Return to Recap: The Smurfs.
A formula turns a baby bird into a monster who attacks the Smurf Village.
Tropes:
- Absurdly Ineffective Barricade: A Smurf barricades the door of his house by using furniture, thinking that the Howlibird won't get in that way, but doesn't take into account that the bird could attack his house from above.
- Agony of the Feet: A Smurf working on restoring the village well asks another Smurf to fetch him a stone, but as that Smurf grabs the stone and tries to pass it over, he is distracted by Papa Smurf coming into the village to warn his little Smurfs about the Howlibird, accidentally dropping the stone on the foot of the other Smurf.
- Beastly Bloodsports: Papa Smurf fights with the denuded Howlibird in the same manner as a bullfighter, wearing the creature down with so many passes until eventually it collapses.
- Blowing a Raspberry: After rendering the Howlibird bird helpless, one Smurf does this to it.
- The Cameo: Gargamel makes a cameo appearance in the story as the Smurfs visit his hovel to get from him a shrinking formula.
- Character Name and the Noun Phrase
- Dangerous Device Disposal Debacle: The plot is started by the pair of Smurfs tasked to get rid of the dangerous formula dropping it down a cliff rather than traveling all the way to the desert.
- Feathered Fiend: The Howlibird.
- Modesty Towel: A Smurf goes through the entire story just wearing a towel around his waist, and when Papa Smurf has to use something to bullfight the Howlibird after it has been stripped of its feathers, he uses that Smurf's towel to do it.
- Non-Fatal Explosions: Papa Smurf launches a firecracker at the Howlibird, which strips it of its feathers and causes it to fall out of the sky relatively unharmed.
- Pokémon Speak: In the original French version, the creature was named Cracoucass after the onomatopeia of his screech.
- Smurf-Eating Plant: The mutated plant in Papa Smurf's laboratory in the early part of the story.
- Super Window Jump: One of the Smurfs breaks into Papa Smurf's laboratory by hurling himself through a window when the door is blocked by the Smurf-eating plant.
- Trash the Set: The Smurf Village is nearly trashed by the Howlibird. At the end of the story, the Smurfs are seen rebuilding it.
