Have an idea for a new trope, but don't know for sure if it's a good idea? Did Trope Finder give you similar concepts, but not exactly what you wanted? Are you just looking for a focus to a broader idea?
You've come to the right place!
On this thread, you can share your ideas with the masses before making that TLP draft, so if there's any lingering uncertainty about the validity of your idea or you just want some help pinning down a good idea, ask away and help others out, too!
A related sandbox I need to pitch is the Trope Idea Salvage Yard. If you've an idea but can't personally work on it, you can add it to the yard and let someone else create the draft. Or you can browse it yourself if you need more draft ideas, whether or not you feel they should be mentioned here first.
Got ideas for non-trope pages you need help with? Never fear, the New Page Workshop Thread
is here!
With that out of the way: Let's discuss some ideas.
Edited by MacronNotes on Feb 27th 2022 at 1:49:11 PM
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
I feel like this is a valid distinction between First Friend despite the great potential for overlap. There are lots of stories I read as a child (none of I can remember at the top of my head) where the protagonist has to move and go to a new school and misses his old life and his old friends. On the first day meets a friendly new kid who is way less cool than the friends he left behind. The protag reluctantly ends up befriending the kid, which probably ties in to some sort of aesop about leaving behind the old and embracing the new, or something.
I've seen a pattern in that the characters that this trope describes tend be outcasts or somewhat unpopular, as the new kid is an outcast on the first day and outcasts tend to be befriended by other outcasts. This is definitely not a rule, but popular kids don't tend to treat protagonists well in fiction.
TLDR; I think this trope is distinct enough to earn its own place.
If the arrows are too tedious to keep track, of, I'm addressing "Multishipping". Any and all shipping is YMMV. Confusingly enough the trope Shipper on Deck is not about shipping at all, the name is just a reference to shipping. What the trope refers to is a character wanting two other characters to get together, A.K.A. matchmaking. But I digress, "multi-shipping" is YMMV because it's not present within the work itself, it doesn't have to encapsulate the entire fandom. It's also something that would be rare to find in-universe and would not have many examples, unless works get super-meta.
Edited by antenna_ears on May 29th 2020 at 2:45:20 AM
That kind of scenario sounds like it can apply to clubs or workplaces.
I'm also thinking of a related concept where someone has a first friend in X, then a first friend in Y, then another in Z, etc. This is why I think they all can fit First Friend.
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
It can't. First Friend is specifically about literal first friends ever. The concepts are different and the pattern is different.
And by the way, Native Guide also sounds really close to it.
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
Someone mentioned that idea for an innocent person accused of wrongdoing followed by the accusers realizing their mistake, but only after the accused ran away or was punished.
We do have a TLP for that, currently called Post-Punishment Vindication.
Edited by GoldenDarkness on May 29th 2020 at 10:38:27 AM
Basically Acquitted Too Late, but non lethal?
By the way, compare Was Too Hard on Him
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Anyway, what I wanted feedback on was the split idea, not the idea for the basic trope.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Except that native guide is about a guide who is literally native (like from a tribe) and his nothing to do with companionship. I agree that the proposed trope could use some workshopping, but I believe that it touches on something that is present in a lot of fiction. But I do think that the school factor is too specific and should be generalized to new environments as long as the main character is having trouble adapting or fitting in. Maybe the proposed trope should be called Welcoming Party, New Friend in a New Place or something. I do not have a cemented verdict yet, but I see some potential.
Edited by antenna_ears on May 29th 2020 at 12:11:24 PM
"But I do think that the school factor is too specific and should be generalized to new environments as long as the main character is having trouble adapting or fitting in."
I agree with this
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
Got distracted by the talk about multishipping and forgot to reply to some of these other ones:
- From Firewing:
"But I wasn't brave!" he blurted out. He didn't know why this was so important right now, but it was. "I'm not like you. I'm a coward."
"No," said his father.
"I was always scared. Always."
"That's right," his father told him. "Being scared but doing it, anyway. That's brave." - In the earlier Harry Potter books, Neville is one of the most fearful characters. However, he is lauded for his courage in the first book for standing up to his friends — an act in spite of fear. Especially clear in the movie, where his fists are visibly trembling even as he raises them in defiance.
Not sure if there are enough examples out there to trope. Even the Harry Potter example I just mentioned doesn't explicitly distinguish bravery from fearlessness. Maybe something like "Bravery In The Face Of Fear" instead? That's probably too broad... "Scared But Brave"?
If I broaden it to include acts of heroic bravery performed even while being visibly scared, another example comes to mind,note but at that point it might be too broad.
IDK, thoughts?
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Any expansion of Native Guide would need TRS. I don't necessarily disagree that expansion might be a good idea, but since it's currently narrow and specific, I won't ditch my trope idea just because another trope might cover it if it somehow gets broadened and renamed.
Like, seriously...
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
(she/her)
I think the split between "Immediate New Friend" and "New friend that teaches the protagonist the ropes" could work.
Does it really have to be limited to school though? Could work in workplace settings and other institutions too?
Macron's notes
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Theoretically. I only have it school-specific now because every example I could find of it occurred in a school setting.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
@ The Daredevil: I guess the better distinction is that In Harm's Way covers more than just stunts. Stunt performance is a form of danger.
And "Scared but Brave" is Facing Your Fears
So "Brave vs Fearless" is Fearless Fool + Facing Your Fears?
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
So I've been thinking about making a TLP about how red means "danger" or "bad" in our culture. Like how many danger signs are colored red, a character with red eyes means he's evil, violent, or psychotic, Video Game Enemies are indicated by red, bad links (like the one you just saw) in this site are red, etc. Could be a missing supertrope, in my opinion.
Edited by Unnerving_Posterior on May 29th 2020 at 7:58:00 AM
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Logic Girl
I want to make a draft for "Platonic Valentines" after one of my current drafts gets launched, which is when someone makes a Valentine for their platonic friend. I'm not entirely sure what the meaning is, but it could be to show how strong their friendship is, or that the character is single but doesn't mind, or something.
For every low there is a high.
(she/her)
What is the difference between that and your current draft about some making a valentine for their platonic friend? Intent?
Macron's notes
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
I've been contemplating drafting a trope about harmless or wacky Cults, basically ones that are Played for Laughs or treated like an innocent, if weird, group. My biggest issue is finding examples of it- if I do draft this, I'll need help. I did put it in the Trope Idea Salvage Yard at least.
Edited by WarJay77 on Jun 1st 2020 at 4:39:35 AM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
🏳️🌈🎃
Parks and Rec is my first thought and I could write it up.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
The example, or the trope? I'd be fine with either one. ![[lol]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lol2v12_4863.png "[lol]"){kind=small}
(she/her)
I'd say raid Cult but there doesnt seem to be any (well written) examples there.
Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 1st 2020 at 12:54:34 PM
Macron's notes
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
I remember one example on Cult Defector from Ren and Stimpy about a sausage cult that might count, but...yeah, this is why I need help. I'm sure it's a trope that exists, but -shrug-
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
First Friend is just...a character's first friend. Ever.
The trope I have here, and the ones I want to split it into, aren't about a characters literal first friend- it's about the pattern of a new kid arriving at a school, and running into that one kid who happens to be the only one nice enough to reach out to them, usually after getting into trouble first. It established the friend as being a helpful, friendly, open-minded individual often contrasting with the rest of the school, and helps the new kid get more acquainted to the school. It's also just a weird pattern of kids almost immediately making a new friend at a new school.
My reason for the split, btw, is mostly because I keep getting examples too broad for the current concept but the name seems broader and I think the tropes are different enough to not merge them because then it'd be super watered-down and lose the actual point to it all...
But yeah. First Friend is a different trope.
I also had to explain this on the draft itself:
This is the friend a character always makes when they're at a new school, regardless of if they had friends before. They're distinct; this is a very specific recurring pattern, where someone moves to a new school, has no friends, is almost immediately struggling to adjust, and then almost immediately after that, runs into the friendly character who becomes their new best friend.