Line #4 Main/RuleOfDrama


1	%% First image removed per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1349276974071440100
2	%% Second image removed per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1466052087018022100
3	%% Please see thread to discuss a new image.
4
5	->'''Quilt:''' I have deduced that your old girlfriend escaped death because she was pregnant with your love-child and this Oracle Hunter is none other than your ''long-lost daughter''!\
6	'''Donovan Deegan:''' And how, praytell, did you deduce all that?\
7	'''Quilt:''' Because it is ''very'' dramatic.
8	-->-- ''Webcomic/DominicDeegan''
9
10	''If the potential for conflict is visible, then [[ChekhovsGun it will never be passed over]].''
11
12	Without drama and {{conflict}}, [[StoryExistenceFailure There Is No Show]]. A show where everyone gets along and nothing unpleasant happens will bore everyone. This is the reason for the Rule of Drama.
13
14	Does everything look conflict-free? [[YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle Not so fast]]. Something new and unpleasant must be introduced out of the blue. This is why happy couples tend not to last until [[HappilyEverAfter the very end of the story]], unless writers can find good conflict without breaking them up.
15
16	Creator/RaymondChandler once described [[ChandlersLaw this sub-rule]]:
17	-> "When in doubt, have a man come through the door with a gun in his hand."
18	-> '''ChandlersLaw'''
19
20	[[Series/DoctorWho The Third Doctor]] once said:
21	-> "The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. But it's not necessarily the most interesting."
22
23	In real life, to avoid headaches and hassles, one prefers to plan ahead (sometimes months in advance), organize, analyze, take your time, be conservative, play it safe, stick to what you know will work, keep it simple, think it out thoroughly, have a backup plan, have a backup to the backup plan, know your limits, practice, rehearse, and drill. This, of course, is all well and good for planning the perfect family vacation, but makes for a dull adventure story. In fiction, Rule of Drama means that things are going to be much more drawn out, messy, unpredictable, and complicated, even if you are a CrazyPrepared Chessmaster. Also, in fiction, even the [[TheSmartGuy ones known for their intelligence]] tend to make stupid mistakes, act impulsively or anything else just to get them embroiled in an adventure. Because there is no drama in being too smart or prepared to either avoid or prevent most nasty situations or having already intricately planned for every contingency. Essentially, the journey is widely considered more important than the destination, so everything can't run too smoothly, not even for the sake of the characters' peace of mind.
24
25	Essentially, when the writers run out of drama, they must invent ways to force drama into undramatic situations. When handled poorly, this leads to unusual, irrational, or highly improbable scenarios which only exist for the sake of prolonging the conflict.
26
27	To determine if a trope is a product of the Rule of Drama, ask yourself: If this trope weren't used, [[AnthropicPrinciple would this much crap even be happening?]]
28
29	The only place where the Rule of Drama does not apply is the {{Denouement}}; the show is supposed to end there. But even then, you can wind up with a SequelHook.
30
31	Often comes up in books and films on history, because if it is found that two people had a conflict, however minor it may have actually been, it will often be milked [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade at least a little]] - and [[PlotTumor sometimes too much]] by the writer. The reason is not necessarily because the writer is trying to lie or change history, but because [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools conflict is something the general audience can identify with]].
32
33	Compare AcceptableBreaksFromReality (video games following what makes them fun instead of realistic).
34
35	Related to both RuleOfFunny in comedy and RuleOfScary in horror. See also AnthropicPrinciple.
36
37	----
38	!!Tropes That Quickly Come To Mind For Their Roots In This Rule, But Honestly, 90% Of All {{Tropes}} Might Fit Here:
39	[[index]]
40	* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade
41	* AdoptionIsNotAnOption
42	* AllLoveIsUnrequited
43	* AnachronisticOrphanage: Orphanages exist in setting where they shouldn't because it's more dramatic.
44	* AnyoneCanDie is the platonic love affair between the Rule and Realism
45	* ArmorPiercingQuestion: These questions tend to be a lot more effective in fiction than in real life, since they're used to make characters dramatically start doubting themselves at a critical point.
46	* BelligerentSexualTension
47	* BigotVsBigot
48	* BladeLock: In real life, this kind of situation is sorted out through follow-up techniques and grappling, not forceful pushing, but that wouldn't open up opportunities for the characters to exchange dramatic dialogue.
49	* BreakUpMakeUpScenario
50	* CantGetAwayWithNuthin
51	* CastFullOfCrazy
52	* ChainedHeat
53	* ChandlersLaw
54	* ConflictBall
55	* CustodyBattle
56	* DiabolusExMachina
57	* DisasterDominoes - Mishaps will cause enough collateral damage to enhance the plot, no more and no less.
58	* DisposableWoman
59	* DownToTheLastPlay
60	* DramaBomb
61	* DramaticGunCock: A character racks their gun despite it being pointless or wasteful, or even when it's a gun that ''cannot'' be cocked, for the sake of highlighting the dramatic tension.
62	* DramaticUnmask
63	* DysfunctionJunction
64	* EmergingFromTheShadows
65	* FalseInnocenceTrick
66	* FelonyMisdemeanor
67	* FinaglesLaw
68	* GoodIsBoring
69	* GuiltyUntilSomeoneElseIsGuilty: A crime story won't be dramatic enough if the conflict is resolved without catching the real culprit.
70	* GunStruggle
71	* HandWave: How bad writers preserve the Rule of Drama in the face of potential conflict-quenching rationality when they don't want to resort to PoorCommunicationKills.
72	* {{Hellistics}}: Unrelated events turn out to be connected with each other just to screw over the character(s).
73	* HopeSpot: Because if things start going too well, and it isn't the end of the story, it has to be temporary.
74	* IdentityConcealmentDisposal
75	* IdiotBall
76	* IdiotPlot
77	* ImpededCommunication
78	* ItsPersonal
79	* JustEatGilligan: When there's a particularly simple solution that's always overlooked because of this rule.
80	* LawOfInverseFertility
81	* LawOfInversePaternity
82	* LockedInARoom
83	* {{Melodrama}}
84	* MillionToOneChance: If the unlikelihood of a random outcome is deemed too low to be of concern, the likelihood of its occurrence will instead be based on the dramatic potential of that outcome.
85	* MurderIsTheBestSolution
86	* MurphysBullet: Stray bullets will always hit someone important.
87	* NearMisses: Peak tension is achieved by a character ''almost'' getting hit by a projectile.
88	* OneBulletLeft
89	* OutOfCharacterMoment
90	** OOCIsSeriousBusiness
91	* OutOfTheFryingPan
92	* PoorCommunicationKills: Miscommunications as a source of conflict and drama.
93	* RememberedTooLate
94	* RisingConflict
95	* RoadsideSurgery
96	* SexChangesEverything
97	* ShameAccusation
98	* SmallTownBigHell
99	* SmartBall
100	* StrongAsTheyNeedToBe
101	* SupermanStaysOutOfGotham: Because if he got involved, the antagonists would be defeated way too easily.
102	* TemptingFate: Stating the unlikelihood of mishap causes its likelihood to approach 100%.
103	* ThereAreNoTherapists: Because if there were, the characters' internal struggles would be over without need for a big conflict.
104	* ThingsAreMoreEffectiveInHollywood
105	* TooHappyToLive
106	* UnknowinglyInLove
107	* UnscientificScience
108	* WakingUpElsewhere
109	* DarthWiki/WhatAnIdiot: A foolish decision can raise the stakes.
110	* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: Villains develop overly-complicated methods of dispatching the heroes that are unlikely to go AllAccordingToPlan, because it's more dramatic that way.
111	* WorldOfHam
112	* WrongNameOutburst
113	* YouCantThwartStageOne: We can't have the conflict end too quickly, so antagonists ought to succeed at the first phase of their plans.
114	[[/index]]
115

Context Main / RuleOfDrama