User:Rey cjf/sandbox

An animated character who has been stunned, usually by blunt head trauma, will display a "halo" of twittering birds or twinkling stars orbiting their head at or above eyebrow level. Sometimes it's just circles or whirls spinning around. This is a cartoon representation of"seeing stars". Upon recovery, the character will usually brush them away with an impatient or brusque sweep of their hands.

It is not uncommon for circling stars to sound like birds (cuckoo is very commonly added, although it's usually the cuckoo clock variation instead of the realistic version), even if it makes no sense. Similarly, this trope often occurs in live-action instances with just the sound effects of birds.

Occasionally, more idiosyncratic "satellites" will circle the character, usually related to either their personality or the task they were trying to accomplish when they were stunned. Unrelated to Circling Vultures, which foretell a rather worse fate than a mild concussion.

May also go with Non Sequitur, *Thud*. Compare Concussions Get You High. Catching Some Z's is a similar visual effect for characters who went night-night the usual way.

An example of Editorial Synaesthesia.