History ComicStrip / SafeHavens

-->'''Farnsworth:''' Feryl! You...you...[[spoiler:you changed back!]]

* OneWayVisor: Dave almost always wore one until college, when it was banned by the NCAA. He switched to SunglassesAtNight after that. Ming did initially, which is part of how she first made the acquaintance of him and his friends (including GreenEyedMonster Samantha).

''Safe Havens'' is a fantasy comic strip by Bill Holbrook, launched in 1988 and initially set in a daycare center. In 1993 the preschool children began aging in real time, and the strip has followed them as they've moved through K-12, college and now young adulthood. The main character is Samantha Argus, a personable and enthusiastic young woman with the skills of a MadScientist who has unlocked the secrets of genetic manipulation.

* SpeaksFluentAnimal: Several characters can speak with animals, but only so long as they mentally retain some aspect of their childhood; those who "grow up" lose the ability and eventually forget they ever had it.

* OneWayVisor: Dave almost always wears one. Ming did initially, which is part of how she first made the acquaintance of him and his friends (including GreenEyedMonster Samantha).

* ArchivePanic: As noted, the strip's been going on since 1988. The online archive ''only'' goes back to 1999, so that's still almost 20 years available online.

* DreamCrushingHandicap: Played with. More than once, Dave got a knee injury that threatened his basketball career.

* Crossover: Frequently with ''ComicStrip/OnTheFastrack'' (see SharedUniverse below). One noteworthy crossover in the early 2000s featured Rose Trellis of ''Fastrack'' and Samantha's mother both running for state governor, with one sequence occurring simultaneously in both comics.

* Crossover: Frequently with ''ComicStrip/OnTheFastrack'' (see SharedUniverse below). One noteworthy crossover in the early 2000s occurred simultaneously, with both comics telling the same story in sequence.

* BrainBleach: Desired by Pam after Samantha mentioned the possibility of a Halloween [[{{Squick}}"sexy Mitch [=McConnell=]"]] costume.

** The 'other' clique in middle and high school was specifically designed to be this.

** Palmtop/Pam would initially have you believe that she hates Vince, but...
* TheFaceless: The extremely tall Don and Marcie used to be portrayed as so tall that their heads were always off frame. Their faces have finally appeared -- Don's when his son was born and Marcie's when she met the now six foot three Rosalind.

* GrowingUpSucks: Children lose their ability to talk to animals when they start behaving like adults, along with all memory of ever being able to do in the first place. The (most common) exceptions are Veterinarians, who all universally retain it, and [[ManChild Professionally Athletes]].

* OurMermaidsAreDifferent: Remora reveals many qualities not found in most other works. For example, she can shapeshift into fully human or fully fish forms only up to 12 hours at a time, after which she transforms into the opposite form [[InvoluntaryShapeshifter whether she wants to or not]]. It is also said that if a human saves a mermaid's life three times, they become a mermaid themselves, although exactly what qualifies as saving their life is PlayedForLaughs: Samantha found herself turned into a mermaid after something as simple as giving Remora a flotation ring for swimming practice. Remora's also [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld more than 400 years old despite looking the same age as her classmates]].

* TheRival: Pretty much right from conception, Clay and Candide have always competed against each other in any way they can devise.

* SharedUniverse: With ''ComicStrip/OnTheFastrack''. Samantha's dad works for Fastrack, Samantha sometimes works there, she used to babysit Patina and Rusty, and now she's Patina's RA.

* {{Retcon}}: A 1989 strip featured Jenny talking about her brothers. Later strips, however, establish that she's an only child. The creator [[HandWave hand waved]] this by saying that her brothers were just her imagination.

* GrowingUpSucks: Children lose their ability to talk to animals when they start behaving like adults, along with all memory of ever being able to do in the first place. The (most common) exceptions are Veterinarians, who all universally retain it, and [[Manchild Professionally Athletes]]

** Also, [[http://safehavenscomic.com/?webcomic1=december-4-2012 "This isn't fiction, Rosalind. It's real life."]]

Safe Havens is a fantasy comic strip by Bill Holbrook, launched in 1988 and initially set in a daycare center. In 1993 the preschool children began aging in real time, and the strip has followed them as they've moved through K-12, college and now young adulthood. The main character is Samantha Argus, a personable and enthusiastic young woman with the skills of a MadScientist who has unlocked the secrets of genetic manipulation.

* PottyFailure: Back when the strip was set in a daycare, this gag was very common.

* TheFaceless: The extremely tall Don and Marcie used to be portrayed as so tall that their heads were always off frame. Their faces were finally seen, Don's when his son was born, and Marcie's when she met the now six foot three Rosalind.

* DeggansRule: Followed! Samantha and her family are Black, as is Don. Luis is Latino, and Ming is Asian-American. Race is rarely if ever touched upon.

* OutOfFocus: Former protagonist MattHavens hasn't appeared in ages.

* TooDumbToLive: When Sam cloned a pair of dodos, she discovered why they went extinct: They're sentient, sapient and highly intelligent, but have the survival instinct of brain-damaged turkeys.

* WeirdnessMagnet: Compared to most of her friends, Samantha is downright normal. [[http://safehavenscomic.com/?p=1069 She even calls herself by this trope.]]

* TheFaceless: The extremely tall Don and Rosalind used to be portrayed as so tall that their heads were always off frame. Later Rosalind, thanks to some mad science, shrank an entire foot and decided she liked being of normal height. Don is still tall, but we get to see his face now.