Misused: I Need To Go Iron My Dog

You kidding? That's a brilliant pun. I love it.

Rhymes with "Protracted."

Anyway, what should best be done with this trope?

I never really looked at your avatar, but now that I have, cute pun.

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.

I vote for broaden and against rename.

Calling someone a pedant is an automatic Insult Backfire. Real pedants will be flattered.

Well whatever fixes it. I'd prefer broadening and renaming, but at least broadening. This is more narrow than it needs to be (at least until the broader trope attracts enough examples to make a Sub-Trope).

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.

I think it should be broadened to any flimsy excuse to get out of something, because that's what the trope name sounds like.

Blind Final Fantasy 6 Let's Play

Okay, should we just make a page action crowner?

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.

Nvm, this is what happens when you skim, kids.

I don't think this is a name problem, as opposed to a missing supertrope problem (rather, an underused supertrope) or a schizo definition problem.

edited 15th Apr '12 12:36:22 PM by HersheleOstropoler

The child is father to the man —Oedipus

It's one letter away from Deus ex 'Scuse Me.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman

I also support broadening but not renaming.

Additionally, I don't think the broader form is a subtrope of Deus ex 'Scuse Me. I think it's a Sister Trope. Deus ex 'Scuse Me is when a plot event happens to remove one character from the situation—i.e. something extrinsic to the character. The broader form of I Need to Go Iron My Dog is when a character comes up with an excuse to remove themselves from a situation—i.e. something intrinsic to the character.

I can't believe I forgot. The name looks like dialog.

Now that might not be an instant rename factor, but it does mean that the name isn't the best.

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.

This name here is much better than the Deus Ex Snow Clone, though.

Rhetorical, eh? ... Eight!

I think the doylist and watsonian versions are different tropes, though they can overlap. That is, when the writer needs to get rid of a character (who may or may not have a good in-universe reason for leaving) versus when the character is making an excuse to leave (which may or may not specifically suit the author's purposes)

The child is father to the man —Oedipus

The main thing that confuses me about this is the difference between ironing the dog and Going to the Store. The only difference I see is plausibility.

Plausibility seems to be the distinction. I'm not sure that makes them different tropes, though, particularly since plausibility doesn't necessarily make an excuse less obviously an excuse.

The child is father to the man —Oedipus

I think plausibility makes all the difference. If it's plausible, it's an actual excuse, no matter how paper thin. If it's nonsense, it's not an excuse, but a polite way of making a very direct statement.

He: "Can I pick you up Friday at eight?" She: "I'll be washing my hair." Plausible, if paper-thin.

He: "Can we go out some time?" She: "I'll be washing my hair." Not plausible; a clear, if polite, no.

Speaking words of fandom: let it squee, let it squee.

Do note, however, that the implausible excuse is also frequently treated as plausible by the other character, due to Rule of Funny. In that case, it's sometimes left up to the audience to decide which is being used.

Sometimes the implausible turns out to be true because of rule of funny as well.

Clocking due to lack of activity.

Waiting on a TRS slot? Finishing off one of these cleaning efforts will usually open one up.

Crowner merged with thread.

Waiting on a TRS slot? Finishing off one of these cleaning efforts will usually open one up.

I have requested a rename here, since the current name is dialogue-like.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman

It's not ambiguous dialogue where we need to worry about examples of people who said that without it being the trope. It's a trope about dialogue, so unless we want a basic description in simple English like "bad excuse to leave," this is a good name.

That. It's not dialogue where we need to worry that someone will come up with it somewhere else and pothole it just because the words are the same. I mean, it's not like someone Got Better.

The Internet misuses, abuses, and overuses everything.

Looks like we're pretty close to consensus here.

Speaking words of fandom: let it squee, let it squee.

Calling crowner: broaden I Need to Go Iron My Dog to "a paper-thin reason to leave is made by a character and accepted by the other characters".

Waiting on a TRS slot? Finishing off one of these cleaning efforts will usually open one up.

Should we now consider a new name for this trope?