Tropes associated with The Western.
Related indexes:
Sub-indexes:
Genres/subgenres:
- Canadian Western
- Cattle Punk
- Dawn of the Wild West
- New Old West
- Samurai Cowboy
- Space Western
- Spaghetti Western
- Twilight of the Old West
- Weird West
- The Western
Plots
- Bank Robbery
- Cattle Drive
- Clean Up the Town
- A Fistful of Rehashes
- The Magnificent Seven Samurai
- Protect This House
- Quest to the West
- Railroad Plot
- Run for the Border: Whether into Mexico or Canada (or vice-versa) or across Union/Confederate lines, needing to cross the border to safety (or arrest someone before they do) comes up fairly often.
- Settling the Frontier
- The Seven Western Plots
- Train Job
Settings
- Bleak Border Base
- Boom Town
- Close-Knit Community
- Friendly Local Chinatown: A massive number of Chinese immigrants worked on the railroads and in mines, and were forced into their own camps and towns elsewhere. This is the time period when a lot of Chinatowns were founded.
- Ghost Town
- Injun Country
- Kirk's Rock
- Outlaw Town
- The Savage South
- South of the Border
- The Wild West
Costume and Appearance Tropes
- Badass Bandolier
- Badass Beard
- Badass Mustache
- Badass Longcoat
- Boots of Toughness
- Dashingly Dapper Derby
- Evil Wears Black: Bad guys wear black hats.
- Good Colors, Evil Colors: The good guy always wears a white cowboy hat, the bad guy always a black hat.
- Nice Hat: Stetsons compulsory.
- Overalls and Gingham: Dress code for the Determined Homesteader.
- Perma-Stubble
- Waistcoat of Style
Guns and Gunplay
- Bang, Bang, BANG
- Blasting It Out of Their Hands
- Bottomless Magazines: Many old westerns had characters firing a six-shooter more than six times without reloading.
- Bullet Dancing
- Deliberately Jumping the Gun (*)
- Duel to the Death (*)
- Firing in the Air a Lot
- Firing One-Handed
- Guns Akimbo: Many westerns have characters firing with a gun in each hand.
- Gun Twirling
- Improbable Aiming Skills (*)
- Instant Death Bullet
- Mexican Standoff (*)
- More Dakka
- Quick Draw
- Revolvers Are Just Better
- Sawed-Off Shotgun: In the actual time and place, probably a cut-down shotgun or coach gun
rather than what we'd think of as a sawed-off, but the latter is common in the genre whether or not it's historically accurate.
- Showdown at High Noon
- Smoking Barrel Blowout
- Throw-Away Guns: Generally somewhat downplayed, but needing to pick up fresh guns from the gunmen you just shot comes up now and again.
- Shoot the Rope (*)
- Two Shots from Behind the Bar
Others
- All Deserts Have Cacti
- Automaton Horses
- "Awkward Silence" Entrance
- Bar Brawl
- Bar Slide
- Between My Legs
- Bloodless Carnage
- The Cavalry
- Chairman of the Brawl
- Chevalier vs. Rogue: Usually between The Hero or The Sheriff against the vandals or outlaws, or the cowboys against the Indians.
- Clint Squint
- Cool Horse
- Cowboy Episode
- Dead Man's Hand
- Dirt Forcefield: Common in pre-Spaghetti Western works.
- Dramatic Wind
- Ennio Morricone Pastiche
- Gambling Brawl
- Gold Fever
- Grievous Bottley Harm
- Invulnerable Horses
- Knows the Ropes: Covers lasso skills.
- Land in the Saddle
- Mobile Kiosk
- The Most Wanted
- Never Bring a Knife to a Fist Fight
- Not Big Enough for the Two of Us
- Obsessive-Compulsive Barkeeping
- Price on Their Head
- Railing Kill
- Riding into the Sunset
- Rollercoaster Mine
- Smoking Is Cool
- Tar and Feathers
- Traintop Battle
- "Wanted!" Poster
- White Stallion
- Wild West Armadillo
