, like the technicolor nightmare in Episode 5.

** The Titan defeats the monster in Episode 6 [[spoiler: by impaling it on a gigantic spear]].
** And then Lance does an encore in Episode 13. Bonus points because he does it WITH A FUCKING TRIDENT.
** [[spoiler:Octus is killed by the monster of episode 18 this way.]]

* LawyerFriendlyCameo: [[Film/DieHard Hans Gruber]] shows up in episode 4.

** Ilana every couple of episodes, and the cheerleaders in episode 7.

** In episode 4 with the hot chicks. Twice inside of five minutes in episode 7; first with a quartet of cheerleaders, then with Ilana at her tryout for the squad.
** Kimmy infamous "Shake It, Bake It, Booty Quake It" scene in episode 10. The scene shows as much ass shaking, pole dancing, and bouncing as though giving a crazy-ass lap dance as you possibly can without being burned at the stake by soccer moms.
** Again in episode 13 with Ilana in mech form.

** Octus, using a holographic system, though he always seems to retain his overall cylindrical shape and hasn't changed into anything other than his two basic forms. His size is especially strange since we've seen him visibly change his actual form (into a ball). Episode 11 shows he ''could'' put more effort into it if he wanted.
** The Chameleon in episode 12 could shape-shift into absolutely anyone, at any size, even scaling up its impersonations.

%%* MiniMecha: Lance's mech.

** The ending of episode 4, which suddenly segues from Lance happily serving food at the cafeteria, to Modula torturing the king for information on Titan.

* MultiArmedAndDangerous: The six-armed baddie in episode 6.

* NameOfCain: In a recent episode, Ilana's cellmate introduces himself as Cain. Guess what happens.

** Scary Mary, [[spoiler:although she was only PRESUMED dead]]

** In the second episode, he exposes their identities to Solomon in trying to deal with MonsterOfTheWeek. Not to mention attracting the attention of said monster in the first place by activating his mecha unnecessarily, due to his being overprotective of Ilana.

* NobodyPoops: Averted in episode 2 by the realtor, then immediately exaggerated by Octus, who asks what the realtor was doing in there (justified, since Octus is a robot). Subsequently played straight so far for the rest of the series.

* NoOntologicalInertia: When the MonsterOfTheWeek infects Ilana with a DNA-altering virus, killing said monster is sufficient for Ilana to revert to human form almost instantly.
** Though in fairness at the end of the episode Lance cautions Ilana to stay home from school the next day as she hasn't completely changed back to normal yet.

* NoSenseOfPersonalSpace: Meat, the jock who keeps bothering Octus in episode 7.

* NotADate: Lance and Ilana's date-like hangout in episode 10. ''They'' don't think it's a date, but the person who invited Lance to the concert sure thought it was. To be fair, it wasn't played out like a date at all. There was no awkward sexual tension or anything between them, and it really just seemed more like they were casually hanging out.

* NotDistractedByTheSexy

** The audience's reaction to the entirety of episode 6, particularly when the totem begins to glow [[spoiler: and reform itself]].

* OutOfFocus: Despite her importance to the plot and all, Ilana's backstory and character development don't get as much attention as her male team mates, and we have yet to see her [[FauxActionGirl win a fight without their help]]. The first half of the season tended to focus more on Lance while the second favored Octus. Perhaps if a second season had happened, Ilana would have gotten more time to shine?

* LeParkour: Lance pulls this off in episode two.
** In episode 13 [[spoiler:DNA virus-infected Illana]] also gets in some free-running time as well.

** The reason for Lance's and Ilana's "sibling" spat in episode 3.
** Episode 11 might have gone a lot better if a) G3 hadn't been so aggressive towards the team and b) if the team had answered their questions.
** [[spoiler:In the whole episode flashback to when Lance is at the Academy, he's bullied by [[{{Jerkass}} Baron]] relentlessly until he shows his skills off in a suicide scenario. Baron decides to [[MoralEventHorizon murder him]] with his two cronies following, and Lance is forced to get into a mech just to defend himself. Yet... he gets all the blame in the end since he didn't just ''speak out'', try to get out stealthfully, and when the King confronts him... he didn't even inform him of what happened.]]

* {{Reconstruction}}

* RidiculouslyHumanRobot: The main theme of "I Am Octus". Throughout the episode we see Octus wondering how much is he a machine and how much humanity does he have, if the emotions he has are real or are they just some sort of automatized response.

* RoofHopping: Lance in the second episode.

* RushedInvertedReading: Kimmy does it in "Lessons in Love" when Lance and Ilanca interupt her and Newton when they were about to kiss.

* ShapeshifterGuiltTrip: The Chameleon pulls this in episode 12 to get the edge on Titan, exploiting Octus' relationship with Kimmy. Lance and Ilana talk him out of it.

* ShapeShifterSwanSong: The Chameleon in episode 12 shifts wildly between forms while receiving a beatdown from Titan.

** From episode 8, Baron. Never have you wanted to punch a character who only appears for one episode as much as you have this guy.

* SomethingCompletelyDifferent
** Episode 10, which is basically a romantic teen comedy. Complete with the token battle sequence being set to an 80s pop ballad!

* SpaceCadetAcademy: A flashback episode featured one, as a seeming homage to ''Literature/EndersGame''.

* SpoilerTitle: "Tashy 497". [[spoiler:It's the name of the nebula created after Mushy/Terax/497 exploded, being a combined name from the first three.]]

** Lance manages this ''[[UpToEleven while driving a car]]'' in episode 5.
** It's done again in episode 16, when the bridge he and his opponent are on is blown up.
* StoodUp: Octus starts every date with Kimmy, but the Rift Gate always causes him to have to bail or no-show on her. The last straw is when Octus promises --and fails to show-- the night of the Homecoming Dance, in "Under The Three Moons".

* SurvivorGuilt: Lance in episode 18 [[spoiler: immediately after Octus' death -- because he fell behind and Octus only died because he returned to save Lance]].

* TimTaylorTechnology: In Episode 19, Lance attempts to revive [[spoiler:Octus]] by connecting him to the electrical systems of a motel for "more power". Later, he attempts to try the same strategy with the H.M.E.R.'s power source instead.

* TooDumbToLive: General Steel. Aside from the fact that MoreDakka is his first and only solution to any given problem, his incompetence and ignorance of basic scientific precautions [[NiceJobBreakingItHero unleashed a deadly lightning storm]] [[BuffySpeak alien thing]] in episode 3. How he managed to get promoted so many times is anybody's guess.

* TrueCompanions: Lance and Octus started out as Ilana's bodyguards, but by episode 18 the trio obviously consider themselves as family.

** The creature in episode 12 is seen walking through a crowd of people and randomly changing form as it goes.

* WhamEpisode: Episode 18, "A Crisis in the Family".

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse

** Another alien meets this fate when his monster fails in to kill Ilana in episode 17, after betting his life on it.

* FootPopping: Episode 10. After a study date, Kimmy does this when giving Octus a [[BigDamnKiss 'real' kiss]] before leaving.