Line #132 Webcomic/Sarilho


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/402063b952fe10c6dbc295b079864145.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Sarilho means knot, entanglement or a twist.]]
3
4	An alien gets shot in the face four times and for some reason that starts a war.
5
6	An ancient satellite falls into enemy territory. The Kirchhoff brothers, Mikhail and Nikita, are dispatched along with a small team of soldiers to collect the remains of this relic, thought to be in space for over five hundred years. But they did not consider that, just beyond the edge of the empire, their enemies would be interested on that technology as well...
7
8	As they arrive on the location, they quickly realise that the satellite is the least of their problems. Turns out an unknown, extraterrestrial artifact has crashed alongside it. And the thing thinks.
9
10	[[http://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/prologo-1/ Sarilho]] means knot, entanglement, or a twist. It also means trouble. It is a story of war, conflict, and facing the unknown.
11
12	----
13	!!General Tropes:
14
15	* AncientAstronauts: Well, an ancient satellite crashing down starts the story off. [[spoiler:But the thing inside it could fit this trope.]]
16	* AssimilationPlot: Judging by maps, The Mediterranean Empire has already conquered most of the continent the story takes place on.
17	* ArtificialLimbs: Filipa has a prosthetic leg [[spoiler: after an [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch2p34 incident]] in chapter 3]].
18	* BilingualBonus: The entire comic is presented in both Portuguese and English versions, but often documents, posters and other pieces of background media are in something that resembles Italian.
19	* BlueBlood: Strongly suggested to be the case of the ''Vera Italica'' Houses.
20	* BunnyEarsLawyer: Shizuka Nakamura. Not once has she been seen dressing up her part, but Nikita vouches for her skills as an augur.
21	* ChildSoldiers: Mikhail and Nikita were sold into the military at a very young age.
22	* ColorCodedforYourConvenience: The Régula II Divison wear bright red, white and gold uniforms. The Lusitanians wear more dark earth colored tones, possibly to blend in more with the surrounding forests. The different Lusitanian Schools, however, sport different colors according to speciality and these can be spotted in the Lusitanian outfits, although in small amounts.
23	* ConLang: At least the written language of the Mediterranean Empire. [[spoiler:The spoken languages seem to be fairly close to their modern counterparts, though.]]
24	* Conscription: Heavily implied to be the case for most Meditans, except for the cases in which people are effectively ''[[SlaveMooks bought]]'' by the military.
25	* DeusEstMachina: The Gods the Meditas refer to are apparently this, with the augurs effectively acting as their [[TechnoWizard priests]] through some [[MachineEmpathy sort of psychic link]].
26	* EldritchAbomination: Now crashlanded in [[AliensInCardiff AROUCA]]!
27	* EverybodySmokes: the augurs.
28	* FantasyCounterpartCulture: [[{{UsefulNotes/Portugal}} The Lusitanians]]. They call the Meditas ''Spaniards'' often, to the point of considering kicking them back into {{UsefulNotes/Spain}}.
29	* {{Fingore}}: Victor's [[NotUsingTheZWord deslusos]] all sport nine fingers, just like him. He also orders them to bite the fingers off people they may capture, as [[spoiler: they do with Daria]]. Eurico and Estanislau seem to share his taste for the practice, as they [[spoiler: cut several of the Foreigner's fingers during the torture scene. They grow back]].
30	* FictionalPoliticalParty: Two political parties are named on the Meditan Empire, the Efficientists and the Expansionists. Not much is known about them, except that members of the Corvo House are usually Expansionists. If [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch1p22 Franq's words]] are anything to go by, the Efficientists are the reason there has been a peace treaty between the Meditan Empire and Lusitania.
31	* HighlyConspicuousUniform: The Meditans are not afraid to be spotted in battle, apparently.
32	* HitSoHardTheCalendarFeltIt: Something drastic happened 508 years before the story starts, enough for the Meditans to have changed their calendars. The Lusitanians don't seem to give it the same importance and continued to count the years as usual, so by the time the story starts they are in the year AD 2805.
33	* InSeriesNickname: Shizuka is nicknamed Shizamura. She hates it.
34	* LimitedWardrobe: They're soldiers.
35	* MenAreTheExpendableGender: Averted. Both sides of the conflict seem to employ people of all genders and they seem to fall in similar numbers.
36	* MasterComputer: [[ThemeNaming Árgon and Xénon]].
37	* MindOverMatter: Seems that a lot of people in this world have some sort of PsychicPowers, although their usage seems to be very contained.
38	* OneWayVisor: It sure is nice when the meditans put up their helmets and their faces are no longer visible and they're all wearing the same uniform...
39	* PaintingTheMedium: the webcomic's site design often changes in particular scenes, with the comic's pages (or elements of these) taking the entire screen. The Foreigner's speech bubbles, whenever it speaks telepathically, are also represented different.
40	* PlayingWithFire: Pyrokinesis is associated with augurism.
41	* PrescienceByAnalysis: How augurs see the future. ''That's not future sight, that's... Probability!'' ''[[http://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch02p10]]''
42	* RealPlaceBackground: several locations along the Douro valley are mentioned by either their real names or bastardized versions of these. Nonetheless, there's a certain level of IstanbulNotConstantinople going on.
43	* RuinsOfTheModernAge: The Mediterranean Empire's ''main endeavour'' is to recover and understand [[LostTechnology ancient technology]], which looks somewhat modern.
44	* SchizoTech: some people use normal guns and there's these guys with [[RayGun Microwave Guns]].
45	* StraightGay: Neither Nikita nor Steffano seem to fall into any obvious gay stereotypes.
46	* SuperpowerfulGenetics: According to the Extras, Talents have a genetic component to them, so they tend to run in families.
47	* TheEmpath: The Lusitanians in general and Fausta in particular. [[spoiler:The Foreigner]] seems to be able to do it too.
48	* TheEmpire: A ''Mediterranean'' Empire.
49	* TheFuture: According to the Lusitanian timeframe, the story takes place in [[spoiler: the 28th century]].
50	* UnspecifiedApocalypse: Something happened to the modern world, but the details aren't shown. Judging by the maps, this was either accompanied/caused by a raise in the sea levels.
51
52	----
53
54	[[foldercontrol]]
55
56	[[folder:Chapter one]]
57	* EliteMooks: We're told as early as chapter one that Nikita is very good at leading a team.
58	* HappinessinSlavery: Well kinda. Despite being sold to the empire and having no choice in what he does with his life, Nikita violently denies being a slave when the subject is ever brought up. He does say that Mikhail's totally fine with his situation though.
59	* BecauseImGoodAtIt: How Nikita justifies his commitment to the army.
60	[[/folder]]
61
62	[[folder:Chapter two]]
63	* DoctorsOrders: Maili says you can't connect to the computer right now, Franq [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch2p09]]. It comes up again, later [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch4p16]].
64	* EverythingsDeaderWithZombies: the Lusitanians big approach to battle is to raise dead soldiers to do the dirty work for them.
65	* FirstContactFauxPas: If one version of the events is correct, then [[spoiler:Nikita has just shot the first alien on Earth in its face four times]].
66	* {{Telepathy}}: The first thing The Foreigner does when it awakes is to read the thoughts/memories of everyone next to it.
67	* EldritchAbomination: The Foreigner. Whatever it is, it's able of some level of mind-reading and mind-control, and its shape and size vary depending on who's looking at it. [[spoiler: Could be a case of StarfishAliens.]]
68	* AnArmAndALeg: [[spoiler:Mikhail gets hit with a Microwave Gun from afar and part of his arm immediately explodes.]]
69	* ShelteredAristocrat: Implied to be the case with Dária.
70	* PunctuatedForEmphasis: [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch2p25 SHUT. YOUR. MOUTH.]]
71	[[/folder]]
72
73	[[folder:Chapter three]]
74	* BrickJoke: "I think I'm in for a medal!" [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch3p25]]
75	* DarkerAndEdgier: There's decidedly a darker tone from here on, in sharp contrast to the lighthearted mood of the first two chapters.
76	* EyeScream: Nikita gets a lot of shattered glass on his face as a result of breaking his helmet's faceplate.
77	* FromBadToWorse: It's the name of the chapter.
78	* MindManipulation: The lusitanians second big approach to battle, with MindRape undertones.
79	* TranquilFury: Nikita seems to hold his temper in battle, even more so after [[spoiler:Mikhail's death]].
80	* WhatMeasureIsAMook: There are several casualities on both sides of the first battle.
81	* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: Mikhail runs around after losing an arm for quite some time. [[spoiler:Until he bleeds out.]]
82	* BoomHeadshot: Implied in the case of [[spoiler:Victor]]. Not so much for [[spoiler:Jacinto. Twice.]]
83	* YourHeadASplode: [[spoiler: Jacinto gets [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] twice]]. Combined with PsychicStrangle in the case of [[spoiler:Márcia]]
84	* WhatTheHellHero: Clearly what's going on Aurik's mind after [[spoiler:he catches Nikita executing Márcia with extreme prejudice]].
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Chapter four]]
88	* AffablyEvil: While described as a GlorySeeker, Alexandro Corvo seem nothing but a normal and polite man, albeit one with a slightly sharp tongue.
89	* AnyoneCanDie: Seems to be heading in that direction, if the first chapters are any proof.
90	* AntiClimax: We never see the end of the battle that took place in the previous chapter.
91	* [[AFatherToHisMen A Mother to her men]]: Olivia Mezzaferro may seem cold but she shows up for her boy's funeral.
92	* BelligerentSexualTension: Briefly: Nikita and Steffano's discussion [[spoiler:NICE FOREPLAY, LOSERS!]].
93	* BrickJoke: [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch4p61 Daria gets her medal]].
94	* CigaretteOfAnxiety: Franquelim goes through a lot of cigars during his train ride to [[{{UsefulNotes/Spain}} Salamanca]] until he's finally able to ask Nikita about the Lusitanians.
95	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Nikita can't stay with you, Steffano, because he did not bring enough underwear!! [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch4p48]] (Or perhaps he get the point far too well!).
96	* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Nikita goes through two different haircuts during this chapter alone, along with EyepatchAfterTimeskip.
97	* FacialMarkings: Meditans cover their faces with ash to display grief. Nikita has his face painted through the entire chapter.
98	* KickedUpstairs: Nikita gets a surprise promotion.
99	* LaughingMad: How the chapter closes.
100	* MadeOfIron: What Nikita wishes he was and tries to be for the bigger part of the chapter.
101	* MotivationalLie: [[spoiler:Nikita tells Alessandro what the general wants to hear as soon as he realises this may result in a declaration of war with Lusitania.]]
102	* NoOneGetsLeftBehind: Averted, big time.
103	* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: Things have taken a darker turn for many of the characters.
104	* SelfDeprecation: Whatever Nikita's got going on [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch4p42 in this page]]. It might even overlap with TheChainsOfCommanding.
105	* SharingABody: Hinted that this might be the case of Fausta [[spoiler: and part of the Foreigner]].
106	* SurvivorGuilt: Could easily be the name of the chapter.
107	* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: If this chapter's last page is any indication, this is what's to come.
108	* SceneryPorn: We see a lot of Salamanca and brief glances of the Douro Valley.
109	* ShoutOut: two characters from ''{{Webcomic/Of Magic}}'' [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch4p22]] appear at the Salamanca train station.
110	* ShutUpKiss: Not exactly to shut up but it sure ended the discussion.
111	* WebcomicTime: this chapter takes place two weeks after the previous ones.
112	* WrittenByTheWinners: Steffano briefly discusses that it's odd that an empire that sports itself as the recoverer of the lost glory of mankind spends such an inordinate amount of time destroying the remains of the cultures it assimilates.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder:Chapter five]]
116	* AngelicAbomination: The Foreigner does get called 'Angel' a little too many times... And then makes itself perceived [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch5p62 like this]].
117	* BespectacledCutie: Ângela looks pretty cute in her big round glasses.
118	* BrokenBird: Ângela is hinted to have at least [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch5p40 some sort of trouble going on]].
119	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Although that doesn't necessairly mean he loves them, Eurico does have a family that includes a wife and two young kids. On the other hand, Estanis seems to really care for Ângela too.
120	* GrandTheftMe: the Foreigner does this to [[spoiler:Mikhail's corpse]]. Not exactly a case of BackFromTheDead.
121	* {{Hunk}}: Estanis.
122	* InfiniteCanvas: When the Professor makes a quick summary of the events on the night of the Foreigner's awakening[[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch5p15]], the canvas does this.
123	* MaleFrontalNudity: when Angela first enters the room after the Foreigner gets comfortable inside its new body, it looking like this... So she immediately assumes YouMustBeCold.
124	* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Help out an alien and automatically get on the bad side of everyone you love!!
125	* OurZombiesAreDifferent: The Deslusos work like puppets for their commanders, and can even speak for them.
126	* ShoutOut: Trigger from [[https://www.ghostjunksickness.com/ Ghost Junk Sickness]] appears briefly in the School of Medicine and [[https://kateblast.com/ Kate Blast]] [[https://sarilho.net/en/arquivo/comic/ch5p48 calls for a Bishop]].
127	* TortureAlwaysWorks: Averted, as no good information is extracted out of the Foreigner.
128	* TortureTechnician: Both Eurico and Estanislau fit this trope, the first by performing mental torture while the second performs the physical part of it. They definitively go into MutilationInterrogation territory.
129	* UnwantedSpouse: The way Estanis is dropped so quickly could really amount to this.
130	[[/folder]]
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Context Webcomic / Sarilho