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The Grand Unified Appearance Trope Clean-up:

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On TV Tropes, it's very common for editors to misuse appearance tropes, as well as tropes whose names make them sound like they could be appearance tropes.

Meaningful Appearance tropes are often misused in ways that overlook the "Meaningful" aspect, resulting in Zero Context Examples and misuse in the form of examples that have no meaning even if the tropes themselves are not People Sit on Chairs.

The Appearance Tropes Cleanup sandbox covers tropes with potential issues. Tropes that simply require cleanup will go through this thread, while tropes that require more significant action will have to go through the Trope Repair Shop.

April 2, 2023 update: This thread is no longer for making changes to tropes, and was brought back from the Projects Morgue solely for cleanup. Making changes to tropes is still a job for the Trope Repair Shop.

Edited by GastonRabbit on Apr 2nd 2023 at 9:18:26 AM

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#276: Jan 9th 2013 at 11:33:13 AM

And it would be discussion for YKTTW.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
willthiswork Since: Oct, 2012
#277: Jan 9th 2013 at 12:47:07 PM

Yeah, I agree, there are not enough good examples here to even bother. Someone can make a slicked back hair trope some other time.

shimaspawn from Here and Now Since: May, 2010 Relationship Status: In your bunk
#278: Jan 9th 2013 at 1:03:19 PM

Yeah, it's good YKTTW fodder, but has nothing to do with Show The Forehead.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#279: Jan 9th 2013 at 1:43:49 PM

On another note: Crowner is already at 16:1, after only one day.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Oreochan from Pennsylvania Since: Dec, 1969
#280: Jan 10th 2013 at 11:05:19 PM

I think there's another trope that needs to be cut: Plenty of Blondes. It seems to just be about having blonde hair.

"Learning without thinking is labor lost. Thinking without learning is dangerous."
shimaspawn from Here and Now Since: May, 2010 Relationship Status: In your bunk
#281: Jan 10th 2013 at 11:16:40 PM

Plenty of Blondes is not just about having blond hair. It's about an improbably high percentage of the cast having blond hair. That said, it needs some cleaning and all the aversions on it can probably be cut.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#282: Jan 11th 2013 at 3:01:19 AM

I see only two aversions, but it's not "probably" be cut, it just "cut".

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#283: Jan 11th 2013 at 3:35:38 PM

Alerting the thread to this YKTTW. Please tread nicely, though.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
troacctid "µ." from California Since: Apr, 2010
#284: Jan 11th 2013 at 11:59:57 PM

[up] The YKTTW is already attracting the same problematic examples as the old page. That's...a bad sign. tongue

Rhymes with "Protracted."
lu127 Paper Master from 異界 Since: Sep, 2011 Relationship Status: Crazy Cat Lady
#285: Jan 12th 2013 at 3:07:09 AM

Calling to cut Show The Forehead.

"If you aren't him, then you apparently got your brain from the same discount retailer, so..." - Fighteer
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#286: Jan 12th 2013 at 3:36:47 AM

Wicks removed, page tagged and cutlisted.

Also, made the rename crowner for Mismatched Eyes.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#287: Jan 12th 2013 at 7:21:35 AM

I we wanna save these for later but I think zero context examples for hot character tropes should also be cut. Least the one's that don't have in-universe attractiveness as the only requirement collect massive amounts of these.

edited 12th Jan '13 7:21:56 AM by captainpat

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#288: Jan 12th 2013 at 1:34:41 PM

Another YKTTW for your attention.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
MissKitten Luminescent Blush Since: Jul, 2012
#289: Jan 13th 2013 at 2:45:13 PM

[up] So another eye colors trope? We really need more of those.

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#290: Jan 13th 2013 at 2:46:19 PM

If they are tropes, yes. But many of these aren't.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
tdgoodrich1 R.I.P 2 My Youth from Atlanta Since: Aug, 2011 Relationship Status: Californicating
R.I.P 2 My Youth
#291: Jan 13th 2013 at 2:47:55 PM

Pretty sure that was sarcasm, Septimus.

"Polite life will fill you full of cancer." - Iggy Pop "I've seen the future, brother, it is murder." -Leonard Cohen
lu127 Paper Master from 異界 Since: Sep, 2011 Relationship Status: Crazy Cat Lady
#292: Jan 14th 2013 at 2:01:08 AM

Hooked.

I won't cast a vote yet, since I'm undecided. Mismatched Eyes Matter does sound better though.

"If you aren't him, then you apparently got your brain from the same discount retailer, so..." - Fighteer
Ironeye Cutmaster-san from SoCal Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Falling within your bell curve
Cutmaster-san
#293: Jan 14th 2013 at 4:02:28 AM

I'm more inclined to split: "[Trait] matters" doesn't seem like a trope to me. It will collect examples where the trait itself is unimportant to the usage, and mix them with examples where there is extra meaning from the trait. Contrast the examples for the Star Wars Expanded universe:

  • Gaeriel has heterochromia as a distinguishing feature. Though this is frequently commented on, it has no significance in the story and has no symbolic purpose. This is the sort of example I think everyone's willing to get rid of.
  • Malizna has heterochromia as a way of visually linking her back to her mother. In this case, the heterochromia has a purpose, but that purpose depends on [Distinguishing Trait], which just so happens to be heterochromia in this case.
  • Iceheart has red-blue heterochromia that symbolizes the duality of her extreme cold efficiency and her burning rage (both of which exceed that of the other characters in the stories where she appears). The other characters even pick up on this in a non-meta way. In this case, the mixed colors of the heterochromia is important.

The description suggests two tropes: Magical Mismatched Eyes and Mismatched Eyes Of Duality (placeholder names, of course), and the examples may suggest others. At the very least, Mismatched Eyes Of Duality has enough examples to become a subtrope even if we still keep Mismatched Eyes as "Heterochromia matters".

I'm bad, and that's good. I will never be good, and that's not bad. There's no one I'd rather be than me.
willthiswork Since: Oct, 2012
#294: Jan 14th 2013 at 10:21:36 AM

^ Do with a have a trope for a physical trait that indicates two characters are related/ that a character has a certain ancestory?

I am thinking a split would be best as well. Divide up mismatched eyes into duality themed characters and characters where the mis-match indicates some sort of ablility and then shuffle examples where the mismatched eyes are just a trait the character is known for/identified by to a trope for that sort of thing that is meant for all unusual physical attributes and put examples where the eyes are an indicator of relationship to another character/family/god/whatever into a trope about that sort of thing applied to all unusual physical attributes. If tropes of that nature do not already exisit I think they would be worth creating.

edited 14th Jan '13 10:27:07 AM by willthiswork

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#295: Jan 14th 2013 at 10:22:26 AM

Lost And Found is the place for this question.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Discar Since: Jun, 2009
#296: Jan 14th 2013 at 12:19:40 PM

Why don't we launch a "meaningful eye colors" supertrope before we continue dealing with all these subtropes? Or maybe we could repurpose Windows To The Soul, since this seems to be what it wanted to be, but fell flat.

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#297: Jan 14th 2013 at 12:22:06 PM

I assume that shimaspawn is so busy that she can't do it immediately. And anyway, waiting for a YKTTW, as TRS demonstrates, is a great way to freeze up things.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
shimaspawn from Here and Now Since: May, 2010 Relationship Status: In your bunk
#298: Jan 14th 2013 at 1:49:58 PM

We're going to have a meaningful appearance supertrope instead of just having it based on eye colour. I just haven't had the time to get around to making it.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
troacctid "µ." from California Since: Apr, 2010
#299: Jan 14th 2013 at 2:40:22 PM

Can we use the word "Symbolism" instead of "Meaningful"? Because "Meaningful" is super vague, and symbolism is what we really want to talk about anyway.

edited 14th Jan '13 2:41:03 PM by troacctid

Rhymes with "Protracted."
shimaspawn from Here and Now Since: May, 2010 Relationship Status: In your bunk
#300: Jan 14th 2013 at 3:03:06 PM

Symbolic generally has very little to do with it. Plot significance is more often what we're looking at. There's nothing symbolic about all the blonds in A Song Of Ice And Fire, but there is plot significance to the Lannister's blond hair revealing parentage.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick

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