Not Tropeworthy (alt names crowner 17 Jan 2021): Tyrannosaurus Rex

I want to suggest Tyrannical Lizard King, although I'm not sure if I am suggesting it more as a redirect or the name proper.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.

I'll also throw in King of the Dinosaurs and T Rex Lord Of Dinosaurs, as Tyrannical Rex reminds me of Tiny Tyrannical Girl and also literally just means "tyrannical king", the dinosaur connection is only a pun.

"It's just a show; I should really just relax"

The fact that it's a pun is the point, and I highly doubt anyone would mistake it for a subtrope of Evil Overlord.

Patiently awaiting the release of Paper Luigi and the Marvelous Compass.

The first one might work as a redirect. The second one is honestly kind of lame.

I agree.

I'm inclined to agree with this.

Disregard.

Edited by CrimsonShark on Nov 26th 2020 at 7:53:24 PM

"Money is the goddamn plan! Have some faith, y'all!"

Hard . I supremely dislike the idea of separate tropes for "good [insert animal here]" and "evil [insert same animal here]" portrayals without good reason. It is better to focus on a common way these animals are portrayed and explain that it can be played for good or evil.

Right...

Even then, given that you haven't mentioned this yet, would it be fine if an entire clade is acceptable to represent an entire trope rather than just a single species.

EDIT: Looking through, the best bet here is to secure a trope idea that embodies how media and the audiences treat tyrannosaurs like, regardless if it's heroic and villainous. Majestic Tyrannosaur or Mighty Tyrannosaur can be an idea, if mainly to emphasize how the T. rex and it's kin tend to be seen as large, intimidating apex predators whilst also embodying a sort-of cool factor.

Not feeling it. It gives me the impression that tyrannosaurs are villains. It's best that we aim for an alignment-neutral trope that emphasizes a tyrannosaurs most common appeal and characterization in media.

Edited by CrimsonShark on Nov 26th 2020 at 8:43:33 PM

"Money is the goddamn plan! Have some faith, y'all!"

Terror T Rex ?

"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."

Right, that's why I think "T rex is the most powerful dinosaur" is better than "Evil T. rex"

"It's just a show; I should really just relax"

So... kind of a prehistoric equivalent to Panthera Awesome? Sometimes good, sometimes bad, always impressive? Because that sounds like a really good idea.

I'd say always dangerous, not necessarily impressive. I'm thinking of The Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure. Cera was frightened of the baby Sharptooth even though she was clearly stronger and could kill the infant on her own.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.

My personal favourite is the afore-mentioned Tyrannosaurus Wrecks.

Everything can be found on the Internet... except common sense.

We should probably fire up a page action crowner for a rename and a retool first.

I personally would advocate T-Rex Rules because if there's anything that could separate a Tyrannosaurus rex in pop culture from its scientific counterpart, it would be the dash instead of the scientific period. Not sure about Tyrannical Rex, it doesn't capture the more heroic nature that T. rex would get in media these days.

As for splitting tropes, I would note that it's common for dino-documentaries to include a Tyrannosaurus rex or one of its relatives in there no matter how contrived it may be.

Heck, if there'll be no T. rex, then one of the other carnivores, like Carnotaurus or Allosaurus, will be designated as a "Pseudo-Rex", often beefed up to T. rex size and treated as the most feared predator on earth.

I think, like a lot of animal tropes, this trope needs to be split in order for it to work. Here were some ideas I had, which aren't necessarily mutually exclusive:

Tyrant Lizard King: Tyrannosaurus rex itself is portrayed as a vicious, aggressive, and violent creature, a feared killer and a "villain" of the prehistoric world. In short, T. rex being portrayed as a Big Bad.

T-rexpy: Fictional monsters clearly modeled on, or inspired by, Tyrannosaurus rex, including Kaiju, Mons, dragons and the like. Can also apply to portrayals of other real dinosaurs that are inaccurately given T. rex-like characteristics.

Noble Tyrannosaur: Tyrannosaurus rex is portrayed in a noble light as a "king" or "ruler" of dinosaurs, equivalent to the portrayal of lions as the King of Beasts. The popularity of this trope goes hand-in-hand with that of Raptor Attack and Spinosaurus Versus T. rex, as raptors and spinosaurs have replaced T. rex as the go-to "evil" dinosaurs.

Edited by ElSquibbonator on Dec 4th 2020 at 2:13:16 PM

I'm against that name because it sounds too dialogue-like, and No New Stock Phrases prohibits new dialogue-based names even if the trope itself isn't dialogue-related.

Patiently awaiting the release of Paper Luigi and the Marvelous Compass.

I like those trope categories.

I am fine with those 3 categories and the suggested names. Should they be 3 separate pages?

That's what I was thinking, yes.

Not sure how sustainable "T-Rexpy" is. The concept of giant reptiles — most notably dragons — predate the modern dinosaur, so it's kind of hard to say something draws from the T-rex in particular. (Godzilla in particular was inspired by another fictional dinosaur, which may or may not have been inspired by the T-rex, but it's still one degree of separation too many for an expy.)

Lumper instincts coming in; I am still more in favor of one general "scary" T-Rex trope that can be played for both "noble" and "vicious". Note that the wick check only shows "antagonistic T-rex" usage.

Edited by Synchronicity on Dec 6th 2020 at 7:29:10 PM

Based on the old films and dinosaur documentaries, it is common to give a therapod the attributes of a T. rex if the real deal is not used.

This includes creatures like Gwangi, an Allosaurus who has attributes of a T. rex (namely its bulky head), Allosaur and Ceratosaur from One Million Years B.C. (one has the head of a T. rex while the other fights the Triceratops, T. rex's classic Arch-Enemy), Carnotaurs from Dinosaur (beefed up to T. rex size and is the main antagonist), Giganotosaurus from the 2008 adaptation of Journey to the Center of the Earth (resembles a T. rex with thumbs), and Godzilla (while he may be based on the Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, the kangaroo stance and head is no doubt invoking the appearance of the classic T. rex; it was even intended for Godzilla to be a T. rex mutated by atomic radiation in the Heisei period).

And this is not counting fantasy creatures that deliberately invoke the appearance of T. rex like the Deviljho (and pretty every Brute Wyvern) from Monster Hunter, Tyrannitar, Tyrunt and Tyrantrum from Pokémon, and Devilsaur from World of Warcraft.

Edited by Shadao on Dec 6th 2020 at 2:45:55 AM

I still think the two common characterizations of T. rex in fiction— as a bloodthirsty killer of other dinosaurs, befitting its "tyrannical" name, and as a heroic or at least anti-heroic protagonist in its own right— deserve to be separate tropes. We've done this with other animal-related tropes before (witness Noble Wolf and Savage Wolves, which used to be merged as "Big Badass Wolf").

To ensure that T-rexpy will not be confused for other giant reptiles, monsters or dragons, here are some of the attributes for a monster/animal to be an expy of T. rex:

• Bipedal. Whether it be horizontal or kangaroo stance, the T-rexpy must stand on two legs.
• A big set of jaws. T. rex is known for its bone-crushing jaws and visually, it is often represented in a boxy fashion (which is why many animated Tyrannosaurs like Sharptooth from The Land Before Time have a square-shaped head).

• Short, stubby arms. It may be optional if the write wants to give T-rexpy an arm advantage over the real deal (looking at Indominus Rex), but one of the sure ways to identify a T-rexpy is the comedically small arms.

• An apex predator. Ignoring the scavenger vs predator debate, T-rexpy is at the top of the food chain and one of the most, if not the most, feared creature in the area. What else do you expect from the King of the Dinosaurs expy?

• And finally, this is the most important aspect of T-rexpy, the animal in question cannot actually be the Tyrannosaurus rex. It can have names inspired by T. rex or be considered an evolution of a T. rex but it cannot be implied it is the actual T. rex, no matter how inaccurate it be. Thus, creatures like V. rex from King Kong (2005) can be considered a T-rexpy while the Meat-Eater from King Kong (1933) cannot as the former is stated to be an evolutionary descendant of T. rex while the former is heavily stated to be T. rex (although that could change if Merian C. Cooper's statement about the Meat-Eater being an Allosaurus are true).

Edited by Shadao on Dec 6th 2020 at 6:30:15 AM

We have these good/evil separations for many animals now. We have Honorable Elephant / Cruel Elephant, Warm-Hearted Walrus / Wily Walrus, Beary Friendly / Bears Are Bad News and so forth (even non-animals like Friendly Ghost / Ghastly Ghost and Non-Ironic Clown / Monster Clown). The possible problem with it is that species + good and species + evil can slip into "species exists", split only by morality.

That said, the "monstrous T-rex" thing is definitely an existing stereotype, and the "noble T-rex" is also really common (especially when contrasted by an evil spinosaur, allosaur or raptor), so I'm fine with having them as separate tropes.