A thread discussing similar tropes. If thread participants agree that two (or more) tropes really don't seem distinct enough to be separate, one can start a thread in the Trope Repair Shop for further discussion.
Before asking "What's the difference between these tropes?", check the Canonical List of Subtle Trope Distinctions and Laconical List of Subtle Trope Distinctions lists. They may contain the answer. Feel free to contribute to them, too.
I've decided to start a new cleanup thread dealing with trope similarities. This thread is for discussing tropes that appear to be a duplicate of another trope, and if it's agreed upon that the two tropes talked about are similar enough, one should start a thread about it in the Trope Repair Shop.
I'll start with my issue...
Asian Hooker Stereotype and Mighty Whitey and Mellow Yellow are pretty much the same trope—they both involve a white man and an Asian woman.
Edited by Tabs on Nov 1st 2022 at 10:57:37 AM
i'm at the combination she and it
i don't really think Plot Coupon That Does Something is distinct enough to be a separate trope from Plot Coupon. PCTDS is very underwicked and vague on what the "something" has to be, and a lot of "regular" plot coupons already do things besides just being a plot coupon (plus the much more popular Sword of Plot Advancement already covers plot coupons that are weapons), so the distinction isn't very worthwhile, is it?
the Retromancer
Plot Coupon That Does Something seems to be specifically about videogame collectables that also have utility, while Plot Coupon is broad. If Plot Coupon That Does Something was renamed to Utility Key Item as a subversion that key items in games normally don't have a utility, it'd help the issue. Plot Coupon in other media usually have justification why they help progress the plot by having powers, while in games they literally don't do anything other than activating cutscenes.
TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Not sure if this has been asked before, but I don't really understand the difference between Butt-Monkey and The Chew Toy.
dave bowman but worse
I think that The Chew Toy is essentially a Butt-Monkey who's comedic, while the Butt-Monkey is supposed to be 'sadder'.
How are Stealing from Thieves and Just Like Robin Hood any different?
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
One is about someone stealing from thieves in specific. Other is about someone stealing from rich people in specific. Pretty straightforward?
Weirdly, Audience Awareness Advantage was renamed by TRS
after Fourth Wall Myopia went through YKTTW, and neither of those threads mentioned the other trope either, despite AAA's old name being Viewer Myopia and the originally proposed name of 4WM being Audience Myopia, which would have made the similarities all the more apparent. Neither page has that many references and the thread that renamed Viewer Myopia was a Not Thriving one, but still.
the Retromancer
Do I understand right that Barbaric Bully is more of an appearance trope and Bully Brutality is for actual violent bullies? Their descriptions and examples have a lot of overlap.
TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Modular Difficulty sounds redundant when we already have Choose a Handicap.
Edited by Ner0014reN on Dec 30th 2023 at 9:48:21 AM
the Retromancer
Choose a Handicap is when you're forced to pick between two disadvantages. It's not about difficulty settings.
Edited by Amonimus on Dec 30th 2023 at 8:50:32 PM
TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Hi
That's how I see it; Barbaric Bully is a very on-the-nose to over-the-top "this character is a bully" depiction and Bully Brutality is when the bully does stuff that can injure or even kill their target(s).
Same Story, Different Names seems to have little to distinguish it from Strictly Formula. Both are when the same plot gets repeatedly recycled with minimal changes, and a lot of examples overlap. It would be useful if there was something to explicitly separate them, if they are even different.
the Retromancer
Strictly Formula is within a work, Same Story, Different Names is multiple works
Very Spooky
I’ve noticed Barbaric Bully is confused with Bully Brutality a lot; the latter is about bullies who are dangerously violent towards their victims, while the former is about stereotypical Obviously Evil bullies. The two can overlap, but the similar names seem to cause confusion. I may do a wick check.
back lol
I'm more concerned about the difference between Same Story, Different Names and Recycled In Space.
Edited by petersohn on Jan 1st 2024 at 9:51:02 PM
The universe is under no obligation to make sense to us.
Discarded and Feeling Blue
Well, for one, Recycled In Space isn't the title anymore. It's Recycled with a Gimmick (the cleanup really needs to happen, yeesh)
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
RJ Savoy
Should Fallen-on-Hard-Times Job be a subtrope of Riches to Rags, as it is often a way to indicate that the latter has happened? I think the two articles should at least mention each other in their descriptions.
Stories don't tell us monsters exist; we knew that already. They show us that monsters can be trademarked and milked for years.
^ I wouldn't say there is a clear super/subtrope relationship since not every once-rich character takes on a low-paying job. But surely both tropes should reference each other.
Unwanted False Faith vs. A God I Am Not?
The universe is under no obligation to make sense to us.
- Unwanted False Faith: An ordinary person is worshipped, but objects to it.
- A God I Am Not: A person with godlike power doesn't want to be worshipped.
Until next time...
Anon e Mouse Jr.
If you're responding directly to one of my posts, please ping me to make sure I see it.
Apparently, the only difference between Daddy's Little Villain and Overlord Jr. is that one is female and the other is male. Is it worth keeping them as separate tropes?
The universe is under no obligation to make sense to us.
Judging by the long list of Distaff Counterpart tropes, users seem to think splitting tropes by gender is a worthwhile undertaking.
dave bowman but worse
that’s true, but there really aren’t any other differences. both tropes say the character can have many different personalities and relationships to the evil parent, so they’re ONLY separated by gender. it sounds like a duplicate to me, or at least needs redefining.
In practice I get the vibe Daddy's Little Villain examples intersect quite strongly with "evil hot girl" treatments (likely to be the Veronica love interest, somewhat conflicted between daddy and hero, etc) in a way that Overlord Jr. examples don't. He seems to be more defined by blustery loyalty to daddy. Wick checks would help, naturally.
Edited by Synchronicity on Jan 7th 2024 at 11:17:37 AM
^ Makes sense.