Spy Catsuit/Playing With

Basic Trope: A tight-fitting suit used for spying or any other activities.

• Straight: Layla has a suit that fits her body.
• Exaggerated: Layla can't even fit into the suit without some special procedure. (e.g. the suit is "painted" on, or put on in a manner similar to shrinkwrap.)
• Downplayed: Layla wears a surprisingly Form-Fitting Wardrobe for missions.
• Justified: Such a suit doesn't hinder agility.
  • Layla uses a water-based infiltration method necessitating a wetsuit of some sort.
  • The suit is explained as having some special feature (optical camouflage, power assist, etc.) that requires it to be so tight.
• Inverted: Layla suits up for her infiltration in extremely bulky gear designed to maximize her ability to carry weapons or equipment, keep her warm, and/or obscure her profile at a distance etc.
  • Layla's spy outfit is purposefully fitted a little loose, to ensure freedom of movement.
• Subverted: Layla puts on a catsuit, but then proceeds to don heavier, bulkier gear over it.
  • The catsuit is shown in the ready room, but Layla ignores it -- it's actually Larry's, who proceeds to don it.
• Double Subverted: As with the first subverted example, only Layla later has to abandon the heavier layers during the mission.
• Parodied: All female spies must take a class on how to properly don a catsuit in order to graduate spy academy.
  • Larry asks Layla how she can possibly fight in that thing. "Fight? Why would I need to do that?" Every guard they encounter takes one look at Layla, goes bug-eyed and faints.
• Deconstructed: The reason why Layla must wear a catsuit is because of a sexist rule in her spy agency that states all female agents must dress that way. It doesn't give a lot of protection. Eventually, most of the female spies, fed up with their high mortality rates, either retire in disgust or sue the agency. Layla doesn't do either, but because of her body issues, the catsuit becomes a constant source of angst.
• Reconstructed: Layla often seduces her male enemies into doing what she wants them to do, and so she wears a catsuit that shows off most of her body for this purpose. It's also a great source of morale for the male agents in bad times, and it doesn't slow her down as much as regular clothing does, too. For these three reasons, she never complains about having to wear a catsuit.
• Zig Zagged: Layla starts off her mission in bulky combat gear. But then she's forced to strip down to her catsuit in order to swim across the lake to the villain's mansion. But it's too conspicuous to sneak about the grounds in, so she knocks out a guard and steals his clothing. But then she's captured and reduced to her catsuit when escaping. But then she happens across the armory and decides "Space Marine" is really her style...
• Averted: Layla wears a moderate amount of gear.
  • Layla wears normal clothing for where she's going to be in order to blend in better. She keeps her gear in her pockets.
• Enforced: Layla is written as a fanservice character.
  • In the book, Layla wore fatigues and combat webbing on missions. But in The Movie, the costumers take one look at the actress they hired and break out the catsuit.
• Lampshaded: Layla bemoans having to wear a catsuit on her missions, or males involved make quips about her outfitting.
• Invoked: Layla uses seduction as one of her tactics, and wears a catsuit on missions for this purpose.
  • Layla's mission will involve many tight spaces, such as airducts or between walls. She dons a catsuit accordingly.
• Exploited: During her mission, Layla suddenly realizes the seduction potential of her otherwise-arbitrary catsuit and utilizes it later on to exploit a sleazy guard.
• Defied: Layla refuses to wear the standard-issue catsuit, perhaps citing that she can't fit all the gear she needs in it.
  • "No way, I am not going to show off my body with this catsuit, you pervs!"
• Discussed: Layla is talking with the armorer and wonders if she is due for a catsuit. He retorts that This Is Reality.
• Conversed: Layla is watching a spy drama in her spare time, and mentions how she wishes she could fill out her uniform as nicely as the actress does.
• Played for Laughs: Layla doesn't care about the catsuit, but is happy to trade quips with her squad members and/or enemies about it.
• Played for Drama: Because of her catsuit, the male members of Layla's team constantly ogle at her and treat her as a sex object, rather then a partner and/or a friend. During one mission, she forgoes the catsuit and starts wearing a more conservative outfit. She eventually criticizes the male members of her team and calls them "lonely basement-dwelling perverts". That's enough to make them leave her alone. But between the ogling and the outburst, working as a team becomes tense, at best.

---

Back to Spy Catsuit