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Basic Trope: An episode where a character tries to break several world records, but fails.

  • Straight: Bob tries to beat several records, but fails.
  • Exaggerated:
    • Years later, Bob is old and greying, but refusing to give up his quest at being the one who breaks a record.
    • Every episode has Bob trying to beat at least one record and failing.
  • Downplayed: Bob tries to beat only a handful of records before giving up.
  • Justified: Bob has parents with high expectations, and has failed to impress them by becoming a doctor or a lawyer.
  • Inverted: Bob is the only one in a family of people obsessed with attempting to break records who doesn't even bother trying.
  • Subverted: Bob resolves to break a record by the end of the day, and succeeds on his first try.
  • Double Subverted: Bob tries to break a record and seemingly succeeds... until he realizes that his accomplishment is void on a technicality, and that he will have to try all over again.
  • Parodied: Bob tries to beat convoluted records that don't make sense, like "Shortest Time to Juggle Slugs Twenty Times in an Ice Storm while Wearing a Kilt", only to find that someone else has already set these records and he can't break them.
  • Zig Zagged: ???
  • Averted: Bob reads the Guinness Book of World Records. He sets it down and goes to work as usual.
  • Enforced: ???
  • Lampshaded: Bob's friends point out how much time he wastes trying to beat records that could be used to do something useful.
  • Invoked: ???
  • Exploited: Charlie is an unscrupulous businessman who takes advantage of the fact that Bob is trying to break a single record that he sells him snake oil and claims that it will allow him to do anything he sets his mind to.
  • Defied: Bob reads the Guinness Book of World Records and shakes his head in amusement, noting how he'd never have a chance at doing anything like that.
  • Discussed: ???
  • Conversed: ???
  • Played For Drama:
    • Bob has built his career or self-worth on beating the most records, but finds that he is no longer able to do so because of a life-threatening injury. This begins his descent into despair.
    • Bob tries to beat any record he can find. He eventually succeeds, but the record he succeeds at is so meaningless that no one will ever bother trying to break it or acknowledge his accomplishment.

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