Line #14 Main/CoolOfRule


1	'''Something cool is even more cool if it is accomplished within an understood set of rules.'''
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3	The "understood set of rules" is usually the [[RealLife rules of reality]], but it can just as easily be some set of [[MagicAIsMagicA rules established within the work in question]]. Less props for [[SharpshooterFallacy explaining the rules after the fact]].
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5	This rule is not a contradiction of, but is in tension with, ArtisticLicense. But if you use the Cool Of Rule to make something so cool that the audience willing suspends their disbelief, congratulations! [[LifeImitatesArt You're an example of the Cool Of Rule]].
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7	See also: SuspensionOfDisbelief, MagicAIsMagicA, ChekhovsBoomerang. Compare RuleOfCool, MST3KMantra, RealityIsUnrealistic, PuzzleThriller. Contrast HandWave, PlotHole.
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9	!!Examples:
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11	[[AC:AnimeAndManga]]
12	* ''Manga/BabySteps'': Unlike some other sports manga, not only is tennis portrayed as realistically as possible, but also how the body develops and transforms over the course of training.
13	* ''Manga/DeathNote'' is basically built around this rule, as much of the entertainment derives from Light and L's clever use of the rules of logic and (in Light's case) the rules of the Death Note.
14	* The ending of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' is great because [[spoiler:in Edward's transmutation to bring his brother's body back from the gate, he follows equivalent exchange: the door that's been present in every gate scene since the beginning of the series, for his brother's body.]]
15	* The original ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' carefully built a world where a few core mechanics could explain nearly every character's powers, with many fights resolved with creativity and logic instead of brute force. The less-popular ''Anime/NarutoShippuden'' played much looser with the rules of its universe, almost to the point of becoming a ''Anime/DragonBallZ''-style anime where fights were won by stacking vague power-ups and genetic advantages on top of each other. A notable exception is the Pein arc, which was well-received by fans and spent ''a lot'' of time exploring the mechanics of Pein's abilities.
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17	[[AC:FanWorks]]
18	* ''Fanfic/DungeonKeeperAmi'', most of the fun is seeing [[EvilOverlord Keeper]] [[ChronicHeroSyndrome Mercury]] ([[Anime/SailorMoon Sailor Mercury]] who accidentally bonded with a [[VideoGame/DungeonKeeper Dungeon Heart]] pull crazy shenanigans through clever use of SufficientlyAnalyzedMagic. The rest of the fun is seeing [[NormalFishInATinyPond stupidly overpowered Sailor Mercury]] pull crazy gambits to defeat even crazier odds, and seeing how GossipEvolution turns her into an InUniverse MemeticMolester who is a grandmaster of the art of the GambitRoulette when she is closer to a XanatosSpeedChess grandmaster, always finding some IndyPloy when her gambits don't work as intended.
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20	[[AC:[[AnimatedFilms Films — Animation]]]]
21	* In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', the red moon ritual that is performed at the [=SkyDome=] follows the same rules as the one performed at the Lee family temple even though it is on a much larger scale.
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23	[[AC:[[LiveActionFilms Film — Live-Action]]]]
24	* In ''Film/TheSixthSense'' [[Creator/BruceWillis Dr. Malcolm Crowe]] follows all the rules [[spoiler: given for ghosts]], while still [[spoiler: (theoretically) leaving the viewer with the impression that he is a living human]].
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26	[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
27	* In ''Literature/DeadBeat'', one of the reasons [[spoiler: zombie Sue]] is so awesome is because it doesn't technically break the Laws of Magic that forbid necromancy, as those laws apply only to humans.
28	** Butcher also made a point of repeatedly emphasizing how OurZombiesAreDifferent to make [[spoiler: zombie Sue]] seem not only legitimate but ''inevitable'' -- particularly the rule that The Older The Bones, The More Powerful The Revenant. That's not one you often see in fantasy lit.
29	* This happens a lot in the writings of Creator/BrandonSanderson due to his logical and complex magic systems.
30	* ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' stories, and mysteries in general, often make heavy use of this rule. When they don't they frequently aren't considered as good.
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32	[[AC:TabletopGames]]
33	* Any win in a work that either involves tabletop, card, or board games, like ''Anime/YuGiOh'', or ''is'' a [[TabletopGame tabletop, board, or card game]], like ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering''.
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35	[[AC:VideoGames]]
36	* John Conway's ''VideoGame/ConwaysGameOfLife'' revolves entirely around a handful of simple rules, and yet is capable of universal computation and other complex behaviors. Examples of constructions made in the Game of Life include a ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' emulator, a prime number calculator, and a pi calculator. The Game of Life can even [[RecursiveReality simulate itself]].
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38	[[AC:{{Visual Novel}}s]]
39	* ''VisualNovel/{{Melody}}'' gives an in-universe example. When the protagonist takes Melody to a karaoke bar, Melody challenges the protagonist to sing a fairly old song without the lyrics being shown. If he succeeds, the player wins points.

Context Main / CoolOfRule