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** Another InUniverse example: in a short story, both Mortadelo and Filemón are sent to the loony bin, wearing straitjackets, and easily get out of the jackets. What do they do to escape the building? Mortadelo calls the nurse, and when he shows up, he points at the empty straitjackets and tells him the two people wearing them just escaped. The nurse promptly runs to raise the alert, while the two agents walk out without a problem.
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I thought I had crosswicked this example. I even thought someone had deleted it, but apparently it was never added. Strange
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* PottyEmergency: This is the running gag for poor Superintendente Vicente in the last chapter of ''El Bacilón''. [[spoiler: The eponymous monster is ''disintegrated'' at the end by a single slap from El Súper because it stood in between him and the toilet - but Mortadelo and Filemón grab him too fast to let him relieve himself.]]
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* PottyEmergency: PottyEmergency:
** This is the running gag for poor Superintendente Vicente in the last chapter of ''El Bacilón''. [[spoiler: The eponymous monster is ''disintegrated'' at the end by a single slap from El Súper because it stood in between him and the toilet - but Mortadelo and Filemón grab him too fast to let him relieve himself.]]
** This is the running gag for poor Superintendente Vicente in the last chapter of ''El Bacilón''. [[spoiler: The eponymous monster is ''disintegrated'' at the end by a single slap from El Súper because it stood in between him and the toilet - but Mortadelo and Filemón grab him too fast to let him relieve himself.]]
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* ProductDeliveryOrdeal: Many stories consist in them having to travel long distances through all kinds of terrain and suffering a lot of AmusingInjuries along the way.. only to find out at their destination that they were given the wrong item, that the person who receives it does not want it anymore or even that the item itself was completely unnecessary from start.
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* ObfuscatingInsanity: In the second festival of Humor short, ''Engaño a Filemon'', Mortadelo's psychologist cousin makes Filemon believe that Mortadelo has developed Don Quixote's personality, with the latter taking advantage of it to humiliate his boss by getting him into trouble just for the giggles. Filemon doesn't react well when he finds out the truth.
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* MonsterInTheMoat: One issue involves the two agents falling into a dry moat and Filemon is relieved because no water means no [[Main/ThreateningShark sharks]]. Only for Mortadelo to explain to him that it's more practical for a moat to have crocodiles... just like the really big and hungry one he is pointing at.
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** In ''La Gallina de los Huevos de Oro'', both agents receive a vinyl with a secret message, that ends with the usual "This message will destruct in five seconds" at the end. A song that Filemón ''really'' hates beging to play and he destroys both the vinyl and the turntable… in precisely five seconds.
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** In ''La Gallina de los Huevos de Oro'', both agents receive a vinyl with a secret message, the mission briefing, that ends with the usual "This "[[ThisPageWillSelfDestruct This message will destruct in five seconds" seconds]]" at the end. A song that Filemón ''really'' hates beging to play and he destroys both the vinyl and the turntable… in precisely five seconds.
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* PercussiveTherapy: Happens from time to time. From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of a window]], and smashed with an axe by Mortadelo, who had been following a soccer game that went ''[[CurbStompBattle really]]'' bad for the team he was a fan of.
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* PercussiveTherapy: Happens from time to time. time:
** From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of awindow]], window]] and of course ruined, and smashed with an axe by Mortadelo, who had been following a soccer game that went ''[[CurbStompBattle really]]'' bad for the team he was a fan of.of. The latter tries to make Filemón thinks the first two work [[EpicFail with predictable results]].
** In ''La Gallina de los Huevos de Oro'', both agents receive a vinyl with a secret message, that ends with the usual "This message will destruct in five seconds" at the end. A song that Filemón ''really'' hates beging to play and he destroys both the vinyl and the turntable… in precisely five seconds.
** From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of a
** In ''La Gallina de los Huevos de Oro'', both agents receive a vinyl with a secret message, that ends with the usual "This message will destruct in five seconds" at the end. A song that Filemón ''really'' hates beging to play and he destroys both the vinyl and the turntable… in precisely five seconds.
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Changed line(s) 105 (click to see context) from:
* PercussiveTherapy: Happens from time to time. From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of a window]], and smashed with an axe by Mortadelo, who had been following a soccer game that went [[CurbStompBattle ''really'' bad]] for the team he was a fan of.
to:
* PercussiveTherapy: Happens from time to time. From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of a window]], and smashed with an axe by Mortadelo, who had been following a soccer game that went [[CurbStompBattle ''really'' bad]] ''[[CurbStompBattle really]]'' bad for the team he was a fan of.
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* PercussiveTherapy: Happens from time to time. From example, at the very beginning of ''Secuestro Aéreo'' Filemón discovers his TV set, his radio, and his portable (by [[TechnologyMarchesOn '70s standards]]) TV were respectively kicked and totalled, [[ApplianceDefenestration thrown out of a window]], and smashed with an axe by Mortadelo, who had been following a soccer game that went [[CurbStompBattle ''really'' bad]] for the team he was a fan of.
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* NegativeContinuity: The events of previous episodes are frequently disregarded, including stories which end with the characters being killed, fired, or transferred to another post, the agency being disbanded, or the protagonists having an FaceHeelTurn. Different tales on characters' backgrounds and families are often given. One story has Filemón born in a seemingly middle class family, while another claims that he was born and raised in a shantytown. Mortadelo's origin story mentions his family having to migrate when he was a child to avoid bad publicity following an ill-conceived prank in a hospital. Another story depicts him born and raised in a rural village, where he is apparently the sanest person around.
** There are some things that remain continuous within the comic books. Antofagasto Panocho (a parody of UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) is a recurring villain.
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]often being recognised by the two main characters and within panels featuring little annotations that say things like "Yes, yes! Check issue X and you'll see what they're talking about!"[[/note]] is probably [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor Prince Charles]].
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying to have some [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] during these years, making recurring villains and so. The former comic books, however, are rooted on NegativeContinuity.
** There are some things that remain continuous within the comic books. Antofagasto Panocho (a parody of UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) is a recurring villain.
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]often being recognised by the two main characters and within panels featuring little annotations that say things like "Yes, yes! Check issue X and you'll see what they're talking about!"[[/note]] is probably [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor Prince Charles]].
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying to have some [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] during these years, making recurring villains and so. The former comic books, however, are rooted on NegativeContinuity.
to:
* NegativeContinuity: The events of previous episodes are frequently disregarded, including stories which end with the characters being killed, fired, or transferred to another post, the agency being disbanded, or the protagonists having an a FaceHeelTurn. Different tales on characters' backgrounds and families are often given. One story has Filemón born in a seemingly middle class family, while another claims that he was born and raised in a shantytown. Mortadelo's origin story mentions his family having to migrate when he was a child to avoid bad publicity following an ill-conceived prank in a hospital. Another story depicts him born and raised in a rural village, where he is apparently the sanest person around.
around.
**There are There’s been some things that remain continuous within the comic books. Antofagasto Panocho (a parody of UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) is a recurring villain.
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]oftenattempts at consistency in later years. Some characters (particularly villains) make returns in later comics,[[note]]often being recognised by the two main characters and within panels featuring little annotations that say things like "Yes, yes! Check issue X and you'll see what they're talking about!"[[/note]] is probably [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor Prince Charles]].
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying toabout!")[[/note]] since "Su Vida Privada", Mortadelo and Filemón have some [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] during these years, making recurring villains always been shown living in the pension El Calvario, and so. The former comic books, however, are rooted on NegativeContinuity.their families have always been the same ones since then, and since the 90’s the designs for the Chairman, his wife and the Supervisor’s wife have been mostly the same.
**
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]often
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying to
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** Whenever real people show up, they are drawn with realistic faces, which contrasts with the usual characters looking cartoony. Then there is also the CrossOver with ''ComicBook/ElCapitanTrueno'', where the Trueno characters get sometimes drawn in their original realistic style and sometimes look cartoony... and sometimes it is a mix... you can see why we don't like talking about that.
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** Whenever real people show up, they are drawn with realistic faces, which contrasts with the usual characters looking cartoony. Then there is also the CrossOver with ''ComicBook/ElCapitanTrueno'', where the Trueno characters get sometimes drawn in their original realistic style and style, sometimes look cartoony... cartoony and sometimes it is a mix... you can see why we don't like talking about that.mix.
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--->'''Mortadelo:''' Come on, boss, it was just an 11th floor! We've been through worse!
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--->'''Mortadelo:''' Come on, boss, it get up, that was just an 11th floor! eleven floors! We've been through worse!
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--->Come on, boss, it was just an 11th floor! We've been through worse!
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-->'''Mortadelo:''' ''(after being rescued by Filemón when a bird attempted to eat him while he was in an insect disguise)'' What a dreadful experience, boss! I've seen its oesophagus, its craw and its sternum... from '''inside'''!
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Changed line(s) 24 (click to see context) from:
-->Come on, boss, it was just an 11th floor! We've been through worse!
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Up To Eleven is a defunct trope
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* MadeOfIron: '''And HOW!''' The list of accidents the main characters have survived [[UpToEleven is basically endless]]:
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* MadeOfIron: '''And HOW!''' The list of accidents the main characters have survived [[UpToEleven is basically endless]]:endless:
Changed line(s) 119 (click to see context) from:
* {{Pun}}: Ibáñez masters this like no other in the Spanish language. The number of puns throughout the series is so big that it would need, not its own page, but [[UpToEleven its own Wiki!]]
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* {{Pun}}: Ibáñez masters this like no other in the Spanish language. The number of puns throughout the series is so big that it would need, not its own page, but [[UpToEleven its own Wiki!]]Wiki!
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* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: Exaggerated, to the point of characters getting punched into different countries and even [[RecycledINSPACE INTO SPACE!]].
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* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: Exaggerated, to the point of characters getting punched into different countries and even [[RecycledINSPACE [[JustForFun/RecycledINSPACE INTO SPACE!]].
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Changed line(s) 1,5 (click to see context) from:
-->Back to main page '''[[ComicBook/MortadeloYFilemon HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes A-C '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes D-L '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes M-R (you are here)
--->Tropes S-Z '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes A-C '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes D-L '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes M-R (you are here)
--->Tropes S-Z '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ HERE!]]'''
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--->Tropes A-C '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes D-L '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes M-R (you are here)
--->Tropes S-Z '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ HERE!]]'''
[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC A - C]] | [[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL D - L]] | '''M - R''' | [[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ S - Z]]-]]]]]
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Creating a page for Running Gag.
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* RunningGag:
** The basic plot is one. Mortadelo goofs, Filemón gets hurt and punishes Mortadelo. Lather, rinse, repeat. It's usually played with, though.
** When Filemón is the one who goofs and is later punished by Mortadelo, he will complain that the natural order is having Mortadelo on front.
** Also, very often both Mortadelo and Filemón get punished by the Súper, Ofelia or any other character.
** Let's not forget about Bacterio. He is probably the character, apart from Mortadelo, that has been punished the most often throughout the series. Very often by Mortadelo himself.
** Many times, Ofelia will go tell Mortadelo that the Súper is looking for him. He will say something that Ofelia takes for a romantic thing, but turns out to be some kind of insult (mostly aimed at her girth), to which she responds quite forcefully. Filemón will later continue the joke, and finally the Súper will say something completely innocent that Ofelia takes for the continuation. The one that suffers most is the Súper.
*** In one instance, Mortadelo, Filemón *and* Bacterio, one after each other, manage to break Ofelia's pearl necklace, making her having to search and pick her pearls three times. After they have suffered Ofelia's anger, they go complain to the Súper, who kindly tries to defend his secretary by saying: "Come on, come on! Ofelia is a pearl in the TIA's necklace...". Ofelia overhears him and explodes with anger.
** Whenever Prince Charles (the most recurrent antagonist) appears, someone (normally Mortadelo) will make continuous jokes about Charles' ear size. Sometimes, even supposed English newspapers get in the joke.
** A main character receives AmusingInjuries of an specific nature or to a certain body part continuously throughout the entirety of the story[[note]]for example, AgonyOfTheFeet[[/note]]. Characters that have nothing to do with this,then mention something to the character tangentially related to the injury, [[HairTriggerTemper which drives them nuts]][[note]]a coworker mentioning going for a walk in the park, playing a match on the agency's soccer team, etc[[/note]].
** The basic plot is one. Mortadelo goofs, Filemón gets hurt and punishes Mortadelo. Lather, rinse, repeat. It's usually played with, though.
** When Filemón is the one who goofs and is later punished by Mortadelo, he will complain that the natural order is having Mortadelo on front.
** Also, very often both Mortadelo and Filemón get punished by the Súper, Ofelia or any other character.
** Let's not forget about Bacterio. He is probably the character, apart from Mortadelo, that has been punished the most often throughout the series. Very often by Mortadelo himself.
** Many times, Ofelia will go tell Mortadelo that the Súper is looking for him. He will say something that Ofelia takes for a romantic thing, but turns out to be some kind of insult (mostly aimed at her girth), to which she responds quite forcefully. Filemón will later continue the joke, and finally the Súper will say something completely innocent that Ofelia takes for the continuation. The one that suffers most is the Súper.
*** In one instance, Mortadelo, Filemón *and* Bacterio, one after each other, manage to break Ofelia's pearl necklace, making her having to search and pick her pearls three times. After they have suffered Ofelia's anger, they go complain to the Súper, who kindly tries to defend his secretary by saying: "Come on, come on! Ofelia is a pearl in the TIA's necklace...". Ofelia overhears him and explodes with anger.
** Whenever Prince Charles (the most recurrent antagonist) appears, someone (normally Mortadelo) will make continuous jokes about Charles' ear size. Sometimes, even supposed English newspapers get in the joke.
** A main character receives AmusingInjuries of an specific nature or to a certain body part continuously throughout the entirety of the story[[note]]for example, AgonyOfTheFeet[[/note]]. Characters that have nothing to do with this,then mention something to the character tangentially related to the injury, [[HairTriggerTemper which drives them nuts]][[note]]a coworker mentioning going for a walk in the park, playing a match on the agency's soccer team, etc[[/note]].
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** The Súper's real name, Vicente, was a common name in Spain a few years ago, and not punny in itself... until you remember a Spanish saying: "¿A dónde va Vicente? Adonde va la gente" (literally: ''Where does Vincent go? Where people go''; in correct and orthodox English: monkey see, monkey do). Which isn't a particularly good name for the ''boss of most characters in T.I.A.''. [[note]]His surname, Ruínez, is an obviously fake surname meaning "Ruinson"[[/note]]
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** The Súper's real name, Vicente, Vicente was a common name in Spain a few years ago, and not punny in itself... until you remember a Spanish saying: "¿A dónde va Vicente? Adonde va la gente" (literally: ''Where does Vincent go? Where people go''; in correct and orthodox English: monkey see, monkey do). Which do), which isn't a particularly good name for the ''boss of most characters in T.I.A.''. [[note]]His Also, his surname, Ruínez, is an obviously fake surname meaning "Ruinson"[[/note]]"Ruinson".
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-->Back to main page '''[[ComicBook/MortadeloYFilemon HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes A-C '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes D-L '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes M-R (you are here)
--->Tropes S-Z '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ HERE!]]'''
----
--->Tropes A-C '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesAToC HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes D-L '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesDToL HERE!]]'''
--->Tropes M-R (you are here)
--->Tropes S-Z '''[[MortadeloYFilemon/TropesSToZ HERE!]]'''
----
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[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:M]]
* MacGyvering: Discussed. In a story, Filemón tells Mortadelo about an art counterfeiter who could replicate Modigliani paintings by using just tomato juice, egg yolks, and a brush.
* MadeOfBologna: Characters are often cut in half in different ways, with almost no viscera or blood. It merely takes some glue, some sewing, or just pressing together the two pieces to repair the damage.
* MadeOfIron: '''And HOW!''' The list of accidents the main characters have survived [[UpToEleven is basically endless]]:
** They have been shot at any place in their bodies. Sometimes also they have gone through being shot several times, with each bullet leaving a hole.
** They have fallen (or been thrown) from planes flying at more than 11,000 metres of altitude.
** In ''Secuestro Aéreo'', Mortadelo landed a jet airliner... at 800 kilometers per hour, without deploying the landing gear, and crashing it against the airport's control tower.
** They have been subjected at point-blank explosions.
** They have been cut into tiny pieces (and then glued or sewed back together).
** They have been [[HumanPopsicle frozen]].
** They have been completely submerged in acid.
** They have fallen in concrete pools that have solidified with them still submerged on it.
** They have been put under objects that were very heavy (as in, the range of metric tons).
** They have been thrown to outer space with no space suit whatsoever.
** They have been devoured whole by different wild animals, mainly lions and giant snakes. They sometimes cry for help from the beast's stomachs.
-->'''Mortadelo:''' ''(after being rescued by Filemón when a bird attempted to eat him while he was in an insect disguise)'' What a dreadful experience, boss! I've seen its oesophagus, its craw and its sternum... from '''inside'''!
** They have survived a [[SerialEscalation NUCLEAR BOMB TEST]].
** [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Mortadelo on "¡Elecciones!" after falling off the building when trying to get into Ofelia's apartment to investigate her:
-->Come on, boss, it was just an 11th floor! We've been through worse!
** However, they have actually died once or twice:
*** Once they broke an old fortune-teller's crystal ball... which prompted the old fortune-teller to reveal that she was actually a buff thug in disguise. Cue Mortadelo and Filemón on their graves on a graveyard, apparently alive ("How are you doing, boss?" "Meh, [[BlackComedy kinda chilly in here]].) After escaping their graves, Filemón [[NoFourthWall tells]] [[AsideGlance the reader]] "[[YouDontWantToKnow You don't want to know]] how we did this." On the background we see an [[CelestialParagonsAndArchangels archangel]] chiding St. Bartholomew "I don't care if you're a fan of Mortadelo! The rules are clear; no miracles!"
*** They also died at the end of an episode of the old animated series by Estudios Vara. They were caught on a nuclear explosion (after reaching an island with a [[TooDumbToLive giant bullseye]] painted on the ground). Then we see Mortadelo and Filemón [[WingedSoulFliesOffAtDeath flying to Heaven, complete with tunic, halo and wings]].
** Nonetheless, a number of characters are explicitly seen to die - like "el Rana" or the unnamed villain from ''Los Guardaespaldas'', smashed by a rock that later smashes Filemón (for some reason, Filemón survives). In the 1994 AnimatedAdaptation, they avoid showing these scenes that are DemographicallyInappropriateHumour, even if they explicitly replicate any other panel, ComicBook/SinCity-like.
* MadScientist:
** Doctor Bacterio.
** Sometimes, the enemy is a Mad Scientist who is madder than Bacterio. Examples include a guy who can "resurrect" beings that can serve him for his plans (such as Frankestein's Monster, Mata Hari or César Borgia (venom included)), a guy who concentrates bug DNA into some pills and can turn into a certain bug by eating one of them, or one who developed instant growth seeds.
* ManchurianAgent: Several villains, including Magín and The Sorcerer (El Brujo, Aniceto Papandujo), have tried this plot to take over the T.I.A.
* MasterOfDisguise: Mortadelo, which serves him well in his work and even better when he has to make a quick getaway.
** One of the best disguises is his Invisible Man one - [[ClothesMakeTheSuperman which actually makes him invisible]]. Another is his Ghost disguise. Depending on the moment (or, rather, [[RuleOfFun on which result will be funnier]]), it may allow him to go through a wall or not.
** Subverted in one comic book, in which he disguises as a [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolf]] in order to scare a man, but said man immediately recognizes him and asks him why he didn't come in disguise.
** In three stories ("Maastricht... ¡Jesús!", "El señor todoquisque" and "El disfraz, cosa falaz"), he has met someone that may be his equal or superior in using disguises. And in a [[ShownTheirWork rather detailed manner]], Todoquisque explains [[BreakingTheFourthWall to the reader]] how to realistically disguise yourself [[https://issuu.com/antonioesteve6/docs/mortadelo_y_filemon_122_-_el_se__or putting on a Wig/Dress/Accent, using accessories like fake noses, glasses, pillow or balloons filled with air/water to make yourself bigger]]
* MasterOfNone: This is Mortadelo's biggest flaw when it comes to his disguises; while he does have a [[UnlimitedWardrobe vast array of Professionals, Animals, Objects and even Vehicles as disguises]], he utterly fails as a result of not having the basic knowledge on how to do the job of the person he is impersonating. Not only he is nowhere near a MasterActor but he doesn't even use make-up to disguise his face!
* MasterOfUnlocking: Mortadelo proves quite often to be very efficient with a lockpick. He sometimes parodies the trope instead by using his "master key" -- a giant key (taller than himself) with which he simply smashes the door to pieces.
* [[MeaningfulName Meaningful]] or PunnyName: OK, this is a big one. [[PassThePopcorn Bring popcorn]]. We can wait. These names only work in the Spanish version and few more:
** Mortadelo is called like that because... he is thin and always wrapped in black, like a bar of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortadella mortadella]]
** Filemón, aside from a respelling of a (barely known in Spain) real name in Greek, sounds much like "filetón" (big steak). (In Brasil he is called Salaminho and in Portugal, Salamão; both are references to [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salami salami]].
** The Súper's real name, Vicente, was a common name in Spain a few years ago, and not punny in itself... until you remember a Spanish saying: "¿A dónde va Vicente? Adonde va la gente" (literally: ''Where does Vincent go? Where people go''; in correct and orthodox English: monkey see, monkey do). Which isn't a particularly good name for the ''boss of most characters in T.I.A.''. [[note]]His surname, Ruínez, is an obviously fake surname meaning "Ruinson"[[/note]]
** Ofelia (Ophelia)... maybe for her MadLove for Mortadelo? (But see IronicName above)
** Professor Bacterio, [[DontExplainTheJoke because he plays with bacteria]]
** Todoquisque (informally "anybody"). because he can disguise as ''anybody''.
** Bestiájez, an obviously fake surname, meaning Brutesson. (Also Migájez, "Crumbson", and many others).
** A character in "Concurso Oposición" which brings painful misfortunes to whoever is near him (namely, Mortadelo and Filemón) is named Hediondo Gáfez Cenícez ("Fetid Jynx Hoodoo").
** "Impeachment!" features another one-off character similar to the previous one named Cenizo Gafe Nefástez ("Hoodoo Jynx Disastrous")
** Actually, in every single book there are several new characters that have this trope. The amazing thing is that Ibáñez rarely repeats any of them.
** Establishments are also given punny names. [[GoodGuyBar Notably]] [[BadGuyBar bars]], whose name made by extracting the prefix "Bar" from a Spanish word that begins with it; so we have ''Bar Baro'' ("barbarian"), ''Bar Budo'' ("guy with a large beard"), ''Bar Quillo'' (lit. "biscuit roll", double points as "Quillo" is Andalusian slang for "Guy")...
** Less frequently, banks ("banco") and streets ("calle") are used for punny names, like ''Banco Jeando'' ("van cojeando", which translates as "They go limping") or ''Calle Se'' ("cállese", which means "shut up") and the neighboring ''Calle Seusté'' ("cállese usted", which can be interpreted as "YOU shut up").
** Overlapping with ThemeNaming: one of the Football World Cup themed albums featured the Scotland national football team, with names such as Mac Arron (Macaroni) Mac Abeo (Maccabee) or Mac Anudo (macanudo, Argentinian slang for 'excellent')
** Sometimes overlaps with BlandNameProduct, like in the "Pescadillac" example above.
** Foreign characters and/or places tend to fall into this as well. For example, the villain of "Robots bestiajos" was a Japanese MadScientist called Mirake Tekasko ("mira que te casco", roughly "be careful or I will hit you") who eventually was reported to have been arrested in the Japanese town of Higosheko ("higo seco", meaning "dried fig").
* MegatonPunch:
** From time to time, a character will get hit so hard by another that they will end up flying several meters in the air, crashing into a nearby building or even ''into the moon''. Lampshaded once in a while as well:
-->'''Mortadelo:''' ''(to Filemón, who is in the air after getting punched this way)'' Boss! You can fly?
-->'''Filemón:''' Yes, with the help of a left hook!
** Parodied in one of the tie-in books, which features a two-page ad for TIA's own airline, Cebollazo Tours, that actually runs on Megaton Punches. The advert even details which {{Berserk Button}}s you have to push to be punched or kicked into some of the destinations.
* MissionBriefing: Each long story commonly has one, in the first episode, with Superintendente Vicente briefing Mortadelo and Filemón.
* MistakenForGay: See HeterosexualLifePartners. There is a moment in a different story when the General Director walks in on them in the worst possible moment and thinks that Filemon is proposing to Mortadelo.
* MonumentalBattle: When Mortadelo and Filemón travel through the world, important landmarks may appear, sometimes with slight changes (such as the Statue of Liberty using her torch to fry a sausage).
* TheMovie:
** A 2003 LiveActionAdaptation movie exists.
** A 2008 sequel: "Mortadelo y Filemón. Misión: Salvar la Tierra" (Mortadelo & Filemón. Mission: Save Earth) with the popular Spanish comedian Eduard Soto replacing Benito Pocino in the role of Mortadelo.
** Then, in 2014, a new film, this time an animated film, "Mortadelo y Filemón contra Jimmy el Cachondo" (Mortadelo & Filemon vs Jimmy the Joker, marketed internationally as "Mortadelo and Filemon: Mission Implausible").
* MuckMonster: El "Bacilón".
* MuggingTheMonster: The comic ''El Bacilón'' has the title character (a gigantic, anthropomorphic green monster) walk around the seedy parts of the city; a mugger targets him, but since he is waiting behind a corner, he only hears it walking. He becomes a RunningGag along the episode and eventually turns mad due to both the monster and Mortadelo disguised as a big animal.
* MultidisciplinaryScientist: Professor Bacterio's inventions cover a wide range of areas.
* MultipleReferencePun: The agency the titular characters work for is called T.I.A., which is an obvious reference to the CIA. Since "tía" in Spanish means "aunt", the name also works as a pun on ''Series/TheManFromUNCLE'', fitting since it is a Spanish series about comedic espionage.
* MyHorseIsAMotorbike: PlayedForLaughs in "Mortadelo de la Mancha". Mortadelo and Filemón believe themselves to be Literature/DonQuixote and Sancho, and Mortadelo steals a motorbike for Filemón to ride, mistaking it for a donkey.
* MySisterIsOffLimits: A BerserkButton of Mortadelo in the movie; apparently, Filemón somehow abused his little sister, Cordelia (played by HollywoodHomely actress Carmen Ruiz). [[spoiler:It later turns out that Cordelia is [[StalkerWithACrush stalking]] Filemón and he only sees her as an AbhorrentAdmirer. Mortadelo forgives Filemón after Cornelia tells him that she is in love.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:N]]
* NameAndName: Mortadelo y Filemón.
* NegativeContinuity: The events of previous episodes are frequently disregarded, including stories which end with the characters being killed, fired, or transferred to another post, the agency being disbanded, or the protagonists having an FaceHeelTurn. Different tales on characters' backgrounds and families are often given. One story has Filemón born in a seemingly middle class family, while another claims that he was born and raised in a shantytown. Mortadelo's origin story mentions his family having to migrate when he was a child to avoid bad publicity following an ill-conceived prank in a hospital. Another story depicts him born and raised in a rural village, where he is apparently the sanest person around.
** There are some things that remain continuous within the comic books. Antofagasto Panocho (a parody of UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) is a recurring villain.
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]often being recognised by the two main characters and within panels featuring little annotations that say things like "Yes, yes! Check issue X and you'll see what they're talking about!"[[/note]] is probably [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor Prince Charles]].
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying to have some [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] during these years, making recurring villains and so. The former comic books, however, are rooted on NegativeContinuity.
* {{Nephewism}} / UncannyFamilyResemblance: In the 1988 album "Los sobrinetes" (The Little Nephews), Mortadelo and Filemón coincidentally introduce their nephews, who look exactly like them, and wear exactly the same clothes but with short trousers, with no introduction or even mention of their parents.
* NewFirstComics: In a strange comic book example, the publishers had around a hundred of their early strips (including [[http://mortadelo-filemon.es/images/photos/Articuylos/MartinezOsete/Remakes/Pulgarcito1394_Siguiendoelrastro.jpg the first one]]) redrawn by unrelated artist Martínez Osete to account for the changes Ibáñez introduced after 1969- mainly, changing the heroes' roles from private detectives to secret agents and adding their new boss, Súper, who would take in many cases the role of Filemón, now Mortadelo's sidekick instead of his employer.
* NonStandardCharacterDesign:
** Whenever real people show up, they are drawn with realistic faces, which contrasts with the usual characters looking cartoony. Then there is also the CrossOver with ''ComicBook/ElCapitanTrueno'', where the Trueno characters get sometimes drawn in their original realistic style and sometimes look cartoony... and sometimes it is a mix... you can see why we don't like talking about that.
** An old story has Mortadelo seeking help from Franchise/{{Superman}}, but the superhero is depicted as a fragile old man, unlike his other depictions. The story depicts Superman as having aged a lot since his prime in 1938.
* NoSenseOfDirection: Mortadelo's level of disorientation is legendary. Instructed to drive to Córdoba, Argentina (M&F are playing in the 1978 UsefulNotes/FIFAWorldCup with the Spanish team) he makes it to the Córdoba of ''Spain''. After fording the Atlantic Ocean, thinking that it was just a very wide river.
* NotThisOneThatOne: One of the most common running gags. For example, when the duo needs, for example, a plane for a mission, it will appear at first that they are going to get something like an F-22, only to realize that what they are going to get instead is an old, beaten up plane from UsefulNotes/WorldWarI.
* NotWithTheSafetyOnYouWont: PlayedForLaughs in "Los bomberos". At the end, the BigBad is about to hammer in a huge missile to blow everything up, but Mortadelo tells him that he won't be able to do it because the ''hammer's'' safety is on. When the BigBad looks at the hammer, confused, [[LookBehindYou Mortadelo knocks him out]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:O]]
* OffTheChart: In the comic that tells the story of Mortadelo and Filemón before making it to the TIA, they are shown joining a private investigation agency. The chart at a room, with the date of January 28, the day M&F are hired, reflects significant benefits for the company... but only two days later, the chart line has dropped so far down that it goes off the chart paper, and has an annotation next to it that reads "continues on the cellar".
* OldTimeyBathingSuit: Mortadelo's favorite swimming gear.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Played with. In his first appearance ever, Dr. Bacterio is introduced as a biologist and just a biologist, only specialized in {{Super Serum}}s. However, he is later stripped of the trait and given instead the role of T.I.A.'s chief scientist, extending his field not only to biology, but also physics, technology and pretty much everything which is needed. The best sign of this evolution is his very title: the series and its adaptations are wildly inconsistent about whether Bacterio is a doctor or a professor, with both titles being pretty much interchangeable for him.
* OneGameForThePriceOfTwo: The comic's licensed computer games were often released in pairs, in a manner that made them form a larger game when both of them were installed. ''Balones y patadones'' and ''Mamelucos a la romana'' formed ''La banda de Corvino'', while ''El mundo del cine'' was composed of ''Dos vaqueros chapuceros'' and ''Terror, espanto y pavor''.
* OnlySaneMan: Filemón, though by a very small margin. He often has more common sense than the people around him, and an awareness of social etiquette far superior to Mortadelo's.
** The most iconic moment is when ten villains make ten holes in the wall to escape from their cell. Filemón points out that they could all have escaped through the same hole, and both Mortadelo and the Súper admit that they had not thought of that.
* OpenSaysMe: A humorous version occurs when they pay a visit to the President of the United States. A security guard goes through a number of scans and checks (iris scan, voice recognition, access code, etc.) to open a door in the White House, prompting Mortadelo to remark that "Security sure is tight." Then along comes the cleaning lady, who just slaps and kicks the door a few times until it opens. Perhaps she is an AlmightyJanitor.
* OurTimeMachineIsDifferent: Professor Bacterio's shabby time machine looks mostly like a phone booth. Justified, as it is a prototype he just jury-rigged in his lab.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:P]]
* ParodyNames: Sometimes applies to brand names, sometimes even to people.
* PeopleJars: One of the many forms of CoolAndUnusualPunishment employed by the Súper against Mortadelo and Filemón involves preserving them in jars of formaldehyde for weeks.
* PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny: The aptly named Tirania in "El Sulfato Atómico".
* PercussiveMaintenance: The first live-action movie combines this with a EurekaMoment of all things. Dr. Bacterio has invented a device that he just can't get to work. He is sure that something is missing, but he doesn't know what. When his radio stops working, he hits it to get it going again. That is when he realizes what is missing: "Of course! Beatings!" He proceeds to beat the crap out of the device with his shoe, and it works! It is the only part of the movie that is even remotely funny, and the German dub completely ruins it because the joke went right past the translator.
* PerspectiveMagic: One comic deals with [[FlyingSaucer UFOs]] that were coming to [[EarthIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse Earth in order to invade it]]. One of them appears to be really huge and far away, but in the end it turns out it is very small... and it hits Filemón right in the mouth.
** The point 2 example, "those far away houses are just on the other side of the page", is used in another story. [[LampshadeHanging With those literal words]].
* PictorialSpeechBubble: Gag comics such as this one commonly have pictures in speech bubbles whenever a character is supposed to curse; for example, in the speech bubble there would be a pig with the face of another person if the character was angry and shouting at him, or just the picture of a turd when someone was supposed to say "shit!".
* PingPongNaivete: Filemón can either be the StraightMan with much more common sense than Mortadelo or just as big as an idiot as him (usually when the boss is present and both of them do something to anger him).
* PlotArmor: Everybody in the series can survive anything, you name it -atomic explosions, drowning, being electrocuted, burnt alive, cut in pieces...-. You only need to worry if you happen to be the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain Of The Week]] and the book is getting close to page 44, because it is very likely that your PlotArmor will fade just in time for a last explosion to [[KilledOffForReal kill you off for real]] (while the Súper, who happens to be sitting next to you, survives it).
* PoorlyDisguisedPilot: Another Ibáñez character, Tete Cohete, was introduced in a Mortadelo comic of the same title.
* PottyEmergency: This is the running gag for poor Superintendente Vicente in the last chapter of ''El Bacilón''. [[spoiler: The eponymous monster is ''disintegrated'' at the end by a single slap from El Súper because it stood in between him and the toilet - but Mortadelo and Filemón grab him too fast to let him relieve himself.]]
** Filemón has one of his own in a chapter in "¡...Y van 50 tacos!".
* PrematurelyBald: Mortadelo lost all his hair to one of [[MadScientist Doctor Bacterio's]] [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiments]]. Filemón combines this with HairAntennae.
* ProphecyTwist: In "El Profeta Jeremías", the aforementioned prophet keeps making predictions that are always fulfilled, but always with a twist. For example, one prophecy states a moustached man will send Irma to the cemetery - which he does because he wants to ask her to put some flowers in the tomb of a relative of his, which is next to one of her relatives' tombs.
* PuffOfLogic: In a short story where the Superintendent is [[ItMakesSenseInContext trying to find a safe Mortadelo and Filemón have hidden]], he concludes that they must have left some kind of mark on the floor while carrying the safe away. He finds one line he thinks could be that mark (it's not) in a room and starts walking over it...
-->Now it goes up this wall... ''[walks up the wall following the line]'', turns around at the ceiling... ''[keeps walking upside down on the ceiling]'' Th-the ceiling? Did I say the ceiling? How is that possi-- ''[falls off]''
* {{Pun}}: Ibáñez masters this like no other in the Spanish language. The number of puns throughout the series is so big that it would need, not its own page, but [[UpToEleven its own Wiki!]]
* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: Exaggerated, to the point of characters getting punched into different countries and even [[RecycledINSPACE INTO SPACE!]].
** Kicked Across The Room: characters are also prone to kick others in the same way. One example: Filemón is almost dead after being shot in the stomach, and is on a wheelchair. The Súper (who was the indirect cause of him being shot) asks him how he is. The next frame has the Súper with a shoe-mark on his back after having landed on an igloo, asking himself how it could happen.
* PunnyName: See MeaningfulName above.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:R]]
* RealVehicleReveal: This happens lots of times; for example, in the albums "Valor y al toro", "Contra el Gang del Chicharrón", "Los verdes", "La maldición gitana", to name just a few.
* RebusBubble: This is how characters swear.
* RefugeInAudacity: When Spain was under the UsefulNotes/FranciscoFranco regime, Mortadelo y Filemón was a pretty tame comic with just some very mild slapstick violence. After the death of the dictator, Ibáñez started introducing more "raunchy" themes, with graphic violence, sex jokes, toilet humor, profanity and political incorrectness in general. It is still aimed at kids though.
** InUniverse, some of Mortadelo's plans run on this. For example, in "El sulfato atómico", the duo has to cross the border with Tirania but doesn't have their passports. Mortadelo disguises himself as an ''ostrich'' and successfully gets through because the commander angrily punches the guard that asks about permissions for ostriches. Filemón nearly manages the same with a donkey disguise, but he gets caught when another guard tries to vaccinate him.
* RelationshipSabotage: Accidental. In "El Brujo" (The Warlock), there is a middle-aged couple sitting on a fallen trunk in a romantic countryside setting, lovingly holding hands. "Abelarda", says he, "swear that there is no other man between you and me". "I... I swear, Eloíso", says she. Mortadelo suddenly teleports right between the two, thanks to a spell he has unknowingly activated. Eloíso breaks the relationship and leaves angrily, figuring that Abelarda was lying to him. Mortadelo is then beaten off-screen by Abelarda.
* ReTool: Mortadelo and Filemón originally had a private detective agency and were a parody of Literature/SherlockHolmes and Watson (the comic's original title was "Mortadelo y Filemón - Agencia de Información"), not the ''Film/JamesBond'' parody they eventually became. [[TheArtifact As a relic of that time]], Mortadelo still calls Filemón "Boss", despite the fact that they don't seem to have much different responsibilities in the T.I.A. Though Filemón does have a tendency to give orders to his partner.
* {{Revision}}: They were given this in a book where it is explained how they lost their private detective agency and were forced to join the secret services overnight. Several years after it kind of suddenly happened.
* RidiculousFutureInflation: In "Los mercenarios" the main characters obtain 100,000 "percebos" (the fictional coin of Percebelandia) They think they can get more than one million pesetas (a fortune in the moment of the album), but thanks to a sudden devaluation only obtain 17.50.[[note]]This, for the non-familiarized with the former Spanish coin, is less than 15 dollar cents, not a lot of money, even in 1975 when the album was published.[[/note]]
** Same in ''Los Guardaespaldas''. Mortadelo and Filemón receive as reward for accomplishing their mission, 1 million "dólares cochinchinos" (Cochinchinese dollars; obviously another fictional currency), which Filemón thinks are worth 200 million pesetas (a ''real'' fortune when the album was published). Mortadelo turns on the radio to know what is going on in the currency change... to discover that a massive devaluation turns that million of cochinchinese dollars into just 6.50 pesetas, even less money that in the former case.
* RightHandVersusLeftHand:
** If Mortadelo and Filemón take separate ways in order to solve a problem (say, capture a baddie, finding things or laying on traps) they will very commonly screw up each other's plans.
** In some stories El Súper gets tired of waiting and appears on the scene to spy on the duo or to get the mission done by himself. This can only end badly.
* RippedFromTheHeadlines: Ever since the end of the Spanish Democratic Transition in 1977 (and thus, the end of UsefulNotes/FranciscoFranco's dictatorship censorship system), Ibáñez very often bases (very loosely) his stories in RealLife current events.
** Ibáñez rarely did this during the Silver Age (early 80s). It wasn't until the 90s (let us be generous and say late 80s) that RealLife was referenced in the comics (either as celebrity cameos or as stories based on RealLife events), and until the 21st century that it played a big role in them.
* RoadSignReversal: Mortadelo does this at the end of "Los mercenarios", to lead a squad of mercenaries to the country that hired them, instead of their intended destination.
* RuleThirtyFour: Artist Casanyes' strip for the satiric magazine ''Titanic''.
* RunningGag:
** The basic plot is one. Mortadelo goofs, Filemón gets hurt and punishes Mortadelo. Lather, rinse, repeat. It's usually played with, though.
** When Filemón is the one who goofs and is later punished by Mortadelo, he will complain that the natural order is having Mortadelo on front.
** Also, very often both Mortadelo and Filemón get punished by the Súper, Ofelia or any other character.
** Let's not forget about Bacterio. He is probably the character, apart from Mortadelo, that has been punished the most often throughout the series. Very often by Mortadelo himself.
** Many times, Ofelia will go tell Mortadelo that the Súper is looking for him. He will say something that Ofelia takes for a romantic thing, but turns out to be some kind of insult (mostly aimed at her girth), to which she responds quite forcefully. Filemón will later continue the joke, and finally the Súper will say something completely innocent that Ofelia takes for the continuation. The one that suffers most is the Súper.
*** In one instance, Mortadelo, Filemón *and* Bacterio, one after each other, manage to break Ofelia's pearl necklace, making her having to search and pick her pearls three times. After they have suffered Ofelia's anger, they go complain to the Súper, who kindly tries to defend his secretary by saying: "Come on, come on! Ofelia is a pearl in the TIA's necklace...". Ofelia overhears him and explodes with anger.
** Whenever Prince Charles (the most recurrent antagonist) appears, someone (normally Mortadelo) will make continuous jokes about Charles' ear size. Sometimes, even supposed English newspapers get in the joke.
** A main character receives AmusingInjuries of an specific nature or to a certain body part continuously throughout the entirety of the story[[note]]for example, AgonyOfTheFeet[[/note]]. Characters that have nothing to do with this,then mention something to the character tangentially related to the injury, [[HairTriggerTemper which drives them nuts]][[note]]a coworker mentioning going for a walk in the park, playing a match on the agency's soccer team, etc[[/note]].
* RussianReversal: The 1978 UsefulNotes/FIFAWorldCup has the USSR team losing to Spain and being booed by the public. Cue the Russian players throwing pillows to the former and Mortadelo and Filemón [[LampshadeHanging lampshading something is wrong]].
[[/folder]]
----
[[folder:M]]
* MacGyvering: Discussed. In a story, Filemón tells Mortadelo about an art counterfeiter who could replicate Modigliani paintings by using just tomato juice, egg yolks, and a brush.
* MadeOfBologna: Characters are often cut in half in different ways, with almost no viscera or blood. It merely takes some glue, some sewing, or just pressing together the two pieces to repair the damage.
* MadeOfIron: '''And HOW!''' The list of accidents the main characters have survived [[UpToEleven is basically endless]]:
** They have been shot at any place in their bodies. Sometimes also they have gone through being shot several times, with each bullet leaving a hole.
** They have fallen (or been thrown) from planes flying at more than 11,000 metres of altitude.
** In ''Secuestro Aéreo'', Mortadelo landed a jet airliner... at 800 kilometers per hour, without deploying the landing gear, and crashing it against the airport's control tower.
** They have been subjected at point-blank explosions.
** They have been cut into tiny pieces (and then glued or sewed back together).
** They have been [[HumanPopsicle frozen]].
** They have been completely submerged in acid.
** They have fallen in concrete pools that have solidified with them still submerged on it.
** They have been put under objects that were very heavy (as in, the range of metric tons).
** They have been thrown to outer space with no space suit whatsoever.
** They have been devoured whole by different wild animals, mainly lions and giant snakes. They sometimes cry for help from the beast's stomachs.
-->'''Mortadelo:''' ''(after being rescued by Filemón when a bird attempted to eat him while he was in an insect disguise)'' What a dreadful experience, boss! I've seen its oesophagus, its craw and its sternum... from '''inside'''!
** They have survived a [[SerialEscalation NUCLEAR BOMB TEST]].
** [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Mortadelo on "¡Elecciones!" after falling off the building when trying to get into Ofelia's apartment to investigate her:
-->Come on, boss, it was just an 11th floor! We've been through worse!
** However, they have actually died once or twice:
*** Once they broke an old fortune-teller's crystal ball... which prompted the old fortune-teller to reveal that she was actually a buff thug in disguise. Cue Mortadelo and Filemón on their graves on a graveyard, apparently alive ("How are you doing, boss?" "Meh, [[BlackComedy kinda chilly in here]].) After escaping their graves, Filemón [[NoFourthWall tells]] [[AsideGlance the reader]] "[[YouDontWantToKnow You don't want to know]] how we did this." On the background we see an [[CelestialParagonsAndArchangels archangel]] chiding St. Bartholomew "I don't care if you're a fan of Mortadelo! The rules are clear; no miracles!"
*** They also died at the end of an episode of the old animated series by Estudios Vara. They were caught on a nuclear explosion (after reaching an island with a [[TooDumbToLive giant bullseye]] painted on the ground). Then we see Mortadelo and Filemón [[WingedSoulFliesOffAtDeath flying to Heaven, complete with tunic, halo and wings]].
** Nonetheless, a number of characters are explicitly seen to die - like "el Rana" or the unnamed villain from ''Los Guardaespaldas'', smashed by a rock that later smashes Filemón (for some reason, Filemón survives). In the 1994 AnimatedAdaptation, they avoid showing these scenes that are DemographicallyInappropriateHumour, even if they explicitly replicate any other panel, ComicBook/SinCity-like.
* MadScientist:
** Doctor Bacterio.
** Sometimes, the enemy is a Mad Scientist who is madder than Bacterio. Examples include a guy who can "resurrect" beings that can serve him for his plans (such as Frankestein's Monster, Mata Hari or César Borgia (venom included)), a guy who concentrates bug DNA into some pills and can turn into a certain bug by eating one of them, or one who developed instant growth seeds.
* ManchurianAgent: Several villains, including Magín and The Sorcerer (El Brujo, Aniceto Papandujo), have tried this plot to take over the T.I.A.
* MasterOfDisguise: Mortadelo, which serves him well in his work and even better when he has to make a quick getaway.
** One of the best disguises is his Invisible Man one - [[ClothesMakeTheSuperman which actually makes him invisible]]. Another is his Ghost disguise. Depending on the moment (or, rather, [[RuleOfFun on which result will be funnier]]), it may allow him to go through a wall or not.
** Subverted in one comic book, in which he disguises as a [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolf]] in order to scare a man, but said man immediately recognizes him and asks him why he didn't come in disguise.
** In three stories ("Maastricht... ¡Jesús!", "El señor todoquisque" and "El disfraz, cosa falaz"), he has met someone that may be his equal or superior in using disguises. And in a [[ShownTheirWork rather detailed manner]], Todoquisque explains [[BreakingTheFourthWall to the reader]] how to realistically disguise yourself [[https://issuu.com/antonioesteve6/docs/mortadelo_y_filemon_122_-_el_se__or putting on a Wig/Dress/Accent, using accessories like fake noses, glasses, pillow or balloons filled with air/water to make yourself bigger]]
* MasterOfNone: This is Mortadelo's biggest flaw when it comes to his disguises; while he does have a [[UnlimitedWardrobe vast array of Professionals, Animals, Objects and even Vehicles as disguises]], he utterly fails as a result of not having the basic knowledge on how to do the job of the person he is impersonating. Not only he is nowhere near a MasterActor but he doesn't even use make-up to disguise his face!
* MasterOfUnlocking: Mortadelo proves quite often to be very efficient with a lockpick. He sometimes parodies the trope instead by using his "master key" -- a giant key (taller than himself) with which he simply smashes the door to pieces.
* [[MeaningfulName Meaningful]] or PunnyName: OK, this is a big one. [[PassThePopcorn Bring popcorn]]. We can wait. These names only work in the Spanish version and few more:
** Mortadelo is called like that because... he is thin and always wrapped in black, like a bar of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortadella mortadella]]
** Filemón, aside from a respelling of a (barely known in Spain) real name in Greek, sounds much like "filetón" (big steak). (In Brasil he is called Salaminho and in Portugal, Salamão; both are references to [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salami salami]].
** The Súper's real name, Vicente, was a common name in Spain a few years ago, and not punny in itself... until you remember a Spanish saying: "¿A dónde va Vicente? Adonde va la gente" (literally: ''Where does Vincent go? Where people go''; in correct and orthodox English: monkey see, monkey do). Which isn't a particularly good name for the ''boss of most characters in T.I.A.''. [[note]]His surname, Ruínez, is an obviously fake surname meaning "Ruinson"[[/note]]
** Ofelia (Ophelia)... maybe for her MadLove for Mortadelo? (But see IronicName above)
** Professor Bacterio, [[DontExplainTheJoke because he plays with bacteria]]
** Todoquisque (informally "anybody"). because he can disguise as ''anybody''.
** Bestiájez, an obviously fake surname, meaning Brutesson. (Also Migájez, "Crumbson", and many others).
** A character in "Concurso Oposición" which brings painful misfortunes to whoever is near him (namely, Mortadelo and Filemón) is named Hediondo Gáfez Cenícez ("Fetid Jynx Hoodoo").
** "Impeachment!" features another one-off character similar to the previous one named Cenizo Gafe Nefástez ("Hoodoo Jynx Disastrous")
** Actually, in every single book there are several new characters that have this trope. The amazing thing is that Ibáñez rarely repeats any of them.
** Establishments are also given punny names. [[GoodGuyBar Notably]] [[BadGuyBar bars]], whose name made by extracting the prefix "Bar" from a Spanish word that begins with it; so we have ''Bar Baro'' ("barbarian"), ''Bar Budo'' ("guy with a large beard"), ''Bar Quillo'' (lit. "biscuit roll", double points as "Quillo" is Andalusian slang for "Guy")...
** Less frequently, banks ("banco") and streets ("calle") are used for punny names, like ''Banco Jeando'' ("van cojeando", which translates as "They go limping") or ''Calle Se'' ("cállese", which means "shut up") and the neighboring ''Calle Seusté'' ("cállese usted", which can be interpreted as "YOU shut up").
** Overlapping with ThemeNaming: one of the Football World Cup themed albums featured the Scotland national football team, with names such as Mac Arron (Macaroni) Mac Abeo (Maccabee) or Mac Anudo (macanudo, Argentinian slang for 'excellent')
** Sometimes overlaps with BlandNameProduct, like in the "Pescadillac" example above.
** Foreign characters and/or places tend to fall into this as well. For example, the villain of "Robots bestiajos" was a Japanese MadScientist called Mirake Tekasko ("mira que te casco", roughly "be careful or I will hit you") who eventually was reported to have been arrested in the Japanese town of Higosheko ("higo seco", meaning "dried fig").
* MegatonPunch:
** From time to time, a character will get hit so hard by another that they will end up flying several meters in the air, crashing into a nearby building or even ''into the moon''. Lampshaded once in a while as well:
-->'''Mortadelo:''' ''(to Filemón, who is in the air after getting punched this way)'' Boss! You can fly?
-->'''Filemón:''' Yes, with the help of a left hook!
** Parodied in one of the tie-in books, which features a two-page ad for TIA's own airline, Cebollazo Tours, that actually runs on Megaton Punches. The advert even details which {{Berserk Button}}s you have to push to be punched or kicked into some of the destinations.
* MissionBriefing: Each long story commonly has one, in the first episode, with Superintendente Vicente briefing Mortadelo and Filemón.
* MistakenForGay: See HeterosexualLifePartners. There is a moment in a different story when the General Director walks in on them in the worst possible moment and thinks that Filemon is proposing to Mortadelo.
* MonumentalBattle: When Mortadelo and Filemón travel through the world, important landmarks may appear, sometimes with slight changes (such as the Statue of Liberty using her torch to fry a sausage).
* TheMovie:
** A 2003 LiveActionAdaptation movie exists.
** A 2008 sequel: "Mortadelo y Filemón. Misión: Salvar la Tierra" (Mortadelo & Filemón. Mission: Save Earth) with the popular Spanish comedian Eduard Soto replacing Benito Pocino in the role of Mortadelo.
** Then, in 2014, a new film, this time an animated film, "Mortadelo y Filemón contra Jimmy el Cachondo" (Mortadelo & Filemon vs Jimmy the Joker, marketed internationally as "Mortadelo and Filemon: Mission Implausible").
* MuckMonster: El "Bacilón".
* MuggingTheMonster: The comic ''El Bacilón'' has the title character (a gigantic, anthropomorphic green monster) walk around the seedy parts of the city; a mugger targets him, but since he is waiting behind a corner, he only hears it walking. He becomes a RunningGag along the episode and eventually turns mad due to both the monster and Mortadelo disguised as a big animal.
* MultidisciplinaryScientist: Professor Bacterio's inventions cover a wide range of areas.
* MultipleReferencePun: The agency the titular characters work for is called T.I.A., which is an obvious reference to the CIA. Since "tía" in Spanish means "aunt", the name also works as a pun on ''Series/TheManFromUNCLE'', fitting since it is a Spanish series about comedic espionage.
* MyHorseIsAMotorbike: PlayedForLaughs in "Mortadelo de la Mancha". Mortadelo and Filemón believe themselves to be Literature/DonQuixote and Sancho, and Mortadelo steals a motorbike for Filemón to ride, mistaking it for a donkey.
* MySisterIsOffLimits: A BerserkButton of Mortadelo in the movie; apparently, Filemón somehow abused his little sister, Cordelia (played by HollywoodHomely actress Carmen Ruiz). [[spoiler:It later turns out that Cordelia is [[StalkerWithACrush stalking]] Filemón and he only sees her as an AbhorrentAdmirer. Mortadelo forgives Filemón after Cornelia tells him that she is in love.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:N]]
* NameAndName: Mortadelo y Filemón.
* NegativeContinuity: The events of previous episodes are frequently disregarded, including stories which end with the characters being killed, fired, or transferred to another post, the agency being disbanded, or the protagonists having an FaceHeelTurn. Different tales on characters' backgrounds and families are often given. One story has Filemón born in a seemingly middle class family, while another claims that he was born and raised in a shantytown. Mortadelo's origin story mentions his family having to migrate when he was a child to avoid bad publicity following an ill-conceived prank in a hospital. Another story depicts him born and raised in a rural village, where he is apparently the sanest person around.
** There are some things that remain continuous within the comic books. Antofagasto Panocho (a parody of UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) is a recurring villain.
** The most notorious recurring antagonist[[note]]often being recognised by the two main characters and within panels featuring little annotations that say things like "Yes, yes! Check issue X and you'll see what they're talking about!"[[/note]] is probably [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor Prince Charles]].
** It seems like Ibáñez is trying to have some [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] during these years, making recurring villains and so. The former comic books, however, are rooted on NegativeContinuity.
* {{Nephewism}} / UncannyFamilyResemblance: In the 1988 album "Los sobrinetes" (The Little Nephews), Mortadelo and Filemón coincidentally introduce their nephews, who look exactly like them, and wear exactly the same clothes but with short trousers, with no introduction or even mention of their parents.
* NewFirstComics: In a strange comic book example, the publishers had around a hundred of their early strips (including [[http://mortadelo-filemon.es/images/photos/Articuylos/MartinezOsete/Remakes/Pulgarcito1394_Siguiendoelrastro.jpg the first one]]) redrawn by unrelated artist Martínez Osete to account for the changes Ibáñez introduced after 1969- mainly, changing the heroes' roles from private detectives to secret agents and adding their new boss, Súper, who would take in many cases the role of Filemón, now Mortadelo's sidekick instead of his employer.
* NonStandardCharacterDesign:
** Whenever real people show up, they are drawn with realistic faces, which contrasts with the usual characters looking cartoony. Then there is also the CrossOver with ''ComicBook/ElCapitanTrueno'', where the Trueno characters get sometimes drawn in their original realistic style and sometimes look cartoony... and sometimes it is a mix... you can see why we don't like talking about that.
** An old story has Mortadelo seeking help from Franchise/{{Superman}}, but the superhero is depicted as a fragile old man, unlike his other depictions. The story depicts Superman as having aged a lot since his prime in 1938.
* NoSenseOfDirection: Mortadelo's level of disorientation is legendary. Instructed to drive to Córdoba, Argentina (M&F are playing in the 1978 UsefulNotes/FIFAWorldCup with the Spanish team) he makes it to the Córdoba of ''Spain''. After fording the Atlantic Ocean, thinking that it was just a very wide river.
* NotThisOneThatOne: One of the most common running gags. For example, when the duo needs, for example, a plane for a mission, it will appear at first that they are going to get something like an F-22, only to realize that what they are going to get instead is an old, beaten up plane from UsefulNotes/WorldWarI.
* NotWithTheSafetyOnYouWont: PlayedForLaughs in "Los bomberos". At the end, the BigBad is about to hammer in a huge missile to blow everything up, but Mortadelo tells him that he won't be able to do it because the ''hammer's'' safety is on. When the BigBad looks at the hammer, confused, [[LookBehindYou Mortadelo knocks him out]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:O]]
* OffTheChart: In the comic that tells the story of Mortadelo and Filemón before making it to the TIA, they are shown joining a private investigation agency. The chart at a room, with the date of January 28, the day M&F are hired, reflects significant benefits for the company... but only two days later, the chart line has dropped so far down that it goes off the chart paper, and has an annotation next to it that reads "continues on the cellar".
* OldTimeyBathingSuit: Mortadelo's favorite swimming gear.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Played with. In his first appearance ever, Dr. Bacterio is introduced as a biologist and just a biologist, only specialized in {{Super Serum}}s. However, he is later stripped of the trait and given instead the role of T.I.A.'s chief scientist, extending his field not only to biology, but also physics, technology and pretty much everything which is needed. The best sign of this evolution is his very title: the series and its adaptations are wildly inconsistent about whether Bacterio is a doctor or a professor, with both titles being pretty much interchangeable for him.
* OneGameForThePriceOfTwo: The comic's licensed computer games were often released in pairs, in a manner that made them form a larger game when both of them were installed. ''Balones y patadones'' and ''Mamelucos a la romana'' formed ''La banda de Corvino'', while ''El mundo del cine'' was composed of ''Dos vaqueros chapuceros'' and ''Terror, espanto y pavor''.
* OnlySaneMan: Filemón, though by a very small margin. He often has more common sense than the people around him, and an awareness of social etiquette far superior to Mortadelo's.
** The most iconic moment is when ten villains make ten holes in the wall to escape from their cell. Filemón points out that they could all have escaped through the same hole, and both Mortadelo and the Súper admit that they had not thought of that.
* OpenSaysMe: A humorous version occurs when they pay a visit to the President of the United States. A security guard goes through a number of scans and checks (iris scan, voice recognition, access code, etc.) to open a door in the White House, prompting Mortadelo to remark that "Security sure is tight." Then along comes the cleaning lady, who just slaps and kicks the door a few times until it opens. Perhaps she is an AlmightyJanitor.
* OurTimeMachineIsDifferent: Professor Bacterio's shabby time machine looks mostly like a phone booth. Justified, as it is a prototype he just jury-rigged in his lab.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:P]]
* ParodyNames: Sometimes applies to brand names, sometimes even to people.
* PeopleJars: One of the many forms of CoolAndUnusualPunishment employed by the Súper against Mortadelo and Filemón involves preserving them in jars of formaldehyde for weeks.
* PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny: The aptly named Tirania in "El Sulfato Atómico".
* PercussiveMaintenance: The first live-action movie combines this with a EurekaMoment of all things. Dr. Bacterio has invented a device that he just can't get to work. He is sure that something is missing, but he doesn't know what. When his radio stops working, he hits it to get it going again. That is when he realizes what is missing: "Of course! Beatings!" He proceeds to beat the crap out of the device with his shoe, and it works! It is the only part of the movie that is even remotely funny, and the German dub completely ruins it because the joke went right past the translator.
* PerspectiveMagic: One comic deals with [[FlyingSaucer UFOs]] that were coming to [[EarthIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse Earth in order to invade it]]. One of them appears to be really huge and far away, but in the end it turns out it is very small... and it hits Filemón right in the mouth.
** The point 2 example, "those far away houses are just on the other side of the page", is used in another story. [[LampshadeHanging With those literal words]].
* PictorialSpeechBubble: Gag comics such as this one commonly have pictures in speech bubbles whenever a character is supposed to curse; for example, in the speech bubble there would be a pig with the face of another person if the character was angry and shouting at him, or just the picture of a turd when someone was supposed to say "shit!".
* PingPongNaivete: Filemón can either be the StraightMan with much more common sense than Mortadelo or just as big as an idiot as him (usually when the boss is present and both of them do something to anger him).
* PlotArmor: Everybody in the series can survive anything, you name it -atomic explosions, drowning, being electrocuted, burnt alive, cut in pieces...-. You only need to worry if you happen to be the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain Of The Week]] and the book is getting close to page 44, because it is very likely that your PlotArmor will fade just in time for a last explosion to [[KilledOffForReal kill you off for real]] (while the Súper, who happens to be sitting next to you, survives it).
* PoorlyDisguisedPilot: Another Ibáñez character, Tete Cohete, was introduced in a Mortadelo comic of the same title.
* PottyEmergency: This is the running gag for poor Superintendente Vicente in the last chapter of ''El Bacilón''. [[spoiler: The eponymous monster is ''disintegrated'' at the end by a single slap from El Súper because it stood in between him and the toilet - but Mortadelo and Filemón grab him too fast to let him relieve himself.]]
** Filemón has one of his own in a chapter in "¡...Y van 50 tacos!".
* PrematurelyBald: Mortadelo lost all his hair to one of [[MadScientist Doctor Bacterio's]] [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiments]]. Filemón combines this with HairAntennae.
* ProphecyTwist: In "El Profeta Jeremías", the aforementioned prophet keeps making predictions that are always fulfilled, but always with a twist. For example, one prophecy states a moustached man will send Irma to the cemetery - which he does because he wants to ask her to put some flowers in the tomb of a relative of his, which is next to one of her relatives' tombs.
* PuffOfLogic: In a short story where the Superintendent is [[ItMakesSenseInContext trying to find a safe Mortadelo and Filemón have hidden]], he concludes that they must have left some kind of mark on the floor while carrying the safe away. He finds one line he thinks could be that mark (it's not) in a room and starts walking over it...
-->Now it goes up this wall... ''[walks up the wall following the line]'', turns around at the ceiling... ''[keeps walking upside down on the ceiling]'' Th-the ceiling? Did I say the ceiling? How is that possi-- ''[falls off]''
* {{Pun}}: Ibáñez masters this like no other in the Spanish language. The number of puns throughout the series is so big that it would need, not its own page, but [[UpToEleven its own Wiki!]]
* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: Exaggerated, to the point of characters getting punched into different countries and even [[RecycledINSPACE INTO SPACE!]].
** Kicked Across The Room: characters are also prone to kick others in the same way. One example: Filemón is almost dead after being shot in the stomach, and is on a wheelchair. The Súper (who was the indirect cause of him being shot) asks him how he is. The next frame has the Súper with a shoe-mark on his back after having landed on an igloo, asking himself how it could happen.
* PunnyName: See MeaningfulName above.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:R]]
* RealVehicleReveal: This happens lots of times; for example, in the albums "Valor y al toro", "Contra el Gang del Chicharrón", "Los verdes", "La maldición gitana", to name just a few.
* RebusBubble: This is how characters swear.
* RefugeInAudacity: When Spain was under the UsefulNotes/FranciscoFranco regime, Mortadelo y Filemón was a pretty tame comic with just some very mild slapstick violence. After the death of the dictator, Ibáñez started introducing more "raunchy" themes, with graphic violence, sex jokes, toilet humor, profanity and political incorrectness in general. It is still aimed at kids though.
** InUniverse, some of Mortadelo's plans run on this. For example, in "El sulfato atómico", the duo has to cross the border with Tirania but doesn't have their passports. Mortadelo disguises himself as an ''ostrich'' and successfully gets through because the commander angrily punches the guard that asks about permissions for ostriches. Filemón nearly manages the same with a donkey disguise, but he gets caught when another guard tries to vaccinate him.
* RelationshipSabotage: Accidental. In "El Brujo" (The Warlock), there is a middle-aged couple sitting on a fallen trunk in a romantic countryside setting, lovingly holding hands. "Abelarda", says he, "swear that there is no other man between you and me". "I... I swear, Eloíso", says she. Mortadelo suddenly teleports right between the two, thanks to a spell he has unknowingly activated. Eloíso breaks the relationship and leaves angrily, figuring that Abelarda was lying to him. Mortadelo is then beaten off-screen by Abelarda.
* ReTool: Mortadelo and Filemón originally had a private detective agency and were a parody of Literature/SherlockHolmes and Watson (the comic's original title was "Mortadelo y Filemón - Agencia de Información"), not the ''Film/JamesBond'' parody they eventually became. [[TheArtifact As a relic of that time]], Mortadelo still calls Filemón "Boss", despite the fact that they don't seem to have much different responsibilities in the T.I.A. Though Filemón does have a tendency to give orders to his partner.
* {{Revision}}: They were given this in a book where it is explained how they lost their private detective agency and were forced to join the secret services overnight. Several years after it kind of suddenly happened.
* RidiculousFutureInflation: In "Los mercenarios" the main characters obtain 100,000 "percebos" (the fictional coin of Percebelandia) They think they can get more than one million pesetas (a fortune in the moment of the album), but thanks to a sudden devaluation only obtain 17.50.[[note]]This, for the non-familiarized with the former Spanish coin, is less than 15 dollar cents, not a lot of money, even in 1975 when the album was published.[[/note]]
** Same in ''Los Guardaespaldas''. Mortadelo and Filemón receive as reward for accomplishing their mission, 1 million "dólares cochinchinos" (Cochinchinese dollars; obviously another fictional currency), which Filemón thinks are worth 200 million pesetas (a ''real'' fortune when the album was published). Mortadelo turns on the radio to know what is going on in the currency change... to discover that a massive devaluation turns that million of cochinchinese dollars into just 6.50 pesetas, even less money that in the former case.
* RightHandVersusLeftHand:
** If Mortadelo and Filemón take separate ways in order to solve a problem (say, capture a baddie, finding things or laying on traps) they will very commonly screw up each other's plans.
** In some stories El Súper gets tired of waiting and appears on the scene to spy on the duo or to get the mission done by himself. This can only end badly.
* RippedFromTheHeadlines: Ever since the end of the Spanish Democratic Transition in 1977 (and thus, the end of UsefulNotes/FranciscoFranco's dictatorship censorship system), Ibáñez very often bases (very loosely) his stories in RealLife current events.
** Ibáñez rarely did this during the Silver Age (early 80s). It wasn't until the 90s (let us be generous and say late 80s) that RealLife was referenced in the comics (either as celebrity cameos or as stories based on RealLife events), and until the 21st century that it played a big role in them.
* RoadSignReversal: Mortadelo does this at the end of "Los mercenarios", to lead a squad of mercenaries to the country that hired them, instead of their intended destination.
* RuleThirtyFour: Artist Casanyes' strip for the satiric magazine ''Titanic''.
* RunningGag:
** The basic plot is one. Mortadelo goofs, Filemón gets hurt and punishes Mortadelo. Lather, rinse, repeat. It's usually played with, though.
** When Filemón is the one who goofs and is later punished by Mortadelo, he will complain that the natural order is having Mortadelo on front.
** Also, very often both Mortadelo and Filemón get punished by the Súper, Ofelia or any other character.
** Let's not forget about Bacterio. He is probably the character, apart from Mortadelo, that has been punished the most often throughout the series. Very often by Mortadelo himself.
** Many times, Ofelia will go tell Mortadelo that the Súper is looking for him. He will say something that Ofelia takes for a romantic thing, but turns out to be some kind of insult (mostly aimed at her girth), to which she responds quite forcefully. Filemón will later continue the joke, and finally the Súper will say something completely innocent that Ofelia takes for the continuation. The one that suffers most is the Súper.
*** In one instance, Mortadelo, Filemón *and* Bacterio, one after each other, manage to break Ofelia's pearl necklace, making her having to search and pick her pearls three times. After they have suffered Ofelia's anger, they go complain to the Súper, who kindly tries to defend his secretary by saying: "Come on, come on! Ofelia is a pearl in the TIA's necklace...". Ofelia overhears him and explodes with anger.
** Whenever Prince Charles (the most recurrent antagonist) appears, someone (normally Mortadelo) will make continuous jokes about Charles' ear size. Sometimes, even supposed English newspapers get in the joke.
** A main character receives AmusingInjuries of an specific nature or to a certain body part continuously throughout the entirety of the story[[note]]for example, AgonyOfTheFeet[[/note]]. Characters that have nothing to do with this,then mention something to the character tangentially related to the injury, [[HairTriggerTemper which drives them nuts]][[note]]a coworker mentioning going for a walk in the park, playing a match on the agency's soccer team, etc[[/note]].
* RussianReversal: The 1978 UsefulNotes/FIFAWorldCup has the USSR team losing to Spain and being booed by the public. Cue the Russian players throwing pillows to the former and Mortadelo and Filemón [[LampshadeHanging lampshading something is wrong]].
[[/folder]]
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