Web Video / LPS: Popular

Welcome to Orange County Day, where drama is typical and couture is necessary.

Littlest Pet Shop: Popular (more commonly abbreviated to LPS: Popular) is a YouTube Web Original series created by SophieGTV and made with Littlest Pet Shop toys.

It tells the story of Savannah "Savvy" Reed, whose best friend is Brooklyn "Brooke" Hayes. Although Brooke has long since moved away, Savvy still thinks of her as a friend and is naturally thrilled when she finds out she's moving to Orange County, where Brooke lives.

When Savvy starts her first day at her new high school, however, she both meets two new friends; Angelina and Genevieve, and discovers that her old friend is the Alpha Bitch of the school, complete with a boyfriend; Sage, and a Girl Posse; Rachel and Alicia. A rivalry quickly starts in place of the previous friendship between the two, with Savvy eventually winding herself into a confusing web of relationship drama, grapples for social status, conflicting loyalties, and an eating disorder on top of it all.

You can watch all twenty-nine episodes here. Currently, season one has been finished and season two is almost done.

Tropes:

• Aborted Arc:
  • Brooke is mentioned to be “captain of the cheerleading team” in the second episode, but this has not been brought up since then.
  • Episode eight has Lina and Genny show Savvy a closet where they hide. The way it was introduced implied it would be a recurring place, but it disappeared afterward.
• Abusive Parents: Brooke's mother is almost never around and, when she is, she treats her own daughter with coldness and contempt.
• Alliterative Name:
  • Rachel Rivera.
  • Lana Lawrence.
• Alpha Bitch: Brooke is the antagonist and leader of her Girl Posse.
• All There in the Manual:
  • The description for the first episode states that Brooke and Savannah were friends since they were babies.
  • Episode twenty three’s description confirms that Lana and Josh are twins.
• Ambiguously Brown: Rachel’s last name, Rivera, seems to indicate that she might be Hispanic, but her blond hair and blue eyes would imply otherwise. However, since the show is made using plastic toys, it’s impossible to tell.
• Ambiguously Gay: Angelina. She’s never had a boyfriend, or any form of relationship besides kissing a boy once at a party. Also, when Savannah tells her that she has a crush, the first thing she asks is if it’s a boy.
  • Sophie claimed that, not only does she plan to have an LGBT character in the series, but that that was the plan since the beginning. Given the fact that she also liked a tweet that said that Lina was a lesbian, “ambiguous” may soon be thrown out the window.
• A Man Is Always Eager: It's implied that Nathan only wanted Rachel for physical intimacy, given that he is very persistent in wanting it and even breaks up with Genevieve when she doesn't reciprocate his desires.
• And Then I Said: In episode seven, we hear Sage told a story that ends with him telling a guard that his name is Bond. Sage Bond.
• Answer Cut: Sage mentions he lost his snowboard, raising the question of where it went. Cut to a fish dancing on it.
• Backstabbing the Alpha Bitch: In the season 1 finale, Rachel pulls a Heel–Face Turn and reveals what Brooke's plan had been for the party—namely, to dump a mixture of liquids on Savvy to ruin her fur—as well as Brooke's other secrets, before she and Alicia officially ditch Brooke.
• Beautiful All Along: Savvy gets this kind of makeover later on, complete with The Glasses Gotta Go.
• Beauty Is Never Tarnished: A weird variation. In the season 1 finale, Brooke is so furious at seeing Sage and Savvy together that she launches herself at Savvy, raking her claws down her face and leaving deep cuts. Understandably, a big deal is made out of it, with Sage telling Savvy she needs to go to the hospital to get them treated. However, in season 2, while Savvy's scars are mentioned, they aren't visibly seen on her, making them more of Informed Attributes than anything else.
• Beta Bitch: Rachel seems to be this for Brooke. Until the season 1 finale, but in season two seems to be back in cahoots with Brooke again.
• Beta Couple: Genevieve/Nathan, as of the season 1 finale.

• Big "WHAT?!": Chase’s reaction when Alicia breaks up with him. The fact that this is unexpectedly the first time a character wasn’t voice acted by SophieGTV adds oomph to it.
• Break the Haughty: Hoo, boy. The season one finale is all about Brooke's plan to break Savvy falling completely apart before her eyes and all her past actions coming back to bite her in the tail. Hard.
• Brother–Sister Team: Lana and Josh are twins with a very close relationship. They’re the only ones who knows of the others Dark Secret and live together alone.
• Cats Are Mean: Brooke, who is a cat with blonde fur, is Orange County Day School's resident Alpha Bitch.
• Chekhov's Gunman: Megan is introduced in the episode before it’s revealed she is the context behind the visions of Tom and Brooke kissing played over the entirety of season one. This also serves as the very final breaking point for Brooke losing Sage.
• Clingy Jealous Girl: Savvy fears she's acting like one when Bridgette arrives on the scene and seems to be a bit too close for comfort.
• Dark Secret: Lana tells her brother their secrets must be kept in order for them to have any chance at a normal high school life. Interestingly, they each have their own secrets. Josh even got mad at Lana for treating them too similarly.
• Deceased Parents Are the Best: Brooke’s mother is an Abusive Parent who barely gives her the time of day and fuels her bulimia. Brooke’s father was easy to get along with and meant a lot to Brooke. Guess which one is the dead one?
• Disappeared Dad: In season two, it’s revealed Brooke’s father died not too long ago.
• The Ditz: Alicia's not the sharpest knife in the drawer.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: Brooke, a pale blonde cat with blue eyes, calls Savannah, a naturally brown dachshund, a “wiener dog.” Everyone treats this as a horrible slur, and Genevieve only allows herself to say it in a whisper.
• Dumb Is Good: Alicia is The Ditz and the sweetest of the Barbie Dolls.
• Early-Bird Cameo:
  • Tom appears doing things such as chugging milk and asking Savannah to kiss him before making his proper debut.
  • Gigi makes some brief appearances in season one.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: Especially in the first two episodes.
  • The first two episodes were filmed on a very poor quality camera, to the point of Sophie even jokingly agreeing with someone who said it looked like it was filmed on a toaster.
  • The editing style was also somewhat different. Shots typically lasted longer than they do in the rest of the series, and their were transition cards and an old theme song.
  • Alicia didn’t seem to be dumb at first, and she doesn’t have that high pitched voice she does in the rest of the series.
  • The first three episodes were posted on a different channel than the others.
• Eiffel Tower Effect: The way we learn Tom moved to France is by showing him next to the Eiffel Tower.
• Everyone Has Standards: Despite Rachel often going along with Brooke’s schemes (such as purposefully shooting ink onto Savnnah) she draws the line at Brooke’s plan to permantely ruin her rival’s fur.
• Everyone Looks Sexier if French:
  • Brigitte, a Foreign Exchange Student from France.
  • Violette, Tom’s new girlfriend in France.
• Fantastic Racism: Brooke says that her feline body is naturally better and skinner than Savannah’s dachshund one. This leads Savannah to hating her breed.
• Fantastic Slur: Brooke calls Savannah a “weiner dog.” Everyone treats this as a grave insult and Genevieve only allows herself to say it in a whisper.
• "Flowers for Algernon" Syndrome: Rachel abandons Brooke in the season one finale. But after Savannah attacks Brooke, she rejoins her, forgetting every lesson she learned about how selfish and cruel Brooke was.
• Foil: Brooke and Savannah's mothers. While Mrs. Reed notices irregularities in Savannah's eating habits and tries to get her to get some nutrition, Mrs. Hayes actively encourages Brooke to stick to a strict diet. Savannah's mother tries to convince her daughter that her appearance is perfectly fine, Mrs. Hayes berates her daughter for not having a stick thin figure. Savannah can easily go to her mother to discuss her problems and ask for advice, while Brooke's mother can't even have a five minute conversation with her daughter without a work call interrupting.
• Foreign Exchange Student: Bridgette in season 2, who is from France.
• Funny Background Event:
  • In one episode, Brooke, while sitting behind a table of pigs, says the phrase “when pigs fly.” You’ll never guess what happens next.
  • Lina, a cat, is almost always seen eating fish for lunch.
• Girlfriend in Canada: According to Sage, Bridgette has a boyfriend named Philippe back in France. May be subverted, however, because at the very end of the episode, we see Tom in Paris, implying that he is Bridgette's boyfriend. It’s later shown that Tom is actually dating a girl named Violette.
• Girl Posse: Rachel and Alicia for Brooke. Subverted in the season one finale, however, when they get fed up with Brooke and ditch her as part of her Humiliation Conga. As of episode 29, however, they seem to be the same Girl Posse as they were in the first season.
• Glamorous Single Mother: Brooke’s father has died, but her mother seems to have a big demanding job that supplies them with a huge house and fancy clothes.
• The Glasses Gotta Go: As part of her makeover, Savvy removes her glasses.
• Good Parents: Savvy's parents, especially her mother, seem to care about her, especially when her mother notices her daughter isn't eating properly.
• Half-Identical Twins: Averted with Josh and Lana. Since the series uses plastic toys, it’s hard to guess how much they’re supposed to resemble each other, but their only physical similarities are their breed and eye color. Non-related pets have shared both of those traits before ^note  For example, Brooke and pre-makeover Angelina were both blue eyed shorthairs and they’ve also never been stated to look incredibly alike.
• Hate Sink: Nathan, who's defining moments in the show are cheating on his girlfriend, and dumping her the minute she finds out with no remorse or guilt. He also didn't mind making out with Brooke when she had a boyfriend, and dumps Genevieve the minute she doesn't have to have sex with him.
• Hidden Depths: Despite being domineering and cruel, Brooke is heavily implied to be insecure. She holds a grudge against her former friend because said friend started dating a guy she had a crush on back in eighth grade. This even compels her to degrade and force her out of her party, leaving the girl in tears. She cares a lot about her appearance, considering herself fat despite not eating properly, and seems to suffer from negligence and abandonment due to her mother’s callousness and her father’s death.
• Iconic Outfit:
  • Brooke and Savannah's devil and angel costumes are very memorable and well known.
  • Brooke and Savannah's clothes worn in The Claws Come Out are also popular (as evident by them wearing them in the title sequence).
• Informed Attribute: We’re told that Rachel is dumb, yet in the show she seems to be at an average intelligence level. Her most defining attribute is her weak-willed nature.
• In-Series Nickname: "Savvy" for Savannah and "Gen" for Genevieve.
• Innocently Insensitive: Brigette, who has lived in France her whole life, doesn't know that kissing Sage on the cheek as a friendly gesture would make Savannah uncomfortable.
• "It" Is Dehumanizing: Savannah protests returning Mimi, saying that she was miserable with Brooke. Her father responds that it’s a bug and it’ll get over it. His daughter says that she is a living, breathing creature, putting emphasis on the pronoun.
• Kick the Dog: When Savvy arrives at Orange County Day, she’s excited to finally be reunited with her friend whom she hasn’t seen in a long time. Nevertheless, her friend tricks her into thinking things are just like the old times, then coldly tells her that Savvy is lower than her and that she doesn’t want to be associated with her. To make things worse, her former friend continues to degrade and even starts a cruel rumor about her. When Savvy finally finds peace and happiness, Brooke uses their quarrel as a way to blackmail her into doing what she wants.
  • Brooke as well. One time when she is worried over her pet going missing, her mother shows annoyance rather than empathy towards her. When her daughter is obviously stressed over something, she focuses more on the fact that her daughter is "ruining her figure" rather than her daughter's well being.
  • Gigi, who’s almost a literal example. She’s treated horribly by Brooke, who neglects and yells at her. She finally runs away and finds comfort with Savvy, but then Savvy is forced to give her back to her previous owner, whose new pet also doesn’t hesitate to treat her terribly as well.
• Like Mother, Like Daughter: Brooke treats Gigi much like her own mother treats her. She cares more about Gigi's outward appearance more than her needs, she neglects to give her attention, and believes that buying Gigi expensive toys equates to love.
• Love Triangle: Several:
  • The main one in focus throughout the series is Brooke —> Sage <— Savvy. Savvy wins out.
  • The second most prominent triangle is Tom —> Savvy <— Sage. Sage wins.
  • A Beta Couple example is Rachel —> Nathan <— Genevieve. Genevieve wins.
• Manipulative Bitch: Brooke blackmails Tom with a video of them kissing, threatening to post it online and frame it as cheating. She cries Crocodile Tears trying to convince Sage Savannah is a terrible person, even making up rumors that Savannah has a contagious rash. In the middle of the second season, she digs her claws into Savannah, causing the latter to retaliate in self-defense. She threatens to sue Savannah for all she's worth if she doesn't break up with Sage and give Gigi back. And if Savannah tells anybody, she's done for.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Brooke almost quotes this trope word for word when realizing that Gigi, her pet cricket, has gone missing because of her actions.
• Mysterious Past: God, where to begin with Lana and Josh? They come right out of nowhere in episode twenty three, and every time they return, they raise far more questions than they answer. But just to start: they each have their own Dark Secret and enroll at Orange County for “one chance at a normal high school life.” They live alone and have to pay rent by themselves because their parents-or any legal guardians-are out of the picture. Lana doesn’t have any easily traceable records, and it’s implied that Brooke recognizes her.
• Mythology Gag: Brooke named her pet Gigi, which rhymes with the name another Rich Bitch gave the exact pet mold in another series Sophie did... When Savannah renames Gigi, she gives her the same name that Paris Hamilton from that series gave her pet: Mimi.
• The Name Is Bond, James Bond: An example where the character’s last name is actually Bond. In episode seven, Sage tells a And Then I Said story where he introduces himself like this.

• Obfuscating Disability: Around her mother, Brooke acts like her concussion was much worse than it actually was so her mother will be more willing to make Savannah pay.
• Official Couple: Sage/Brooke and, eventually, Savvy/Tom. Until Sage dumps Brooke in the season 1 finale and Savvy and Tom break up. In season 2, Savvy/Sage becomes the new Official Couple.
• One-Mario Limit: Anything that includes Littlest Pet Shop and the names Sage, Savannah, or Brooke will immediately make people think of this series.
• Operation: [Blank]: Brooke calls her plan to humiliate Savvy "Operation: Fry the Sausage" (since Savvy is a dachshund and her derogatory nickname is "sausage"). In the season 2 trailer for the upcoming 29th episode, it officially becomes "Operation Barbecue the Sausage".
• Rich Bitch: Brooke is very wealthy and the antagonist of the series.
• Passive-Aggressive Kombat: Brooke and Savannah have an exchange like this in episode 22.
• Polar Opposite Twins: Downplayed with Lana and Josh. They have their similarities, but certain traits are conflicting; Josh is sensitive and wants to get to the roots of problems, while Lana is The Stoic who gets straight to the point. She’s also overworking hours while Josh can’t get enough. In other words, if one of them has a weakness, their twin makes up for it. This makes them a very good Brother–Sister Team.
• Precision F-Strike: In episode two, Alicia uses the word retarded. It’s a bit of Early-Installment Weirdness, because words like this are never used in the rest of the series.
• Rage Against the Reflection: Brooke swats the mirror when she sees her makeup smeared face after she loses her boyfriend, friends, and popularity.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Bridgette gives a big one to Sage, saying he’s full of himself for thinking every girl wants him and for blaming his supposed wandering eye on her.
• Romantic False Lead: Tom, who is introduced mainly to be an obstacle between Sage and Savvy.
• Ridiculously Cute Critter: Brooke's pet cricket, Gigi. Who now lives with Savannah.
• The Rival: Brooke and Savvy to each other.
• Satellite Character: Angelina and Genevieve have some personality in the pilot episode, but eventually lose less and less purpose over the series outside of their roles as Savvy's best friends. In contrast, however, are Rachel and Alicia, who start out as this for Brooke but get their own personalities later on.
• Satellite Love Interest: We don't know much about Sage other than that he's a Nice Guy and that he and Savvy like each other.
• Separated by a Common Language: All the characters should be speaking American English, but since SophieGTV is Canadian, this trope occasionally happens.
  • In episode four, Savannah’s mom says pasta like “PAST-ta.” The American pronunciation is “PAW-sta.”
  • Savannah in episode twenty one very noticeably says the Canadian pronunciation of against (eh-gainst) instead of the American (uh-gents).
• Series Continuity Error: Savannah says the note taped on her locker, which she believed was from Brooke, was very mature and reminded her of the notes they would pass in grade school. However, Savannah was homeschooled, and she and Brooke never went to grade school together.
• Shipper on Deck: In episode six, Savannah's parents are quite keen on the idea of their daughter liking Sage.
• Shout-Out: The title of episode 27 is “Liar and the Tramp.”
• Sour Outside, Sad Inside: Brooke. While she seems like an arrogant bully, it stems from the fact that she's really insecure and struggles with her neglectful mother and eating disorder issues.
• Spell My Name With An S: “Genny” is spelt with a g, not a j. Justified, however, as it’s a shortened version of Genevieve, which starts with a g, instead of the more common Jennifer.
• Status Quo Is God: Rachel rejoins Brooke's Girl Posse, losing all her character development in the process.
• The Stoic: Lana. Her brother teases her with playful surprise for showing emotion at one point.
• Stripperiffic: Brooke's outfit at the party in the season 1 finale is apparently supposed to be skimpy. Given that she's a cat who lives in a world where the animal inhabitants don't wear clothes most of the time, though, it doesn't really give off that impression.
• Teen Drama: Has the basic plot of one, but with the teens replaced by plastic toys.
• Toilet Humor: Tom, who moves to France, only knows two French words: ‘Bonjour’ and ‘toilette.’
• Trademark Favorite Food: Lina almost always eats a can of sardines for lunch.
• Two Guys to a Team: The main cast, as of season 2, stars eight characters, but only two (Sage and Tom) are male.
• Unspoken Plan Guarantee: We see Brooke reciting how Operation: Fry the Sausage will go, so of course it fails. The only part of the plan that did work (Savannah witnessing Brooke kissing Tom) was also the only part that wasn't openly discussed.
• We Used to Be Friends: The entire plot is kicked off by Brooke and Savvy, who were best friends in elementary school, turning against each other when Brooke coldly rejects Savvy as a friend.
• Wild Teen Party: Brooke holds a costume party (called the "party of the century") in the season 1 finale, where the plot takes place.
• You Are Fat: Brooke straight-up insults Savannah’s figure at times, often calling her a “sausage”.
• Your Makeup Is Running: Happens to both Savannah and Brooke in the season one finale. Brooke’s smeared makeup caused her to have a Rage Against the Reflection moment.

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