Discussion Flanderization / LiveACtionTV

there's an entry about Stephanie Flanders, apparently someone who works at the BBC? Looks like a personal vendetta or joke to me, rather than a genuine example.In any case, it would be under Real Life, right?

"Although Ned Flanders is the Trope Namer, Stephanie Flanders on The BBC could be the new Trope Namer - still Flanderization as her penchant for dark-coloured suits, sexy and Compelling Voice are now being emphasized a lot more than they used to be"

Edited by noess

Per an ATT discussion, it was deemed that "inversions" of Flanderization aren't really a thing, though they could possible be an example of Character Development (which is an Omnipresent Trope, thus requiring no examples) or possibly Hidden Depths. I'm posting these examples here in case anyone wants to salvage them.

Big Bang Theory:

• An inversion of this trope is done in the Whole Episode Flashback to when Leonard and Sheldon first met. The Sheldon of the series has all sorts of quirks but still makes awkward attempts at social interaction and understanding how normal people think, the Sheldon of the flashback was basically a flanderization of his current personality where his Control Freak and Insufferable Genius mannerisms were about all he was. While not really elaborated upon, it's suggested that being friends with Leonard is the reason Sheldon of today is even remotely workable.

• Inverted with Amy. Initially she's just as socially awkward, robotic and autistic as Sheldon, if not even more so, but by the time she becomes Sheldon's girlfriend in the middle of Season 5 a large part of that has been dropped and she's become much more normal.
  • Also inverted with Penny, for that matter. In the first couple of seasons, Penny's typical wardrobe was heavy on cleavage, midriff and short shorts/skirts. She was constantly seen with stereotypically handsome jock-types who would only be seen once or twice, and was pretty open about her less-than-virginal ways. She also had little patience for the nerdier qualities of her friends, and often wondered why she hangs out with them. As the series has gone on, her outfits, while still attractive, have undergone some lengthening in the leg and are overall more practical. She also, even after her initial break-up with Leonard, became progressively less shallow with men, and also seemed to indulge in a little nerdiness herself, even if she still occasionally pretends to be above it all.

Scrubs

• Weirdly enough, the Janitor was kind of an inversion (similar to Jim from The Office). He started out existing entirely to torment JD, but as the show went on, he got more dimensions and by the final season was fully characterized enough to have girlfriend and get married. He still never missed an opportunity to torment JD, but it was in support of a complete character instead of his only character trait.

Doctor Who

• Inverted by the Seventh Doctor, who started out intended as a relatively flat character as a reaction against the unpopular Hurting Hero Jerkass with a Heart of Gold antics of the Sixth Doctor. He then suddenly started in a more complicated and nuanced direction, and by the time the series was cancelled and the character moved to books he spiralled into one of the most subtly characterised Doctors ever.

Drake and Josh

• Josh actually became de-flanderized as the show progressed. Initially he was a weird and awkward fat kid. As the show progressed and his career took off, his character became much more down-to-earth.

Frasier

• Inverted in the case of his brother Niles, originally an exaggerated version of Frasier who later acquired personality traits that were radically different from Frasier's and dropped several of Frasier's qualities, such as pompousness and overconfidence, making him far more well-rounded than he was in the first season.

The George Lopez Show

• Inverted by Grandpa Kanisky, who was originally played as senile and practically deaf. When he went from a recurring character to a series regular in season 3, he suddenly became much more mentally sharp and his humorous mishearings were Hand Waved as being the result of him occasionally turning off his hearing aid because he was tired of listening to the silliness around him.

House

• Inverted by House's team, especially the main three from earlier seasons. They started out very roughly drawn and two dimensional but got much more complex and interesting as the show went on.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch

• Inverted with Roxie. In her Season 5 introduction she is a one-dimensional Deadpan Snarker. In the next two seasons she has Hidden Depths revealed and comes across as a realistic person by the end of the show.

You've got roaming bands of armed, aggressive, tyrannical plumbers coming to your door, saying "Use our service, or else!"

The Supernatural example section is extremely long and seems to be full of natter. Does anyone think all that conversation is necessary, or can some of the triple-indention points be deleted?

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• Mohinder, from the NBC show "Heroes", begins the series with a light Indian accent. As the show progress, his accent becomes increasingly most noticeable.
  • It also goes from Indian to British.

Really? It's been forever since I've seen Heroes, but I'm sure it became British before the first season ended.

I don't believe the Angel example is correct. It seems to be Characterization Marches On, not Flandarization. I'll give one week for responses, after which I will move it to that page if no one defends it.

The host of a little watched web show that explores bad tv episodes. Hide / Show Replies