History Film / RevengeOfTheNerds

* LoopholeAbuse: When the nerds are first applying to different national fraternities to open a chapter in their college, they are rejected by all outright except for ΛΛΛ, an all-black fraternity. Even then, the chairman tells them that they're ''very'' unlikely to get approved (not because only one of them is black but because they're nerds), until one of the nerds points out that, according to the ΛΛΛ bylaws, they are required to give any petitioning group probational membership.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge {{Downplayed}}. The nerds after suffering the antics of the jocks spend the whole film getting back at them, minus the killing.

* GroinAttack: Whilst on their RoaringRampageOfRevenge, the nerds collect the Alpha Betas' jock straps and soak them with liquid heat muscle rub. The next time they take the field for practice, the jocks end up screaming in pain.

* CampGay: Lamarr.
* CanCrushingCranium: Ogre

* JerkJock: There's a whole frat full of them, but in due course, the nerds get their revenge. And again in the second movie...
** And the ultimate revenge when the Alpha Jock [[spoiler:makes a HeelFaceTurn]].
* JizzedInMyPants: Strongly implied for Poindexter when watching the naked Pis.

* GiveGeeksAChance: Lewis Skolnick and Betty Childs.
* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: Lewis is apparently good enough to win Betty over after one tumble; Stan is shown on several occasions to not care for sex at all, being too busy with football. The way Lewis describes the difference to Betty thusly:
--> '''Lewis''': ''All jocks ever think about is sports. All we [nerds] ever think about is sex.''

* LovableNerd: Most of the protagonists.
* MadeForTVMovie: The third and fourth movies.

* MookFaceTurn: Ogre, in the 2nd movie.

* {{Nerd}}: Present and accounted for, in mass quantities.

* NWordPrivileges: When used by non-nerds, the word "nerd" is generally offensive.

* PantyThief: The Panty Raid.

* CoolOldGuy: Master Snotty
* {{Corpsing}}: In the Belching Contest scene in the first film, keep an eye on John Goodman as the coach. He keeps studying his shoes while simultaneously making sure his hat doesn't come off, all to keep from laughing out loud on camera from the antics of actors Donald Gibb and Creator/CurtisArmstrong.

* JumpedTheShark : In the third film Stan Gable is a policeman and is then appointed Dean of Students. As a two-time All-American college quarterback it is inconceivable that he would not have been drafted by an NFL team.

* SocietyMarchesOn: Lamar's gayness would not make him as much of an outcast as the rest of the ΛΛΛ's today.
** While tech-heads aren't the height of cool, the staggering amount of ''money'' people like them made would also mean a good deal more tolerance of their habits.
** The nerds are excited at seeing (pre-internet) "fur pie" which now seems odd given that female pubic hair has almost entirely disappeared from popular standards of attractiveness.
** This is actually invoked in the third movie. The college is a nerd paradise (much to the antagonists' annoyance), while the ΛΛΛ have admitted women, only cater with healthy food, and ban members who do drugs (the last two explicitly done to avoid the prior generation's mistakes).

* NotSoDifferent: In the fourth movie, the father of the bride looks down on and belittles the nerds--all while taking offense when the old money crowd calls "Nouveau Riche."

** The antagonists commit various crimes against the "Nerds," but are told by police that it's "out of their jurisdiction;" since it's "college pranks—" even outright crimes like assault, battery, terrorism, and malicious destruction of property; in response, the Nerds commit other crimes against the jocks in "revenge—" including one "Nerd," Lewis, having sex with a cheerleader by posing as her boyfriend (which is fraud of various sorts). In reality, college campus police ''do'' have jurisdiction over "Frat Pranks" and ''so do the regular police!'' That's because state laws do not recognize college campuses as sovereign boundaries or "no-man's lands". So both sides of this feud could have gotten in serious legal trouble. A ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' DeconstructiveParody even showed this to be true.

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* BeefBandage: In ''Part IV'' Booger's fiancee's mother faints when she meets him and bangs her head, so he gets her a steak to put on the wound

* TheCavalry: The ΛΛΛ ScaryBlackMan backup dancers.

* InnocentlyInsensitive: When the nerds' party seems to be bombing and U.N. Jefferson doesn't seem to be enjoying himself, Lewis, thinking U.N. doesn't like the music, has the [[SarcasmMode brilliant inspiration]] to play something he would like, and slaps "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" (an old Negro spiritual) on the turntable. LeMarr is quick to [[NeedleScratch toss sand on that dumpster fire]].

* NeedleScratch: When Lewis obliviously slaps "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" on the record player, LeMarr does the honors.

* CampGay: Lamarr

* NeverMyFault: The jocks burn down their house with alcohol-induced fireballs and Stan concludes it must've been the "faulty wiring".

* {{Corpsing}}: In the Belching Contest scene in the first film, keep an eye on John Goodman as the coach. He keeps studying his shoes while simultaneously making sure his hat doesn't come off, all to keep from laughing out loud on camera from the antics of actors Donald Gibb and Curtis Armstrong.

* APartyAlsoKnownAsAnOrgy: In Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise, the Nerds advertise their party by altering the neon sign of "Hotel Coral Essex" to read "Hot Oral Sex".

* DrugsAreBad: Inverted; Booger brings pot to the ΛΛΛ party, and the weed gives the party the kickstart it so ''desperately'' needed.

* SignOfDisrepair: In the second movie, a little creative vandalism turns "HOTEL CORAL ESSEX" into "HOT ORAL SEX". Cue the stampede.

* APartyAlsoKnownAsAnOrgy: In Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise, the Nerds advertise their party by altering the neon sign of "Hotel Coral Essex" to read "Hot oral sex".

* BeefBandage: In ''Part IV'' Booger's fiancee's mother faints when she meets him and bangs her head, so he gets her a steak to put on the wound.

** Ogre starts crying when he loses.

* AnnoyingLaugh: Lewis Skolnick and Gilbert Lowe possess epic examples.
** It's contagious too, with all the ΛΛΛ's eventually doing it. Even ''Ogre'' after his HeelFaceTurn in the second film!

Not to be discouraged, the nerds decide to [[StartMyOwn start their own frat]], and through an oversight are given permission to set up a branch of the normally all-black fraternity Lambda Lambda Lambda. But all is not well; the existing frats, not to mention the resident jocks, don't appreciate nerds horning in on their territory, and so begins a war of attrition that involves vandalism, nude photos, the liberal application of 'liquid heat' to jockstraps, and various other [[HilarityEnsues wacky hijinks]].

* AllGuysWantCheerleaders: Played With. The haughty Pi cheerleaders are certainly considered hot, but the plain jane Omega Mus seem to get just as much tail.

** It's contagious too, with all the Tri-Lambs eventually doing it. Even ''Ogre'' after his HeelFaceTurn in the second film!

* BlowingSmokeRings: During the Lambda Lambda Lambda party, one of the [[HollywoodHomely Mu]]s coaxes Lewis up to his room to have sex. Later, he's seen at the top of the stairs wearing a red [[Magazine/{{Playboy}} Hugh Hefner]] robe, smoking a [[DistinguishedGentlemansPipe pipe]] and blowing smoke rings.

* CarloadOfCoolKids: The Alpha Beta fraternity let loose a bunch of pigs at the Lambda house. When the Lambdas run outside to see what's going on, the [=ABs=] moon them from the back of the pig truck and then drive off.
* TheCavalry: The Tri-Lambda ScaryBlackMan backup dancers.

* DeathGlare: U.N. Jefferson's 'reinforcement Tri-Lambs' look ready, willing and eager to rip apart any Alpha Beta dumb enough to step up. [[DirtyCoward The Alpha Betas want no part of these guys, despite outnumbering them significantly]].

* DeusExMachina: Jefferson and several national Tri-Lamb brothers arrive when Gilbert is about to get the crap beat out of him by the Alpha Betas in the SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome.

* DistaffCounterpart: The Omega Mus to the Lambda guys. The Pis are this to the Alphas as well, being the cheerleaders to their jocks.

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Lambda Lambda Lambda has been a historically all-black fraternity. Without even realising this, the jocks leave a burning sign on their lawn and send pigs in to their party, all because they are nerds. It's implied UN Jefferson was thinking along the same lines.

* DrugsAreBad: Inverted; Booger brings pot to the Lambdas' party, and the weed gives the party the kickstart it so ''desperately'' needed.

* LaserGuidedKarma: Happens to the Alpha Betas after they trash the Tri-Lambda frat house following Gilbert's and Lewis's speech inviting others to stand with them:
-->'''Burke''': You know, Coach. I'm going to let the Lambdas live over at the Alpha Beta house while you and your boys rebuild theirs!

* LoopholeAbuse: When the nerds are first applying to different national fraternities to open a chapter in their college, they are rejected by all outright except for Lambda Lambda Lambda, an all-black fraternity. Even then, the chairman tells them that they're ''very'' unlikely to get approved (not because only one of them is black but because they're nerds), until one of the nerds points out that, according to the Tri-Lambda bylaws, they are required to give any petitioning group probational membership.

* MyEyesAreUpHere: While discussing his academic pursuits with two tall and busty Omega Mus, Wormser talks to their breasts. Humorously justified in that the mammaries are at his eye level: he even [[BreakingTheFourthWall smirks at the camera]] to lampshade his getting away with it.

* ThePeepingTom: The Lambdas in ''Revenge of the Nerds'' take this trope to an extreme by installing surveillance cameras in all the bedrooms and showers of the sorority house. They literally stay awake all night, just watching women sleep.

* ThePowerOfFriendship: In the third movie, Lewis is framed for embezzlement and put on trial. In addition to Lewis's father, the old Lambda crew and U.N. drop by as a show of support. Stan (who had been so certain no one has any real friends) is so moved that he reveals the truth.

* RockBottom: In the second movie, the Lambdas are framed by the Alpha Betas for stealing a car and get arrested. Though bailed out, they're then kidnapped and taken to a deserted island. The absolute rock bottom, though, is Ogre being stranded with them. As Lewis lampshades, they're trapped on a deserted island and still have someone insulting them for being nerds.

* ScaryBlackMan: The 'reinforcements' that accompany U. N. Jefferson when he comes to the aid of the Adams College Tri-Lambs.

* ShoddyShindig: The main characters have a party and invite the sorority girls from Omega Mu. It has all the trappings of a Sad Party (including a wheezing accordion sing-a-long). [[spoiler:Until Booger breaks out the weed, that is.]]

* SocietyMarchesOn: Lamar's gayness would not make him as much of an outcast as the rest of the Lambdas today.

** This is actually invoked in the third movie. The college is a nerd paradise (much to the antagonists' annoyance), while the Lambdas have admitted women, only cater with healthy food, and ban members who do drugs (the last two explicitly done to avoid the prior generation's mistakes).