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Princess, check. Gold decorations, check. Jewelry, check. White fur trimming, check. Sparkles, check. The Disney Princess line thrives on these tropes.

"Spinning is so much cooler than not spinning."

An element is included in a work, just because the element makes the story better in some way simply for having it, similar to adding spices and seasonings to food.

These elements don't drive the plot or have a narrative purpose, and aren't genre staples. They may sometimes add to characterization or World Building, but mostly it's because, to paraphrase the above quote, having these elements is so much better than not having these elements.

Now even if these elements have some importance to the story, it's similar to a MacGuffin in that the form needn't be any of the elements, but it's still better to have them.

• A Save the Princess plot could have anyone as the Damsel in Distress, but often it's an actual princess, just because of this trope.
• The all-powerful crystal that the villain wants needn't be in the form of a jewel, but it looks prettier than an all-powerful pine cone.
• We can see fighter planes attack the bad guys, but it's just a bit more exciting to have a Fighter Launching Sequence first.
• Weapons can be cool on their own, but it's even cooler to have them be made of fire, lasers, or some other elements, no matter how impossible.

Of course these elements can seem overused, especially if some feel the overall story is weak, but with a good story, these elements enrich it just by their inclusion.

A Sister Trope to Narrative Filigree.

Contrast People Sit On Chairs (when there isn't even this much of a reason for an element to be a trope).

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A Super Trope to

• Babies Make Everything Better — Babies are so much better than without babies.
• Deep Fried Whatever — Deep fried is so much better than not deep fried.
• Eenie Meenie Miny Moai — Moai is so much better than without Moai.
• Everything's Better with Chocolate — Chocolate is so much better than without chocolate.
• Everything's Better With Motorcycles — Motorcycles are so much cooler than without motorcycles.
• Everything's Better with Plushies — Plushies are so much better than not having plushies.
• Everything's Better with Princesses — Princesses is so much better than not having princesses.
• Everything's Better with Rainbows — Rainbows are so much better than not having rainbows.
• Everything's Better with Samurai — Samurai are so much cooler than without samurai.
• Everything's Better with Sparkles — Sparkles are so much better than without sparkles.
• Everything's Better with Spinning — Spinning is so much cooler than not spinning.
• Everythings Cuter With Lucky Charms — Lucky charms are so much cuter than without lucky charms.
• Everything's Deader with Zombies — Zombies in works not about them are so much cooler than without zombies.
• Everything's Louder With Bagpipes — Bagpipes are so much more louder than not playing on bagpipes.
• Everything's Sparkly with Jewelry — Jewelry is so much more glamorous than without jewelry.
• Fighter Launching Sequence — Seeing fighter planes and space fighters take off is so much cooler than not seeing them take off.
• Fluffy Fashion Feathers — Feathers are so much more glamorous than without feathers.
• Frickin' Laser Beams — Lasers are so much cooler than not having lasers.
• Funny Spoon — Spoons funnier than without spoons.
• Goggles Do Nothing — Goggles are so much better than not having goggles.
• Gold Makes Everything Shiny — Gold is so much prettier than not having gold.
• Gratuitous Disco Sequence — Retro Disco is so much better than without Retro Disco.
• Gratuitous Foreign Language
  • Altum Videtur — Omnia cum Latina est melius quam omnia sine Latine.
  • Gratuitous French — Le français, c'est bien mieux que pas de français.
    • Everything Sounds Sexier in French — Parler en français est beaucoup plus sexy que pas parler en français.
  • Gratuitous German — Mit Deutsch ist alles besser als mit kein Deutsch.
  • Gratuitous Italian — Tutto con l'italiano è meglio di tutto senza italiana.
  • Gratuitous Greek — Τα πάντα με την ελληνική είναι καλύτερη από ό, τι χωρίς ελληνικά.
  • Gratuitous Japanese — 日本とのすべてが日本語なしすべてよりも優れています。
  • Gratuitous Russian — Все с русским лучше, чем все без русского языка.
  • Gratuitous Spanish — Todo con español es mejor que todo sin español.
  • Yiddish as a Second Language — .אלץ מיט ייִדיש איז בעסער ווי אַלץ אָן ייִדיש (Read in Backwards)
• Heävy Mëtal Ümlaut — Umlauts are so much better than without umlauts.
• Incendiary Exponent — Things on fire are so much more awesome than things that aren't on fire.
• Instant Awesome, Just Add Dragons — Dragons in works not about them are so much cooler than without dragons.
• Instant Awesome, Just Add Mecha — Mecha in works not about them are so much cooler than without mecha.
• Instant Awesome, Just Add Ninja — Ninja in works not about them are so much cooler than without ninja.
• Instant Plunder, Just Add Pirates — Pirates in works not about them are so much cooler than without pirates.
• Lava Adds Awesome — Something with lava or magma is so much cooler than something without.
• Prepositional Phrase Equals Coolness — Titles with prepositions are so much cooler than titles without prepositions.
• Pretty Butterflies
• Pretty in Mink — Furs are so much more glamorous than without furs.
• Pun — Puns are so much better than without puns.
• Rent-a-Zilla — Giant monsters in works not about them are so much cooler than without giant monsters.
• Slime Snails And Mutant Tails — Slime is so much better than no slime.
• Strawberry Shorthand — Strawberries are so much better than without strawberries.
• Stuff Blowing Up — Explosions are so much better than not having explosions.
• Too Many Belts — Belts are so much better than not having belts.
• Troperiffic — Tropes are so much better than without tropes.
• Watch It Stoned — Watching works on drugs is so much better than watching works not on drugs.
• Xtreme Kool Letterz — Xtreme Letterz are so much Kooler than boring uncool letters.
  • X Makes Anything Cool — Having X is so much better than not having X.
• Zipperiffic— Zippers are so much better than without zippers.

These animals are so much better than without these animals. Or, depending on the animal, much worse (adds danger and suspense).

• Everything's Better with Cows
• Everything's Better with Dinosaurs
• Everythings Better With Llamas
• Everything's Better with Monkeys
• Everything's Better with Penguins
• Everything's Better With Platypi
• Everythings Squishier With Cephalopods
• Everythings Worse With Bees
• Everythings Worse With Wolves
• Kangaroos Represent Australia
• Never Smile at a Crocodile
• Pandaing To The Audience
• Turtle Power

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