| 1 | ->[[center: '''[[Characters/GirlGenius Main Character Sheet]]''' | [[Characters/GirlGeniusProtagonists Protagonists]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusAntagonists Antagonists]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusTheHeterodynes The Heterodynes]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusWulfenbachEmpire Wulfenbach Empire]] | '''The Knights of Jove''' | [[Characters/GirlGeniusJagerkin Jägerkin]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusMechanicsburg Mechanicsburg]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusParis Paris]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusEngland England]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusCorbettites Corbettite Order]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusAssorted Assorted]] | [[Characters/GirlGeniusTransylvaniaPolygnosticUniversity Transylvania Polygnostic University]] ]] |
| 2 | |
| 3 | [[Characters/GirlGenius Back to the main character page]]. |
| 4 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 5 | |
| 6 | !!Loyal Order of the Knights of Jove |
| 7 | Various characters involved in the highly factional Storm King conspiracy. |
| 8 | \ |
| 9 | [[folder:The Fifty Families]] |
| 10 | !!The Fifty Families |
| 11 | |
| 12 | The former ruling elite of Europa consisting of fifty noble houses all vying to have one of their own declared Storm King. Many of them were decimated by during the Other War while the rest were conquered by Baron Wulfenbach. Chafing under the Baron's rule, the Families united and secretly began conspiring to overthrow the Wulfenbach Empire. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | ---- |
| 15 | * AristocratsAreEvil: |
| 16 | ** Their main goal is to get rid of Klaus and reinstall the Storm King as Europa's ruler in order to halt the meritocracy that's slowly growing under the Wulfenbach Empire and protect their various elitist traditions, caring little about the death and destruction their actions have caused or the fact they are likely inviting war and chaos to tear the continent apart. |
| 17 | ** They assisted Lucrezia in the Other War since, though she was causing mass destruction and enslavement, she was also wiping out a lot of the "upstart" Spark Houses. It's almost certain that if she hadn't disappeared then she would have eventually [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness wiped them out as well]]. |
| 18 | ** In general, most of the Fifty Families are made up of people who are of incredibly low morality and are completely blasé about murder, betrayal and inflicting pain on others, even when it's done on their own family members. |
| 19 | * ArtisticLicensePolitics: Often the term "royal" is used for all among the Fifty Families, despite many of them being nobility (dukes, counts, (reigning) princes, etc.) instead of royalty (kings, queens, (heir) princes, princesses, etc.). Granted [[TruthInTelevision "royal" is sometimes used for reigning nobles IRL,]] but mostly in common parlance and not anything formal. It would be weird, as an example, for '''Duke''' Strinbeck to say [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20080801 "my royal personage"]] IRL (unless he was a king's relative who also happened to be a duke). |
| 20 | * BigScrewedUpFamily: The majority of the members shown so far are directly or indirectly related to one another, and most of them have tried to murder each other at some point either for personal benefit or mere enmity. Tarvek is shown to have been to related at least five other families and most of them, including his own, have tried to kill him at one point or another with it being made clear that this behavior isn't abnormal. |
| 21 | * DeathIsCheap: Averted. While resurrection is common in the ''Girl Genius'' universe, one of the major rules of nobility is that when you die you're removed from the line of succession, and your heir immediately inherits your titles and holdings even if you get revived. |
| 22 | * EnemyMine: Most of the Fifty Families were bitter enemies but they've joined together in their hopes of defeating the Wulfenbach Empire. |
| 23 | * EvilReactionary: By and large, the Fifty Families want to take over the Baron's empire because they want a "proper" monarch like in the "good old days" of the [[TheGoodKing Storm King]]. Unfortunately, some factions are willing to collaborate with [[BigBad the Other]] to do so. |
| 24 | * TheGhost: Only about a fifth of the Fifty Families have been introduced, most of whom are lower-ranking members of their respective Houses. |
| 25 | * GoneHorriblyRight: When several of the families decided to go ahead with their plan to overthrow Klaus ahead of schedule, they manipulated a large number of small rebellions into erupting simultaneously to act as distractions. Said rebellions quickly grew out of control and caused numerous other rebellions to pop up all over Europa, which completely derailed almost all of the Families’ plans. |
| 26 | * GreaterScopeVillain: The Fifty Families' and Storm King conspiracy are prominent secondary antagonists right behind the Other but their current scheming and past dealings with Lucrezia are responsible for a lot of the tragedies in the story. |
| 27 | * ItsThePrincipleOfTheThing: Europa's nobility actually have little issue with how Klaus runs Europa nor does Klaus harass them unless they start causing trouble. The main reason they scheme to overthrow him, and potentially trigger a country-destroying war, is because he refuses to "play the game" and acknowledge that social rank is important or legitimate. Had Klaus declared himself emperor after taking Europa, the Fifty Families would have proudly served him as slaves. According to the novels, a couple members of the Storm King conspiracy defected to the Empire after learning Gil has a claim to a royal title through his mother's side. |
| 28 | * LeeroyJenkins: The Storm King conspiracy's original, long-term plan to overthrow Klaus was fairly well-hidden and had a legitimate chance of succeeding. However, the appearance of Agatha and her injuring the Baron caused many members of the conspiracy to panic or try to take advantage of the situation, with some speeding up their plans to take Castle Heterodyne while others decided to go off-script entirely and try to kill Klaus or conquer parts of the Empire for themselves. This early playing of their hand not only caused them to reveal themselves to the Empire before they were ready to confront it but it also caused a lot their existing plan to fall apart. |
| 29 | * MotiveDecay: Apparently, the Knights of Jove started off as a loyal order dedicated to the Storm King, which then got hijacked by the Other. After she was gone, it was mostly reduced to a few old farts who just used it as an excuse to hang out, drink and mutter about "the good old days". Then Zola's backers came along... |
| 30 | * OldShame: They're terribly embarrassed about their origins. Not because of the part about their ancestors murdering their way to the top, just the parts where it sounded like their ancestors performed actual ''labor''. |
| 31 | * {{Realpolitik}}: "The game", as the Families call it, is a never-ending, centuries-long series of wars, alliances and shady dealings between the nobles done in attempt to get one of their own declared Storm King. |
| 32 | * TheRemnant: They're a shell of their former selves after the timeskip caused by Klaus' Take-Five Bomb. After the Other was done, there were only seventeen of the prior great houses left, and that's assuming the strife between then and the modern day hasn't whittled them down further. |
| 33 | * RightForTheWrongReasons: Their standard criticism of [[BenevolentDictator the Baron]]'s regime is that, being an unrecognized authority without a royal title, the Baron's empire [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060526 "won't last a day when he's gone"]] (as his status as JustTheFirstCitizen means his government only exists as long as he does). Eventually the Baron steps out of the picture, and [[spoiler:(as predicted) [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20131021 the empire sank]] with it's captain. However, the reason why the empire collapsed is exactly ''[[SelfFulfillingProphecy because]]'' the Fifty Families refused to recognize it and [[LeeroyJenkins tripped over each other]] when [[GoneHorriblyRight trying to take power]]]]. |
| 34 | * SecretKeeper: An evil version. The Families knew that Lucrezia was the Other, with some being fanatically loyal to her, and they managed to hide it from Klaus for almost two decades. |
| 35 | * SuperSupremacist: Many Families insist that only a Spark can be Storm King, even though Andronicus Valois wasn't one, and it's implied that Sparks are often given precedence in inheritance. |
| 36 | [[/folder]] |
| 37 | |
| 38 | [[folder:Andronicus Valois]] |
| 39 | !!Andronicus Valois, The First Storm King |
| 40 | [[quoteright:279:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/andronicusvalois.png]] |
| 41 | |
| 42 | A legendary ruler who commanded the Knights of Jove and ruled a large chunk of Europe roughly 200 years ago. Super-Spark Van Rijn constructed the Muses for him. He beat back the forces of Bludtharst Heterodyne as head of the "Coalition of the West," for which he was hailed as the "Storm King" and received the blessing of the "Five Good Emperors." According to an opera written about his life, he fell in love with Euphrosynia Heterodyne when he saw her menaced by her fiancé, Ogglespoon (who was her fiancé by arrangement with her father, not by her choice, supposedly). He tried to rescue her, only to be thwarted by a bonsai hedge maze. He then vowed to search for her forever, leading to the downfall of the Knights of Jove and his empire. |
| 43 | |
| 44 | '''''For "his" (in a way) appearance in Volumes 2-3 (16) and 2-4 (17), scroll to the bottom of this folder.''''' |
| 45 | ---- |
| 46 | * {{Ambadassador}}: He loved diplomacy and negotiation and used warfare not to destroy his enemies but to get them to negotiate terms of peace with him. |
| 47 | * ArtifactOfDoom: His mace The Platonic Solid was corrupted in some fashion by Bludtharst Heterodyne. |
| 48 | * BadassNormal: Going from his dialogue in the second novel's prologue, he most likely isn't a Spark nor does he have a particularly high opinion of them. And yet, not only was he able to conquer most of Europa but he managed to do it with diplomacy, bringing legitimate peace to the continent for a time. Ironically, his descendants insist that being a Spark is a prerequisite for becoming Storm King. |
| 49 | * ChoiceOfTwoWeapons: Has two, [[HeroesPreferSwords a sword]] and [[CarryABigStick a mace]]. [[spoiler:Voltaire destroys them both to prevent the maddened Andronicus from becoming basically unstoppable.]] |
| 50 | ** The sword, Archimedes' Lever and dubbed as "Slasher" by the Jägers, forged by Van Rijn, and basically capable of [[ShockAndAwe calling down lots of lightning]]. It was said that it was supposed to be so sharp that it could "cut day out of the night". |
| 51 | ** The mace, Platonic Solid and dubbed "Smasher" by the Jägers, that can send energy to melt solid rocks and turn people into gruesome-looking mind-controlled zombies. We've heard two evidently contradictory stories about its creation/source: Violetta says it was a gift from Albia, Queen Of England, while Simon Voltaire says that Van Rijn made it along with the sword. Turning people into mind-controlled zombies is apparently the result of the Platonic Solid being corrupted due to the work of Bludtharst Heterodyne (as confirmed by the Castle itself.) |
| 52 | * DealWithTheDevil: The deal with Bludtharst Heterodyne to marry his sister Euphrosia, in exchange for both sides being at peace. [[spoiler:The Heterodynes never had any intention of following through with this, and betrayed him.]] |
| 53 | * EnemyMine: Part of the reason he was able to build his empire was the need for everyone to unite against the Heterodynes. Bludtharst Heterodyne even had "He Couldn't Have Done It Without Me" engraved on his tomb to rub this fact in. |
| 54 | * {{Foil}}: To Klaus. Both have large and impressive empires which try to focus Sparks toward productive goals, while building and maintaining infrastructure along the way. Andronicus conquered Europa with diplomacy and saw war as just a means to get his opponent to agree to peace talks. Klaus ended the Long War by conquering Europa with brute force and shows disdain towards negotiation. Also, both their declines in power can be attributed to Heterodyne women, with Andronicus' coalition collapsing because he put his faith in Euphrosynia and the Wulfenbach Empire lost control of Europa because Klaus refused to trust Agatha. |
| 55 | * TheGoodKing: He was universally regarded as a good monarch in his own time. |
| 56 | * HoistByHisOwnPetard: A light-hearted version in the novels. He instituted high fashion in order to keep the nobles distracted from fighting each other. Unfortunately, since he was King, he had to lead by example. While Valois utterly hates having to wear a dozen silk waistcoats, he does at least consider it a worthwhile price for relative peace. Taking half an hour just to undo his trouser buttons, on the other hand... |
| 57 | * TheHighKing: The title of "Storm King" is {{implied|Trope}} to involve power over other kings on the continent. He apparently has the authority to [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090227 restore the Fifty Families' to power]], and the dominion of the Storm King appears to be over the entire continent (while we know some kingdoms like Holfung-Borzoi still exist). |
| 58 | * LamarckWasRight: Dimo can confirm that he has Von Blitzengaard's voice and Von Sturmvoraus' nose. |
| 59 | * MirrorCharacter: In a sense, to Bill & Barry Heterodyne. They're both legendary heroes who one of the main characters (Tarvek/Agatha) claims the legacy of, they both brought untold peace to Europa, they both fell for TheVamp (Euphrosynia/Lucrezia) who (probably) led to their fall, and when they both disappeared, the continent was plunged into horrible war. However, the Heterodyne Boys were of the very family whom Andronicus battled to save Europa from; meanwhile, the arch-enemies of the Heterodyne Boys were the Mongfishes, who were members of the Knights of Jove that was originally meant to be the Storm King's honour guard. |
| 60 | * OhCrap: The novels show exactly ''when'' Valois realizes trusting the Heterodynes was a Bad Move: [[spoiler:The night before he's set to marry Euphrosia, the Muses come to him and outright tell him she's going to screw him over. And they can only tell him then and there because it's too late to do anything. At that point, Valois starts thinking, starts ''really'' thinking, about which one of the two lovers was the one who actually suggested marrying...]] |
| 61 | * ReallyGetsAround: By reputation at least. Multiple people have said that claiming descent from the Storm King doesn't mean much, because if the legends are true, ''half of Europa'' is descended from him. And his reign was only 8-10 generations ago. Apparently, at an impressionable age, the young Andronicus read a number of scholarly works that talked about a king being a fertility symbol, and [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong thought this was a mighty fine idea.]] |
| 62 | * ShroudedInMyth: As noted, a lot of what the audience "knows" about him comes from an opera of dubious historical accuracy. Violetta also doesn't know the abilities of his signature weapons because legend describes them in obtuse, fanciful language. |
| 63 | * SuccessionCrisis: Because of his ReallyGetsAround tendencies, his disappearance left him with no legitimate heirs and far too many illegitimate ones. The resultant collapse of his kingdom came from the Fifty Families being unable to agree on who his rightful heir was - and they're still arguing about it two hundred years later. |
| 64 | * WalkingSpoiler: It's incredibly obvious that there's some sort of major twist involving him. Considering everything we knew about him was told through the opera and third-hand comments, some kind of major reveal was practically inevitable. |
| 65 | |
| 66 | |
| 67 | ---- |
| 68 | !!Tropes for "his" appearance in Volumes 2-3 (16) and 2-4 (17). |
| 69 | [[caption-width-right:210:[[labelnote:Click here to see "his" first appearance in-person.]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/andronicus_v16p81.jpg[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 70 | The mad remnant of what was once Andronicus Valois. |
| 71 | |
| 72 | ---- |
| 73 | * ActuallyThatsMyAssistant: [[spoiler: Sees Agatha wearing her trilobite brooch and assumes she's the servant of the Heterodynes rather than 'The' Heterodyne.]] |
| 74 | * AxCrazy: [[spoiler: When he is reawakened in the present, he's an enraged, psychotic husk of his former self that proceeds to go on a rampage through the streets.]] |
| 75 | * AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Used to ''not'' be this, but he's now [[spoiler:a practically radioactive green, complete with the ability to melt someone's skin to mere bone on touch. Or subject it to rapid aging. Or something.]] |
| 76 | * BerserkButton: ''Jägers.'' He ''really'' hates them. [[spoiler:Da Boyz and Jenka eagerly tap-dance all over this button to distract him and get him so riled up that he can't fight properly.]] |
| 77 | * BrainwashedAndCrazy: Implied by Simon Voltaire, he was apparently corrupted by the enemies of the Shining Coalition, or at least his corpse was. [[spoiler:In the current era, he has ''utterly lost his mind,'' believing all his former allies are "oathbreakers and wizards", demanding to know "where his bride was taken", believing his love is still alive despite it being two centuries since he was last active.]] |
| 78 | * FishOutOfTemporalWater: [[spoiler:When he enters the story, he is confused by his surroundings, last remembers the long dead Van Rijn smirking over one of his machines, and assumes treachery. He finds the modern Paris to be astounding.]] |
| 79 | * HeWhoFightsMonsters: An externally-caused version of this. [[spoiler:After trying to rid the world of the Heterodynes and their monsters, he ended up becoming a horrific, undead, maddened evil Heterodyne-made monster himself.]] |
| 80 | * HumanoidAbomination: [[spoiler:Was apparently transformed into a maddened undead monstrosity by his enemies, which his allies were forced to put down. When he appears in the current era, he looks ''increasingly monstrous'' the longer he fights - he starts off looking human except with green, glowing skin, but by the time Voltaire destroys his weapons, he's degraded into some kind of walking skeleton, and ''after'' that he's practically falling apart.]] |
| 81 | * KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Eventually gets worn down completely by Master Voltaire, Da Boyz, Jenka, Martellus and Agatha, before finally being finished off by Martellus. His final end is no less tragic than he was first defeated - a maddened undead monstrosity put down by his last remaining old friend, the Jägers who were his old foes back in his glory days, his descendant and the descendant of the woman he loved, mistaking her for Euphrosynia and spending his last moments utterly thrilled that he had "found her", only for Martellus to crush his skull moments after. Of course, being the glory hog that he is, Martellus doesn't even take a moment to mourn his ancestor and contemplate his tragic end, he goes straight to literally claiming his crown for himself. Then again, said ancestor did corrupt his close friends/followers into undead monsters, thus forcing Martellus to MercyKill them, so it's understandable he would spare little thought to him.]] |
| 82 | * LoveMakesYouCrazy: [[spoiler:He was already crazy to begin with after he was turned into some kind of monstrous construct, but he's so obsessed with Euphrosynia that he's demanding to know where she was "taken" (despite it being two centuries since she disappeared), and he's blaming Van Rijn for her disappearance, and angry at his former allies for not telling him anything, despite Voltaire quite clearly stating Euphrosynia's disappearance was entirely her fault and nobody actually knows what happened to her.]] |
| 83 | * NotQuiteDead / {{Immortality}}: [[spoiler:If Muse Prende is to be believed. It's not clear if Andronicus is actually immortal or some kind of time traveler or has been held in suspended animation, but he is most certainly beyond just human at this point. As it turns out, Pende's Latern was shining on him. Anything caught in its light is frozen in time. Removing the latern... turned out to not be a good idea.]] |
| 84 | * RasputinianDeath: [[spoiler: Putting him down the second time requires, in order, getting blasted multiple times by the Gendarmy, repeatedly electrocuted and buried in rubble by Voltaire, stabbed in the gut with his own sword by Martellus, having an ''entire building'' collapse on top of him, getting smacked around by the Jägers, Voltaire melting the weapons that grant him {{Immortality}}, Agatha blasting him with a WaveMotionGun, and, finally, having his head crushed by Martellus' final blow. To say it took everything the heroes had to put him down is not an exaggeration in the least.]] |
| 85 | ** To hear Voltaire describe it, killing him the first time was almost as difficult, and that was back when he was just a normal human with a couple of Spark-made weapons, [[spoiler: rather than the OneManArmy HumanoidAbomination the readers see in the present]]. |
| 86 | * SealedGoodInACan / SealedEvilInACan: [[spoiler:Apparently was one of these. The jury is out as to ''which'', with the Paris incident leaning towards "corrupted evil insane undead monstrosity"]]. |
| 87 | * ThereWasADoor: [[spoiler:This is how he decides to leave an underground chamber to go settle some matter. In Zeetha's words, his route is very direct.]] |
| 88 | * WalkingSpoiler: The very fact that [[spoiler:he still ''exists'' in some form]] is a spoiler. |
| 89 | * WasOnceAMan: [[spoiler:Andronicus was... ''corrupted'' somehow according to Simon Voltaire. His closest confidantes ultimately had to sacrifice much to end his deranged rampage. For all intents and purposes, [[ThatManIsDead everyone considers him to be]] ''[[ThatManIsDead undead]]''.]] |
| 90 | |
| 91 | [[/folder]] |
| 92 | |
| 93 | [[folder:Grandma]] |
| 94 | !!Terebithia, Matriarch of the Knights of Jove |
| 95 | [[quoteright:230:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grannyblitzengaard.png]] |
| 96 | The grandmother of Tarvek, Anevka, Violetta, Martellus and Xerxsephina, Terebithia is the leader apparent of the Knights of Jove and the Smoke Knights not loyal to Lucrezia. Absolutely ''hates'' Lucrezia, at least according to Violetta, and would rather refocus on the original objective of the Knights of Jove. |
| 97 | ---- |
| 98 | * AmbiguouslyEvil: She's one of [[BigScrewedUpFamily Tarvek's relatives]]? That's a bad sign. She's working against [[BigBad the Other]]'s influence? Well, that's a ''good'' sign. But she's weirdly cozy with [[spoiler:Zola/the Queen of the Dawn]]? That's yet another bad sign. |
| 99 | * BluffTheImpostor: Upon meeting Mister Obsidian she immediately attempts to stab him in the face even though he had the correct [[TrustPassword code phrase]], [[MadeOfIron only for the dagger to snap in two.]] He mostly takes it in stride, but Grandma retorts to his [[ServileSnarker snark]] that [[JustifiedTrope disguises are easy and that anyone can learn a code phrase.]] |
| 100 | * ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: As expected from anyone of Tarvek's extended family, let alone the ''head'' of it, she has her own plan that she's willing to throw others under the bus to attain. |
| 101 | * CoolOldLady: |
| 102 | ** A subdued version as far as the setting goes - she apparently throws some ''wild'' parties. And she has some rather impressive dresses. |
| 103 | ** It is worth noting that she's the head of a family so unruly Tarvek once commented the only way to keep them in line would be to kill them, a family that's produced folks like Martellus, so she has to be doing ''something'' right. |
| 104 | * DeadlyDecadentCourt: She '''''runs''''' it and apparently has no problems with her kids and grandchildren killing each other and the in-laws. She once threw a party while Paris was under attack and half the city was flooded in the chaos. She even uses such events to make her parties more spectacular and gain power. She has spies everywhere. All this indicates that she is well aware of what is going on, well more than the grand majority of the general population, but is so high and almighty that she neither fears nor cares about the problems the lower classes face. If you aren't good enough to survive in her court, then relative or not, you deserve what comes to you. From what we heard of him, her husband wasn't any better. |
| 105 | * DefectorFromDecadence: An odd variation where she hasn't defected to the "good guys", but rather she still defected away from the most evil side. Unlike her (presumed) son-in-law Wilhelm and many other men of the cabal, who was madly loyal to Lucrezia, Grandma has been described as "hating Lucrezia", is outright opposed to and plotting against her, has taken control of at least a major part of the Knights of Jove away from The Other's objectives, and has basically ordered that all of her subordinates put aside rivalries and other cross-purpose agendas to take out anyone still loyal to Lucrezia, likely having performed a major purge of Lucrezia loyalists in the Knights of Jove during the timeskip. All of that said.. [[spoiler:She cheerfully assists Zola!Lucrezia!The Queen of the Dawn in escaping from Paris when the latter woman's take-over plans get at least temporarily thwarted by Colette Voltaire becoming the new all-powerful Mistress of the city. Or at least being caught by Colette's forces, as always with this character, her motives for doing so remain vague, as it's entirely possible that she plans on acquiring Lucrezia's secrets via Zola still having Lucrezia trapped in her head.]] |
| 106 | * DirtyOldWoman: |
| 107 | ** When Tarvek, disguised as a servant, makes a joke about her whipping him, she cheerfully states that he sounds "just like his grandfather", which immediately makes Tarvek wish for BrainBleach. |
| 108 | ** During TheReveal that she is close to Simon Voltaire, he calls her a "scheming flirt" as an InsultOfEndearment, implying she's always been like this. |
| 109 | * EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: She was usually referred to mainly as "grandmother" though this is because most of the time, she was with her family. She's revealed to be named Terebithia when Simon Voltaire, Master of Paris, refers to her as such. Given their FirstNameBasis with one another, they've had a history and still soft spots for one another. |
| 110 | * EvilMatriarch: Probably. She's in charge of the Knights of Jove, which is not in any way a pleasant organization, but ''how'' evil is still an open question. For example, it's unclear whether she supports Tarvek or Martellus over each other, or, given [[spoiler: the return of the original Storm King]] someone else. |
| 111 | * GoodParents: "Good" being in relative terms considering she's still a member of her family and just as much a schemer as her kids and numerous grandkids, but she's certainly a better parent/grandparent than Tarvek and Anevka's father ever was. She definitely cares about her grandkids, and the feeling is mutual - [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20161114 when she and Tarvek finally reunite,]] their discussion is quite cordial and even heartwarming, with Tarvek even concerned for her health. Specifically, bursitis in her dominant shoulder, which she complains hampers her ability to use a whip, while Tarvek notes that he told her to use her cane instead, though Grandma remarks that said cane makes her look old. Of course, they have this conversation immediately after she had Tarvek kidnapped and forcibly dragged to her. |
| 112 | * HiddenAgendaVillain: Whatever her ultimate goal is, it's not known to us. As noted above, she's been said to "hate Lucrezia" but other than that her plans are unknown; it's not even clear which of her relatives, if any, she would prefer to see become Storm King. |
| 113 | * HiddenDepths: When she learns that Archimedes' Lever has started spewing lightning, she knows exactly what it means ([[spoiler:Andronicus Valois is still alive]]) and immediately begins making plans to take advantage of this fact. How much of this is fore-knowledge as opposed to shrewd guess-work is currently unknown. |
| 114 | ** She's also well-acquainted with Simon Voltaire, the Master of Paris. [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20170220 She has invited him to several of her parties (though he never showed up despite promising to).]] Their quieted dialogue indicates they care a good deal about one another and even may have been intimate in the past. [[FirstNameBasis Furthermore, they're on first-name basis with one another]] and refer to one another [[InsultOfEndearment in affectionate insults]] all while she supports him and gently clasps his hand. |
| 115 | * LifeOfTheParty: Given that Martellus believes that having a death ray built into a party sleigh is totally in character for her, she must have thrown some truly wild parties in her time. When we get to see one of her parties on-page, it gets wild indeed... mostly by no fault or plan of her own (that we know of), but she relishes it anyway. |
| 116 | * NeverMessWithGranny: She's getting up there in years and is shown to be suffering from arthritis, but still manages to efficiently run one of the world's most widespread spy networks, on top of being strong enough to crush a pistol with her bare hands (as Zola finds out the hard way). |
| 117 | * WhipOfDominance: She's a stern EvilMatriarch that has quite the reputation for using a whip. When she talks to Tarvek about whipping her servants into shape, she makes it clear it's not just an expression when she says she can't do it as well anymore because "her shoulders aren't what they used to be". She also implies she used her whip on her husband for kinky reasons, [[BrainBleach much to Tarvek's distress]]. |
| 118 | [[/folder]] |
| 119 | |
| 120 | [[AC:Sturmvoraus family]] |
| 121 | ->See [[Characters/GirlGeniusProtagonists Protagonists]] for Tarvek. |
| 122 | |
| 123 | [[folder:Aaronev VI]] |
| 124 | !!Aaronev Wilhelm Sturmvoraus VI, the Prince of Sturmhalten |
| 125 | [[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aaronevwilhelm_v5p43.jpg]] |
| 126 | The ruler of Sturmhalten, and the father of Tarvek and Anevka Sturmvoraus. He's pledged loyalty to Lucrezia Mongfish and does her work in the Knights of Jove. He's also a complete nutcase. |
| 127 | ---- |
| 128 | * AxCrazy: In his royal theatre, the spot where the Prince sits has a ''[[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20051019 built-in machine gun]]'' aimed at the stage, in case the play is too "boring". He'll still shoot even if he's amused. It just makes it harder for him to aim. |
| 129 | * TheCaligula: He's an insane prince obsessed with un-sealing a SealedEvilInACan, even at the cost of his own family. This isn't even getting into how he treats visitors to the principality. |
| 130 | * DirtyOldMan: |
| 131 | ** Requests the circus to stage "The Socket Wench of Prague" - the play obscene enough to chase the performers out of a town in a usual case, and orders them to "tart it up" as well. |
| 132 | ** He's also obsessed with [[spoiler:Lucrezia, and tries to resurrect her in the body of ''his own daughter'']], with the implication of fully intending to go all the way. |
| 133 | * EmperorScientist: A Spark who runs a small, isolated town, and uses his position to intimidate people passing through, since his town is one of the few safe passages in the area. |
| 134 | * FeudalOverlord: He poses as a "good little vassal" of the Baron's empire, but in reality, his town is [[spoiler:housing such an absurd amount of Other tech that it may as well be ruled by the Other ''themselves'']]. |
| 135 | * GoldDigger: Well, at least [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060113 Lady Vrin suspects so]], but apparently he was trying to seduce Lucrezia to use her [[spoiler:slaver wasps]]. |
| 136 | * IWasQuiteTheLooker: Overweight, balding and his hair's turned grey, but apparently in his youth he was the spitting image of Tarvek. |
| 137 | * KarmicDeath: He's killed by [[spoiler:Anevka]], one of the girls forced into the "Holy Machine", right as he's forcing yet another girl in. |
| 138 | * KingBobTheNth: The fourth or sixth Prince Aaronev Sturmvoraus of Sturmhalten, depending on if you use the novel's counting or the comic's. |
| 139 | * MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: Tarvek tries to have his death passed off as a lab accident, which immediately draws the Baron's suspicion, since while Whilhelm had ''many'' faults, he was a stickler for lab safety. |
| 140 | * MiddleNameBasis: Like his son Tarvek, people generally [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060206 use]] his middle name Wilhelm in casual conversation. |
| 141 | * MyGodWhatHaveIDone: If Tarvek's flashback ([[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060911 SPOILERS!!]]) is trustworthy, then Wilhelm was genuinely distressed when his daughter Anevka almost died after he hooked her up to the "Holy Machine". |
| 142 | * OffingTheOffspring: By accident, in the case of [[spoiler:the "real" Anevka]]. |
| 143 | * OneSteveLimit: Averted, he shares a first name with his son, who answers to his middle name of Tarvek in conversation to distinguish them. |
| 144 | * PervertDad: {{Implied|Trope}}. He had an affair with Lucrezia. He then tried [[spoiler:downloading Lucrezia's personality into his own daughter]]. Yech. |
| 145 | * SealedEvilInACan: Not himself, but [[spoiler:the Other]], who he's devoted his life to un-sealing. |
| 146 | * SmallRoleBigImpact: He only shows up in Volume 5 (and [[spoiler:dies that volume]]), but he's the one who housed the Geisterdamen and their "Holy Machine" in Sturmhalten, making him more or less the one responsible for [[spoiler:[[BigBad the Other]]'s comeback]]. |
| 147 | * TownWithADarkSecret: Is the prince of one, where the "dark secret" in question is that [[spoiler:almost everyone there is a Revenant infected by Slaver Wasps]]. |
| 148 | * UndyingLoyalty: To Lucrezia. Aaronev is a villainous example, in that this loyalty drives him to the point of obsession with his family's [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20051118 "sacred task"]] of unleashing a {{Sealed Evil|InACan}} onto the world. |
| 149 | * WouldHurtAChild: Would hurt several children, in fact -- mostly girls. So many girls that (as Tarvek [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20210906 later explained]]) ''it led to a gender imbalance among Sparks''. |
| 150 | [[/folder]] |
| 151 | |
| 152 | [[folder:Anevka Sturmvoraus]] |
| 153 | !!Princess Anevka Sturmvoraus |
| 154 | [[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/girlgenius_anevka1_2148.jpg]] |
| 155 | %% Alternate image, in case you want less fashion and more zapping: [[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/girlgenius_anevka2_6572.jpg]] |
| 156 | |
| 157 | Tarvek's debatably-living sister. After an ill-conceived MadScience experiment of her father's left her at death's door, her brother constructed a new robotic body that she could operate from within her life-support tank. |
| 158 | ---- |
| 159 | * AxCrazy: Can become this if in a bad mood. |
| 160 | * CameBackWrong: One possible interpretation of her actions after [[spoiler: having her heavily-damaged body placed in a portable life-support pod and hooked to a puppet-clank, which eventually replaced her without even realizing it; however, we never get a chance to see what she was like before her father strapped her into the Summoning Engine. Maybe she was ''always'' like this..]] |
| 161 | * CantKillYouStillNeedYou: It's all but outright stated that the only reason she hasn't killed her brother is because he's one of the few people who could repair her body if something happened. |
| 162 | * ClothingDamage: When she kills her father, it burns her dress. |
| 163 | * DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler:[[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060911 The real princess died ages ago.]] What we see is her personality imprinted into the robot she originally used to interact with the world. She didn't even realize she died!]] |
| 164 | * FauxAffablyEvil: Her initial appearance has her being polite and considerate towards Agatha, which almost immediately vanishes, showing that Anevka ([[spoiler:or rather the clank that thinks she's Anevka]]) is a dangerous and violent psychopath. |
| 165 | * GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Well, princess, but in the novel, Tarvek mentions that when she's in a bad mood, she tends to kill whoever's nearby. |
| 166 | * KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil: That she killed her father -- even ''if'' he deserved it -- is used to highlight just how ruthless and amoral she is. |
| 167 | * ManInTheMachine: A variant. [[spoiler:Subverted--the "man" died years ago, and the machine didn't even notice]]. |
| 168 | * PerpetualSmiler: Her mouth is designed to look like it's perpetually smiling. |
| 169 | * PsychoElectro: Anevka is a little too fond of using her shock abilities on anyone who gets in her way. |
| 170 | * PutOnABus: She hasn't been seen since [[spoiler:Tarvek deactivated her in Sturmhalten. He then removed her CranialProcessingUnit and [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060915 replaced it]] with one containing the Other's personality. ''And hasn't mentioned that to anyone yet.'' This is concerning to say the least, especially as Other!Anevka was [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110516 last seen]] controlling Klaus via slaver-wasp.]] |
| 171 | ** TheBusCameBack: [[spoiler: Turns out the Clank Lucrezia that attacked [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20190909 Agatha's group]] trying to stop them from getting the Lucrezia in Agatha's mind out is actually [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20191014 the Other in Anevka's body herself.]] Once Tarvek learns this, he shows that he can still control her body in spite of all the modifications.]] |
| 172 | * ReplacementGoldfish: [[spoiler:She's nothing more than a replacement for '''real''' Anevka, there to make Prince Aaronev feel less guilt over using his own daughter as a guinea pig. Also for Tarvek.]] |
| 173 | -->'''Tarvek:''' I am -- ''[[spoiler:was]]'', very fond of my sister. I want you to know -- my father was not the only one comforted by your presence. |
| 174 | * RobotGirl: Her mechanical body is designed to look like a human woman. [[spoiler:She's more robot than she appeared.]] |
| 175 | * RoboticPsychopath: More than happy to kill family members if it gives her an advantage. |
| 176 | * SelfMadeOrphan: She killed her father and it's strongly implied in the second novelization that she did the same thing to her mother. |
| 177 | * ShockAndAwe: She can re-route her power system to deliver lethal electric shocks... |
| 178 | * TomatoInTheMirror: [[spoiler:The real Anevka died long ago, leaving her personality imprinted on the robot half. This personality is unaware her human parts have perished entirely.]] |
| 179 | * TheseusShipParadox: [[spoiler:One of the heartbreaking human examples. Initially, Anevka's remains -- contained in the carboy carried by footmen -- controlled the clank body attached to the carboy by cables like a puppet, but as she weakened, the clank did more and more on her own. In the end, the clank didn't even notice when she died. The only one aware of the whole process was Tarvek, and apparently the clank was so much like his sister even ''he'' is unsure exactly when she died]]. |
| 180 | * UnlimitedWardrobe: She goes through many very fabulous costumes. |
| 181 | * VillainousBreakdown: After having nearly gotten away with her plan, she has a complete freak-out when Tarvek reveals [[spoiler:what she really is.]] |
| 182 | * VillainousPrincess: The princess of Sturmhalten and batshit crazy. |
| 183 | * WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: [[spoiler:Once it's revealed that the real Anevka died and her clank body unknowingly grew self aware, the story treats her like she was nothing but a ReplacementGoldfish Tarvek kept around to make himself feel better about failing to save his sister. However, she was still a perfect copy of Anevka's mind, fully sentient with human emotions and capable thinking and acting independently. When Tarvek stashes her CranialProcessingUnit away in a cupboard to reuse her body for Lucrezia, he tells her to "Sleep well, Anevka", so apparently he wasn't intending to just throw her away like trash.]] |
| 184 | [[/folder]] |
| 185 | |
| 186 | [[AC:von Blitzengaard family]] |
| 187 | [[folder:Martellus von Blitzengaard aka "Tweedle"]] |
| 188 | !!Martellus von Blitzengaard, Usurper of the Lightning Throne |
| 189 | [[quoteright:187:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/martellusvonblitzengaard_7916.png]] |
| 190 | |
| 191 | A cousin of Tarvek and the self-proclaimed Storm King. |
| 192 | ---- |
| 193 | * AcquiredPoisonImmunity: Tweedle is immune to the [[spoiler:sedative-laced Corbettite cakes, which poses a problem for our heroine (who was not immune). However, an [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial invisible hand came out of nowhere]] and konked him with a blackjack.]] |
| 194 | * AndNowYouMustMarryMe: His primary interest with Agatha is to marry her, thus fulfilling the old "Storm King x Heterodyne" prophecy and cementing his claim to the Lightning Crown. However, his skills with women appear to be less than ideal to say the very least. |
| 195 | * ArtificialLimbs: [[spoiler:Agatha helps him replace his left hand with a mechanical one after it's poisoned by a rebel Smoke Knight.]] |
| 196 | * AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: He was able to retain his hold on the Storm King title once Tarvek was written off by being a better killer than the assassins they sent after him. |
| 197 | * AtLeastIAdmitIt: He states that Tarvek was only using Agatha for his own ends. When Agatha asks if he's any better, he says "Of course not. But '''I'll''' be '''honest''' with you about it, which I can see '''he''' never was." |
| 198 | * TheAtoner: Makes a point to stop pushing Agatha and wait on her to help him first. He refuses to be (intentionally) impolite or wake her up early in the morning for it. Agatha, still thinking he just wants to use her, [[HonorBeforeReason calls him an idiot.]] He still fails, however, as he still tries to flirt instead of just admitting what he feels. |
| 199 | * AttackAttackAttack: Martellus will attack his foe with absolutely no consideration for defense or feasibility of victory. [[TheDreaded Dreen]]? Smush it, it's done with. Wulfenbach clank brigade? Charge! Gil Wulfenbach himself? Damn the dead sparkhounds, my crippled hands, and crippled mecha that came here to extract me! KILL HIMMMMMM!!!! |
| 200 | * TheBeastMaster: His Sparky specialty seems to lie in modified animals. And he genuinely cares about them, and they are loyal to him in turn. |
| 201 | * BelligerentSexualTension: He tries to invoke this with Agatha; after a conversation with a Jaeger, he decides that the best way to impress her is to "be a bigger monster." Unfortunately for him, Agatha is not the monster her ancestors were, and therefore she doesn't appreciate his [[NoSenseOfPersonalSpace aggressive flirting]]. To his credit, he learns quickly and gives up on this particular strategy. |
| 202 | * BenevolentBoss: In general. His knights and sparkhounds are fiercely loyal to him and he returns their dedication. When [[spoiler:Andronicus turns several of his men into zombies,]] Martellus puts them down as respectfully as he can and is furious with the man responsible. He also acknowledges the value in the Knights of Jove's smoke knights and tries to avoid wasting their lives if he can help it. That said, he's not above executing a minion who defies his direct orders and patronizes him in the process. Krosp also notes that he genuinely cares for his creations, which is a rarity among Sparks. |
| 203 | * BigBadWannabe: He's kind of been outclassed ever since his [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20121031 first appearance]]. And since then he's been treated as a chew toy by both Agatha and Gil. [[spoiler: Except now King Valois, Baron Wulfenbach, and Master Voltaire are all dead or incapacitated, and Tarvek isn't in the best position to reclaim his position as top condender for the Storm King's throne, so Martellus has it on lock for the time being.]] |
| 204 | * BigScrewedUpFamily: |
| 205 | ** As with all the Valois clans, he is deeply involved in their backstabbing scheming. |
| 206 | --->'''Martellus:''' Every single time I think I have killed the person responsible for usurping my command, I find there's someone else '''higher up''', still '''fighting''' me. Now, don't get me wrong, I can kill family members all day and '''know''' I'm making the world a better place -- But smoke knights take time and money to train -- And I'd rather not waste too many of them. So, will killing '''you''' solve my problem, or-- |
| 207 | ** And then immediately subverted by the arrival of his little sister, who he seems to show genuine affection for, and who seems to reciprocate. Though she's still willing to risk him as bait. |
| 208 | * ButtMonkey: |
| 209 | ** His introduction is... a bit embarassing. Despite having a showy entrance, he is completely outplayed by Klaus, his clank suit gets destroyed by a Dreen, and he's basically forced into a bit player role for the rest of the battle. It's only until Klaus suddenly shows up that he suddenly seizes his moment, nabs Agatha and surprises Tarvek with a poisoned knife, and even then it turns out this really ended up being surprisingly helpful for almost everyone involved. |
| 210 | ** Goes through a decent amount of this during the Corbettite arc, despite also being a serious threat at the time. The monks' general mocks him, the rampaging monster-train humiliates him more than once, Agatha subjects him to a GroinAttack ''and'' [[spoiler:he loses an army of bears to Krosp. And then he gets talked down to by Klaus-in-Gil and Lucrezia-in-Agatha. And as a final insult, he gets blackjacked by Violetta, [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial without any]] of the [[IllPretendIDidntHearThat Corbettites seeing her]].]] |
| 211 | ** This seems to be a recurring thing for him. While he ends the Paris arc in a good place, having done more to solidify his position as the Storm King, he's also despised by Agatha's group, Agatha is moving well out of his reach (England), his own sister is plotting behind his back to make sure Agatha hooks up with Tarvek instead of him (in a misguided attempt to get herself with Gil), the Empire, with Gil as its head, is unlikely to recognize him as Storm King despite his heroics in Paris given Gil would obviously favor Tarvek as long as Tarvek is an option (as evidenced by Martellus sending assassins after Tarvek to get rid of him), AND he loses said top assassin and many of his beloved sparkhounds in said assassination attempt. |
| 212 | ** In ''[[ThrowTheDogABone spite]]'' of all of this, he eventually [[spoiler:claims the crown of the Storm King through defeating his ancestor, albeit with help.]] But then, see below under HoistByHisOwnPetard. |
| 213 | * CasanovaWannabe: Several of his associates and family members imply that he has rather terrible luck with women. His blunt approach to everything seems to be a large part of the problem. |
| 214 | * CatchAndReturn: Does this with two poisoned knives (caught by handles) at once. |
| 215 | * CharacterDevelopment: Since his arrival in England, he's shown some hints of this, including nixing a suggestion to have Agatha subdued and captured again -- because he wants her to see him as a genuine ally. |
| 216 | * CompositeCharacter: InUniverse, a Heterodyne show put on by Master Payne's Circus of Adventure combines Martellus' title and mechanical arm with Wilhelm Sturmvoraus' familial relations to an "evil mechanical daughter", namely Anevka Sturmvoraus. |
| 217 | * CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Although he may seem like a goofy oaf at first glance, he has shown to be an exceptional combatant and strategist, in addition to being able to fight off and even kill a handful of Smoke Knights with no difficulty. And he is still a Spark after all, which is why Tarvek (reluctantly) keeps Gil from fighting him and even recruits him to help get The Other out of Agatha. |
| 218 | * DidntThinkThisThrough: |
| 219 | ** [[spoiler:Trying to control Agatha by altering her body-chemistry makes him just as dependent on physical contact with her as she (originally) requires from him. He's damned lucky that Agatha, while she hates him and ''immediately'' created an alternative for touching him, prefers not to let him die.]] |
| 220 | ** When going to investigate 'The Beast', he assumes he'll be fine since the creature eats metal, not people -- forgetting about his (now metal) left hand. |
| 221 | * DragonAscendant: He was Dimitri Vapnoople's apprentice when the latter man caused all kinds of trouble in Europa with his rampaging armies of animal constructs. |
| 222 | * EnemyMine: Offers an alliance, since even if he considers Tarvek and Gil to be rivals for control over Europa, the fact remains that the Other is slowly but surely winning, and her victory would leave none of them an empire to fight over. |
| 223 | * EntertaininglyWrong: He [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20130531 promises]] Agatha that [[AtLeastIAdmitIt he'll be honest with her about not being any better than Tarvek,]] assuming his cousin never was. However, Tarvek ''has'' been [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20101129 up front about not being a good person.]] |
| 224 | * EvilCounterpart: Although he is initially presented as an EvilCounterpart to Tarvek (their Sparky predilections and means of education are even in contrast, as Tarvek's signature is reverse-engineering [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots the Muses]] which he learned to do from Van Rijn's notes while Martellus's is [[TheBeastMaster modified animals like his Sparkhounds]] which he learned from his mentor Dr. Vapnoople), he mirrors Gil better. Like Gil, he's blunt, physically powerful, not good with people, and tends to treat his peers like children. At the same time, he has people he cares about and harming them or worse leads to both of them losing their shit. Unlike Gil, he's perfectly willing to use murder as a first solution, [[spoiler:administers various types of mind control]] on people he can't kill for whatever reason, and where Gil tends to treat those who can't keep up with him as children to be corralled and protected, Martellus tends to treat those he sees as his "lessers" and as disposable pawns. It's Lampshaded by Tarvek's "Martellus insider" Norville, who thinks Gil and Martellus would get along well if Tarvek was dead. |
| 225 | * EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: |
| 226 | ** Gets pissed off when his men are suddenly turned into zombie-like revenants thanks to a weapon [[spoiler:wielded by Andronicus]]. [[AFatherToHisMen He genuinely considered some of them his friends]] and when he has to put down them down, he tells them who they once were before telling them to rest. |
| 227 | ** And he appears to be genuinely fond of his sister, and has openly praised her intellect. |
| 228 | ** Krosp observes that he genuinely cares for his creations, which is rare among Sparks. |
| 229 | * EvenEvilHasStandards: |
| 230 | ** He also claims he would set aside his crown in an instant if it would end the machinations of the Other once and for all. Agatha doesn't trust him an inch but decides she does believe him about that, likely because of the above. |
| 231 | ** He is fully aware that most of [[BigScrewedUpFamily his family and erstwhile allies]] are as much or more of a stain on Europa as he is, and killing them is doing the world a favor. |
| 232 | ** The Corbettite abbot notes that supposedly, someone from Martellus' family stole something valuable from him, fled to their fortress, and released a monster imprisoned within while Martellus brought an army to their doorstep to recover his stolen property. Leading the abbot to accuse him of having planned the entire affair to give himself an excuse to "heroically aid the monks" via bringing his army into the stronghold of a famously independent sect. Martellus is taken aback by the accusation and swears he did not have such a scheme, [[SubvertedTrope before being impressed the abbot thought of something so devious]] and offering him a job as one of his advisors. |
| 233 | * EvilCannotComprehendGood: A relatively mild example, but Martellus is ''utterly'' baffled as to why stabbing Tarvek in the heart with a poisoned dagger caused Agatha to start trying to kill him with everything she had (which, unfortunately, wasn't a lot at that moment). In his own words, "Don't tell me you're upset about Tarvek? Don't worry, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness he's not longer of any use to you."]] |
| 234 | * FluffyTamer: Oddly enough, he seems to be a Sparky version of this (though he probably wouldn't bother with cute names). As noted below, he created singing bears, bred his own Sparkhounds (and evidently {{uplifted|Animal}} at least one of them) -- and during the arc involving the Beast (a sentient train-like construct), his suggestions have involved animal behaviorist techniques (creating bait/toys to distract it). Maybe he'd be happier running a Manga/{{pet shop|OfHorrors}}... |
| 235 | * TheFriendNobodyLikes: He's been turning into this after getting handed several defeats by the protagonists; [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20200518 in the 2020 strips,]] he, Agatha, Gil and Tarvek are going to a royal ball in London as a group. He's an able Spark with considerable power who is willing to join the fight against the Other, so they're willing to put up with him now that he's toned things down a notch. But they ''still'' don't like him. |
| 236 | * GroinAttack: Agatha gives him perhaps the single most deserved one '''''[[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20141222 EVER]].''''' Shortly after meeting Agatha for the first time, he [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20130603 did something to her]] so she would ''die'' without regular physical contact with him. Agatha quickly replicates the effect with a wasp weasel, but after such an intimate trespass, the thought of any contact with him drives her to screaming rage. Similar attacks can thus be expected. |
| 237 | * TheHeavy: He's the most present antagonist from Vol. XIII to around Vol. 2-2 (15). He's the one who kidnapped Agatha, meddled with her body, and [[spoiler:pressured the Corbettites into recognizing his claim]]. But after entering Paris, he takes a backseat as the TokenEvilTeammate of Agatha's party. |
| 238 | * HiddenDepths: |
| 239 | ** When [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20140411 interrogating a Jaeger he discovers fought his ancestor, the first Storm King]], he surprisingly takes time to ask questions about Euphrosynia and why she betrayed Andronicus. The question and [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20140414 exchange afterwards]] reveal that he is a romantic like the rest of his family. In fact, it could be seen that his motivations for bad behavior is for pragmatic reasons along with his own shortcomings messing with it. |
| 240 | ** He does have some family he cares about along with the men who serve him he considers friends. The fact he acknowledges them as good men shows implies that he knows they are better morally than him. He ain't [[BerserkButton happy with what the Storm King forced him to do.]] |
| 241 | ** And he's proven to be very sharp on the subject of the mentality of animal constructs; evidently he was Vapnoople's apprentice for a reason. |
| 242 | ** Martellus actually appreciates Krosp giving him several TheReasonYouSuckSpeech. Though insulting, Krosp is giving him useful criticism he can learn from. |
| 243 | * HoistByHisOwnPetard: It turns out that [[spoiler:his messing with his and Agatha's body chemistry resulted in him needing her physical touch to survive as much as she needs his. Or more so for a while, since she has the weasels she modified to alleviate the effect on her, while it took Martellus longer to create his own stopgap.]] |
| 244 | * IdiotBall: |
| 245 | ** Grabs one when dealing with a mysterious creature at the Corbettitie base. He insists they won't be devoured since the monks have stated that the monster only eats metal. Not only do the monks point out that the creature wants revenge on them and thus they ''are'' very much in danger, but Tweedle has forgotten that his prosthetic hand is made of metal. [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20141222 Soon after that]], he grabs ''Agatha'' in a borderline IHaveYouNowMyPretty way... with [[GroinAttack predictable results]] (see previous entry). |
| 246 | ** Decides to use Andronicus' sword [[spoiler:to attack the undead Andronicus in Paris]], which Agatha instantly calls out for how bad a plan it is. Sure enough he's eventually disarmed and the sword is picked up by the person they very much did not want to have it. |
| 247 | * InLoveWithTheMark: While he started out viewing Agatha only as a potential political tool, it turns out that [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20200717 he's developed actual feelings for her]] -- not that she knows that, nor would she be likely to believe it if someone told her. Besides, as Krosp points out, [[AbhorrentAdmirer she (entirely justifiably) hates him]]. |
| 248 | * InSeriesNickname: Tarvek calls him "Tweedle". |
| 249 | * KissOfDistraction: [[spoiler:Gives one to the copy of Lucrezia possessing Agatha, resulting in her saying that she will save killing him for last and distracting her long enough to attach a helmet designed to extract her from Agatha's head. Agatha is later both thankful and disgusted.]] Interestingly, [[spoiler:he appears likewise disgusted at having kissed Lucrezia]], [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20191115 wiping his mouth]] after the aforementioned kiss. |
| 250 | * KlingonPromotion: Secures his claim to the Lightning Throne by killing [[spoiler:the undead Andronicus Valois]]. |
| 251 | * KnightInShiningArmor: He tries to present himself as one of these upon meeting Agatha, with his army marching against the Baron's to protect Mechanicsburg. |
| 252 | * LargeHam: An InvokedTrope (unlike most Sparks) because he's playing the KnightInShiningArmor come to save the DamselInDistress. |
| 253 | * LifeOrLimbDecision: Tweedle takes a poisoned smoke knight dagger to the left hand. He eventually cuts it off to stop the poison, and Agatha creates a prosthetic replacement for it while sleep-sparking (as she'd be unlikely to ''voluntarily'' help the brute). |
| 254 | * LovePotion: As he said, in the fifth panel of [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20130603 this]], [[spoiler:he was originally planning to control Agatha with a formula developed by his great aunt Rappaccini, which would have made her his adoring slave. The only downside is that it would have made her unbearably stupid. And since he recognized how strong a Spark she was, he realized she was too useful to do that to]]. |
| 255 | * MadeOfIron: Took a chair to the back of his head from Agatha, only for him to shrug it off and tell her to stop it. Later recovered very quickly from being shot in the side. He also can still contribute Sparky ideas while recovering from a GroinAttack. |
| 256 | * MadScientist: He's a Spark, and was apparently the apprentice to [[spoiler:Krosp's creator, Dr. Dimitri Vapnoodle.]] |
| 257 | * MoralMyopia: Played straight and partially justified. Tarvek honestly isn't that much better than Martellus is, yet more people respect and like Tarvek than Martellus. Tarvek is much more sociable and affable than Martellus and is more willing to talk first while Martellus is okay with killing right off the bat. Tarvek is also okay with killing in cold blood and can and will beat and strangle people to death with his own two hands. That being said, Martellus is much better at keeping his family in line as they are more easily scared than manipulated into submission. |
| 258 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: As seems to be traditional within his extended family. His name means "Hammer from the Manor of Lightning". |
| 259 | * NiceJobFixingItVillain: If Martellus didn't kidnap Agatha precisely when he did, then he, she, Krosp and Violetta would have been frozen in time by the Baron. This means that the Other could have successfully attacked Paris and London and the Beast could have destroyed the Corbettites. Similarly, if Gil had retrieved Agatha from the time field, then the Klaus imprint on his mind might have killed her on the spot. |
| 260 | * NobleDemon: |
| 261 | ** Evil as he may be, he [[AFatherToHisMen genuinely cares for his men]] and is horrified when they're [[spoiler:zombified by the undead Valois.]] He puts them down with epithets before returning to fight the Storm King, this time ''utterly pissed off.'' |
| 262 | ** [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20240429 Later at Mechanicsburg when talking to Krosp]], he asks how Vapnoople's bears were doing, hoping that they were happy and doing well. After confirming as such, Krosp realizes that Martellus ''genuinely cares'' about his creations, a rarity in sparks, and that while the nobility (except maybe his sister) would not even weep for him if he died, his creations would greatly mourn him. Krosp takes the opportunity to give him advice about being a true king, that being protecting those loyal to him. |
| 263 | * NotMeThisTime: He actually does this to ''himself''. When the Master summons his army, Martellus starts freaking out. |
| 264 | -->'''Martellus:''' EEK! Monsieur Machines! ''It's the Gendarmy!'' ...Wait... calm down... This isn't my fault. I've done ''nothing wrong.''\ |
| 265 | '''Master Voltaire:''' '''''Martellus Von Blitzengaard!''''' Why am I not surprised?!\ |
| 266 | '''Martellus:''' AH! It wasn't me Master Voltaire, honest! |
| 267 | * NotSoHarmlessVillain: He's introduced getting duped by the Baron and having his clank effortlessly destroyed by a dreen, but then he goes and kidnaps Agatha and stabs Tarvek with a poisoned knife. |
| 268 | * ObfuscatingStupidity: As with the rest of the Sturmvoraus family, his seemingly goofy manner is all just an act to cover up a more sinister agenda, which becomes obvious when he whispers to Tarvek that Agatha [[spoiler:should have been killed, since she will make a hard-to-control [[PuppetKing Puppet Queen.]]]] Violetta expresses surprise that he uses Spark Hounds, mentioning that he used to make miniature singing bears. |
| 269 | * PayEvilUntoEvil: While putting down rebellious [[BigScrewedUpFamily family members,]] he states he knows he can kill family members all day and know he's still making the world a better place. And he's not wrong in that either. |
| 270 | * PragmaticVillainy: |
| 271 | ** His most secure bolthole inside his home fortress was set up by himself, without any minions. Agatha questions why he didn't just kill them, and Martellus points out that this is a world where death keeps very few secrets. |
| 272 | ** He decides against using a special drug to turn Agatha into his adoring slave, since it would also destroy her intelligence and her Spark, and she's far too useful with those intact. |
| 273 | ** He tries to end his family's efforts to stop him asserting his authority as quickly as possible because, while he has no love for said family members and is perfectly willing to keep killing them, he's also killing valuable smoke knights that will take a lot of time and effort to replace. |
| 274 | ** Later, he orders his troops to not harm the mind-controlled civilians attacking them. When they complain, he points out [[VillainWithGoodPublicity they are being watched.]] |
| 275 | * PrinceCharmless: Despite all of his hoity-toity talk, he's more or less just a brute. He kidnaps Agatha soon after meeting her, experiments on her in her sleep, and spends a lot of the following time creeping on her. The dude makes Othar Tryggvassen look like a more plausible romantic choice. |
| 276 | * ProperlyParanoid: Has a deep-seated dislike of [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20200918 Dr. Rakethorn]] because it's clear to see to everyone, with the possible exception of Gil and Agatha, that he and Ms. Thorpe are cutting in between Agatha and any potential lovers. He hasn't called it out directly, yet, because he is more diplomatic and less smug about noticing it than Tarvek. It just seems to annoy him. |
| 277 | * RoyalBlood: He is a descendant of the Storm King, and is next in line after Tarvek. Since Tarvek was written off as dead while trapped in the time bubble, he ascended to the throne. |
| 278 | * SmugSnake: He takes measures to ensure Agatha needs him alive, but [[spoiler:he [[UnderestimatingBadassery foolishly assumes]] that that alone will be enough to control her]]. |
| 279 | * SpearCounterpart: To Zola. Both of them are cousins to one of the main characters (Tarvek for Tweedle; Agatha for Zola) who, as part of the Knights of Jove's conspiracy, seek to [[TheUsurper usurp their respective cousins' rightful titles]] for themselves. They both [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20070427 introduce]] [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20121105 themselves]] with flowery speeches in Mechanicsburg. They both show themselves to be very [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20080404 prone]] to [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20130524 violence]] when in privacy. They were both students of one of Lucrezia's affiliates ([[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20190722 Vapnoople]] for Tweedle; [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100705 Milvistle]] for Zola). Interestingly, they both have their own {{Villainous Crush}}es on their [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110103 counterpart's]] [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20141222 respective]] cousins. |
| 280 | * StatingTheSimpleSolution: When observing the machine that Lucrezia has modified alongside Gil and Tarvek, he takes in Tarvek's observations on them trying to find said modifications and proposing to just ''rebuild'' the machine from scratch than risk trying to undo it and miss something. The two acknowledge his point. |
| 281 | * TokenEvilTeammate: Of Agatha's party during the Paris and England arcs, overlapping with being TheFriendNobodyLikes. But after the England arc, he no longer needs Agatha and seems to be getting back into his antagonistic role. |
| 282 | * TheUsurper: He took measures to have the cabal write Tarvek off after the Sturmhalten incident, since he was next in line to the Lightning Throne. Then he took measures to assassinate Tarvek. After the time skip, he maintains his grip on the throne [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership by killing anyone who tries to take it from him,]] but it's clear that ''no-one'' (except ''maybe'' his sister) actually wants him to be king. Multiple factions try to get to Tarvek, with varying levels of success, under the simple logic that [[DamnedByFaintPraise there's no way he can be worse than Martellus.]] His grip on the throne seems to be getting shakier. Krosp believes he won't survive the year, and the Muse of Geometries calculates his claim to be a [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20210303 "distant third, at best"]]. Neither Agatha nor Gil will recognize him as the Storm King either, with Agatha stating "Not even if it will free Mechanicsburg," and Colette [[spoiler:in her official capacity as the new Master of Paris]] was careful not to state him as such either, only recognizing his questionable claim. |
| 283 | * VillainousCrush: Tweedle happens to be interested in Agatha, part because marrying a Heterodyne is part of the whole Storm King mythos, and part because [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20200717 he's actually interested]] in her. Agatha on her side of things [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20141222 makes it clear]] that she's ''not'' interested. |
| 284 | * VillainousFriendship: When his henchmen are [[ZombifyTheLiving zombified]] by Andronicus Valois, he [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20170424 lays each of them to rest, reminding them of who they were, the good they did, and giving a brief blessing]] before returning to his battle with his ancestor. And when he does, he's ''pissed''. What had been a battle for the throne of the Storm King [[ItsPersonal is now personal.]] |
| 285 | * VillainousValor: Whatever his other faults, he is in no way a coward. |
| 286 | * VillainWithGoodPublicity: What his aims are in the Paris arc: to use his grandmother's pageant-party to declare himself the Storm King publicly in a major city in such a way as to endear himself to people. His battle against [[spoiler:the undead Andronicus]] plays right into this, even though Agatha, the Jägers, Tarvek, the Master, and Colette really do more of the work. It pays off as [[spoiler:Colette, the new leader of Paris]] seemingly recognizes him as the Storm King afterwards. Of course, if he had been paying more attention to her wording, he would have realized she wasn't actually recognizing his claim, but just saying he could leave in peace. |
| 287 | * TheVonTropeFamily: So far the only major aristocratic character to carry the German "von", a sign of nobility, in his name. |
| 288 | * WrongGenreSavvy: His plan to become the Storm King is solid. He knows how to exploit the politics of the nobility, and he gets religious leaders to back him, solidifying his claim. The problem is the Storm King has a mythology all on it's own, much like King Arthur, that he is ignoring. He is less familiar with the Muses than Tarvek is, having to ask one of them their name rather than recognizing them on sight like his cousin. The Muse in question, Orotine, tells him that he will need more than realpolitik to become the Storm King. |
| 289 | [[/folder]] |
| 290 | |
| 291 | [[folder:Xerxsephnia von Blitzengaard aka "Seffie"]] |
| 292 | !!Princess Xerxsephnia von Blitzengaard |
| 293 | [[quoteright:195:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/seffie_6087.png]] |
| 294 | Xerxsephina "Seffie" von Blitzengaard is the far more level-headed sister to Martellus von Blitzengaard, acting as the liason between Baron Gil Wulfenbach and the Knights of Jove after the TimeSkip and the resurgence of the Long War. |
| 295 | ---- |
| 296 | * ArrangedMarriage: She's trying to set one up between Gil and herself. She's well aware he's obsessed with Agatha, but is insistent that it would help stabilize everything if the two largest factions were joined by marriage. Gil is annoyed to note that she's right. |
| 297 | ** [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20171108 She elaborates to Tarvek later]] that she knows she'll end up in a political marriage one way or another, so she might as well choose ''who'' she wants to marry, and Gil is the best choice by far. It may not sound like a great marriage on paper, but she's determined to make it work. |
| 298 | * AffablyEvil: Evil is a big stretch, but she is manipulative and can be uncaring towards others livelihoods. Nevertheless, she's unfailingly charming. Gil regards her as an old friend, and Tarvek (who hates his family as a rule) says that she's a doll, while acknowledging that she's all the more dangerous for it. |
| 299 | * BadassNormal: She isn't a spark but that doesn't hinder her ability to scheme and manipulate others, such as Gil or her brother. It also doesn't stop her from being just as crazy as a Spark. |
| 300 | * ClingyJealousGirl: She's [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20151030 decidedly not a fan of Gil's crush on Agatha]]. Later, when Queen Albia is attempting to [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20200610 encourage a romance between Gil and Trelawney Thorpe]], Seffie is apoplectic. |
| 301 | * EvilLaugh: She's working on her harmonics. |
| 302 | * JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: She has a couple of moments during the attack on Paris. First, she tells her grandmother that she shouldn't beat the servants... because it's bad for her shoulder. Next, when Colette has trouble controlling the gargoyles, she asks her to avoid killing Martellus, because she needs him alive for her master plan. On the other hand, usefulness seems to overshadow affection in this family as a rule. |
| 303 | * MaskOfSanity: Possibly. While she seems affable enough even if a bit eccentric due to wanting to perfect maniacal laughter, she COMPLETELY loses it when the tea she is drinking "becomes cold" and she smashes the cup against the table several times. Of course, the real trigger is her being confronted with the fact that Gil loves Agatha rather than her. When she comes out of it, she apparently doesn't process that she broke the cup and casually blames it on one of her underlings. |
| 304 | * TheMatchmaker: Encourages Tarvek's crush on Agatha to get Agatha out of the way for her own crush on Gil, which also means she's opposing Martellus' claim to the Lightning Throne, as his claim basically hinges on him wedding Agatha. |
| 305 | * MenLikeDogsWomenLikeCats: When Tweedle decided to make an {{Uplifted|Animal}} cat, Seffie was [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20201012 all over the kitty]], and noted that Tweedle is "more of a ''huge hairy dog monster person''" (in reference to his Knights of the Hunt). |
| 306 | * NoSenseOfPersonalSpace: She's a bit hands-on when it comes to Gil. Not too much, not even enough for him to mention it, but enough to earn her a few glares. |
| 307 | * RedOniBlueOni: She is (at least when the subject isn't Gil) a more level-headed counterpart to her heavy-handed and brutal brother. |
| 308 | * SecretKeeper: Surprisingly, Gil trusts her enough to use her as a diplomatic messenger, even giving her papers meant to be placed "under the rock in catacombs." Furthermore, she appears to know [[spoiler:that Gil has his father riding around in his head]]. |
| 309 | * StalkerWithACrush: She has a borderline-psychotic crush on Gil and has been intercepting his letters since she was a child. |
| 310 | * SureLetsGoWithThat: Inadvertently starts a new fashion trend in Britain when she shows up at the Queen's court with candy in her hair, claiming it's fashion, rather than just admitting she slipped and fell and it got stuck in her hair. |
| 311 | * UnderestimatingBadassery: Like Klaus, Lucrezia, Vole, Martellus, and who knows how many others, [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20130807 Seffie underestimates Agatha]]. |
| 312 | * XanatosSpeedChess: She's very flexible in her planning, to the point of tossing ''the entire Knights of Jove agenda'' in the circular file after everything went pear-shaped and forming an alliance with the heir of the Empire they'd been planning to replace. |
| 313 | [[/folder]] |
| 314 | |
| 315 | [[AC:Selkinov family]] |
| 316 | [[folder:Lord Selnikov]] |
| 317 | !!Lord Rudolph Selnikov, Commander of the Knights of Jove |
| 318 | One of the Knights of Jove, Lord Selnikov assists Anevka in her attempt to usurp her brother. He also leads the Knights in their attack on Mechanicsburg, consequently getting himself killed by Gil. |
| 319 | ---- |
| 320 | * AwfulWeddedLife: He and Lady Selnikov despised one another, and Lord Selnikov is implied to have frequently cheated on her whenever she was away. The moment he realizes being reanimated will mean the end of his marriage he perks up and ask Dr. Sun is if he can have a plaque reading "Reanimated Abomination of Science" bolted to his forehead. |
| 321 | * BadassNormal: He's got no Spark, and is past his prime, but he's still surprisingly capable. |
| 322 | * BrainInAJar: Thanks to a mix of Gil's lightning stick and Vole's method of "recovering" his body, it's what he's been reduced to. |
| 323 | * DeathIsCheap: He was killed by Gil's attack, but revived since the Baron determined he'd possess information that would be of use to them. |
| 324 | * DirtyOldMan: Missed the news about his brother in-law being killed because he gave his staff orders to leave him alone for several hours, while his wife was away in Paris. Ahem. |
| 325 | * HiddenDepths: While not a Spark, the novels mention he does actually have a reasonably sharp brain, once it gets going. |
| 326 | * ObnoxiousInLaws: He's not too fond of his wife or his brother in-law, Prince Aaronev. |
| 327 | * OhCrap: Practically his default expression. |
| 328 | * PragmaticEvil: During the attempted take-over of Mechanicsburg, he stated he wanted to make it at least look like he wanted to do it without bloodshed. He also advised against antagonising the Jägermonsters. He also switches sides to Wulfenbach rather readily, citing how despite them being so ruthless, it's a step up from being in the DecadentCourt of the Knights of Jove. |
| 329 | * SecretKeeper: He is one of few that knows about Spark-infecting wasp. The others are Prince Aronev and the creator of the device himself. Well, and Tarvek, but he wasn't ''supposed'' to know. |
| 330 | [[/folder]] |
| 331 | |
| 332 | [[folder:Margarella]] |
| 333 | !! Lady Margarella Selnikov, Sturmvoraus Dissident |
| 334 | [[quoteright:159:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/margarella_228.png]] |
| 335 | Lady Margarella Selnikov (or "Aunt Marglotta" to Violetta) is the widow of Lord Rudolf Selnikov, a member of the Knights of Jove, and sister to Prince Aaronev. |
| 336 | ---- |
| 337 | * ActionSurvivor: She's made it as far as Agatha's auspices without being offed by Smoke Knights, but she certainly is not fighter material. Subverted when it turns out [[spoiler: she's orchestrated at least some of the railway attacks that seemed to be after her, in order to get to the Corbettites' base, and takes one of their members hostage]], [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20141022 as seen here.]] |
| 338 | * AllForNothing: [[spoiler: Turns out she was looking in the wrong vaults all along...]] |
| 339 | * AwfulWeddedLife: It's made more explicit in the novels, but she and her husband did not have a happy union. |
| 340 | * BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler:Turns out she was trying to get to the Corbettite fortress to go through their weapons stash, and deliberately leading the assassins to her.]] |
| 341 | * KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: Freeing the Beast? NOT a good idea. Violet herself verifies she is DEFINITELY dead.]] |
| 342 | * RavenHairIvorySkin: Goes well with her rather black travel dress as well. |
| 343 | * PetTheDog: As far as Violetta knows, either Margarella never tried to kill her or [[DamnedByFaintPraise didn't try particularly hard]], which counts as this in her book when compared to [[BigScrewedUpFamily the rest of their family.]] |
| 344 | * {{Protectorate}}: Thanks to Agatha's ChronicHeroSyndrome. She remains so even after her identity is revealed by Wooster. |
| 345 | * ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: She supports Tarvek over Tweedle, due to Tweedle being an absolutely horrible Storm King by any measure. She's on the lam because of it. This is [[ZigZaggingTrope zigzagged]]. It turns out [[spoiler:she's not remotely a good person at all.]] And then ''later'' it turns out [[spoiler: she wasn't working for either side, but the resolutely neutral Library. Except that the Library at the time was neutral in Tarvek's favor, so she may have still been a Tarvek loyalist after all.]] It's complicated. |
| 346 | * VillainousBreakdown: Loses it when [[spoiler:her targeted Corbettite vault doesn't contain whatever it is she's looking for. She runs around [[IdiotBall frantically opening other vaults willy-nilly]], until she gets to the one containing [[KilledOffscreen The Beast]]..]] |
| 347 | [[/folder]] |
| 348 | |
| 349 | [[AC:Other family members]] |
| 350 | [[folder:Dio Zardeliv]] |
| 351 | !!Dr. Dio Zardeliv, Uncle Tick-tock |
| 352 | [[quoteright:134:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zardeliv.png]] |
| 353 | %% [[caption-width-right:134:some caption text]] |
| 354 | |
| 355 | Violeta's great-uncle Dr. Zardeliv is a Spark and professor whose study is focused on time, making him very in demand after Mechanicsburg was frozen by the Take-Five Bomb. Last seen in the company of the rogue Other allied Smoke Knight Madwa Korel. |
| 356 | ---- |
| 357 | * FakingTheDead: After leaving the Immortal Library he and Madwa killed one of the librarians he was with and doctored his corpse to look like Zardeliv. |
| 358 | * KilledOffForReal: His body was found on the smuggler's submarine he and Madwa used to get to England and was identified by Violeta, though Madwa's supposed body was found as well and she turned up alive. |
| 359 | [[/folder]] |
| 360 | |
| 361 | [[AC:Smoke Knights]] |
| 362 | [[folder:Malek]] |
| 363 | !!Malek, A Stonemason at Heart |
| 364 | [[quoteright:110:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/malek_0.png]] |
| 365 | |
| 366 | A Smoke Knight based out of Paris who serves Martellus von Blitzengaard. |
| 367 | |
| 368 | ---- |
| 369 | * DistractedByTheSexy: Varpa is able to distract him even though he knows that that's what she was sent to do, he's still following Agatha he's just not paying as much attention as he ought to. |
| 370 | * HiddenDepths: He studied Ecclesiastical Architecture at University and considers himself a stonemason at heart, as he puts it ''"Being a Smoke Knight is what I do not what I am."'' |
| 371 | * HiddenWeapons: None of his weapons are seen unless he's using them. It's likely Smoke Knights often wear capes to help make hiding weapons easier. |
| 372 | * KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler:Skewered from behind [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20161017 while talking to Violetta.]]]] |
| 373 | * ImpossibleThief: Smoke Knights are all capable of this and at one point he and Varpa are able to take Agatha's notes, read them over, and return them without being noticed by the two very good warriors on guard. |
| 374 | * McNinja: He's a Smoke Knight. |
| 375 | * OffscreenTeleportation / OffscreenRealityWarp: All part of the a good Smoke Knight's repertoire. |
| 376 | * OneHeadTaller: Malek is one of the taller Smoke Knights while Varpa is one of the shortest and they grow attached while working together and making out. |
| 377 | * PerformanceAnxiety: Malek is generally quite good at his job, but is used to working alone. Working with a partner [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20160509 leads to potentially fatal mistakes:]] |
| 378 | -->'''Varpa:''' Are you ''trying'' to kill us?!\ |
| 379 | '''Malek:''' I'm used to working ''alone!'' I get ''nervous'' when someone's ''watching!'' |
| 380 | * StealthExpert: He and Varpa follow Agatha's group for a couple of days and are only noticed by the Smoke Knight in the group even though the rest of the group is made up of a couple of Sparks, a WarriorPrincess, a [[TheSpymaster Master Spy]] a SuperSoldier and a clever seasoned adventurer. |
| 381 | * StealthHiBye: He is a Smoke Knight so this is a basic part of his repertoire, he and Varpa were able to look over Agatha's notes while Dimo and Zeetha were on watch without even being noticed, though Violetta was aware of their presence. |
| 382 | * SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:The Geisterdamen announce their presence in Paris and the fact that they've been alerted to Agatha's group by spearing him through the chest with some kind of hook on a rope and yanking him out of the carriage to toss him away off the rooftops.]] |
| 383 | * WorfEffect: The Geisterdamen [[spoiler:occasionally need to show the audience just how deadly they are. Even top level Smoke Knights can be sneak killed by them. ]] Though, to be fair, he was distracted at the time. |
| 384 | [[/folder]] |
| 385 | |
| 386 | [[folder:Varpa]] |
| 387 | !!Varpa, Poet and Smoke Knight |
| 388 | [[quoteright:110:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/varpa.png]] |
| 389 | |
| 390 | A Smoke Knight who serves Xerxsephina "Seffie" von Blitzengaard. |
| 391 | |
| 392 | ---- |
| 393 | * BadassCape: Her dark purple cape is hooded so that she can hide her hair and eyepatch. |
| 394 | * BlowGun: She uses a blow gun to take out a Geisterdamen with poison. |
| 395 | * EmotionSuppression: After Malek, who she'd been growing to care about, is unceremoniously killed and tossed off a roof by a Geisterdamen she has a conversation with Zeetha that hints this is part of a Smoke Knight's training though she takes a minute to get there herself. |
| 396 | -->'''Zeetha:''' This could be a rough fight, are you going to be okay?\ |
| 397 | '''Varpa:''' Of course. Smoke feels nothing. —and when they are dead I will be ''very'' okay. |
| 398 | * EyepatchOfPower: Though her low hood usually hides the eyepatch. |
| 399 | * HandwrapsOfAwesome: Varpa keeps her hands wrapped in bandages to prevent injury while fighting and to make handling poisons safer. |
| 400 | * HiddenDepths: She writes poetry about cheese, publishing it under a pseudonym. |
| 401 | * HiddenWeapons: None of her weapons are seen unless she's using them except the knife at her belt. |
| 402 | * HoneyTrap: How she interpreted Seffie's order to "get in [Malek's] way a bit." In a twist, Malek was aware of what she was doing and didn't seem to mind. |
| 403 | -->'''Malek:''' Does this mean no more kissing?\ |
| 404 | '''Varpa:''' ...''less'' kissing. |
| 405 | * ImpossibleThief: Smoke Knights are all capable of this and at one point she and Malek are able to take Agatha's notes, read them over, and return them without being noticed by the two very good warriors on guard. |
| 406 | * InstantSeduction: Her Lady knows she's capable of this when she sends her to get in Martellus' Smoke Knight's way, and indeed by the time she's seen again the two appear to be in the early stages of a relationship though they've known each other for at most a day and a half. |
| 407 | * KissOfDistraction: She's been distracting Malek from the mission Martellus sent him on with kisses but they've hit it off even though they know they're working against each other. |
| 408 | * McNinja: As are all other Smoke Knights she is essentially a European ninja. |
| 409 | * OffscreenTeleportation / OffscreenRealityWarp: All part of the standard competent Smoke Knight repertoire. |
| 410 | * StealthExpert: She and Malek follow Agatha's group for a couple of days and are only noticed by the Smoke Knight in the group even though the rest of the group is made up of a couple of Sparks, a WarriorPrincess, a [[TheSpymaster Master Spy]] a SuperSoldier and a clever seasoned adventurer. |
| 411 | * StealthHiBye: All part of a Smoke Knight's repertoire. She and Malek were able to look over Agatha's notes while Dimo and Zeetha were on watch without either of them noticing. |
| 412 | * UncertainDoom: [[spoiler: The last we see of her, she's going to try and cross a revenant-infested Paris to reach Seffie's location. She's not there when we/the other characters finally arrive at said location, and the next time we see Seffie accompanied by a Smoke Knight attendant, it's not Varpa.]] |
| 413 | [[/folder]] |
| 414 | |
| 415 | [[folder:Veilchen]] |
| 416 | !!Veilchen, Smoke Knight |
| 417 | |
| 418 | One of the Smoke Knights who worked for Tarvek's faction. He "parted ways" with the rescue party leaving them in an oubliette and told Violetta about the hunt on Tarvek's Smoke Knights when he was wounded himself. Seems to be a very popular dude. |
| 419 | |
| 420 | ---- |
| 421 | * TheAce: Tarvek explicitly calls him "one of the best." |
| 422 | ** InformedAttribute: He doesn't have chance to prove his competency and get GameBreakingInjury because he forgets the monster they escaped. |
| 423 | * BaldOfEvil: He's more of a [[NothingPersonal cold-blooded professional]], but the archetype is here. |
| 424 | * GameBreakingInjury: His right arm is broken after the mission in the Sturmhalten sewers, forcing him to rest. |
| 425 | * IdiotBall: |
| 426 | ** Sure, he escapes from an oubliette in pretty badass fashion, but forgets about the pursuing monsters that caused him to fall into the thing in the first place. |
| 427 | ** He also manages to forget that if you sneak through a sewer, you're going to pong a bit afterwards. |
| 428 | * LaserGuidedKarma: See VillainBall below. He gets that after he abandoned the group for their fate. |
| 429 | * McNinja: As a Smoke Knight, he's basically a European ninja. |
| 430 | * OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: The monster catches him and he screamed. Next time he appears he reports to Tarvek. |
| 431 | [[/folder]] |
| 432 | |
| 433 | [[folder:Madwa Korel]] |
| 434 | !!Madwa Korel, Rogue Smoke Knight |
| 435 | [[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/madwa.png]] |
| 436 | |
| 437 | The master of a rogue Smoke Knight cell that still serves The Other even after Grandmother divested the Knights of Jove cabal of her/it/them and all followers. |
| 438 | ---- |
| 439 | * AnArmAndALeg: [[spoiler: The freed Storm King grabs her arm and does ''something'' unpleasant to it, leaving a blackened remnant. Interestingly, it's fully restored later on.]] |
| 440 | * DidntSeeThatComing: Madwa was fully prepared for many complications when stealing Prende's Lantern, able to lay hands on it even with the interference of Agatha and her allies, but [[spoiler:the fact the lantern was [[SealedEvilInACan keeping the revived Storm King in a state of stasis]] was not one of them, and she gets her hand rotted to a skeletal state when she's unexpectedly grabbed by him]]. |
| 441 | ** An {{Inversion}} occurs later on, in that she ''does'' see it coming, which is precisely why it takes her off-guard. [[spoiler:Madwa surprises Raketorn and the sea-dwellers he's running away from with Prende's lantern, catching them all in a time stop before they even know she's there, and realises to her surprise that she apparently also caught Violetta in the act of sneaking up behind her to stab her InTheBack, leaving her helpless and frozen, before dismissing the smoke knight's immobilised presence when trying to decide how to deal with the interlopers... only to then remember that the lantern only freezes time for any being caught in its light and [[RightBehindMe Violetta's merely pretending to be immobilised]] right before she gets shanked]]. In her defence, she did note that she was ''very'' tired from non-stop patrolling right before then, leading to her slip-up. |
| 442 | * EnemyMine: Not her specifically, but standing orders from "Grandmother" state that all Smoke Knight cells still loyal to the cabal are to set aside [[DecadentCourt rivalries and cross purposes]] to seek out and destroy Madwa's cell (and any other rogue Other-loyal cells) should they be encountered. |
| 443 | * EvilCounterpart: To Violetta. While Violetta is a loyal Smoke Knight tasked with guarding Tarvek (and therefore also Agatha), Madwa is a rogue Smoke Knight whose loyalty is to the Other. |
| 444 | * HeKnowsTooMuch: She is all set to kill the pilot that smuggled her past England's patrols to keep him quiet, up until being impressed by the fact that he knew all along and was too apathetic to care. |
| 445 | -->'''Madwa:''' Well, ''now'' I kind of want to keep him. |
| 446 | * ImpossibleThief: Think Violetta's pickpocketing ability, only better. |
| 447 | * MasterPoisoner: Her poisons are well known to other smoke knights. Made from extremely rare ingredients, to boot. |
| 448 | %%* McNinja: As per all Smoke Knights. |
| 449 | * NinjaLog: She leaves this when she avoids incoming attacks. Yes, the model is similar to the person it stands for. |
| 450 | * NeverMessWithGranny: She's an old woman, but still an expert smoke knight. |
| 451 | * OhCrap: Has a brief moment of this [[spoiler:when she realizes that Violetta is right behind her, knife raised and isn't in the time stop field projected by Prende's Lantern. Even she isn't quick enough to avoid getting a knife in the back.]] |
| 452 | * OldMaster: In a profession that may not exactly have a long lifespan, Madwa is an old woman and still at the top of her game. |
| 453 | * ShoutOut: Of the ironic variety. Madwa has a diamond tattoo on her forehead -- in ''Literature/{{Dune}}'', this tattoo is worn by Suk doctors, who have been conditioned to be incapable of harming their patients. Madwa, of course, does nothing ''but'' harm her "patients" (though it's likely she actually is also a skilled medic, as this seems to be part of Smoke Knight training). |
| 454 | * UncertainDoom: [[spoiler: A dead body is pulled off a crashed submarine in England and identified as being her, but the reader never sees the corpse, and she's already shown how sneaky and deceptive she can be.]] It eventually turns out that [[spoiler: yes, she's still alive.]] |
| 455 | ** [[spoiler:Violetta exploits the mechanics of Prende's Lantern to fool Madwa long enough to get into position to stab her and retrieve the Latern. Knowing Madwa it's entirely possible she survived, but also knowing Violetta, she would ''make sure'' the elder Smoke Knight is KilledOffForReal. Violetta afterwards indicates that, as far she she can tell, Madwa is genuinely dead.]] |
| 456 | * WorfHadTheFlu: [[spoiler:While fooling Madwa and taking her down is undeniably impressive regardless of the circumstances, Violetta herself is quick to point out that it only worked because she was exhausted.]] |
| 457 | [[/folder]] |
| 458 | |
| 459 | [[AC:Other members]] |
| 460 | [[folder:Zola "Heterodyne"]] |
| 461 | !!Zola "La Sirene Dorée," AKA Zola "Heterodyne", AKA Zola Anya Talinka Venia Zeblinkya Malfeazium[[spoiler:, AKA The Queen of the Dawn]] |
| 462 | [[quoteright:192:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zola.bmp]] |
| 463 | |
| 464 | Once everyone had heard there was a Heterodyne girl running around, she stepped in (along with a conspiracy) to provide one. Agatha was... not happy about that. |
| 465 | ---- |
| 466 | * AssShove: [[spoiler:Lucrezia]] notes (after knocking her out, restraining her, and presumably searching her) that some of her equipment was "in rather ''uncomfortable places'', I'd imagine". |
| 467 | * BadassNormal: Lacks the Spark, but she's still a fully-trained Smoke Knight carrying enough weaponry under that pink camisole to arm a small nation. After getting dosed up on [[PsychoSerum Movit #11]], she's an even match for ''[[ImplacableMan Higgs]]'' in a one-on-one fight. |
| 468 | * BadToTheLastDrop: [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110124 according to Gil]] she either poisons it or is just bad at making it. |
| 469 | * BeautyIsNeverTarnished: ''Averted''. After taking the Movit 11, her physical appearance goes ''steeply'' downhill. |
| 470 | * BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Seems to be the cause of her [[MadLove attraction]] to Gil. |
| 471 | * BigBad: Of the ''Adventures In Castle Heterodyne'' spinoff game. |
| 472 | * BigScrewedUpFamily: She's the daughter of Demonica Mongfish, one of Lucrezia's sisters, meaning she's also Agatha's cousin, but that hasn't stopped her from trying to kill her multiple times. |
| 473 | * BitchInSheepsClothing: Even though the first impression of her is a harmless, gullible [[spoiler: figurehead for the Storm King conspiracy]], she starts fighting, no holds barred, when Agatha and her team throw a spanner in the works. |
| 474 | * CassandraTruth: For once, is telling the complete truth to Lucrezia [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100705 on 20100705]], that [[spoiler:she can't be DemonicPossession-ed]]. Lucrezia learns this [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100712 to her own chagrin]]. |
| 475 | * TheChessmaster: Over the course of events, proven to be the genuine article. |
| 476 | * DamselInDistress: Back in Paris, she was a kidnapping victim almost professionally. |
| 477 | * DarkActionGirl: A fully trained Smoke Knight and the main rival to Agatha in the castle. |
| 478 | * DeadlyUpgrade: Via a PsychoSerum. |
| 479 | * DumbBlonde: Subverted due to ObfuscatingStupidity. Gil and Tarvek eventually conclude that Zola, as the fake Heterodyne that was groomed by the Knights of Jove for years, is probably a lot more dangerous than she lets on, and a later confrontation proves them entirely right. |
| 480 | * {{Determinator}}: Manages to survive a Movit 11 overdose and briefly kills the Castle itself, and to add, by that point 70% of the bones in her body are likely non-functional, she's running on fumes and has a murderous Higgs hot on her heels, and she ''still'' escapes. |
| 481 | * DidYouJustScamCthulhu: Whatever the Other's deal is, Zola managed to sucker it and snatch some of its secrets. |
| 482 | * EvilCounterpart: She is one to her cousin, Agatha. |
| 483 | ** Agatha spent most of her life unaware that she was a Heterodyne and still isn't quite comfortable with all the attention she's given. Zola was molded by the Order to be their fake Heterodyne and she loves making big, flashy scenes and being the center of attention. |
| 484 | ** They both spent their youths looking less competent than they truly were. Agatha's Spark was suppressed by the locket, making her seem much less intelligent than she actually was while Zola was ObfuscatingStupidity when she was studying in Paris to keep her cover. Likewise, Agatha manages to subvert people's expectations of her as a Spark and a Heterodyne by being kind and mostly in control of herself while Zola, who isn't a Spark and was originally thought to just be a pawn of the Order, manages to be more violent, crazy and ambitious than most Sparks. |
| 485 | ** Agatha doesn't like making people do things they don't want to do or forcing them into dangerous situations while Zola has no problem with using violence and mind control to make people do what she wants. |
| 486 | ** Both Agatha and Zola are interested in Gil romantically, but for Zola it was a case of both their fake cover identities interacting while in Paris (and the 'real' Zola may not even care for him all that much) while Agatha has only ever known him in his true identity. Gil on his side sees Agatha as an equal and is in love with her because of it, while he always saw Zola's fake identity as a DamselInDistress he constantly had to rescue and never anything else. By the time he realizes how competent Zola really is he's thoroughly repelled by her. |
| 487 | ** Agatha had the Other forced into her mind and she constantly fighting to keep it from taking over. Zola willingly allowed the Other into her mind and she has the training and conditioning to control it and use it for her own benefit. |
| 488 | ** She is also one for Violetta. Both are Smoke Knights who have agendas that don't fit The Order's. Violetta doesn't really want to be part of it while Zola wants to manipulate it. |
| 489 | * ExtremeMeleeRevenge: Is on the receiving end of this trope ''twice'''. |
| 490 | * FakeUltimateHero: Was set up as a fake Heterodyne, with the ultimate idea of her backers being that she would just ''happen'' to run into their chosen Storm King, and by the time anyone might've figured out what was going on... |
| 491 | * FauxAffablyEvil: When in Mechanicsburg, manages to do a pretty good job [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20070504 of playing the "kind princess in waiting."]] |
| 492 | * {{Foreshadowing}}: She sure bears a [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090408 strong familial resemblance to Lucrezia in that portrait]], doesn't she? |
| 493 | * GigglingVillain: Her evil banter gets odder over the Castle arc. And she [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110107 gets giddier]] as things continue. |
| 494 | * GrapplingHookPistol: Standard Smoke Knight equipment. |
| 495 | * HateSink: When we first meet her she's a false heir with an annoying personality -- right off the bat not a good look. As time goes on, however, she crosses the line from a nuisance to a psycho who wants to murder Agatha. |
| 496 | * TheHeavy: For Volumes VII through XI, she's the one providing the most direct opposition to Agatha and friends in Castle Heterodyne. Klaus is hospitalized and the Other is trapped thanks to [[spoiler:the locket]], so it's Zola that's doing most of the fighting for the Castle arc. |
| 497 | * HeroKiller: Zola has become this. To date she has critically wounded [[spoiler:Zeetha, Higgs, and Agatha]]. |
| 498 | * HiddenAgendaVillain: Exactly what she's doing as [[spoiler:the Queen of the Dawn]] is unclear. Her appearance in Paris was part of some kind of plan, but the situation was already out of control before she got there and she never got the chance to do any scheming. It seemed the basic idea was that she would perform at the opera house and the staff would wasp the crowd, giving her more control over Paris. It fails because the Library attacks the Opera House when they get wind of the plot and [[spoiler:the new Master of Paris is more closely connected with the city than her father was, making such a move suicidal. She also uses the opportunity to purge her ranks of the Geisters who are loyal to the Other first and foremost.]] |
| 499 | * LethalChef: "Well, ''I'' always thought she just couldn't make coffee. [[ObfuscatingStupidity Now, I'm not so sure]]." |
| 500 | * TheLoad: Apparently fulfilled this role in all of Gil's adventures with her in Paris, and when nabbed by Agatha she slipped into it again. |
| 501 | * LongLostRelative: "Hello [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100625 auntie]]." To more aptly explain the family tree: [[spoiler: Her mother was Demonica, Lucrezia's sister. Their other sister, Serpentina, was Theo's mother. So Zola, Agatha, and Theo are all first cousins on their mothers' side. ]] |
| 502 | * MadeOfIron: When she [[spoiler: takes the PsychoSerum, she becomes so strong that it takes ''several'' NoHoldsBarredBeatdown[=s=] to make her flee.]] |
| 503 | * MadLove: Towards Gil, very much. Also later towards Tarvek, but [[PsychoSerum her sanity's slipping at the time]], so there's a chance she still thought he was Gil. |
| 504 | * MasterActress: Oh yes. Also involves the second part of the trope, where the audience thinks she might actually have {{Split Personalit|y}}ies. Of course, in this case, that's not so far-fetched. |
| 505 | * MeaningfulName: Twofold: depending on grammar of the phrase and context in Slavic languages "Zola" can mean either "cinder" or an alternative form of the root "-zlo-" -- "evil"[[note]]There's a Russian parody that exploits the pun[[/note]]. And she tries to be the evil Cinderella of this story, going from RagsToRiches with all these nefarious plans. |
| 506 | * {{Motormouth}}: After a double-dose of Movit 11. |
| 507 | * MuggleBornOfMages: Unlike her cousins Agatha and Theo, at least one Aunt (Lucrezia), and her grandfather in the Mongfish family, Zola is not a Spark. [[spoiler:This may be why the forces of the Other allied with the Queen of the Dawn have not really exhibited any breakthrough in Slaver Wasp technology, as observed by the Wulfenbach forces. Zola may have a captive essentia of Lucrezia in her head, but she herself is not a Spark.]] |
| 508 | * {{Mundanger}}: Zola doesn't have the Spark, nor is she a construct, but she ''is'' a well-trained [[spoiler:Smoke Knight]] who came ''very close'' to killing the protagonists. |
| 509 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Her real last name is [[spoiler:Malfeazium. And her mother was Demonica]]. |
| 510 | * NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Zola is on the [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110117 receiving end of one]] after a three way brawl between her, Agatha and Tarvek. After she [[spoiler: stabs Agatha with a brooch pin, Tarvek (who is EXTREMELY cross about the various misfortunes up to this point and possibly losing Agatha too)]] delivers one to Zola, releasing a world of hurt directly into her face before trying to throttle her. Only [[spoiler: Gil's misguided interference]] saves her life. |
| 511 | * ObfuscatingStupidity: |
| 512 | ** [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090406 This is how it's done]]. |
| 513 | ** Judging from Gil and Tarvek's reactions, [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20091014 she's an absolute mistress of the technique]]. |
| 514 | ** [[spoiler:[[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100623 She's a Smoke Knight, and no one ever suspected]]]]. |
| 515 | ** She even manages to trick [[spoiler:''[[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100712 Lucrezia]]]]''. |
| 516 | ** It's at least implied that she even managed this on her ''allies'', who ''knew she was doing it to others'', with the Knights of Jove seeing her as someone competently evil, but ultimately easy to manipulate. |
| 517 | * OnlyFriend: She invoked it. |
| 518 | * OverlyLongName: Her full name is [[spoiler:Zola Anya Talinka Venia Zeblinkya [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Malfeazium]]]]. |
| 519 | * ThePowerOfHate: She attributes her MadeOfIron tendencies to this. And drugs. Lovely, lovely drugs. |
| 520 | * PrincessesPreferPink: An InvokedTrope as part of her role as a fake Heterodyne. Even her ''death ray'' is pink. Even the ''death beam'' is pink. |
| 521 | * PsychoPink: Her PrincessesPreferPink asthetic turns into this trope as she gets high on [[PsychoSerum Movit 11]] and gets a bit of [[spoiler:the Other]] in her brain. |
| 522 | * PutOnABus: Dropped out of sight for a long time following events in Mechanicsburg, then finally resurfaced [[spoiler: playing the part of "The Queen of the Dawn."]] |
| 523 | * RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Has a bit of a habit provoking them in the Castle arc. [[spoiler:Lucrezia]] would like to "thank" her for that, [[spoiler:Higgs]] delivered a beating on the spot, and [[spoiler:Tarvek]] intended -- perhaps still intends -- to strangle her to death with his bare hands. |
| 524 | * ShoutOut: One of the times Gil had to rescue her it was from a [[Literature/ThePhantomOfTheOpera crazy man in an opera house]]. Apparently it was also one of the few times it ''wasn't'' her fault she was in trouble. |
| 525 | * SigilSpam: Covered head to toe in Heterodyne trilobite symbols, overselling her Heterodyne "heritage". |
| 526 | * SlasherSmile: |
| 527 | ** When [[spoiler:the Castle dies]], she has a frighteningly Sparky look of triumphant glee on her face. Also [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100714 here]]. |
| 528 | ** Post-Movit Zola has these pretty often. |
| 529 | * TheStarscream: For both The Order's fake Hetrodyne plan and Lucrezia. |
| 530 | * UncertainDoom: [[spoiler: The last we've seen of her to date, her plans to take over Paris have failed and she's fallen into the clutches of Tarvek's Grandmother.]] |
| 531 | * UnsportsmanlikeGloating: Seemingly cannot resist letting people know she has beaten them. |
| 532 | * UnstoppableRage[=/=]ThePowerOfHate: Claims this is what's sustaining her after suffering some truly grievous injuries. |
| 533 | -->'''Tarvek:''' How are you even still moving?\ |
| 534 | '''Zola:''' HATE! Hate and [[PsychoSerum drugs]]! Lovely, lovely drugs! I'm a beautiful, chemical, killing machine! |
| 535 | * VillainWithGoodPublicity: Post-timeskip [[spoiler:she's now known as the Queen of the Dawn and has a reputation for being a peacemaker. However, Gil and Tarvek suspect (without knowing the Queen's true identity) that she's been using slaver wasps and it's unlikely that Zola's ambition has faded over time.]] |
| 536 | * XanatosSpeedChess: She is "''very good'' at improvising when things go wrong." |
| 537 | * {{Yandere}}: Is one towards Tarvek, if [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110103 her plan for him]] is of any indication. |
| 538 | [[/folder]] |
| 539 | |
| 540 | [[folder:Wolkerstorfer]] |
| 541 | !!Count Wolkerstorfer, Magnet Demon |
| 542 | |
| 543 | [[quoteright:236:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/d02a2af6b6d2b2d4a6716e9057fcb983.png]] |
| 544 | [[caption-width-right:236:"Have you seen my '''magnet'''? "]] |
| 545 | Count Wolkerstorfer is an absent-minded member of the Knights of Jove, with a sparky propensity for magnets. He is first seen attacking the Wyrm of Limerick, a Corbettite rail liner, and later plays an important role in the defeat of the Beast of The Rails. |
| 546 | ---- |
| 547 | * AbsentMindedProfessor: Wolkerstorfer has a few memory retention problems... He is nearly derailed from his mission in finding Lady Selnikov by Krosp until he runs through his memory again. |
| 548 | * AffablyEvil: Appears genuinely personable and friendly, even while attacking the Wyrm of Limerick on behalf of Martellus. |
| 549 | * AttentionDeficitOohShiny: As a result of his forgetfulness, he tends to lose track of things in the middle of conversations. |
| 550 | * BunnyEarsLawyer: In many ways a forgetful {{Cloudcuckoolander}}. But he's AMAZING with magnets, and he's still capable of fending off major attacks singlehanded. |
| 551 | * DitzyGenius: He's ditzy even by [[AttentionDeficitOohShiny Spark standards]], but he's a genius even by their standards too. |
| 552 | * EyeBeams: How he kills Baron Oomfumf. His mech's cyclopean eye rakes the Baron's [[BuffySpeak tuba trombone battle wagon thing]] with a beam. |
| 553 | * ForScience: Seems to be his default mode of thought, though he's a lot calmer about it than many such individuals. |
| 554 | * HumongousMecha: We haven't seen Wolkerstorfer himself, just his huge bulbous mech... unless that ''is'' his body. It's anyone's guess where Sparks are concerned. |
| 555 | * MagneticWeapons: Wolkerstorfer is ''all'' about this, though not the typical rail/coil guns, but much more reality-breaking sparky applications. Martellus even calls him a "''demon'' with magnets". |
| 556 | * NothingPersonal: It appears you really have to work at it to get him to form a grudge; after confronting Agatha and the Corbettite Monks and having them do some [[StopHittingYourself fairly serious damage]] to his mecha, he later cheerfully assists them in their fight against The Beast. He couldn't be angry over it, because from Agatha's and Matthias's invention he learned something ''fascinating'' about magnets! |
| 557 | * TheyCalledMeMad: He seems to be not very well-regarded by his peers due to his inability to focus, leading to this response (following the offending party's death by eye beam). |
| 558 | [[/folder]] |
| 559 | |
| 560 | [[folder:Knights of the Hunt]] |
| 561 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/knights_v14p95.png]] |
| 562 | [[caption-width-right:300:The Knights in their human forms.]] |
| 563 | [[caption-width-right:300:[[labelnote:Click here for the Knights in their wolf forms.]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/knights_v18p25.png[[/labelnote]]]] |
| 564 | |
| 565 | A force of elite bio-modified warriors loyal to Martellus von Blitzengaard who serve as his minions. They can shapeshift between human and wolf forms. |
| 566 | ---- |
| 567 | * AffablyEvil: [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20210428 Norville]] thinks of Gil as a nice guy who would get along well with Martellus if they just sat down and talked for a bit, maybe even had some sandwiches. Well, that, ''and'' if Tarvek was killed. |
| 568 | * AmbiguouslyHuman: It isn't clear if they're ''humans'' modified to turn into ''wolves'' or vice versa. |
| 569 | * TheDreaded: The confidence of ''Smoke Knights'' vanish [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20171213 the moment]] they see it's the Knights of the Hunt they're up against. |
| 570 | * EliteMooks: They're very tough for minions. Tarvek is able to [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20171220 beat]] [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20171222 them]], but not without several close calls on his part. |
| 571 | * EvilCounterpart: In a way, to the Jägers. They're both an army biologically modified elite fighters, they're both a race([[AmbiguouslyHuman ?]]) of {{Boisterous Bruiser}}s, and they're both fanatically loyal to their respective Master/Mistress. |
| 572 | * MonsterKnight: On one hand, they're artificially-made [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolves]] who serve an evil MadScientist. On the ''other'' hand, they're loyal warriors of their (self-declared-)King, who in turn considers them "good men" worthy of [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20170424 respect in death]] and of his friendship. |
| 573 | * OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: The Knights of the Hunt are bio-engineered fighters able to switch between a human form and a wolf form at will. |
| 574 | [[/folder]] |
| 575 | |
| 576 | [[folder:Baron Oublenmach]] |
| 577 | !!Baron Krassimir Oublenmach, Nobleman, Conspirator, and Treasure Hunter |
| 578 | |
| 579 | A member of the Fifty Families, and one of Zola's public backers on the Pink Airship. Is wierdly obsessed with ringing the Doom Bell. |
| 580 | ---- |
| 581 | * AristocratsAreEvil: One of the conspiracy to promote Zola as a fake Heterodyne. |
| 582 | * HostageSituation: Threatens Vidonia and Vanamonde's family if Vanamonde doesn't do what he wants. |
| 583 | * TheManBehindTheMan: One of the front backers for Zola. |
| 584 | * WouldHitAGirl: Threatens to slit Vidonia's throat if Van doesn't cooperate. |
| 585 | [[/folder]] |
| 586 | |
| 587 | [[folder:Duke Strinbeck]] |
| 588 | !!Duke Josef Carmelita Strinbeck, Impoverished and Odious Aristocrat |
| 589 | |
| 590 | A member of the Fifty Families, and one of Zola's public backers on the Pink Airship. Suffers a fatal case of Lost to his Own Stupidity when Agatha begins repairing the Castle. |
| 591 | ---- |
| 592 | * AristocratsAreEvil: One of the conspiracy to promote Zola as a fake Heterodyne, and unlike most of the ones who show up later doesn't have any redeeming qualities, or even amusing ones. |
| 593 | * AssholeVictim: Rude, snide, violent and unpleasant, he makes it extremely easy for the Pink Airship crew to decide he's not-exactly-dead weight and throw him overboard, declaring afterward killing him doesn't count as mutiny. Even his own next of kin aren't taken aback when told of his demise. |
| 594 | * DisproportionateRetribution: Josef makes things much easier for the airship crew by threatening to have all of them flayed alive just because the captain punched him out for threatening to kill anyone who tried to get the ship to safety. |
| 595 | * {{Jerkass}}: Almost seems dedicated to being as big a one as possible, even refusing to let the airship crew report a fire, a shared duty of airship crew, when there's no reason not to, and sneering at them all the while. |
| 596 | * NoodleIncident: He lost his lands to toy automatons. Somehow. |
| 597 | * TheManBehindTheMan: One of the front backers for Zola, but not remotely one of the most important ones. Which might explain why he was sent to Mechanisburg first... |
| 598 | * TooDumbToLive: Official cause of death and all, which doesn't even count as a case of TheCoronerDothProtestTooMuch since being too dumb to live is a ''recognized'' cause of death in the setting. And he more than qualified, first refusing to listen to the crew's warnings about Mechanisburg (the ''unconquered'' Mechanicsburg), then pulling a gun on them when they tried to not get killed by the town's defense systems, then threatening all of the crew, just as they needed to shed weight. |
| 599 | * UpperClassTwit: According to the novels, even the other members of the Fifty Families thought he was unbearable. The only reason they gave him the time of day at all was because doing otherwise would've been ''gauche''. |
| 600 | * WrongLineOfWork: Not that members of the Fifty Families tend to sully themselves with ''work'', mind you, but a footnote in ''Agatha H. and the Voice of the Castle'' notes Strinbeck's unthinking rudeness and stupidity would've made him an excellent head waiter. |
| 601 | |
| 602 | [[/folder]] |
| 603 | |
| 604 | [[AC:Associates]] |
| 605 | [[folder:Van Rijn]] |
| 606 | !!R. Van Rijn, Royal Advisor to King Andronicus Valois |
| 607 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vanrijn.png]] |
| 608 | R.[[note]]Possibly "[[Creator/RembrandtVanRijn Rembrandt]]", but this is yet to be confirmed in-comic.[[/note]] Van Rijn was a legendary Spark, surpassing his peers of the day (ie, 200-odd years before the events of the comic), and even Sparks of the modern day. He is best known for two things: being the close advisor of the original Storm King, and for constructing nine clanks of exquisite craftsmanship, the Muses. |
| 609 | ---- |
| 610 | * AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler: In Voltaire's story, Van Rijn was described as having carted away Andronicus' corpse to give him a proper burial after the Shining Coalition finally defeated him. Flash-foward 200 years, and Andronicus is alive again, but as a decaying HumanoidAbomination. What and why Van Rijn did this, or if he was even involved, is left up to speculation.]] |
| 611 | * BeyondTheImpossible: Managed to make ''sentient clanks'' in the form of the Muses, something that's considered widely to be impossible even 200 years later. |
| 612 | * BornInTheWrongCentury: 200 years later, the exquisite craftsmanship and intricacy of his Muses remain unsurpassed by other clank designers. Although there have been hints he got a leg up thanks to his conversations with [[spoiler:The Muse of Time]]. |
| 613 | * {{Bookworm}}: He founded an autonomous library of extreme bibliophiles. |
| 614 | * DirtyOldMan: The [[spoiler:Muse of Time]] refers to him as a "presumptuous old lecher". |
| 615 | * TheGhost: His inventions and legacy feature heavily in the comic's plot, but Van Rijn himself has been dead for centuries by the present, and even in flashbacks, the kind of person he was is deliberately kept extremely ambiguous. (Though we do eventually get to see what he looked like.) |
| 616 | * ImmortalitySeeker: He sought to trap [[spoiler:The Muse of Time]] in order to force from her the secret of immortality. Although it's been hinted that [[spoiler: this was not done entirely for his own sake.]] |
| 617 | * MadScientist: He was a Spark, so this is a given. |
| 618 | * NeverFoundTheBody: Well, technically someone finally did... 200 years later. |
| 619 | * OmnidisciplinaryScientist: At the very least, he constructed the Muses, forged the Storm King a powerful electrified sword, built an industrial sausage-works and was a talented painter and sculptor. |
| 620 | * TheParanoiac: Explicitly stated to be one in a footnote in one of the Girl Genius print novels, and there have been hints of this in the comic; his notebook is larded with codes within codes. |
| 621 | * PosthumousCharacter: By the time Agatha finds him, he is a long-mummified husk. |
| 622 | * ShroudedInMyth: Again according to the novel, not much was known about the guy even when he was alive. |
| 623 | * TheSlowPath: Possibly, in his dealings with the entity he named The Muse of Time. |
| 624 | * SweetTooth: Among the hidden secrets inside his notebook Agatha finds numerous recipes. |
| 625 | * TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: Sparks are well-known for Tampering in God's Domain, but Van Rijn was still greatly unnerved after he created the Muses about just what it was he'd created. Then they kindly told him it was alright. |
| 626 | |
| 627 | [[/folder]] |
| 628 | |
| 629 | [[folder:The Muses]] |
| 630 | ->See [[Characters/GirlGeniusAntagonists Antagonists]] for The Muse of Time. See Von Pinn on [[Characters/GirlGeniusWulfenbachEmpire Wulfenbach Empire]] for Oitlia. |
| 631 | !!The Nine Muses of R. Van Rijn |
| 632 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ggmuses_v5p42.jpg]] |
| 633 | |
| 634 | A set of clanks, built by Master Van Rijn, "The Greatest Spark of All Time" for "the Greatest King of All Time", Andronicus Valois. Their numbers include Otilia, Moxana, Tinka, Prende, Orotine, Mawu and Liza (the non-twins), Artimo and Contasia. Ludicrously advanced, even by modern Spark standards, most have been lost or gone missing due to people's attempts to replicate their technology. |
| 635 | ---- |
| 636 | * AllThereInTheManual: Otilia, Moxana, Tinka, Prende and Orotine have all been named in the comic proper. Mawu, Liza and Artimo are identified in the third novelization, leaving Contasia as the odd one out, named elsewhere. |
| 637 | * AmbiguousSituation: Most of the Muses so far have recognized Tarvek as the heir to the Lightning Crown. However, Orotine, the Muse of Geometries, gave a non-committal statement when asked by Krosp if she supports either Tarvek or Martellus, only stating that Martellus was "a distant third, at best". If Martellus is third and Tarvek is (presumably) above him, who exactly is first or second? [[spoiler:If the GURPS tie-in book is canon, then Gilgamesh is also descended from the Storm King and may be the true heir to the Lightning Crown.]] |
| 638 | * CannotTellALie: Prende claims she is incapable of directly lying to the Storm King, though the prologue of the third novel establishes they tended to be cryptically vague. |
| 639 | * DeathByDespair: Moxana starts heading this way, thanks to being separated from Tinka. |
| 640 | * ExactWords: As Orotine explains to Gil, she's designed to give advice to the Storm King. She says this as she's giving advice to him, after she's already dismissed Tarvek and Martellus's claims. |
| 641 | * FemBot: Unlike most (gender-neutral) clanks, the Muses were explicitly designed in both form and personality to be female, and are referred to as such by other characters. |
| 642 | * FigureItOutYourself: They were designed to teach and inspire, not directly lead. Apparently trying to just directly tell Andronicus stuff was physically ''impossible'' for them, and trying would've damaged them. |
| 643 | * LivingMacGuffin: A minor case. Finding the Muses that remain and replicating the technology used to make them is a long-term goal of Tarvek's. |
| 644 | * LostTechnology: Their tech is far more advanced than anything a Spark of the modern day could develop. Tarvek's the only one who can reverse-engineer it, and only to a point. |
| 645 | * OffWithHerHead: Tinka is decapitated by Vrin and her Geisterdamen, but given she's a clank, and that Otilia's severed head could continue to sustain a functioning Clank intelligence [[spoiler:(the Castle, not Otilia herself)]], odds are good that Tinka could be repaired. |
| 646 | * PhraseCatcher: Apparently even after three hundred years, people who see Orotine for the first time always feel the need to point out she's a Muse to her. [[NeverHeardThatOneBefore She's come to expect it.]] |
| 647 | * {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler:There is a final muse called the Muse of Vengeance, created to wipe out the Heterodynes for their crimes against Europa and their part in the Storm King's downfall (or at least to be unleashed against enemies of the Immortal Library.) It has long remained inactive, but the librarians have recovered its heart as a precaution since some of their leaders fear Agatha is probably every bit the monster her ancestors were.]] |
| 648 | * ShockAndAwe: Tinka and Prende have both displayed the ability to zap folk, though higher amounts of voltage burn off any clothing or wigs they might have on them. |
| 649 | * SignatureHeadgear: One of Orotine's distinguishing features is she's always wearing a fancy hat emblazoned with the Fleur de Lis. |
| 650 | * SilentSnarker: Moxana may not be able to speak anymore, but she can still get her point across. After Krosp manages to outwit Master Payne, she rearranges her chessboard to signify he's been put in check. |
| 651 | * SlidingScaleOfRobotIntelligence: Somewhere between type 3 (comparable to humans) and type 4 (SuperIntelligence), which is to say ''significantly'' higher than most other Clanks, and an accomplishment by Van Rijn still unmatched in the comic's present day. Moxana and Tinka have regressed significantly in their state of disrepair, but still show occasional flashes of great acuity. |
| 652 | * StealthHiBye: They can move with astounding quietness if they need to. Even Smoke Knights like Violetta and Madwa have difficulty detecting their presence if they choose not to be noticed. |
| 653 | * TheVoiceless: Moxana, who communicates exclusively through playing cards and hand signs. She used to be able to speak at some point, but apparently lost the ability to after being separated from Tinka. |
| 654 | * WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Of the set, Otilia is stuck in Mechanisburg, Prende is (last seen) in Paris, Orotine is in England; Moxana and Tinka were last seen in Sturmhalten, before it was overrun by monsters and the Baron's forces. And Tinka had been decapitated. And at least one of them was deactivated by an unidentified Spark. The fate of the rest is unknown. |
| 655 | * YouAreTooLate: They were programmed never to give Andronicus Valois a straight answer, merely hint towards what he should do. When they actually ''did'' give him a straight answer, it was because there was nothing that could be done to stop it. |
| 656 | [[/folder]] |
| 657 | |
| 658 | [[folder:Mister Obsidian]] |
| 659 | !!Mister Obsidian, Hired Muscle |
| 660 | |
| 661 | [[quoteright:333:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/obsidian.png]] |
| 662 | [[caption-width-right:333:[[OhCrap Oh.]] That's not [[MadeOfIron a good sign.]]]] |
| 663 | "Mister Obsidian", the only alias we know him as, has a rather apt name, being seemingly impervious to physical attacks. First appearing as a spy seemingly working for the Library, but actually working for Terebithia to bring Tarvek back to his family, by force if necessary. |
| 664 | ---- |
| 665 | * AffablyEvil: Very much all business but tries to be polite where possible. He even complains that he rarely gets the chance to be nice when doing his job. |
| 666 | * EstablishingCharacterMoment: ''Curb-stomps'' Tarvek with ease without even needing to ''evade'', with the first "holy crap" moment when ''Tarvek breaks a wrench over his head without the guy even moving''. |
| 667 | * ImplacableMan: See image to the right. This guy takes the ''cake''. |
| 668 | * MadeOfIron: He outclasses ''Higgs'' by virtue of being so durable that ''he simply doesn't even react to being hit'', nevermind take any kind of damage. This trope might be close to ''literal'' in his case, if he's a construct. So far his capabilities border on NighInvulnerable. |
| 669 | * NamesToRunAwayFrom: ''Mister Obsidian''. With the latter word being generally associated with materials that are ''extremely durable''. |
| 670 | * ServileSnarker: After Grandma attempts to stab him in the face [[BluffTheImpostor in order to kill a would-be impostor]], he expresses that she's "as suspicious, homicidal and unapologetic as ever". |
| 671 | [[/folder]] |
| 672 | |
| 673 | |
| 674 | [[AC:Other]] |
| 675 | [[folder:Martellus' Cat]] |
| 676 | |
| 677 | An orange female cat who was the mouser of the British submarine that evacuated most of the heroes from the self-destructing Royal Society dome. Initially fawning over Krosp, she was turned into a construct with sapience and human-level intelligence by Martellus von Blitzengaard, both (presumably) as a counterpart to Krosp and (explicitly) a role much like Agatha's weasel has in terms of keeping Martellus healthy. This also results in a 180-turn in her mental disposition towards Krosp. (Physically she's still attracted to him.) Has noticeable lightning bolt markings above her eyes. |
| 678 | ---- |
| 679 | * AmbiguousSituation: It hasn't yet been explained why Tweedle elevated her intellect along with making her an Agatha-substitute. |
| 680 | * IntellectualAnimal: Similar to Krosp once made a construct, though she considers herself to be more intelligent than him. |
| 681 | * MeetCute: She and Krosp boop noses.. and start hissing at each other. |
| 682 | * NoblewomansLaugh: Literally her first piece of dialogue post-uplifting. |
| 683 | * NoNameGiven: She doesn't officially have a name yet. |
| 684 | * SitcomArchNemesis: With Krosp. |
| 685 | * ShoutOut: The aforementioned lightning bolts and her original uplifting setup are open homages to ''Film/BrideOfFrankenstein.'' |
| 686 | * UpliftedAnimal: Again, much like Krosp, though the difference is that we actually get to see what she was like before she was uplifted. |
| 687 | |
| 688 | [[/folder]] |
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/context.php
FollowingContext Characters / GirlGeniusKnightsOfJove
Go To
- Show Spoilers
- Night Vision
- Sticky Header
- Wide Load
