Line #11 WebAnimation/TrueTail


1	''True Tail'' is a forthcoming Web series project, directed by Zachary Rich, the same guy who directed ''WebAnimation/DoubleRainboom''. It's been through two incarnations, and this page covers them both.
2
3	!The first/old version
4	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1e40dad1c5df6678ee194d2a679b475d.png]]
5	[[caption-width-right:350:The cast of the first version.]]
6
7	On the surface, the original ''True Tail'' looks like a story of how a young orphan cat (Caleb Truetail) teams up with a hulking brute bear knight (Brutus Ironclaw), an old phoenix wizard (Kanikus), a half-dragon half-sheep priestess (Doh-Li), a thief fox (Viktor) and a CuteButPsycho rabbit bard (Melody Briar) to fight an evil bird wizard, or in other words, ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''... [[JustForFun/RecycledInSpace with]] [[AnthropomorphicAnimalAdaptation animals]]. However, it takes place in the fantastical medieval world of Splitpaw, a land inhabited by anthropomorphic animals. Fortune and adventure await those that are willing to claim it! But there is a darkness festering within the land, casting a shadow over any would-be heroes.
8
9	''True Tail'' follows the adventures of Caleb Truetail, an orphaned kitten looking for a family, who finds one in the most unlikely of places: a group of mercenaries. Accustomed to working alone, and willing to sell their services to the highest bidder, these mercenaries find themselves being forced to team up in order to obtain an artifact for an evil cockatrice. Will this group of rowdy "heroes" overcome their flaws and work together, or will they succumb to the treacherous plans of Eldritch the Necromancer?
10
11	Since its announcement on August 2013, ''True Tail'' grew a reasonable fanbase, and progress on the series resumed after a very long hiatus started August 2014 and ended 29 March 2015. The pilot was scheduled to be completed in 2016, but was [[ScheduleSlip delayed]] by the creators' efforts to sell the show to a network. However, in May 2015 the creators posted [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvg37jwcz8s an animatic]] of the episode... which is likely as far as it will ever get.
12
13	!The second/new version
14	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/true_tail_school_of_heroes.png]]
15	[[caption-width-right:350:The cast of the second version.]]
16
17	On July 1, 2017, Skynamic announced that after a series of unsuccessful meetings with Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}, they had reworked the show in an effort to make it more network-friendly. (Other changes included giving several characters new surnames and [[TheOtherDarrin recasting most of the voice actors]] from the unfinished pilot.) The revised premise centers on [[TitleDrop True Tail]], a [[AcademyOfAdventure school for prospective heroes.]] Caleb Lightpaw and Melody Briar are students, along with younger versions of Doh-Li Ling and Viktor Silvertod; the faculty includes Brutus Ironclaw and Kanikus; and several new characters, both pupils and teachers, are introduced. (The creators have said that this version might be a {{Prequel}} to the original.) Therefore, this page is now divided into two sections: one for the old version, and one for the new one.
18
19	The Website for Skynamic Studios, the studio that makes ''True Tail'', is found [[http://www.skynamicstudios.net/ here]].
20
21	In June 2019, the creators launched a Website/{{Kickstarter}} campaign for the series with a goal of $25,000. The campaign successfully concluded on 21 August 2019, ultimately raising $59,500 -- more than twice enough to fund a 9-11 minute pilot for the series.
22
23	The creators will soon launch a Website/{{Patreon}} account to further fund the series.
24
25	Now has a [[Characters/TrueTail character page]] in need of construction.
26	----
27	!!True Tail tropes:
28
29	[[foldercontrol]]
30
31	[[folder:Tropes common to both versions]]
32	* BarefootCartoonAnimal: The entire cast, with a few exceptions. Brutus [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal doesn't wear pants]], while Viktor and Garth wear [[WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}} Judy Hopps]]-style toeless spats.
33	* BarrierWarrior: Doh-Li can create magical force fields to protect the team.
34	* BearsAreBadNews: Subverted with Brutus Ironclaw the Knight, since he's one the heroes.
35	* BigBad: Eldritch. In the original version, he's an EvilSorcerer and {{Necromancer}}. In the new version, he's both "the master of detention" and "the ruler of the dark mythical creatures of Splitpaw", and he wants to destroy True Tail so he won't have to worry about heroes anymore.
36	* TheCasanova: Viktor is Mr. Suave ladies man..er... fox.
37	* CuteKitten: Caleb is just the cutest!
38	* DidntThinkThisThrough: When asked what is the cause of the bandage on Caleb's tail and [[EarNotch the hole in his ear]], [[WordOfGod the True Tail team]] responded with "Caleb is a furry bundle of bravery, but sometimes things don't always go the way he plans."
39	* EarNotch: Caleb has one. So far, how he got it hasn't been explained.
40	* FeatherFingers: Played straight with Kanikus and Harper, but averted with Eldritch who (from what we've seen) mostly uses his talons as hands.
41	* FunctionalMagic: Doh-Li brews potions, and seems to have BarrierWarrior powers.
42	* FunnyAnimal: The entire cast.
43	* GenkiGirl[=/=]PerpetualSmiler[=/=]RascallyRabbit: The lovably mischievous, eternally bubbly Melody Briar.
44	* HighFantasy: Legendary heroes are common in both versions. The new show takes place at a school that trains the next generation of them.
45	* PunBasedTitle
46	* RighteousRabbit: Despite her eccentricities, Melody is one of the heroes.
47	* ThirdPersonPerson: Viktor switches in and out of this depending on his mood.
48	* WorldOfFunnyAnimals: Splitpaw, the setting.
49	* WhiteBunny: Melody is one.
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Tropes exclusive to the old True Tail]]
53	* BerserkButton: Don't call Kanikus a Turkey, you'll be sorry!
54	* BlackCloak: Eldritch the Necromancer, the [[BigBad Big Bad]] of the series.
55	* CoolSword: Caleb and Viktor both have them.
56	* CunningLikeAFox: Viktor the Thief. If you don't believe it, just [[SmallNameBigEgo ask him yourself]].
57	* DemBones: Eldritch's choice for his army.
58	* DisneyDeath: The pilot ends with one. [[spoiler:Caleb seems to be swept over a cliff, but he survives by holding onto the tapestry.]]
59	* TheEmpire: The Ursa Empire, where Brutus is from. From what Kanikus says, it's not looked favorably upon by the other races of Splitpaw.
60	* EvilMentor: Eldritch is this to Doh-Li.
61	* FantasticFoxes: Viktor the Thief is a fox.
62	* {{Fireballs}}: One of Kanikus' standard weapons during combat.
63	* FunctionalMagic: Only magical creatures like phoenixes and Kirin (Doh-li's race) can cast spells.
64	* HalfDressedCartoonAnimal: Brutus.
65	* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Melody's reason for leaving home. She comes from [[ExplosiveBreeder a very large family]], and she wants to participate in a great adventure to distinguish herself from her siblings.
66	* ImmortalLifeIsCheap: When Viktor drops a load of crystals on top of Kanikus, he revives in a burst of fire and is angrier at Viktor calling him "turkey" than the potentially fatal accident.
67	* KillerRabbit: Melody the Bard. She has ninja weapons, particularly a knife collection that she apparently keeps in {{Hammerspace}}.
68	* LastOfHisKind: Or her kind. Doh-Li is the only {{Kirin}} remaining.
69	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: In the pilot, Kanikus mentions he wrote the history of the Gryphon's Palace, then turns to the camera and says it was terrible.
70	* MineralMacGuffin: The pilot has the heroes seeking a magical stone that serves as an atlas of Splitpaw.
71	* {{Montage}}: Melody provides musical accompaniment to one as the group attempts to find its way through the Griffin's Labyrinth.
72	* OverlyLongName: Viktor's full name is Viktor Silvertod Gravelson Pobedonosny Pobeda Privyet the 75th!
73	* ThePhoenix: Kanikus is a Phoenix Wizard.
74	* ParentalSubstitute: Brutus has become sort of a PapaWolf to Caleb.
75	* PerpetualFrowner: Doh-Li and Kanikus.
76	* ShipTease: Viktor and Doh-Li look really cozy on the left side of [[http://skynamicstudios.deviantart.com/art/True-Tail-Night-Time-Heros-537706630 this picture.]]
77	* SmallNameBigEgo: Viktor's video has him boasting about various amazing and incredible deeds, then shows he's in the stocks getting tomatoes chucked at him.
78	* TeamMom: Doh-Li feels more like a babysitter than she does a leader.
79	* TwoGirlsToATeam: On this team, Doh-Li and Melody are the only two female animals.
80	* WalkingTheEarth: The heroes' quest takes them to various {{Adventure Town}}s across Splitpaw. WordOfGod says that this is one of the factors that doomed the original version, since creating a different world for each episode would be expensive, while the school setting can be reused over and over.
81	* WhatTheHellIsThatAccent: Viktor sounds he's Russian, Spanish and British, all at the same time!
82	* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Kanikus' burden of being an immortal phoenix.
83	[[/folder]]
84
85	[[folder:Tropes exclusive to the new True Tail]]
86	* AlphaBitch: Heavily downplayed with Harper Finch. She's all about her good looks, but is unquestionably one of the heroes.
87	* BadassTeacher: The teachers at True Tail teach at a HeroAcademy, so it's no surprise that all of them are veterans that can kick ass when necessary.
88	* BirdPeople: Harper the mockingbird, though she's not as humanoid as some examples.
89	* DraconicHumanoid: Atticus.
90	* FurryConfusion: Lyra Wolfsbane is a werewolf, in a WorldOfFunnyAnimals. Apparently how that works is that her "human" form is the purple anthro wolf seen on the website's cast page, and her "wolf" form is something more beastly, as seen [[https://www.deviantart.com/art/Beauty-is-a-Beast-734876737 here]].
91	* GenderEqualEnsemble: Along with our four main characters of Caleb, Melody, Viktor, and Doh-Li, a gender-equal ensemble themselves, this version adds two girls and two boys to the cast roster: Garth, Harper, Dylan, and Ami.
92	* HeroAcademy: The focus of the new version.
93	* LighterAndSofter: Than the original version, although some dark elements remain. From the Skynamic website:
94	-->Though our original story was good, and we loved mixing our simplistic shape-based art with a mature story line, we found it nearly impossible to pitch this concept to any animation studio. With this new version we have a more lighthearted tone that gives us the chance to bring humor and energy into the series. We are still making an action adventure show, but it will just be a little less serious.
95	* MagicMusic: Melody "sings magical songs to empower even the weakest of heroes."
96	* MindControlMusic: Lyra's song.
97	* OurMinotaursAreDifferent: Boris Tauris, though he's said to be rather agreeable when not in combat.
98	* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: Lyra has the power of MindControlMusic.
99	* PreciousPuppy: Garth Bravebark.
100	* {{Tomboy}}: Ami is a tanuki who dresses like Myth/RobinHood and "can take down any boy that gets in her way."
101	[[/folder]]

Context WebAnimation / TrueTail