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Well, he is now. (Trope Namer will no longer be an example.): I Am Not Shazam

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Deadlock Clock: Apr 23rd 2012 at 11:59:00 PM
Zennistrad from The Multiverse Since: Jul, 2011 Relationship Status: I don't mind being locked in this eternal maze!
#1: Jan 31st 2012 at 8:35:33 AM

DC's Captain Marvel character is having his name officially changed to Shazam.

This means that the Trope Namer will no longer be an example of the trope. That's kind of a problem, don't you think? Should we do a rename?

(Note: This is not a thread for discussing your thoughts on DC's decision, this is entirely for the discussion of the relevance to the trope name.)

UncloudedTJ Since: Oct, 2010 Relationship Status: watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
#2: Jan 31st 2012 at 8:47:42 AM

According to the article this was tried before back in 2006. Perhaps we should shelve this until we see if this attempt to change the name will be successful or not.

Unclouded TJ: Taking Bunny-Ears Lawyer too literally.
bwburke94 Friends forevermore from uǝʌɐǝɥ Since: May, 2014 Relationship Status: RelationshipOutOfBoundsException: 1
Friends forevermore
#3: Jan 31st 2012 at 9:24:13 AM

Well, people unfamiliar with Captain Marvel wouldn't get the reference in the trope name even before then. Has any rename been proposed in the past for this?

I had a dog-themed avatar before it was cool.
agentjohnbishop Gritty-ish Since: Oct, 2011
Gritty-ish
#4: Jan 31st 2012 at 11:34:29 AM

Why not go classic and simply call it, I Am Not Frankenstein ?

SeanMurrayI Since: Jan, 2010
#5: Jan 31st 2012 at 11:39:25 AM

[up]You know, as nobody makes a fuss about "No Trope Namers" or any of that nonsense, I really like that one.

Clarste One Winged Egret Since: Jun, 2009 Relationship Status: Non-Canon
One Winged Egret
#6: Jan 31st 2012 at 1:10:32 PM

Doesn't really work because it's hard to imagine "the creature" talking so coherently when visualized as the Monster Mash version where people normally get the misunderstanding from in the first place. Honestly, the phrase makes me think of the scientist saying that which is just weird.

Or is this just me?

edited 31st Jan '12 1:10:48 PM by Clarste

crazysamaritan NaNo 4328 / 50,000 from Lupin III Since: Apr, 2010
NaNo 4328 / 50,000
#7: Jan 31st 2012 at 1:23:13 PM

Well, I don't see that. Perhaps because when I see the creature-expies, it acts less like Lurch (addams family) and more like Igor (Discworld).

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
Raso Cure Candy Since: Jul, 2009
Cure Candy
#8: Jan 31st 2012 at 1:31:14 PM

I could see some Mad Scientist being compared to the original then saying "he is not Frankenstein" or such

Sparkling and glittering! Jan-Ken-Pon!
rodneyAnonymous Sophisticated as Hell from empty space Since: Aug, 2010
#9: Jan 31st 2012 at 2:11:58 PM

Me Not Frankenstein?

Becky: Who are you? The Mysterious Stranger: An angel. Huck: What's your name? The Mysterious Stranger: Satan.
ccoa Ravenous Sophovore from the Sleeping Giant Since: Jan, 2001
Ravenous Sophovore
#10: Jan 31st 2012 at 2:13:54 PM

The Monster Is Not Frankenstein. Then it's not dialog, too.

Waiting on a TRS slot? Finishing off one of these cleaning efforts will usually open one up.
Treblain Not An Avatar Since: Nov, 2012
Not An Avatar
#11: Jan 31st 2012 at 2:43:59 PM

The rename of the character is not a problem. The character was an example of the trope for a long, long time, and the rename cannot retcon the reality of that. If anything, the fact that the name is being changed is evidence of the trope in effect.

If someone wants to argue for a rename on the grounds that it's a bad name for the trope, go ahead.

edited 31st Jan '12 2:45:36 PM by Treblain

We're not just men of science, we're men of TROPE!
Cider The Final ECW Champion from Not New York Since: May, 2009 Relationship Status: They can't hide forever. We've got satellites.
The Final ECW Champion
#12: Jan 31st 2012 at 3:04:13 PM

Frankenstein was highly intelligent, where are you getting this "not working" thought from.the monster was pretty smart himself, he would have said "I am not Frankenstein"

Also "classic" as if to suggest Captain Marvel is something new? Keep Shazam for now, if DC's change manages to stick then you can change it to Frankenstein.

Modified Ura-nage, Torture Rack
DragonQuestZ The Other Troper from Somewhere in California Since: Jan, 2001
The Other Troper
#13: Jan 31st 2012 at 3:21:45 PM

I'd rather change it more on being a reference that not everyone will get.

And Reverse Shazam is getting a rename right now for similar reasons.

edited 31st Jan '12 3:22:01 PM by DragonQuestZ

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
rodneyAnonymous Sophisticated as Hell from empty space Since: Aug, 2010
#14: Jan 31st 2012 at 3:23:42 PM

this space intentionally left blank

edited 31st Jan '12 3:24:23 PM by rodneyAnonymous

Becky: Who are you? The Mysterious Stranger: An angel. Huck: What's your name? The Mysterious Stranger: Satan.
TheDarkEricDraven Since: Dec, 2010
#15: Jan 31st 2012 at 4:25:45 PM

"My name is Twilight and I am a Dracula"? Or, since Reverse Shazam is also getting a rename, maybe "I am not Zelda"?

edited 31st Jan '12 4:26:46 PM by TheDarkEricDraven

agentjohnbishop Gritty-ish Since: Oct, 2011
Gritty-ish
#16: Jan 31st 2012 at 10:19:50 PM

I can't really respond to every point about the Frankenstein idea, but I maintain it's the most elegant example. Everybody always gets it wrong, it fits no matter how you phrase it, and it's not in danger of becoming outdated or too myopic.

DoktorvonEurotrash Welcome, traveller, welcome to Omsk Since: Jan, 2001
Welcome, traveller, welcome to Omsk
#17: Feb 1st 2012 at 1:29:35 AM

I support The Monster Is Not Frankenstein. I never read Captain Marvel's comic and took a while to understand the current trope name.

It does not matter who I am. What matters is, who will you become? - motto of Omsk Bird
DragonQuestZ The Other Troper from Somewhere in California Since: Jan, 2001
The Other Troper
#18: Feb 1st 2012 at 1:38:59 AM

The thing is, it makes it seem like confusing a character's name for another character, not the show title.

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
rodneyAnonymous Sophisticated as Hell from empty space Since: Aug, 2010
#19: Feb 1st 2012 at 1:42:11 AM

And Frankenstein is a title. Bride of, Return of, Curse of...

Becky: Who are you? The Mysterious Stranger: An angel. Huck: What's your name? The Mysterious Stranger: Satan.
DoktorvonEurotrash Welcome, traveller, welcome to Omsk Since: Jan, 2001
Welcome, traveller, welcome to Omsk
#20: Feb 1st 2012 at 4:27:21 AM

No, I think Dragon Quest Z has a point. I may have been thinking about another trope about mixing up names.

It does not matter who I am. What matters is, who will you become? - motto of Omsk Bird
crazysamaritan NaNo 4328 / 50,000 from Lupin III Since: Apr, 2010
NaNo 4328 / 50,000
#21: Feb 1st 2012 at 4:30:47 AM

^^^ and the original name could have been confused 4 when a character name is mistaken for their catch phrase.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
Martello Hammer of the Pervs from Black River, NY Since: Jan, 2001
Hammer of the Pervs
#22: Feb 1st 2012 at 6:41:19 AM

I have no problem with the current title, and I think the recent DC change actually makes it a stronger title, a point that's already been made. However, I wouldn't be against changing it to I Am Not Frankenstein or something along those lines.

"Did anybody invent this stuff on purpose?" - Phillip Marlowe on tequila, Finger Man by Raymond Chandler.
rodneyAnonymous Sophisticated as Hell from empty space Since: Aug, 2010
#23: Feb 1st 2012 at 11:29:23 AM

People think the title of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein refers to the monster, for some reason someone thought Bride of Frankenstein was a good name for a movie about Frankenstein making a mate for the monster, etc. People confuse the name for the creature in other ways, also. It doesn't just fit, it's the Ur-Example.

Becky: Who are you? The Mysterious Stranger: An angel. Huck: What's your name? The Mysterious Stranger: Satan.
Heatth from Brasil Since: Jul, 2009 Relationship Status: In Spades with myself
#24: Feb 1st 2012 at 5:47:42 PM

The problem about Frankenstein, is that the monster is now a Public Domain Character. And his story have been told multiple times, many of them in which his name is Frankenstein. I mean, we are suggesting to rename the trope because the Trope Namer is not an example anymore (which will chance in near future, anyway), but the mosnter and Frankenstein are not an example either in multiple works. It is just as counter-intuitive, if not more so.

edited 2nd Feb '12 12:30:29 PM by Heatth

Martello Hammer of the Pervs from Black River, NY Since: Jan, 2001
Hammer of the Pervs
#25: Feb 2nd 2012 at 12:29:47 PM

No, it makes it even more intuitive. The fact that Frankenstein's Monster is sometimes actually named Frankenstein is an example of the trope transcending just simple "got the name wrong."

"Did anybody invent this stuff on purpose?" - Phillip Marlowe on tequila, Finger Man by Raymond Chandler.

PageAction: IAmNotShazam
20th Apr '12 6:29:12 AM

Crown Description:

Due to recent developments, the Trope Namer is no longer an example of this trope.

Total posts: 173
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