Line #74 Main/ClownSpecies


1	[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/NiGHTSIntoDreams https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/clown_race_nights.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Elect a Clown and you get a circus.]]
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4	Clowns are easy to read as not so much a person as they are a grotesque parody of one. Exaggerated proportions in their noses and feet, skin colors unnatural to any specific human or animal, behavior that ranges from unspecified mental disorder to full-on BlueAndOrangeMorality. The really bad ones are confirmed [[HumanoidAbomination not to be human]] and [[MonsterClown something]] [[EnemyMime much]], [[VillainousHarlequin much]] [[ScaryJackInTheBox worse]]. Because of this, clowns are feared by some and are made a fascinating archetype to others.
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6	Since Coulrophobia[[note]]fear of clowns[[/note]] is commonplace, these are almost AlwaysChaoticEvil [[MonsterClown inhuman monsters]]. Clowns are meant to appeal to children, so they lure them in to eat them. Clowns can perform magic tricks, [[MagicalClown so they must be magical in origin.]] Clowns come in droves from a suspiciously saucer-like tent, so it must be hiding a flying saucer, the clowns stealing our cows to bring back to their clown planet to use our milk for their clown cereal to be fed to their clown children's clown breakfast. Clowns perform logic defying tricks and behave beyond rational thought, so they must be some mysterious [[HumanoidAbomination humanoid]] [[EldritchAbomination horror]] [[SummoningRitual summoned]] by [[HollywoodSatanism ill-informed teenagers]].
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8	SubTrope to PlanetOfHats. See MagicalClown for other nonhuman examples of clowns. These characters might technically be MistakenForClown.
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10	----
11	!!Examples:
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13	[[foldercontrol]]
14
15	[[folder:Advertising]]
16	* Ronald [=McDonald=] of the UsefulNotes/McDonalds commercials has been hinted to naturally have a clownlike appearance rather than wearing makeup, with one ad detailing his first visit from the ToothFairy even showing that he looked like that when he was a child.
17	[[/folder]]
18
19	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
20	* Clowns in ''Manga/SoulEater'' are living embodiments of fear and madness. The first Clown Maka and Soul encounter in the manga does resemble a monstrous circus clown, with a bulbous nose and permanent grin, but later clowns have different forms.
21	* Implied with Vermoud from ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'', the God of Destruction from Universe 11. He's also a MonsterClown and it's not explained just what species he is supposed to be. The series suggests God of Destruction [[GodJob is a position given to powerful mortals]], so it's not out of the question that an entire race of clowns exist like him.
22	** He gets pampered at one point by some [[SexyJester Sexy Jesters]] who may belong to a clown species in the hopes that he won't destroy their planet.
23	[[/folder]]
24
25	[[folder:Audio Dramas]]
26	* The ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'', ''Ravenous'' introduces The Ravenous. A race of [[MonsterClown Monster Clowns]] from the Time Vortex that feast on Time Lords for their Regeneration energy. It's thought that genetic memory of them inspired clowns throughout the universe.
27	[[/folder]]
28
29	[[folder:Comics]]
30	* ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'' featured the Poglochis, a race of clownlike aliens, who were hired by the evil Weaponers of Qward, impersonated the Guardians of the Universe and handed out phony power rings to a dozen undeserving recipients (including recurring comedy-relief Green Lantern G'nort), as part of a scheme to destroy the Green Lantern Corps's reputation.
31	* Clowns are loosely implied to be their own race of humans in the ''ComicStrip/LittleNemo'' series. Unlike most depictions, they are largely benign (though mischievous).
32	* In [[PolishMedia Polish comic book]] ''ComicBook/EmilkaSza'', it is stated that mimes are subrace of humans, with snow-white skin, ability to see pantomime world (inviisble to normal mortals) and disability to produce sounds, as well having over the top reactions to everythig. It's even imply Mime's are rare sight enough to be seen as mythological creatures, having ancient writings about them. While only one clown appears in the book (Miss Pon-Pon) it's not clear if the clowns fallow similiar rules and logic as mimes.
33	* In one ''ComicBook/TheSimpsonsTreehouseOfHorror'' story, a scheme by Kang and Kodos to convert humans into Rigellians through mutagenic fast food is thwarted when feeding them Krusty Burger turns them into dimwitted and weak-willed humans. Unfortunately, any security assured by this is shot by the final page revealing that Krusty Burger is part of a plot by aliens resembling Krusty the Clown to pacify humans to be eaten.
34	* The first arc of the ''WebAnimation/BravestWarriors'' comic book by Boom Studios has the heroes having to help out a race of clown people, which is bad news for Danny since he is deathly AfraidOfClowns.
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
38	* The Klowns from ''Film/KillerKlownsFromOuterSpace'' are a race of alien {{Monster Clown}}s that once visited Earth long ago, their appearance becoming assimilated into mankind's collective consciousness as clowns. Unlike their human copiers, the Klowns are anything but harmless, kidnapping humans to drain them of their blood, using tools normally associated with clowns with a lethal twist to kill or capture humans.
39	* The titular MonsterClown of the horror film ''Film/{{Clown}}'' is described as being a kind of snow-dwelling Icelandic demon, and its various deformations (red nose, big feet etc) are actually adaptations to make it a more effective killer. This monster also has rainbow blood, and eats children to survive.
40	* The fourth story of ''Film/ScaryOrDie'' is about a guy getting bitten by an evil clown and slowly turning into one himself.
41	* The clowns in ''Film/Stitches2012'' are something akin to this, as they go through a ceremonial rite in which they paint an egg with their style of makeup ([[https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20171206-the-fascinating-reason-why-clowns-paint-their-faces-on-eggs and yes]], this is an actual practice originating in the 1940s) and if they die while giving a show, they aren't allowed to rest until they've completed it.
42	[[/folder]]
43
44	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
45	* ''Series/TheBigComfyCouch'' features clowns as the main characters. They seem to be 1 to 1 exactly like humans apart from the big red clown noses, however, one episode states that instead of birthdays, they have "Mirthdays" as clowns are apparently born with a number of clowns all start laughing and all that laughter and mirth comes together to form a baby clown.
46	* Downplayed in ''[[{{Series/ChildrensHospital}} Children's Hospital]]'', where one of the main characters is a clown, but they are depicted as an ethnicity rather than a race.
47	[[/folder]]
48
49	[[folder:Literature]]
50	* Mentioned in Creator/DanielPinkwater's ''Literature/{{Borgel}}''. The main character, who's stuck at a waystation on an interdimensional highway, encounters all sorts of alien races, including Clown-men from Norfo.
51	* Steve Barlow and Steve Skidmore's ''Franchise/StarWars'' parody, ''Star Bores'' has artificially grown clown soldiers in place of the clones from ''Film/AttackOfTheClones''.
52	* ''Literature/TheCannibalsOfCandyland'' focuses on a race of clowns with candyfloss hair that live underground luring and eating children.
53	[[/folder]]
54
55	[[folder:Music]]
56	* ''Music/TheyMightBeGiants'': In "Or So I Have Read", one of the LittleKnownFacts in the narrator's book is "A mime is the hybrid offspring of a human and a clown".
57	* With the baby clown seen at the end of the now deleted video for "The Abortion Song" by ''Music/KuntAndTheGang'', Ronald [=McDonald=] must belong to one of these.
58	[[/folder]]
59
60	[[folder:Mythology and Religion]]
61	* [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pueblo_clown Pueblo Clowns]] are a type of character celebrated by the [[Myth/NativeAmericanMythology Kachina religion]] and the culture that practices them (Pueblo Tribes of North America). These clowns present themselves with black and white horizontal stripes painted on their bodies and faces, paint black circles around the mouth and eyes, and part their hair in the center and bind it in two bunches which stand upright on each side of the head and are trimmed with corn husks. Legends and customs surrounding them differ, but they are commonly seen as spirits of early man, being tricksters that have emerged from within the Earth and have yet to mature into humanity, their iconography meant for satire and fertility rites.
62	[[/folder]]
63
64	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
65	* The 5th Edition version of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' has space clowns in their take on ''TabletopGame/{{Spelljammer}}''. They are [[OurDemonsAreDifferent fiends]] from an area in Wildspace known as "Clownspace," and are explicitly stated by their creator, Chris Perkins, to be the origin of most things known about clowns in the ''Dungeons and Dragons'' multiverse as well as an {{homage}} to ''Film/KillerKlownsFromOuterSpace''.
66	* ''Website/{{Mortasheen}}'' has the Jokers, the setting's take on {{Monster Clown}}s. These colorful creatures take shapes associated with clowns and circuses, but are all essentially [[BizarreAlienBiology organic balloons filled with a mysterious gas]]. They live in hives that [[HiveMind appear to share a single consciousness]], and seem to exist solely to play cruel and often lethal pranks on anyone within reach. A great many Jokers engage in MindRape, typically by venting the gas that fills them, which has psychedelic effects on the minds of living beings.
67	[[/folder]]
68
69	[[folder:Theatre]]
70	* ''[[https://www.arts.uci.edu/event/clown-aliens Clown Aliens]]'' is about a family leaving Clown Planet and trying to fit in on Earth.
71	[[/folder]]
72
73	[[folder:Video Games]]
74	* ''VideoGame/{{Dropsy}}'': Dropsy, the titular clown, initially seems like a very grotesque and weird human, but the ending shows that [[spoiler:he actually comes from a race of whitefaced humanoid aliens that live in a spaceship resembling a circus tent.]]
75	* ''Kid Klown in Crazy Chase'': The hero, the DamselInDistress, her father, and the BigBad all come from Klown Planet, a world where everyone is a clown.
76	* A downplayed example in ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' involves a culture of Machine Lifeforms inhabiting the ruins of an ancient amusement park universally adopting clown-like attires. Despite looking rather creepy, the amusement park machines are staunch pacifists and will stick to their nonviolent ways even [[spoiler:when infected by the logic virus that makes every other machine form go berserk]].
77	* Nightmarens from the ''VideoGame/NightsIntoDreams'' franchise are a race of beings created by the [[GodOfEvil God of Nightmare]] Wizeman the Wicked to serve him and gather ideya from dreamers unfortunate enough to stumble across them. Third-Level Nightmarens are the least humanoid, resembling monstrous parodies of animals and cartoonish little men. Second-Level Nightmarens are similar to Third-Level Nightmarens but are much larger, acting as {{Boss Battle}}s, their appearance ranging from animal-like (Claws, Gillwing, Girania, Chamelan, Cerebrus and Queen Bella) to a more exaggerated toy and/or human-esq form (Jackle, Donbalon and Bomamba), all with a clown-like, ArtNouveau design to them. First-Level Nightmarens are both the most powerful as well as the most humanoid, their appearances the most unambiguously Jester-like ([=NiGHTS=] and Reala).
78	* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''
79	** Mr Mime from ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' is a Psychic/Fairy type Pokemon that is almost humanoid, with clownhair-like horns, elf shoes for feet, and bulbous fingertips with pads. As its name suggests, it likes to mime and is able to create invisible barriers by waving its hands.
80	** ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' introduce a pre-evolution to Mr. Mime called Mime Jr., who resembles a small humanoid harlequin with a red nose. Mime Jr. mimics its opponents to confuse them, similar to Mr. Mime's miming. Interestingly enough, a 1997 Space World demo for ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' actually has data for an earlier design for a Mr. Mime pre-evolution, which got [[WhatCouldHaveBeen scrapped]]. This one followed similar design principles to Mime Jr., but was egg-shaped instead of humanoid.
81	** Blacephalon, one of the Ultra Beasts, resembles a clown mixed with a bomb. Specifically, it uses its own head as an explosive weapon after tricking the opponent through acting funny and harmless. While you can catch only two of them in the ''[[VideoGame/PokemonUltraSunAndUltraMoon Ultra Sun]]'', it's implied that, like other Ultra Beasts, the ones the player encounters is just two of a species.
82	* Clowns are an alien race in ''VideoGame/SpaceStation13''. There's also a rival race of mimes from the same planet.
83	* The Fools from ''VideoGame/SpyroTheDragon1998'' are an InvincibleMinorMinion native within the Dream Weavers Worlds. While considerably harmless, they have the ability to affect the world around them. The Fools in Dream Weavers and Jacque's boss level is attacked become a timer that lower or tighten select platforms before the bell rings. The Fools in Dark Passage carry around lamps that, when lit, keep the Demon Dogs and Armored Turtles in their smaller, more docile state, becoming giant and much more of a threat when the lamp is extinguished.
84	* Rodeo clowns in ''VideoGame/WestOfLoathing'' are a race of devil whose natural enemies are the demonic Cows. When [[ApocalypseHow The Cows Came Home]], the clowns followed them into the realm of the living. You can learn a little about them by exploring the circus: they hatch from eggs with natural "facepaint" patterns, and no two clowns have the same facepaint. Their leader, Barnaby Bob, may or may not be Old Scratch himself, and [[ImpliedDeathThreat has a pretty cool knife-throwing act]].
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Web Animation]]
88	* Implied in the first season finale of ''WebAnimation/BigtopBurger''; it's revealed that [[spoiler:not only is Steve a "real, genuine" clown, but clowns themselves are regarded as a mythical species separate from humans (although some of the main characters don't think they really exist).]] The final episode of Season Two reveals that [[spoiler:clowns are an ancient interstellar species that have existed for billions of years before humans even came into being. They live in their own planet and highly revere the musical ''Theatre/{{Cats}}'', which was actually written by one clown that lived ''nine billion years ago'', and is performed regularly by the clown society as a sort of ritual]].
89	* ''WebAnimation/{{Bugbo}}'': Implied in "Under the Oak." The Hollow Clown has a black, empty mouth and eyes, and he doesn't seem to have a life outside of being a clown. Also, there is a creature that is implied to be his father that looks like some sort of clown dragon thing.
90	* ''WebAnimation/ElainTheBountyHunter'': In the series' setting, Clowns are a known ethnicity with their own quirks (such as [[BizarreAlienBiology a fully-functioning quiz game being part of their stomachs]]) and often come from the town Fuzner's Circus City. The criminal Gop Donsterly is 1/4 Clown, allowing him to use the quiz game in his stomach to his advantage.
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Web Comics]]
94	* ''Webcomic/BongoAndLuna'': The Clowns, such as the titular character Bongo, are a sub-species of humanity. Believed to be the result of some type of Clown God mating long ago with humans. They can also tap into a RealityWarper ability called the 'Clown Force'.
95	* Clowns in the ''Webcomic/CirqueRoyale'' have unique traits that make them their own species. This include light blue skin with colorful hair (any color but black), prominent red noses, solid black eyes and star-shaped nipples. They also have a sugary-based diet and can't digest meat, and have superhuman and physical abilities (super strength, voice manipulation).
96	* ''Webcomic/MSPaintAdventures'':
97	** ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'': The kingdoms of the Clowns, [[CivilizedAnimal Weasels, Hogs]] and [[OurElvesAreDifferent Elves]] have diplomatic conflict with each other.
98	** ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
99	*** Prototyping the kernel with an item causes all of the denizens of the players' planets to take on the characteristics of that item. When John prototypes his kernel with a harlequin doll, this populates his planet with clown-themed monster mooks. These come in a shapes in sizes but share a clown-like appearance and a propensity for japery and visual gags.
100	*** Almost the entire [[MonsterClown purpleblood]] [[FantasticCasteSystem caste]] of [[AllTrollsAreDifferent trolls]] seen in spin-off games ''VideoGame/{{Hiveswap}}'' and ''VisualNovel/HiveswapFriendsim'' follows an unnamed [[ReligionOfEvil religion]] -- they wear {{UsefulNotes/Juggalo}} makeup, drink faygo, have honks in their theme music, and are otherwise very clown-adjacent. Apart from background characters, every one so far has been a member of the church.
101	* Killjoys, a stalled webcomic, has clowns with two distinct sub species, [[https://www.killjoyscomic.com/comic/reader-questions-part-1 jesters and mimes]]
102	* ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal'' has a few comics along this line. [[https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/clowning This one]] posits that the "infinite scarves" trick is actually clowns expelling their viscera as a defense mechanism, while [[https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2014-12-14 this comic]] features a man telling a little girl that clows are actually a kind of subterranean predator (though he might just be lying). In the mouseover text for another comic Zack admits it was pointed out one of the few consistent things about his comic is clowns being their own species and he agreed after thinking about it.
103	[[/folder]]
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105	[[folder:Web Original]]
106	* ''Roleplay/TropersTheSeries'': The mimes in "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" are implied to be their own species. They all come from a "mime factory" in Tropesberg, they are never seen without their costumes or breaking character, and their mime is treated as [[{{Conlang}} a separate language]] (which Puma, being a NonIronicClown, is fluent in as well.)
107	* There's a minor meme making rounds on tumblr of making [=PSAs=] for proper clown care, pretending to be from a universe where clowns and similar professions like mimes and jesters are domesticated species. Most of these posts can be found under the "clown husbandry" tag. Youtuber STRANGE [=Æ=]ONS [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9HWJd8s9_c made a video showcasing some examples.]]
108	* ''Website/SCPFoundation'':
109	** The group of interest [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/herman-fuller-hub Herman Fuller's Circus of the Disquieting]] (and its central canon, ''[[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/dread-circuses-hub Dread & Circuses]]'') describes four categories of [[CapitalLettersAreMagic Clowns]], or "bozomorphic entities" as some Foundation researchers may call them [[SesquipedalianLoquaciousness loquaciously]].
110	*** Original Clowns: [[LovecraftianSuperpower Lovecraftian]] {{Reality Warper}}s from another plane of existence that took [[HumanoidAbomination near-human form]] to join the Circus for their amusement. They are host to "Fun-lovers", [[TheSymbiote symbiotes]] that give them power and generate [[{{Squick}} Clown Milk]], a black substance rich in serotonin to the point of toxicity for humans.
111	*** Converted/Turned Clowns: [[{{Clownification}} Humans converted into Clowns.]] They're a little more normal looking and a little less temperamental but otherwise the same as the Originals. The current ringmaster and her girlfriend, "[[MagicalClown Icky the Magic Clown]]" and "[[SexyJester Li'l Lollipop]]", are both examples.
112	*** Bred Clowns: Clowns created using biological material from both Originals and Turned Clowns, and gestated within Fun-lovers. These have [[BodyHorror very specific and very extreme traits]], are [[WorkingClassPeopleAreMorons typically less intelligent than other Clowns]], and involuntarily generate Clown Milk, requiring "milking" as to not [[PopGoesTheHuman build up internally and explode]]. The [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-2912 SCP-2912]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificTense were]] three such instances acquired by the SCP Foundation.
113	*** Not Clowns: The [[NonIronicClown traditional notion of clowns as a profession]], being [[{{Muggles}} mundane]] or [[UselessSuperpowers mildly anomalous]] people who have nothing to do with True Clowns.
114	** Due to the LooseCanon of the website, its ambiguous and sometimes up to the reader's interpretation if other clowny creatures and characters are Clowns as defined above or something else unrelated.
115	*** [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-2734 SCP-2734,]] a peaceful herbivorous human-like species who look like clowns. They've fled to our world from an AlternateUniverse where they were [[FinalSolution being systematically exterminated by humans]], and only want to live in the wilderness in peace.
116	*** [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-4671 SCP-4671]] indicates that he, his parents, and his BigBrotherBully are one of many beings considered a species of clowns. He appears to know of ([[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch but distinguishes himself from]]) the "not exactly clowny clown clowns" of the Circus of the Disquieting, but isn't familiar with the name of Fuller or his circus.
117	[[/folder]]
118
119	[[folder:Western Animation]]
120	* In the short-lived children's cartoon ''WesternAnimation/LittleClownsOfHappytown'':
121	** The titular Little Clowns [[AmbiguouslyHuman may or may not be a species separate from humans]]. Despite looking like little kids in clown suits, they seem to be only ever referred to as "clowns", and they come from a SugarBowl land to spread happiness to other parts of the world.
122	** A more straight example would be Clownimals, which at first look like just normal circus animals (an elephant, a seal, etc.) wearing clown facepaint and other accessories. However, the show's theme song informs us of their true nature:
123	--->''And Clownimals don't have clownface on like Little Clowns, [[NotAMask THAT'S HOW THEY'RE BORN]]!''
124	* In the ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'' special "[[WesternAnimation/SchoolsOutTheMusical School's Out! The Musical]]", the film's antagonist Flappy Bob was originally the clown-baby of clown parents in a circus that was given up when they thought that they were about to die in a train-accident to carry on their "super hilarious (and kind of creepy) clown heritage"... that is if they had noticed that they were on the ''not'' destroyed train tracks. Unusually for this trope, Flappy Bob is established as wearing makeup and is able to pass as a normal human being when not wearing the makeup.
125	* In the remake of ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'', the Bozorians are aliens who look exactly like clowns, and whose technology and culture is based on clownishness (custard pies, balloon animals, etc). They aren't inherently evil, but they find being laughed at very offensive.
126	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Silverhawks}}'': Variant. The Copper Kidd is mentioned at least once during the show to come from "the Planet of the Mimes". [[EveryoneHatesMimes The obvious joke]] is never followed upon.
127	* It has been implied a few times in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' that Krusty the Clown is not just a man wearing clown makeup but the show is not consistent about this.
128	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': [[ImpliedTrope implied]] in the episode "Don't Feed the Clowns", and their natural habitat is the slapstick plains.
129	* Spinels from ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' are a gem-type specifically created to be like jesters, their purpose to endlessly entertain their owners. [[Characters/StevenUniverseSpinel Spinel]] in-particular was created to be [[Characters/StevenUniversePinkDiamond Pink Diamond's]] own personal playmate, being a RubberMan NonIronicClown before her mistreatment turned her into a MonsterClown [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds lashing out by plotting to destroy Steven and the Earth.]]
130	* The second episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheMidnightGospel'' has Clancy visiting a planet ruled by clown-parasites. They resemble clown babies in their juvenile form and spiders with cylindrical clown heads in their adult form.
131	* ''WesternAnimation/TrippingTheRift'' has the Dark Clown Empire which is a parody of TheEmpire from ''Franchise/StarWars'' but they're clowns.
132	* ''WesternAnimation/TheWackyAdventuresOfRonaldMcdonald'' suggests this is the case for Ronald [=McDonald=] as it was in the Advertising/McDonaldland commercials, as Ronald gets squirted in the face with water in ''Visitors from Outer Space'' with no change and still looks like a clown when he's de-aged into a toddler in ''Birthday World'', hinting that he's not wearing makeup and always looked like that.
133	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / ClownSpecies