History ComicBook / Runaways

* {{Irony}}: Early on in the series, the Runaways encounter a [[spoiler:vampire]] who dupes them into thinking he's in the same situation as they are. When he [[spoiler:gets Nico alone and tries to turn her, he gets stabbed through the chest with her staff. When she seems surprised that he hasn't dusted, he tells her "Whedon got it wrong," and that the only thing that would kill him is sunlight.]] Creator/JossWhedon, of course, later joined the writing staff.

* HellOfAHeaven: The Pride wish to donate their seats in the Gibborim's paradise to their children because they cannot stand the idea of being permanently separated from their spouses.

This is how we are introduced to the Marvel Comics series ''{{Runaways}}''. Chase, Alex, Nico, Karolina, Molly and Gert are old acquaintances. Once a year, their rich parents meet up and hold a charity meeting, and they are stuck in the family room to play while the parents discuss grown up stuff. But one year, when the parents were having their meeting, Alex discovers a secret passageway which allows them to see what really happens in their meetings. They discover their parents are a [[LegionOfDoom secret organisation]] called The Pride.

Not to be confused with ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Runaways_%28film%29 The Runaways]]'', a film starring DakotaFanning and KristenStewart, or the [[TheRunaways real-life band]] that the film is based on. To avoid this confusion, the upcoming film has been retitled ''Small Faces'', which ironically is the name of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Faces another band]]. A [[http://smallfacescasting.com/ casting call]] has gone out for a movie based on the series.

* AdultsAreUseless: The story is an homage to every teen angst film ever made, as in the initial arc all adults are either direct minions of the Pride or under their influence by more subtle means. Numerous heroes appear in the later arcs who, if not incompetent in their own areas, are nonetheless unable to help the main characters because of their attempts to treat them as just children.

* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Xavin and Karolina are ''really'' devoted to each other after they head off for the wedding.

* BadAssNormal: Gert, Chase and Alex have no real powers, but still manage to have their place on the team.

* {{Beat Panel}}: In the second issue.

* CaptainEthnic: [[AvertedTrope Averted]]. Despite having several non-white main characters, none of their powers is based on their cultures or stereotypes.
* CassandraTruth: No-one believes them when they say that (in famously meta-crime free LA) their parents are a cabal of supervillains.

* ChessMaster: Alex Wilder. He gets it from his father.

* CliffhangerCopout: Issue 24. The kids have finally dragged Chase back, they've beaten their foes once and for all, and they're tired and weary as they arrive home... To find Iron Man and a bunch of mooks waiting. In Issue 25, they begin by... Meeting with the Kingpin.

--> Victor: Holy...did you see how high I jumped?
--> Nico: Yeah...did you see how high my heels are? (Kicks him in the face) Look closely.
* CompetenceZone: Anyone over a certain age is useless, even super heroes. Spider-man managed to get a cool big brother spot, though, and Cloak and Dagger have some competence (because their {{backstory}} is that they were also runaways). This is subverted with Molly. Everyone treats her as naive and weak, needing protection, but she is really powerful and knows a lot more than she lets on.

** Not to mention in two out of the three [[CrisisCrossover Crisis Crossovers]] (''CivilWar'' and ''SecretInvasion'') they were involved in they were forced to team up with the ''YoungAvengers''. The remaining one (''MysticArcanna'') was a solo adventure of Nico's
* DayInTheLimelight: Molly once had an issue revolve around her and some kidnapped children.)

* DittoAliens: Mrs. Dean makes a comment about how all the Skrull look alike to her.

** Not the first time that their similarities have been pointed out. Karolina's powers got the Runaways mistaken for Power Pack, of which Lightspeed was a member.

* FirstKiss: The first one in the series is between [[spoiler: Nico and Alex]]. Later on in Volume 1, we get a KissOfLife (see below) between [[[[spoiler: Gert and Chase]], which soon becomes the real deal.

* FunWithAcronyms: Karolina's code name, "'''L'''ucy in the '''S'''ky with '''D'''iamonds", referencing the {{Beatles}} song.

* GenderBender: When Xavin finds out [[spoiler:Karolina is a lesbian, and that is why they can't be together,]] he nonchalantly informs her that Skrull can change their gender as easily as humans can change their hair, and [[VoluntaryShapeshifting shapeshifts]] into a woman.
* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: Invoked to emphasize the Pride's MoralMyopia. Chase's mother refused to give up her baby, [[HypocriticalHumour claiming she wasn't a monster]]...while she and the rest of the Pride were about to sacrifice an innocent girl.

* GreenLanternRing: Nico's spells. Except the ones she's done before, and that's only in theory. In the original series, before Cloak and Dagger found them out looking for bad guys to fight, she used "Burst!" to pop paint cans, and in Secret Invasion: Young Avengers / Runaways, she uses "Pop!" to pop force fields. On the other hand, in Young Avengers / Runaways: Civil War, she asks the Vision to give her some help with new words for her spells, implying that only the actual one- or two-word incantation (on one memorable occasion, five: [[spoiler:The show must go on.]]) can't be repeated, which should really let her do a lot more things.

** And one of them is mocked by Spider-man, as he dodges it.
--> '''Spider-man:''' Ah, hellfire. When regular fire just simply won't do.
* HellOfAHeaven: The Pride wish to donate their seats in the Gibborim's paradise to their children because they cannot stand the idea of being permanently separated from their spouses.

* HollywoodPudgy: Gert, [[DependingOnTheArtist when drawn by anyone other than Adrian Alphona]].
* HoYay: Probably unintentional and not as blatant as the LesYay (see below), but Chase and Victor have a few moments:
-->'''Chase:''' Vic's still got ''one'' member of his harem. And this one's got a big honkin' ''laser.''
** Then there's the time they had a heart-to-heart while Vic was naked...after Chase to shrieked about how [[FanService Victor's nudity]] was "[[LampshadeHanging gratuitous]]." And the time they danced together.
*** And his comment "You're an electric chair with ''legs''! Only, you know, instead of four legs, you've got, uh...''three''."

* [[HowDidYouKnowIDidnt How Did You Know? I Didn't]]: Twice - played seriously with [[spoiler: Karolina's blood killing Topher]] in volume one, because [[spoiler:she had no idea it would happen and honestly wanted to die]]. Played for laughs in volume three.

* IAmNotShazam: "Runaways" is NOT the name of the team. Their book is called ''Runaways'' because they ''are'' runaways. The kids themselves do not have an official team name, usually being referred to as either "The Pride's kids" or "Those kids in L.A." depending on the character. However, even some writers have forgotten that detail. They are once again referred to as the Runaways in the AvengersAcademy tie-in with {{Comicbook/Avengers Vs X-Men}}.
** Nico once refers to the group as the Children of the Damned while escaping the convenience store with Topher, though that name didn't stick either.

* {{Irony}}: Early on in the series, the Runaways encounter a [[spoiler:vampire]] who dupes them into thinking he's in the same situation as they are. When he [[spoiler:gets Nico alone and tries to turn her, he gets stabbed through the chest with her staff. When she seems surprised that he hasn't dusted, he tells her "Whedon got it wrong," and that the only thing that would kill him is sunlight.]] Joss Whedon, of course, later joined the writing staff.

* LaserGuidedAmnesia: To preserve their secret, the Pride wipe memories from Cloak and Dagger. At least they use telepathy, legitimizing the trope. [[spoiler: But then Cloak regains his memories after a [[FonzarelliFix swift smack on the head]] from Luke Cage, and this is played totally straight.]]

* {{Nakama}}

* OurVampiresAreDifferent : Lampshaded with a smug reference to ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' creator Joss Whedon - and how he "[[YourVampiresSuck got it wrong]]". Ironic, since Whedon eventually ended up ''writing the series''.

* PersonalityPowers: Used straight, subverted, and doubly subverted. Goth girl Nico is a dark witch whose powers are activated by spilling blood...and it annoys her. ValleyGirl Karolina is a walking light show who isn't as perky as she looks. The smallest of them has super strength, and the dumb jock is in charge of all the [[WhereDoesHeGetAllThoseWonderfulToys wonderful toys]].

* ShoutOut: Three characters are named after creator Brian K. Vaughan's family. In addition, The Who get a shout or two: the "hope I die" quotation from Alex, as well as one of the story arcs being called "Teenage Wasteland."
** Not to mention Molly's affection for [[CalvinAndHobbes Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs]].
** And at one point in Volume 2, Issue 6 Nico shouts, [[PinkFloyd "Shine on you crazy diamond!"]]

** Not to mention ''Karolina's nickname'', [[TheBeatles Lucy in the Sky...with Diamonds]].

** In the alternate future of volume 4, Victor as Victorious' appearance and MO is exactly like [[TheIncredibles Syndrome]]. Killing all superheroes? A black one piece costume with domino mask and the first letter of his codename? Electricity-based powers?

** JamesDean and RebelWithoutACause.

* {{Soaperizing}}

* TheSmurfettePrinciple: This was deliberately inverted from the beginning - even the pitch included with the first TPB mentions the break from tradition by having more girls than guys. Counting Xavin, there have never been more than two-and-a-half boys on the team.
* SpinOff: There was a short-lived series about Excelsior, called ''The Loners'' because Stan Lee holds copyright on the word "Excelsior". Um, hang on...

* StevenUlyssesPerhero: A mad scientist named [[{{Frankenstein}} Victor Stein.]]
* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: In the first issue of volume two, two unrelated characters comment on the lack of superheroes in LA, "except maybe Wonder Man, and he don't count."

* ThePowerOfLove: In the recent ''Dead Wrong'' arc
** [[spoiler:Subverted in the case of Victor and Lillie. Despite being very much in love with each other, Lillie panics at the idea of going with Victor to the future and stays behind. We later see that she grew up to regret chickening out, to the point at which she tries to warn Victor to bring her with him before he travels through time. She still doesn't go.]]
* ThrowAwayCountry: Karolina's DoomedHomeTown homeworld Majesdane was nuked by the Skrulls. When Xavin wonders why [[spoiler: Gerts']] death affects the team more, Karolina actually mentions that AMillionIsAStatistic.

* {{UST}}: By the frogload.

* WolverinePublicity: Much like the original Marvel teen hero, a majority of the series revolves around them encountering B-villains and having teamups. Many of Marvel's most popular heroes have made cameos in the series, most of whom have some idea about what is best for the teens. When Wolverine himself made an appearance it was only a brief one, but was lampshaded by IronMan (Who was also cameoing) who commented that it was the third time this week the two had run into each other. Soon afterwards, Wolverine [[TheWorfEffect was beaten up and thrown through a church door by Molly]] after a series of comic misunderstandings and a request to be allowed to touch his hair (Hey, Molly might be smarter than she looks, but she is still a kid, and he is ''Wolverine.'' You would want to touch his hair, too).

--> "Oh thank God. I thought I was dead."

* [[YoureInsane You're Insane]]
* YourVampiresSuck: Ironically aimed at Joss Whedon, who later ended up writing for the book
* YouWatchTooMuchX: When the team discovers Karolina's powers, Alex suggests her that her Med-Alert braclet is made of something that inhibits them. He gets halfway through the word "Kryptonite" before Chase cuts him off. "You've been watching too many [[{{Smallville}} WB shows]], bro."
----

* IAmNotShazam: "Runaways" is NOT the name of the team. Their book is called ''Runaways'' because they ''are'' runaways. The kids themselves do not have an official team name, usually being referred to as either "The Pride's kids" or "Those kids in L.A." depending on the character. However, even some writers have forgotten that detail. They are once again referred to as the Runaways in the AvengersAcademy tie-in with AvengersVsXMen.

* IAmNotShazam: "Runaways" is NOT the name of the team. Their book is called ''Runaways'' because they ''are'' runaways. The kids themselves do not have an official team name, usually being referred to as either "The Pride's kids" or "Those kids in L.A." depending on the character. However, even some writers have forgotten that detail.

** When Victor first meets the team, he calls them the WebOriginal/TeenGirlSquad.

** When Victor first meets the team, he calls them the [[TeenGirlSquad Teen Girl Squad]].

* FunWithAcronyms: '''L'''ucy in the '''S'''ky with '''D'''iamonds.
** It is a canonly a reference to the beatles song though.

* TheirFirstTime: [[spoiler: Nico and Victory]] lose their virginity to one another, [[SexForSolace even though they immediately regret it]].

* LesYay: Nico and Karolina's on-again off-again {{UST}}. Of course, [[spoiler: Karolina is canonically gay and has expressed her feelings for Nico.]] Toned down when Xavin enters the picture but comes back [[UpToEleven full force]] after she's [[spoiler: PutOnABus while disguised as Karolina to answer for the crimes of Karolina's parents.]]
** It is even hinted that Nico might have feelings for Karolina and is jealous of Xavin. She seems slightly disappointed to learn that they are still together upon their return to Earth. Nico later tries to undermine their relationship by asking if Xavin's female form is her TrueSelf. She also confesses in a game of "Truth or Dare" that out of all the people she had kissed, Karolina was the best kisser.
*** Seeing as Nico and Karolina have never kissed on-panel, that could be a case of the writer [[{{DidNotDoTheResearch}} not doing their research]].

* XanatosGambit: The mother of all Xanatos Gambits, actually... two of them.

* DiscountLesbians: Karolina and Xavin. Karolina is the traditional embodiment of the trope, an alien, whereas Xavin (Who is also an alien) compounds the issue by also being a [[GenderBender shape-shifter]] who looks masculine in her default form.

* DiscountLesbians: Karolina and Xavin. Karolina is the traditional embodiment of the trope, an alien, whereas Xavin (Who is also an alien) compounds the issue by also being a [[GenderBender shape-shifter]].

* WrongContextMagic: Specifically, the Staff of One, which can do practically anything (save bring someone back to life). However, its spells can only ever be used once, and attempting to cast the same spell twice would do something random. Despite this, Alex Wilder once got hold of the Staff and managed to cast the same spell repeatedly. (The suggestion is that he found two words or phrases that meant the same thing, which appears to be a workaround, as Nico has performed teleportation at least twice by changing the command phrase).

-->'''Chase:''' Heh, "power vacuum". [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean That should be Gert's new codename.]]

* BilingualBonus: Victor does this on two accounts. The first is the Spanish swearing he manages to sneak in. (Also a case of GettingCrapPastTheRadar.) The second is his binary rambling after Chase flips his safety switch. The stream of ones and zeroes out of his mouth? The spell W-T-F.

* DifferentWorldDifferentMovies: It's implied that the DCUniverse exists in the MarvelUniverse, not comic books, but as a series of TV shows.

* SexForSolace: Nico has a self-admitted tendency to throw herself at the nearest male in the aftermath of any stressful or traumatic scenario, although she does not progress to actual sex until well into the second volume of the series. She knows it is not healthy and is not fair to herself ''or'' whomever she throws herself at, but she cannot seem to break the pattern.