Miraculous Ladybug

"In the daytime, I'm Marinette. Just a normal girl, with a normal life. But there's something about me that no-one knows yet. Cause I have a secret..."
—Marinette's opening dialogue

Miraculous Ladybug (full title, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir) is a 3D-animated Animesque series in the tradition of Magical Girl/Superhero genre. Originally a joint effort by France's Zagtoon and Method Animation Studios with Toei Animation of Japan and SAMG Animation of South Korea, it first premiered in France and Belgium on October 2015, and in EBS in Korea on September 1, 2015. The series premiered in the United States on December 6, 2015 on Nickelodeon, and was later moved to the Netflix streaming service after the first season aired on Nick. In the UK and Latin America it is shown on the Disney Channel with the former on January 30 and the latter on May, 2016. As of July 3rd, 2017, it can now been seen weekdays at 7:30 on Kids Click.

The original trailer can be seen here (as a 2D version) and Zagoon's page for it is here.

The story is about Marinette Dupain-Cheng, a junior high school girl living in Paris. With the aid of her Fairy Companion Tikki, she has the power to become the eponymous superheroine Ladybug. Joining in her adventures is the cat-themed hero Cat Noir, who happens to be Marinette's high school crush, Adrien. Like the heroine, his powers come from a similar fairy companion (a male version of Tikki named Plagg). The two are pursued by Hawk Moth, a mysterious villain who seeks their two Miraculous-es for some as yet unspecified - but clearly evil - purpose. To do so, he is able to corrupt normal civilians, granting them dark powers and turning them into his pawns.

The animated series has gained attention for its well-animated fight scenes, frenetic action that's a good deal more physical than many Magical Girl shows, and comedic characters. It has a whopping budget of US$11.2 million.

There are two series of webisodes. One is entitled Miraculous Secrets and the other, animated in 2D, is Tales from Paris. They are available on the official YouTube channel or (for those who know French) on TF1's website.

The second season debuted October 26th 2017 in France on TFOU, and December 2017 for U.S. Netflix.

An official mobile game by the same name was released on February 21st, 2018. It is currently only available to Australian iOS users. The game is a runner-style action game, and links with episodes requiring the main characters to travel around Paris.

This page currently Needs Wiki Magic Love.

Tropes used in Miraculous Ladybug include:
  • 100% Adoration Rating: Ladybug and Cat Noir have unusually-positive media images for super-heroes, recognized as benevolent protectors by both the press and the city government.
  • Adorkable: To different degrees, most members of the cast
    • Marinette is especially prone to this when talking to Adrien, watching him, or even thinking about him.
    • Adrien does the same while around Ladybug
  • Adult Fear: In general, nobody is safe from Hawk Moth's akumas. Every one of Marinette's classmates have been a victim at least once; some victims have been grade-schoolers, and in one case, an infant. A theory among fans that Marinette herself might be immune to them was debunked in "Zombizou", which also shows that some citizens have learned to recognize the akumas; fear of butterflies might well have become common in this version of Paris. Most villains will not think twice about using teens as hostages or Slave Mooks either. Not to mention that Paris is nearly destroyed almost once per episode.
  • Aesop Amnesia: Chloe, dear lord, Chloe. A lot of the terrible things she does lead to her being used as a hostage by the villain, but her pleas and promises to repent her ways are always disregarded once the heroine rescues her.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Cat Noir calls Ladybug "Milady" and "Bugaboo".
  • Age-Appropriate Angst: People targeted by Hawk Moth usually get akumatized over problems that would be typical for their age. Teenagers face issues like rejection, bullying, and lack of respect, adult characters are traumatized by losing their jobs unfairly, while little kids get upset at being denied toys or candy.
  • All CGI Cartoon: 3D-CGI, to be specific
  • All Love Is Unrequited: Well, let's see, where to start...
    • Adrien, being oblivious to her thanks to his crush on Ladybug, noticeably refers to Marinette as simply being his friend; and in an ironic twist, Ladybug doesn't reciprocate Cat Noir's advances.
    • Chloé constantly hits on Adrien, who gently rebuffs her advances since they're Just Friends and a few times she's pushed his buttons by being a Jerkass.
    • Nino and Nathanael have developed crushes on Marinette in different episodes, but she doesn't seem to notice. Nino's quickly evaporates, especially when he starts dating Alya after going on a date with Marinette that an akuma interrupts.
    • Adrien also attracted Lila, who he finds hard to rebuff because she's so pushy and lies about being friends with Ladybug.
    • Subverted with Ivan and Mylène, who got together during the Origins episodes and have, chronologically, been dating throughout the whole show.
  • Alpha Bitch: Chloé is an exaggerated Type 1, but it's played-with in that even though she is powerful she is also very unpopular, if not outright despised. She is also responsible (directly or indirectly) for most of the akumatized villains.
    • By the end of season 2, Chloe seems to be heading into Lovable Alpha Bitch territory. Unfortunately, Lila quickly takes her place in the Alpha Bitch role.
  • Ambiguously Brown: Some of the supporting characters (such as Alya and Nino) are this in the show proper, with their ethnicity never being brought up. Word of God claims Alya's family is from Martinique while Nino's is from Morocco.
  • Anachronic Order: Different broadcasters tend to show the episodes in different orders, making it hard to tell which story comes first. Fortunately, for now, each story is very self contained.
  • Animal-Themed Superbeing: Naturally, Ladybug and Cat Noir are based on ladybug and cat. As a rule, this applies to all the akumas, which represent peacock, fox, turtle, bee, and butterfly. The actual powers of each holder have much less to do with the animal itself and more to do with symbolism and what they represent. For instance, because ladybugs represent luck and black cats bad luck, the powers of the two protagonists' powers follow suit. The butterfly akuma, held by Hawk Moth, grants powers of metamorphosis, but only for people other than the user.
  • Antagonist Title: Most individual episodes are named after the Villain of the Week.
  • Archnemesis Dad: Hawk Moth is actually Adrien's father Gabriel, but at the time of writing, neither know the other's identity.
  • Bad Powers, Good People: Cat Noir. His kwami is the embodiment of Destruction and Decay, and the powers granted to Adrien cause matter to rot and turn to dust. Despite this, Plagg is a benevolent (if snarky) entity, and Cat Noir uses it for heroic purposes. He does not know what would happen if he tried it on a living human, only considering doing so while under Dark Cupid's spell.
  • Balancing Death's Books: As Master Fu explains in "Robostus", anyone who gains possession of all the Miraculous-es could use them to do practically anything. They could alter reality, create life, and possibly even change history. While this could, theoretically, be used for philanthropic purposes, like ending hunger and poverty or stopping all wars, the Powers That Be demand a price; whatever is given is taken from someone else to maintain a Balance of Power in the universe. Thus, if life is created, it will then be taken from someone else. For this reason, no one person can ever be allowed to assemble them all.
  • Battle Couple: Zigzagged with Ladybug and Cat Noir. Their partnership has never truly been official, and while the two are technically reciprocate each other's feelings due to a Two-Person Love Triangle involving alternate identities, the farthest it has gone is a Ship Tease. However, both at least trust the other as a partner completely.
  • Beethoven Was an Alien Spy: The Miraculous-es have been around since the days of Ancient Egypt at least, and one historic figure to hold Marinette's identity was Saint George.
  • Big Eater: Plagg; when he's not helping Adrien, he's usually scarfing cheese, and often devours wheels of it bigger than he is in one bite.
  • Big Fancy House: The Agreste estate. Adrien often regards it as a Gilded Cage.
  • Brainwashed and Crazy: Almost all the akuma victims are brainwashed by Hawk Moth. In addition, many of them have some way to do this to civilians.
  • Building Swing: Both heroes combine this with Roof Hopping to transverse Paris.
  • Butterfly of Transformation: Literally; Hawk Moth uses a literal expression of this trope to feed from people's negative emotions, so he can turn them into Akuma.
  • By the Power of Grayskull: In French, each Miraculous-holder says "Transformez-moi" to change into the costumed identity. The English dub gives each a unique one:
    • Ladybug: “Tikki, spots on!” and "Bug Out!" to change back.
    • Cat Noir: “Plagg, claws out!”
    • Hawk Moth: “Nooroo, dark wings rise!”
    • Rena Rouge: “Trixx, let’s pounce!”
  • Cats Are Snarkers: Adrien's identity as Cat Noir seems to be an outlet for him, letting him act more frivolous and whimsical than he is as Adrien, a Deadpan Snarker attitude thrown in. To a lesser degree, Plagg is rather snarky compared to other kwamis.
  • Christmas Episode: "A Christmas Special" (also called "Santa Claws" in the UK and in other countries), in which Marinette becomes erroneously convinced that Santa Claus has been akumatized. Until, of course, he actually is.
  • The Chessmaster: Lila shows incredible promise as a beginner in this type of manipulation, but is still a novice. For example, in "Onichan", she easily weasels her way into Adrien's house by manipulating Adrien, Nathalie, and their chauffeur, but clearly panics at the idea of trying it on Gabriel, who is very angry that they let her in. And by the end of the episode, it seems he is pulling the same trick on her...
  • Clingy Costume: Both heroes have one; at least one villain's attempt to unmask Ladybug fails because the mask can't be removed. In fact, it may not even be cloth at all, seeing as each is an extension of the Miraculous.
  • Clark Kenting: Both main characters, despite wearing masks, are easily identifiable to even a casual fan. Nobody in-universe, however, seems to figure it out. Hawk Moth can't seem to recognize his own son in costume, while Adrien is just as clueless about his masked enemy.
  • Crash Into Hello: How the two heroes first met; Ladybug actually managed to get the two of them entangled by her yo-yo's string.
  • Cunning Linguist: Adrien can speak several languages, and also understands Morse Code.
  • Cut and Paste Translation: Although the English dub is very well-received in quality, there are script changes. Most are minor, such as changing the school years from the French system, changing Chat Noir's nickname for Marinette from "princess" to "little lady" in "Evillustrator", and giving transformations Miraculous-specific invocations as opposed to just "[Kwami name], transform me". However, when Adrien and Ladybug see a picture of Adrien's mother, they tell each other in unison that she shares a trait with the other. In French, they say "She has your smile", but in English this becomes "She's got your eyes". which is logically valid for Adrien, but not so much for blue-eyed, biracial Ladybug, though he could be referring to the metaphorical way (the kindness and such in the eyes) rather than the literal shape and color.
  • The Danza: Josiane, voiced by Josiane Balasko.
  • Dark Is Not Evil: Both the heroes, slightly:
  • A Day in the Limelight: The akumatizations serve as this for members of the supporting cast; it's rare that the character is someone who has not appeared before or isn't intended to appear again.
  • Deal with the Devil: Hawk Moth isn't exactly the Devil, but he tends to follow the same path, offering power through his akumas to someone in the midst of a Moment of Weakness. Unfortunately for him, Faustian Rebellions happen at an increasingly alarming rate.
  • Deus Est Machina: Downplayed with Ladybug's Lucky Charms. They always give her something she can use to defeat the villain; just how to use it is something she has to figure out herself.
  • Devil in Plain Sight: Not even Adrien realizes that his father - as resentful he is of him at times - is the villainous Hank Moth and how close he and Ladybug are to their foe. But then, neither does Hawk Moth.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: Most akuma victims start out with a small grudge over a small slight; Hawk Moth's influence amplifies this grudge into a desire for revenge that has the potential to turn murderous.
  • Domino Mask]: Both the heroes and quite a few of the villains.
  • Eiffel Tower Effect:
    • Marinette's house and school are located in the fictional 21st Arrondissment of Paris, which is somehow both directly across the river from Notre Dame (in the 5th) and in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower (in the 7th). A 21st arrondissement would border the 11th, 12th and 20th, but would still be nowhere near either landmark.
    • Also in some scenes at the Louvre, the Eiffel tower can be seen as being behind the museum towards the south-east when it's actually more or less due west.
  • Empathic Shapeshifter: All of the villains, save presumably for Hawk Moth, are made to fit the feelings and desires of the people who get akumatized and the situations that caused those feelings. A jilted suitor becomes a bitter anti-Cupid, a timid actress becomes a horror movie monster, etc. Some of them are extremely context-specific as a result, like the Bubbler who is a party animal with a bubble theme because Nino wanted to throw Adrien a party at the time, and happened to be using a bubble wand when Hawk Moth noticed him.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Lighthearted example in Season 3; Marinette tries to spy on Adrien and Lila by stacking garbage cans, climbing on them, and peering over the wall of his house, only to fall and wind up buried and garbage. Lila sees this as she leaves, and says she could take a selfie of it and post it in order to humiliate her... but then declines to do so, saying it would be "too easy".
  • Evil Is Not Well Lit: Hawk Moth directs his evil schemes from a dark, mostly featureless room with his viewing panel providing the only illumination.
  • Evil Only Has to Win Once: Seeing as akuma prey on victims overcome with negative emotions, it is likely Hawk Moth will never run out of pawns unless the heroes somehow defeat him. Until then, one bad day would be all it would take...
  • Gay Paree: With the exception of the Christmas Episode, Paris always seems to be as idyllic as a city can be, and in a state of endless spring. Not to mention, the Eiffel Tower always seems to loom in the background.
  • Hidden in Plain Sight: Marinette's earrings and Adrien's ring are still worn as such in their civilian identities, although they become plainer and discolored.
  • "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Usually Averted with Akuma victims. More than likely, the heroes learned quickly it doesn't work, and trying it only results in a That Man Is Dead claim. Instead, they focus on finding and taking the akuma to reverse the effect.
  • Improbable Weapon User: Ladybug's Weapon of Choice is pretty much a souped-up yo-yo, and most Lucky Charms she gets are Lethal Joke Items.
  • In a Single Bound: Both Ladybug and Cat Noir can leap at least the height of a mid-sized building.
  • Ink Suit Actor: Fred Haprèle's boss Josiane looks very much like her voice actress, only younger.
  • Instant Expert: No training, instruction, or practice is required for using a kwami. Each recipient is able to master the powers that come with it in seconds.
  • It's Always Spring: With the obvious exception of the Christmas Episode, the weather in Paris here is always warm, sunny, and clear.
  • Fusion Dance: The heroes' Transformation Sequence consists of each of them merging with his or her kwamis; while costumed, neither kwami is able to talk and seems "out of phase".
  • Gay Paree: In this version of Paris, the weather is always sunny and warm, and the city is as picturesque as can be, with the Eiffel Tower visible from anywhere.
  • Hour of Power: Whenever Ladybug or Cat Noir use their most powerful special ability (Lucky Charm and Cataclysm, respectively), a Magic Countdown starts that causes them to completely lose their transformation in five minutes. The symbols on their Miraculous have five lights that will count down after the power is activated.
  • Just Eat Gilligan: Chloe is a mean girl and Alpha Bitch who's bullying and underhanded ways cause a great deal of resentment, depression, and anger in her classmates, making her ultimately responsible for a vast majority of akuma-related threats. Often, these corrupted villains deliver Laser-Guided Karma to Chloe herself... Or rather, they would, but Ladybug always rescues Chloe. Many fans would agree that about 90% of Ladybug and Cat Noir's troubles would be gone if they simply let one of these villains have her, but such a morally questionable brand of justice isn't their type.
  • Late for School: Happens to Marinette in the intro, and has caused many problems in actual episodes.
  • Never the Selves Shall Meet: Defied twice-over in "Timebreaker"; Not only is Ladybug able to safely interact with - and form a team with - her past self, but Hawk Moth gets the smart idea to double his pawn's power by sending a second akuma to corrupt the past one, so they can also form a team. Fridge Brilliance kicks in here, as two Ladybugs were likely needed to purify two akumas.
  • Keep It Foreign: Adrien takes Mandarin Chinese lessons, but in the Mandarin Chinese dub, he knows Cantonese, which is a Chinese dialect that is mutually unintelligible with Mandarin. Hence, in "Kung Food", when Adrien and Wang Cheng would alternate between the dub language and Mandarin Chinese, they instead translate between Mandarin and Cantonese.
  • Kent Brockman News: Nadja Chammak's broadcasts are often silly and uninformative, and occasionally veer into Dead Line News territory.
  • Legacy Character: "The Pharaoh" episode reveals that Tikki is at least 5,000 years old, and so is the Ladybug identity. One can assume this is rue for Cat Noir and the other kwamis.
    • Also, the episode "Timetagger" reveals that in the future, Gabriel will eventually be defeated by the heroes, only for another villain to become the new Hawk Moth.
  • Lethal Joke Item: Nine times out of ten, Marinette's initial reaction to a Lucky Charm is, "what in the world do I do with this?" Each Charm can help resolve the crisis in some way, but it's up to her to figure out how.
  • Letting Her Hair Down: Gender-flipped with Adrien, who's hair is neatly combed back in his civilian identity. As Cat Noir, it's fluffier and shaggier, and his attitude becomes daring and liberated.
  • Limited Wardrobe: Despite the Marinette and Adrien having career goals of fashion designing and modeling, each tends to stick to the same outfit unless there's a reason for something else, like PE class. Marinette always wears a white shirt, black jacket, and pink slacks, while Adrien wears a black shirt, white jacket, jeans, and orange shoes. Most of the supporting cast is like this too.
  • Loads and Loads of Characters: The cast has steadily grown in only two seasons, as akumized victims usually become recurring members of the supporting cast afterwards.
  • Loves My Alter Ego: Both heroes have this problem badly. Ladybug has no romantic feelings towards Cat Noir, but has a major crush on Adrien. Adrien, on the other hand, only considers Martinette a friend, but has just as much of a crush on Ladybug. Seeing as neither knows the other's identity they're each in a love-triangle with themselves.
    • Non-romantic example in the same series, Chloe has nothing but contempt for Martinette, but is such a fan of Ladybug that she Cosplays as the heroine at home.
  • Made of Indestructium: Both Ladybug's yo-yo and Cat Noir's staff seem unbreakable. They've used the weapons to stop cars, buses, helicopters, and even a plane in one case, without the weapons getting so much as a crack. (Although in all fairness, the last one may have just been Marinette daydreaming.)
  • Magic Countdown: The stated countdown for both heroes' Hour of Power is five minutes, although this seems to be expanded or compressed as the plot demands.
  • Meaningful Name:
    • Ladybug has luck-based powers; ladybugs are symbols of luck in France.
    • "Cat Noir" is literally "black cat".
    • "duPain" is French for "of the bread"; Marinette's family are bakers. Marinette is derived from Marina, referring to her eye color.
    • Agreste is the French name for the grayling butterfly, which matches up with the butterfly motif used in some of Gabriel's advertising, such as on Adrien's sneakers. Doubly fitting, since Gabriel is secretly Hawk Moth/Papillon.
    • "Bourgeois" is a French word referring to the upper/middle classes, which was used by Marx to describe those who owned the means of production. A fitting name for a snobby rich girl like Chloé.
  • Monumental Battle: The Eiffel Tower is a favorite for this, and the Louvre is a close second. The Arc du Triomphe and Notre Dame have had brief ones.
  • Monumental Damage: The Eiffel Tower has been damaged and outright destroyed more than once, and the pyramid at the Louvre was shattered in one episode. Fortunately, Ladybug's World-Healing Wave can fix anything.
  • Non-Action Big Bad: Hawk Moth has no offensive powers that would be useful against the heroes, his Miraculous is only able to grant powers to others, never its owner. He does, however, have a Sword Cane he can use if threatened.
  • Orcus on His Throne: Again, Hawk Moth. Not counting his civilian identity, Ladybug has only truly spoken to him twice, and only the second time - the aforementioned Season Finale - in person.
  • Police Are Useless: But not for lack of trying in this case. Officer Roger is humiliated a lot, but one often has to admire him for commitment to his job.
  • Power Limiter: Possibly why kwamis require human hosts. Plagg has proven to be a Walking Disaster Area if he tries to use his powers without Adrien, and according to Master Fu, caused the sinking of Atlantis and the extinction of the dinosaurs by accident. Quite likely, the other kwamis are similar.
  • Recurring Boss: It's possible for Hawk Moth to akumatize the same victim more than once, and it happens now and then:
    • Aurore has been the antagonist of two episodes, both times as Stormy Weather.
    • Alya has been so twice, once as Lady Wifi and again as half of Oblivio.
    • Nino has been so twice, once as Bubbler and again as the other half of Oblivio.
    • Chloé twice, once as Anibug and again as Queen Wasp.
    • August is a repeat-victim as Gigantitan, though most cases occur offscreen, a rather frightening concept, seeing as he's just a baby.
    • Lila has been akumatized three times so far - as Volpina each time - although unlike most victims, she welcomes it.
  • Santa Claus: A prominent player in the Christmas Episode, naturally enough.
  • Save the Villain: Ladybug frequently has to save Chloe from suffering Laser-Guided Karma.
    • Season 3 shows them going down the same road rescuing Lila.
  • Skewed Priorities:
    • Plagg does this a lot, often complaining that the call to action comes when he's eating or that it happens at a party before he can go to the buffet. Of course, he's very eager to help Adrien defeat a Villainous Glutton before said villain gets to his store of cheese.
    • Chloé tends to do this a lot too. When a villain has her tied up above a boiling pot of soup, she whines about her hair getting greasy; when an alien-like villain traps her in a cocoon, she's concerned with trying to file her nails. Indeed, this a common trend with her.
  • Secret Secret Keeper: Master Fu was this from the start, as he gave the Miraculous-es to both the current holders. As of "Dark Owl", both Tikki and Plagg know the identities of both heroes, but haven't revealed it to their holders.
  • Slapstick Knows No Gender: Gender offers neither Marinette nor her female classmates protection from Amusing Injuries.
  • So Beautiful It's a Curse: Adrien is a male version, and being a model for his father's agency doesn't help, as he's such a public figure. Chloé hits on him frequently, while Lily tends to violate his personal space. It really got bad in one episode where a cologne commercial caused a stampede of both male and female fans to chase after him!
  • Superpower Lottery: Akuma victims are all over the scale here. Winners gain abilities like Time Travel and Weather Control, while losers can do things like control pigeons or magic bubbles. Hawk Moth may be both a winner and a loser, as he is able to grant almost any power to his pawns, but none to himself.
  • Superpowers for A Day: Alya's role as Rita Rouge was supposed to be this originally (at least in-story) but she was just too awesome to get rid of, and she seems to have advanced to "part-timer heroine."
  • Teens Are Short: With a few exceptions (Marinette's mom is rather petite, while Ivan is a huge, muscular jock) most adults are a head taller than any of the teen characters.
  • Two-Person Love Triangle: Fans of the show call this Trope the "Miraculous Love Square". Marinette/Ladybug goes completely ga-ga over Adrien, but doesn't care for Cat Noir in the same way; Adrien/Cat Noir is just as smitten by Ladybug, but sees Marinette as just a friend and classmate. With neither having knowledge of the other's identity, the two are practically Star-Crossed Lovers.
  • Ungrateful Bitch: Chloé has to be rescued a lot, and never so much as says "thank you". Possibly the worst was an episode where Ladybug saves her from being cooked alive, and Chloé complains that she took so long, causing Ladybug to drop her with an "Oops!"
    • Lila is even worse, to absolutely nobody's surprise.
  • Wake Up, Go to School, Save the World: Often with elements of all three in the plot.
  • World-Healing Wave: Once per episode, after the villain is defeated, Ladybug is able to use her Lucky Charm to repair the damage that has been done, this power even able to reverse death.
  • World of Ham: Cat Noir is probably the worst, but everyone has a few spells of hamminess.


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