Suburban Glamour is a 2007 mini-series created by Jamie McKelvie, the co-creator of Phonogram and The Wicked + The Divine.
It tells the story of Astrid Johnson, a teenager living in the quiet English town of Lanbern. Astrid longs for excitement in her life, but she is constantly misunderstood by her parents, her teachers are annoying, and nothing exciting happens in town. All that changes just before her 17th birthday, when her childhood imaginary friends re-appear in her life, a new shop opens in town, and Astrid learns a major secret about herself.
Jamie McKelvie has stated that due to his growing workload, it's unlikely he will make a sequel.
Suburban Glamour provides examples of:
- Alien Non-Interference Clause: After Aubrey/ Maeve tells Dave to talk to Astrid to be careful of Morgana's minions, he asks for her help. She then tells him that she swore an oath to never get involved in her sisters' affairs and can only watch and assist Astrid from indirect methods.
- Author Appeal: The amount of indie band posters on Astrid's wall and band shirts she and her friends wear are often reflective of Jamie McKelvie's own tastes.
- Bathroom Stall Graffiti:
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Astrid wants some excitement in her life? She got it, all right.
- Big Damn Heroes: Dave and Astrid are attacked by monsters in the park when someone appears to save them. Since it was dark, they didn't get a good look, but Dave managed to recognize what the shoes looked and realizes that it's Aubrey.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Neil, one of Astrid and Dave's classmates, invites them and Chris to a party and is nice and polite to them. Turns out it's an act and he's been lacing girls' drinks with speed in order to hook up with them. When Dave overhears him complaining about his failed attempt to hook up with Astrid by drugging her, Dave immediately punches him in the face.
- Changeling Fantasy: Astrid discovers that she is actually the daughter of Faerie royalty and are coming to reclaim their daughter on her 17th birthday. She's initially elated to leave Lanbern for the land of Faerie, but when she discovers how her biological parents act towards her without a single consideration for Astrid's feelings, she tells them off and decides to stay with her human parents.
- The City vs. the Country: Aubrey claims that the reason she moved to Lanbern is because she got tired of life in NYC.
- Cool Big Sis: Aubrey, the owner of the hip new shop in town. She quickly takes a shining to Astrid and Dave. And with good reason: She's really Astrid's Faerie aunt Maeve, who moved to Lanbern to not only keep an eye on her niece and to properly fill in Astrid on her true heritage, but also avoid her sisters.
- Date Rape Averted: Neil gives Astrid a spiked drink in hopes of luring her, but Dave and Chris realize the effects before she does and take her home from the party.
- The Fair Folk: Titania, Oberon, Morgana and Maeve/Aubrey hail from the realm of Faerie. Astrid is actually the changeling daughter of Titania and Oberon.
- The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: Titania and Morgana are twin Faerie princesses who have been fighting forever. When Oberon, the most desired of the Fae, was looking for a wife, Titania and Morgana declared war on each other. Titania won out, but the bloodshed and fallout from the war caused Maeve, their older sister, to abandon Fae and her sisters, swearing to never speak to them again.
- Grammar Correction Gag: "You're Mum" is doodled on a bathroom stall. Right below it: "It's 'your', you idiot."
- Happily Adopted: Played with. When Astrid discovers that she's really Faerie royalty, she jumps at the chance to abandon her mundane life. But when she finally meets her biological parents, it turns out that they're such self-absorbed jerks that she tells them off, saying that her human parents are her real parents.
- I Choose to Stay: After seeing how self-absorbed her biological parents are, Astrid tells them off and decides to stay with her human parents.
- Imaginary Friend: Eblis, a winged cat-thing, and a doll named Miss Sally are Astrid's imaginary friends from childhood. They pop back into Astrid's life just before she turns 17.
- Jerkass: Titania and Morgana.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Neil gets a loud slap in the face by an angry girl after Astrid lets it slip around school that Neil laces girls' drinks with speed. Beforehand, Dave punches him in the face after overhearing Neil complaining about failing to seduce a drugged Astrid.
- Ms. Exposition: Aubrey/Maeve when Astrid and Dave demand answers about the weird things that happened.
- Nothing Exciting Ever Happens Here
- Platonic Life-Partners: Astrid and Dave, with a heavy amount of Ship Tease. They're also True Companions with their friend Chris and are in a band together.
- Sadist Teacher: A downplayed version in Mr. Polanski. It's inferred from Dave that he gives Dave and several other student a hard time. He gives Dave detention for standing in the hallway, especially since Dave was already there because his teacher had sent him out for not paying attention in class. He gets abducted and killed by Morgana's minions in order for her to acquire a body.
- Shout-Out: Astrid's biological parents are named Titania and Oberon and they are the queen and king of Faerie.
- Slipping a Mickey: At a party that Astrid, Dave, and Chris attend, Astrid unknowingly drinks a beer laced with speed. It turns out that Neil, one of their classmates, has been lacing all the drinks with speed in order to hook up with girls.
- Small Town Boredom: Lanbern is a quiet suburban town. Astrid, Dave, and Chris all admit that there is nothing to do except for the occasional party and Astrid longs for some excitement in her life.
- Take That!: Done as a joke with "Gillen's a knob" doodled on a bathroom stall.
- Urban Fantasy: Changelings, faeries, and talking Imaginary Friends.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Astrid delivers an epic one to her biological parents for abandoning her for the last 17 years and then returning with the expectation that Astrid follow them back to Fae without question.
