Line #25 Webcomic/RubyNation


1	[[quoteright:184:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/FRNTVTropes_5793.png]]
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3	Elise Sasaki-Garcia is a 17-year-old girl who’s a huge fan of anime and young adult fantasy. Having woken up with metal wings on her back, she and her friend Ruby Harrison (who has been similarly transformed, in her case into a nine-foot-tall giantess) appear to be living out one of those stories, having joined other post-human teenagers in the fight against the twisted experiments of Beagle Labs. But Elise doesn’t remember how she got her wings, and the truth about her transformation may spoil her fantasy, if not her entire existence.
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5	A sequel of sorts to ''Webcomic/RubysWorld'' by Neil Kapit, Ruby Nation is a long-form story-driven webcomic that intentionally deconstructs many tropes of the young adult superhero narrative. The characters around Elise, most of whom starred in Ruby’s World, are just out of high school, horribly scarred by their experiences, and grudgingly devoted to saving a world that doesn’t seem to want the help. Elise herself is more optimistic, but whether that’s due to a genuinely good heart, a complete lack of experience, or something entirely different has yet to be determined.
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7	Unfortunately neither the comic nor its wiki are still being hosted.
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9	----
10	!!''Ruby Nation'' provides examples of:
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12	%%* ActionGirl: Elise and Ruby.
13	* AllThereInTheManual: The main action is supplemented by in-universe textual ephemera like therapy transcripts and diary pages, all of which go a long way towards fleshing out the characters' backstories.
14	* AffablyEvil: Kaluga is kind and protective of Elise, genuinely caring for her.
15	* AmericaSavesTheDay: Deconstructed. It's more like "America recruits Ruby and her crew to clean up their mess".
16	* AnachronicOrder: Very much so, with numerous flashbacks, [[DreamSequence dream sequences]], and expository journal entries.
17	* AnimalMotifs: All of Beagle's super-soldiers use code-names based on animals. There's Moray, two as-yet-unknown characters called Kaluga and Ratel, and apparently they refer to Elise as Bateleur.
18	%%* AmazonianBeauty: Ruby.
19	* AnxietyDreams: Elise appears to suffer from these, seeing violent and provocative imagery interrupt what would otherwise be straightforward flashbacks.
20	* AntiClimax: When the Ruby Nation finally meets Dr. Carcharria in her [[OneWingedAngel upgraded form]] for a final battle, [[spoiler:she goes down in one shot by Jiro shooting her in the kidney.]]
21	* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever: Ruby, [[spoiler: when she gets PregnantBadass from her posthuman fetus]], gets even BIGGER.
22	* TheAtoner: Jiro seeks to atone for his sins so that he can have a better life in a better world.
23	* AxCrazy: Elise slips into this mindset during battle, due to her apparent "programming".
24	* BabiesEverAfter: Sort of. Ruby is still pregnant by the end of the story, so this is presumably in store for her in the near future.
25	%%* BattleCouple: Ruby and Jiro.
26	* BeastMan: Ratel, who looks like a honey badger, [[spoiler: because that's exactly what she was before she became a posthuman]].
27	* BerserkerTears: Jiro when [[spoiler: is torturing a confession out of Ratel]]. Lampshaded in the author comments.
28	* BewareTheNiceOnes: Ruby is [[GentleGiant compassionate and gentle]], but she’s also a force to be reckoned with.
29	* BlackAndGreyMorality: The villain is a mad scientist who uses unwilling test subjects, mostly the very young and very poor, to build her private army of super-soldiers. The heroes are a group of teenagers who are all emotionally broken and willing to kill if needed. The only character who sees any heroism in what they're doing is Elise, who is too naive to know otherwise.
30	* BloodKnight: Elise.
31	* BodyHorror: So many examples. Poor Ruby is on the receiving end of most of it.
32	* BreakTheCutie: Happened to the cast in the previous strip, seems to be where Elise is headed.
33	* BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood: The Apex State is more or less this, especially from the point of view of the BigBad.
34	* ButWeUsedACondom: Jiro [[http://rubynation.thecomicseries.com/comics/119 literally says this]] when he finds out [[spoiler: Ruby is pregnant]].
35	* CartesianKarma: [[AvertedTrope averted]]. Despite being responsible for [[spoiler: Alexis' death]], Jens isn't held responsible for his actions while under the influence of the Apex State. The reaction to his return is mostly one of relief instead.
36	* ChildSoldiers: Beagle tends to use the very young for their experiments.
37	* CombatTentacles: Moray's body is filled with thousands of razor-sharp nano filaments, but he tends to wield them as large columns that fit this trope.
38	* CoolShades: Jiro, to conceal his [[GlowingEyesOfDoom Glowing Eyes of Doom]].
39	* CrapsackWorld: People in this story get killed, experimented on, brainwashed, kidnapped, and injured on a regular basis. Posthumans have it especially bad, but pretty much everyone comes out worse for the wear.
40	* {{Cyborg}}: A baboon cyborg, that is. Comes equipped with a [[MoreDakka machine gun]].
41	%%* DecoyProtagonist: Ruby.
42	%%* TheDragon: Moray.
43	* EnfantTerrible: Played with. [[spoiler: Dr. Carcharria]] looks like a child, but is actually 49 years old.
44	* EvilFormerFriend: Elise was this to Ruby, at least until [[spoiler: her memories were erased and she joined Ruby's team]].
45	* FaceMonsterTurn: Which is exactly how [[spoiler: the Apex Unit got Elise to attack Ruby in the first place.]]
46	* FanDisservice: Elise's brain chemistry is altered so she gets an endorphin rush when she [[spoiler: she kills people, effectively making killing feel like sex to her. She tells this to Kaluga, who reveals his severe facial tumor to her, and she kisses him.]] [[http://www.therubynation.com/comics/1804916/evil-lulz/ None of this is remotely sexy]].
47	* [[spoiler:FinalSpeech: Dr. Carcharria gives one as she's dying.]]
48	%%* GenkiGirl: Elise.
49	* GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul: The Apex event causes this to happen to all normal humans except for Alexis, with a heavy dose of HiveMind.
50	* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: [[spoiler: Ruby]] refuses to consider abortion when her post-human fetus is threatening her health.
51	* GoodIsNotSoft: Ruby is kind and warm-hearted, but nevertheless extremely powerful and not one to be taken lightly.
52	* GoodScarsEvilScars: Elise reveals the nasty-looking scar hidden under her EyepatchOfPower, but when she does, the moment signifies character development instead of a turn towards villainy.
53	* HairTriggerTemper: Elise is far from the patient type. Some of the villains have pretty sharp tempers of their own too.
54	* HannibalLecture: Dr. Carcharria [[spoiler: Olivia Schruke]] delivers a particularly withering one to Ruby.
55	* HealingFactor: One of the many powers nanos have.
56	* HeelRealization: Elise undergoes a mild version of this once she figures out her past. Even though she’s long since left Beagle, she shows conflicted feelings over having been a part of them.
57	* HeroicWillpower: Ruby is able to [[spoiler: detect the mood-altering chip in her brain and use the sheer force of her own metabolism to destroy it]].
58	* HiveMind: The Apex event has this effect on humans.
59	* HopeSpot: The Apex event has rendered normal humans helpless. Jiro is past his breaking point. Ruby is [[spoiler: in custody of Dr. Carcharria. And suddenly, Alexis snaps out of her comatose state just long enough to give some important information...]]
60	%%* HumbleHero: Ruby.
61	* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Jiro’s justification for [[spoiler:erasing Elise’s memories after she was brainwashed into attacking Ruby and the gang]].
62	* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: [[spoiler: Jiro tortures Ratel to force a confession out of her.]]
63	* JigsawPuzzlePlot: The story forms with scenes and textual ephemera from various points in the timeline, often revealing information out-of-sequence (such as with Elise's brainwashing).
64	* KnightInSourArmor: Most of the cast, but especially Jiro.
65	* LesserOfTwoEvils: Ruby, who [[spoiler:surrenders herself to Dr. Carcharria in order to protect her friends -- and her unborn child.]]
66	* LotusEaterMachine: The mood-altering drugs the Not-So-Good Doctor prescribes to her captives work this way.
67	* LotusPosition: The way Ruby is sitting in the cover to chapter 9-A evokes this, which is fitting, given her introspection and refusal to let her mind be taken over by the LotusEaterMachine in this chapter.
68	* MeaningfulName: The Apex Unit, in which all the members are named after apex predators.
69	* MediumBlending: An unusual example where the mediums in question are SequentialArt and text. After each chapter, there is a short interlude, journal, or scrapbook instead of the usual comic intercut with a little comic art.
70	* MookDebutCutscene: In the prologue, a Mook overseeing the captive Elise looks at a locket with a picture of his daughter, and wonders if what he's doing to support his family is the right thing. The same Mook is later killed in a very brutal fashion to cover Moray's escape.
71	* MythologyGag: An extremely meta example--Jiro makes a reference to [[http://www.poetkitties.com/ Poet Kitties]], a webcomic by the author of Ruby Nation.
72	%%* NaiveNewcomer: Elise.
73	* {{Nanomachines}}: The source of virtually all super-powers in this universe.
74	* NewFirstComics: A continuation of ''Webcomic/RubysWorld'' from a different perspective.
75	* OhCrap: Jiro's reaction when he realizes [[spoiler: Ruby is in space]].
76	* OlderThanTheyLook: Olivia Schruke, whose growth was stunted due to a congenital kidney disease. [[spoiler: She's also known as [[BigBad Dr. Victoria Carcharria]].]]
77	* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: Averted. Those days are in the recent past for Elise, Ruby, and the others.
78	* OurGiantsAreBigger: Ruby stands at 9' 1".
79	* PanickyExpectantFather: [[spoiler: Jiro]] worries about all of the possible problems in one panicked rush.
80	* PrecisionFStrike: [[spoiler: Ruby]] of all people delivers one to Dr. Carcharria.
81	* PregnantHostage: [[spoiler: Pregnant Ruby]] is taken captive, adding a second layer of worry for Jiro as he plans to rescue her.
82	* PrisonShip: [[spoiler: Ruby is imprisoned [[RecycledInSpace in outer space]].
83	%%* PowerGlows
84	* PunchClockVillain: Beagle's human guards. Crosses over with IneffectualSympatheticVillain , as most of them aren't treated as bad people, and they're basically paid to be cannon fodder against super-soldiers way out of their league.
85	* SadisticChoice: Jiro’s rescue attempted are stymied by humans under the influence of the Apex Event. His choices? [[spoiler: Accept capture and lose his chances of rescuing Ruby, or fight back and let Alexis and the rest of his team get taken down]]. He accepts the former option.
86	* SanitySlippage: Elise becomes progressively more unhinged as the story goes on.
87	* SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids: Dr. Carcharria sees Ruby's views on freedom and positive change for the future this way, but ultimately even she admits Ruby might not be entirely in the wrong. The story itself seems to [[SubvertedTrope subvert]] this. Despite the fact that they live in a CrapsackWorld, the most villainous characters are the ones who let their bitterness and cynicism drive them to totalitarian extremes, while the characters who don't lose hope are staunchly on the heroic side.
88	%%* SirSwearsAlot: Elise displays this.
89	%%* SlasherSmile: Elise does this quite a bit.
90	* SlidingScaleOfShinyVersusGritty: Definitely on the gritty end, due to both the art style and the subject matter.
91	%%* ShockAndAwe: Duncan has this ability.
92	* ShoutOut: The comic has numerous references to video games, songs, comics, TV shows, and the like.
93	* ShutUpHannibal: Delivered by Elise via spit take.
94	* SpitefulSpit: Elise spits in Moray’s face ostensibly to show she wants nothing to do with him. [[spoiler:As it turns out, she was actually spitting out a device to short out the power.]]
95	* StatuesqueStunner: Elise (5' 10") is a more believable example, Ruby (9' 1") takes it to a fantastic degree.
96	* StressVomit: Happens to both Jiro and Duncan, despite the former's digestive system being very much unlike a normal human's. It seems to be a reflex.
97	* StylisticSuck: Elise's diaries are sloppily handwritten and contain very simple writing, as the character herself is not really a great author.
98	* SuperStrength: A good number of characters, most notably Ruby.
99	* TenderTears: Ruby does this early on in the comic as part of her [[EstablishingCharacterMoment Establishing Character Moment]].
100	* ThereAreNoTherapists: Averted. Ruby talks to a psychologist towards the end of the prologue.
101	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Jiro gives one to [[Dr. Carcharria after shooting her.]]
102	* TinyGuyHugeGirl: Jiro and Ruby are this type of couple.
103	* TransformationComic: In that almost all of the main characters have been genetically altered, and most of them cannot pass for normal.
104	* TraumaInducedAmnesia: Presumably Elise suffers from this, thanks to the experiments that gave her those wings.
105	* TrueCompanions: The cast established one prior to Elise's arrival, and she thinks herself part of their group. Whether she is depends on who you ask.
106	* WardensAreEvil: They certainly are when your warden is Dr. Carcharria.
107	* WhamEpisode: The Insomnia Interlude, though it's not apparent until the end.
108	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Ratel's fate after Jiro is finished with her is never fully explained.
109	* WhatIfTheBabyIsLikeMe: [[spoiler: Ruby]] worries about this greatly when she discovers she's pregnant.
110	* WhatTheHellHero: Duncan, who is normally very passive and shy, pulls this on Jiro when he goes too far.
111	%%* WingedHumanoid: Elise, obviously.

Context Webcomic / RubyNation