Part 4 of the Canonical List of Subtle Trope Distinctions. Items are sorted alphabetically by whichever trope is alphabetically first; if you're looking for one in specific, use the "Find" or "Search" function of your Web browser.
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J
Jack of All Stats vs. Master of None
- When a character's strength is that he has no weaknesses, he's the Jack of All Stats.
- When a character's weakness is that he has no strengths, he's the Master of None.
Joke Item vs. Lethal Joke Item vs. Nerf Arm vs. Not Completely Useless vs. Scrappy Weapon
- A Joke Item is a useless item which exists for comedic purposes. (In Bomber Bob, Bob fights by throwing bombs at his enemies. One type of bomb he can use is a party popper, which only does 1 point of damage while most other bombs do hundreds.)
- A Lethal Joke Item is a Joke Item that is actually useful when certain conditions are fulfilled. (If you equip the party hat and eat cake, the party popper's damage is massively boosted.)
- A Nerf Arm is an item that looks funny but is just as useful as most other items. (The party popper does as much damage as any of Bob's other bombs, and using it is a valid strategy in most situations.)
- A Not Completely Useless item is useful only in certain rare situations. Compared to Lethal Joke Item, it's useful in far fewer situations. (One enemy is weakened by festive spirit and suffers a massive debuff to all stats when hit by the party popper; the popper is terrible otherwise.)
- A Scrappy Weapon is not meant to be useless, but poor game balance means that no one bothers using it. (Bob can also use incendiary grenades, but they do very weak damage, and most enemies are immune to their Damage Over Time effect, so you'd be better off sticking to the standard frag grenades.)
Jumping the Shark vs. Ruined FOREVER
- Jumping the Shark is when fans look back over a series that has suffered a decline in quality and identify the turning point where things started to go downhill.
- Ruined FOREVER is when the latest installment of a series is released, and the fans are so unhappy with some element that they issue a knee-jerk declaration that it's a shark jump before anyone can tell if the series is going downhill for sure.
Junk Rare vs. Promotional Powerless Piece of Garbage
- A Junk Rare is a weak card or item that's obtained randomly and infrequently.
- A Promotional Powerless Piece of Garbage is a weak card or item that's obtained as part of a special promotion or event.
Lame Pun Reaction vs. Stealth Pun
- A Lame Pun Reaction is a pun that's meant to be really bad and pointed out as being such by others.
- A Stealth Pun is a joke (usually but not always a pun) whose punchline is left for the audience and/or others in the works to figure out. This sometimes creates a Late to the Punchline situation.
Justified Trope vs. Truth in Television
- A Justified Trope is any time a trope is played with an explanation ("He got out of prison with his ingenious escape plan").
- Truth in Television is when a trope is based in some way on reality (for Cardboard Prison, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán Loera
, a Mexican drug lord, managed to escape a maximum security prison with very little actual effort, although it did cost a whole lot of money).
K
Kick the Dog vs. Poke the Poodle vs. Moral Event Horizon vs. Jumping Off the Slippery Slope
- Kick the Dog is when an action reminds us of who the villain is and is otherwise pointless: evil for evil's sake.
- Poke the Poodle is kicking that's nowhere near extreme enough, so that the villain fails at seeming evil.
- The Moral Event Horizon may be crossed by an action that is or is not a Dog Kick; instead, it is about the sheer moral depravity of the act, to the point that the audience now wants the character who crossed it dead.
- Jumping Off the Slippery Slope is when a previously ambiguous character does something clearly villainous, so the hero is free to stop them without debating the morality of the earlier, ambiguous behavior.
Kid With The Remote Control vs. Kid with the Leash
- A Kid With The Remote Control is a person who has complete control over a powerful, and often entirely neutral, entity that only obeys their commands.
- Kid with the Leash is when the powerful entity is actively malevolent or at least highly destructive when left to its own devices. The kid in this case is not only responsible for directing it but actively keeping it from wreaking havoc.
Kill It with Fire vs. Playing with Fire
- Kill It with Fire is about fire being able to permanently destroy otherwise Nigh-Invulnerable foes.
- Playing with Fire is about attacking with fire generally.
Klingon Scientists Get No Respect vs. Square Race, Round Class
- When Klingon Scientists Get No Respect, what's stopping a character from pursuing a profession is that they come from a society that disdains it; they may be able to do it well.
- Someone with Square Race, Round Class has actual racial traits that make it seem unlikely they'll perform well in their class, like a giant ninja or elf barbarian. Much more likely in a Role-Playing Game 'Verse where classes are strictly defined to begin with.
Knight in Sour Armor vs. The Snark Knight
- A Knight in Sour Armor, so to speak, will fight nobly for a world despite being very cynical about it.
- The Snark Knight is a person who is snide and sarcastic about everyone because they hold people, him/herself included, to a very high standard.
- This trope was formerly named The Daria after the eponymous character who was a sterling example.
Knight Templar vs. Well-Intentioned Extremist
- Knight Templar is any villain (or sometimes a villainous organization) who believes himself to be completely in the right — usually former good guys who turn tyrannical in the pursuit of justice.
- A Well-Intentioned Extremist has a good motive the heroes can respect, but uses evil methods to accomplish it, fully aware that they're using reprehensible methods to achieve a greater good.
Kryptonite Is Everywhere vs Weaksauce Weakness
- Kryptonite Is Everywhere is when the character has a stated weakness, but for the sake of challenging them, the weakness seems to show up a lot more often than it should. As in, even if the weakness actually is something common, such as fire or yellow-colored objects, it still shows up in places where it doesn't make sense, like every other villainous mook inexplicably using a flamethrower or every other random space monster being canary-yellow.
- Weaksauce Weakness is simply when the character's weakness is something silly, common, unusual, and/or arbitrary, to the point that you wonder how they could be a threat at all, especially if the weakness is disproportionate to how strong the character is. Both of the above weaknesses would easily count. However, how often the weakness actually shows up or comes into play is not a factor—in fact, in many stories involving an antagonist with one, the Weaksauce Weakness will only come into play in the climax.
L
The Lad-ette vs. Tomboy
- A Lad-ette is an adult female who behaves like a rough-and-rowdy guy and may have been a Tomboy in her youth.
- A Tomboy is a girl (usually prepubescent) who engages in boy-like behavior and play and might grow up to be a Ladette.
Large Ham vs. No Indoor Voice
- A Large Ham is any character who overacts massively. This often involves shouting, but not necessarily.
- A character with No Indoor Voice shouts all the time but doesn't necessarily overact.
Lawyer-Friendly Cameo vs. Writing Around Trademarks vs. You Wanna Get Sued?
- A Lawyer-Friendly Cameo is a copyrighted concept being referenced, but in a way that removes enough specific details to be safe while keeping enough of them for the audience to see who you meant. For example, the characters may be assisted by a stoic, keenly analytical detective who plays the violin and is implied to use drugs recreationally.
- Writing Around Trademarks is a copyrighted concept being referenced, but with certain details (usually their name) getting a very specific switch for safety. For example (to use the current page image), the characters may be assisted by the brilliant detective, Mr. Herlock Sholmes.
- You Wanna Get Sued? is something similar to a well-known copyrighted concept being in the work, and the characters reflect on the similarity to a safe level before stopping, usually with a fourth-wall comment that they'll be in legal trouble if they don't. For example, a character may reflect that their brilliant detective ally is 'Really similar to that book you gave me about Sherlo-' before another character coughs loudly and changes the subject.
Leeroy Jenkins vs. Spanner in the Works vs. Unwitting Instigator of Doom
- The Spanner in the Works destroys the Big Bad's evil plan by doing something he didn't expect.
- The Unwitting Instigator of Doom destroys the protagonists' plans by doing one tiny thing that ruins everything.
- The Leeroy Jenkins destroys the plan by charging in too early.
Legacy Character vs. Legacy Immortality vs. The Nth Doctor vs. The Other Darrin vs. Replacement Scrappy vs. Suspiciously Similar Substitute:
- A Legacy Character is a specific character/role that's filled in-universe by several different people over the course of a work's history for various reasons.
- Legacy Immortality is when a Legacy Character is perceived in-universe as one immortal character rather than different people taking over a character/role.
- A Suspiciously Similar Substitute is a new character that has the same role, personality traits, etc. as a previous character that's no longer in the work, for no in-universe reason.
- The Other Darrin is when a new actor takes over for their predecessor as a character, and the change is not explained in-universe.
- The Nth Doctor is like The Other Darrin, but there's an in-universe explanation for the role change.
- A Replacement Scrappy is a character that takes the place of another character for whatever reason and becomes disliked by the fanbase as a result.
Life Will Kill You vs. We All Die Someday
- In Life Will Kill You, someone, usually someone who has had spectacular adventures, actually dies an anticlimactic death.
- We All Die Someday is about that phrase, or something like it, being said, sometimes as an unhelpful response to a character asking "Am I going to die?" in a specific situation. Nobody actually has to die on screen.
Lions and Tigers and Humans... Oh, My! vs. World of Funny Animals vs. World of Mammals
- Lions and Tigers and Humans... Oh, My!: This is when the story is set in a place where humans and anthropomorphic animals (Funny Animal, maybe Beast Men provided they're not Intelligent Gerbils or other Humanoid Aliens) co-exist together. Example: Bojack Horseman is set in a world that is populated by both humans AND Funny Animals.
- World of Funny Animals: This is when the story is set in a place populated entirely with anthropomorphic animals. May have a Token Human. Example: Animal Crossing is set in a town populated by Funny Animals, with the player being the Token Human.
- World of Mammals: Same as World of Funny Animals, except most of, if not, the entire cast is mammals. Any anthropomorphic non-mammal is the Token Minority. Example: In Zootopia, the creators don't discount that the world is full of Funny Animals, but for purposes of the story, the titular city is only populated by mammals.
Literal Metaphor vs. Visual Pun
- A Literal Metaphor is when something that is normally used as an idiom happens literally. This can be either funny or serious (a Literal Ass-Kissing is funny, but Literally Shattered Lives often aren't) and can happen without a visual component, e.g. in literature.
- A Visual Pun is when, in visual media such as film, comic books, or animation, something seen on the page/screen can be described with a play on words. This is often just a brief sight gag, and while frequently also a Literal Metaphor (We're combing the desert!) it doesn't have to be and could be a pun on something else.
Long-Runner Tech Marches On vs. Technology Marches On
- In a case of Technology Marches On, viewers watching an older show are amused to see obsolete technology treated by the characters and setting as "cutting-edge" or even common.
- Long-Runner Tech Marches On is when this happens In-Universe, because a show was on for so long that what was cutting-edge technology at the time it began became obsolete before it finished.
Losing Your Head vs. Off with His Head!
- In Losing Your Head, a head is able to think and communicate for some time after being cut off from the body, or is even detachable without violence.
- Off with His Head! refers to all cases of decapitation in battle or as a form of execution, regardless of what the head does afterwards.
The Lost Lenore vs. The Mourning After
- The Lost Lenore is any dead character that a living character can't let go of, especially if the living character has questions about the death or feels responsible in any way. They didn't have to be the living character's partner, but their death is always an important influence on the living character.
- In The Mourning After, one half of an actual couple dies and the widow/widower doesn't start a new relationship, or waits a long time before doing so. This usually indicates their love but they aren't necessarily obsessed with what happened to the dead character (especially if the cause of death was mundane.)
Love Potion vs. Sex Magic
- Love Potion is using magic to make people want to have sex with you.
- Sex Magic is magic powered by or otherwise requiring sexual activity.
Luke, I Am Your Father vs. Luke, You Are My Father
- Luke, I Am Your Father: Two characters who have been part of the narrative early on are discovered to be related.
- Luke, You Are My Father: A new relative, usually one that nobody knew existed, suddenly shows up.
M
Macabre Moth Motif vs. Moth Menace
- A Macabre Moth Motif is a recurring association of moths with evil and/or danger.
- A Moth Menace is a moth that happens to be highly malevolent and/or dangerous.
MacGuffin vs. Plot Coupon
- A MacGuffin drives the plot by being something to pursue or keep away from the bad guys. It does not have to actually be found and in some cases may turn out not to exist at all.
- A Plot Coupon is sought out and "handed in" to resolve resolve/advance the story.
Machine Empathy vs. Technopath
- A person with Machine Empathy has so much experience with a device or a craft that he notices very subtle differences in its behavior.
- The Technopath is a person who can control machines with a physical or mental interface.
Machine Monotone vs. Robo Speak
- Machine Monotone is when robots and AI talk in a flat, emotionless manner. This can range from sounding clearly artificial or being more akin to a stoic human.
- Robo Speak is more about what robots and AI say rather than how it's said, often marked by Stock Phrases like "negatory" or "does not compute". The two tropes frequently overlap whenever Robo Speak is involved.
Made of Iron vs. Super-Toughness
- Made of Iron is when a character is inexplicably durable despite not having a clear durability-boosting power.
- Super-Toughness is an explicit superpower that grants superhuman durability.
Major Injury Underreaction vs. Only a Flesh Wound
- In Major Injury Underreaction a character, usually The Stoic or Stiff Upper Lip, stays calm in the face of a very serious injury, whether they ultimately survive it or not.
- In Only a Flesh Wound the work itself treats an injury to body parts other than the head or torso (usually a limb, sometimes the rear end) as not very serious and shows the character getting over it very quickly.
Man of Wealth and Taste vs. Wicked Cultured
- Man of Wealth and Taste is when being evil doesn't stop a character being well-dressed and fashionable. This usually constitutes of very expensive clothing and possessions, which they can afford (often from their ill-gotten gains).
- Wicked Cultured is when being evil doesn't stop a character being smart and taking an interest in 'fine' subjects like opera, art and academia.
Manchild vs. One of the Kids
- Both are adults who usually behave like children.
- A Manchild fails to grow up emotionally and adapt to life in society, and tends to have some sort of antisocial behaviour.
- Someone who's One of the Kids interacts very often with people noticeably younger and can act their own age, but chooses not to most of the time.
Manly Gay vs. Straight Gay
- Manly Gay is specifically about gay men who are over-the-top in their manliness.
- Straight Gay is a gay character who doesn't have a lot of stereotypical qualities associated with gay culture. They could easily be mistaken for straight if they didn't discuss their sexuality or have a known same-sex partner.
Marriage Before Romance vs. Perfectly Arranged Marriage
- A Perfectly Arranged Marriage is when two characters who are forced into a relationship don't like each other initially but develop romantic feelings before the wedding.
- Marriage Before Romance is the same but after the wedding.
Martial Arts and Crafts vs. Martial Arts for Mundane Purposes
- Martial Arts and Crafts is about a martial arts style derived from a non-combat skill, for example a school of martial arts based on baking.
- Martial Arts for Mundane Purposes is about a martial artist using their martial arts skill for a non-combat purpose, for example a karate master using his wood karate-chopping skills to build houses.
Mary Sue vs. its subtypes
- Mary Sue is the Super-Trope. The exact definition is hard to pin down, but generally speaking, a Mary Sue is an overly-idealized character in a story that exists mainly for the author's Wish-Fulfillment and which the audience can easily see as an Author Avatar. Unless the character is a Canon Sue, the story is assumed to be a Fan Fic.
- An Anti-Sue is a character that's depicted as the polar opposite of typical Sue-ish qualities (extremely ugly, nasty personality, etc.), but is still treated as a Sue by the story.
- A Black Hole Sue is a character that the story warps around in outrageous ways to make him/her much more plot-central than what would normally happen.
- A Canon Sue is a canon character that's written as a Sue. Always overlaps with another Sue type.
- A Copy Cat Sue is when a new character is introduced that is a blatant ripoff of a canon character but is tailored to fit the author's desires.
- A Dream Sue is when a non-Sue character has Sue-like levels of perfection in their dreams.
- An Einstein Sue is a character that is removed from the current crisis to a lengthy degree for one reason or another but can fix the problem when no one else can.
- A Fixer Sue is a character that is used to correct what the author feels was wrong with the canon plot.
- A God-Mode Sue is an extremely overpowered character that breaks Willing Suspension of Disbelief and basically functions as a power fantasy for the author.
- A Jerk Sue constantly exhibits abusive and/or boorish behavior but is never called on it by the rest of the cast, who see the character as idealized in one way or another.
- A Lemon Stu is a lemon character who typically is an unrealistically successful/potent lover, and often can warp his partners' desires to match his and get away scot-free with rapacious behavior.
- Marty Stu is Mary Sue's Spear Counterpart.
- A Mary Sue Classic is the archetypal Sue character, mainly characterized by perfection in everything and excessive adoration or admiration from other characters. It's especially associated with the Purity Sue type.
- A Mary Tzu is The Chessmaster, The Strategist, and/or a military commander whose plans and schemes constantly succeed no matter the odds or cost, to the point of breaking Willing Suspension of Disbelief.
- A Neutrality Sue uses their moral neutrality as an excuse to literally do anything, with no fear of consequences.
- A Parody Sue is a character that's deliberately portrayed as a Sue in order to make fun of and/or deconstruct the trope.
- A Possession Sue is a canon character that's rewritten to match how the author thinks the character should have been portrayed.
- A Purity Sue is defined by Incorruptible Pure Pureness, is loved by everyone because of this to an unrealistic degree, and saturates the plot with positivity.
- A Relationship Sue is a character written specifically to create a romantic pairing with another character.
- A Sympathetic Sue is an unrealistically angsty character who draws sympathy from every character regardless of personality and never addresses their angst in a meaningful way.
- A 30-Sue Pileup happens when multiple characters are deliberately written as Sues of one type or another or can be interpreted as such.
- A Villain Sue takes the general Wish-Fulfillment aspects of a Mary Sue and applies them to an evil character, allowing him/her to run roughshod over heroic characters in unrealistic ways.
May–December Romance vs. December–December Romance vs. Mayfly–December Romance
- A May–December Romance is a romantic relationship between adults with a significant age gap between them.note
- A December–December Romance is a romantic relationship between elderly characters.
- A Mayfly–December Romance is a romantic relationship where one of the characters has an unnaturally long lifespan; the story at least in part focuses on this character watching their partner(s) grow old and die.
Meanwhile, in the Future… vs. Portal to the Past vs. San Dimas Time
- A Portal to the Past is a permanent portal linking two different times together. Most likely, one hour on one side of the portal equals one hour on the other side, but dilations are possible.
- In San Dimas Time, the characters behave as if spending an hour in another time means that they will have to return to the point in time that is one hour after when they left. This is not explained or reflected upon, and is probably false.
- Meanwhile, in the Future… is when the narrator treats two different plot threads in different times as if they were happening simultaneously, despite the fact that the plot thread in the past is going to be resolved long before the thread in the future starts (using chronological time).
Menacing Stroll vs. Ominous Walk vs. Team Power Walk vs. The Slow Walk vs. Unflinching Walk
- An Ominous Walk is used to intimidate; showing that one can take their time in beating down the opponent.
- The Slow Walk is used before a thorough beatdown by the one doing the walking begins.
- A Team Power Walk is used to show off the badass-ness of a team, usually the heroes.
- The Menacing Stroll demonstrates the badass-ness of an individual by their confidence in the midst of looming danger.
- The Unflinching Walk can be used with any of the above if there's ongoing carnage during the walk.
Mighty Whitey vs. White Man's Burden
- Mighty Whitey is when a Caucasian hero encounters a foreign culture, and soon becomes the most skilled member of the group.
- White Man's Burden is a plot where a Caucasian Everyman meets an underprivileged non-white character, then selflessly works to improve that person's lot in life.
Mile-Long Ship vs. Planet Spaceship vs. Starship Luxurious vs. Unnecessarily Large Vessel
- A Mile-Long Ship is a ship big enough for its size to be given in units usually reserved for geography (mainly miles or kilometers).
- A Planet Spaceship is when your Mile-Long Ship is the size of a planet or small moon. (Note: Earth's moon, Luna, is a very large moon.)
- A Starship Luxurious is a ship whose interior spaces are unnecessarily spacious.
- An Unnecessarily Large Vessel is a ship that is way bigger than it needs to be.
Min-Maxing vs. One Stat to Rule Them All
- One Stat to Rule Them All is where one statistic in a game is substantially more powerful than others.
- Min-Maxing is the exploitation of the above trope; where stats can be changed, players will favor raising any One Stat to Rule Them All.
Mirror World vs. Remixed Level
- A Mirror World is a video game level taking place in an alternate universe or time period, meant to show contrast in setting. (e.g. Citopolis is vistied in both a good and bad future.)
- A Remixed Level is a video game level that has been changed since you last visited, generally leaning on gameplay changes. (e.g. Citopolis is visited during the summer, then again during a blizzard.)
Misapplied Phlebotinum vs. Mundane Utility vs. Not the Intended Use vs. Power Perversion Potential
- Misapplied Phlebotinum is when a superhuman ability or special item could be used to solve a multitude of problems, but is only ever used for one thing (or a small number of things), usually for Plot reasons.
- Mundane Utility is when a character uses superhuman abilities or special items to make everyday jobs easier, or for new forms of basic amusement.
- Not the Intended Use is when players start using elements of a game (video game or otherwise) to achieve things do things the developers never meant for you to do with them.
- Power Perversion Potential is when a character uses superhuman abilities or special items specifically to enhance their sex lives, be a pervert or other similar functions.
Misblamed vs. Never My Fault
- A Misblamed situation is any one where the wrong person is blamed; they may not be completely innocent of what they're blamed for, but are also not solely responsible. They're blamed for other reasons, sometimes because they have a bad reputation and sometimes because they're simply the most visible person to blame.
- Never My Fault is a personality trait; the person never believes they are to blame for anything even when they clearly are, and finds other people to deflect the blame on or at least says it's nobody's fault.
Mister Big vs. The Napoleon
- Mister Big is a short person who is in charge of a criminal mob or other antagonistic group. They're usually also a Napoleon, but may have a different personality.
- The Napoleon is a short person who's egotistical, angry or mean, usually partly because of being short, or being mistreated for being short. They don't have to have any actual power.
Morality Chain vs. Morality Pet
- A Morality Chain is someone special to the Blood Knight whose strict moral creed is the only thing keeping them from slaughtering everybody. Usually used for the good guys' side.
- A Morality Pet is someone special to a Jerkass or Blood Knight who presents the opportunity to show some leeway towards heroism or at least peaceful co-existence with heroes and neutrals (and the audience may like the character more). Usually used for the bad guys' side.
Morph Weapon vs. Shapeshifter Weapon
- A Morph Weapon is one that changes its shape at will.
- A Shapeshifter Weapon is a Morph Weapon that's also part of its user's body.
Morton's Fork vs. Sadistic Choice
- A Morton's Fork is a choice in which every option presented leads to the same, or at the very least a near-identical unwanted outcome.
- A Sadistic Choice is a Moral Dilemma in which a character is forced to choose between two or more equally bad, but distinctly different options.
Mundane Wish vs. Wasteful Wishing
- Mundane Wish is when a character is given a limited number of wishes, and the wisher deliberately chooses something mundane or simple of his own free will. This may occur because the wisher is an honest person who doesn't want or need anything grandiose, or he is Genre Savvy enough to counteract the backfire potential of a literal or Jerkass Genie.
- Wasteful Wishing is when a character is given a limited number of wishes, but wastes them on something completely frivolous or silly even though he'd prefer something more grandiose. This usually occurs because the person making the wish was goofing around or panicked.
Mundanger vs. Mundangerous vs. Weaksauce Weakness
- In Mundanger, characters who are normally dealing with the supernatural are suddenly dealing with an enemy or obstacle that isn't. If an Occult Detective faces a normal Serial Killer, it's Mundanger.
- In Mundangerous, something that isn't supernatural or superpowered is capable of inflicting damage on someone that is. However, it may be something that is still a credible threat, like an accident or a gunshot.
- Someone with a Weaksauce Weakness is even more unfortunate: a common, lowly object that would not hurt an ordinary person is able to hurt him, usually because of some vaguely-explained side effect of his powerset.
Murder Is the Best Solution vs. Violence is the Only Option
- Murder Is the Best Solution is when a problem is solved with murder (or any kind of violence) because the problem solver loves violence and doesn't want to use a more peaceful solution.
- Violence is the Only Option is when a problem is solved with violence (including murder) because a peaceful solution doesn't work or doesn't exist.
- Both of these can lead to the Hard Truth Aesop that Violence Really Is the Answer, which states that violence can solve problems.
My Nayme Is vs. Spell My Name With An S
- My Nayme Is deals with names that are intentionally spelled in an unusual fashion.
- Spell My Name With An S involves in-canon inconsistency or fandom disputes about how a character's name is spelled, often due to Romanisation issues but sometimes simply because it isn't included in the work's credits or publicity.
My Significance Sense Is Tingling vs. Spider-Sense vs. A Storm Is Coming
- My Significance Sense Is Tingling indicates awareness that some event with major repercussions has happened.
- Spider-Sense warns of danger that is about to strike.
- A Storm Is Coming is a sense that some major cataclysm is on the way, but not right here and now.
N
Naïve Newcomer vs. Logical Latecomer
- Naïve Newcomer is a character new to the work's setting and asks questions about it, which are answered for both their and the audience's benefit, as the audience is equally unfamiliar with the world and most likely had the same questions. Their questions serve as a way of working important exposition and worldbuilding naturally into character dialogue, as an antithesis to As You Know. The Newcomer is usually the protagonist and thus introduced in the work's first installment.
- Logical Latecomer is a character new to the work's setting and asks questions about it, which go unanswered because the audience is already familiar with the world and the general status quo. Their questions function more as observations of elements that other characters (and the audience) have already gotten used to, learned to ignore, or joke about themselves. The Latecomer is more often than not a supporting character or Sixth Ranger introduced in a later installment.
Narnia Time vs. Year Outside, Hour Inside vs. Year Inside, Hour Outside
- Narnia Time is when the scale of time flux between two dimensions is inconsistent and random.
- Year Outside, Hour Inside is when the time in another dimension run slower.
- Year Inside, Hour Outside is when the time in another dimension run faster.
Narrow Parody vs. Shallow Parody
- A Narrow Parody parodies really recent things (in extreme cases, the parody's target might not have been even released yet).
- A Shallow Parody is when the writers clearly didn't know/understand the source material and wind up with the film equivalent of Cowboy BeBop at His Computer.
Negative Continuity vs. Reset Button vs. Snap Back vs. Status Quo Is God
- With Negative Continuity, the status quo does change quite a bit, but it has absolutely no effect on further stories.
- Reset Button is when a story shows a lot of stuff changing, and the status quo could have been permanently disrupted, but near the end, everything goes back to normal for the next installment.
- Snap Back is when the status quo is seemingly changed for a good while or permanently, yet having those changes undone by the next installment without a logical explanation.
- Status Quo Is God refers to the tendency of series to avoid doing anything that would cause the status quo to change, or if it does change, to undo those changes as quickly as possible.
Never Given a Name vs. No Name Given
- A character who was Never Given a Name literally was not named by their parent/creator in-universe. Acquiring a name or title to call themselves is often part of the story.
- A character with No Name Given just doesn't have their name revealed to the audience; it can usually be assumed that they have one.
Never Grew Up vs. Not Growing Up Sucks vs. Not Allowed to Grow Up
- A character who Never Grew Up makes a conscious choice to remain a child indefinitely.
- Not Growing Up Sucks is when that choice is taken away from the character. A Blessed with Suck situation at best.
- A character who's Not Allowed to Grow Up doesn't age due to author fiat or Executive Meddling.
Never My Fault vs. The Unapologetic
- Never My Fault is when a character never takes responsibility for their wrongdoing and believes, or claims, that said wrongs were actually another person's fault.
- The Unapologetic doesn't try to pass the blame; they know the problem was their fault, but aren't sorry for it for some reason, usually their ego or a belief that they had a good reason for doing it.
Never Say "Die" vs. Nobody Can Die
- In Never Say "Die", the words "die" and "kill" are never used, even if it's possible for characters to die.
- In Nobody Can Die, death never actually happens in the work, whether because of explicit immortality or write-arounds like "the firefighters were able to evacuate the building before the Monster of the Week destroyed it."
Nietzsche Wannabe vs. Übermensch
- An Übermensch is someone who has discarded conventional moral and social restraints and often seeks to elevate himself over humanity or make a better world. Nietzsche's actual philosophy.
- A Nietzsche Wannabe is someone who takes "life is meaningless" to its ultimate extreme, becoming nihilistic and/or hedonistic and often engaging in wanton destruction to prove his point. The Theme Park Version of Nietzsche's philosophy.
No One Could Survive That! vs. Not Quite Dead vs. Staying Alive
- No One Could Survive That! is when a character is assumed to be dead, but without adequate proof.
- Not Quite Dead is when that character is revealed to have survived the incident, often with a good explanation.
- Staying Alive is when the character dies beyond the shadow of a doubt, and simply returns later, often without a good explanation.
No "Police" Option vs. Police Are Useless
- Police Are Useless is when the police are unhelpful due to disinterest, incompetence, or corruption.
- No "Police" Option is when the police would help, but due process gets in the way.
No Saving Throw vs. Unblockable Attack:
- No Saving Throw is when mystical or supernatural effects cannot be defended against.
- Unblockable Attack is when an attack is too strong to defend against if it lands.
Not Himself vs. O.O.C. Is Serious Business vs. Out-of-Character Alert vs. Out-of-Character Moment
They all act out of character, but unlike Character Derailment, they all have reasons to occur.- Not Himself is when a character acts differently to show that there's something wrong with the character him/herself.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business is when a character acts differently to show that there's something wrong with the situation.
- Out-of-Character Alert is when a character deliberately acts differently than usual to alert his close people that something is wrong.
- Out-of-Character Moment is when acting out of character is a writing crutch, used so the plot can advance (or stall). Related to the "Behavior Ball" tropes such as Villain Ball or Idiot Ball.
Not in My Contract vs. Not What I Signed on For
- Not in My Contract is when a character refuses to do some task that falls outside his stated job description. It is usually an expression of simple laziness or a ploy to demand additional compensation.
- Not What I Signed on For is when a character raises an objection after learning that the job or situation is not as originally advertised. It is often motivated by ethical qualms about the newly revealed real mission.
Not Rare Over There vs. Worthless Yellow Rocks
- Not Rare Over There focuses primarily on an imbalance of rarity; an item that Bob spends a whole lot of time, money and/or effort trying to obtain in Troperville is extremely easy to find in nearby Troperia.
- Worthless Yellow Rocks focuses on an imbalance of value; something that one culture sees as incredibly valuable is seen by another as worthless. This can, naturally, be a result of the "worthless yellow rock" being common in the area that sees it that way, but some examples of Worthless Yellow Rocks are for other reasons, e.g. a culture doesn't use currency, or a valuable resource is also a species' Weaksauce Weakness.
Notzilla vs. Rent-a-Zilla
- A Notzilla is a character or creature based on Godzilla.
- A Rent-a-Zilla is a scene where a Kaiju attacks a city in a work that's not about Kaiju. It doesn't have to actually resemble Godzilla.
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Offscreen Villain Dark Matter vs. Offstage Villainy
- Offscreen Villain Dark Matter is about the villain having more abilities or resources than are seen directly; it's a counterpart to Unlikely Spare or Unexplained Recovery where they can come back near-instantly no matter what the heroes did to them or their tools in the previous episode.
- Offstage Villainy is about the work saying or implying the villain is guilty of more evil acts than those it shows directly; e.g. a villain has murdered people, but we don't see the details.
One-Mario Limit vs. One-Steve Limit
- One-Mario Limit is when a name becomes so famous, any other characters with that same name will bring to mind that character.
- One-Steve Limit is when no two characters in a series have similar-sounding names.
One-Steve Limit vs. Planet of Steves
- One-Steve Limit is about the fact that characters in the same work rarely have the same name, even names that are common like "Steve," unless it's a plot point. When two characters in one work do have the same name, it might be a Significant Name Overlap, unless of course it's not significant, in which case it's probably just something that happened.
- A Planet of Steves is the opposite of a One-Steve Limit: everyone has the same name, or everything is referred to by the same word.
One-Winged Angel vs. Sequential Boss vs. Turns Red
- Sequential Boss is when a boss dramatically changes form, and can usually be regarded as a separate Boss Battle.
- One-Winged Angel is a special type of Sequential Boss that takes a godlike form, usually reserved for the Big Bad.
- Turns Red is when a boss or enemy simply becomes more aggressive/difficult when it runs low on health or numbers, often with a visual cue such as a color change.
Only Idiots May Pass vs. Stupidity Is the Only Option vs. Violation of Common Sense
- Only Idiots May Pass is where the game requires the player to perform an erroneous or unnecessary action despite a better option that should be available, usually because the player isn't expected to use the better option yet.
- Stupidity Is the Only Option is where the game requires the player to perform a visibly stupid, immoral or illogical action, and then punishes the player for doing it.
- Violation of Common Sense is where the game requires the player to perform a visibly stupid, immoral or illogical action, and then rewards the player for doing it.
Only Smart People May Pass vs. Only the Knowledgable May Pass
- In Only Smart People May Pass, a character needs to solve a riddle or puzzle to advance—this can be something you can figure out on your own like a math problem or Riddle Me This.
- In Only the Knowledgable May Pass, you have to know either a password or the answer to a factual question. There's obviously some overlap, but the "knowledge" required to pass can be handed to you/your character without any need to use brain power.
Optional Boss vs. Skippable Boss vs. Superboss vs. True Final Boss
- An Optional Boss is any boss that is typically not fought, but can be sought out should the player wish to fight them.
- A Skippable Boss is fought on the game's most intuitive path(s), but can be deliberately avoided if the player wishes to do so.
- A Superboss is a secret unlockable boss in a game that has little or no relevance to the game's plot and only gives a Bragging Rights Reward or 100% Completion.
- A True Final Boss is a secret unlockable boss in a game that provides the real climax to the plot and often is the way to the Golden Ending.
Optional Sexual Encounter vs. Relationship Values vs. Romance Sidequest
- These are various approaches to relationships between the Player Character and the NPCs in Video Games. They often overlap.
- Optional Sexual Encounter is a scene where the Player Character gets laid, without further effects on gameplay and story.
- Relationship Values indicate how well-liked you are and sometimes give you gameplay bonuses or penalties. Their effects on the story are often not obvious, however.
- Romance Sidequest is an actual subplot with Character Development in it.
Orgasmic Combat vs. Sex Is Violence
- Orgasmic Combat is when a combat scene begins to sound more like something else.
- Sex Is Violence is when one or more of the combatants is actually sexually aroused by the fight.
The Other Darrin vs. The Other Marty vs. The Nth Doctor
- The Other Darrin is when a character has their actor replaced at some point with no in-universe explanation and footage featuring both actors as the character shows up in the final product.
- The Other Marty is when a character has their actor replaced during production and all the footage of the previous actor is redone with the new actor.
- The Nth Doctor is when a character has their actor replaced and an in-universe reason is given for the character's sudden change of appearance.
Our Vampires Are Different vs. Vampire Variety Pack vs. Your Vampires Suck
- Our Vampires Are Different is when a homogeneous group of vampires in one work takes the time to explain what details other works portraying vampires "got wrong."
- Vampire Variety Pack is when a work has a heterogeneous group of vampires.
- Your Vampires Suck is like Our Vampires Are Different with an added layer of mocking.
Out with a Bang vs. Sex Signals Death
- Out with a Bang: A character dies while participating in sexual intercourse, either because of a heart disorder or other bodily failure, or because they're killed by their partner.
- Sex Signals Death: A character participates in sexual intercourse and is subsequently shot to the top of the Sorting Algorithm of Mortality.
Overly Long Gag vs. Overused Running Gag
- Overly Long Gag is one gag, the humor of which derives from lasting far longer than it ought to until it stops being stupid and starts being funny again.
- Overused Running Gag is when the writer(s) lampshade that a Running Gag has appeared so often that its humor value has diminished — they usually retire it at this point.
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Palette Swap vs. Underground Monkey
- A Palette Swap is when a new character in a video game is created by simply changing the color palette of an existing character.
- Underground Monkeys are new characters that expand a character type or family by making slight changes to a base character's stats and/or appearance, usually noted by adding something descriptive to the existing character's name.
- The color change from Mario to Luigi in the original Super Mario Bros. is an iconic example of a Palette Swap. The various Slimes in the Dragon Quest games are an iconic example of Underground Monkeys.
Parenthetical Swearing vs. Unusual Euphemism
- Parenthetical Swearing is when a character says a phrase that, taken out of context and without inflection, would come off as a completely ordinary, sensible, and inoffensive statement, but its context and inflection makes it sound like the speaker is swearing. The speaker will almost always be angry or upset.
- Unusual Euphemism is when a character says a word or phrase that is meant to replace a swear or "adult" topic, which often makes no sense in context. The speaker need not be angry or upset for an Unusual Euphemism.
Parodied Trope vs. Played for Laughs
- The Parodied Trope spoofs the concept of the trope. You can tell what it's an analogue of, but it's not quite the same form.
- A trope that is Played for Laughs carries out the way it normally does, but the way it's presented and/or things that result from it are engineered to be funny/more funny instead of its 'normal' usage.
Plan B Resolution vs. Time for Plan B
- Plan B Resolution: The first plan goes awry and the heroes are forced to devise a new plan on the spot.
- Time for Plan B: The heroes already come prepared with a backup plan(s) and may even discuss it.
Platonic Life-Partners vs. Like Brother and Sister vs. Better as Friends vs. Just Friends
- Platonic Life-Partners are two people who are as close as any married couple, but share no romantic involvement. Often the thought never really crosses their minds.
- Like Brother and Sister is like the above, but the relationship is more sibling-like and thoughts of romance are put aside because it would feel too weird.
- Better as Friends is when the two actually have tried dating, but preferred their non-romantic relationship.
- Just Friends is when any of the above actually do start dating (with the chance that things could loop back around to any of the above tropes).
Player Punch vs. What the Hell, Player? vs. You Bastard!
- Player Punch is not necessarily a negative trope, but a way of giving the player a personal sense of investment in and attachment to the events of the game. Now the player wants the villain go down or this peril to be averted personally. However, it can be used to make the player feel like they personally did something they shouldn't - in that case, it is generally subtle and the player is left to encounter it themselves.
- What the Hell, Player? is when the game allows the player to do needlessly cruel things, but doesn't make them mandatory. It then calls you out, either via. the characters or directly, for taking the gratuitously vicious way of doing things.
- You Bastard! applies to non-interactive forms of media as well. In this case, the work acknowledges that messed-up things are happening in it - and then calls the reader out for enjoying what they're seeing and continuing to buy the series.
Plot Tailored to the Party vs. This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman
- A Plot Tailored to the Party is when characters are faced with a problem that neatly provides one task for each member's special skills.
- This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman is when a plot seems written just to accommodate the restrictive powers of an individual team member.
Politically-Active Princess vs. Pretty Princess Powerhouse vs. Rebellious Princess vs. Tomboy Princess
- A Politically-Active Princess is a princess who takes some part in the governing of her country, although she isn't actually the ruler.
- A Pretty Princess Powerhouse is a princess who looks delicate, but will be kicking your ass. She may be rebellious, loyal, or somewhere in between.
- A Rebellious Princess is one who argues against what her parents want for her, typically an Arranged Marriage.
- A Tomboy Princess is a princess who happens to be a Tomboy. Overlap with any of the above is possible, but the defining trait is her enjoyment of boyish activities over (or in addition to) girlish ones, not her rebelling or any ability to actually fight.
Post-Final Boss vs. Post-Climax Confrontation
- Post-Climax Confrontation is a story structure where any confrontation the hero might face another threat/opposition after the final threat has been neutralized, and serves only as closure or cleaning up loose ends.
- Post-Final Boss is the subtrope of the above, when it takes form as a boss after the final boss, that serves only as a closure and is often easier to beat.
The Power of Cheese vs. Too Incompetent to Operate a Blanket
- The Power of Cheese is the people in a commercial doing stupid, dangerous or crazy things because the product is just that good.
- Too Incompetent to Operate a Blanket is when the ad attempts to convince the audience that they need the product by showing people having severe difficulty doing the task "the old way"...which usually involves something as simple as a colander, a pair of scissors, or a blanket.
The Power of Cheese vs. Product as Superhero
- The Power of Cheese refers to advertising showing that wanting the product can cause (or sometimes stop) insane situations. The product is a MacGuffin, not a character.
- In Product as Superhero, the product is directly anthropomorphized. Household and body cleaning products are most prone to this, as germs and dirt make convenient "villains" for the superheroic product to fight.
Pretentious Pronunciation vs. Psmith Psyndrome vs. You Say Tomato
- Pretentious Pronunciation is about someone wanting their name to be pronounced differently from how it reads, usually because it shares a spelling with an embarrassing or silly word.
- Psmith Psyndrome is about someone somehow hearing that their name is spelled wrong. If Alice says, "Hi Bob" and Bob says "That's Bobb", it's Psmith Psyndrome.
- You Say Tomato is about people disagreeing on the pronunciation of a common word. I.E. Alice says "to-MAY-to" and Bob says "to-MAH-to".
The Psycho Rangers vs. Quirky Miniboss Squad
- The Psycho Rangers are a collective Evil Counterpart to the heroes.
- A Quirky Miniboss Squad is a group of footsoldiers or lieutenants to the Big Bad who can include The Dragon as a leader, but in general are just a collection of skilled warriors to challenge the heroes. Their personality quirks don't necessarily dictate their defining role in the group.
Psycho Supporter vs. Yandere
- The Psycho Supporter supports another character's opinions and goals because he or she is insane.
- The Yandere is someone who goes Ax-Crazy over someone they love, or loves because he or she is insane — the clingy jealous person gone violent, if you will.
- Note that the two tropes may not be mutually exclusive.
Psychotic Smirk vs. Slasher Smile
- A Psychotic Smirk is a small smile that is usually done with only one side of the mouth, shows few or no teeth, and gives the character an air of smug superiority.
- A Slasher Smile is a wide, leering grin that shows most or all of the character's teeth and gives them an overtly malicious/insane appearance, or enhances what's already there.
Pun vs. Stealth Pun
- Pun: Puns in general.
- Stealth Pun: A pun that isn't explicitly said; you have to put it together yourself.
Puppy Love vs. Toy Ship
- Puppy Love is when two pre-adolescent characters are in a romantic-type relationship, in-universe.
- Toy Ship is when two pre-adolescent characters are placed in a romantic-type relationship by the fandom.
Put Them All Out of My Misery vs. Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds
- Put Them All Out of My Misery is when a character decides that the world has caused them too much pain and/or that the world itself is too inherently sick/evil to be saved or fixed, and thus decides that it needs to be destroyed. The key factor is that it is a calculated decision.
- Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds is when a character snaps in response to some kind of trauma or suffering and lashes out, usually with superpowers, although it can also be done with technology or weaponry. The key factor here is that it is an emotional outburst.
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Redemption Rejection vs. Reformed, but Rejected
- Redemption Rejection is when the villain sees the possibility for redemption, but won't do it. In this case, it's the bad guy who rejects the notion.
- Reformed, but Rejected is when the villain does go through with redemption and means it, but other characters won't welcome them. Even though they're trying to change, the other characters are too suspicious/resentful/etc. to let them in.
Redundant Parody vs. Spoofing Spoofiness vs. Spoofed the Ironic Film Seriously
- Redundant Parody is about an element in a work. The creator of a parody thinks they've made a clever joke about the work they're spoofing when the work they're spoofing already had that element. The tone of the original work is irrelevant; it may be serious or funny.
- Spoofing Spoofiness is more about the tone of both works overall. It's when a work that was already a parody has a parody made of it.
- Spoofed the Ironic Film Seriously is when you unintentionally Spoof Spoofiness by, well, not realizing the ironic or deconstructive nature your target already has.
Red Shirt vs. Mauve Shirt vs. Sacrificial Lamb vs. Sacrificial Lion
- They're all Characters as Device tropes and various grades of Developing Doomed Characters.
- Red Shirt is nameless guy #13 who dies because they need to kill someone off when they send an away team to the Death World to establish its Death Worldyness.
- Mauve Shirt is when we learn that the guy is named Bob Bobberson and that he's married and has kids, and maybe he survives a mission or two first.
- Sacrificial Lamb is when Bob spends at least some time being set up like they're a main character, say the heroes Muggle Best Friend.
- Sacrificial Lion is an important character with lots of character development in order to make the death more meaningful.
Refitted for Sequel vs. Saved for the Sequel
- Refitted for Sequel is any element that was supposed to be put in one installment but, for various reasons, end up in its sequel instead. Usually involves development-related stuff, and thus trivia.
- Saved for the Sequel is specifically a plot point that was supposed to be put in one installment but, for various reasons, end up in its sequel instead. This may be intentional on part of the story (i.e to build up suspense), or not (which makes this overlap with the above).
Reset Button vs. Snapback
- Reset Button is when a plot point is "reset" onscreen during the course of the story (usually at the end); by the time it's done it's as if that event never happened.
- Snapback is when a plot point is resolved offscreen; by the time the next episode begins or the story returns to the characters, everything is back to normal.
The Rest Shall Pass vs. You Shall Not Pass!
- Both tropes involve a single member of a party takes on an opponent alone so that the rest of the party can continue on their journey. They differ in the circumstances where the group encounters said opponent.
- The Rest Shall Pass is when the opponent is in the group's path.
- You Shall Not Pass! is when the opponent is pursuing the group.
Ret-Gone vs. Unperson
- Both of these tropes involve the functional destruction of a person's history; the difference lies in the completeness of this event.
- A Ret-Gone simply erases the character from history. They don't exist, they never existed, and nothing they did ever happened in the first place.
- Being Unpersoned involves the destruction or alteration of all records, sometimes up to and including memory alteration, but the person still existed — or perhaps exists — and there may be evidence of this if you're persistent enough.
Rousing Speech vs. He's Back! vs. Heroic Resolve vs. "No More Holding Back" Speech vs. Shut Up, Hannibal!
- Rousing Speech is a speech to the troops to renew their faith in the group's ideals and inspire them to overcome overwhelming odds.
- He's Back! is when a hero overcomes a personal obstacle and rejoins the fight.
- Heroic Resolve is linked with The Determinator; the goal is so noble and righteous that the hero can't simply stop and give up.
- A "No More Holding Back" Speech is when the hero gives a self-empowering speech that allows them to accept their personal flaws while unlocking their true potential.
- Shut Up, Hannibal! is what the hero says to ignore a Breaking Speech from anyone.
