History Main / OurDoorsAreDifferent

* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' serial "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS6E7TheWarGames The War Games]]", the aliens' security chief has a door of the 'converging from all directions' design. The top part is deliberately made to resemble a guillotine blade. The aliens' space/time machines also have noisy powered doors.

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* ''ForbiddenPlanet'': The doors left by the Krell had two of these traits, "no right angles" (a flattened pentagon) and "converging from all directions". See it [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQwmKClCAbQ here, starting at 2:20]].
* In ''SantaClausConquersTheMartians'' (which was once featured on ''{{MST3K}}''), the Martians doors opened by pointing at them.

* The Gringotts door in ''HarryPotter'' is an example of the doors being different in a fantasy, rather than sci-fi, setting. So many parts move when the goblin unlocks it that it's pretty much a door whose entire surface is its lock mechanism.

* ''Anime/GalaxyAngel'' has several including two-tone double doors that split diagonally along different axises.

* DilatingDoor - Doors which are CoolButInefficient
* ScriptReadingDoors - Doors which know when to open, when to close, and when not to

* ''{{Fallout 3}}'' has overcomplicated doors everywhere, a standard secure door folds up sideways and then the middle part sinks into the floor. Then there's the Vault doors, which light up and having a warning klaxon and spin when the open button is pressed.

* ''Franchise/StarTrek'': Used mildly on Federation vessels. The doors are automated and come with a trademarked sound, but are otherwise normal ([[ScriptReadingDoors except for knowing when they're needed]]). Played straight with ''DeepSpaceNine'', with lots of weirdly shaped doors. The creators went overboard with the automated doors. Almost every alien society has them, no matter what their technological level or whether there's actually an energy source available to power them. It should be noted that reality still writes the plot, as not a single door goes down into the floor, since the soundstage floor can't really be altered.

* Space Pirate Doors in Metroid are opened by firing lazer weapons at them, are circular, and come in many, many component parts that open seperatly. Wierdly, they're unlocked with weapons the space pirates [[FridgeLogic do not possess]]. Galactic federation doors, [[DamnYouMuscleMemory to confuse players]], are simple automated doors.

* Spoofed in the second ''{{Airplane}}'' movie, where the doors were voice activated and made a sound when the command to activate them was given. So you had WilliamShatner making the ''StarTrek'' door sound and the door making its own variation as it obligingly opens.

* ''{{Futurama}}'' parodies this, and even has the "swoosh" sound from ''StarTrek'', as well as Fry pointing out that it's just like ''StarTrek''. The doors to the bridge of the Planet Express ship from Futurama even work differently each time they're shown.
** Some doors even have ''two'' sound effects. A sound effect that you would normally expect from that type of door, and the StarTrek sound effect.

* ''StarTrek'': Used mildly on Federation vessels. The doors are automated and come with a trademarked sound, but are otherwise normal ([[ScriptReadingDoors except for knowing when they're needed]]). Played straight with ''DeepSpaceNine'', with lots of weirdly shaped doors. The creators went overboard with the automated doors. Almost every alien society has them, no matter what their technological level or whether there's actually an energy source available to power them. It should be noted that reality still writes the plot, as not a single door goes down into the floor, since the soundstage floor can't really be altered.
** ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' had a set whose doors (and corridors) were unusually shaped; it was reused, with different trim and paint schemes, for many episodes set on alien planets or ships.

* Parodied in the ''GetSmart'' underground headquarters, with the veritable gauntlet of doors, hatches, etc. The already-bumbling main character has to go through them to get to work; HilarityEnsues.

* ''StarTrek'': Used mildly on Federation vessels. The doors are automated and come with a trademarked sound, but are otherwise normal ([[ScriptReadingDoors except for knowing when they're needed]]). Played straight with ''DeepSpaceNine'', with lots of weirdly shaped doors. The creators went overboard with the automated doors. Almost every alien society has them, no matter what their technological level or whether there's actually an energy source available to power them. It should be noted that reality still writes the plot, as not a single door goes down into the floor, since the soundstage floor can't really be altered.
** ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' had a set whose doors (and corridors) were unusually shaped; it was reused, with different trim and paint schemes, for many episodes set on alien planets or ships.

* ''{{Babylon 5}}'': Many doors on the station are automatic and hinged at the top. However it is subverted on Earth where they have perfectly ordinary wooden hinged doors in most buildings. It would appear that the station needs doors that can be sealed in the event of a hull breach, which is not a problem on Earth.
* ''SeaQuestDSV'': Played very straight, with lots of ''different'' doors and hatches. Going red alert on the [=SeaQuest=] includes closing all kinds of hatches, so they show this off a lot.
* ''{{Futurama}}'' parodies this, and even has the "swoosh" sound from ''StarTrek'', as well as Fry pointing out that it's just like ''StarTrek''. The doors to the bridge of the Planet Express ship from Futurama even work differently each time they're shown.
** Some doors even have ''two'' sound effects. A sound effect that you would normally expect from that type of door, and the StarTrek sound effect.
* The X-Naut fortress in ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor''. [[spoiler: It's on the moon.]] The doors require passwords and keys, and make a "swish" sound upon opening.
* ''[=~The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy~=]'': Doors manufactured by the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation are programmed to love their simple lives; they love nothing more than to open and close for passing users, and thank them profusely for so emphatically validating their existence.
* Spoofed in the second ''{{Airplane}}!'' movie, where the doors were voice activated and made a sound when the command to activate them was given. So you had WilliamShatner making the ''StarTrek'' door sound and the door making its own variation as it obligingly opens.
* Parodied in the ''GetSmart'' underground headquarters, with the veritable gauntlet of doors, hatches, etc. The already-bumbling main character has to go through them to get to work; HilarityEnsues.

* ''{{Mystery Science Theater 3000}}'': The scene right before the movie starts shows a hallway with various different kinds of doors.

* ''TheSimpsons'' episode "Hurricane Neddy": When Ned's house gets destroyed by a tornado and the town rebuilds it there are several oddly shaped doors because the townsfolk who rebuilt his house don't actually know anything about building houses.

* TruthInTelevision: In his book ''The Design of Everyday Things'', Cognitive Scientist Don Norman describes the ways in which architects and designers invariably create fancy doors that are hard to operate, typically because it is not obvious which side is hinged, or whether they open inward or outward. In an updated edition, he notes that people have started telling him stories of "Norman doors."
* Subverted in [[http://bobadventures.comicgenesis.com/d/20100116.html this strip]] from ''TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob,'' when Bob is surprised that alien doors have doorknobs.

* Doors in BatmanArkhamAsylum are massive steel slabs with body scanners and several locks and slide open either very fast or incredibly slow. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] since they are designed to keep the worst psychopaths from escaping the asylum, [[CardboardPrison but it's not like they actually work.]]
* The Gringotts door in HarryPotter is an example of the doors being different in a fantasy, rather than sci-fi, setting. So many parts move when the goblin unlocks it that it's pretty much a door whose entire surface is its lock mechanism.

* In the ''DoctorWho'' serial "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS6E7TheWarGames The War Games]]", the aliens' security chief has a door of the 'converging from all directions' design. The top part is deliberately made to resemble a guillotine blade. The aliens' space/time machines also have noisy powered doors.

* ''{{Babylon 5}}'': Many doors on the station are automatic and hinged at the top.

* The X-Naut fortress in ''PaperMario: The Thousand-Year Door''. [[spoiler: It's on the moon.]] The doors require passwords and keys, and make a "swish" sound upon opening.

* ''StarWars'': Not only are they different from reality, it's rare to see two similar doors in a whole darn movie.

* ''{{Fallout 3}}'' has overcomplicated doors everywhere, a standard secure door folds up sideways and then the middle part sinks into the floor.

The creators of a show or movie really want to demonstrate that we are in a highly advanced future setting. This usually involves some futuristic furniture, holographic displays and, surprisingly often, really weird door designs.

* ''StarTrek'': Used mildly on Federation vessels. The doors are automated and come with a trademarked sound, but are otherwise normal ([[ScriptReadingDoors except for knowing when they're needed]]). Played straight with ''DeepSpaceNine'', with lots of weirdly shaped doors.
** The creators went overboard with the automated doors. Almost every alien society has them, no matter what their technological level or whether there's actually an energy source available to power them. It should be noted that reality still writes the plot, as not a single door goes down into the floor, since the soundstage floor can't really be altered.
* StarWars: Not only are they different from reality, it's rare to see two similar doors in a whole darn movie.

* ''TheFifthElement'': More like ''Our Furniture Is Different''. Corben's apartment is full of this. Overall, most of it looks weird but not entirely impractical, so it's justified.

* {{Fallout 3}} has overcomplicated doors everywhere, a standard secure door folds up sideways and then the middle part sinks into the floor.

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