History HonestTrailers / TropesSToZ

* UnexplainedAccent: Mocked in ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'':
-->'''Narrator:''' All of these African animals sound [[IAmVeryBritish British]] ([[Creator/RowanAtkinson Zazu]]), [[JewishMother Jewish mom]] ([[Creator/NathanLane Timon]]), [[JiveTurkey Gangsta]] ([[Creator/WhoopiGoldberg Shenzi]]) and CNN ([[Creator/JamesEarlJones Mufasa]]).

** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/WhatIf'' notes that the series seems to consider [[Film/BlackPanther2018 Killmonger]] to be inherently evil and irredeemable, despite his sympathetic backstory and motivations, while [[DoubleStandard at the same time]] having a redeemed version of Thanos, who committed much greater crimes.

** The Starring part of the Honest Trailer for ''Film/MastersOfTheUniverse'' points out how, during the 80's, actor James Tolkan always plays authority figures which the protagonists get in trouble with, such as in ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' and ''Film/TopGun''.

** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'' and ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe2'' describes them as "the most okay" animated movies where [[HeelFaceTurn villains become good guys]], ranking it above ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' and below ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph''.

** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'' and ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe2'' points out how the Minions progressively have become the focus of the franchise; going from just getting some funny moments in the first film, to having a whole B-plot in the sequel, to getting [[WesternAnimation/{{Minions}} their own spinoff movie]], to inspiring an endless parade of memes that really have nothing to do with them.

** Similar to ''The Mummy'' above, the ''Film/NightmareAlley'' segment of the Honest Trailer for the 2021 [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] remarks on how Creator/BradleyCooper's character is called "boy" and meant to be a young man even though Cooper was in his 50s when the movie was made.

* SimilarlyNamedWorks: [[invoked]] The Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheRoom'' urges viewers not to confuse it with ''Literature/{{Room}}''. "[[{{Understatement}} Veeery different]]".

** In ''Film/{{Skyfall}}'', "when Bond is abruptly killed, it'll only take the length of one Music/{{Adele}} song before he anticlimatically pops up in the most secluded corner of the globe. That conveniently has Creator/{{CNN}} in English."

-->'''Narrator:''' All of these African animals sound [[IAmVeryBritish British]] ([[Creator/RowanAtkinson Zazu]]), [[JewishMother Jewish mom]] ([[Creator/NathanLane Timon]]), [[JiveTurkey Gangsta]] ([[Creator/WhoopiGoldberg Shenzi]]) and Creator/{{CNN}} ([[Creator/JamesEarlJones Mufasa]]).

''[a montage of disturbing or terrifying scenes from ''Film/ReturnToOz'', ''Film/TheBlackHole'' and ''Film/PetesDragon'']''

** Their ultimate assessment of ''Film/{{Glass}}''? "Well... that happened."

* UnintentionalUncannyValley: [[InUniverse The reaction]], in the trailer for ''Film/Elvis2022, to Colonel Tom Parker's make-up ("[[JerkAss a monster]] who should be banished to the uncanny valley he crawled out of").

** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheGrayMan2022'' points out how often Creator/RyanReynolds get cast as [[TheStoic cool, silent characters]], including [[Film/{{Drive}} cool, silent driver]], [[Film/FirstMan cool, silent astronaut]] and [[Film/BladeRunner2049 cool, silent future detective]].

* TokyoIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse: The first thing pointed out in ''Anime/TokyoGhoul''.

** After the Honest Trailer for ''Film/LaLaLand'' turns into an Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Moonlight}}'', the narrator realizes that all they have left of the video is a song from the former, resulting in the bittersweet, emotional plot of ''Moonlight'' being retold to the chipper, upbeat tune of ''La La Land'''s "Another Day of Sun".

* SurpriseCreepy: About ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan'':
-->'''Narrator:''' Revisit the animated classic that will make you say: "This is way creepier than I remember it..."

** The Honest Trailer for ''VideoGame/UntilDawn'' describes it as "cramming every genre trope it can fit" that belongs to the horror genre, like [[AbandonedMine abandoned]] [[AbandonedHospital locations]], [[LetsSplitUpGang characters splitting up to cover more ground]], and characters [[spoiler:[[DeathBySex being killed when trying to have sex]]]].

** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'' states that it's not as bad as its reputation would suggest, calling it an "above-average kids movie", but it also states that there isn't really much to say about it, so they just jump to ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'', which they consider a legitimately bad movie.

* TomHanksSyndrome: [[invoked]] The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Nope}}'' opens by naming its writer/director, Creator/JordanPeele, as one of the few major old-school directors active today, and references his past career in comedy:
-->'''Narrator:''' In an entertainment landscape dominated by corporate IP, three filmmakers are fighting to keep cinema alive: [[Creator/StevenSpielberg Spielberg]], [[Creator/QuentinTarantino Tarantino]] and [[Creator/ChristopherNolan Nolan]]. But now, with just his third film, one more name joins that list: [[Series/KeyAndPeele L'Carpetron Dookmarriot]].

[[/folder]]

* SpiritualAdaptation: [[invoked]] Brought up in the ''Film/FantasticFour2005'' trailer:

** ''Film/{{Friday}}'' is described as launching Chris Tucker into ''Film/RushHour'' stardom... and post-''Rush Hour'' obscurity.

* YourVampiresSuck: The Honest Trailer for the ''Film/BladeTrilogy'' calls the vampires from these movies the most pathetic vampires since ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'', who burst into flames at the slightest touch of silver, garlic or sunlight, practice an ancient [[MookChivalry one-at-a-time fighting style]], only have one master plan, can't really speak through their fangs, and name everything by slapping the word 'Vampire' in front of a noun.

** Zigzagged with ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'', the Honest Trailer of which describes it as a lesser movie than [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy the first one]], but still describes it as the best second movie of all the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse movies, except for ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier''.

** Subverted with ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'':

--->'''Narrator:''' Prepare for a movie based on a Creator/{{Marvel|Comics}} comic you had no idea existed, that Disney removed all the Marvel branding for, and didn't tie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, despite the fact that it has [[Comicbook/TheAvengers a team of quippy heroes]] going up against [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld a forgettable villain]] [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy with a vague plan]] in [[Film/TheAvengers2012 a final battle with a sky-based doomsday device]] [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron made by disposable robots]], and [[TheStinger an after-credits scene]] with Creator/StanLee. Come on, this is the [[BuffySpeak Marvel-iest non-Marvel movie]] ever!

* TrollingCreator: [[invoked]] The Honest Trailer for ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' describes Marvel as messing with their loyal audience with the movie, such as by getting Creator/VinDiesel to appear in movie, but only having him say one line,[[note]]Which he actually recorded several times in different tones in different languages[[/note]] getting major actors such as Creator/GlennClose and Creator/JohnCReilly into the cast, but having them play minor roles, and having [[spoiler:[[ComicBook/HowardTheDuck the lead character]] of [[Film/HowardTheDuck their worst film ever]] appear in the post-credit sequence instead of a hint of the next ''Avengers'' movie]].

** In ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', Creator/ChrisPratt is credited as "Marvel Chris #3" (after Creator/ChrisHemsworth and Creator/ChrisEvans).

* TakeThat: Pretty much the whole point of the majority of the trailers.
** From ''Series/TheWalkingDead'' trailer...
--->'''Narrator:''' From the network that brought you ''Series/BreakingBad'', a show you couldn't stop watching, comes a show so inconsistent you have to keep talking yourself into watching...
** From ''Film/ThreeHundred'':
--->'''Narrator:''' From [[Creator/FrankMiller the guy who]] [[ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns made Batman comics cool again]], and [[Creator/ZackSnyder the guy who'll]] [[Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice probably make Batman movies suck again]].
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/PacificRim'', when the narrator mentions a LongList of works from whom the film draws its influences, he mentions [[Film/RealSteel "that stupid Hugh Jackman robot boxing movie."]]
** All the comment readings at the end of the ''WesternAnimation/TheNightmareBeforeChristmas''[='=] Honest Trailer were all Take Thats towards people complaing about the disabled comments section of the previous week's ''Film/Ghostbusters2016'' Honest Trailer.
** Both ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' and ''Film/{{Suicide Squad|2016}}'' have an "extended cut" that can be only viewed on the official Screen Junkies website. Given that both films have had important scenes that were cut to bring the rating and runtime down, only for a complete version to be released on DVD, it's not hard to see it as a dig toward Warner Bros.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Logan}}'' has the Narrator complaining how Logan now suffers from "Creator/MelGibson facial hair" as a sign of advancing age. Additionally, when the Narrator's attempt at getting Deadpool's aid in mocking the film fails, the Merc with a Mouth vows how "If [[Creator/HughJackman Jackman]] [[invoked]][[AwardSnub doesn't get an Oscar nom]], I'm setting every [=VHS=] copy of ''Film/{{Crash}}'' on fire!"
** During the "Starring" portion of the trailer for ''Film/ThorRagnarok'', a shot of [[LandfillBeyondTheStars Sakaar]] is shown, which they call "The current state of the ''Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse''".
** Today's fan culture is mocked mercilessly on the show:
*** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' has this prophetic description of [[BigBad Syndrome]]:
--->'''Narrator''': [Syndrome] is a nerd who loves something so much, that when it didn't live up to his expectations, he declared war on it.
*** The honest trailer for ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' takes multiple jabs at modern day fandoms, which the movie perfectly portrayed/foreshadowed according to the narrator. These include fans taking a work of fiction way too serious, as if it were real, and obsessions with pointless details.
*** The "Starring" portion of ''Film/JingleAllTheWay'' trailer includes a credit for "Modern Fandom," which is accompanied by a shot of kids beating up Booster.
*** The trailer for ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' claims the movie to be the first time in internet history that an angry mob of nerds actually made something better (referring to how Sonic's design was changed after the original version was universally panned).
** The Narrator drily describes ''Film/BirdBox'' as "the second most-talked about suicide forest video of 2018", while showing a screenshot of a news article about Creator/{{Logan Paul}}'s infamous "suicide forest" video.
** In their video on the 2019 Oscars, they waste no time in mocking how the Oscars got caught up in ''three'' different controversies over the course of 2018, such as the proposed and subsequently dropped "Best Popular Film Category" award, Creator/KevinHart leaving as the host after controversial Tweets were unearthed, and attempting to cut numerous awards from the broadcast only to swiftly put them back in after backlash. TheStinger also seems to make fun of the Oscars ''entirely'', not only listing other particularly embarrassing incidents, but stating that the 2019 Oscars are shaping up to be the worst Oscars [[StealthInsult since they were first televised]].
** Epic Voice Guy drops an utterly vicious one (albeit not directed at another movie) at both UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump and the United States' infamous ban on refugees from several Muslim-majority countries by describing the ''Film/MenInBlack'' movies as "set in an alternate reality where the United States accepts refugees."
** The 2017 Oscars video also takes a jab at Trump, though more for his arrogant attitude than for any of his policies. They also criticize Hollywood celebrities for turning the ceremonies into their own political soapbox.
** [[invoked]] While they ultimately deem ''Film/CaptainMarvel2019'' to be [[SoOkayItsAverage "just fine,"]] they also make sure to mock the misogynistic HateDumb around the film that claimed its success would lead to the "downfall" of male-led superhero films.
--->'''Narrator:''' [[SarcasmMode Look out, boys! At this rate, lady heroes will take over at the theater!]] ''(a chart then appears, showing how there's been 61 male-led superhero films since Film/Batman1989, while in comparison there's only been '''6''' female-led superhero films)'' ...Never!
*** Relatedly, the same Honest Trailer notes that while ''Captain Marvel'' certainly has its issues, it's still [[Film/CitizenKane "Citizen F*cking Kane"]] compared to every female-led superhero film [[OverlyNarrowSuperlative not named]] ''Film/{{Wonder Woman|2017}}''. The video then backs up this statement by showing various unflattering clips of ''Film/{{Catwoman|2004}}'', ''Film/{{Elektra}}'', ''Film/TankGirl'', and ''Film/BarbWire''.
** [[invoked]] While lamenting the perceived SeasonalRot in Seasons 6-8 of ''Series/GameOfThrones'', they wonder if it was due to the series' showrunners (David Benioff and [=D.B.=] Weiss) either [[CreatorsApathy getting bored]] or just [[CreatorBreakdown burned out from having worked on the show for so long]], before snarking that it was [[CreatorBacklash actually because of them feeling bitter over]] "no-one liking their slavery idea"[[note]]Referring to the massive controversy around and criticism raised against Benioff and Weiss' now cancelled ''Confederate'' series for Creator/{{HBO}}[[/note]].
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', the part of the Time Heist involving Thor and Rocket Raccoon going back in time to take the Aether/Reality Stone is described as "a daring raid to justify the existence of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld''." Furthermore, the Narrator notes how culture has stayed stagnant five years after the Snap by musing how "baseball is still unpopular."
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Cats}}'', Epic Voice Guy suggests that director Tom Hooper's Oscar win for ''Film/TheKingsSpeech'' was the result of a [[DealWithTheDevil Faustian pact]] that required the former's creation.
** The animated Disney ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' Honest Trailer suggests that Belle is an arrogant woman who thinks all the townspeople are inferior to her, calling her "the first millennial."
** The trailer for ''WesternAnimation/AGoofyMovie'' takes a jab at the ''Film/ArtemisFowl'' film, stating that people most likely will only survive the first 10 minutes.
** Whenever ''{{VideoGame/Shenmue}}'' is bought up in Honest Game Trailers, it's always compared negatively to the ''{{VideoGame/Yakuza}}'' series, culminating in the Honest Game Trailer for ''Yakuza'' calling the series "''Shenmue'', but good."
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' describes the [[BigBad Brain Bug]] as "every fascist's secret fear: a vagina that can think for itself".
** More than one in the Honest Trailer for ''Series/TheBoys2019'':
*** Because the series is produced by Creator/AmazonStudios, the show's world is described as [[CrapsackWorld "the most brutal, harsh, unforgiving world"]] since Amazon's warehouses, which are notorious for their terrible working conditions.
*** The show is described as the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse, if Creator/ZackSnyder didn't have any executive input holding back his darkest creative intentions.
*** Vought is described as having "the outward-facing cheerful polish of Creator/{{Disney}}, but the internal money-hungry killer instinct of... also Disney".
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' doesn't stop at just saying that Creator/JJAbrams is bad with endings ([[ZigZaggingTrope albeit with]] ConfusingMultipleNegatives); it specifically lists ''Series/{{Lost}}'', ''Film/Super8'' and ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'' as examples.
** The Honest Trailer for the Snyder Cut of ''Film/JusticeLeague''[[note]]not to be confused with the Honest Trailer for ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague''[[/note]] mocks the fans demanding the cut for obsessively pursuing their goal, saying that the cut, if released, will prove that "you can gang-tweet your dreams into existence." It also makes fun of them for having unrealistic expectations for how good it will be by making exaggerated claims about it being the greatest film ever, while implying that Snyder's original vision may not have been as good as they thought. It ends by asking for the Snyder Cut so they can move on to asking for the "anyone else cut of ''Series/GameOfThrones'' Season 8."
** From the Honest Trailer for 2020:
*** The video takes a jab at people venting their rage about the pandemic, and the problems it brings, on Website/{{Twitter}}, by reminding everybody that humanity has faced ''far'' worse years with wars and pandemics in the past; the only significant difference is we now have Twitter to complain about it.
*** The video also says Elon Musk naming his child [=X Æ A-12=] and Mike Bloomberg running for President are some of the many signs of the apocalypse as foretold in the Book of Revelations.
** From the Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Tenet}}'':
*** The Narrator points out that Christopher Nolan's films have three recurring problems -- 1) [[KudzuPlot Overbaked plots]], 2) [[FlatCharacter Underdeveloped characters]] and 3) All [[WhiteMaleLead white leads]]. He then notes that the black Protagonist addresses ''[[DamnedByFaintPraise one]]'' of those problems.
*** During the "Starring" list, the Narrator says, "Let's just put 'The Protagonist' here for now, then come up with something better later." The fact that the Narrator doesn't even ''try'' to come up with a punny nickname for The Protagonist says a lot about how unimaginative his name is.
*** The "Starring" list ends with a line of dialogue from the film that the Narrator says sums up "how Nolan writes a character."
---->"No small talk. Nothing that might reveal who we are or what we do."
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/WonderWoman1984'' says that its villain, Maxwell Lord, a "blonde-haired, orange-tanned con man", can't be [[{{Trumplica}} a stand-in for]] UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump... [[BaitAndSwitchComparison because Lord]] [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes actually loves his son]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Series/CobraKai'' briefly brings up and dismisses both ''Film/TheNextKarateKid'' and ''Film/TheKarateKid2010'', and calls out the latter for not even featuring Karate but Kung Fu.
** [[invoked]] The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'' has the Narrator conclude that, while based on a declining show and overall being [[SoOkayItsAverage a good but not great movie]], it is still lightyears ahead from any comedy currently on Creator/DisneyPlus.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' basically says that the film [[DamnedByFaintPraise is only good in comparison]] to Creator/JossWhedon's cut. For context: at the time the video was made, Whedon was facing a lot of backlash after accusations of abusive and toxic behavior during the making of [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 his version of the movie]] as well as ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''.
--->"If you want to look great by comparison, just stand next to Joss Whedon."
** In the Honest Trailer for the [=DC=] Extended Universe, they argue that most of the franchise's issues are the result of the role that, for the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse is occupied by Creator/KevinFeige, is occupied for [=DC=] by Steven Mnuchin, UsefulNotes/{{Donald Trump}}'s former Treasury Secretary.
--->'''Epic Voice Guy:''' Sheesh, no ''wonder'' [Warner Bros executives] hated ComicBook/{{Cyborg}}.
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/{{Luca}}'' has the narrator admit that the movie is quite an CreatorsOddball [[invoked]] for ''Creator/{{Pixar}}'', being quite breezy and unfocussed, but nevertheless still better than [[WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragonTheHiddenWorld the]] [[WesternAnimation/{{Abominable}} last]] [[WesternAnimation/TrollsWorldTour five]] [[WesternAnimation/TheCroodsANewAge movies]] [[WesternAnimation/SpiritUntamed from]] Creator/DreamWorksAnimation.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Series/TedLasso'' kicks off with a swipe at other Creator/AppleTVPlus originals that, unlike ''Ted Lasso'', were hyped up by the streaming service but failed to become significant hits, and Apple itself:
--->'''Epic Voice Guy:''' You slept through ''Series/TheMorningShow'', you didn't see ''Series/{{See}}'', and you haven't bothered to start your ''Series/MythicQuest'' ([[PetTheDog I hear it's good, though]]), but since your iPhone crapped out on you, and every new one comes with a free year of Apple TV+, you might as well check out... ''Ted Lasso''.
** [[invoked]] The ''Series/{{Loki|2021}}'' Honest Trailer begins with the words "Now that Marvel's killed off its only good villains", illustrated by the deaths of [[Film/BlackPanther2018 Killmonger]], [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar (the original) Loki]], [[Film/AvengersEndgame Thanos]]... [[RonTheDeathEater and]] [[Characters/MCUIronMan Tony Stark]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/HalloweenKills'' attributes its success at the cinematic box office to people being more willing to [[UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic risk catching COVID]] than sign up for Creator/{{Peacock}}, which released it for streaming at the same time.
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/WhatIf2021'' suggests that the show is only worth watching because there's nothing else new [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]]-related to watch until ''Film/{{Eternals}}'' comes out:
--->'''Narrator:''' ''[over a shot of the ''Eternals'' poster, sounding completely uninterested]'' Wow, look at them stand there. [[SarcasmMode Can't wait.]]
** Overlapping with SelfDeprecation, [[spoiler:Creator/{{Roger L Jackson}} as Ghostface]] has the following argument with Epic Voice Guy during the Honest Trailer for ''Film/Scream2022'' that takes swipes at both the ''Scream'' franchise itself and ''Honest Trailer's'' sister series ''WebVideo/CinemaSins'':
--->'''[[spoiler:Ghostface]]:''' Not ''old'' Film/{{Scream|1996}}, ''new'' Film/{{Scream|2022}}!\\
'''Epic Voice Guy:''' Oh, you mean [[FanNickname 5cream]].\\
'''[[spoiler:Ghostface]]:''' ''(unimpressed)'' ...Is ''that'' what passes for a "joke" around here?\\
'''Epic Voice Guy:''' We usually save all the dumb puns for the end.\\
'''[[spoiler:Ghostface]]:''' ''Still? (scoffs in disgust)'' At least ''Cinema Sins'' had the decency to call it quits!\\
'''Epic Voice Guy:''' ''(awkwardly)'' [[invoked]] [[SeasonalRot ...Yeah, they're still going on]] ''too''...\\
'''[[spoiler:Ghostface]]:''' ''([[NotSoStoic genuinely surprised]]) What?!'' C'mon!\\
'''Epic Voice Guy:''' ''(exasperated)'' [[HypocrisyNod Look, you've had five movies and three seasons]] to deconstruct a genre that wasn't even complex to begin with, ok?! So don't lecture ''us'' about hanging around too long!

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: [[invoked]]
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/XMenOriginsWolverine'' has this to say about Gambit.
--->'''Narrator''': Get excited when they introduce fan-favorite Gambit! Then get immediately disappointed when you realize he's only in the film for 5 minutes!
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/IronMan3'' is pretty positive about the [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]]'s version of the Mandarin, describing it as a good, timely updated version of the character. That is, until [[spoiler:that guy turns out to have been a goofy actor named Trevor Slattery and the real villain, Aldrich Killian, was less cool]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' considers the villains to be this; Oberhauser/[[spoiler:Blofeld]] for being wasted on a [[TheUntwist reveal viewers either saw coming a mile away]] or were too young to get, and [[Wrestling/{{Batista}} Dave Bautista]] and Creator/AndrewScott's characters for not being used enough.
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' is surprised that the bartender from ''VideoGame/{{Tapper}}'' and VideoGame/QBert get significant screentime even though the makers obviously bought the rights to Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog, but only gave him a few brief appearances.
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', both narrators agree that Creator/GwendolineChristie was pretty wasted as Captain Phasma since she only had 91 seconds of screentime.
** In the Honest Trailer for the ''Film/MortalKombatTheMovie'' and ''Film/MortalKombatAnnihilation'', the narrator is disappointed that Johnny Cage is [[SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome suddenly killed off in the second movie]] because he was the only one with any charisma.
** The non-WebVideo/CinemaSins Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'' notes how one of the ways it misprioritized its screentime was to include ComicBook/BlackCat and Alistair Smythe, a.k.a. Ultimate Spider-Slayer, and relegate them to [[TheCameo cameos]] while devoting too much time to Aunt May's job as a nurse.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheMummy2017'' credits Colonel Gideon Foster as "A Waste of a Perfectly Good Creator/CourtneyBVance''.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}}'' considers Batman to be this, especially considering the fact he was one of the highlights in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice''.
--->'''Narrator:''' He may not be that tough, or that smart, or that careful with his secret identity, but... ''[{{beat}}]'' Wait, there's no "but"? That's a shame. He was the best part of the last one.
** Also in the Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}}'', the nicest thing they have to say about Cyborg is that he's "there", referring to how little the character was used in the movie.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' suggests that Thanos was underused in the entries in [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse the franchise]] post-''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'', where he was seen deciding to get the Infinity Stones himself in TheStinger, but then wasn't ever seen in person until ''Infinity War'' despite the fact that [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2 two of the]] [[Film/ThorRagnarok previous movies]] were set in space.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Solo}}'' starts describing Val (played by Creator/ThandieNewton) as one of the coolest new ''Franchise/StarWars'' characters in years - and then stops when [[spoiler:she is killed off early in the movie]].
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/CaptainMarvel2019'', the narrator doesn't like that [[spoiler:the Skrulls turn out to be good guys since it means their potential as good future villains is lost and that Marvel won't be able to adapt ''ComicBook/SecretInvasion'']].[[note]] Ironically, in 2020, Disney made an [[https://tvline.com/2020/12/10/secret-invasion-samuel-l-jackson-marvel-disney-plus-series/ announcement]] that they were adapting Secret Invasion into a Creator/DisneyPlus [[Series/SecretInvasion2023 series]] [[/note]]
** A few instances in the Honest Trailer for ''Film/AvengersEndgame'':
*** The narrator laments that [[Characters/MCUBlackWidow Black Widow]] finally getting a primary storyline in one of the MCU movies just amounts to her [[spoiler:sacrificing herself to motivate the other Avengers, almost all of whom were male at the time in the story]].
*** The death of the original Thanos early in the movie is described as this because of his status as one of the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse's most interesting villains and the fact that he's replaced by his less interesting older version.
*** The narrator is also disappointed that the all-female Avenger teamup during the final battle is only used as a group in a single shot and there doesn't seem to be any plans to use the team in future projects:
---->'''Narrator:''' Okay, maybe they can all pose again in the background of [[Series/Loki2021 the Loki show]]?
** In the credits for ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'', the Narrator challenges the writers to finally let Ned Leeds become the Hobgoblin.
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', the Narrator complains that the much-hyped Knights of Ren [[spoiler:do nothing of importance in the entire movie and are easily defeated by Kylo]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' points out how wasteful it is to take a character whose defining trait is his superspeed and have him spend the movie on a 20-hour car road trip:
--->'''Sonic:''' [[{{Catchphrase}} Gotta go fast!]]\\
'''Narrator:''' Gotta go fffff... [[invoked]][[{{Padding}} for 90 minutes, or we don't have a movie]]!
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/Mulan2020'' laments that Xian Liang, a.k.a. the "awesome bird lady", with her nuanced perspective on power and womanhood, [[spoiler:gets killed off sacrificing herself to save Mulan]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/BlackWidow2021'' suggests that [[Characters/MCUBlackWidow the title character]] has spent most of her time in the many movies of [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse the franchise]] just supporting other characters with a bigger role in the story, and that even her own movie didn't give her much of importance to do for her own character development:
--->'''Narrator:''' She [[Film/IronMan2 helped Tony get his mojo back]], [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron helped Bruce reconnect with his humanity]], [[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar helped Cap find his true purpose]], and [[Film/AvengersEndgame helped Hawkeye uhhh... keep being Hawkeye]]. But now, Natasha finally gets to tell her own story... [[BaitAndSwitch about the time she helped her own replacement join the MCU]].\\
''[...]''\\
'''Narrator:''' ...then strap in for a movie that's good at being pretty much everything... ''except'' a Black Widow solo film.
** The Starring part of the Honest Trailer for ''Film/GIJoeRetaliation'' and ''Film/GIJoeTheRiseOfCobra'' complains that one of the movies had Creator/BrendanFraser in a role, but only used him in a single scene.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Series/IronFist2017'' thinks that its portrayal of the Hand is more boring than you'd expect "a ruthless global ninja mystic mafia" to be.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/HalloweenKills'' laments how neither Laurie, Allyson nor Karen really get to shine and take on Michael Myers, and the movie instead focuses on new, minor characters and older versions of minor characters from [[Film/Halloween1978 the first movie]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/Morbius2022'' is disappointed that Creator/JaredHarris' character [[spoiler:is killed off]] because his good acting brought some dignity to the movie.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder'' laments on how wasted the villain, Gorr the God Butcher, was:
--->'''Narrator:''' Thrill at whatever different, more interesting movie Creator/ChristianBale is in, as he brings a menace to Gorr, the God Butcher, which comes from spending four hours in makeup while your co-stars waltz on the set in their [=PJs=]. He's on a quest to kill the gods themselves, and he'll kill exactly one of them on camera in self-defense, placing him in the Marvel Hall of Fame of "great actors wasted in disposable villain roles"[[note]]Creator/MadsMikkelsen as Kaecilius in ''Film/DoctorStrange2016'', Creator/RebeccaHall as Dr. Maya Hansen in ''Film/IronMan3'', Creator/WaltonGoggins as Sonny Burch in Film/AntManAndTheWasp and Creator/JudeLaw as Yon-Rogg in ''Film/CaptainMarvel2019''[[/note]] and "villains who were right, but Marvel heroes only fight to protect the status quo".[[note]]Creator/CateBlanchett as Hela in ''Film/ThorRagnarok'', Creator/MichaelKeaton as Vulture in ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'', Creator/MichaelBJordan as Killmonger in ''Film/BlackPanther2018'' and Creator/HannahJohnKamen as Ghost in ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp''[[/note]]
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Black Adam|2022}}'' expresses bafflement that nobody in the movie ever mentions Shazam even though [[Film/Shazam2019 a movie about him exists]], he and Black Adam are closely connected and the wizard from that movie makes a cameo.
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: [[invoked]]
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/WorldWarZ'' knocks it because of how little of the novel's epic and colorful story was actually used in the film.
--->'''Narrator:''' Man, what a waste of good source material.
** The Honest Game Trailer for the ''VideoGame/MadMax2015'' video game notes that since it was inspired by ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad'', it could have been made into a pretty awesome car combat game or a straightforward car racing game, but was instead made into a dull open world third person fighting game filled with countless tedious side objectives.
** About ''Film/{{Spectre}}'''s slow pace and bleak plot:
--->'''Narrator:''' Guys, how do you make James Bond vs. [[NebulousCriminalConspiracy the Illuminati]] boring?
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Pixels}}'' points out how a movie with its great premise that's directed by Creator/ChrisColumbus and has Creator/PeterDinklage on its cast could have turned out way better if someone other than Creator/AdamSandler had been [[Creator/HappyMadisonProductions calling the shots]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Series/TheWalkingDead'' Season 4-6 complains how some plot lines from the later seasons were squandered; most notably spending seven episodes building up to the group [[spoiler:getting captured by cannibals]] and then quickly having the group [[spoiler:blow up their fortress]] and move on.
--->'''Narrator:''' You fast-forwarded through [[spoiler:the cannibals]]? ''Why?!'' To get back to [[invoked]][[{{Padding}} more woods-walking]]? Stay with [[spoiler:the cannibals]]! You could have cleared that place out and [[spoiler:made a barbecue pit]], or something.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' points out how much the movie suffered because of all the new characters and plot arcs that were forced into one movie and how much it tried to accomplish, like set up a movie franchise to rival the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse and create a sequel to ''Film/ManOfSteel'' as well as a standalone Batman story.
--->'''Narrator:''' Whose idea was it to cram all this into ''one'' movie? They just burnt through, like, six movies worth of good material!
** In the ''Film/IndependenceDayResurgence'' Honest Trailer, the narrator thinks the movie's setups for future sequels, prequels and spinoffs were better than the actual movie:
--->'''Umbutu:''' They hunted us. We had to learn how to hunt ''them''.\\
'''Narrator:''' Aww! I want to see ''that one''!
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretLifeOfPets'' considers the fun premise and [[BigApplesauce New York setting]] wasted on the weak story material.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/PowerRangers2017'' notes how the high school drama is pretty compelling, despite being buried heavily under the usual cheesy ''Power Rangers'' antics.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Bright}}'' has the narrator go off on an increasingly frustrated rant about how little the movie made use of its premise of a modern day cop drama set in a world where fantasy creatures have existed for thousands of years, especially how outside of fantasy creatures living among the population, [[InSpiteOfANail little is different from the actual world]]:
--->'''Narrator:''' ''[after Creator/WillSmith's character makes a reference to ''WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}}'']'' ''How does ''Shrek'' still exist?'' Is it a documentary? There's dragons flying around, but our buildings never changed? And what's this ''centaur cop'' doing? [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight They never even mention that]]! You can't just add the word "magic" and claim it's any different from a normal cop movie!
** The Honest Trailer for the first three ''Film/ThePurge'' movies points out how the decent concept of a society that has a night when all crimes are legal keeps getting underused in the movies.
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/ReadyPlayerOne2018'', the narrator expresses his disappointment at how all the characters picked avatars that are basically just exaggerated versions of themselves, while they could have gone for much more interesting choices.
** In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheConjuring'' films, they mention [[https://www.avclub.com/warner-bros-settles-crazy-conjuring-lawsuit-in-very-bo-1821277340 the rather bizarre lawsuit]] filed against Creator/WarnerBros over the movies that almost forced them to prove that ghosts were real and the narrator seems to wish we got a movie about that instead.
--->'''Narrator:''' Aw man, [[TakeThat that sounds way more fun than]] ''Film/{{Annabelle}}''.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Solo}}'' points out how it fails to really give insight into [[CynicismCatalyst what made the title character into the selfish rogue]] he was when he was introduced in the original trilogy:
--->'''Narrator:''' ...[the movie] gave fans a sense of how Han became the character we all know and love: by going through the events of ''Solo'', then at some point off-camera before ''Film/ANewHope'', becoming the character we all know and love. So, what was the point of this movie, again?
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/TheMeg'' bemoans how the movie, which was based on [[Literature/{{Meg}} a series of novels]], doesn't fully utilize the awesome ridiculousness of the source material and instead mostly has the titular shark bump into boats:
--->'''Narrator:''' Aw, come one! You have five ''Meg'' books to pull from. And the first one starts off with a Meg [[CoolVersusAwesome fighting a T-Rex]], then ends with Jonas ripping its heart out from the inside. Respect the ''Meg'' canon!
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/RobinHood2018'' laments that the movie's world is pretty good, but is wasted on a bad story.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/WildWildWest'' begins with pointing out how much the movie had working in its favor, including [[Creator/BarrySonnenfeld a good director]], Creator/WillSmith in the lead, and an [[Series/TheWildWildWest untapped source material with an original premise]], yet despite all that it still turned out bad.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/MastersOfTheUniverse'' complains that the movie, which is supposed to be about [[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983 He-Man]], barely uses any of the source material's settings or characters, and instead mostly has the movie take place on Earth and focus on a couple of CanonForeigner teenagers.
** During the Honest Trailer for ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'', the narrator reads the human characters' storyline and is surprised that it sounds exciting on paper, but still turned out boring in the actual movie.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/It1990'' points out how the series was doomed from the start, not just due to a low budget and strict censorship, but also because they only had 3 hours to tell a 1000 page story, resulting in a lot of the book being AdaptedOut. Here, the narrator draws parallels with other Stephen King stories that suffered from this, like ''Film/TheDarkTower2017''.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/DarkPhoenix'' sums up all the things the movie could have done for a good plot, but neglected to use. These include more focus on Jean Grey so the audience can get to know her, exploring the cosmic potential of the Phoenix Force, or letting a new creative team work on the movie instead of the same guys that were also responsible for ''Film/XMenTheLastStand''.
** During the Honest Trailer for ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'', the narrator almost forgets that the movie is supposed to be about Spider-Man going on vacation because of everything else in the movie related to the franchise taking up more time, such as reminiscing about [[spoiler:the late Tony Stark]], the aftermath of everyone being resurrected in ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', and setups for Phase Four movies.
--->'''Narrator:''' ''[about to doze off]'' Concept seems a little Creator/DisneyPlus to me; wake me up when he gets to [[spoiler:space Wakanda]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/FrozenII'' laments that the big reveal that [[spoiler:the people of Arrendale, including Elsa and Anna's grandfather, betrayed the native population of the land for personal gain]] doesn't lead to any difficult character decisions or [[spoiler:any commentary on historical injustices]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'' points out how the side characters that stay behind in Springfield had their own interesting subplots, but these mostly happen off screen as the movie focuses on the Simpson family in Alaska.
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/RayaAndTheLastDragon'' laments that the movie is too short to be able to properly explore the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender''-inspired universe or get to know the supporting characters.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/ArmyOfTheDead'' lists several plot points from the movie that the narrator thinks should have been expanded upon, such as zombies being capable of [[spoiler:reproducing with each other]], some zombies apparently being at least partially robotic, an inert horde of zombies that's supposed to come back to life when it rains but is never seen doing so, and a [[ChainsawGood pimped-out circular saw]] hyped up as a zombie-killing weapon, but which [[spoiler:is only used to cut a hole through a wall]].
--->'''Narrator:''' They just use it to [[spoiler:make a door]]?! Is [[Creator/ZackSnyder Snyder]] saving the good stuff for [[Film/ArmyOfThieves the prequel]], the sequel,[[note]]referring to a pitch for a sequel made by Snyder[[/note]] the anime prequel,[[note]]''Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas'', an animated TV series in development[[/note]] or [[Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague the Snyder Cut]]?
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/{{Cruella}}'' laments that the central plot of the movie with the fashion heists is pretty good, but gets bogged down by having to serve as a set-up for [[WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians the original animated movie]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''WesternAnimation/WhatIf2021'' mentions [[ComicBook/WhatIf the original comic book]] and some of its crazier stories, like Wolverine becoming a vampire and Iron Man fighting King Arthur, and expresses some disappointment that the TV show, rather than make similarly wild and bizarre stories, mostly just does variations of past ones from the movies.
--->'''Narrator:''' ...that dares to imagine something even more ridiculous: what if [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]] writers could try something new? But not, like, ''new'' new; just a slight remix of some old favorites. Let's not go ''too'' crazy here!\\
''[...]''\\
'''Narrator:''' So if you want to see your favorite Marvel characters in exciting new stories that stretch the imagination, [[BaitAndSwitch buy a comic book]].
** The Honest Trailer for ''Series/MoonKnight2022'' criticizes it for not making good use of its great cast, not digging deeply enough into its subject of mental illness, and especially for wasting [[ComicBook/MoonKnight one of coolest characters in Marvel comics]], showing a panel of him gabbing with ComicBook/ThePunisher.
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/DoctorStrangeInTheMultiverseOfMadness'', a.k.a. ''Doctor Strange in One Alternate Universe That's Basically Just the Near Future'', remarks on how little the movie makes use of its supposed universe-hopping story, only shows one alternate universe prominently and just zooms through other more interesting ones:
--->'''Narrator:''' Witness a film that explores the limitless possibilities of the multiverse... [[PunctuatedForEmphasis for one. Whole. Scene]]. Really? Can we go back to paint world for a sec?\\
''[...]''\\
'''Narrator:''' Okay, settle for the MCU's [[Film/BillAndTedsBogusJourney bogus journey]] across the multiverse, where the differences are all cosmetic, the characters barely change, and the plot devices are either literal convenience stores or main characters, like America[...]
** The Honest Trailer for ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' points out how dinosaurs spreading all over the world all happens off-camera between it and [[Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom the previous movie]] and ''Dominion'' instead focuses too much on the giant locusts.
--->'''Narrator:''' They-they know that bugs aren't dinosaurs, right?

* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: In the Honest Trailer for ''Film/FaceOff'', the narrator keeps telling Castor Troy and Sean Archer to shoot each other in a scene where they talk while pointing guns at each other.

** "And when I say [[[Film/HarryPotter Hermione]] is] hot, I mean only in the ''last'' three movies after [the actress playing her] [[TotallyEighteen turned eighteen]]! Heh heh... [[HypocriticalHumor pervs]]!"