Needs Help: Cool Scars

First off, the trope as it stands really is Not A Trope, it's just "this character has a scar and that's awesome." The examples... are not good. Most are ZC Es, but those that have context run such a gamut as "this scar is cool" to "he got cuts on his face" (that didn't even scar).

Cool Scars came up in this YKTTW. My idea is to cut Cool Scars (since the name is also not good) and make a new trope called Rugged Scars or something similar about how scars are used as shorthand for showing a character as a survivor, with things like the Badass Eye Scar as an internal subtrope. This could either be done by replacing the Badass Eye Scar YKTTW or a new one altogether.

Also, some of the meaning behind the proposed Badass Eye Scar is covered by Every Scar Has a Story.

I don't think we can discuss this page and your proposed trope without addressing Good Scars, Evil Scars.

Good Scars, Evil Scars is about how heroes and villains have different types of scars — say, neat vs nasty. Sounds fine in theory. But "good neat scar" and "evil nasty scar" are actually independent concepts (a work may use either, neither or both, subvert one but no the other etc). And in practice, there's no type of scar that some troper doesn't consider listing as an example of this.

So, I think we should cut Cool Scar AND Good Scars, Evil Scars and mine them for examples of legit tropes, such as Heoric Rugged Scar, or Evil Disfigurement.

Good Scars, Evil Scars is more about the "morality = scar type" connection. I don't think it's sufficiently related to this trope to be discussed here.

I could get behind a reorg of the Scar Tropes like that, especially after the trouble I had figuring out which one(s) one of my OCs fell under.

Yeah, I never liked Good Scars, Evil Scars. In theory, they're fine. In practice? They're "this character has a scar." At the very least, they need cleaning.

Seems like a job for the Appearance Cleanup Thread.

Maybe we can deal with Good Scars, Evil Scars afterward, but is anyone against cutting Cool Scars?

Nah, it's just "person has a scar".

We also have Scars Are Forever, Scar Survey, and a ton of other Scar Tropes, so can anyone think of a potential meaning for scars that isn't already covered?

Tough Guy Scar? Action Hero Scar?

... I'm trying to avoid another Badass snowclone, but we could do something with the YKTTW that led to this. Scars are fairly popular as a distinguishing mark for heroes and badasses, even if the story behind them is never actually told.

My major issue with a Rugged Scars-type trope is potential overlap with Covered in Scars. The meaning is essentially the same: a character's physical scars demonstrate that they've survived significant trauma. It's arguably The Same But Less, but I think notable enough in terms of examples to deserve its own trope (often times a character has a single prominent scar whose story is never fleshed out, other than to indicate the character's been through some stuff).

In a narrative sense, comparing it to Every Scar Has a Story, ESHAS is about the scar itself having a story. Rugged Scars wouldn't be about the scar having a story, but instead being a narrative shorthand. For example, you look at a group of marines. Who do you think is the toughest one there? The cleanfaced guy or the guy with a healed gash across his face? In this case, the story behind the scar is irrelevant and he's not necessarily covered in scars, he just happens to have a single, aesthetically acceptable scar that denotes that he' a survivor.

Good analysis.

I think Rugged Scars or whatever we end up calling it is probably a Missing Supertrope to Covered in Scars. A lot of the time the person just has one major scar, but in a prominent place.

edited 25th Nov '13 7:38:37 PM by StarSword

Thanks.

So here are some of the specific examples I think could be listed as common examples of Rugged Scars:

• A cut over one eye
• A claw mark (usually three or four even gashes on the chest or face)
• Any of the Standard Bleeding Spots
• Any scar shaped like an X.

I think Rugged Scars, i.e. scars to show a character has had a rough life, is far more tropable than Cool Scar.

I'd always taken "Cool Scars" to refer to a character having a notably unique scar on their person.

Agreed.

Yeah, I can see that.

Harry Potter has a Cool Scar in that it links him with Voldemort.

I do worry that it might overlap a bit too much with Every Scar Has a Story.

Of course the notion of the Rugged Scars can also be subverted. Anyway, I'd be fine with some sort of Rugged Scars make a person gritty, tough etc trope, if we don't already have it covered.

Sotero: There's one - look at the scars on his face! Hilario: The man for us is the one who GAVE him that face.

As far as Harry Potter goes, that is Distinguishing Mark that is a scar, Scars Are Forever and Achey Scars.

edited 26th Nov '13 3:45:58 PM by Catbert

Made a YKTTW for Rugged Scar.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/discussion.php?id=30obrzzvgetbhysv9cxzqrt9

Bump.

If I launch Rugged Scar, can we just cut Cool Scars and close this?

Rugged Scar is currently at four hats.

edited 22nd Dec '13 12:20:19 PM by Larkmarn

I just gave it another example (in the comments) and another hat.

Oooh, that's a good one. Thanks.

So yeah. I'm feeling pretty good about launching Rugged Scars. Anyone have any issue with cutting Cool Scars once I do that?

I would say redirect Cool Scars to Rugged Scars, since the latter appears to be what the former is trying to be.