Follow TV Tropes

Following

The Grand Unified Appearance Trope Clean-up:

Go To

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

Arha Since: Jan, 2010
#501: Jul 18th 2013 at 9:52:57 PM

Rose Haired Girl is a trope. I've even seen it lampshaded. The name is too broad, however, which has invited misuse.

captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#503: Jul 18th 2013 at 11:23:13 PM

So what exactly are you guys suggesting for Windows To The Soul. I keep seeing Super-Trope, but for what?

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#504: Jul 18th 2013 at 11:31:38 PM

A supertrope for meaningful appearances in general (since an eye-specific subtrope would probably not be different enough)

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#505: Jul 19th 2013 at 5:47:44 AM

That sounds really broad, I can't imagine that not being a supertrope index, which doesn't seem very useful at this point.

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#506: Jul 19th 2013 at 5:56:26 AM

The only thing we have is the index, Personal Appearance Tropes.

Also, the trope is useful for e.g work-specific appearance conventions such as the green eyes in Septimus Heap (at least, if shimaspawn's statement [roughly paraphrased] earlier in this topic that the green eyes as a magic indicator thing is not common enough for its own trope is accurate).

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#507: Jul 19th 2013 at 6:28:21 AM

[up] Isn't that already covered by Green Eyes? I don't have a problem with making a meaningful appearance supertrope, but I don't understand why we wouldn't work on the many problematic tropes we have now that would fall under that first.

edited 19th Jul '13 6:28:57 AM by captainpat

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#508: Jul 19th 2013 at 6:30:22 AM

Yes. I am more concerned what should happen to that example after the Green Eyes fix.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#509: Jul 19th 2013 at 6:38:44 AM

Related to Windows To The Soul, we also have Elemental Eye Colors.
<Face Palm> Related is an understatement. Much of Windows To The Soul is already covered by Elemental Eye Colors already.

@Noaqiyeum: How so?

@X Fllo: How is "Windows of the Soul" or "Windows to the Soul" an unclear name for reading emotions from the eyes? That phrase is the one I usually hear/see employed for this concept.

edited 19th Jul '13 6:40:25 AM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#510: Jul 19th 2013 at 9:53:44 AM

Ok, so what exactly do we want to do to Windows To The Soul page and just that page?

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#511: Jul 19th 2013 at 11:06:39 AM

Personally, I would cut Windows Tothe Soul and replace it with that Meaningful Appearance supertrope. I would also merge Personal Appearance Tropes into it, since it would be redundant.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
XFllo There is no Planet B from Planet A Since: Aug, 2012
There is no Planet B
#512: Jul 20th 2013 at 2:01:35 AM

@Marq FJA

@X Fllo: How is "Windows of the Soul" or "Windows to the Soul" an unclear name for reading emotions from the eyes? That phrase is the one I usually hear/see employed for this concept.

In my language or at least in my idiolect, that phrase is related to reading person's character and personality type. It's not connected to emotions at all.

edited 20th Jul '13 2:02:55 AM by XFllo

captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#513: Jul 21st 2013 at 2:28:20 PM

[up][up]

I think we should get rid of Windows Tothe Soul, but this Meaningful Appearance supertrope, sounds like it's gonna be a supertrope index. What exactly is it going to be covering that wouldn't already be under by a subtrope under it?

SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#514: Jul 21st 2013 at 2:37:02 PM

What exactly is it going to be covering that wouldn't already be under by a subtrope under it?

Please read my second-to-last post.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#515: Jul 21st 2013 at 2:49:37 PM

Ah, ok that makes sense.

DragonQuestZ The Other Troper from Somewhere in California Since: Jan, 2001
The Other Troper
#516: Jul 21st 2013 at 5:31:43 PM

Or why not redefine Windows To The Soul to what the phrase actually means?

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#517: Jul 21st 2013 at 6:16:44 PM

[up] What does is actually mean?

MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#518: Jul 21st 2013 at 6:56:33 PM

Windows of the Soul (as currently defined) + reading personality, IINM.

edited 21st Jul '13 6:56:55 PM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
DragonQuestZ The Other Troper from Somewhere in California Since: Jan, 2001
The Other Troper
#519: Jul 21st 2013 at 7:28:46 PM

[up][up]Okay, it seems to be just a quote from Shakespeare, but the gist I've seen most used is that you can tell a lot about people from their eyes.

It's a pretty broad definition, but it's still enough to make a trope. Every time the eyes are used to tell things about people that can't be seen by appearance alone (such as how Beast's eyes are the same when he's human or beast in Beauty And The Beast), it would be that trope.

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
lexicon Since: May, 2012
#520: Jul 21st 2013 at 8:07:45 PM

The beast sounds like a good example, but I don't think it's just that the eyes are the same. It's that Belle recognizes him when she looks into his eyes. I think this is also why people believe that they can tell if someone is lying by looking into the eyes.

captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#521: Jul 21st 2013 at 8:25:14 PM

[up][up] We could just limit it to in-universe cases so it's less broad.

DragonQuestZ The Other Troper from Somewhere in California Since: Jan, 2001
The Other Troper
#522: Jul 21st 2013 at 8:53:43 PM

[up][up] That still works though, since she uses them.

[up]That's what I meant. It has to be shown on the story some way.

I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#523: Jul 22nd 2013 at 12:53:25 AM

Personally, I feel that any of the Windows... names is too vague to be usable as anything other than a redirect, especially considering the usage stats.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
captainpat Since: Sep, 2010
#524: Jul 22nd 2013 at 6:24:44 AM

Yea, it would probably be best just to make that into another trope with a new name. Windows To The Soul is not really thriving.

edited 27th Jul '13 10:45:43 PM by captainpat

Noaqiyeum Trans Siberian Anarchestra (it/they) from the gentle and welcoming dark (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
Trans Siberian Anarchestra (it/they)
#525: Jul 22nd 2013 at 2:31:45 PM

Marq - because it didn't incorporate the personality and identification aspects of the term that have since emerged in the discussion.

I think one or the other of the Windows names is perfectly serviceable as a trope name; the reason that they're suffering is simply because they are two poorly-written tropes with almost the same name.

The Revolution Will Not Be Tropeable

Total posts: 3,217
Top