/r/tvtropes

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In case you somehow don't know what TV Tropes is:

"What is this about? This wiki is a catalog of the tricks of the trade for writing fiction.

Tropes are devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members' minds and expectations. On the whole, tropes are not clichés. The word clichéd means "stereotyped and trite." In other words, dull and uninteresting. We are not looking for dull and uninteresting entries. We are here to recognize tropes and play with them, not to make fun of them.

The wiki is called "TV Tropes" because TV is where we started. Over the course of a few years, our scope has crept out to include other media. Tropes transcend television. They reflect life. Since a lot of art, especially the popular arts, does its best to reflect life, tropes are likely to show up everywhere."

/r/tvtropes

11,952 Subscribers

3

Wayback Machine doesn't work on the site

If you try to go to an old page it just redirects you to the current version. I heard someone hacked the site (wayback, not tvtropes) and that's why, but will it ever be fixed?

0 Comments
2024/11/01
02:45 UTC

8

Is this a trope? If yes, what's its name?

Montage of several short scenes from different moments and scenarios with a soundtrack growing and indicating that something is going to happen. Until the track stops or makes some prominent sound in sync with the montage, stopping at something, it could be the title, the character's current situation, the conclusion of that montage. What I'm most looking for is when it's related to television passing between different channels, as in the opening of this video:

https://youtu.be/08EZESVnOnQ?si=d5m6sPgGG7Ob3wMk

Thanks in advance!

2 Comments
2024/10/31
21:49 UTC

3

Lip-Synch shows are bs

Its just cosplay on stage with 101 distractions from their lips! how is anyone supposed to keep track of if theyre actually moving thier moiths in time with the words?! its like theyre cometely misding the point on purpose, and it just makes the whole thing gaudy.....

Just call it what it is: impersonations. Stop pretending it about lipcynching and male it a celebrity impersona competition.

1 Comment
2024/10/31
18:31 UTC

6

what is the name of the trope where major threats to humanity are constant?

i can cite dragon ball and one punch man as an example

4 Comments
2024/10/30
19:20 UTC

24

Looking through old forum posts can be a magical experience

2 Comments
2024/10/30
16:33 UTC

2

What do they call it when a high-tech high security vault conceals an old fashioned/antique safe?

In Skyscraper and Kingsman: The Golden Circle, they depict hidden chambers that conceal a very antique safe containing a drive and a bottle of whiskey respectively

0 Comments
2024/10/30
06:39 UTC

6

What’s this trope called?

A character is caught suddenly a discussion breaks out and said character leaves and or runs away whilst i's happening and someone tries to grab the attention and when they do they flatly point out they left and cue a shot of where the character that was caught was supposed to be standing.

2 Comments
2024/10/30
04:03 UTC

5

What’s this trope

What’s it called when someone (usually a villain or strong character) gets introduced and to show how strong they are the strong guy of the group rushes in and gets completely destroyed and everyone realizes that this guy is a threat

2 Comments
2024/10/30
00:39 UTC

9

What’s this trope

I don’t know if there’s a name for this.

What’s it called when the bad guy finally gets redeemed but suddenly some bad information gets revealed that’s makes him look bad to the people that he finally gained the trust of

1 Comment
2024/10/30
00:33 UTC

5

Is there a trope for this

For that instance where a character loses a lot only for a moment to occur where everyone, both the audience and/or the opponent, realizes that the character only loses so much because they are always fighting the MC

2 Comments
2024/10/29
23:46 UTC

9

Is there a name for that story element where a prince/king is possessed by some kind of demon/evil spirit?

Some examples include Nikolai Lantsov from King of Scars and Daindreth Fanduillion from Daindreth's Assassin. Both characters are royals possessed by some kind of demon or evil spirit and are seeking to free themselves. Is there a name for this trope?

2 Comments
2024/10/29
20:17 UTC

7

Should we get a trope in tv tropes for suit inflation, like in totally spies and inspector gadget?

In tv tropes, there is a trope for body inflation where its called a gag even though it doesn't make sense to call it that. I was wondering why there isn't a trope for suit inflation, like as a gadget or a memorable moment. It fulfills both requirements, and it has numerous sightings over the years. Hell, there was a sighting in the recent spongebob halloween special. So, can someone add in inflatable suits as a trope in the site?

4 Comments
2024/10/29
16:30 UTC

2

R-rated cut trope?

What is a trope on TVTropes that best describes an R-rated director’s cut of a movie?

1 Comment
2024/10/29
15:00 UTC

6

Green checkmark

If you go to the new edits page, you will find that some edits have a green checkmark next to them and some, such as my own, do not. Why is this?

1 Comment
2024/10/29
12:33 UTC

7

What is it called when a good guy works for a bad guy?

For example, a corrupt boss makes the main character go on a quest to erase all evidence of the boss being corrupt and evil, but the main character is faced with worse villains that oppose their goal. the boss is still evil but the main character is a good person. what is the name of this trope or does it even exist?

7 Comments
2024/10/29
08:59 UTC

4

Comedy shows that uses Pixelation trope as a censor effect for comedy purposes

Do you know any more? Some shows i know are Modern Family Broad City Arrested Development The office Parks and Rec Reno 911 Brooklyn 99 Veep (Only used 3 Times) Younger The Bold Type (Only used once) Chad and JT

2 Comments
2024/10/28
17:47 UTC

24

What is a trope you think should die?

I'll be honest, this is my first post and I'm not even sure if this trope has a name. But the one I think should die is the nerdy person not getting to be with their true love.

Examples: Hurley in Lost. A soon as he finds love, she's killed. Eli in Stargate Universe. Same thing. Spencer Reid in Criminal Minds. She's killed and it's done right in front of him.

31 Comments
2024/10/28
16:51 UTC

5

What is too much for a Heartwarming section?

Let’s say I was doing a Heartwarming page for a story what would be adding too much for it? Let’s say there were little moments of empathy, care, or concern; would that be an exception to adding it? Or adding two instances of one example (like a character going through Character Development and starts to show care for a character)?

1 Comment
2024/10/28
16:35 UTC

5

Would it be called a Crapsack World if a town that has been reduced to ruins has now been taken over or dominated by a street gangs, serial killers, fugitive death-row inmates and even some deranged maniacs/lunatics?

Imagine a town where only violence rules that's now been taken over by the criminals like these thugs, (knife-wielding) butchers (especially slashers) and/or savage ruthless miscreants/lunatics?

2 Comments
2024/10/28
15:34 UTC

8

What is the trope or reference when a character is running down a dark street, against a wall as a searchlight follows them?

I've seen this in games like Sly Cooper, and the anime Urusei Yatsura. Any ideas where this is from or what the trope is?

2 Comments
2024/10/28
04:10 UTC

2

Trope for when a character dies shortly after surviving a near-death narrative situation.

I want to know what the trope for (title) is called. To clarify, by 'narrative situation' I mean to differentiate it from a mere obstacle or hazard an adventurous character might encounter on the regular, like a battle, or unsafe bridge. What I mean mostly is an actual encounter with the Grim Reaper that the character barely manages to flee from. Like nearly losing to his arch-nemesis at the top of a volcano, but just on the verge of death he manages to strike a lucky hit due to the power of hope or friendship and he emerges victorious... Then he falls off when trying to get down and dies.

I can think of this happening in the game Sleeping Dogs:

!Where the protagonist's best friend is taken hostage by the enemy gang, you rush through the city to rescue him, his life-bar, diminishing by the second, serving as a timer. But you make it in time, and he is saved, there is much to explain, as he just found out a big secret about you, but still, he is safe, and that's what matters... Oh, btw, next mission starts by telling you he got killed by the enemy gang. It's also the last mission, I think. Hope you enjoyed it!!<

The 80s Shogun show also did this (and I assume the book and new show prob did it too):

!Mariko, the love interest, a main character in her own right (originally written to be the protagonist), and just, overall, the very heart and soul of Shogun (as it is through her that we understand a lot of what happens around our fish-out-of-water protagonist), is about to commit Seppuku due to some political ploy against her master. A very gut wrenching climax. But at the very last minute, just as she is about to thrust the blade in her stomach, she is spared such fate, for her master's nemesis decides to allow her to leave the castle, and thus no longer must do the Sudoku... But also he hired a bunch of ninjas to kill her on the very same night. Mariko is so upset at this, that she protests by allowing herself to be blown-up by the ninjas in front of the protagonist.!<

Last example I can think of is in the romance Beyond the Universe:

!Love interest is shown to be a reckless biker, then he gets hit by a car when driving reckless to his girl's concert, he survives it! ...Then later he dies while trying to grab a photo at a cliff... I can't remember if it's that shortly after, but I think, in a romance, it felt odd to try and danger lurk two in the story, specially since the first one had more build up to it, and the second one just felt stupid. !<

There are probably other tropes related, so list any like it.

3 Comments
2024/10/27
17:12 UTC

5

Obnoxious Way to Introduce a Villain

Character A is introduced to an established crew and they're... damn near a mary sue. Nice, empathetic, good at everything, etc..

Character B - usually the token villain teammate equivalent - dislikes/distrusts them immediately.

Everyone in the established group can't get B's issues with A, and start saying it's cause they're jealous or just... "being a jerk".

This eventually leads to B catching A doing/being sketchy and confronting A over it. Queue A crying and asking what they did wrong from B to be so mean to them, and B being kicked out of/ ostracized by the group.

To the surprise of no one, A actually was trying to do something evil, and has used the opportunity to disable/capture the heroes. There msy or may not be a rant about how annoying the attention was or how, if they'd only listened to B, they wouldn't be in this mess, and how they're bad friends.

Then B swoops in to save the day and there's the most half-assed apology from everyone, except for B whose lesson of the week is "if i wasn't such an asshole all the time, you guys would've listened to me. So I'm kind of at fault, too." Which is bullshit, because they've still been around for a while and that should've lent credence to their warnings.

2 Comments
2024/10/27
15:54 UTC

5

"this job is all i have left" trope?

whats the trope where theres like a police officer whos personal life is chaotic like his family got murdered and so he starts going renegade at work and then his boss starts reprimanding/punishing him and the cop goes "THIS JOB IS ALL I HAVE LEFT"

3 Comments
2024/10/27
06:24 UTC

3

Is there a Super-Trope for No Bad Publicity, Weirdness Coupon, Tyson Zone, Controversy-Proof &c?

It seems to be that there are at least four tropes that all share similarities. They all seem to deal with a character being able to shrug off or even benefit from normally bad-for-reputation events being witnessed. Is there a Super-Trope for that?

1 Comment
2024/10/27
04:31 UTC

4

New Trope Ideas: "Contrary Sue" and "Temporary Sue"

Contrary Sue: when a character who has become a seemingly unstoppable Mary Sue, only to later get the utter shit knocked out of them by someone even better. Can be a result of complacency. (i.e. a character who achieved a godlike power, and then quit training because they didn't think they'd need to train anymore.)

Temporary Sue: a character who became a Mary Sue but only remained such for a limited time. Can be through various means. (i.e. a godlike transformation, the power of friendship, the power of love, power creep, or just pure rage.) Can overlap with Contrary Sue if the character still gets their shit wrecked.

What do you guys think of these two new spins? Do these seem legit?

15 Comments
2024/10/27
00:07 UTC

2

Quick question

Do you prefer it when a Tv show starts with the origins of our main character/main characters?

Or do you prefer it when their origins are revealed later on, when the story is building up to something, like the final battle?

3 Comments
2024/10/26
18:21 UTC

11

The Complete Monster and Magnificent Bastard threads get locked (again!)

6 Comments
2024/10/26
17:32 UTC

3

What's this trope?

Redeemed Villain/Antaginist impulsively saves people from getting hurt from the Big Bad by knokcing them out. Everyone is shocked by this included the Redeemed Villain/Antagonist.

2 Comments
2024/10/26
14:14 UTC

4

Name my an example in a media of media that does the growling gut trope

1 Comment
2024/10/26
08:59 UTC

2

do any of the tropes in this video have their own pages/count as real tropes?

0 Comments
2024/10/26
03:38 UTC

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