| 1 | %% Image removed per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1560952164086367200 |
| 2 | %% Please see thread to discuss a new image. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | ->'''Chancellor Gorkon:''' I offer a toast. The undiscovered country...the future.\ |
| 5 | '''Everyone:''' The undiscovered country.\ |
| 6 | '''Spock:''' ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', Act 3, Scene 1.\ |
| 7 | '''Chancellor Gorkon:''' You have not experienced Shakespeare until you have read him InTheOriginalKlingon. |
| 8 | -->-- ''Film/StarTrekVITheUndiscoveredCountry'' |
| 9 | |
| 10 | An alien character (or an entire race) who is shown to enjoy specific things relating to human culture. A direct subtrope of AlienArtsAreAppreciated, when it's the aliens who like human culture. Perhaps it's a certain food, or a certain activity. When played straight, this can be used to allow an alien character and a human to bond, showing that they aren't so different. Or this can be PlayedForLaughs, when an alien who has little grasp of human culture and social conventions suddenly shows themself very aware of a certain pop culture element, or addicted to some human activity the viewer would not think them capable of grasping. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | This doesn't have to be precisely limited to aliens, as the trope can also apply with any race, species, or society that have a culture which is otherwise very different from humans. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | Basically, this is IntriguedByHumanity directed at a specific facet of human culture. May have been a consequence of AliensStealCable. Compare FanOfThePast and HumanityIsInfectious, which can serve a similar narrative purpose. Related to GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff. Can sometimes lead to GoingNative. Compare AlienCatnip when the subject is actually addictive. Aliens latching onto our pop culture can be because there's NoSuchThingAsAlienPopCulture. See also FantasticAnthropologist. |
| 15 | ---- |
| 16 | !!Examples: |
| 17 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 18 | |
| 19 | [[folder:Anime and Manga]] |
| 20 | * ''Literature/CatPlanetCuties'': The Catians come to Earth specifically because they're so interested in Earth culture (specifically things like anime and manga) and food that they wanted to try it for themselves. |
| 21 | * In ''Manga/DeathNote'', the Death God Ryuk has a strange addiction to apples. Though apples do exist in the Death God world, they're just dry and [[TastesLikeFeet taste like sand]]. The Shinigami King is also bribed with two apples per Death Note. |
| 22 | * Mephisto Pheles from ''Manga/BlueExorcist'' is an otaku. |
| 23 | * In ''Literature/NyarukoCrawlingWithLove'', pretty much every alien is a fan of Earth's entertainment media, to the point where the [[SpacePolice Planetary Defense Organization]] had to set limits on exports and treats smuggling as a serious crime. Nyarko herself is a giant {{Anime}} and {{Toku}} fangirl who loves quoting things like ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' and performing ''Series/KamenRider'' poses. |
| 24 | * This shows up in Sensui's backstory in ''Manga/YuYuHakusho''. Sensui, who believed that all demons are inherently evil, was about to execute Itsuki, a demon, but allowed him to make a last request. Itsuki asked Sensui to let him live long enough to see the finale of his favorite TV show. Sensui was so shocked to see such a human attribute in a demon that he reconsidered his BlackAndWhiteMorality. |
| 25 | * In ''Literature/FateZero'', the Rider Heroic Spirit [[spoiler: Alexander the Great]] turns out to really enjoy video games, much to his Master's surprise. |
| 26 | * The various Dragons of ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'' inevitably find themselves attracted to various odd areas of life on Earth. Of particular note is Fafnir, who becomes rapidly engrossed in a [[VideoGame/DarkSouls Dark Souls style]] video game, and soon Otaku culture in general. The implied reason is that Fafnir is especially obsessed with hoarding treasure, even by Dragon standards, and dungeon-crawler video games help feed into that obsession. |
| 27 | * In ''Manga/WelcomeToDemonSchoolIrumaKun'', the normally stoic Ameri had an obsession with [[ShoujoDemographic shoujo manga]] and [[WhatIsThisFeeling the odd feelings it gives her]]. Her relationship with Iruma stems from him [[TokenHuman being the only person who can read it to her]]. |
| 28 | [[/folder]] |
| 29 | |
| 30 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 31 | * The ComicBook/MartianManhunter is known for his love - sometimes bordering on addiction - of Oreo (or occasionally [[BlandNameProduct Choco]]) cookies. He picked up the taste from [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]] (at the time, they played with Marvel having personality traits of his 10-year-old "Billy Batson" alter ego). |
| 32 | -->"But do Martians--you know--''eat?''" \ |
| 33 | "Of course we do. In fact, [[InTheOriginalKlingon Martians had McDonalds and Burger King]] thousands of years before you had them on Earth." \ |
| 34 | "You're joking, right?" \ |
| 35 | "[[HumorlessAliens Martians]] [[BlatantLies never joke]]." |
| 36 | * Xavin from ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' has said that Starbucks is not just Earth's greatest achievement, but the ''entire galaxy's''. And considering that it's the Franchise/MarvelUniverse (so most of the planets are somewhat inhabited), that's high praise. |
| 37 | * In ''ComicBook/{{Eternals}}'' the Great Machine -- the Celestial computer that's been integrated with the planet Earth -- mentions that it loves ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. Apparently it's also seen ''Film/{{Gremlins}}''. |
| 38 | * An early ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' story revealed that a bunch of shapeshifting Skrulls became so enamored with 1920s gangster culture, they themed an entire ''planet'' after it. Caused some severe MindScrew for the heroes themselves when they visited. |
| 39 | * ''ComicBook/PowerPack'' has Aelfyre Whitemane, who fell in love with Earth literature, and Kofi Whitemane, who is particularly fond of Earth food. |
| 40 | * A demon was laying in wait for ComicBook/DoctorStrange. To pass the time, it listened to the ''Music/{{Synchronicity}}'' album by Music/ThePolice. |
| 41 | * ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'': An early issue of vol. 2 has Rocket Raccoon stating a fondness for Ebay. After all, how else is he supposed to get the [=DVDs=] of his favourite shows?. |
| 42 | * Several Asgardians of ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' comicbook family expressed extreme fondness of Series/GameOfThrones. Up to thinking that one of the worst things about the afterlife is that it limits access to new episodes. Loki, naturally, identifies with Tyrion Lannister. |
| 43 | * ''ComicBook/PaperinikNewAdventures''' Gorthan is a scientist from an alien empire who's particularily fascinated with human culture, and is frequently seen quoting Shakespeare. Much to the confusion of his soldiers. His favorite piece of human culture, however, is not Shakespeare, but ''Literature/TheLittlePrince''. |
| 44 | * ''ComicBook/UltimateMarvel'': Mahr-Vehl just loves all of human pop culture, to the point that he talks like characters from TV series, thinking that real people talk that way. |
| 45 | [[/folder]] |
| 46 | |
| 47 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 48 | * ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10874272/3/A-Bit-of-Imperative A Bit of Imperative]]'': A curious Kyubey tries playing ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' and finds it "rather interesting". |
| 49 | * ''Fanfic/{{Canonfodder}}'': To kill time on Cybertron, Salvage creates a Cybertronian version of ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' that Shockwave becomes addicted to. |
| 50 | * ''Fanfic/CloseEncounterOfThe6MonthsOldKind'': Jasper has developed appreciation for the Earth sport of hockey and tries getting Sunni into it. This later leads to a confrontation with Pearl over whether Sunni would prefer hockey or figure skating. This aparenty has become a common occurrence. |
| 51 | * Crossovers: |
| 52 | ** ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'' has, as a side-note, the reveal that Asgardians are more or less addicted to coffee, with it being speculated that Fury could extract concessions from Asgard on various issues by restricting the coffee supply. |
| 53 | ** ''Fanfic/AHollowInEquestria'': An unusual example. Twilight develops a marked fondness for human obscenities after learning them from Ulquiorra, and apparently has a habit of flinging them about quite liberally. |
| 54 | ** ''Fanfic/ImNobody'': In an omake, the alien warrior Wrex says that humans are really good at making shooter games. |
| 55 | ** ''Fanfic/WhereNoPonyHasGoneBefore'': |
| 56 | *** Literally -- the Klingons Kang and Mara both know and enjoy Shakespeare, and consider the Klingon translation to be the definitive version. |
| 57 | *** Sunset Shimmer, originally a unicorn from Equestria, became a huge ''Star Trek'' fan after living in the ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls Equestria Girls]]'' universe for several years. |
| 58 | * ''Fanfic/CrystalClarity'': |
| 59 | ** Blue Diamond was a fan of the in-universe equivalent of ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda''. |
| 60 | ** When Lapis Lazuli begins teaching [[spoiler:Steven his hydrokinetic abilities, she discovers that he learned most of the advanced techniques that Gems like her uses from watching ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', which she herself becomes enough of a casual fan of that she begins using terms from the show]]. |
| 61 | * ''Fanfic/KaraOfRokyn'': Rokynians -- [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Kryptonian]] survivors settled on the planet Rokyn -- have a fondness for Earth's flicks and movies. |
| 62 | * ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': |
| 63 | ** ''Fanfic/IfWishesWerePonies'': Pegasi on a whole have taken an immense love and interest in the sport of Quidditch. [[spoiler:In the sequel, Changelings have a profound appreciation for [[RugbyIsSlaughter Rugby.]]]] |
| 64 | ** ''Fanfic/ThroughTheEyesOfAnotherPony'': The protagonist gets Princess Luna hooked on playing ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' on his smartphone. She also ends up loving comedic Website/YouTube movies, such as ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'', or ''My Little Pony'' {{Fan Vid}}s. |
| 65 | ** ''Fanfic/PonyvilleUSA'': The main six ponies, who ended up on Earth, find themselves enjoying human films, video games and board games. |
| 66 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': |
| 67 | ** ''Fanfic/BaitAndSwitchSTO'': Captain Kanril Eleya has a taste for certain Klingon foods (although she considers gagh gross), and has been seen playing a holonovel based on 21st-century Earth science fiction (the ''Literature/StarCarrier'' books, specifically). In ''Fanfic/TheWrongReflection'' it's revealed that she has posters on her old bedroom wall for ''Film/TheFifthElement'' and ''VideoGame/MassEffect2''. When asked by her operations officer-slash-boyfriend Gaarra why she likes Earth sci-fi, she shoots back by asking why he likes Trill mystery novels. |
| 68 | ---> '''Gaarra:''' Touché. |
| 69 | ** ''Fanfic/LegacyOfChRihan'' has an offhand mention that the Romulans developed a taste for tomatoes after they got their hands on some when they were allied to the Federation during the Dominion War. |
| 70 | ** ''Fanfic/ReimaginedEnterprise'': |
| 71 | *** Cardassians love Creator/GeorgeOrwell, which is used to explain the inconsistencies in stated Cardassian history in ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' and ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' -- it was subject to an InternalRetcon -- and the use of Orwellian themes in the famous "[[TwoPlusTortureEqualsFive there are four lights]]" scene. |
| 72 | *** The TropeNamer is also explored, with the Klingons first discovering Shakespeare on a data disk they accidentally pilfered from the ''Enterprise'' while taking prisoners. A season later, we learn the new regime has been distributing Shakespeare's collected works throughout the Empire under the guise of being [[InTheOriginalKlingon rediscovered traditional Klingon literature]]. |
| 73 | ** ''Fanfic/RocketshipVoyager'' |
| 74 | *** During the ''[[MindMeld melding-of-minds]]'', [=TuV'k=] experiences a flashback memory of his days as a FormerTeenRebel at the Martian Scholarium. The students are loudcasting Terran pop music in the [=PsiDome=] causing the scholars to flee the city, and [=TuV'k=] is wearing skinsuit jeans and a [[FlyingCar floaterbike]] jacket printed with words in Terran-English: MarsNeedsWomen. |
| 75 | *** The Briori have been using their PortalNetwork and SpacePirates to raid other worlds for slaves and technology, and as a consequence the collection of alien esoterica has become a trend among the Briori and their clients. This comes in handy when the crew use some vids from their library to bribe one of the Briori into letting them steal the components of a spacewarp drive. |
| 76 | ---->'''Chakotay:''' The Caretaker wasn't joking when he said his people were obsessed with collecting esoterica. Turns out the Briori are crazy about alien cultural works.\ |
| 77 | '''Janeway:''' Cultural works? You mean Plato, Shakespeare, Ayn Rand?\ |
| 78 | '''Chakotay:''' Well... more like game shows, soap operas and baseball commentary. And there was a [[Recap/StarTrekS2E17APieceOfTheAction documentary on Chicago Mobs of the 1920's]] that they really seemed to like. |
| 79 | * ''Fanfic/WaitingForAMiracleMiraculousLadybug'': Chloé teaches the Kwamis about television, and they all start watching anime on one of her streaming services. |
| 80 | * ''Fanfic/YinYang'': Skeletor has a thing for Earth horror movies, as he's seen watching and enjoying ''Film/BrideOfFrankenstein'' in private during Chapter 21. |
| 81 | [[/folder]] |
| 82 | |
| 83 | [[folder:Films -- Animated]] |
| 84 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'' falls in love with comic books, especially ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' after Hogarth shows them to him. The fictional superhero becomes his personal hero and role model, and he partially bases his personal morals off of Superman's. |
| 85 | * ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch'': Pleakley is shown to be a huge fanatic on the cultures of Earth. He was shown to like mosquitoes, until he got bitten by a swarm of them. He also loved wearing women's clothing from Earth. |
| 86 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'': Ariel and her entire cave filled with human artifacts salvaged from shipwrecks. |
| 87 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' is an alien from another world, and a massive fan of human music, particularly 80s rock and pop. He has his Minion carry around a boombox with him, and accents nearly all of his fights with artists like Music/MichaelJackson and Music/GunsNRoses. |
| 88 | [[/folder]] |
| 89 | |
| 90 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 91 | * In ''Film/MeetJoeBlack'', the AnthropomorphicPersonification of Death develops an intense love of peanut butter during his time as a human. |
| 92 | * The Prawns in ''Film/{{District 9}}'' love cat food, which affects them [[AlienCatnip as a drug]]. |
| 93 | * Pretty much the entire premise of ''Film/{{Paul}}''. Justified though as [[spoiler:Paul is the source of most of the late 20th century pop culture]]. |
| 94 | * The titular alien from ''Film/{{Starman}}'' goes into a near orgasmic joy over Dutch apple pie. |
| 95 | * The entire plot of ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' revolves around a species of aliens who became tech savvy fanboys of a Star Trek-like show (which they viewed as real), built a real model of the show's ship, and enlist the cast to help fight against a galactic tyrant. |
| 96 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': |
| 97 | ** The Klingon BigBad of ''Film/StarTrekVITheUndiscoveredCountry'' spends most of the movie quoting Shakespeare, much to [=McCoy=]'s annoyance. |
| 98 | ---> '''Chang:''' [[EvilIsHammy I am constant as the northern star!]]\ |
| 99 | '''[=McCoy=]:''' I'd give real money if he'd shut up. |
| 100 | ** ''Film/StarTrekBeyond''. Jaylah quite enjoys the repetitive beat and shouting of 'classical' human hip-hop (Music/PublicEnemy, to be precise) music (Scotty, not so much). Likewise Spock has no problem quoting Shakespeare to [=McCoy's=] annoyance, but he's half-human anyway. |
| 101 | * ''Film/{{Michael}}'' is about the ArchangelMichael taking a vacation on Earth and getting to love various aspects of human culture. He seems to prize sugar the most of all. |
| 102 | * ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'': |
| 103 | ** In the first film, Peter "Star-Lord" Quill's 70s & 80s music is surprisingly popular; Gamora admits to appreciating it when he shares one song with her, a guard at the Kyln steals Peter's Walkman to enjoy the music himself, and Groot is shown dancing to it in the credits. Come ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'', Rocket apparently has become a big fan too, setting up a song to play before multiple big fights, even when Peter himself thinks its a bad idea to be focusing on setting up a speaker. |
| 104 | ** Zigzagged with Yondu in the first film, who absolutely adores an Earth troll doll... but this is more because he's a CollectorOfTheStrange who loves collecting [[RealMenWearPink silly little statuettes like that]] anyway. |
| 105 | ** ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3'': The High Evolutionary claims that of all the worlds he's observed, Earth has the finest music, art, and culture. To this end he abducted countless Earth animals and [[UpliftedAnimal and granted them sapience]], and created Counter-Earth, his own attempt at an alternative "perfect" Earth, though it fell well short of his standards. |
| 106 | * In ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'', Sonic (who in this incarnation is an extraterrestrial) flees to Earth and takes a liking to some of its entertainment, particularly the speed-themed stuff since, y'know, SuperSpeed is his whole shtick. He owns a stack of ''ComicBook/TheFlash'' comic books, ''Film/{{Speed}}'' is his favorite movie, and he states Creator/KeanuReeves is a "national treasure". |
| 107 | * In ''Film/TheHidden'', an alien fugitive loves Earth junk food, cars, and UsefulNotes/HeavyMetal. |
| 108 | * ''Film/XMenApocalypse'' sees the titular character scrolling through TV to get an understanding of the planet. He's glued to it like a TV couch potato for a bit. |
| 109 | [[/folder]] |
| 110 | |
| 111 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 112 | * The Literature/{{Hoka}}s in stories by Creator/PoulAnderson and Creator/GordonRDickson are [[UrsineAliens an ancient and noble alien race that just happen to look like teddy bears]]. They love human literature but can't quite seem to grasp that fiction isn't real. As a result they often act out scenes from famous books, with comically chaotic results. |
| 113 | * In Creator/PoulAnderson's ''Literature/PolesotechnicLeague'' stories, David Falkayn's associate, the alien Adzel (who looks like a large centauroid dragon), is a Buddhist (which naturally he learned about from humans). He spent some time on Earth studying human culture. |
| 114 | ** Fondness for human religion seems to be a thing among Adzel's people. There's one who is a wandering Catholic mendicant later on. |
| 115 | ** On Avalon Humans and Ythrians live side by side and exchange customs. Some Ythrians develop a fondness for drink. |
| 116 | * In David Brin's ''Literature/{{Uplift}}'' series, poetry composed by [[UpliftedAnimal Uplifted Dolphins]] is one of the most sought after artforms in the Milky Way. |
| 117 | * PlayedForLaughs in ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}''- Ax and other Andalites don't have a sense of taste when in their normal forms, but can become ''crazy'' trying to eat things when in human morph, and needs to repeatedly be told what is and is not food, such as cigarette butts and food that's on the floor. In the final book it mentions that Andalites sometimes vacation on Earth just so that they can become humans for a while and try Cinnabuns. ([[VerbalTic Buns. Bunzzzz...]]) It's also mentioned that they start to share some of their most heavily classified technology... [[MundaneMadeAwesome in exchange for the humans putting a Krispy Kreme on the Andalite homeworld.]] |
| 118 | ** Which doubles as a BrickJoke, as Ax asserted that this was certain to happen during one of his point-of-view books earlier in the series. |
| 119 | ** [[TokenNonHuman Ax]] is also fond of TV, particularly soap operas and ''These Messages.'' |
| 120 | ** As indicated by the VerbalTic, Andalites also enjoy playing with vocalizations while in human shape, as their normal method of communication is telepathy. ''Speech'' is an exotic art form for Andalites. |
| 121 | ** Runs in the family, Ax's older brother was quite fond of Human Automobiles (the Mustang, in particular) and music (he loved the Honky Tonk Blues) and espoused about how free he felt driving the former while listening to the latter as he drove down the Taxxon world. |
| 122 | ** Visser One and Ax both independently thought ''Franchise/StarTrek'' was BasedOnATrueStory. Ax was perplexed about how humans were aware of one real alien race where the female's BizarreSexualDimorphism looked exactly like the Klingons, though he [[SpottingTheThread Spots the Thread]] when the film gets space travel wrong because True FTL is impossible. That same fact years earlier spooked Visser One into almost not invading Earth at all, because she thought Humans were capable of true FTL, which would make them able to defend against the yeerks. It should be pointed out that Ax later states that Humans are the only race he encounters that are bipeds, so he may have been trying to be funny about the Klingons or seen an episode where they were only filmed from the waist-up. |
| 123 | * In the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' series, Arthur Weasley's love for Muggle culture seems to be patterned after this trope. He is fascinated by {{Muggles}} and how they can survive without magic and desperately tries to understand how technology works by disassembling muggle devices and enchanting them. |
| 124 | * The satyrs Newel and Doren in ''Literature/{{Fablehaven}}'' love TV--they're technically not supposed to watch it, but they have a portable TV and Seth smuggles them batteries. They also later fall in love with human junk food, to the point of using "FRITO-LAAAAY!" as a battle cry. |
| 125 | * A terrestrial example: In ''Literature/TheDestroyer'', Master Chiun profoundly despises everything from [[strike:the West]] anywhere but Korea, with one big exception: sappy American TV soap operas. He says to Remo it's "the only worthwhile thing your culture has ever produced". |
| 126 | * In ''Literature/WayStation'', Ulysses is a member of species that adapt to almost anything, can digest almost anything, but he considers well-prepared coffee to be the best food in the entire known universe. |
| 127 | * In Creator/SergeyLukyanenko's ''Literature/TheStarsAreColdToys'', one insectoid alien race ''loves'' art. They especially love landscapes drawn by human artists. Any landscapes. There is a huge team of artists on Earth that essentially draws the same trees in the forest, over and over and over. They try to actually put some artistic inspiration into it, but it's actually not necessary, since the aliens in question appreciate more the paint's structure, the brush strokes and so on. Selling those landscapes is a large part of Earth's income. |
| 128 | * Many alien species in the ''Literature/YoungWizards'' series ''love'' chocolate. In fact, getting chocolate is the primary reason behind most alien abductions. |
| 129 | ** One of the novels has two aliens enjoying a teen girl fashion magazine: the walking tree likes it because of the eye searing colors it contains, and the giant centipede enjoys the flavors of the inks and paper the magazine is made from. |
| 130 | * In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Harry is able to compel minor [[TheFairFolk Faeries]], and eventually win over an entire cadre of the little folk to become his staunch allies, largely by trading upon their passionate love of pizza. |
| 131 | * In Creator/JohnRingo's ''Literature/TroyRising'' series: |
| 132 | ** Initially, the only product Earth has to offer that an alien species is willing to buy is maple syrup... and for the aliens in question the syrup is like a fine malt whiskey mixed with heroin. |
| 133 | ** Later in the series, Vernon uses his funds to buy up the rights to a lot of older movies, particularly westerns and war films, which he broadcasts to other races, with whom they prove to be popular. |
| 134 | * In ''[[Literature/TheShipWho The Ship Who Sang]]'', there is one instance of the titular ship transporting a group of Shakespeare players to perform ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'' for an alien race who resemble methane-breathing jellyfish in exchange for a new power generation technology. They need to transfer their brainwaves [[RemoteBody into alien bodies]] to perform. Before doing so for the first time, the head of the troupe talks about how Shakespeare has been translated and performed for every kind of alien and all find something in him that resonates. |
| 135 | * The entire premise of ''Literature/YearZero'' is this: Earth music is the best in the universe. Extraterrestrials respect other planets' laws. Therefore, over the past few decades, aliens have racked up an exorbitant debt in copyright infringement fees and some of the more unscrupulous races want to wipe out the debt by wiping out the planet. |
| 136 | * In the ''Literature/ConfederationOfValor'' series, the H'san apparently think humans are cool because we're the only species in the galaxy to develop cheese. |
| 137 | * ''Literature/{{Temeraire}}'': Laurence discovers- much to his surprise- that dragons like human music, and some of the more intelligent ones can critique artworks. Temeraire himself loves reading (or rather hearing Laurence read to him, given the size of the average book compared to a dragon), and is discovered to have a natural aptitude for mathematics after Laurence reads a math textbook to him. |
| 138 | * ''Literature/StarTrekNovelVerse'': In one novel, it turns out that the Klingons consider ultra-violent 80s-style action movies like ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'' and ''Film/TheTerminator'' to be the funniest comedies ever made. Another novel features a Klingon who's a huge fan of FilmNoir and Creator/AlfredHitchcock. |
| 139 | * ''Literature/StarCity'': Most Ba'ren on Earth Mission are obsessed with, or at least want to learn more about, human cultures. |
| 140 | * In the ''Literature/Foreigner1994'' series, TabletopGame/{{poker}} has become popular among the alien ''atevi''. Given that the atevi are [[GoodWithNumbers extremely good at both card counting and calculating probabilities]] they're ''much'' better at it than humans.\ |
| 141 | ''Very'' popular among atevi is the human game of darts, though the atevi have no natural advantage at the game like they do with poker. |
| 142 | * The alien Race in Creator/HarryTurtledove's ''Literature/WorldWar'' series become addicted to ginger. It's like a combination of heroin and methamphetamine to them--incredibly addictive, and [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove it gives them a libido]]. |
| 143 | * In ''Literature/ThisImmortal'', the [[HumanoidAliens Vegans]] love Coca Cola, especially the recently rediscovered original recipe. |
| 144 | * ''Literature/EarthCentAmbassador'': For some bizarre reason human kitchen utensils and appliances are very popular with aliens, most of whom can't even use them for their intended purpose (they're mainly treated as ''objets d'art''). There's a plot thread in the first book of Kelly trying to crack down on subpar counterfeits that are giving legitimate vendors a bad name. |
| 145 | * [[Franchise/StarTrek The Klingon Institutes]]' translation of ''Hamlet'' into Klingon actually had a preface describing how Hamlet reads to a Klingon--and actually makes a pretty good case that Klingons would enjoy the play, if they were allowed to read the play as something different than what traditional human audiences read it as. Notably, this follows logically from the page quote: the "undiscovered country" Gorkon takes as referring to the future is one most human readers would take as referring to death. |
| 146 | * ''The Queen of the Night's Aria'' by Ian [=McDonald=]. The Martian queen is a fan of Terrene opera, and in particular a tenor [[WhiteDwarfStarlet whose glory days are behind him]] and so decides to [[GlamorousWartimeSinger entertain the troops]] involved in the invasion of Mars after the events of ''Literature/TheWarOfTheWorlds1898''. The Martians however launch a massive counterattack, wiping out the human army and kidnapping the tenor to take down to their UndergroundCity where the Queen has constructed a replica opera house just for him. He's aghast at the thought of spending the rest of his life performing for tentacled horrors, but on seeing the packed auditorium the Queen has gathered to hear his performance, he decides it's not all bad. |
| 147 | * ''Literature/TheUnexploredSummonBloodSign'' character [[EldritchAbomination The White Queen]] cares not at all for human lives, but adores the concept of romance and all its related tropes. In one scene, her MagicalGuide prevents her from massacring a crowd of fairgoers by explaining to her that if she does, the nearby [[FerrisWheelDateMoment Ferris wheel]] will stop running. |
| 148 | -->With that, the White Queen took up her position at the end of the line.\ |
| 149 | [[BlackComedy It was a horribly surreal sight.]] |
| 150 | [[/folder]] |
| 151 | |
| 152 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 153 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'' shows provide examples: |
| 154 | ** [[TropeNamers Klingons love Shakespeare]], and his works have been translated into the Klingon language. The only exception is ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'', so they presumably do enjoy his various farces and romantic comedies. |
| 155 | ** Worf in particular is an avid drinker of prune juice, which he calls ''a warrior's drink''. [[PlayingWithATrope Played With]] in that Worf, who was orphaned at a young age, has probably spent more time among humans than with his biological parents' culture. However, the ExpandedUniverse novels indicate that fruit juices are by far the largest export from the Federation to the Klingon Empire, so apparently he's not alone in his appreciation of it. |
| 156 | ** Klingons also like coffee, to the point of having adapted their own version of it (which is also drunk by some humans, coming full circle), although this could also be a culinary version of CallASmeerpARabbit. |
| 157 | ** ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': |
| 158 | *** Odo enjoys kayaking as well as Creator/MickeySpillane novels. |
| 159 | *** The Ferengi on Deep Space Nine enjoy various human foods. Rom loves sausage and pancakes. Nog enjoys root beer. Quark disapproves of it, calling it a "cloying, bubbly, sickly sweet force bent on corrupting the core of Ferengi culture," but admits that if you drink enough of it, you come to enjoy it. He notes that this is precisely the case with the Federation. |
| 160 | *** One minor plot arc has Garak exploring Shakespeare's ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar''. Initially, in "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS03E20ImprobableCause Improbable Cause]]", he finds it to pretty much be a farce, as his own Cardassian culture (which is much more reptilian in nature) features betrayals as a matter of course, and the fact that Caesar couldn't figure out that Brutus was the betrayer until the assassination itself bewilders Garak. He later revises his opinion in "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS03E21TheDieIsCast The Die is Cast]]", however, as he gains more understanding for the culture that produces the work (and when certain events of said episode help him realize that he and Caesar aren't so different). |
| 161 | *** "Improbable Cause" also has Garak enjoy the fable of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf", but he does disagree with two points. First, he thinks the Aesop is incorrect (rather than "If you always lie, no one will believe you when you tell the truth", it should be "[[DoWrongRight Never tell the same lie twice]]") and that while it has merit as a story, the fate of the boy makes the tale [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids wholly unsuitable for a children's story]]. The same episode has Bashir admit that the driving literature movement among humans is adapting alien literature to a human setting. |
| 162 | *** The episode "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS07E04TakeMeOutToTheHolosuite Take Me Out to the Holosuite]]" revolves around Vulcans enjoying baseball, which is actually becoming an obscure sport on Earth. It could be that Vulcans love the sport for the same reason it's the GameOfNerds... but the episode largely implies that the Vulcan captain who introduced it to his fellow Vulcan crew was only doing so because he and Sisko have a rivalry and he wanted an opportunity to beat Sisko at his own beloved game and rub his face in it. The rest of the crew start to take a shine to it, particularly Odo, who was asked to be the umpire and by the time of the game could quote line and verse the rulebook to Sisko; and Rom, despite being terrible. The latter is actually a case of IronyAsSheIsCast, as the actor playing Rom actually had a minor league career and was quite good... if you watch carefully, he's fielding and batting with his left hand, which the actor ad-libbed so he wouldn't outplay his character's ability. |
| 163 | ** The ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekEnterpriseS02E02CarbonCreek Carbon Creek]]" has a Vulcan who likes to watch TV; namely, ''Series/ILoveLucy''. |
| 164 | ** In ''Series/StarTrekPicard'', the young Romulan warrior Elnor is fond of ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers''. |
| 165 | * ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'''s Coneheads are fond of American culture, and humanity in general, to the point of pretending that Earth has an incredibly powerful defense laser network and faking their own death so as to stay here instead of invading. Their daughter, on the other hand, was born and raised here, and she absolutely hates her parents' homeworld. |
| 166 | ** They especially like beer, which they drink a six-pack of at a time. |
| 167 | ** In the film, the immigration officer's sycophantic assistant ends up stranded on their homeworld as a slave. He seems to be very comfortable in his new role as sycophantic assistant to the alien overlord. |
| 168 | * ''Series/StargateSG1'': |
| 169 | ** Teal'c is stoic, and easily confused by English language proverbs and metaphors and the most basic of human customs. He is also an avid fan of ''Franchise/StarWars'', which he has watched 9 times in his first 5 years on Earth. In fact, when someone mentions an immaculate conception, he immediately thinks of ''Darth Vader''. He is also a fan of ''Film/DieHard'' -- knowing the films well enough to recognize John [=McClane=] by name, humorously pointing this out when Daniel Jackson (Earthling, born and bred) completely misses the reference. In one episode he is shown to ''really'' enjoy his ice cream. He also plays ''VideoGame/{{DefJam|Series}} Vendetta''. This is a reference to Teal'c actor, Creator/ChristopherJudge, being a voice actor on the game. |
| 170 | ** Vala Mal Doran is a fan of ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'', ''Series/GilligansIsland'' and ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' (the latter being an ActorAllusion). |
| 171 | ** Ba'al, the final System Lord left alive by season 9 and 10, grows rather fond of human culture [[GoingNative after he spent some time living incognito on Earth]]. He drops the deep Goa'uld voice except when he's trying to be intimidating, starts dressing in more casual clothes, and when he finally does invade Earth he offers humanity an alliance instead. |
| 172 | * ''Series/StargateAtlantis'': |
| 173 | ** Ronnon Dex is shown to be initially puzzled by but later entertained by golf after being introduced to it by Sheppard. He also likes movies, particularly violent ones. He expresses an interest in seeing ''Film/{{Alien}}'' after hearing about how much it scared his Earth-born friends, although he also watched ''Film/BladesOfGlory'' due to misinterpreting the title (ice skating was apparently not a thing on his homeworld). He also once tried to blow open a locked door by exploding an oxygen tank because of how much damage one did in ''Film/{{Jaws}}''. |
| 174 | ** Teyla and her popcorn is another example from ''Stargate Atlantis''. |
| 175 | * ''Series/BabylonFive'' has some interesting examples among the alien ambassadors. |
| 176 | ** Ambassador Delenn reads Earther news publications because she finds it's a better source of relevant information than her own [[ObstructiveBureaucrat government sources]], ''even when dealing with matters from her own home world.'' Admittedly, this is more a comment on the controlling and secretive Minbari culture than on her humanophilia... but then, she does end up becoming part-human and [[spoiler:marrying John Sheridan.]] TruthInTelevision in that monitoring the foreign press is a major task for diplomats and spies: understanding the locals' perception of one's own government can yield critical information. It's also an attempt to get used to how human media treats leaders; the first time she was interviewed in the show she was blindsided by an ArmorPiercingQuestion and barely avoided crying on camera. |
| 177 | ** G'Kar is shown to enjoy a smattering of human culture (especially [[BoldlyComing human women]]), along with a smattering of pretty much everybody else's culture, too. At one point, he StockQuotes the W.B. Yeats poem "The Second Coming" to N'Toth, commenting that "Humans are wiser than we suspected." |
| 178 | *** He also enjoys Swedish Meatballs, but mainly because they are almost exactly the same as a Narn dish called breen. [[InexplicableCulturalTies It seems nearly every race has a dish that looks and tastes like Swedish meatballs]]. |
| 179 | ** Vir becomes very fond of Shirley Temples when he is driven to drink. |
| 180 | ** Inverted by Ambassador Mollari, who in one scene rants about the baffling lyrics to the 'hokey pokey' (the Minbari he's ranting to decide not to tell him they enjoyed his rendition), and in another disses country and western music. He also despises Reebo and Zooty, but eventually comes around. Of course, a lot of humans don't really get Reebo and Zooty, and Mollari freely admits that humans have produced a lot of great art, particularly music (he seems to really like music in general). |
| 181 | * In ''Series/{{Angel}}'', Lorne is a demon who was accidentally sucked through an interdimensional portal to Earth, where he immediately fell in love with show tunes, flash, and showbiz culture. On his world, music is actually considered a kind of terrifying aberration and causes most demons from his dimension to suffer ''[[BrownNote physical pain]]''. When he first got to our world, having never heard music before, he was so fascinated that he opened a karaoke bar. Of course, it turned out that his species could read a person's future from their singing, but he was the first to realise. |
| 182 | ** His species does have dancing, though. It's... not very good.[[note]]Numfar! Do the Dance of Honor![[/note]] |
| 183 | ** Upon having been transported to his home dimension: |
| 184 | --->'''Lorne:''' You know, ordinarily I handle bad news really well. I just drown my sorrows in an iced cold gin and tonic, little squeeze of lime. Except for they don't have them here! |
| 185 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': The Doctor enjoys quite a lot about Earth culture, to the point where he's considered by his fellow Gallifreyans to have [[GoingNative gone native]].[[note]]They do like cats, though.[[/note]] |
| 186 | ** He enjoys [[BritsLoveTea tea as much as an actual Englishman]]. |
| 187 | ** He craves various Earth sweets, ranging from jelly babies to jammy dodgers. He hates pears, though. |
| 188 | ** He loves a number of authors, including Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and J. K. Rowling. He enjoyed Harry Potter so much that he traveled forward a few months just so that he could read Deathly Hallows before it had been published. |
| 189 | ** TheMaster, on the other hand, absolutely ''adores'' the ''Series/{{Teletubbies}}''. ''"Have you seen these things? This planet is amazing! Televisions in their stomachs, now ''that's'' evolution!"'' |
| 190 | ** The Master also has a fondness for ''WesternAnimation/TheClangers'', as seen in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E3TheSeaDevils The Sea Devils]]". |
| 191 | ** In ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'', Sarah Jane's alien computer, Mr. Smith, seems to enjoy reading celebrity gossip... and looking at dating sites. |
| 192 | ** In the ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'' story "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho032TheTimeOfTheDaleks The Time of the Daleks]]", an alternate timeline is created where the Daleks are Shakespeare fans. |
| 193 | * One of the main themes of ''Series/{{Defiance}}'' is the integration of human and Votan cultures into a single whole. As a consequence there are several examples of individuals on one side developing an affinity for some aspect of the art or culture of the other. The most prominent example is Alak Tarr, the Castithan DJ, who spins Earth oldies every afternoon. |
| 194 | ** A very dark version is Rahm Tak, the arc villain of season 3, a Castithan officer of the Votan Collective who hates humans but loves their pop culture. |
| 195 | * {{Invoked}} Trope in ''Series/TheOrville''. A technologically superior alien species have the captain and XO in their PeopleZoo. Being unable to get them back by force, the crew trade an archive of trashy RealityTelevision shows for their freedom. |
| 196 | ** Lieutenant Commander Bortus was utterly amazed by the Claymation ''WesternAnimation/RudolphTheRedNosedReindeer'' and immediately got the Aesop ([[SpaceWhaleAesop Kinda... he did somehow conclude that Rudolph's father wanted to euthanize him]]). It was established in the episode that despite the overly masculine nature of his people, Moclans do enjoy storytelling and especially literature with AnAesop. He also expresses an interest in human music, proclaiming Destiny's Child to be wise writers and nearly singing "My Heart will Go On" on Karaoke Night. |
| 197 | ** Heveena, a Moclan female rebelling against Moclas' one-gender society, once asked Captain Mercer about media produced by Human females. He introduced her to Music/DollyParton's "9 to 5", which she takes such a liking to that she quotes part of the song to the Union Counsil while defending her colony of Moclan refugees. |
| 198 | * ''Series/Supergirl2015'': |
| 199 | ** Kara has this to say about chocolate pecan pie: |
| 200 | --->'''Kara:''' Chocolate pecan pie is the best dessert in the galaxy. And as someone who's been to twelve different planets, [[NotHyperbole I mean that literally]]. |
| 201 | ** J'onn J'onzz shares his love of Chocos with his comic-book counterpart, above. |
| 202 | * ''Series/UltramanMebius'' has our protagonist Mirai, who is the title character in disguise likes everything on Earth, as well as his TrademarkFavoriteFood being Curry Rice, which is his first meal on said planet. |
| 203 | * ''Series/GoodOmens2019'', being about the angel Aziraphale and demon Crowley who have lived on Earth since the beginning of time, basically have it as their hat. Just for starters, Aziraphale is a massive bibliophile (when angels are very business-only) and Crowley's clear preferred music/{{Leitmotif}} is almost always a {{Music/Queen}} track (whereas all demons shown have no discernible sense/taste in music at all). |
| 204 | * ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': In "[[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S2E28WillTheRealMartianPleaseStandUp Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?]]", Martians like [[spoiler:Ross]] think cigarettes taste wonderful, especially since they don't have anything like them back home. It also seems they [[spoiler:and Venusians]] enjoy human music. |
| 205 | * In the pilot of ''Series/SomethingIsOutThere'', Ta'Ra and her (short-lived) boyfriend are shown to be fans of ''Series/CrimeStory''. |
| 206 | [[/folder]] |
| 207 | |
| 208 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 209 | * ''TabletopGame/EclipsePhase'' has the only surviving species Transhumanity has encountered thus being the Factors, [[StarfishAlien a species of a sapient and highly evolved mold-analogue]]. They have a hard time experiencing stories and many forms of art in it's natural form, since the Factors are don't see or hear as humans understand it. Translating these into a form percievable into their highly developed sense of smell or touch still tends to bore them, since music and stories are a series of notes and experiences in sequence, and Factor cognition digests data in parallel; they ordering of events is of less interest than the relation between points. Factors ''do'' appreciate things that appeal to touch, taste, and smell, giving them a particularly great love of sculpture, and an appreciation for engineering, as well as being connoisseurs in scents, cuisine, and drink. They also have art from other species, including sculptures and bas reliefs that they'll trade to transhumans, but they're still quite short on details of who, where, or how they acquired such goods. |
| 210 | * In ''TabletopGame/{{Traveller}}'' the Vilani (who are TransplantedHumans rather then aliens proper but Administrivia/TropesAreFlexible) learn to love Terran computer design. Vilani computers are overspecialized (their computers are designed to handle one specific task) whereas Terran computers can be used to play games, talk on the net, watch videos or play music, and do accounting, all with the same operating system. |
| 211 | * In ''TabletopGame/TeenagersFromOuterSpace'', Earth is the only planet in the universe to have developed a teen culture. |
| 212 | * While most different races in ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' hate and want to kill each other, and even the comparatively multicultural Tau Empire generally maintains a certain level of segregation between different castes and client races in order to maintain the specializations required for their unique roles, some Orkz are shown to have a fondness for various aspects of human culture. The Blood Axe clan in particular have picked up such un-orky ideas as "stealth" and "tactics" instead of [[AttackAttackAttack just shooting everything that moves]]. Early editions had Stormboyz as discipline-obssessed and PuttingOnTheReich, while some orks actually worship the Chaos god Khorne. Beyond that, though, all Orkz, apart from the luddite Snakebitez, have an appreciation for human war machines and fancy hats and will try to capture them in working order wherever possible. |
| 213 | * In ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'', this trope influences game mechanics. The pattern spiders [[note]]"as beings whose function is to reinterpret the same act again and again"[[/note]] love calligraphy, and will respond faster to petitions that include it. |
| 214 | [[/folder]] |
| 215 | |
| 216 | [[folder:Toys]] |
| 217 | * ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'': Both heroic and villainous Cybertronians throughout the franchise have shown appreciation for Earth and its cultures. |
| 218 | ** ''Franchise/TransformersGenerationOne'': |
| 219 | *** Quite a few of the Autobots like particular things about Earth. Jazz and Blaster love our music. [[NatureLovingRobot Hound and Beachcomber love nature.]] Tracks loves cities as well as his [[CoolCar Corvette vehicle mode]]. And several of the 'Bots apparently have a fondness for a TV soap opera called ''As The The Kitchen Sinks.'' This is balanced by a few like Mirage and Huffer who don't like Earth much at all. |
| 220 | *** This is particularly amped up in the toyline/comic characters of this series. For example, the Cassettibot, Eject, is a self-professed sports junky who adores sports so much he hopes that, one day, Autobots and Decepticons will be able to replace war with competitive sports, which would be far less lethal. |
| 221 | *** The Junkions are so addicted to human television that they talk exclusively [[SpeaksInShoutOuts by mixing and matching phrases and slogans from old commercials together]]. |
| 222 | *** Rampage of the Predacons is addicted to Earth TV. It's the only thing that keeps him from living up to his name. |
| 223 | ** ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'': Dinobot, and to a lesser extent, Megatron. At various points, the two of them actually [[ShoutOut/ToShakespeare quote Shakespeare.]] In a sad bit of irony, none of the Maximals have such a reverence for human culture, or even a familiarity, because a lot of stuff on humanity has been classified. |
| 224 | ** ''Anime/TransformersRobotsInDisguise'': Villainous Predacon Sky-Byte tries reading human literature (including some of the works of Shakespeare himself) in an effort to better understand humans in order to manipulate them, but ends up actually becoming fond of it. |
| 225 | ** ''Anime/TransformersCybertron'': |
| 226 | *** It gets downright meta with the Decepticon Shortround, who somehow actually collects ''Transformers action figures'' (specifically including never-released prototypes of ''[[ComicBook/TransformersGeneration2 Generation 2]]'' figures). |
| 227 | *** The textstory "Force of Habit" has the Decepticon sharpshooter [[NerdInEvilsHelmet Hardtop]]. He's a fan of comics, collecting many from earth, and other organic planets. When the 'cons are beaten at the end of the story, they're left on a planet awaiting rescue, so he starts handing them comics for them to read (though insisting they don't get skidmarks or crease them). Runamuck admits they aren't that bad. |
| 228 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'': |
| 229 | *** Jazz is fascinated with all the stuff on Earth, like rain and traffic lights, though it does take him a while to realise little girls do not spit acidic slime. This is in contrast to his superior Sentinel Prime, who hates Earth and everything on it. |
| 230 | *** Bumbleebee and Bulkhead, again, with the two of them spending hours doing nothing but watching cartoons, playing video-games, and old b-movies. |
| 231 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'': |
| 232 | *** Knockout is a fan of human automobiles, choosing his alternate mode based off of aesthetics and performance (to paraphrase Knockout, he's not just an automobile, he's an automobile enthusiast). He even enjoys competing in human street racing and watched horror movies at drive-in theaters. This interest in human culture is particularly rare for a Decepticon. Ironically, he doesn't care much for the humans themselves, though that's expected given his allegiance. |
| 233 | *** Bulkhead likes metal music and monster truck rallies, while Bumblebee likes racing and cartoons. |
| 234 | *** Even Megatron gets in on this at times; if his character notes are to be believed, he enjoys ''[[TheInternetIsForCats online cat videos]]'', and his favorite song is apparently the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' theme, [[RealMenWearPink of all things]]. |
| 235 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TransformersRescueBots'': |
| 236 | *** Animated!Jazz would get along well with Boulder, who is likewise fascinated with pretty much everything Earth has to offer. |
| 237 | *** ''All'' of the Rescue Bots seem to like movies, though they have their own preferences on genres. Blades once binged on pirate movies and then spent most of the episode [[TalkLikeAPirate talking like one]]. |
| 238 | [[/folder]] |
| 239 | |
| 240 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 241 | * A couple times in ''Franchise/MassEffect''. |
| 242 | ** Doctor Mordin Solus is a weird case, in that he admits to having a negligible personal interest in cultural studies, but he did some Creator/GilbertAndSullivan as part of a cross-species cultural exploration. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxrO5-HPIAw Watch him perform his version]] of ''"[[MajorGeneralSong Modern Major General]]"''. |
| 243 | ** Asari love Egyptian artifacts. Especially because their own ancestors made hieroglyphs in a similar style. |
| 244 | ** Inverted with Grunt, a [[ProudWarriorRace krogan]] whose race is known to eat practically anything (something he himself admits to be willing to do) and be almost immune to food poisoning, is grossed out by the mere sight of ramen noodles and refuses to eat them. |
| 245 | -->''"It looks like... worms. Dead ones. Is that a human thing?"'' |
| 246 | ** Grunt does enjoy other aspects of Earth culture, though. One tidbit in the game you can uncover is a peculiar interest in books by Ernest Hemingway. Funnily enough he downloaded ''Literature/AFarewellToArms'' and immediately [[BloodKnight deleted it without reading]]. |
| 247 | ** An actual Shakespeare example starts in ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'' as an advertisement for a performance of Hamlet with an all-elcor cast. Note that elcor speak in a slow, flat monotone at all times. Emotion and tone are conveyed to Elcor with [[TheNoseKnows pheromones]] and imperceptible body language hints, and to everybody else with [[ThatMakesMeFeelAngry declarations of the tone of their next sentence before they say it]]. This makes the play a terrifyingly boring prospect. Although, the guy who came up with the whole idea is a human who wanted to give audiences the chance to judge Hamlet "by his deeds and not his emotions". By Videogame/MassEffect2 it becomes a runaway hit. All fourteen hours of it. |
| 248 | *** The all-elcor ''Hamlet'' returns in ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'', where Jaal (an angara) says he watched the whole thing. He enjoys it, and even declares it ''elevated'' the original text. |
| 249 | *** [[https://masseffect.fandom.com/wiki/Cerberus_Daily_News_-_December_2010#12.2F28.2F2010_-_Galaxy.27s_Longest-Running_Chess_Game_Concludes According to Cerberus Daily News]], chess has become extremely popular among the elcor. Given their race's penchant for slow movement and careful, lengthy deliberation before taking action, some games last for ''years''. |
| 250 | ** Cerberus Daily News also revealed that there are krogan who played American football. One of them even becoming the winning quarterback for UsefulNotes/SuperBowl CCXIX. |
| 251 | *** For the New York Giants, no less... |
| 252 | ** Some aliens have even converted to human religions; turians frequently practice Zen Buddhism and Confucian beliefs, and there are [[FantasticReligiousWeirdness recipes for dextro-based matzoh]] for turians and quarians who wish to join the seder meal. |
| 253 | ** [[ArtificialAtmosphericActions Background chatter]] also reveals that donuts, chocolate, and other confections have been developed for the other protein chirality, as well. |
| 254 | ** One of the expanded universe novels revealed that Go -- the ancient Chinese strategy game -- is enormously popular among the turians. |
| 255 | ** ''Andromeda'' also has an inversion, where rebellious human teenagers listen to batarian punk music. |
| 256 | ** An e-mail chain in the same game also reveals the krogan have been watching alien movies to get a handle on "courting". In-between the epic disasters, they come to enjoy one particular human movie and one krogan wants to name the main actor an honorary krogan. |
| 257 | * In ''VideoGame/TheSpaceBar'', it's noted on a number of occasions that aliens have some odd obsession with Creator/JerryLewis and think all of his films are hilarious and wonderful. |
| 258 | * Briefly mentioned in ''VideoGame/SwordOfTheStars'' with the Tarka regarding Archilochus and to some extent Roman Catholicism. The Hivers also enjoy human fermented foodstuffs, though they get drunk off cheese rather than wine. |
| 259 | * The Unggoy in ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' have a black market built around human soap operas, sitcoms, and the like. This probably has more to do with them being tasked to monitor UNSC communications due to their superiority at learning things (like human languages) quickly compared to the rest of the Covenant, rather than any fondness of humanity. |
| 260 | * The main villain of ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' is an alien conqueror with a love of English literature, particularly the works of Shakespeare and Jane Austen. [[spoiler:He even has Jane Austen herself preserved in his personal collection of humans]]. In fact, his entire planet considers Earth literature and art to be some of the finest in the universe. |
| 261 | * ''VideoGame/{{Destiny}}'': It’s mentioned that younger [[VestigialEmpire Fallen]] are starting to engage in this to the point that human culture is effectively replacing the old Fallen culture, which has been in gradual decline ever since [[ApocalypseHow the Collapse]]. Since the vast majority of Fallen now live in our solar system and the old ways are dying out, younger generations are increasingly [[HumanityIsInfectious latching onto human cultural concepts and generally becoming more human in mindset]] through simple proximity. This is exemplified by [[ArmsDealer the Spider]], who has a strange fascination with Pre-Collapse human society and customs; he [[CollectorOfTheStrange collects artifacts like old paintings]], talks like a character from an old-school FilmNoir, speaks fluent English and uses human turns of phrase, and has designed his organization around capitalist ideals like fair compensation and paid healthcare time. |
| 262 | * The Ma-non in ''VideoGame/XenobladeChroniclesX'' come to love human food, particularly [[TrademarkFavoriteFood pizza]], to a ridiculous degree. Their society had always treated food strictly as a source of nutrients and hadn't put much thought into flavoring it, so normal human food is revolutionary to them. The sudden increase in demand causes massive strain on the staff of a local pizza parlor however, ironically leading to the owner's resentment of his newfound customers. |
| 263 | * One possible anomaly you can investigate in ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'' involves your scientists stumbling upon a broadcast of one of the lost plays of a well-known playwright, evidently preserved for posterity by an alien fan who saw the original. For the two human empires, the playwright is explicitly named as Shakespeare himself. |
| 264 | * In ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', the third summer event takes place at ''an anime convention for Heroic Spirits'', with a Holy Grail as the prize for making and selling the best amateur work. The oni also have their own MagicalGirl franchise, which is revisited for the following Halloween event. |
| 265 | * In ''VideoGame/StardewValley'', the Dwarf loves any movie you take them to at the theater, despite having a language barrier (they only speak/understand Dwarfish), explaining that the colored lights are amazing, as is the concept of a "palace" for entertainment. |
| 266 | * [[TheGreys The Maian]] Protector One in ''VideoGame/PerfectDark'', who adopts the name [[Music/ElvisPresley Elvis]] and in one mission can be seen wearing a vest patterned like the American flag, which is what he had intended to wear to a reception at the White House for the official FirstContact between humans and Maians. The Maians as a whole, though still humanity's allies against [[ScaryDogmaticAliens the Skedar]], don't have such rose-tinted glasses on about humanity, giving high ratings on xenophobia and proclivity to violence in mission briefings. |
| 267 | * ''VideoGame/{{Freespace}}'': During the Terran-Vasudan War, the Terrans used Ancient Egypt-themed ReportingNames for Vasudan spacecraft, owing to the Vasudans hailing from a desert planet and having a highly formal, ritualistic culture. After the war ended with the two civilizations becoming allies, the Vasudan Emperor took the naming scheme as a compliment and made it official, to the point of adopting an Egyptian name to use when interacting with Terrans (notable since the war was started by a FirstContactFauxPas). |
| 268 | [[/folder]] |
| 269 | |
| 270 | [[folder:Visual Novels]] |
| 271 | * In ''VisualNovel/{{Last Chance in Xollywood}}'' it is said that the Federation of Planets in general likes Earth-produced movies, though they're implied to be seen as lowbrow, easily-consumed trash. (And given Last Chance's track record, aliens are not totally wrong...) |
| 272 | [[/folder]] |
| 273 | |
| 274 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 275 | * In ''Webcomic/{{Spacetrawler}}'', Dmitri licenses his grandmother's cookie recipe to an alien bakery. In the FramingStory, it's mentioned in passing that Russian tea cookies went on to become wildly popular on a number of planets. |
| 276 | ** This turns out to be rather important in the plot, when Dmitri's resultant wealth and fame open more than a few doors -- and lead him into a number of assassination attempts. |
| 277 | * ''ComicBook/{{Buck Godot|Zap Gun for Hire}}'': Humans were the only race in the universe to invent frozen popsicles. The idea was wildly popular, and now when humans throw a party, even their enemies will come by for dessert. |
| 278 | * ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'': Thanks to John's influence, Vriska develops a love for B-movies. Well, those featuring Creator/NicolasCage anyway. |
| 279 | * ''Webcomic/{{Melonpool}}'' / ''Webcomic/{{Zortic}}'': A crossover between these comics takes place on a space station, in which the crews of both comics' {{Cool Ship}}s wait in a long line of alien [[FanBoy fanboys]] to see the latest ''Franchise/StarWars'' movie. [[spoiler:Although the definition of "latest" turned out to vary.]] |
| 280 | * ''{{Imagion}}'' has an interesting take. Aside from the humans on the crew of the titular space ship, Earth has yet to develop space travel. However, the galactic community DOES pick up on our culture through observation, with galactic trade centers even selling Earth anime and video games. This is why so many aliens drop Earth pop culture references. Glen and Roy are bird-like aliens who are huge {{Otaku}} and often get into debates on nerd culture while sparring, at one point arguing over whether the Master Sword or the Four Sword from ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' was stronger while trading blows. The fishman alien Ezida has a love of showtunes and sings them in his head as a (very effective) form of {{Psychic Static}}. The non-oxygen-breathing feline-like chef on the ship, Matt, is shown to enjoy cooking Earth cuisine (supposedly because cooking is a much more complex art form on Earth), but can't eat Earth food due to his species having a different chemical makeup. Despite never having had the chance to taste any Earth food he cooks, the Earthlings aboard the ship say he's quite the {{Supreme Chef}}. |
| 281 | * ''Webcomic/KillSixBillionDemons'': {{Subverted|Trope}} by the KnightTemplar [[OurAngelsAreDifferent angel]] Juggernaut Star's interest in tea ceremonies: |
| 282 | -->'''Juggernaut Star:''' Exquisite. Humans study a lifetime to make cups like this. That is why I enjoy tea. A human poured their entire life -- into something so fragile. Something so completely meaningless. ''I find it hilarious''. |
| 283 | * ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'': Some [=AIs=] order human foods that they can't consume out of appreciation for their aromas or aesthetic qualities. For an android with military-grade olfactory sensors, a cup of tea is [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3147 quite an experience]]. |
| 284 | [[/folder]] |
| 285 | |
| 286 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 287 | * ''Literature/TheJenkinsverse'' has Krrkktnkk A'ktnnzzik'tk, an alien who isn't equipped to adequately pronounce anything resembling a human language, but who is a big fan of classical music, Jackie Chan films, and Star Trek. |
| 288 | ** Early on after moving to Cimbrean, Ava recommends the clanless Gaoian Gyotin to read ''Literature/ZenAndTheArtOfMotorcycleMaintenance''. A few years later he is ''Grandfather'' Gyotin of the clan Starmind, a Gaoian buddhist order. |
| 289 | ** Human culture is universally appreciated. While the rest of the galaxy has their own cultural output, human culture is ''much'' broader, and every species can find an aspect they enjoy, be it food, music, philosophy, literature, or swearing. |
| 290 | [[/folder]] |
| 291 | |
| 292 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 293 | * In ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', the aliens of Omicron Persei 8 love 20th century human sitcoms, going to war with humanity over missing the finale of ''Single Female Lawyer''. (Then again, they go to war over ''lots'' of things...) |
| 294 | ** Zoidberg's species love of anchovies was so great it caused the anchovies' extinction, though the way it's presented, it seems more [[AlienCatnip a full-fledged addiction]]. |
| 295 | ** Inverted when the team discovers "Popplers" a mysterious substance from an unknown planet which manages to fuel a global addiction and phenomenon among humans. [[spoiler: Turns out they're the infant form of the Omicron Persei 8 aliens.]] |
| 296 | * ''WesternAnimation/KidVsKat'': the cat is an alien masquerading as a pet. He still manages to acquire an addiction for the Fishy Frisky Bits cat food, and most of his plans center around transporting as much of it as he can back to his homeworld. |
| 297 | * ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'': |
| 298 | ** M'Gann/Miss Martian has apparently been [[AliensStealCable watching a human sitcom]] called ''Hello, Megan!'' since it aired in the 70's. This helps to explain her GirlNextDoor mannerisms and catchphrase. |
| 299 | ** One of the Forever People, Serifan likes cowboy westerns and wears a cowboy hat and poncho. |
| 300 | ** Forager loves Earth Holidays, finding Thanksgiving best of all due to its emphasis on FoundFamily. {{Justified}} because his own species is very communal. |
| 301 | * In ''WesternAnimation/MegasXLR'', Earth is unintentionally renowned throughout the universe for its snack foods. Aliens from everywhere visit Earth in disguise to shop at the planet's convenience stores. |
| 302 | * ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'': [[BigBad Limburger]] developed a strong fascination with the 1920's gangster era of Earth even before he was assigned to it. His human disguise is modeled after a typical gangster from that time. His direct superior was rather perturbed by this. |
| 303 | * ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGoofs'': Of all the aliens, TV junkie Bud Budliovich loves Earth's pop culture the most. He has favorite TV shows and dresses like a cowboy when watching Westerns. |
| 304 | * ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': |
| 305 | ** In "Arcade Mania", Garnet gets [[JustOneMoreLevel extremely addicted]] to a rhythm video game similar to ''VideoGame/SambaDeAmigo'' which her ThirdEye [[MundaneUtility makes her extremely good at]]. |
| 306 | ** Pearl tends to be the most [[InsignificantLittleBluePlanet condescending]] towards humans, but finds the human concept of [[LadyAndKnight knightly chivalry]] appealing. She sees [[UndyingLoyalty her relationship to Rose Quartz]] as very similar. Though her idea of what the relationship is like is actually closer to a {{Samurai}} and the ''bushido'' code of honor. Rebecca Sugar once described her as such in an early interview. She also mentions she likes pie, despite her distaste at eating. WordOfGod says that she enjoys the preparation process that pie baking requires. |
| 307 | ** Amethyst [[TheHedonist very much enjoys]] eating and sleeping, which to gems are [[EatingOptional unnecessary and foreign]]. She's also a big fan of an old sitcom called ''Lil' Butler''. Amethyst is generally the most "human" of the Gems, [[spoiler:since she was "born" on Earth]]. |
| 308 | ** [[spoiler:Peridot]] gets hopelessly addicted to ''[[SoapWithinAShow Camp Pining Hearts]]'', a [[AddictiveForeignSoapOpera trashy Canadian soap opera]]. Furthering the joke, she later gets [[spoiler: Lapis]] addicted to it, too. |
| 309 | ** [[spoiler: Peridot]] also gains an instant affection for the aesthetic of [[TheGreys Gray aliens]] in human pictures and media, even owning a stuffed toy of one. She probably doesn't know Grays are what humans think aliens look like, she just knows the design is appealing. |
| 310 | --->''Its large head swollen with thoughts! Its eyes... It understands.'' |
| 311 | ** {{Subverted}}, however, when Steven tries to show her a cat video from the internet, which just confuses her. |
| 312 | --->''...Why was this documented?'' |
| 313 | ** [[spoiler:While on a break from her relationship with Sapphire]], Ruby gets really into Greg's comic book collection. One of them is about a wandering {{cowboy}}, and Ruby admires the hero's rugged independence so much, she tries her hand at being a cowboy herself. |
| 314 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'': The younger members of the Manhattan Clan sneak into movie theaters, Hudson watches television, and Goliath has ''centuries'' of classic literature to catch up on. The Gargoyles all take to Elisa and Police in general because they share a lot of core ideals (Protect and Serve, the concept of working as a team). |
| 315 | * ''WesternAnimation/SuperNoobs'': |
| 316 | ** Memnock lives and breathes on this trope. He is shown to like many aspects of Earth culture including Earth cooking and rollercoasters. |
| 317 | ** Zenblock is more hesitant in exploring the cultures of Earth like his companion Memnock but Zenblock has a huge sweet tooth for candy on Earth. He also apparently likes western genres. |
| 318 | ** General Blorgon, Hedies, and Tecknut have also exhibited this same kind of behavior as they are shown in "Noobs Of The Round Table" to gleefully enjoy touring around the restaurants of Earth and go on waterslides. |
| 319 | ** Count Venamus, despite wishing for Earth to be infested with the virus, is shown to have a fascination for light up sneakers. |
| 320 | * ''WesternAnimation/TamagotchiVideoAdventures'': After visiting Earth, Ginjirotchi becomes a full-fledged ElvisImpersonator, taking on his deep voice and hairstyle and giving Cosmotchi a car similar to the one Elvis drove as a possible exhibit to complete the museum. |
| 321 | [[/folder]] |
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